A bomb disposal unit was called to Dunedin museum after the discovery of an explosive acid this afternoon.A police spokeswoman said emergency services were alerted about a threat at Toitu Otago Settlers Museum in Queens Gardens…

Sewage has leaked into Porirua Harbour after a plan to alleviate pressure on a recently patched-up wastewater pipe went awry. The pipe between the Aotea turnoff and Paremata burst on Saturday morning after a one-in-10-year rainfall…

Remutaka Hill Rd in Wellington has reopened after a motorcyclist died in a serious crash this afternoon. Emergency services were called to the scene of the crash, involving a single vehicle, at 1.15pm on State Highway 2. DO YOU…

Drivers are being told to expect delays after a car filpped on Owens Rd in Auckland’s Mt Eden.Police were informed of the single-vehicle crash at 2.50pm on Tuesday afternoon.”No serious injuries have been reported, however due…

Wanted – Auckland’s best Indian performers and stallholders to make the Auckland Diwali Festival 2021 a success.The festival is one of the country’s biggest cultural events, celebrating Indian culture and the diverse Indian communities,…

Marlborough is racing against the clock to fix broken stopbanks before another round of downpours hits next week.Another 13mm of rain is expected to be dumped in Blenheim next Monday, following on from the weekend’s deluge which…

The Russian military reported another successful test launch of a new hypersonic cruise missile on Monday.

Russia's Defence Ministry said the Zircon missile was launched from the Admiral Groshkov frigate in the White Sea.

The ministry said the missile flew at a speed seven times the speed of sound and successfully hit a designated practice target more than 350 kilometres away on the coast of the Barents Sea.

READ MORE: China 'building more than 100 desert missile silos'

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Zircon would be capable of flying at nine times the speed of sound and have a range of 1,000 kilometres. Mr Putin has emphasised that its deployment will significantly boost Russian military capability.

The Russian navy has conducted several previous test launches of the new missile, including one on Putin's birthday in October, and officials said the tests are to be completed later this year.

Zircon is intended to arm Russian cruisers, frigates and submarines. It is one of several hypersonic missiles under development in Russia.

NATO responded to Monday's test with a statement that claimed Russia's missile development “create a greater risk of escalation and miscalculation.”

“Russia’s new hypersonic missiles are highly destabilising and pose significant risks to security and stability across the Euro-Atlantic area," the statement said.

“NATO allies are committed to respond in measured way to Russia’s growing array of conventional and nuclear-capable missiles,” the alliance said.

“We will not mirror what Russia does, but we will maintain credible deterrence and defence, to protect our nations.”

The Kremlin has made modernising the country’s arsenals a top priority amid the tensions with the West that followed Russia’s 2014 annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.

Australia's share market plunged heavily upon opening this morning as investors retreated amid fears of the Delta strain of COVID-19 breaking out across multiple states.

Soon after opening the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 followed its US counterpart downwards, dropping 64 points or 0.9 per cent to 7,221 points.

By 1pm the market had recovered slightly, lifting to 7,277.40 points. At the time of publishing the intra-day drop was holding at a minor 0.12 per cent.

READ MORE: Wesfarmers makes $687 million takeover offer for Priceline

Early notable winners include Pointsbet Holdings (up 3.21 per cent), payment provider ZIP co (up 5.83 per cent) and NIB Holdings (up 2.43 per cent).

The companies most challenged thus far include Bluescope Steel (down 3.48 per cent), Virgin Money UK (down 2.93 per cent) and media and equipment hire business Seven Group Holdings (down 2.33 per cent).

The Aussie Dollar is currently buying 73 US Cents while Bitcoin is currently worth $41,197 per coin.

Sister cryptocurrency Ethereum is currently valued at $2,385.89 per Ether.

A leading marine biologist says while Kiwis have done an outstanding job caring for stranded orca baby Toa, the time has come to talk about some stark realities, including euthanasia.Massey University marine biologist Karen Stockin…

A large colourful fish washed ashore on the US coast last week in what aquarium officials called a rare occurrence.

The 45 kilogram opah fish, also known as a moonfish, was discovered on Sunset Beach in Seaside, a city in the northwest side of Oregon.

The fish is "rare to the Oregon Coast," Seaside Aquarium said in a Facebook post along with several images of the one metre fish.

READ MORE: Country 'abandons' world's most endangered marine mammal

Keith Chandler, the general manager of Seaside Aquarium, told CNN that an opah on the Oregon coast is "uncommon to find" and he also added that the fish was "in such great shape."

"They're pretty cool fish, and we don't normally see them on the shore," said Mr Chandler.

"It was pretty exciting for locals."

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), little is known about the species since they live deep in the ocean.

The species is usually found in temperate and tropical waters.

The opah is an unusual looking fish, according to NOAA, they have a round, flat body that's silvery grey in colour.

"Toward the belly (of the fish), the silver shades to a rose red, dotted with white spots," reads NOAA's website.

"Their fins and mouth are red, and their large eyes are encircled with gold."

Due to the condition the fish was found in, Mr Chandler believes that it had only been on the beach for less than an hour before the aquarium's staff got a notification for it.

"Unfortunately, it washed up not living, but we got to it before the birds," he said.

The opah is being stored in a large freezer, Mr Chandler said.

The aquarium plans to work with a local organisation, the Columbia River Maritime Museum, to dissect the fish. The aquarium added that one lucky school group will get the chance to be part of the dissection.

Mr Chandler said the aquarium plans to "get all the data" possible from the dissection to learn more about the species.