* Astronomy

Highlighting the extreme weather conditions hitting Europe, space sensors aboard ESAs Envisat satellite have detected the worst floodwaters to hit Britain for 60 years and deadly fires raging through southern Europe.
Heavy rains caused the River Thames to burst its banks on Wednesday, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of homes in Britains university city of Oxford. The flooding across England and Wales has left tens of thousands without electricity and water.
The Environment Agency still has three severe flood warnings in place two on the Thames around Oxford and one on the Ock River near Oxfordshire. In areas where flooding is beginning to recede, sanitation officials are warning of health risks posed by stagnant waters.
Flooding is estimated to be the world's most costly kind of natural disaster. The flooding of June and July in the UK is expected to cost the insurance industry at least £2 billion, according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI). Floods Minister John Healey said recovery and clean-up efforts could take a number of months.
One of the biggest problems during flooding emergencies is obtaining an overall view of the phenomenon, with a clear idea of the extent of the flooded area. Aerial observation is often very difficult due to prohibitive weather conditions and, if the phenomenon is widespread, would be very time-consuming and expensive.
With inundated areas typically visible from space, Earth Observation (EO) is increasingly being used for flood response and mitigation. In October 2000, ESA and the French space agency (CNES) initiated the International Charter on 'Space and Major Disasters', a joint initiative for providing emergency response satellite data free of charge to those affected by disasters anywhere in the world. On 24 July, the UK Environment Agency requested the aid of the Charter.

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Up to 500 people have died in the past week from a heatwave in Hungary, a top health official has said.
Anna Paldy, deputy director of the National Institute of Environmental Health, told the BBC that the figure included 230 deaths in central Hungary.
The deaths - from 15 to 22 July - were caused by heatstroke, cardiovascular problems and other illnesses aggravated by the heat, she said.
Some 30 people have also died in the heatwave in neighbouring Romania.



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Some 350,000 homes in Gloucestershire will soon be without water because of flooding at a treatment works.
Tens of thousands of homes are without tap water and supplies in Gloucester, Cheltenham and Tewkesbury will run dry in hours, Severn Trent Water said.
The Chief Constable of Gloucestershire Police Tim Brain said the supply was unlikely to be restored for a week.

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Torrential rain has been sweeping the UK, causing travel chaos and forcing the evacuation of homes and schools.
Helicopters were sent to rescue people from homes in Worcestershire, a hospital was flooded in West Sussex and a man died in his home in Cumbria.
Roads were badly hit in the Midlands and across southern England, with flights and trains cancelled or late.
More bad weather is expected in Wales and central England overnight before moving north over the weekend.

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