Japan launches spacecraft to mysterious moons of Mars in a bold mission to bring home soil samples

A Japanese spacecraft rocketed toward Mars on Tuesday on a quest to explore its mysterious moons and bring back samples.

Five of the world’s space agencies joined forces for the five-year mission that will attempt to land a robotic prospector plus a rover on Phobos, the larger and closer of Mars’ two pint-sized moons.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, which is leading the bold sampling effort, launched the spacecraft before dawn from the country's main spaceport on Tanegashima Island. Officials declared success an hour later when the spacecraft separated as planned from the rocket's upper stage. Flight controllers burst into applause and jumped to their feet, shaking hands and embracing.

No one has managed to get samples from Mars or its moons yet

CFB Wainwright fire highlights long, painful process of burn recovery, specialists say

TORONTO - The coming days and weeks will be critical for patients with severe burns from Saturday's devastating fire at a military base in central Alberta as they face life-threatening risks of infection and a long, painful road to recovery, burn specialists say.

Dr. Vincent Gabriel, medical director at Calgary Firefighters Burn Treatment Centre at Foothills Medical Centre, said Monday that there are several variables in how a patient recovers, including age, the percentage of the body that's burned and any complications that may arise.

But for serious cases in general, "we would count recovery from burn injury not in days or weeks … but in months and in years, with the hope that a burn survivor returns to their pre-injury role," Gabriel said, stressing that he was not giving details about any of the specific patients involved in the fire at CFB Wainwright.

"Unfortunately, there are times where there's permanent impairment, so it's a long process," he said.

Quebec’s strategic maple syrup reserve running dry amid high demand

MONTRÉAL - The head of Quebec's maple syrup producers' association says the province's strategic syrup reserve has run dry amid high demand for the product.

Québec Maple Syrup Producers President Luc Goulet says government support will be needed to ensure the industry doesn't miss out on opportunities to grow the sector.

Maple syrup yields depend on weather conditions.

As a result, the producers' association has established a strategic reserve to ensure prices and supply remain relatively stable.

Advocates planting the seed of a tree protection law in Winnipeg’s election

WINNIPEG - The giants that Diane Poulin used to live among are all dead, but she's hoping to protect the ones still left in Winnipeg.

“I had five mature elm trees right in front of my house that leaned over the street and formed a beautiful canopy, and they're all gone now,” she says.

In her backyard was the biggest of the bunch.

"He was like the grandfather of the neighbourhood … his canopy filled our backyard, and he’s gone."

Reversing Manitoba’s moose decline

As Manitoba’s retired provincial moose manager, I have watched our moose population plummet from historic highs to a state of systemic vulnerability. Reversing this decline, which has seen numbers drop from 45,000 during the 1960s to fewer than 20,000 today, will require balancing the conservation needs of moose, Section 35 constitutional treaty rights, licensed hunter expectations and economic development.

To avert further attrition, all stakeholders, including Manitoba Natural Resources, must accept responsibility for their part in this decline, with industrial and recreational development acting as the primary drivers.

This long-overdue discussion must not devolve into a debate over competing hunting rights; instead, it must focus entirely on building long-term population resilience. Wildlife management must evolve alongside the changing landscapes and dynamics that development brings. We can no longer practise the same methods and hope for a better result. Immediate action is required.

As long as moose are legally managed as a “natural resource,” they will inevitably be viewed through the lens of a commodity rather than a vulnerable species in need of protection. For any population to remain stable or grow, total mortality cannot exceed recruitment — the survival of calves to breeding age. If mortality outpaces recruitment, decline is inevitable.

Halifax’s beloved 104-year-old tortoise is recovering after a successful surgery

Believed to be the oldest living gopher tortoise, Gus underwent a procedure to remove a bladder stone on Tuesday. The Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History, where Gus lives, says he is now resting comfortably in private

Orphaned polar bear cub has new home at Winnipeg zoo, but life in captivity speaks to complicated challenges facing species

It’s a grey September afternoon and a small group is gathered for a special behind-the-scenes visit with Assiniboine Park Zoo’s newest resident.

“Heeeeere, bubba,” animal-care specialist Caitlin Gordon-Hall hollers from between a double layer of chain-link fencing.

After a beat, a small white face appears at the entrance of the private enclosure. The polar bear cub sniffs the air before trundling toward the fence, where his keepers have been working to encourage calm behaviour around humans ahead of his public debut on Thursday.

Gordon-Hall offers sing-song affirmations while the cub, who is nearly 200 pounds and 10 or 11 months old, observes the fawning strangers with guarded curiosity.

Amazon in the weeds over damage to tall grass reserve

Patricia Dutchak was devastated when she first saw the wide swaths of crushed grass and upturned soil at Winnipeg’s Rotary Prairie Nature Park, a municipal heritage site.

“This is a very rare ecosystem, a remnant of tall grass prairie, there’s barely any left in the world, and to come here and see all this damage was heartbreaking,” Dutchak, chair of the Transcona Rotary Club’s parks committee, says.

The club is responsible for maintaining the protected green space, which was significantly damaged this summer when a fence between the park and the neighbouring Amazon distribution centre was relocated.

