hello and welcome. final preparations are taking place for a space mission to test the technology needed to knock an asteroid off a collision course with earth. the nasa project, scheduled to lift off in about 75 minutes from now, will target an asteroid called diamorphos which is more than eleven million kilometres away and poses no threat. our science correspondent, rebecca morelle has more. until now, it's been the stuff of hollywood blockbusters like armageddon. an asteroid heading for earth and a mission to stop it. but science fiction is becoming science fact. for the first time, nasa is sending up a spacecraft to knock an asteroid off course. this one is not a danger to the earth, but the dart mission as a trial of technology for the future. normally when we are talking about a mission to go to space, we are going to explore some new world, but in this case we are literally going to crash a spaceship into an asteroid and change the direction and speed at which it moves through space, and we are doing that to basically test the technique to save the planet if there was ever a killer asteroid coming towards earth. nasa is targeting a small asteroid called dimorphos, which is orbiting around a larger space rock. the spacecraft travelling at around 13,000 miles an hour will fly into the small asteroid leaving an impact crater up to 20 metres wide. but this should also give the rock a kick, which will speed up its orbit, and this can be monitored from the earth to see if it has worked. 0nboard is also a mini satellite that will film the crash. even a small nudge can make a big difference to an asteroid's path, and that could be vital. a 160—metre—wide rock like dimorphos could devastate populated areas, but smaller ones are a problem too. anything bigger than the 20 metre asteroid that broke up over russia in 2013 and injured hundreds of people are a concern. even the smaller objects can cause quite a lot of damage. a 25—metre asteroid, they will be really hard to spot with telescopes, so we are always pushing the technology and the science we can do and then we will try to detect where every single object is so we know what is coming in the future. the spacecraft will take nearly a year to travel the 7 million miles to its destination. no—one has ever tried anything like this before, but it could be the best chance of defending our planet if an asteroid is ever on a disastrous collision course. rebecca morrelle, bbc news. stay with us for that launch, we are expecting it at 0620 gmt. the us is to release 50 million barrels of oil from its reserves in an attempt to bring down soaring energy and in particular, gsoline prices. the move is being taken in parallel with other major oil—consuming nations, including china, india, japan, south korea and the uk. making the announcement, president biden described it as a move to benefit what he called average consumers. while our combined action will not solve the problem of high gas prices overnight, it will make a difference. it will take time, but, before long, you should see the price of gas drop where you fill up your tank. and in the longer term, we will reduce our reliance on oil as we shift to clean energy. but right now, i will do what needs to be done to reduce the price you pay at the pump. so far, the price of oil has hardly moved in response to the news. we'll have more on this in twenty minutes meanwhile for more check out the bbc news website or download the bbc news app. let's get some of the day's other news. north macedonia is entering three days of national mourning after a tourist bus carrying its citizens caught fire and crashed in bulgaria on tuesday, killing 46 people in europe's deadliest road accident in the past decade. bulgaria has also declared a day of mourning on wednesday. investigations are continuing into the tragic accident. a jury in the us state of georgia has been deliberating for six hours in the case of three white men charged with the murder of a black man last year. the defendants are accused of shooting ahmaud arbery while he was outjogging in the city of brunswick. they have pleaded not guilty. the jury will resume their deliberations on wednesday. new zealand says it will not reopen to foreign travellers for at least another five months, as it slowly relaxes some of the world's toughest covid pandemic border restrictions. new zealanders stranded in australia will be able to return home from mid—january, and kiwis travelling from elsewhere will be allowed in a month later. a us jury has awarded $25 million in damages to people who were hurt during protests against a far—right rally in virginia four years ago. the court in charlottesville found the organisers of the �*unite the right�* gathering — which brought together white nationalists, white supremacists and neo—nazis — were responsible for the violence. 0ur north america correspondent peter bowes reports. the violent clashes in charlottesville were a defining moment in recent american history. the unite the right rally was planned as a protest against the removal of statues of confederate leaders in the us civil war. began with a much by neo—nazis and white supremacist. it ended the next day and violence stopping this incident led to the death of one woman when a far—right member drove to counter protesters. at least 19 others were injured. the lawsuit was brought against organisers of the rally by nine people who suffered as a call or emotional injuries during the demonstrations. they allege that the defendants conspired to plan, promote and carry out the violent event carrying semiautomatic weapons, pistols, maize, armour shields and tortures copy the defendants said they acted in self—defence and that the police bore responsibility for failing to keep the two sides from fighting. thejury found keep the two sides from