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Good morning.

We’re covering a mysterious explosion in Russia that killed seven people, the machine behind the rise of far-right nationalism in Europe and a penguin parade in Australia.

New nuclear missile suspected in deadly Russian explosion

American intelligence officials are racing to understand a mysterious explosion that released radiation off the coast of northern Russia last week, apparently during the test of a new type of nuclear-propelled cruise missile that has been hailed by President Vladimir Putin as the centerpiece of Moscow’s arms race with the U.S.

The officials have said nothing publicly about what is possibly one of the worst nuclear accidents in Russia since Chernobyl, although apparently on a far smaller scale, with at least seven people, including scientists, confirmed dead. And Russia’s story about what happened on Thursday in the sea off one of its major missile test sites has changed over the past four days as the body count has risen.

New nuclear missile: U.S. intelligence officials suspect the explosion involved a prototype of what NATO calls the SSC-X-9 Skyfall. That is a cruise missile that Mr. Putin has boasted can reach any corner of the earth. Some arms experts have doubts about the technology.

Reaction: The Russian government’s slow and secretive response has prompted anxiety in nearby cities and towns — and attracted the attention of analysts who believe the explosion may offer a glimpse of technological weaknesses in Russia’s new arms program.

The machine behind the rise of far-right nationalism

In nationalist rhetoric, Sweden has become a prime cautionary tale against immigrants.

Fueled by an immigration backlash, right-wing populism has taken hold, reflected most prominently in the steady ascent of a political party with neo-Nazi roots, the Sweden Democrats.

To dig beneath the surface of what is happening in Sweden, though, is to uncover the workings of an international disinformation machine, devoted to the cultivation, provocation and amplification of far-right, anti-immigrant passions and political forces. The machine underscores the globalization of nationalism.

By the numbers: The Times analyzed more than 12 million available links from over 18,000 domains to four prominent far-right sites — Nyheter Idag, Samhallsnytt, Fria Tider and Nya Tider.

While most of the links came from Swedish-language sites, the analysis turned up a surprising number of links from well-trafficked foreign-language sites — which suggests that the Swedish sites’ rapid growth has been driven to a significant degree from abroad.

Quotable: “Sweden is portrayed either as a heaven or a hell,” said Annika Rembe, Sweden’s consul general in New York. “But conservative value-based politicians in Hungary, Poland, the United States and elsewhere would use Sweden as an example of a failed state: If you follow this path, your society will look like Sweden’s.”

Financier’s suicide spurs investigations and anger

Jeffrey Epstein, the wealthy investment manager who was facing charges of recruiting and sexually abusing teenage girls, apparently hanged himself in a Manhattan jail on Saturday. Procedures to closely monitor him after a suicide attempt last month were not being followed, law enforcement sources said.

Mr. Epstein’s accusers, as well as members of Congress and senior law enforcement officials, have demanded answers about why he was not being closely supervised.

What’s next: The investigation that led to sex trafficking charges against Mr. Epstein will continue, focusing on the people who were said to have participated in his sexual exploitation scheme.

Go deeper: A cache of previously sealed legal documents from the investigation into Mr. Epstein was released on Friday with new, disturbing details about his interactions with young girls.

Norway police call mosque attack attempted terrorism

The police said that they were investigating a foiled attack at a mosque near Oslo as an attempted act of terrorism, after a white gunman in a helmet and body armor opened fire but was overpowered before injuring anyone.

They also said that a young woman found dead in the suspect’s home was his 17-year-old stepsister.

The mosque attack came amid a polarizing debate in Norway about immigration and Islam, and it prompted the authorities to order police officers to guard mosques in the city.

Details: Only three people were in the mosque, Al-Noor Islamic Center in Baerum, preparing for Sunday’s celebration of the Eid al-Adha holiday, when a gunman began shooting, the authorities said.

The suspect, who had several guns when he was arrested, had expressed anti-immigrant and extremist views online, the authorities said. His name has not been released by the police.

If you have 12 minutes, this is worth it

Iceland prepares for a world without ice

Each one of Iceland’s glaciers is melting. As temperatures rise across the Arctic faster than almost any other place on the planet, all of Iceland is grappling with the prospect of a future with no ice.

The country’s businesses are suffering, and many are growing more serious about protecting the environment — and know they have to spend substantial money to do so.

