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Voyager 1 is about to reach one light-day from Earth, but weeks before this historic event, the spacecraft left NASA in a tizzy when the engineers could not contact it for over 24 hours. In mid-October, NASA engineers failed to detect its radio signal twice in a 24 hour gap. The contact was re-established the next day, but they are still trying to work out what went wrong.&nbsp;Voyager 1 was launched in 1977 to study Jupiter and Saturn closely, including their rings and moons. It completed the two flyby for 1980, and yet continued to remain active and move ahead. Today, it is the farthest man-made object in space. On November 18, 2026, it will reach one light-day from Earth, that is the distance that light takes to travel in 24 hours.&nbsp;NASA relies on Deep Space Network (DSN), an array of giant radio antennas, to communicate with Voyager 1. However, on October 18 and 19, NASA was jolted when it failed to establish contact with Voyager. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory said in a statement on 29 October 2026 that all communications returned back to normal on October 20 without the engineers having sent any command. The reason for the loss remains a mystery, although investigations are going on. Till now, scientists have established that one group of thrusters went offline on the spacecraft and the backup thrusters turned on. This switch is built into the programming in case the active thrusters experience some problem.&nbsp;According to JPL, this is known as automatic response fault protection and it puts the probe into a safe, or stable, configuration. All normal operations are put on hold while the engineers identify the issue.&nbsp;“This is the first time we’ve seen the spacecraft do something like this, but we are also at a point in the mission where we have to expect the unexpected,” Kareem Badaruddin, Voyager mission manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, said in a statement.&nbsp;Voyager 1 is travelling at a speed of 611,55 kilometres per hour and will be 25.89 billion km from Earth on November 18. At this distance, light takes 24 hours to travel. Radio waves already take 24 hours to reach the probe. “If you want to say ‘hello’ to Voyager, you send your message and then you go home and you wait two days before you finally get a response,” Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager at JPL, said.&nbsp;To keep the probe going, NASA has switched off several scientific instruments which helps save power. It is powered by heat from decaying plutonium, which is converted into electricity.&nbsp;

A month before Voyager 1 was supposed to reach a historic milestone, it stopped communicating with NASA engineers on Earth for 24 hours. Communication returned the next day automatically. The space agency is trying to understand what went wrong.

Voyager 1 is about to reach one light-day from Earth, but weeks before this historic event, the spacecraft left NASA in a tizzy when the engineers could not contact it for over 24 hours. In mid-October, NASA engineers failed to detect its radio signal twice in a 24 hour gap. The contact was re-established the next day, but they are still trying to work out what went wrong. Voyager 1 was launched in 1977 to study Jupiter and Saturn closely, including their rings and moons. It completed the two flyby for 1980, and yet continued to remain active and move ahead. Today, it is the farthest man-made object in space. On November 18, 2026, it will reach one light-day from Earth, that is the distance that light takes to travel in 24 hours. NASA relies on Deep Space Network (DSN), an array of giant radio antennas, to communicate with Voyager 1. However, on October 18 and 19, NASA was jolted when it failed to establish contact with Voyager. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory said in a statement on 29 October 2026 that all communications returned back to normal on October 20 without the engineers having sent any command. The reason for the loss remains a mystery, although investigations are going on. Till now, scientists have established that one group of thrusters went offline on the spacecraft and the backup thrusters turned on. This switch is built into the programming in case the active thrusters experience some problem. According to JPL, this is known as automatic response fault protection and it puts the probe into a safe, or stable, configuration. All normal operations are put on hold while the engineers identify the issue. “This is the first time we’ve seen the spacecraft do something like this, but we are also at a point in the mission where we have to expect the unexpected,” Kareem Badaruddin, Voyager mission manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, said in a statement. Voyager 1 is travelling at a speed of 611,55 kilometres per hour and will be 25.89 billion km from Earth on November 18. At this distance, light takes 24 hours to travel. Radio waves already take 24 hours to reach the probe. “If you want to say ‘hello’ to Voyager, you send your message and then you go home and you wait two days before you finally get a response,” Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager at JPL, said. To keep the probe going, NASA has switched off several scientific instruments which helps save power. It is powered by heat from decaying plutonium, which is converted into electricity.

A month before Voyager 1 was supposed to reach a historic milestone, it stopped communicating with NASA engineers on Earth for 24 hours. Communication returned the next day automatically. The space agency is trying to understand what went wrong.

