Maurizio Mattesini

Venezuela has been hit by a pair of earthquakes measuring 7.2 and 7.5 on the Richter scale, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The quakes struck less than a minute apart and have severely affected the city of Caracas and surrounding areas. Interim President Delcy Rodríguez reported that the death toll has risen from 32 to 164 and the number of injured from 700 to 971. She also declared the state of La Guaira, north of Caracas, a “disaster area” and announced the mobilization of the country’s entire public and private healthcare network.

A study in 2024 described how the Earth's core had slowed down its rotation speed in recent decades. Now, the same international team of scientists adds that its shape has also changed over the last two decades. Until now, it was thought that both processes could not occur simultaneously. According to the researchers, who publish the results in the journal Nature Geoscience, the finding could improve our knowledge of the core's properties and structure.