The New York Times reports that a leaked document has revealed that China and the Solomon Islands are close to signing a security agreement that could open the door to Chinese troops and naval warships flowing into a Pacific Island nation that played a pivotal role in World War II.
The agreement, kept secret until now, was shared online Thursday night by opponents of the deal and verified as legitimate by the Australian government. Though it is marked as a draft and cites a need for “social order” as a justification for sending Chinese forces, it has set off alarms throughout the Pacific, where concerns about China’s intentions have been growing for years.
Australia’s Great Barrier Reef has been hit with a sixth mass coral bleaching event, the marine park’s authority has confirmed, with aerial surveys showing almost no reefs across a 1,200km stretch escaping the heat, as reported by the 
The 
The 
When Janet MacPherson started surfing around 1955, she was a rarity in a sport dominated by men. In those days, male surfers would sometimes throw rocks at her because they didn’t want a woman on their waves. She overcame the initial resistance to become a surfing icon, known worldwide and revered in her native Malibu in Southern California. Remarkably, she continued surfing for more than 60 years, riding the waves through her 70s and into her 80s. She died on March 5th, at age 84, of cancer in her home on Carbon Beach in Malibu. 
A cruise on the 
On St. Patrick’s Day, a post about another Irish saint, 
Almost one year ago, the container ship