fighting. the jury found the defendant's liable for civil conspiracy and other claims under virginia state law. they were deadlocked until federal conspiracy charges. they awarded more than $25 million in damages against 12 individuals and five neo—nazi and white nationalist groups. a lawyer for the group behind the lawsuit said the verdict was a message that the us did not tolerate violence based on racial and religious hatred, in any form. british mps say they've uncovered serious flaws in a government scheme to compensate thousands of uk residents who were wrongly classed as illegal immigrants. three years after the scheme was launched, only 5% of people eligible for payments have received any. mark easton reports. the empire windrush rings britain 500 jamaicans are not the windrush compensation scheme was supposed to right the wrongs of a scandal that rocked the government and the nation. ., , ., �* , nation. thousands of british residents. _ nation. thousands of british residents, mostly _ nation. thousands of british residents, mostly of - nation. thousands of british i residents, mostly of caribbean heritage had been wrongly classed as illegal immigrants by the home office, denied the right to work, healthcare and housing. 0thers right to work, healthcare and housing. others were held in immigration detention or but now and party committee of mps has concluded the scheme itself is actually compounded the injustice. to is actually compounded the in'ustice. ., , ., is actually compounded the in'ustice. ., ., injustice. to be in a situation where four— injustice. to be in a situation where four years _ injustice. to be in a situation where four years on - injustice. to be in a situation where four years on from - injustice. to be in a situation| where four years on from the windrush scandal, only 30% of those applying have received anything, only 5% of those eligible have received anything is simply wrong, and really doesn't recognise that this is an ageing generation who were so badly wronged by home office failures. ., ., , ., , failures. the home affairs committee's _ failures. the home affairs committee's report - failures. the home affairs committee's report refers failures. the home affairs i committee's report refers to the excessive burden on claimant, inadequate staffing and long delays, with concerns that many are still too fearful of the home office to apply at all. fouryears of the home office to apply at all. four years on from the windrush scandal, the committee notes the vast majority of people who applied for compensation have yet to receive a penny.— compensation have yet to receive a penny. what is this, what's going _ receive a penny. what is this, what's going on? _ receive a penny. what is this, what's going on? are - receive a penny. what is this, what's going on? are you - what's going on? are you anthony _ what's going on? are you anthony brian. _ what's going on? are you anthony brian. i'm - what's going on? are you i anthony brian. i'm arresting ou anthony brian. i'm arresting you want — anthony brian. i'm arresting you want suspicion - anthony brian. i'm arresting you want suspicion of- anthony brian. i'm arresting you want suspicion of being | anthony brian. i'm arresting l you want suspicion of being an illegal resident. this you want suspicion of being an illegal resident.— you want suspicion of being an illegal resident. this tv drama tells the story _ illegal resident. this tv drama tells the story of _ illegal resident. this tv drama tells the story of one - tells the story of one windrush, who was almost deported and his wife who spent her life savings fighting to keep her husband in the uk. stressful, and the people you are dealing with really don't understand where you are coming from. i don't think so, anyway. they treat you like you are nobody and it's the same circle non—stop. nobody and it's the same circle non-stoo— non-stop. responding to the mp's damning _ non-stop. responding to the mp's damning report - non-stop. responding to the mp's damning report the - non-stop. responding to the i mp's damning report the home office that the home secretary and the department remains dead last in their commitment to ensure that members of the windrush generation received every penny of compensation that they were entitled to, adding that they continue to make improvements to the scheme. a young boy has died following sunday's car crash during a christmas parade in the us state of wisconsin, bringing the total number of people killed to six. dozens of others were injured in the collision in waukesha. the suspect, darrell brooks, has made his first appearance in court on murder charges. 0ur correspondent barbara plett usher was at the court. the judge read out the five counts of intentional homicide and he said that each one of them carried a penalty of life in prison. and during the proceedings the prosecutor said now they knew a sixth person had died, a child, and so the prosecution was planning to bring another charge of intentional homicide by the end of the week. she also read out a lengthy criminal record for darrell brooks, this included violent conduct like strangulation, suffocation, sexual assault, domestic battery. she said that he had tried to run over a woman earlier in the month, the mother of his child. she also said he had a long history of flight and ofjumping bail. he is wanted on an arrest warrant in nevada, in fact. so she recommended that the bail be set at $5 million. during the proceedings darrell brooks sat nearly bent double, his face down, and thejudge considered the bail, he said he would accept the $5 million bail, he said it was extraordinarily high, but this was an extraordinarily serious case with an extraordinary history of mr brooks. he said to mr brooks, "look, i don't know what the motive was, whether it was panic or whether it was intentional, but clearly you don't do well under pressure and you don't respond to common sense." he also made some remarks about the case and said that this was a shocking case, he'd never seen anything like it in his life, he said that the state had a very strong case and they have set the next hearing forjanuary. