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Tracking a Nazi loot train

Tracking a Nazi loot train

THE deathbed confession of a dying Nazi soldier. A train loaded with 300 tons of gold. It’s the stuff of movies. But the tale has treasure hunters scrambling for clues.

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The Caliph of Terror unmasked

The Caliph of Terror unmasked

HE is the Caliph of the Islamic State, the leader of the regime Tony Abbott compared to the Nazis. But who is Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, and how did he come to marshal such frightening power?

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WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 06: U.S. President Barack Obama speaks during an event at the South Court Auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building August 6, 2015 in Washington, DC. President Obama spoke on the 50th Anniversary of the Voting Rights Act and proclaimed September 22 to be National Voter Registration Day. Alex Wong/Getty Images/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

Who will replace Barack Obama?

THE clock is ticking on Barack Obama’s time as President of the US. The next batch of hopefuls are jostling for the 2016 race for the White House. Check our handy guide to all the contenders.

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TV viewers promo image for top 50 series

The best TV binge ever

YOU’VE missed the boat. Everyone is talking about that amazing episode of that amazing TV show, and you can’t join in the conversation. Here’s the 50 series you must-see.

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This artist's conception shows the closest known planetary system to our own, called Epsilon Eridani. Observations from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope show that the system hosts two asteroid belts, in addition to previously identified candidate planets and an outer comet ring. Epsilon Eridani is located about 10 light-years away in the constellation Eridanus. It is visible in the night skies with the naked eye. The system's inner asteroid belt appears as the yellowish ring around the star, while the outer asteroid belt is in the foreground. The outermost comet ring is too far out to be seen in this view, but comets originating from it are shown in the upper right corner. Astronomers think that each of Epsilon Eridani's asteroid belts could have a planet orbiting just outside it, shepherding its rocky debris into a ring in the same way that Jupiter helps keep our asteroid belt confined. The planet near the inner belt was previously identified in 2000 via the radial velocity, or "star wobble," technique, while the planet near the outer belt was inferred when Spitzer discovered the belt. The inner belt orbits at a distance of about 3 astronomical units from its star -- or about the same position as the asteroid belt in our own solar system (an astronomical unit is the distance between Earth and our sun). The second asteroid belt lies at about 20 astronomical units from the star, or a position comparable to Uranus in our solar system. The outer comet ring orbits from 35 to 90 astronomical units from the star; our solar systemÍs analogous Kuiper Belt extends from about 30 to 50 astronomical units from the sun.

Is this Solar System 2.0?

THERE’S something odd about our Solar System. We’ve found some 470 stars with planets around them. But it’s only now that we’ve spotted one that looks anything like our own.

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Mike Drinkwater cares for a 5 month old Tasmanian Devil joey called 'Bear', at the Australian Reptile Park, Somersby. The park supports Threatened Species Day on September 7th.

Beastly burden: Our fight for the future

THERE’S a life-and-death struggle going on that involves strong characters, mysterious villains, cuddly critters and forensic investigation. But this is no movie plot — though Adelaide scientists play a leading role.

Original URL: https://www.goldcoastbulletin.com.au/in-depth/page/13