Independent 10,752 / Wire

DISCUS<s> (=examine); “briefly” means last letter is dropped

Double definition: some candles contain incense, while to be incandescent with rage is to be incensed

*(USES VAN IN); “shot” is anagram indicator; Venusians are/would be inhabitants of one of the two planets that neighbour Earth

C + LIMB (=branch, e.g. of tree)

<cir>C<les> (“essentially” means middle letter only) + RAW (=not manufactured, as in raw materials); the craw is the crop, throat or first stomach of fowls, according to Chambers

Double definition: an occupation of a country can follow its invasion by an army, while a craft or trade is an occupation

TR (=Turkey, in IVR) + OUNCE (=spotted feline); to stuff is to defeat convincingly, thrash, hence “trounce”

S<tate> H<ighly> (“heads of” means first letters only) + INTO (=highly enthusiastic about)

O (=old) in METER (=detection device)

*(ET SAY) in C<on>E (“sides of” means first and last letters only); “crashed” is anagram indicator

TIS (SIT=model, pose for, as verb; “retired” indicates reversal) in CHASING (=after, in pursuit of)

RAF (=pilots, i.e. Royal Air Force) + A (=advanced, as in A-level exam); “westwards” indicates reversal

D (=Germany, in IVR) + RINK (=icy area, e.g. for skating); to drink is to absorb, swallow

E.T. (=film, by Spielberg) + *(L (=left) + NEARLY); “in pieces” is anagram indicator

Double definition: controls are subjects used to provide a standard for comparison in experiments, while controls in a vehicle or machine can be used to steer it

VESSEL (=ship); with “answer (=A) for each Earth (=E)” means that both letter “e”s become “a”s

Cryptic definition: the “homer” of the definition is not the Greek epic poet but a homing pigeon!

SING (=celebrate) + *(OPERA); “about” is anagram indicator

<b>URSA<r> (=treasurer); “barely” means first and last letters are stripped off; Ursa is the Latin name of two constellations, Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, the Great and the Little Bear, hence “shapes in the sky”

H<ind>U (“cover of” means first and lasts letters in NOSPS (SP=special + SON (=issue, offspring); “arisen” indicates vertical reversal)

*(SAUCERS HIT); “flying” is anagram indicator

Reversed (=in circulation) and hidden (=some) in “terrIFIC Stories”; & lit.

DE (ED.=journalist, i.e. editor; “upset” indicates vertical reversal) + BUNK (=bed); to puncture a claim, myth could be to expose it as false, hence “debunk” it

GAUCH<o> (=cowboy; “not entirely” means last letter is dropped) + <hors>E (“back” means last letter only)

UNDER (=controlled by, inferior to) + TAKER (=abductor, i.e. one who takes)

Homophone of “the ex files (e.g. for divorce) (=my former lover’s getting legal)”; the reference is to the US sci-fi series The X-Files, which ran from 1993-2002.

*(BY A LATER); “shocked by” is anagram indicator

R<ogue> O<perations> (“primarily” means first letters only) + SWELL (=expand); the reference is to the closed Walker Air Force Base, located near to Roswell in New Mexico and best known for the 1947 Roswell UFO Incident

CANCE<r to l> (=sign, i.e. of the zodiac); “finally changed hands” means the “r (=right)” at the end of the word becomes “l (=left)”

CID (=investigators, i.e. Criminal Investigation Department, in UK) in AIC (CIA=intelligence unit, i.e. Central Intelligence Agency, in US; “over” indicates vertical reversal)

NEIL A<rmstrong> was the fellow astronaut of Michael C<ollins> on the Apollo 11 spaceflight that landed men on the moon; “recalled” indicates reversal

<sk>INCA<re>; “peeling twice” means two letters are dropped at the begin and at the end