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: manchester united bounce back from poorform and secure their place in the european champions league. president kennedy was shot down and died almost immediately. the murder ofjohn kennedy is a disaster for the whole free world. he caught the imagination of the world — the first of a new generation of leaders. margaret thatcher is resigning as leader of the conservative party and prime minister. before leaving number ten to see the queen, she told her cabinet, "it's a funny old world." angela merkel is germany's first woman chancellor, easily securing the majority she needed. attempts to fly a hot air balloon had to be abandoned after a few minutes, but nobody seemed to mind very much. as one local comic put it, "it's not hot air we need, it's hard cash." cuba has declared nine days of mourning following the death of fidel castro at the age of 90. castro developed close ties with the soviet union in the 1960s — it was an alliance that brought the world to the brink of nuclear war with the cuban missile crisis. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: nasa is doing final preparations for a space mission aimed at testing the technology needed to knock an asteroid off a collision course with earth. the us releases tens of millions of barrels of its oil reserves in an attempt to bring down soaring energy and gasoline prices. en that story en oil we will have the latest for you in 15 minutes. —— on that story. they were dubbed �*lgbt free zones�*, large swathes of poland where regional governments, as well as smaller councils, declared they were against lgbt ideology or ideologies that �*undermine�* the family. in response, the eu said it would freeze funding for five provinces. now, most of those larger regions have started to backtrack. but is this really a victory for eu values? 0ur europe correspondent, jessica parker, reports from poland�*s holy cross province. early evening in poland�*s holy cross province. tomic is from here, a gay man living his life but with limits.— here, a gay man living his life but with limits. i'm too scared to show affection _ but with limits. i'm too scared to show affection to _ but with limits. i'm too scared to show affection to my - to show affection to my boyfriend in the street, for example, and i would never do that for the fear of being either mock or attack. five provinces. _ either mock or attack. five provinces, including - either mock or attack. five provinces, including holy l provinces, including holy cross, were among areas to declare they were against lgbt ideology or ideologies that undermined the family. then... a shift in tone. regions are started to backtrack after the eu said it would withhold millions in funding.- millions in funding. even thou:h millions in funding. even though the _ millions in funding. even though the resolution i millions in funding. even | though the resolution has millions in funding. even - though the resolution has been repealed, personally i don�*t feel any change and i don�*t feel any change and i don�*t feel that�*s the atmosphere in poland has changed because of that. ., .,' . , poland has changed because of that. ., . , ., poland has changed because of that. ., . . that. into the offices of a leadin: that. into the offices of a leading local _ that. into the offices of a leading local politician, l that. into the offices of a l leading local politician, the holy cross province assembly revoked its resolution, andre says that wasn�*t mainly about getting eu money, although they decided to be conciliatory. do you accept you have cause or added to distress felt by lgbt people living in your region? translation: i people living in your region? tuna/mom— people living in your region? translation: i don't feel bad about it, because _ translation: i don't feel bad about it, because towards - translation: | don't feel bad | about it, because towards those people and being fair. i have often explained to them it�*s not about their personal views or behaviours, but about the general values of our society and that if you undermine those values it�*s going to end badly for society, the families, and especially for the children. so we are driving further south, to a town, some young people through our contacts have said they want to speak to us. in this predominantly catholic country, what happens in schools is all part of the debate. these teenagers spoke to us anonymously.— to us anonymously. teachers, they don't- -- _ to us anonymously. teachers, they don't. .. they _ to us anonymously. teachers, they don't. .. they are - to us anonymously. teachers, they don't. .. they are totally l they don't. .. they are totally not telling — they don't. .. they are totally not telling you _ they don't. .. they are totally not telling you about - they don't. .. they are totally not telling you about lgbtq. j not telling you about lgbtq. there — not telling you about lgbtq. there is _ not telling you about lgbtq. there is knowing. —— they are ignoring. there is knowing. -- they are ignoring-— there is knowing. -- they are ignoring. how does that make ou ignoring. how does that make you feel? _ ignoring. how does that make you feel? sad. _ ignoring. how does that make you feel? sad. because - ignoring. how does that make you feel? sad. because not i ignoring. how does that make | you feel? sad. because not fair for me. you feel? sad. because not fair for me- i'm _ you feel? sad. because not fair for