Let's explore Madonna's extraordinary evolution from her early days to the present

Want a real feeling for history? Go to Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan in Japan, a hotel that's played host to shoguns and emperors.

DC and Warner Bros

Scientists think they have discovered a previously unknown hidden structure inside the Earth’s core that could change our understanding of our planet. In school, most of us were taught there are four main layers to the Earth’s structure: the crust, the mantle, the outer core and the inner core. What we know about the Earth’s insides has mostly derived from geologists’ knowledge and observations of volcanoes and seismic waves. But now, scientists believe that there may also be a whole extra layer hidden inside the inner core that no one knew about. Earth’s molten inner core is predicted to be around 5,000 degrees Celsius in temperature and scientists have calculated that it takes up around just 1 per cent of the planet’s total volume. The discovery of a potential fifth layer to the planet’s core came a few years ago when scientists used an algorithm to model thousands of scenarios of the inner core to observe the length of time it takes seismic waves to travel through Earth based on data by the International Seismological Centre. Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter Scientists were able to analyse how different material properties within the inner core would affect seismic waves differently and found that some scenarios were certainly more likely than others. The algorithm showed how different materials altered the angle of seismic waves, leading them to hypothesise that there was a change of material somewhere in the inner core. Joanne Stephenson, an Australian National University geophysicist, explained: “We found evidence that may indicate a change in the structure of iron, which suggests perhaps two separate cooling events in Earth's history.” She continued: “The details of this big event are still a bit of a mystery, but we've added another piece of the puzzle when it comes to our knowledge of the Earth's inner core.” While their data isn’t conclusive, it does correlate with other similar studies that have looked into the anisotropy of the Earth’s inner core. Stephenson said: “It's very exciting - and might mean we have to re-write the textbooks!” Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

A newly unsealed legal complaint claims Facebook parent Meta Platforms deliberately engineered its social platforms to hook kids

The evacuation zone in Iceland is “still dangerous”, a civil protection official has told The Independent, with current conditions leaving just a few minutes’ warning of a feared volcano eruption. A fortnight since Grindavik was evacuated, after magma-induced seismic activity tore vast chasms through the streets of the town, officials are expected to lower the threat level in the area on Thursday – enabling residents to return for longer periods to collect their valuables. Speaking to The Independent as international media were allowed back into the town for the first time, one civil defence official said: “It is still dangerous here ... I have never seen anything like it before. Usually we will have a few minutes warning to get out but with the weather like it is today we have even less.” In addition to fears of weather hampering monitoring systems, civil protection chief Vídir Reynisson told Fox News: “The challenge that we have is that we will not see any strong evidence that the magma is coming up, we will see some small earthquakes and we can see how they will probably form in one place rather than another.” Read More Could an Icelandic volcano ground flights like in 2010? When will the Iceland volcano erupt and what happens when it does? Is it safe to travel to Iceland? Your rights if you have a holiday booked ‘It’s like a dystopian movie’: Iceland residents describe ‘apocalyptic’ scenes as they flee volcano threat

Veteran populist Geert Wilders is set to secure most seats, says an Ipsos exit poll.

Arthur Strout was among the 18 victims who were fatally shot in the Maine mass shooting on October 25

Just days away from electing a new president, many Guatemalans remain undecided, unimpressed by the leading candidates and even considering casting a protest vote to express their disapproval

Shares in Asia opened mixed after Wall Street saw a late-day rebound in trading, helping the S&P 500

How false claims, conspiracy theories and hateful content shapes the general public's view of the war.

Patrick Mahomes saw his first extended action of the preseason, throwing for 105 yards and a touchdown, and the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Arizona Cardinals 38-10 on Saturday night in the second preseason game for both teams