Here’s what else is happening

Libya: At least three U.N. staff members were killed after a bomb-laden vehicle exploded outside a shopping mall in Benghazi on Saturday, a spokesman for the international organization said.

Myanmar: At least 51 people died in floods and a landslide that were caused by monsoon rains, and dozens more are unaccounted for, the authorities said. The torrential downpour was expected to continue for the next few days.

Uighurs: China said it closed Muslim detention camps. But reporters from The New York Times found, over seven days of traveling through the region, that the vast network of detention camps continues to operate, and even expand.

Apple: Russian officials opened an antitrust investigation into the tech giant for restricting and removing parental control apps from its App Store shortly after the company released its own competing service.

Ireland: For decades, women seeking abortions in Northern Ireland have either had to travel abroad or risk prosecution by illegally obtaining medical abortion pills at home. A measure passed recently by the British Parliament would liberalize Northern Ireland’s abortion laws in just a few months — unless the region’s long-dormant legislature intervenes.

China: One of the strongest typhoons to strike the country in years left at least 30 people dead and at least 18 others missing, state news media reported.

Snapshot: Above, the nightly “penguin parade” on Phillip Island, Australia, a major tourist draw since the 1920s. In the 1980s, as development on the Summerland Peninsula threatened the penguins’ survival, the government decided to buy all the property in the area in what is thought to be the world’s only such buyback for the sake of wildlife.

From Opinion: Former Vice President Joe Biden writes that assault weapons are a threat to national security and must be banned.

What we’re looking at: These 19th-century “song sheets” in the Library of Congress. “I found this collection by accident, and it’s been a delightful detour,” says Gina Lamb, a Special Sections editor. “Americans used these illustrated, one-page documents to learn the words to popular songs, reflecting the themes of their times in love, war, money and politics.”

Now, a break from the news

Cook: You don’t need a colander for this one-pot zucchini-basil pasta.

Go: In Zadar, on the Dalmatian Coast in Croatia, the 52 Places Traveler was overwhelmed by the crowds. Then he thought outside the guidebook.

See: In the Broadway double bill “Sea Wall/A Life,” Tom Sturridge and Jake Gyllenhaal portray young fathers shaken out of complacency.

Watch: “This Changes Everything,” a star-studded documentary about gender inequality in film and TV, is equal parts history lesson and constructive criticism, our critic writes.

Smarter Living: The great thing about yoga is you don’t need prior experience to give it a shot. You can also do it almost anywhere. We’ve got a guide to some of the basics, from a five-minute session to breathing exercises.

We also asked experts how to test, prevent or diagnose food allergies in children.

And now for the Back Story on …

Sargassum seaweed

You may have heard of the Sargasso Sea, the world’s only borderless sea.

It is formed by mats of free-floating sargassum seaweed in the northern Atlantic Ocean. Eels, turtles and fish thrive in its fronds.

But there’s another proliferation of sargassum farther south, disrupting marine life, smothering fields of sea grass and decomposing stinkily on Caribbean beaches.

It’s being called the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt, a vast bloom that has been recurring almost every year since 2011.

Researchers are looking into possible causes. It could be that nutrient-rich water from two sources — deep water off West Africa and runoff from the Amazon River — is feeding the blooms.

Combating the problem is crucial for tourism-driven economies in the Caribbean. Barbados deployed its armed forces to deal with the seaweed last year, and Mexico is putting its navy on the case this year.

Some people are trying to find uses for the bounty. One Barbadian entrepreneur is turning it into fertilizer, and foragers suggest — you guessed it — trying it for dinner.

That’s it for this briefing. See you next time.

— Melina

Thank you
To Mark Josephson and Eleanor Stanford for the break from the news. Nadav Gavrielov wrote today’s Back Story. You can reach the team at [email protected].

P.S.
• We’re listening to “The Daily.” Our latest episode is about India’s crackdown in Kashmir.
• Here’s today’s Mini Crossword puzzle, and a clue: Most of the earth’s surface (5 letters). You can find all our puzzles here.
• The Times’s Crossword puzzles increase in difficulty as the week progresses, with Mondays consisting of familiar vocabulary and a straightforward theme.

Melina Delkic writes the Europe edition of the Morning Briefing. @MelinaDelkic

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