Southwest Airlines (LUV.N) has exercised options for the delivery of 30 Boeing 737 MAX 7 planes next year, and converted 24 existing MAX 7 orders to MAX 8, the company said in an SEC filing on Friday.

The move comes two days after Boeing (BA.N) said the first delivery of the 737 MAX 7 was delayed to 2024 as it tries to secure Federal Aviation Administration certification for the narrow-body jet.

Southwest’s decision to convert some MAX 7 orders to the MAX 8 model, which is already in operation, would buffer the impact of the delivery delays.

On Thursday, Southwest Airlines issued disappointing forecasts for the current quarter and full year after missing estimates for second-quarter results, fueling concerns about the strength of domestic travel demand in the United States.

Southwest Airlines has plans to fly the MAX 7 “at some point next year”, but if not, it would take MAX 8 orders instead, CEO Robert Jordan said on a post-earnings call on Thursday.

Civil defence forces in Tunisia say wildfires which spread across five provinces for several days have now been brought under control.

More than 1,000 hectares (2,471 acres) of forest in the north western province of Jendouba have been destroyed, however, firefighters still remain on alert.

In Greece, emergency services have tried to prevent new flare-ups in the central area of Magnesia.

Searing heat from wildfires triggered powerful explosions at an ammunition depot in the town of Nea Aghialos, prompting the Greek air force to evacuate fighter jets from their base on Thursday.

Tunisia has been battling wildfires with temperatures up to 49C (120F) recorded.

Tens of millions of Americans were confronted with a one-two punch of brutally hot temperatures and oppressive humidity on Friday as an unrelenting heatwave settled over the Midwest and East Coast and was expected to persist into the weekend.

More than 175 million people in the U.S. were under excessive heat warnings and advisories until at least Saturday afternoon as midday heat index readings in many spots rose well above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 C), the National Weather Service (NWS) said.

Some of the nation’s biggest cities, including Chicago, New York and Philadelphia, have opened cooling centers in public libraries and community centers for those who are unable to escape the hot temperatures.

U.S. city officials and forecasters are urging people to stay out of the hot weather as it has the potential to cause heat-related illnesses, especially for those working or participating in outdoor activities, people aged 65 and older, children and those with chronic illnesses.

“Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors,” the NWS said.

In Philadelphia, where the heat index could top out at 108 degrees F (42 C), officials extended public pool and spray grounds hours on Friday and Saturday.

In New York City, where the heat index was to reach 103 degrees F (39 C), officials posted a public service announcement video on social media urging owners to keep their pets well hydrated.

The first major Manx agricultural event of the year is set to welcome thousands of visitors on Saturday and Sunday.

The Southern and District Agricultural Show runs between 10:00 and 17:00 BST on both days.

Held at Orrisdale Farm in Ballasalla, it is the first of two annual shows highlighting the farming industry.

Show President Sarah Comish said it was a “valuable” opportunity for the farming community to connect with the wider public.

About 10,000 people visited the show last year, watching stock judging and the grand parade to pick the supreme champion, as well as visiting the trade stalls, many of which showcase local produce.

The excavation of a Roman bath house in Cumbria which has already unearthed “significant finds” is to resume in October ahead of a larger dig in 2024.

More than 1,000 objects have been found at the dig at at Carlisle Cricket Club.

Two “priceless” Roman god heads and 2,000-year-old gems have been among artefacts discovered by volunteers since 2021.

Archaeologist Frank Giecco, who is leading the project, said test trenches would identify where to dig next.

“We don’t want to turn up in May 2024, open up a big area and find nothing,” he said.

Members of the dig team want to find the location of the south-west corner of the bathhouse and look for remains of buildings and shops to the south side of the adjacent road.

They will also look for evidence showing where the River Eden ran in Roman times – and whether it was navigable.

“We’ve got walls extending in every direction currently, so we can’t get a size or definitive plan of what the building looks like,” Mr Giecco said.

He added that the site had trees on one side and a road on the other, but the team was otherwise free to dig where they liked – apart from the actual cricket pitch.

“The cricket club are just brilliantly supportive, so they’ve given us free rein.”

Nick Henderson, from the Hadrian’s Wall Project, who has also been involved in the dig, said hundreds of volunteers and school children had helped.

Almost all said they would help again and many had gone on to work in the fields of archaeology or heritage, he said.

Mr Giecco, from consultancy firm Wardell Armstrong, said the group now had 1,300 members, which he had not expected.

“There’s quite a big community behind it. It’s not just the dig, it’s the group that’s taken on a life of its own,” he said.

A genetically modified purple tomato, developed by food scientists in Norwich, has been approved for sale in the US.

The country’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has declared it is safe to eat.

Scientists that developed the product are now seeking permission to grow it commercially in the UK.

But campaigners against genetically modified (GM) foods have described the creation as a “vanity project”.

Genetic modification involves adding genes to a plant’s DNA from a different species of plant – or even an animal. It creates new varieties which could not have been produced through cross-breeding.

Prof Cathie Martin who developed the purple tomato at the John Innes Centre in Norwich said the product had “exceptional antioxidant properties”, having crossed the genes with a snapdragon flower.

