James Webb telescope offers glimpse of universe's birth

The first full series of Nasa's colour photos from the world's most powerful space telescope show a section of the universe teeming with galaxies, some of them containing between a million and hundred billion stars. It also offers us a glimpse into the birth of the universe. The telescope collects invisible infra red data that can be translated into visible coloured images of light that began travelling towards us thirteen- billion years ago, moments after the Big Bang. Our science reporter explains how it works, and what we can expect from it.

Also we continue to follow the political upheaval in Sri Lanka. The country’s main opposition leader, Sajith Premadasa has told the BBC he intends to run for president, once Gotabaya Rajapaksa steps down. We speak to two exporters, of fabrics and spices, to hear how the economic crisis is impacting their businesses.

And in the UK, A BBC investigation has found evidence that SAS special force operatives in Afghanistan killed detainees and unarmed men in suspicious circumstances. We get the latest on the story from our correspondent.

(Photo: The "Cosmic Cliffs" of the Carina Nebula is seen in an image divided horizontally, with data from NASA"s James Webb Space Telescope July 12, 2022. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Reuters.)