Voyager 1 mysteriously loses contact with NASA. 24 hours later, it came back by itself

After a robotic arm failed to save the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, the spacecraft is set to crash some time this month. It will make an uncontrolled reentry into Earth's atmosphere. The telescope was launched in November 2004 and 22 years later, is set to tumble down, marking an end to it mission. Earlier this year, NASA tried to save it by launching a private mission to elevate its orbit. But the rescue machine could not catch up to it in time. Swift had fallen to an altitude from where it was impossible to save it.&nbsp;Over two decades, Swift studied gamma-ray bursts, the most powerful explosions in the universe. &nbsp;But recently, the telescope's low Earth orbit began to rapidly decay. Solar storms made the situation worse, and caused it to drag. This meant that it would inevitably crash. This was expected to happen by early 2027. From 600 km above Earth's surface, it dropped to around 360 km. Most of this drag and drop happened in the last two years.&nbsp;Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/swift-telescope-set-to-crash-on-earth-as-nasa-declares-saviour-mission-link-has-failed-1787196105498">Swift telescope set to crash on Earth as NASA declares saviour mission LINK has failed</a><h2>Saviour mission LINK</h2>&nbsp;NASA could simply let it go, or save it. It decided to take a step towards keeping it functioning in space. &nbsp;It awarded a contract to Katalyst Space for it. The company successfully "designed, built, tested, and integrated a robotic spacecraft" to rescue Swift. In June, the changes of the telescope crashing stood at 50 per cent. The LINK spacecraft, with its three robotic arms, launched on July 3. It was supposed to carry the telescope to a higher and more stable orbit.Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/nasa-launches-link-to-catch-swift-observatory-in-space-1783079815337">NASA launches LINK to catch 22-year-old Swift observatory in space - Details</a>&nbsp;But weeks later, it went into an uncontrollable spin. NASA and Katalyst tried to save the mission, but nothing could be done. The 1,500-kilogram observatory had fallen to 300 kilometres and could no longer escape the effects of the increased drag. In August, NASA and Katalyst announced that the mission had failed. "Following continued monitoring and assessment of the LINK spacecraft, Katalyst Space and NASA together have concluded that ​due to ongoing attitude control issues, the mission will not include the capture ​and boost of NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory," they said in a joint statement.<h2>Does Swift's fall post danger to humans?</h2> Experts expect the observatory to disintegrate in the atmosphere, with only a few fragments crashing. Even these are expected to fall in the ocean. According to Dean Sladen, a quality manager and aerospace engineer at the UK precision-components supplier Accu Components, said that "Swift's orbit only passes over a band within about 21 degrees of the equator", and most of this region comprises only ocean, although it also crosses populated parts of Africa, South and Southeast Asia and Latin America.&nbsp;He told Space.com, that its aluminium body, wiring and electronics will melt upon reentry. "Six heavy reaction wheels, the spinning flywheels it used to aim itself, along with tougher telescope parts such as lenses and mirrors" are likely to make it down. While NASA has not released a risk assessment report yet, it is expected to do so in the coming days. "The risk is almost certainly very small, but it would give people a clear, factual picture rather than guesswork," he said.

The Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory is set to crash this month. NASA could not save it with the LINK mission. Where would the telescope crash, and does it pose a danger to humans? Can it fall on populated areas?