me. i'm not— you feel? sad. because not fair for me. i'm not happy- you feel? sad. because not fair for me. i'm not happy about. you feel? sad. because not fair for me. i'm not happy about it, | for me. i�*m not happy about it, because they lgbtiq, and they want to learn more about it. b, want to learn more about it. a protest outside parliament in warsaw against a campaign to try and ban pride parades. tension on this issue have not gone away. shared eu money is one thing, shared values another. jessica parker, bbc news, in poland. the ethiopian 0lympic legend haile gebrselassie has announced plans to head to the frontline just a day after prime minister abiy ahmed announced he wasjoining the fight against rebel forces from the northern region of tigray. that surprise move comes amid reports of rebel forces advancing towards the capital, addis ababa. their latest gain, is the town of shewa robit, which is on the main road linking the capital to the north. the bbc�*s emmanuel igunza has more from nairobi. it�*s a startling moment. just two years ago, prime minister abiy ahmed won the nobel peace prize, describing war as "the epitome of hell". today, he�*s threatening to march in person to the battlefront to join his troops in the year—long war against the tigray people�*s liberation fighters. the tplf, which hasjoined forces with another rebel group, have dismissed the statement and claim to have captured key towns and cities as they advance south towards the capital, addis ababa. the government denies this. supporters of the prime minister have cheered him on, calling him "brave" — but critics say it�*s just a publicity stunt by mr abiy, who once served in the military. this has been a devastating war. there have been casualties, thousands killed and millions displaced by the conflict. ethiopia declared a state of emergency at the beginning of november. the un says nearly half a million people are living under famine—like conditions. even aid workers have been targeted — nearly 30 have been killed since fighting broke out. rights groups have accused both sides of atrocities that amount to war crimes. the un has reiterated calls for the release of humanitarian workers and more than 70 drivers detained by authorities earlier this month. no reason was given for their arrest. in ethiopia, it�*s a fluctuating picture. the latest numbers i�*ve just received are five un staff and two dependants are in custody. six staff, as we mentioned, were released yesterday, and one was released today. however, one un staff member and a dependent were detained today. the african union is leading efforts to bring a negotiated end to the fighting, but neither side has committed to talks. earlier this month, the us secretary of state antony blinken warned that out—and—out conflict would be disastrous for the ethiopian people and others in the region. at the root of the war is a disagreement between prime minister abiy and the tplf which, for almost three decades, dominated the whole country. the simmering dispute then erupted into war 12 months ago when tigrayan forces were accused of attacking army bases to steal weapons, and the federal government responded. pm abiy ahmed came into power, bringing with him sweeping reforms and promising to heal old wounds. today, the country�*s torn apart by bitter ethnic ensigns that leads many to question how things could have gone so wrong for a country that held so much hope. emmanuel igunza, bbc news. let�*s get an update on all the sport now. hello, i�*m gavin ramjaun. and this is the latest from the bbc sport centre. manchester united bounced back from their poor league form to seal their place in the knockouts of the european champions league. former player michael carrick was in charge for the win over villarreal 2—0, they left it late to secure the win though cristiano ronaldo. then a last minute jadon sancho goal means united are into the last 16, with a game to spare. it wasn�*t about me tonight, though, it was about getting through. it was a massive game. when you get to this stage of the group in the champions league it can swing so easy both ways. so it was vital that we came here and got the right result. and we managed to do that, and i�*m delighted. elsewhere, wins for bayern munich, who maintained their 100% win record, and chelsea, who qualified emphatically by beating juventus 4—0. but xavi and barcelona have it all to do, if they�*re to have any chance of making the knockouts. they were held to a goalless draw with benfica, meaning they have to get a result against mighty bayern in their last game, or rely on benfica not winning against the group�*s bottom side dynamo kyiv. the five—time winners barca face the prospect of not featuring in the champions league knockout stage for the first time since the 2003—04 season, when they did not qualify for competition. there are plenty of big matches to look forward to on wednesday, including atletico madrid v ac milan. and manchester city hosting paris saint—germain. the man in charge of the french league leaders, though, is batting away rumours linking him with the job at manchester united. mauricio pochettino says he�*s happy in paris, as they go up against the group leaders at the etihad. psg were beaten by city in the semi—finals last season. pochettino said he wouldn�*t be distracted by reports linking him to thejob at old trafford. isaid to i said to you all my contractors 2023, you know. i�*d don�*t say nothing different. and then i am very happy in the paris saint—germain, that is a fact. it is not a thing to think. the fact is a in paris. history for saudi side al—hilal in the asian champions league to tell you about. the won the competition for a record fourth time on tuesday thanks a 2—0 win over pohang steelers of south korea. nasser al—dawsari made history scoring the fastest goal in the competition, barely 16 seconds after the start of the match. moussa marega got the second to seal the win to make them the most successful asian side. it comes a year after they were thrown out of the competition following numerous cases of covid—19 infections within their squad. gavin there with all the sport. 