Contact with aliens could kill us all

Astronomers have warned that contact with aliens could result in “the end of all life on Earth”. In an op-ed for The Washington Post, physicist Mark Buchanan writes: “Chances are, we should all be grateful that we don’t yet have any evidence of contact with alien civilisations.” He continues that “attempting to communicate with extraterrestrials, if they do exist, could be extremely dangerous for us”. Joe Gertz, another astronomer, adds that alien contact could result in “the reckless endangerment of all mankind”.

Cocaine parcels found in banana delivery

A supermarket chain says employees at one of its Warsaw stores have found parcels of cocaine in a delivery of bananas. Police said the packages contained over 160 kilograms of cocaine worth 30 million zlotys (£5.7m). The grocery firm says the workers “immediately notified the police, who quickly secured the batch of goods and started an investigation that is currently underway”.

Prehistoric crocodile discovered

A new species of giant prehistoric crocodile that roamed south-east Queensland’s waterways millions of years ago has been discovered. According to the researchers, the new species, named Gunggamarandu maunala, is “one of the largest crocs to have ever inhabited” the continent”. Researchers wrote: “The results hint at a potential ghost lineage between European and Australian tomistomines going back more than 50 million years.”