The 20-acre nature preserve is situated on a narrow tract of land on Regent Avenue West in the commercial heart of Transcona. The park received its municipal heritage designation in 1992 and is, today, surrounded by high-traffic streets, industrial warehouses and car dealerships.

Scientist who hunts mysterious ghost particles in the Antarctic ice wins Nobel Prize for physics

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Belgian-born scientist Francis Halzen won the Nobel Prize in physics Tuesday for his efforts to demystify a rare group of neutrinos, tiny cosmic particles that researchers believe offer clues to how the universe evolved.

Halzen said he had been told he was among the favorites for the prize since he first published about cosmic neutrinos in 2013. In any given year, he thought he had a 1 in 20 chance to win a Nobel.

“And I just had to live long enough, so here I am,” the 82-year-old told The Associated Press in an interview in Turin, Italy.

Halzen, a physicist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the U.S., said the research was a huge collaborative effort. He was working on a new research proposal when the Nobel Physics Committee called.

Slugs gone, bugs gone, strawberries thriving as invasive lizards boom in B.C.

Tracy Menzies had been at war with slugs in her backyard garden as they've always managed to beat her to the harvest, but not this year.

The strawberries in her garden this season turned out to be "absolutely beautiful."

It turns out the slugs are facing a formidable foe — the invasive European wall lizard, which experts say are spreading fast and eating everything in their path, from insects and spiders to slugs.

Menzies, who lives near the Gorge Waterway in Saanich, said she started noticing the lizards in her yard in growing numbers a few months ago, darting through her garden and scurrying under foot.

Here’s why experts say now is an ideal time to protect yourself from flu

It’s October and time for flu shots.

Medical experts urge getting a flu vaccination soon, before influenza starts spreading widely — and to get up to date on protection against other fall respiratory viruses, too. Updated COVID-19 shots are available now, plus shots for people especially vulnerable to another winter risk called RSV.

While these infections make many people feel miserable for a few days before they recover, every year flu alone causes hundreds of thousands of hospitalizations in the U.S. and kills tens of thousands.

Vaccination isn’t “a guarantee that we’re going to prevent illness. But just like the seat belt in your car, it decreases risk” of the worst outcomes, said Dr. Ryan Stanton of the American College of Emergency Physicians.

Michael J. Fox promoted to companion level of Order of Canada

OTTAWA - Celebrated actor and Parkinson’s disease activist Michael J. Fox said he felt both "pride" and "humility" while receiving a promotion within the Order of Canada on Friday.

Spectators stood and applauded Fox at Rideau Hall as Gov. Gen. Louise Arbour officially named him to the companion level of the Order of Canada.

Rideau Hall says Fox was elevated to the companion level to honour his "powerful global advocacy and unflinching honesty about Parkinson's."

"It's so many things. But mostly it's just growing up in Canada, loving this country, loving what it stands for and how it's progressed and corrected course when it needed to, and stayed the course when it needed to," Fox told The Canadian Press following the ceremony.

Critical mineral development: Grid Metals promotes southeast Manitoba cesium deposit

An exploration company says it’s found the second-largest cesium deposit to be developed in the Western world — and it’s looking to mine in southeastern Manitoba.

Cesium is used in the defence sector, solar panels, internet and phone networks and GPS satellites, among other things. Canadian and United States governments have both deemed it a critical mineral.

It’s rare: just six cesium deposits have been found globally, according to the company behind the Manitoba site.

Grid Metals, a Toronto-based firm, spent October 2025 through March drilling holes in land 130 kilometres east of Winnipeg, at its Falcon West property.

Indigenous groups given just two months to consult on pipeline project designation

OTTAWA - Indigenous communities along the route for the newly announced West Coast oil pipeline were given just two months for consultations on whether the pipeline should be designated a project of national interest — and that was still more than the government had planned.

At first, the consultations were to take place over one month. They were extended to two months after Indigenous leaders raised concerns about the tight timeline.

A summary of those consultations posted online by the federal government says Indigenous groups decried a lack of information about the project, which they said prevented them from fully assessing its impact.

Prime Minister Mark Carney promised his major projects agenda would not interfere with Canada's obligations under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous leaders have warned his government risks violating their rights with "national interest" designations through the Major Projects Office and the controversial Building Canada Act.

How has medical understanding of ‘shaken baby syndrome’ evolved?

TORONTO - An Ontario mother’s acquittal in the death of her infant son is the latest display of medical evidence of shaken baby syndrome discredited in the courtroom.

Jennifer Gaskin had been convicted of manslaughter in the death of her 2 1/2-month-old son Joeseph in 2002, after two medical experts testified the child had died as a result of shaken baby syndrome.

But an Appeal Court ruled Tuesday that Gaskin’s wrongful conviction was “based on the discredited 'shaken baby syndrome' as the cause of a child's death brought about, in part, by unreliable expert evidence."

The death should have been classified as “undetermined,” according to three experts Gaskin’s legal team retained.

