Australia must not become complacent to China’s aggression in the South China Sea
Last week, Chinese coast guard vessels rammed and shot water cannon at Philippine ships in the South China Sea. The incident was well within the Philippines exclusive economic zone and was completely unprovoked. It is the...
James Dimas/Facebook Its been 30 years since Natasha Stott Despoja became the youngest woman ever elected to the Australian Parliament. A 25-year-old Sarah Hanson-Young beat that record slightly in 2007. Just over a decade...
Raining one week, dusty the next – how did a dust storm make it all the way to rainy Sydney?
A false-colour satellite showing dust as a pink cloud Himawari-9 satellite, CC BY-SA Much to the surprise of Sydney-siders, a dusty haze settled over the city on Tuesday morning after a week of heavy rain. Satellite images...
There’s a new COVID variant driving up infections. A virologist explains what to know about NB.1.8.1
VioletaStoimenova/Getty Images As we enter the colder months in Australia, COVID is making headlines again, this time due to the emergence of a new variant: NB.1.8.1. Last week, the World Health Organization designated...
Green light for gas: North West Shelf gas plant cleared to run until 2070
Franklin64/Shutterstock In a decision surprising very few people, Australias new environment minister Murray Watt has signed off on an extension for the gas plant at Karratha, part of the enormous North West Shelf...

Gandang Ahung of the Dayak people: More than a gong ensemble, a way of life at risk
It was first started one morning in 2015. I travelled 109 kilometres from Palangka Raya to a village in the Katingan River basin, Central Kalimantan. When I entered the village, I could feel the sound of the Gandang Ahung,...

Nobel laureate Brian Schmidt is ‘scared’ about Australia’s research capacity – this is why
On Wednesday, Nobel laureate Brian Schmidt and economics professor Richard Holden gave a joint address to the National Press Club in Canberra. Their key message? Australia isnt spending enough money on university research....