Morning everyone,

Yesterday was a big day in news with the loss of Aussie icon Olivia Newton-John.

Mia Freedman has shared why the loss has hit the world so hard. You can read her thoughts about it here.

These are the top five news stories you need to know today.

1. Serena Williams "evolving away" from tennis.

Serena Williams says she is "evolving away from tennis", teasing her retirement from the sport she dominated with 23 grand slam titles.

Williams beat Spain's Nuria Parrizas Diaz to reach the second round of the Toronto Open on Monday. But the 40-year-old said after that match that she could see the light at the end of the tennis tunnel in her career.

"I have never liked the word retirement," Williams wrote in a Vogue article yesterday.

"Maybe the best word to describe what I'm up to is evolution. I'm here to tell you that I'm evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important to me."

Williams won her last grand slam in 2017 and has been chasing an elusive 24th crown that will see her match Margaret Court who holds the record for the most majors.

"There are people who say I'm not the GOAT (greatest of all time) because I didn't pass Court's record, which she achieved before the 'Open era' that began in 1968," former world number one Williams said.

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't want that record. Obviously I do. But day to day, I'm really not thinking about her. If I'm in a Slam final, then yes, I'm thinking about that record. Maybe I thought about it too much, and that didn't help."

Williams later said in an Instagram post that it was time to move in a "different direction."

"That time is always hard when you love something so much," she added. "My goodness do I enjoy tennis. But now, the countdown has begun. I have to focus on being a mum, my spiritual goals and finally discovering a different, but just exciting Serena. I'm gonna relish these next few weeks."

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A post shared by Serena Williams (@serenawilliams)

2. Melbourne landmarks lights up for Olivia as family to accept state funeral.

Melbourne's iconic Flinders Street station has been lit up pink in memory of Australian icon Olivia Newton-John.

The 73-year-old Melbourne-raised performer died in her sleep at her home in California, her husband John Easterling confirmed yesterday.

Yesterday afternoon, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews announced the city's most famous landmarks - including Flinders Street Station, the Arts Centre, the MCG and other sporting venues - would be lit up pink in honour of her "enormous contribution to cancer awareness, research and treatment".

"She took her cancer journey and used that to save lives and change lives, and that's just a deeply impressive thing," he said.

Tonight, city landmarks were awash in pink hues to honour the life of Olivia Newton-John who gave so much to her beloved hometown of Melbourne. Vale ONJ 💕 #OliviaNewtonJohn #Melbourne pic.twitter.com/djv7Y8WuWH
— Sean Marsicovetere (@SeanMarsico) August 9, 2022

Adelaide also lit up its Entertainment Centre in pink lights in memory of the star.

Dame Olivia's niece, actress and singer Tottie Goldsmith, revealed last night that the family will accept the offer of a state funeral.

3. Trump seeks to raise money off FBI search.

Former US president Donald Trump has sent out a fundraising email to his followers, after his Florida estate was raided by the FBI.

The unprecedented search of the home of the former president marked a significant escalation of the federal investigation into whether Trump illegally removed records from the White House as he was leaving office in January 2021.

Trump continues to suggest he will run again for president in 2024.

Trump tried to paint the search of his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach as a politically motivated move by President Joe Biden's administration even as the former president plays a key role in Republican primaries ahead of the November midterm elections that will determine control of the US Congress.

The FBI raided Donald Trump's Florida estate in an unprecedented search of a former president's home that marks a significant escalation of an investigation into the removal of classified White House records https://t.co/vMca5LdrSE pic.twitter.com/diYkwah4IS
— Reuters (@Reuters) August 9, 2022

"As they watch my endorsed candidates win big victories and see my dominance in all polls, they are trying to stop the Republican Party and me once more," Trump said in a fundraising email on Tuesday. "The lawlessness, political persecution, and Witch Hunt, must be exposed and stopped."

Trump launched his Save America political action committee days after losing the 2020 election to Biden. It has more than $US100 million ($US143.5 millon) in the bank.

4. Tasmania appoints first female police chief.

Tasmania Police will have its first female commissioner in the 125-year history of the force, a three-decade veteran who won an award for her work following the Port Arthur massacre.

Deputy Commissioner Donna Adams will assume the top job in October, following the retirement of Commissioner Darren Hine, it was announced yesterday.

"I'm passionate about keeping Tasmania a safe place to live," she told reporters.

"We need to do everything that we can to prevent harm before it occurs. We need to do everything we can to prevent victims from being a repeat victim (and) to disrupt the cycle of harm and violence."

Donna Adams will be Tasmania’s 15th police commissioner and the first female to hold the role. #politas pic.twitter.com/ZT18v4aodO
— Lucy MacDonald (@lucy_macdonald1) August 9, 2022

Adams joined Tasmania's police service in 1987 when she was 19 years old, and in 2009 became the first woman promoted to the rank of commander.

She became the first female deputy commissioner in 2021 and has won several awards including a Commissioner's Commendation for her work after the Port Arthur massacre in 1996.

"This is an exceptional achievement and is very well deserved," Premier Jeremy Rockliff said in a statement.

5. Nagasaki marks 77th A-bombing anniversary amid concerns of a Russian nuclear attack.

Nagasaki has paid tribute to the victims of the US atomic bombing 77 years ago, with the mayor saying Russia's war on Ukraine showed the world that another nuclear attack is not just a worry but "a tangible and present crisis".

Mayor Tomihisa Taue, in his speech at the Nagasaki Peace Park yesterday, said nuclear weapons can be used as long as they exist, and their elimination is the only way to save the future of humankind.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine and threat of nuclear weapons use came only a month after it and four other nuclear powers pledged in a statement that nuclear war should never be fought, Taue noted.

"This has shown the world that the use of nuclear weapons is not a groundless fear but a tangible and present crisis," he said.

Japanese officials and residents solemnly remembered the 77th anniversary of the atomic attack on Nagasaki on Tuesday, 3 days after the same anniversary was marked in the city of Hiroshima. pic.twitter.com/WrQ0Gokjaz
— NowThis (@nowthisnews) August 9, 2022

The United States dropped the world's first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, destroying the city and killing 140,000 people. It dropped a second bomb three days later on Nagasaki, killing another 70,000. Japan surrendered on August 15, ending World War II and Japan's nearly half-century of aggression in Asia.

Participants, including diplomats from nuclear states, observed a moment of silence at 11.02 am, the moment the bomb exploded above the southern Japanese city.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said, "Even though we face a severe security environment, we must pursue the history of non-nuclear use and make Nagasaki the last place of nuclear attack."

That's it, you're all up to speed.

- With AAP.

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