Canadian astronaut reaches International Space Station for six-month mission

MERRITT ISLAND - Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk's first thought after being told Thursday he had made it to space was one of disbelief.

"I don't really believe it yet," Kutryk said after being told the crew was in orbit, about 10 minutes after blasting off from Florida as part of the NASA SpaceX Crew 13 mission to the International Space Station.

"It does feel weird, though."

The 44-year-old is a mission specialist on the four-person crew, which also includes commander Jessica Watkins and pilot Luke Delaney — both of NASA — and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov, another mission specialist.

Winnipeg’s challenge: preparing for weather extremes

A new United Nations report warns the world will exceed the 1.5 C Paris limit by 2030.

Shoal Lake Lodge a manifestation of reconciliation in action

Before proceeding with this story, it is so very important to acknowledge that Shoal Lake (Treaty 3 Territory) is the source of Winnipeg’s drinking water.

Ironically, for all the years that we have enjoyed the gift of some of the best and safest water in the world, those who reside on the shores of its source have suffered without. Years’ long boil water advisories caused insecurity of not having a safe source of water for children and families. That this was only very recently addressed and solved in a just and hopefully lasting way is commentary for another time and in another place.

Today, in the interest in encouraging positive and meaningful conversations in these difficult and divisive time — and in the spirit of looking at the energy of what lies ahead rather than looking back at what was — there is hope. And possibility.

Shoal Lake is situated approximately two hours east of Winnipeg, sitting astride the Manitoba-Ontario border. Two different roads access separate First Nation communities that are on the lake. The first being Freedom Road, completed in June 2018, which intersects the Trans-Canada Highway just west of Falcon Lake, and now allows community members of Shoal Lake FN 40 vehicle access. Second is Ontario Highway 673, across the provincial border, which allows road access to Iskatewizaagegan (Shoal Lake) No. 39.

Kinew urges Bloodvein First Nation to reconsider turning moose hunters away

SELKIRK - Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew is urging a First Nation to reconsider turning away licensed hunters this season, saying the move could incite "backlash" and lead to hatred toward Indigenous people.

Bloodvein River First Nation, north of Winnipeg, set up a check stop near the community last year to prevent drugs and alcohol from being brought in. The community also erected signs that prohibited non-members from hunting in their territory and deterred hunters from accessing public land in the area, citing a dwindling moose population.

The Manitoba Wildlife Federation said this week it has received five reports that the community was turning hunters away again after the moose hunting season began on Monday.

Kinew told reporters on Friday that he understands people in Bloodvein are passionate about the moose population, but that treaties are about sharing the land.

Concrete doc befits brutalist Winnipeg

Moviegoers across North America are pounding the pavement and lining up around the block to see The History of Concrete, small-screen documentarian John Wilson’s feature-length debut.

Canadian astronaut ready for NASA mission to International Space Station

HOUSTON - Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk said he's been dreaming of going to space for a long time — and assuming everything goes to plan, he could fulfil that goal next week.

"I always dreamt of it and thought it would be the most wonderful experience," Kutryk said on Thursday.

The 44-year-old is one of four people assigned to NASA's SpaceX Crew 13 mission heading to the International Space Station.

The crew will spend six months at the station conducting experiments, doing research and taking part in critical maintenance work.

‘Extremely disappointed’: hunters being turned away near Bloodvein First Nation, Manitoba Wildlife Federation says

The Manitoba Wildlife Federation says hunters are again being refused access to land near Bloodvein River First Nation, a year after leadership told court it would let them through.

David Suzuki says Mark Carney is driving Canada ‘into a ditch’ with shift on climate

OTTAWA - David Suzuki said that when Prime Minister Mark Carney was first elected last year, he celebrated. Having met and interviewed the prime minister before, the national environmentalist icon said he knew Carney understood the challenges of climate change.

But in an interview with The Canadian Press, Suzuki said he now feels he was "wilfully blind" to Carney's promises of action on climate, despite warnings from his longtime friend the late Stephen Lewis, who predicted the agenda of a banker — and now politician — would supersede Carney's views on addressing climate change.

"I don't see that there's going to be any deviation from the driving of our country into the ditch," Suzuki said.

He acknowledges that Carney's actions come as Canadians' views on climate have shifted to other priorities.

A look at AI doomsday scenarios that researchers say could put humanity at risk

For years, artificial intelligence researchers have warned of ways the technology could wipe out humanity: AI bots could design an unstoppable disease, unleash a nuclear war, or transform all of Earth into paper clip factories, as one thought experiment goes.

Debates inside the AI industry and beyond over the plausibility of these doomsday scenarios have heated up since several executives endorsed slowing the technology's development for safety reasons.

Despite warnings of the potential for humans to lose their grip on the technology, some suspect the worst-case scenarios described by the AI companies themselves have more to do with validating the importance of their work than reality.

“These arguments just don’t really hold water. I think they’re sci-fi and they’re enticing to a certain childish style of thinking and it’s very tempting for the frontier labs because it helps them recruit certain types of folks,” said Juan Andrés Guerrero-Saade, a researcher at cybersecurity firm SentinelOne and a member of OpenAI’s Frontier Risk Council.