Australia / Antarctica News Headlines - Yahoo! News

Reds edge Brumbies to stay in Super 15 hunt

Sat, 26 May 2012 10:11:32 -0400

Defending champions Queensland Reds kept alive their Super 15 playoff hopes with a fighting 13-12 win over the ACT Brumbies in Canberra on Saturday.

Reds survive last gasp penalty shot to tame Brumbies 13-12

Sat, 26 May 2012 08:06:14 -0400

(Reuters) - Zack Holmes missed a penalty kick seconds before the final whistle to allow the Queensland Reds to prevail 13-12 over the ACT Brumbies in a dour territorial battle in their Super Rugby match in Canberra on Saturday. Holmes's miss brought a dramatic end to what had been for the most part an uninspiring arm-wrestle between two Australian conference rivals too timid to carry the ball in hand and all too eager to kick it away. ...

World's Largest Radio Telescope to Be Shared by South Africa, Australia

Sat, 26 May 2012 06:24:32 -0400

The world's largest and most sensitive radio telescope will be shared by South Africa and Australia, project organizers announced today (May 25).

Gear scores two tries as Highlanders see off Blues

Sat, 26 May 2012 06:01:32 -0400

(Reuters) - Winger Hosea Gear raised his hand for All Blacks selection with a brace of tries as the visiting Otago Highlanders withstood a late charge by the Auckland Blues to win their Super Rugby match 27-20 at Eden Park on Saturday. Gear, whose omission from a 35-man squad for the world champion All Blacks raised eyebrows in New Zealand, scored a try in each half to keep the Highlanders' playoff ambitions alive in the southern hemisphere provincial competition. ...

All Blacks seek home comforts before Aussie tests

Sat, 26 May 2012 04:53:11 -0400

(Reuters) - World champions New Zealand will stay in New Zealand longer to prepare for away tests against Australia after losing the final Tri-Nations trophy to their arch-rivals last year. The world number one All Blacks have customarily landed in Australia up to a week in advance of tests but will delay their arrival until two days before their two away tests against the Wallabies this year. "It's more about us trying to raise the bar," All Blacks manager Darren Shand told Fairfax Media. ...

Perenara sparks Hurricanes' record-breaking win over Rebels

Sat, 26 May 2012 04:23:16 -0400

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - Scrumhalf TJ Perenara emphatically stamped his future All Blacks credentials into the national consciousness on Saturday as the Wellington Hurricanes demolished the Melbourne Rebels 66-24 in their Super Rugby match. The 20-year-old was widely considered unlucky not to have made Steve Hansen's extended All Blacks training squad, which re-assembles on Sunday in New Zealand's capital before being thinned down for three tests against Ireland next month. ...

Australia hails surprise super-telescope decision

Fri, 25 May 2012 22:47:25 -0400

Australia has hailed a surprise decision giving it a role in a radio telescope project aimed at revolutionising astronomy, vowing to draw on its decades of experience in space science.

New telescope to be in South Africa, Australia

Fri, 25 May 2012 20:19:05 -0400

Australia and South Africa will share hosting of a giant radio telescope made up of thousands of separate dishes and intended to help scientists figure out the make-up of the universe, the international consortium overseeing the project announced Friday.

Canadian women in combat roles bring their experiences to Australia

Fri, 25 May 2012 15:30:20 -0400

OTTAWA - Col. Jennie Carignan figures she covered 10,000 kilometres of bomb-riddled, dusty roads in Afghanistan as a combat engineer.

Lindsay Lohan's Liz Taylor gets her Richard Burton

Fri, 25 May 2012 14:50:51 -0400

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Lindsay Lohan's Elizabeth Taylor has her Richard Burton: "True Blood" and "Ugly Betty" actor Grant Bowler has signed on to "Liz & Dick," Lifetime's movie about the couple's tempestuous relationship. New Zealand native Bowler is best known to TV viewers as werewolf Cooter on "True Blood," as well as the love interest of Vanessa Williams' Wilhelmina on "Ugly Betty." He recently guest-starred on the ABC primetime soap "GCB. ...

Indonesia says to release Australian Corby in 2017

Fri, 25 May 2012 13:27:28 -0400

Indonesia is due to release jailed Australian drug trafficker Schapelle Corby in September 2017, a prison chief said Friday, after she had five years slashed off her 20-year term.

Giant telescope to explore far reaches of cosmos

Fri, 25 May 2012 12:03:15 -0400

LONDON/AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - The world's biggest and most advanced radio telescope, capable of detecting signs of extraterrestrial life in the far reaches of the universe, will be located in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. The decision to split the location of the $2 billion "Square Kilometre Array" followed intense lobbying by the two leading bidders, South Africa one side and a joint bid from Australia and New Zealand on the other. ...

Giant telescope to explore far reaches of cosmos

Fri, 25 May 2012 11:56:52 -0400

Jail for 2 blamed for New Zealand cargo ship spill

Fri, 25 May 2012 10:09:47 -0400

The captain and the navigator of a ship that ran aground on a New Zealand reef last year in what authorities have called the country's worst maritime environmental disaster were each sentenced Friday to seven months in jail.

