This year’s Halloween pumpkins may be too small for traditional lantern carving. Record heatwaves and prolonged drought have affected crop growth, leaving many growers with smaller fruit than usual. Orange pumpkins are one of the best-known symbols of the autumn holiday, typically carved into spooky faces and other designs. Farmers, however, warn that this season’s pumpkins could be almost half their normal size. Their skins have also become thicker, making them more difficult to cut and carve.

A Russian frigate fired signal flares toward a Danish Armed Forces helicopter near Gedser, according to Danish media reports citing the country’s Ministry of Defence. The incident involved a Danish Air Force Fennec helicopter. It reportedly occurred during a routine mission to photograph the Russian frigate, which was sailing in international waters. Denmark’s Defence Ministry said that the Russian vessel launched two signal flares in the helicopter’s direction. One of them passed dangerously