Bill Chappell

A snarl of air traffic over California last week is being blamed on a Cold War-era spy plane whose flight plan did not compute for air traffic control computers. After the altitude of the U-2 plane was misinterpreted, efforts to route airliners around it created havoc.

"According to sources, the ...

Ukraine says its military has killed 30 pro-Russian separatists as government forces try to retake Slovyansk and other cities near the border with Russia. At least four Ukrainian soldiers have died, and separatists shot down a helicopter in eastern Ukraine.

The helicopter's "crew escaped because they apparently crashed into a ...

Updated at 1:55 a.m. EDT Monday:

Inspectors have yet to determine what caused Sunday's horrifying accident during a Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus performance in Providence, R.I.

Rhode Island Hospital in Providence admitted 11 patients with varying injuries, spokeswoman Jill Reuter told The Associated Press. One was said ...

Bishop Gene Robinson says he and his husband, Mark Andrew, are getting a divorce. The first openly gay Episcopal bishop, Robinson retired last year, a decade after his election alienated many conservative Anglicans.

The pair had been together for 25 years. Robinson disclosed the divorce this weekend, in an email ...

Gerry Adams, the leader of the mostly Catholic party Sinn Fein, was released Sunday after five days of police questioning about a 1972 murder. Adams' arrest had rattled the delicate power-sharing arrangement in Northern Ireland. His release was confirmed by a police statement today.

Adams, 65, was taken into custody ...

Summer hasn't officially begun, but that isn't stopping the city of Bristol, England, from closing off traffic so people can ride a nearly 300-foot-long water slide down the street.

Called the Park and Slide, the one-day attraction is the work of artist Luke Jerram, who tells the BBC that ...

Urging the release of separatists detained during Friday's unrest that left dozens dead, more than 100 pro-Russia activists surrounded a police station in the southern Ukrainian port city of Odessa Sunday.

Update at 4:30 p.m. ET: More Activists Released

Police in Odessa say 67 pro-Russia activists were freed Sunday.

Darth Vader walks the Earth today. By that, we mean he's walking all over the place. Fans of the sci-fi franchise are celebrating Star Wars Day — or May 4 for the less geek-inclined.

The day brings an excuse for people to dress as storm troopers and rebels and celebrate ...

The postseason continues for the Los Angeles Clippers, who won a pivotal Game 7 Saturday night, days after the team's owner was banned for life by the NBA. The Clippers ended the Golden State Warriors' season in a back-and-forth game that came down to the final minute.

In a ...

Weeks after issuing recalls for safety problems in some of its most popular cars, GM says it needs to fix defective fuel gauges that can give SUV drivers little or no warning their vehicle might run out of fuel. GM's latest recall potentially affects 51,640 SUVs that were built in ...

The 140th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville Saturday evening will bring a new chance at a Triple Crown winner. Here are some crucial things to know about the race.

• Post time is 6:24 p.m. ET; the race airs on NBC.
• The favorite is

France has banned imports of live pigs and related products from the U.S. and other countries in an attempt to keep a deadly virus that has killed millions of piglets in North America and Asia from spreading. The Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus has spread rapidly since the first U.S. case ...

Efrem Zimbalist Jr., an actor whose streak of leading-man success on TV stretched over three decades, has died. Zimbalist, who starred on ABC's 77 Sunset Strip and The F.B.I., was 95; his family announced his death, saying he died at home on Friday.

"We are heartbroken to announce the passing ...

More than 2,000 people are believed to be dead after a hillside collapsed on part of a remote village in Afghanistan, where rescue attempts have largely been abandoned. Heavy rain prompted the landslide, which enclosed hundreds of houses in more than 30 feet of mud.

The U.N. and relief agencies ...

Seven European military observers are free Saturday, more than a week after they were seized by pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. The move comes as Kiev applies military pressure to separatists who have claimed territory and buildings in the region.

Tensions hit a new high in parts of Ukraine Friday, ...

Cumming is starring in Cabaret for a third time, critic John Powers considers the movie monster and Mad Men's creator reflects on the end of Don Draper's journey.

Current and former NBA players praised the league's decision to punish LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling with a lifetime ban over racist remarks he made in an audio recording. Commissioner Adam Silver announced the punishment Tuesday, days after the audio emerged.

In addition to the lifetime ban, the NBA

Update at 2:15 p.m. ET: NBA Bans Sterling, Levies $2.5 Million Fine

The NBA is banning Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling, league Commissioner Adam Silver announced Tuesday, saying that its investigation has verified Sterling made racist comments in an audio recording that was made public Friday.

Saying that the ...

Noting that 1 in 5 women is sexually assaulted in college, the White House is releasing new guidelines to help victims of that violence and improve the way schools handle such cases. Campus sexual assaults are notoriously underreported, and schools' disciplinary processes vary widely.

The suggestions in a new report ...

As the NBA playoffs are overshadowed by racially inflammatory remarks attributed to the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, the league's options range from fining Sterling to expelling him.