CARL XVI GUSTAF

KIRUNA, Sweden — (AP) — The European Union wants to bolster its capacity to launch small satellites into space with a new launchpad in Arctic Sweden. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said small satellites are crucial to tracking natural disasters in real time and, in the light of Russia's war in Ukraine, to help guarantee global security. “Today, we know that the brave Ukrainian forces effectively use small satellites to track the movements of Russian troops," she said. The total number of satellites could reach 100,000 by 2040, compared with the current 5,000 operational satellites, according to the Swedish Space Corp., or SSC. “This is a giant leap for SSC, for Sweden, for Europe and the rest of the world," SSC chief executive Stefan Gardefjord said.

Denmark’s popular monarch, Queen Margrethe II, has apologized for upsetting members of her family with a decision to strip the royal titles from four of her grandchildren, but has refused to change her mind.

Across the globe, the death of Queen Elizabeth II has prompted reflections on the historic sweep of her reign, from presiding over Britain’s colonial empire to embracing the independence of her former dominions.

Four decades after ABBA last performed live, audiences can once again see them onstage, in the innovative digital concert “ABBA Voyage.”

Four decades after ABBA last performed live, audiences can once again see them onstage, in the innovative digital concert "ABBA Voyage."

Sweden has signed a formal request to join NATO, a day after it announced it would seek membership in the 30-member military alliance

Sweden and Finland have pushed ahead with their bids to join NATO even as Turkey insists it won’t let the previously nonaligned Nordic countries into the alliance because of their alleged support for Kurdish militants.

Dagny Carlsson, who started blogging after her 100th birthday and became a social media star in her native Sweden, has died

Sweden has created an agency to combat disinformation as the country approaches a September general election.

Prince Philip’s life spanned a century of European history.

The Lost Soul, a unique art book with text by Nobel-winning Polish author Olga Tokarczuk about a man who loses his soul in the daily rush, hits bookstores in the United States this week. First published in Poland in 2017, the hardcover book originated from a private ceremony text intended for one person. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)WARSAW – The latest book by Nobel laureate Olga Tokarczuk to be translated into English is a departure for the celebrated Polish author. The book has many meanings, also inspired by its nostalgic, meditative drawings by Polish artist Joanna Concejo. There appears a value through which we read the text in a different way and we also see the drawings in a different way than if they had stood alone.

FILE - In this file photo dated December 10 1995, showing Dutch Professor Paul J. Crutzen, left, receiving the Nobel prize for chemistry from Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf, at the Concert Hall in Stockholm, Sweden. According to a statement from the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Germany, Dutch scientist Paul J. Crutzen, who won the Nobel Prize for chemistry for his work understanding the ozone hole, died Thursday Jan. 28, 2021, at the age of 87. (AP photo/Eric Roxfelt, FILE)BERLIN – Paul J. Crutzen, a Dutch scientist who won the Nobel Prize for chemistry for his work understanding the ozone hole and is credited with coining the term Anthropocene to describe the geological era shaped by mankind, has died. “Paul Crutzen was a pioneer in many ways,” Martin Stratmann, the president of the Max Planck Society, said in a statement. According to the Nobel Institute, Crutzen got a job as a programmer at Stockholm University's Department for Meteorology despite having no programming experience.

In this Sunday, Dec. 6, 2020, photo provided by Nobel Prize Outreach, Louise Glck stands beside the medal awarded to her for the 2020 Nobel Prize in Literature outside her home in Cambridge, Mass. The pomp and ceremony of the Nobel prize ceremonies were altered this year amid measures to slow the spread of the coronavirus. (Daniel Ebersole/ Nobel Prize Outreach via AP)STOCKHOLM – The pomp and ceremony of the Nobel prize ceremonies have been reined in this year amid measures to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Instead, their achievements will be recognized and rewarded at low-key ceremonies where they live and work in Europe and the United States. A Nobel prize comes with a 10-milion krona ($1.1 million) cash award — to be shared in some cases — diplomas and gold medals.

Experts have urged the government to reduce social and business activity before the holiday season because of a rise in serious coronavirus cases. The 583 new cases reported Thursday was the first time that South Korea’s daily tally had exceeded 500 since March. KCCI reports that the Iowa Department of Public Health reported 3,331 new positive COVID-19 cases as of 10 a.m. to bring the total to 222,278. The 14-day cumulative number of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 of population, a recognized measure of the pandemic’s spread, also fell Thursday, to 325. The Reno-Sparks area has recorded 59 COVID-19 deaths the last 30 days — half of those this past week.