Tens of thousands of people have signed a petition to stop Jeff Bezos returning to Earth after his space flight.

Never since the 1960s has humanity been so fixated on the heavens. The countdown to Friday's launch of SpaceX's Dragon Crew from Cape Canaveral in Florida is just one small step on the road to returning to the Moon, manned trips to Mars and much more. We ask about this mission and the first Frenchman to return to space, Thomas Pesquet.

There is no space left in the capital Delhi’s crematoriums and graveyards due to the rapidly increasing number of the coronavirus deaths, according to the local sources. While India’s coronavirus situation continues to worsen, with an average of more than 250,000 daily cases, the country reached the highest number of daily COVID-19 death with 1,761 fatalities on Monday.

In tonight's edition: The main opposition challenger in Congo Brazzaville's elections dies of Covid-19 on polling day. Guy-Brice Parfait Kolelas' death overshadows the weekend's vote, which is expected to return incumbent President Denis Sassou Nguesso to power. Also, in Kenya, Lamu's fishermen protest over a border dispute with Somalia. And Tunisia has an out of this world day by launching its first satellite, named "Challenge One".

Here is why you should pick up a copy of The Guardian on Thursday.⁣ Here are some of the stories to look out for when you grab a copy of The Guardian on the newsstands on Thursday.⁣

"They basically said, 'Do you want to go to space?'" says 29-year-old Hayley Arceneaux, recounting the moment she was offered a seat on the first all-civilian mission into Earth's orbit. The healthcare worker who survived bone cancer as a child is set to become the youngest American to go to space when she blasts off on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket as part of the Inspiration4 mission. Memphis-based St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, where Arceneaux was treated for cancer and now works, got a seat from billionaire Jared Isaacman, who paid for the mission. "I really hope to inspire patients going through cancer treatment and other survivors that anything is possible," Arceneaux says.

The toilet is 65% smaller and almost 50% lighter than toilets the ISS currently uses.

How West Africa’s investment banking space is coping with COVID-19

French astronaut Thomas Pesquet will be the first European to fly on board the new SpaceX Dragon 2, which is due to blast off from Cape Canaveral for the International Space Station in the spring of 2021. Pesquet already spent six months on board the ISS from November 2016 to June 2017. He spoke to FRANCE 24 about training for his return to space, why his new mission is called "Alpha" and why he thinks a manned mission to Mars will happen within his lifetime.

A number of liberal academics have been sacked by their universities, allegedly over their anti-government stance. Rights groups have expressed grave concerns over a shrinking space for dissent in Pakistan.

Some 19 hours after blast-off from Florida, the capsule built by Elon Musk's private space firm has arrived at its destination. NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken will spend up to four months on the ISS.

The planemaker's Germany-based subsidiary, Defence and Space, has said it's undergoing "restructuring" after major financial losses. The group will cut a total of 2,362 jobs.