After a robotic arm failed to save the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, the spacecraft is set to crash some time this month. It will make an uncontrolled reentry into Earth's atmosphere. The telescope was launched in November 2004 and 22 years later, is set to tumble down, marking an end to it mission. Earlier this year, NASA tried to save it by launching a private mission to elevate its orbit. But the rescue machine could not catch up to it in time. Swift had fallen to an altitude from where it was impossible to save it. Over two decades, Swift studied gamma-ray bursts, the most powerful explosions in the universe. But recently, the telescope's low Earth orbit began to rapidly decay. Solar storms made the situation worse, and caused it to drag. This meant that it would inevitably crash. This was expected to happen by early 2027. From 600 km above Earth's surface, it dropped to around 360 km. Most of this drag and drop happened in the last two years. Also Read: Swift telescope set to crash on Earth as NASA declares saviour mission LINK has failed Saviour mission LINK NASA could simply let it go, or save it. It decided to take a step towards keeping it functioning in space. It awarded a contract to Katalyst Space for it. The company successfully "designed, built, tested, and integrated a robotic spacecraft" to rescue Swift. In June, the changes of the telescope crashing stood at 50 per cent. The LINK spacecraft, with its three robotic arms, launched on July 3. It was supposed to carry the telescope to a higher and more stable orbit. Also Read: NASA launches LINK to catch 22-year-old Swift observatory in space - Details But weeks later, it went into an uncontrollable spin. NASA and Katalyst tried to save the mission, but nothing could be done. The 1,500-kilogram observatory had fallen to 300 kilometres and could no longer escape the effects of the increased drag. In August, NASA and Katalyst announced that the mission had failed. "Following continued monitoring and assessment of the LINK spacecraft, Katalyst Space and NASA together have concluded that due to ongoing attitude control issues, the mission will not include the capture and boost of NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory," they said in a joint statement. Does Swift's fall post danger to humans? Experts expect the observatory to disintegrate in the atmosphere, with only a few fragments crashing. Even these are expected to fall in the ocean. According to Dean Sladen, a quality manager and aerospace engineer at the UK precision-components supplier Accu Components, said that "Swift's orbit only passes over a band within about 21 degrees of the equator", and most of this region comprises only ocean, although it also crosses populated parts of Africa, South and Southeast Asia and Latin America. He told Space.com, that its aluminium body, wiring and electronics will melt upon reentry. "Six heavy reaction wheels, the spinning flywheels it used to aim itself, along with tougher telescope parts such as lenses and mirrors" are likely to make it down. While NASA has not released a risk assessment report yet, it is expected to do so in the coming days. "The risk is almost certainly very small, but it would give people a clear, factual picture rather than guesswork," he said.

The Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory is set to crash this month. NASA could not save it with the LINK mission. Where would the telescope crash, and does it pose a danger to humans? Can it fall on populated areas?

Swift telescope to crash on Earth this month - What to expect, and does it pose a danger?

The Hubble Space Telescope is expected to crash to Earth somewhere in the early 2030s. NASA is inviting companies to help save it, preparing the entire mission, including planning it, preparing a spacecraft which it would also need to launch itself and recruiting any staff that might be required. Hubble launched in 1990, and NASA knew even before that it would one day start dragging downward. Saving it was one of the agendas along with the launch. It would need to be safely captured and elevated to an altitude of 600 kilometres, besides fine-tuning its performance. However, if none of that is possible, the company would need to guide it on a controlled reentry back to Earth.&nbsp;Even though it has been 36 years since Hubble launched, NASA says there is still a lot that it needs to achieve. "Hubble still has important science ahead of it, and we should be looking at every reasonable opportunity to keep it delivering for as long as possible," said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman in a post. He added that it is important to explore cost-effective ways to save an “asset already in orbit.”<h2>Hubble's history</h2> After being launched, Hubble became an eye in space for astronomers that could peer into the universe's past. In 2002, Space Shuttle Columbia moved it upwards into orbit. But the drag was inevitable, and the telescope was going to fall one day. With no solution in sight, the space agency has issued a call to the private sector.&nbsp;In a Request for Information (RFI) released on October 29, NASA has called on commercial players to offer a solution to raise the altitude of Hubble. It is also asking for proposals on how to execute a controlled disposal if no other solution is available. Private players with plenty of satellites in space and vying to add more constellations could come up with an offer. They have been asked to submit their proposals before November 30.&nbsp;For NASA, to undertake the task itself might be a huge challenge as it is already short on funds. Colombia has already retired, so there is no existing means to do that. Its budget has already been reduced by eons, leaving it to choose which projects get priority.&nbsp;

NASA is asking commercial space companies to offer a solution to save the 36-year-old Hubble Space Telescope. It is being dragged down by gravity and is expected to crash early next decade. Scientists are hoping that someone will step in.

