Science

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) — the modular space station orbiting the Earth — conducted experiments on Tuesday to explore space physics, artificial intelligence, the human nervous system, and the effect of microgravity on the human body in space. Conditions in space, such as zero gravity, allow astronauts the ability to explore phenomena

Space travel company Virgin Galactic on Wednesday said it had reached an agreement with Boeing subsidiary Aurora Flight Sciences to build two new air launch carrier aircraft for its spaceships. These new motherships will replace Virgin Galactic‘s existing carrier plane — the VMS Eve built by Scaled Composites — with the first of the new

Researchers have found unique carbon crystals having unusual shapes in the grains of preserved meteorite dust. The dust was the result of a space rock explosion that took place over Chelyabinsk, Russia in 2013. The meteorite fell on February 15, 2013, in Chelyabinsk city in Russia’s southern region. It measured 18 metres across and weighed

A newly discovered star takes only four years to travel around the black hole at the centre of our galaxy. In the vicinity of the black hole at the centre of our galaxy is a densely packed cluster of stars. This cluster, called the S cluster, is home to well over a hundred stars that

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have developed a design framework to build next-generation analog computing chipsets that could be faster and require less power than the digital chips found in most electronic devices. Using their novel design framework, the team has built a prototype of an analog chipset called ARYABHAT-1 (Analog Reconfigurable

Researchers have developed new lithium-ion batteries that perform well at both freezing cold and scorching hot temperatures while packing a lot of energy. The batteries, described in the journal PNAS, could allow electric vehicles in cold climates to travel farther on a single charge. They could also reduce the need for cooling systems to keep

A satellite the size of a microwave oven successfully broke free from its orbit around Earth on Monday and is headed toward the moon, the latest step in NASA’s plan to land astronauts on the lunar surface again. It’s been an unusual journey already for the Capstone satellite. It was launched six days ago from

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati, have designed an affordable ‘radiative cooler’ coating material, an alternative to air-conditioning system that needs no electricity to operate. According to officials, this material is an electricity-free cooling system as it can be applied on the rooftops, and functions both during day and night time to provide

China on Monday rejected as an irresponsible smear a warning from the chief of NASA that China might “take over” the moon as part of a military programme, saying it has always called for the building of a community of nations in outer space. China has stepped up the pace of its space programme in

NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission is the world’s first full-scale planetary defence test against potential asteroid impacts on Earth. Researchers now show that instead of leaving behind a relatively small crater, the impact of the DART spacecraft on its target could leave the asteroid near unrecognisable. A giant asteroid impact on the Earth

A new study has discovered the reason mosquitoes are drawn to some people more than others. Some viruses can cause an infected person to smell “tastier” to a mosquito, according to researchers. Zika and dengue fever are viruses that infect humans and are spread through mosquito bites. The researchers discovered that these viruses manipulate the hosts’ skin microbiome which

Experts have detected a spot on the surface of the Sun that has been growing at a rapid pace and is now three times the size of the Earth. The giant sunspot was recently pointed at Earth, with the possibility of solar flares and auroras. While solar flares are capable of harming satellites and power

FIFA has announced that semi-automated offside technology will be used at the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar starting on November 21, offering a support tool for the video match officials and the on-field officials to help them make faster, more accurate and more reproducible offside decisions on the biggest stage of all. Following the

World UFO Day is marked annually on July 2 to spread awareness about the existence of mysterious Unidentified Flying Objects. These strange objects have been sparking controversy and curiosity in the minds of many for decades. However, the existence of UFOs has always remained in question. The World UFO Day aims to encourage people to

A Virgin Orbit rocket carrying seven US Defense Department satellites was launched from a special Boeing 747 flying off the Southern California coast and streaked toward space Friday night. The modified jumbo jet took off from Mojave Air and Space Port in the Mojave Desert and released the rocket over the Pacific Ocean, northwest of

In a significant step towards solving the problem of waste management, researchers have devised a way to turn carbon atoms in mixed waste into new plastic without having any impact on environment. The new method does not require fossil raw material and can be a cleaner way to create plastic products. Currently, only a small

Researchers have developers a flexible implant capable of relieving pain in patients. In what could be termed as a game-changing discovery, the implant is a water-soluble and biocompatible device that can serve as an alternative to painkillers — eliminating the need for addictive medications. By wrapping around the nerves to provide cooling in the region, the

Homegrown space sector start-up Dhruva Space has tested and space-qualified its satellite orbital deployer, setting the stage for its plans to launch indigenously built satellites soon. The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) C53 mission that placed in orbit three foreign satellites, also proved to be a testbed for Dhruva Space’s Satellite Orbital Deployer (DSOD-1U), that

The US Federal Communications Commission on Thursday authorised Elon Musk’s SpaceX to use its Starlink satellite internet network with moving vehicles, green-lighting the company’s plan to expand broadband offerings to commercial airlines, shipping vessels and trucks. Starlink, a fast-growing constellation of internet-beaming satellites in orbit, has long sought to grow its customer base from individual

The PSLV-C53/DS-EO mission has been successfully accomplished, said Indian Space Research Organisation on Thursday. The launch was scheduled for 6 PM from the Second Launch Pad at Satish Dhawan Space, Sriharikota, added ISRO. The countdown of 25 hours leading to the launch started at 5 PM on Wednesday. PSLV-C53 is the second dedicated commercial mission