NASA
The United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket with NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) spacecraft onboard launches from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Space Launch Complex 41, Thursday, March 12, 2015, Florida.
1. Vladmir Putin's spokesman has denied rumours that the Russian president is in poor health, even though he has not been seen in public since March 5.
2. Iraqi government forces have made more gains in the key city of Tikrit, marking a significant defeat for Islamic State militants.
3. One American and one British aid worker have been infected with the Ebola virus in Sierra Leonne.
4. Terry Pratchett, the 66-year-old author best known for the "Discworld" fantasy series, died Thursday.
5. North Korea reportedly test-fired seven missiles, with the longest range at about 200 kilometres (125 miles).
6. ISIS accepted a pledge of allegiance from Boko Haram, Africa's deadliest terror group.
7. A tentative deal has been reached to end the largest US refinery strike in 35 years, affecting one-fifth of the country's refining capacity.
8. A manhunt is underway in Ferguson, Missouri, to find the suspects who shot two police officers Thursday during riots outside police headquarters over a report detailing racial bias within the force.
9. NASA launched four science satellites Thursday as part of a billion-dollar mission to map explosions created when earth's magnetic lines break apart and reconnect.
10. The BBC has set up a disciplinary panel to determine the fate of "Top Gear" host Jeremy Clarkson after he allegedly punched a producer.
And finally ...
Leonardo DiCaprio and Adrien Grenier are headed on a quest to find the world's "loneliest whale," named that because her call is outside the normal communication range for other whales, so they can't hear her.