Science News Updates

This Raksha Bandhan is going to be special for moon lovers as the sky is set to unfold a major celestial treat. A rare Super Blue Moon will grace the heavens on Wednesday, August 30. However skywatchers in India may not be able to watch the spectacle in full glory as it unfolds early morning on August 31.

The Indian Space Research Organisation is gearing up for Aditya-L1, the first space-based Indian mission to study the Sun. The Aditya-L1 mission will be launched from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on September 2nd. What are the objectives of the mission? Here’s what the space agency has to say. It will help study the Solar upper atmospheric - the chromosphere and corona - dynamics.

Vyommitra, a fusion of Sanskrit words "Vyoma" (Space) and "Mitra" (Friend), is a pioneering innovation designed for India's inaugural unmanned Gaganyaan mission. This female humanoid robot serves as a vital component of the mission. As was disclosed earlier, this prototype of humanoid will go as trial before Gaganyaan goes with astronauts.

After the success of Chandrayaan-3, ISRO is gearing up for Aditya-L1, the first space based Indian mission to study the Sun. The Aditya-L1 mission will be launched by ISRO’s PSLV XL rocket from Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR (SDSC-SHAR) in Sriharikota on September 2nd.

India on August 23 reached the Moon with its lander safely landing on the lunar soil in a text book style.

It will be the first dedicated Indian space mission for observations of the Sun to be launched by the Bengaluru-headquartered space agency.

The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency's (JAXA) SLIM (Smart Lander for Investigating Moon) aims to achieve a lightweight probe system on a small scale and use the pinpoint landing technology necessary for future lunar probes. 

According to the space agency, Chandra's Surface Thermophysical Experiment (ChaSTE) measured the temperature profile of the lunar topsoil around the south pole, to understand the thermal behaviour of the Moon's surface.

Aditya-L1 spacecraft is designed for providing remote observations of the solar corona and in situ observations of the solar wind at L1 (Sun-Earth Lagrangian point), which is about 1.5 million kilometres from the earth.

India currently ranks seventh in terms of funding within the international spacetech landscape, firmly establishing its influence in this dynamic sector, according to a latest report by market intelligence firm Tracxn.

The Prime Minister was addressing the gathering of scientists at the Command Centre of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in Bengaluru in a programme organized against the backdrop of the Chandrayaan-3 mission success.

While the rover did its moonwalk on Thursday, ISRO released the much-awaited video on Friday.

In a tweet, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said: “Lander Module payloads ILSA, RAMBHA and ChaSTE are turned ON today (Thursday).”

According to the BHU officials, the findings of the study have been published in journals like Bioresource Technology, Food Biotechnology and Applied Food Biotechnology. The work will be highly beneficial for the food processing and pharma industries.

On August 21, just before 8:03 a.m. EDT, Parker Solar Probe zoomed past Venus moving approximately more than 24 km per second.