“The greater good would be if people in the UK in particular, but world over if possible, could have more nutritious food to eat”, she said.

The purple tomato is said to be rich is anthocyanins, which have been linked to a wide variety of health benefits, including increased cardiovascular health and the prevention of both cancer and dementia.

But many campaigners who are opposed to gene-edited foods are worried that GM crops will not require additional testing, and fear the creation of new allergens or toxins.

Final commands were sent to Europe’s Aeolus satellite on Friday to bring it out of the sky.

The space laser, which was designed to map Earth’s winds, re-entered the atmosphere over Antarctica.

Any debris that might have survived the fiery descent would have fallen well out of harm’s way.

The British-built spacecraft’s mission was hailed a success for the novel data it provided to weather forecasters looking several days ahead.

Its ultraviolet laser tracked the movement of air in all locations, at every altitude, across the world.

The mission’s success means replacements are already being planned.

But Aeolus was a project that very nearly didn’t happen because of the difficulty in making it work.

Engineers struggled for over a decade to develop an instrument that would operate for long enough in the vacuum of space.

The delay led to Aeolus being dubbed “the impossible satellite”.

The engineers, under the leadership of the European Space Agency (Esa), stuck at it because of the prize on offer – the first truly global view of what the winds on Earth are doing, from the surface all the way up into the stratosphere (from 0km to 30km).

However, in the time it took for Aeolus to get to the launch pad in 2018 and fly its near 5-year mission, best practice for de-orbiting defunct spacecraft had changed.

They now need either the ability to pinpoint their fall back to Earth to a safe zone, or to be sure of burning up completely as they come through the atmosphere.

Aeolus couldn’t meet these criteria. Its propulsion system was not powerful enough to fully direct where it came out of the sky, and up to 20% of its hardware was expected to survive to the surface of the Earth (likely elements of the satellite’s graphite telescope and its fuel tanks).

Esa flight controllers spent the past week building up to what they called an “assisted re-entry” instead. They commanded the satellite to progressively lower its altitude in a series of manoeuvres, the last of which on Friday dropped it to a height of roughly 120km.

From there, drag from the atmosphere was predicted to pull the satellite down to destruction within about two and a half revolutions of the planet.

Sensors available to US Space Command confirmed the final moments of Aeolus occurred over the Antarctic continent at around 19:00 GMT.

Bhutan has reported a marked increase in its wild tiger population, according to the results of a new survey.

The latest figures show the tiny Himalayan kingdom is now home to 131 tigers – up 27% from the last count, held in 2015.

Experts also found evidence of Tigers breeding at different altitudes in the country, suggesting Bhutan could help regional populations recover.

The study covered 32,800 sq km (12,664 sq miles) – roughly 85% of the country.

It was carried out by the Bhutanese government’s forest and park services department, with the help of various national and international environmental groups, including the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

The news has been welcomed as the world continues to grapple with the increasing loss of species due to issues such as climate change..

“This is a significant achievement and an indication of a very healthy ecosystem,” said Chimi Rinzin, Country Director of WWF-Bhutan.

As a top predator, tigers are considered essential for preserving the complex systems that underpin the natural world.

However, they are an endangered species. According to WWF statistics, the global wild tiger population has dropped by around 95% over the past century.

This is due to issues such as a loss of habitat due to human habitation and climate change, as well as illegal wildlife trade.

What is biodiversity and how are we protecting it?

The results of the latest Bhutan survey means the country joins a small number of nations that have increased their tiger population in the past decade.

That includes India, who earlier this year reported an increase of 200 tigers in the past four years.

Nepal has also made significant strides, doubling its tiger population in the past decade.

The ʻEneʻio Botanical Garden is a mesmerizing botanical garden which is first of its kind in the area and it is located in the eastern part of the large island of Vavaʻu, within the Kingdom of Tonga.

Containing one of the largest and most varied plant collection in the small Pacific kingdom, it covers an area of about 9 hectares (22 acres) that is privately owned and was developed since 1972 by Tonga’s former Minister of Agriculture, Haniteli Fa’anunu.

Being an agronomist with 38 years of agricultural experience, Fa’anunu began his magnificent work in 1972, however, it was officially opened to the general public as a botanical garden in August 2006.

Nowadays, there are plenty of visitors who come to the island, and experience the native and exotic plants through guided tours, which in addition offers also variety of activities for the family, ocean side restaurant, souvenir shop and camping area.

Having access to the private beach which has also the same name, ‘Ene’io Beach, the botanical garden is the perfect spot to experience the local life, the wildlife of the islands, as well as the long standing culture of the Tongan people.

The principle reason for Fa’anunu’s work was to preserve different plant cultivars, save endangered plant species, and educate locals and visitors about the flora and fauna of Tonga, which has proved to be a successful one in recent years.

Since it contains more than 550 different plant varieties and 150 plant families, there are a lot of people who would like to come and be witnesses of the amazing work that has been done here, however, it is always necessary to book one of the three tours which are offered from the garden’s employees.

All in all, being Tonga’s only botanical garden, it is always certain that rare and beautiful flora will be seen here, while learning a bit more about the life of the local people who are living in this small Pacific paradise.