SYDNEY - MORE than 40 sperm whales have died after a pod of about 50 became stranded off southern Australia, an official said on Friday as rescuers struggled to reach the survivors.

By the time the pod, which is trapped on a sandbar 150m offshore from Perkins Island on the north-west coast of the island state of Tasmania, was discovered late Thursday most had perished.

PARIS - A FEW lucky people in the Indian Ocean will be treated to a rare event on Monday when an annular solar eclipse will transform the Sun into a dark disc with a blazing ring-shaped corona around its rim.

In solar eclipses, the Moon moves between the Sun and Earth, casting its shadow on the terrestrial surface.

VATICAN CITY - THE Vatican is launching its own YouTube channel to engage more with the digital generation and better control Pope Benedict XVI's online image.