SCIENCE
ISRO gearing up for GISAT-1 launch on Thursday
While ISRO officials are keeping a studied silence on the launch, IANS learnt that the rocket - Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-F10 (GSLV-F10), loaded with GISAT-1, is at the second launch pad, and is expected to blast off at 5.43 a.m. The GISAT-1 will be the country's first sky eye or earth observation satellite to be placed in geo-stationary orbit.
ISS astronauts enjoy space Olympics sans gravity
French astronaut Thomas Pesquet of the European Space Agency (ESA) posted a series of videos on Twitter over the weekend, showing some of the ISS astronauts performing their favourite games sans gravity. They also had a 'weightless' sharpshooting session where they shoot what look like rubber bands at a makeshift target.
NASA's Mars rover fails to pick a rock sample in 1st attempt
Early last month, the self-driving six-wheeled robot started its journey across Jezero Crater floor to seek signs of ancient life. The crater harboured a big lake and a river delta in the ancient past. While Perseverance, using its 2-metre-long robotic arm, drilled a hole on Mars, it could not collect and store samples as intended. The teams are now exploring what went wrong and are working to correct it.
World's first 3D image of monkey brain developed
A team from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, created a detailed map of a complete macaque monkey brain using fluorescent imaging techniques, the Daily Mail reported. The team created a new technique, known as Volumetric Imaging with Synchronous on-the-fly-scan and Readout (VISoR).
'Intriguing' layer where sun's internal rotation change explained
It has long been known that the sun's equator spins faster than the poles. However, a peek into the internal rotation of the sun using sound waves revealed the existence of an intriguing layer where its rotation profile changes sharply. This is called the near-surface shear layer (NSSL), and exists very close to the solar surface, where there is an outward decrease in angular velocity.
Hubble finds evidence of water vapour on Jupiter Moon
This water vapour forms when ice from the moon's surface sublimates -- that is, turns from solid to gas. The findings are published in the journal Nature Astronomy. Previous research has offered circumstantial evidence that Ganymede, the largest moon in the solar system, contains more water than all of Earth's oceans.
NASA lander reveals Mars' deep interiors for 1st time
Three papers based on the seismometer's data on stationary lander were published in the journal Science, providing details on the depth and composition of Mars' crust, mantle and core. The scientists found the crust was thinner than expected and may have two or even three sub-layers. It goes as deep as 20 kms if there are two sub-layers, or 37 kms if there are three.
NASA to take SpaceX flight for Mission to Jupiter's icy moon
The US space agency will pay approximately $178 million to SpaceX for launch services, it said in a statement on Friday. Europa Clipper will conduct a detailed survey of Europa and use a sophisticated suite of science instruments to investigate whether the icy moon has conditions suitable for life.The mission to Jupiter's icy moon Europa was cleared by NASA in 2015.
Scientists discover 15,000-year-old viruses from Tibetan glacier
The findings, published in the journal Microbiome, may help understand how viruses have evolved over centuries. For this study, the scientists also created a new, ultra-clean method of analysing microbes and viruses in ice without contaminating it.
Low-cost electrical contact material developed for thermoelectric devices
A thermoelectric material can generate electricity by using a temperature difference between its two sides. Nanotechnology brought innovations to improve the efficiency of materials, but the mass-market application of such innovations has remained restricted due to the low device conversion efficiency of 6-10 per cent. This makes the electricity produced costlier than other technologies.
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