Earthquake rattles New Zealand city; no injuries

Fri, 25 May 2012 10:07:16 -0400

A magnitude-4.7 earthquake has rattled the quake-weary New Zealand city of Christchurch. There are no initial reports of serious injuries or damage.

Ship's captain jailed over New Zealand oil spill

Fri, 25 May 2012 09:01:20 -0400

The captain and second officer of a ship that caused New Zealand's biggest sea pollution disaster when it ploughed into an offshore reef were both jailed for seven months on Friday.

Giant radio telescope gets split location

Fri, 25 May 2012 08:54:10 -0400

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - The world's biggest and most advanced radio telescope, capable of detecting signs of extraterrestrial life in the far reaches of the universe, will be split between the two leading bidders for the project; South Africa and Australia with New Zealand. The decision was made at a meeting of the nations controlling the project, at Schipol Airport in the Netherlands on Friday.

Australia defiant on WTO cigarette challenge

Fri, 25 May 2012 06:41:55 -0400

Australia said Friday it would "vigorously defend" itself against complaints about its plan for plain cigarette packaging made by Honduras and Ukraine to the World Trade Organisation.

Captain, navigator of cargo ship in New Zealand's worst maritime oil spill get 7 months jail

Fri, 25 May 2012 04:28:16 -0400

WELLINGTON, New Zealand - The captain and the navigating officer of a ship that ran aground on a New Zealand reef have each been sentenced to seven months in jail.

Hockey coach demands improvement from India

Fri, 25 May 2012 04:10:49 -0400

India's hockey coach ripped into his squad Friday over its pummelling by New Zealand a day before, saying much work remained before the former power was ready for the London Games.

Australia assures on beef after US E-coli scare

Fri, 25 May 2012 02:27:07 -0400

Australia moved to assure its meat export partners and domestic market that its beef was safe after it was linked to an E-coli contamination scare in the United States.

Marine reserves boost fish: Australian study

Fri, 25 May 2012 01:14:28 -0400

Australian researchers tracking life on the Great Barrier Reef said they have proven a long-debated theory that fish born in marine reserves boost overall ocean stocks by dispersing widely.

Rice, Jones in Aussie swim team for US warm-up

Thu, 24 May 2012 23:48:01 -0400

Triple Olympic gold medallist Stephanie Rice will spearhead an Australian contingent at the Santa Clara International Grand Prix in California next week ahead of the London Olympics, according to Swimming Australia.

New Zealand's Christchurch shaken by 5.2 quake

Thu, 24 May 2012 23:07:27 -0400

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - New Zealand's second largest city Christchurch was shaken by a magnitude 5.2 earthquake on Friday, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. The government seismology agency said the quake was centered 10 kilometers east of the city at a depth of 11 kilometers. The city was devastated by a force 6.3 quake in February last year, killing nearly 200 people, and destroying the central business district and making large areas of surrounding suburbs uninhabitable. ...

Deep-Sea Dive Picks Up Up Extreme-Living Stowaways

Thu, 24 May 2012 16:03:56 -0400

Wherever humans go, we seem to carry stowaways with us. This is how fire ants arrived in the southern U.S., how rats traveled to remote islands and how exotic seeds, fungi and insects are showing up in Antarctica.

News Summary: N Zealand aiming to be smoke-free

Thu, 24 May 2012 16:01:17 -0400

NO SMOKING: New Zealand's government on Thursday announced a 40 percent hike in tobacco taxes over the next four years in pursuit of a pledge to wipe out smoking by 2025. About 20 percent of adults here smoke, compared with 16 percent in the U.S., 23 percent in China and 27 percent in France.

Factbox: What does the Square Kilometre Array do?

Thu, 24 May 2012 10:28:22 -0400

(Reuters) - A decision on where to site the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope, either South Africa or Australia and New Zealand, could be made on Friday. Scientists hope the telescope will help answer fundamental questions about the origin and evolution of the universe, and whether it contains life beyond our planet. Here is a look at the radio telescope: WHAT DOES IT DO? -The SKA will drive technology development particularly in information and communication technology. ...

Aussie boat race activist banned from diamond jubilee events

Thu, 24 May 2012 09:47:58 -0400

The Australian protester who halted this year's Oxford-Cambridge boat race on Wednesday denied a charge of causing a public nuisance and was told to stay away from events involving the royal family.

Assault case against Aussie IPL cricketer dropped

Thu, 24 May 2012 03:11:26 -0400

Australian cricketer Luke Pomersbach is to be cleared of accusations that he molested a woman and beat up her fiance during the IPL tournament in India, his lawyer said on Thursday.

New Zealand raises tobacco taxes sharply, aiming to become smoke-free country

Thu, 24 May 2012 02:38:10 -0400

WELLINGTON, New Zealand - There are smoke-free bars, smoke-free parks, even smoke-free college campuses. But a smoke-free country?