An asteroid approximately 1.7miles in length, nine times the length of the QE2 cruise ship, is set pass by Earth at the end of May, according to Nasa.

Have no fear though, for the giant space rock shouldn't come any closer than 3.6million miles, or 15 times the distance from...

Francois Hollande has signed into law the right to gay marriage and adoption for same-sex couples.

Hollande's signing of the bill means the first same-sex marriages could be celebrated in the next fortnight, little more than a year after Hollande pledged marriage equality in his pre-election manifesto.

Protests, both pro...

The Scottish Nationalist Party's leader in Westminster has branded the campaign against Scottish independence as being based on the feeling that the Scottish are "incapable" of governing themselves and are "poor and stupid."

Angus Robertson, the MP for Moray and campaign director for the SNP for the independence referendum, criticised...

Ed Miliband has thrown further support behind the living wage, claiming that Labour would offer tax rewards to companies who began paying their workers the increased rate.

The Labour leader told the Guardian that companies could be offered lower business rates or tax relief on training programmes in...

More than 100 people are known to have been killed and hundreds more injured after an earthquake in Sichaun province, China.

According to state officials the death toll from the quake, which registered a 6.6 rating on the Richter scale, could be set to rise as relief efforts and rescue...

Some 170 crew and passengers have emerged unscathed from an Indonesian jet which overshot a runway at a Bali airport before plunging into the ocean.

The plane, owned by the Indonesian airline Lion Air, was attempting to land at the Denpasar airport on Saturday afternoon when it missed the runway....

Canadian pop star Justin Bieber had his pet monkey Mally detained by German customs officials on Friday night after apparently trying to 'sneak' in the monkey despite not having the proper papers.

Far from being a joke Bieber, 19, could face prosecution in Munich for his efforts, according...

An Egyptian court has ratified death sentences handed to 21 football fans following riots which killed 74 people last February, sparking protests in Cairo.

Rival fans have united in protest against the sentences, which were announced live on television on Saturday. 28 defendants were acquitted in involvement in the riots...

As Falkland Islanders prepare to vote in a referendum on the future sovereignty of the South Atlantic archipelago, a ComRes poll for ITV News found six in 10 adults believed the UK should keep all options - including the possibility of military action - open when deciding how...

Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez is not 'fighting for his life' in hospital as he goes through chemotherapy following his fourth cancer operation in December, his deputy has said.

The country's vice president, Nicolas Maduro, appeared on television on Thursday to discuss the president's condition, before attending a mass at the...

George Osborne has insisted that any US fines meted out to the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) over the Libor scandal must be paid from the pocket of the bankers, not the taxpayer.

It is expected that the bank will be fined a much larger amount than Barclays were last...

Microblogging website Twitter confirmed on Friday that unidentified hackers had accessed the website and obtained the data of up to 250,000 of its users.

The passwords and personal information such as email addresses of the users could have been found by the hackers, the company wrote in a...

While tens of millions of Americans tuck into their nachos, weak beer and some good ol'-fashioned football, thousands of plucky Britons will be trying to stay awake (and wondering why they did) at about 1am on Sunday night as they watch the Baltimore Ravens take on the San Francisco 49ers...

At least 22 Egyptians have been killed in the city of Port Said on Saturday. Riots were sparked after a judge handed down death sentences to 21 football fans on trial over a horrific stadium riot that left scores dead in the city last year.

Following Saturday's sentences, supporters and...

Five people were reportedly shot dead in the Egyptian city of Suez on Friday during nationwide protests on the second anniversary of the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak.

According to Reuters, a further 280 civilians and 55 security officials were injured as Egyptians took to the streets to demonstrate...

The recovery of the sunken Costa Concordia cruise liner - which has been described as the largest sea salvage operation in history - is continuing in Italy on the eve of the anniversary of the tragedy which cost the lives of 32 people last January.

The ship, operated by Italian...

Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez's ill health is likely to prevent him from being able to take his fourth oath of office before the National Assembly on 10 January.

Chavez, who won his fourth term after last October, is fighting a severe infection in his lungs and receiving treatment in a...

Tory cuts will lead to "problems on the street" and "the break-up of civil society", the Labour council leaders of Newcastle, Birmingham and Sheffield have warned.

The three leaders claim that northern cities are being unfairly affected by the latest round of council budget cuts - which could lead to...

With Saturday's weekly address to the nation, President Obama was joined by his wife Michelle to wish America a happy Christmas.

"This weekend, parents are picking up their kids from college and making space for all the laundry they bring home with them. Children are counting down the hours until...

One potential explanation for Conservative MP David Davies' poorly phrased remarks on gay marriage?

A lack of diversity training, according to the man himself: "I haven't done years of diversity training, so sometimes I say things which are probably tactless, and I don't mean to,...