In other news: 4 killed after Italian cable car crashes into ravine; NASA spacecraft speeding toward close encounter with asteroid

Published 12:00 am Saturday, April 19, 2025

Tourists among 4 killed after Italian cable car crashes into a ravine south of Naples

Three tourists were among four people who died when a mountain cable car plunged into a ravine south of Naples. A British woman and an Israeli woman were among the three foreign victims identified since Thursday’s accident. The fourth victim was the Italian driver of the cable car. Initial reports suggest that a cable car crashed while going up Monte Faito, in the town of Castellammare di Stabia. The reports suggested that a traction cable may have snapped. The attraction, popular for its views of Mount Vesuvius and the Bay of Naples, had recently reopened for the season. Italian prosecutors have started an investigation.

NASA’s Lucy spacecraft is speeding toward another close encounter with an asteroid

NASA’s Lucy spacecraft will soon swoop past a small asteroid. It will be the second asteroid encounter for Lucy, launched in 2021 on a quest that will take it to 11 space rocks. Its ultimate destination is the unexplored swarms of asteroids out near Jupiter. NASA considers Sunday’s flyby a dress rehearsal for 2027 when Lucy reaches its first so-called Trojan asteroid near Jupiter. Looking on from Mission Control in Colorado will be paleontologist Donald Johanson, who discovered the Lucy fossil 50 years ago. The asteroid is named for him.

Endangered sea turtle populations show signs of recovery in more than half the world, survey finds

A new global survey finds that endangered sea turtles show signs of recovery in a majority of places where they’re found worldwide. The study looked at 48 populations of sea turtles. Scientists measured the impacts of threats such as hunting, pollution and climate change. In more than half of the areas studied, threats are declining overall. But there are some exceptions. Sea turtle populations in the Atlantic Ocean are more likely to be recovering than those in Pacific waters. And leatherback turtles are not recovering as well as other species. The survey was published Thursday.