0ne ofjust two surviving documents showing how albert einstein arrived at one of the greatest mathematical discoveries has sold at an auction house in paris for a record $13 million. the manuscript shows calculations made by einstein as he attempted to formulate his theory of relativity, which went on to transform our understanding of the universe. courtney bembridge reports. it may look incomprehensible, but these scratchings paved the way for a scientific breakthrough which transformed our understanding of space, time and gravity. the 54—page document was expected to fetch around us$3.5 million, but it ended up going for almost four times that amount, breaking the record for an autographed scientific document. applause the buyer remains a mystery. the manuscript was written in 1913 and 1914 by einstein and his academic partner, swiss physicist michele besso, who kept hold of the document, and it�*s lucky he did. it is one ofjust two papers showing the calculations which led to the great scientific breakthrough. translation: einstein - is someone who kept very few notes, so the mere fact that the manuscript survived and made its way to us makes it absolutely extraordinary. it�*s a rare and valuable document but it�*s not the first time it has been up for auction. 20 years ago it was sold as part of a pyramid scheme which ended up being one of france�*s biggest art scams, and the dispersal of that collection is what led to this sale. courtney bembridge, bbc news. we have all the top business stories here next on bbc news for you. stories here next on bbc news foryou. including more for you. including more analysis foryou. including more analysis on the news from the united states. president biden saying they will influx the oil market with oil from the us and he is calling on other countries to follow suit. what impact will it have? i will see you soon a moment. hello there. later this week, not only is there potential for some more disruptive weather heading our way, but something much colder, as well. wednesday starts off on a chilly note with a bit of frost in places, but some mist and dense fog patches possible across parts of england and wales — the winds have been lightest through the night. a bit more of a breeze through scotland and northern ireland to get under way, and some wet weather for the morning rush hour — this weather front here, a cold front, will bring the first run of colder air further and further southwards as we go through the next 2a hours. in the southern half of the country, a bit of a chill, temperatures not rising much — we still have light winds and a relatively quiet day, lots of mist and fog around. the morning rain, though, across scotland and northern ireland is replaced by sunshine and scattered showers, some heavy with hail, turning wintry in the far north of scotland, particularly on the hills. but turning wetter later on, northwest england, north and west wales as that cold front slowly makes its way southwards and eastwards. a little bit of patchy rain and drizzle to the south and east, we�*ll see some wetter conditions here through wednesday night. at the same time, very windy through wednesday night into thursday, and the far north of scotland seeing gusts of wind 50—60 mph — and that�*ll bring colder air, a very cold thursday morning commute, but a bright, crisp one for many — really good visibility, sunshine for the most part. some showers around the western and eastern coasts, but most of the showers will be in the north of scotland, where snow could even come down to sea level later, and an added wind—chill to go with what will be a cool day. and then things turn much more disturbed — through thursday into friday, particularly friday night and saturday, this area of low pressure transferring its way southwards. cold air wrapped around it, which means a greater chance of things turning to snow for some, but it�*s the winds which could be the key feature. even on friday, the winds really starting to pick up — outbreaks of rain initially pushing southwards and eastwards, but the showers that follow in its wake will turn increasingly wintry — over the hills for many, but even to lower levels in the northern half of scotland, and it will be a cold day. but through friday night into saturday, as our low pressure transfers its way southwards, we could see gales, if not severe gales develop along that weather system, working its way south and, as i said, there could be a bit of snow mixed in, too. and that will take us into saturday, as well. now those strong winds could be a problem in some parts, we could see damaging gusts of wind, some travel disruption around to take us into the weekend. even if you don�*t see those damaging winds — widespread gales and, as i said, that risk of rain and snow, too. see you soon. hello again. you are with bbc news. i�*m sally bundock with the top business stories. the us fuels the battle against high crude prices announcing it will pump an extra 50 million barrels daily into the market. hitting rock bottom, turkey�*s lira tumbles for an 11th straight day and hits a new record low after the country�*s president goes against the markets and backs plans to cut interest rates. samsung puts its chips on the table in texas with the tech giant investing $17 billion in the state to build its latest semiconductorfactory. and india cracks down on crypto, warning it will soon ban the majority of digital currencies from trading in the country. yet it still plans to launch its own!