A man-made shooting star will add extra sparkle to a spectacular display of Perseid meteors.
When the meteors reach their peak on tonight they will be accompanied by the International Space Station outshining the brightest stars.
Visible across much of Europe, the space station will appear as a dazzling point of light moving rapidly across the sky.
The Perseids make an August appearance each year as the Earth passes through debris shed by the comet Swift-Tuttle.
Lennon hanky under the hammer
A signed “luv Cilla” handkerchief along with John Lennon’s detention note from his days as a Liverpudlian schoolboy are being placed up for auction later this month amongst a collection of other Beatles memorabilia.
The poignantly signed hanky from Cilla Black, who died just over a week ago at her Spanish villa after a fall, is one of 328 items being auctioned off to enthusiasts and investors in the stars’ home city of Liverpool as part of the annual Beatles Auction.
The hanky is said to be from around 1964 and is expected to fetch between £20-£30. The Quarry Bank High School detention note dated 1955 speaks of a “noisy” Lennon during his time in Class 3B over the month-long period and has a guide price of between £2,200 and £2,500.
Wave goodbye to keys, TV remotes
Smartphones becoming more powerful will spell the end of keys, TV remotes and cash within the next 10 years, according to a futurist.
Ian Pearson has suggested that because of the ever-increasing power of technology – in particular smartphones – a host of everyday items will become redundant in the next decade as smartphone tools replace them. These include keys, pocket mirrors, torches, travel tickets, driving licences and cash.
Pearson, who previously predicted the arrival of text messaging, has partnered with mobile network TalkTalk Mobile to come up with his expectations, which come in the wake of new data from Ofcom which showed smartphone use has overtaken laptops for the first time when it comes to accessing the internet.
Apology after tactless tweet
Walt Disney Japan has apologised after a tweet sent from its corporate Twitter account wished readers “congratulations on a not special day” on the 70th anniversary of the US atomic bombing of Nagasaki.
In English, the tweet conveyed “A very merry unbirthday to you!” from a song in Alice in Wonderland. The Japanese translation described the day as “not special,” prompting sharp criticism from readers, who questioned the timing of the tweet. “Why are you offering congratulations, Disney-san?” said one.
The company offered “deep apologies for causing discomfort,” saying it would take care to manage the Twitter account more carefully.
Cupcake claim for farewell party
Officials in the US state of Washington want a former city employee to pay back nearly $800 (€725) in taxpayer money she spent on cupcakes for her own office farewell party.
When former Yakima human resources director Cheryl Ann Mattia resigned in December, she ordered $757.40 worth of gourmet cupcakes from a local cafe. City manager Tony O’Rourke branded the spending a “gross misuse” of taxpayer money
Mattia says the cost of the cupcakes stemmed from a misunderstanding between her and a staff member when the order was placed, but says it was a legitimate expense.
O’Rourke said the city could take her to a small claims court to recoup the money.