On chinadaily.com.cn

Science: Deepest point on land is under glacier

Glaciologists have discovered the deepest point on land under an Antarctic glacier. Among other findings of BedMachine Antarctica, a mapping project for the white continent, glaciologists said one of the most striking was finding "the world's deepest land canyon below Denman Glacier in East Antarctica". Their calculations suggest that the ice flowing through the canyon according to the combined radar survey and ice motion data was 3,500 meters below the sea level, the deepest point on Earth. The discovery was announced by the University of California, Irvine, on Thursday.

Biz: IPhone shipments drop by 35 percent

Chinese consumers are cooling on the iPhone, according to Credit Suisse analysts. Shipments dropped 35.4 percent last month compared with the same time last year, the analysts said, despite a slight increase in the Chinese smartphone market at the same time. IPhone sales in China declined 10.3 percent year-onyear in October, making this the second straight month of double-digit percentage drops. Since the launch of the iPhone 11 family, total shipments in China have fallen 7.4 percent compared with last year.

World: $15 million Christmas tree in Spain

A $15 million Christmas tree has dubbed the "most expensive Christmas tree in the world". It belongs to a beachfront luxury hotel near Marbella in the south of Spain whose lobby the tree graces. Dripping with real diamonds, the tree is the product of a partnership between the Kempinski Hotel Bahia in Estepona and designer Debbie Wingham, a British artist who has crafted showy, life-size desserts of Kim Kardashian and Kylie Jenner among others. She has made her name in the luxury world with other extravagant creations including the most expensive wedding cake and the most expensive shoes, a pair of sandals made with gold, pink and blue diamonds. Along with the highvalue stones, including pink, red, white and black diamonds, the tree has edible treats and traditional decorations.

Rankings: Top grossing domestic films of 2019

China's film industry has come through with a chain of homegrown blockbusters and impressive revenue. On Dec 6, the country's annual box office exceeded 60 billion yuan ($8.53 billion)－24 days earlier than the previous year, according to China Movie Data Information Network. Eight of the top moneymakers were domestic productions, such as the phenomenal Ne Zha, the sci-fi saga The Wandering Earth and the school-bullying-themed film Better Days.