The answers, explained
From weeks to Halley’s Comet: puzzle #19, explained
Seven numbers, seven stories. Here is the thinking behind every answer in Range Squeeze #19, and where to read more.
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This article explains the answers to puzzle #19, so it unlocks once Sunday 25 October 2026 is over.
Play today’s puzzle Past answersHow many weeks are there in a year, to the nearest whole number?
52 weeks
Fifty-two and a bit
A year has 52 weeks and one day, or 52 weeks and two days in a leap year. That’s why your birthday falls one day of the week later each year, or two after a 29 February.
Why doesn’t it fit neatly? Weeks and years come from different clocks. The year follows the Earth’s trip around the Sun, about 365¼ days, while the seven-day week has no astronomical link. It may echo the Moon’s phases, which change roughly every seven days.
Most of the world now uses the calendar introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582. It skips the leap day in century years unless they divide by 400, which is why 2000 was a leap year but 1900 wasn’t.
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How many squares are on a classic Snakes and Ladders board?
100 squares
A board with a lesson
The classic board has 100 squares, numbered in a zigzag from 1 in the bottom corner to 100 at the top. Ladders carry you up, and snakes slide you back down.
Why snakes? The game began in ancient India as Moksha Patam, a lesson about good and evil. Ladders stood for good deeds that lift you towards moksha, or liberation, and snakes for bad deeds that drag you back.
British families took it up in the late 1800s. In the United States it is often sold as Chutes and Ladders, with slides in place of snakes.
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In what year did the Spice Girls release Wannabe?
1996
Tell me what you want
The Spice Girls released Wannabe, their first single, in July 1996. It went to number one in the UK and then in more than 30 countries, including the United States.
What is a zigazig-ah? Nobody has ever fully explained. The group wrote the song with producers Richard Stannard and Matt Rowe in about half an hour, and the made-up word stayed.
The video was filmed in a single continuous shot at the old Midland Grand Hotel at St Pancras in London. Wannabe is still the best-selling single by a girl group.
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Roughly how many hours a day does a typical cat sleep?
15 hours
Built for naps
A typical pet cat sleeps around 12 to 16 hours a day, usually in short naps rather than one long sleep. Kittens and older cats sleep even more.
Why so much? Cats are hunters built for short bursts of energy. Stalking and pouncing take a lot of effort, and resting saves energy for the next chase.
Cats are crepuscular, meaning they are most active at dawn and dusk, when their prey is on the move. That’s why many cats want breakfast long before their owners do.
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In what year did the Mayflower reach North America?
1620
Blown off course
The Mayflower reached North America in November 1620, when its passengers sighted Cape Cod. It had left Plymouth, in England, in September, after a false start with a second ship that kept leaking.
Where were they heading? The Pilgrims meant to settle near the Hudson River, in what is now New York, but rough seas pushed them north. They founded their colony at Plymouth, in today’s Massachusetts.
Before going ashore, the men on board signed the Mayflower Compact, an agreement to make fair laws together.
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How many players does each netball team have on court?
7 players
Stay in your zone
Each netball team has seven players on court. Every position has a name and letters on the bib, such as GS for goal shooter and C for centre, and each one is allowed only in certain areas.
Why can’t you run with the ball? Netball grew out of an early version of basketball, adapted in England in the 1890s. Players must pass or shoot within three seconds of catching the ball, and can’t move with it.
Only the goal shooter and goal attack can score, from inside the shooting circle. Australia has won the Netball World Cup more often than any other country.
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In what year did Halley’s Comet last pass close to Earth?
1986
Once in a lifetime
Halley’s Comet last passed close to the Earth in early 1986. It returns about every 76 years, so most people can hope to see it once in their lives.
Who was Halley? The English astronomer Edmond Halley worked out that comets seen in 1531, 1607 and 1682 were the same object, and predicted it would return in 1758. It arrived on time, and the comet has carried his name ever since.
In 1986 a fleet of spacecraft flew out to meet it. Europe’s Giotto probe passed within about 600 kilometres of its icy core, which turned out to be dark and shaped a bit like a peanut.
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How did you do?
A new puzzle arrives at midnight. Bring your best guesses.
Play Range SqueezeMore past answersPhotos are credited under each picture and used under their open licences or public-domain status. Links go to Wikipedia, which is written and maintained by volunteers.