The Northern Territory Government is backing a A$236 million Australian space station in Arnhem Land, and wants to unlock federal funds to develop it. Chief Minister Michael Gunner says the Government is in talks with Aboriginal traditional owners about leasing land near Nhulunbuy for a satellite launch site. Equatorial Launch Australia's space base proposal is being assessed by both the taxpayer-funded A$5 billion Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility and the NT Industry Development Fund. ELA is seeking an estimated A$10.6 million for stage one of the project and A$225 million for the following two phases. Northern Australia's proximity to the equator means rockets take off faster and more cheaply. The remote location also minimises risks to people and property.
Health department officials in New York are warning people about a potentially rabid and "unusually aggressive squirrel" that has recently bitten five people in a park in Brooklyn. The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene urged anyone who has come under squirrel attack since July 10 to seek treatment for rabies exposure and take victimised pets to a veterinarian. The attacks occurred near the Parkside and Ocean Avenue entrance to Prospect Park in Brooklyn, according to the New York City health department. "This is an isolated incident. Squirrels are rarely infected with rabies; however, based on the unusual aggressive behaviour, the Health Department is acting under the assumption that the animal is rabid," the department said.
US police officer Mohamed Noor is maintaining his wall of silence despite loud protests in the aftermath of the shooting death of Australian meditation and yoga teacher Justine Damond. Noor's lawyer, Thomas Plunkett, confirmed to AAP the besieged Somali-born policeman continues to exercise his legal right not to be interviewed by investigators probing Damond's death. Noor also will not speak to the public or media about last week's shooting.
A woman convicted of befriending another woman at a suburban Philadelphia shopping centre and then taking her baby has been sentenced to 1½ to seven years in prison. Cherie Amoore, 33, of Wayne, was convicted in March of kidnapping and child concealment in the March 2016 events at the King of Prussia Mall. A Montgomery County judge imposed the sentence. Prosecutors said Amoore struck up a conversation with the child's mother and then took the 7-week-old boy when the mother was distracted by another child. Amoore's lawyer, who didn't contest the facts during a bench trial earlier this year, said his client has since received mental health treatment.
China is preparing for a potential crisis with North Korea by increasing its defences along their shared border, including establishing a new border brigade and building bunkers for civilians, the Wall Street Journal reported. China has been strengthening its defences along the North Korean border since Pyongyang's first nuclear test in 2006, including building a fence along parts of the border and stepping up patrols. China has also realigned military forces in the country's northeast, the report added, citing Chinese military and government websites and Chinese and foreign experts.
