A chunky penguin becomes a global sensation, liftoff on NASA's plan to find life beyond Earth, a local director makes his worldwide debut, and the story behind a mesmerising marine photo.
Chubby penguin breaks the internet
Pesto the King Penguin has broken the internet — and the scales.
At 10 months old, he weighs a whopping 23.5kg. That's more than both of his parents combined.
The chubby chick has waddled into the hearts of billions of people around the world.
He's an especially important addition to his Melbourne Aquarium home.
SEA LIFE Melbourne senior penguin keeper Michaela Smale said the other female penguins are "super excited" to have a boy in the colony.
3, 2, 1 ... liftoff
The search for life beyond Earth has taken off.
A NASA spacecraft has just set sail for Jupiter's icy moon, Europa. It's considered one of the most promising places to search for extraterrestrial life in the solar system.
The Europa Clipper spacecraft will peer underneath the moon's crust and find out whether conditions could support life.
University of Auckland associate professor in physics Nicholas Rattenbury said it is "known that Europa is a world that has a secret hidden underneath its surface".
Kiwi director makes his debut
A New Zealand story has received rave reviews at the Hawaii International Film Festival.
Miki Magasiva has made his directorial debut with the new film Tinā.
The fictional film follows one woman's healing journey after losing her daughter in the 2011 Christchurch earthquake.
While the premise is heavy, the film is billed as uplifting and premiered to a sold-out screening.
Wacky wildlife
A spectacular scene of tadpoles has earned its photographer the coveted title of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024.
From nearly 60,000 entries, Canadian photojournalist Shane Gross has taken the top prize with his image The Swarm of Life.
He said he spent several hours snorkelling to capture the photo.
"The hardest part about capturing these tadpoles is they are small and black in this bright background. When you look at them up close, they aren't all black — they have these flecks of gold. They are actually quite beautiful."
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