A glance at the week that was
Fire in the sky
A fireball was spotted in the Irish skiesjust after midnight on Saturday night, along the west coast from Donegal to Cork. Astronomy Ireland has been appealing for sightings so that it can try to figure out what it was – either a crashing satellite or, more likely, a meteor. If it was a lump of rock, and it landed in a field somewhere, it could be valuable to scientists – and the person who finds it. Of course, it may have been the economy crashing.
Ire in the sky
The day after the fireball was spotted, another flying object caused a fuss – in this case the rocket launched over Japan by North Korea. It led to an emergency meeting of the UN Secuity Council and gloating from North Korea. While the United States insists that the rocket broke up and fell into the Pacific Ocean, North Korea's news agency presented a different story, saying that it is now in space broadcasting revolutionary songs praising Kim Jong-il. Any passing aliens will no doubt be delighted to hear them.
"Their current lodgings are a bit temporary. But they should see it like a weekend of camping."
- Italian PM
Silvio Berlusconito those made homeless by this week's earthquake
We now know
A child's birth weightcould be affected if its mother is exposed to traffic pollution early and late in pregnancy, say US researchers.
Rare Bronze Age jewellerywas found by gardaí in a haul of stolen drugs and cosmetics taken in a Roscommon burglary.
Muntadhar al-Zaidi (pictured), the man who threw shoes at George W Bush, has had his jail sentence cutfrom three years to one.
The numbers
15
The number of junior ministers there will be after April 21st, down from 20
97%
The percentage of e-mails that are
spam, according to Microsoft's Security Intelligence Report
100/1
Aintree
Grand Nationalodds for winner Mon Mome