Thar She Blows!

Now that's a whale of an explosion:

Australian officials used explosives to blow up a terminally ill humpback whale that became stranded on a beach near Perth two weeks ago.

After attempts to return the juvenile whale to the sea failed, the state Department of Environment and Conservation had intended to let the 31-foot creature die naturally.

The whale was stranded on a beach in Albany, about 240 miles southwest of Perth, the state capital.

But the department's district manager, Mike Shepherd, said in a statement that the whale moved into a position on a sandbar in which it could be stabilised and euthanized.

Explosives were used because officials believed the whale was too large to shoot.

The International Whaling Commission recommends the use of explosives to euthanize beached whales longer than 26 feet.

Who knew the IWC had whale detonation standards?