The Hubble Space Telescope is expected to crash to Earth somewhere in the early 2030s. NASA is inviting companies to help save it, preparing the entire mission, including planning it, preparing a spacecraft which it would also need to launch itself and recruiting any staff that might be required. Hubble launched in 1990, and NASA knew even before that it would one day start dragging downward. Saving it was one of the agendas along with the launch. It would need to be safely captured and elevated to an altitude of 600 kilometres, besides fine-tuning its performance. However, if none of that is possible, the company would need to guide it on a controlled reentry back to Earth. Even though it has been 36 years since Hubble launched, NASA says there is still a lot that it needs to achieve. "Hubble still has important science ahead of it, and we should be looking at every reasonable opportunity to keep it delivering for as long as possible," said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman in a post. He added that it is important to explore cost-effective ways to save an “asset already in orbit.” Hubble's history After being launched, Hubble became an eye in space for astronomers that could peer into the universe's past. In 2002, Space Shuttle Columbia moved it upwards into orbit. But the drag was inevitable, and the telescope was going to fall one day. With no solution in sight, the space agency has issued a call to the private sector. In a Request for Information (RFI) released on October 29, NASA has called on commercial players to offer a solution to raise the altitude of Hubble. It is also asking for proposals on how to execute a controlled disposal if no other solution is available. Private players with plenty of satellites in space and vying to add more constellations could come up with an offer. They have been asked to submit their proposals before November 30. For NASA, to undertake the task itself might be a huge challenge as it is already short on funds. Colombia has already retired, so there is no existing means to do that. Its budget has already been reduced by eons, leaving it to choose which projects get priority.

NASA is asking commercial space companies to offer a solution to save the 36-year-old Hubble Space Telescope. It is being dragged down by gravity and is expected to crash early next decade. Scientists are hoping that someone will step in.

Hubble Space Telescope is falling and NASA is asking for help to save it

If cosmic particles excite you and you dream of going to space someday, let's face it: that might never happen in your lifetime. But NASA is offering people a chance to fly their names to the far reaches of the solar system. The space agency's Dragonfly rotorcraft will land on Saturn's moon Titan and become the first mission of its kind. NASA is inviting people to add their names to the list that will fly aboard the Dragonfly and land on Titan.<h2>How to add your name to the list?</h2>&nbsp;If you wish to add your name to the passenger list, visit this link - <a href="https://go.nasa.gov/dragonfly-names">https://go.nasa.gov/dragonfly-names</a>&nbsp;Upon entering your details, the NASA website generates your very own personalised boarding pass, with your name on it. It also carries details of the launch, the estimated distance Dragonfly will cover and the time of landing. It also has a photo of the rotorcraft that will explore the surface of the Saturnian moon.<h2>Mind-blowing mission to Saturn's moon</h2>Nicky Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters in Washington, said that the Dragonfly mission will "simply blow your mind." She added, "By flying the first-ever rotorcraft science mission, NASA will explore Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, as we search for signs of habitability on a distant world that is most similar to our own."&nbsp;Talking about the chance of flying your name to Titan, she said, “We are excited to bring humanity along for the journey of a lifetime, and we invite everyone to send their names on this small, but mighty rotorcraft that will unlock the secrets of the universe in what is widely considered one of the most exciting space missions of our lifetime.”<h2>About the Dragonfly mission</h2>Dragonfly is scheduled to take off in July 2028, covering a distance of approximately 3.54 billion kilometres before landing in December 2034. &nbsp;It will be launched aboard the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.&nbsp;Titan is believed to be similar to our world in some ways. It has a thick atmosphere, rivers and lakes of liquid methane, and dunes. It is rich in organic material.&nbsp;The last date to add your name to the Titan mission is January 15, 2027.

NASA's Dragonfly mission will launch in 2028 and land on Saturn's moon Titan in 2034, travelling 3.54 billion kilometres. The space agency is inviting people to become part of the mission by adding their names to the list that will be put on board the rotorcraft.

If cosmic particles excite you and you dream of going to space someday, let's face it: that might never happen in your lifetime. But NASA is offering people a chance to fly their names to the far reaches of the solar system. The space agency's Dragonfly rotorcraft will land on Saturn's moon Titan and become the first mission of its kind. NASA is inviting people to add their names to the list that will fly aboard the Dragonfly and land on Titan. How to add your name to the list? If you wish to add your name to the passenger list, visit this link - https://go.nasa.gov/dragonfly-names Upon entering your details, the NASA website generates your very own personalised boarding pass, with your name on it. It also carries details of the launch, the estimated distance Dragonfly will cover and the time of landing. It also has a photo of the rotorcraft that will explore the surface of the Saturnian moon. Mind-blowing mission to Saturn's moon Nicky Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters in Washington, said that the Dragonfly mission will "simply blow your mind." She added, "By flying the first-ever rotorcraft science mission, NASA will explore Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, as we search for signs of habitability on a distant world that is most similar to our own." Talking about the chance of flying your name to Titan, she said, “We are excited to bring humanity along for the journey of a lifetime, and we invite everyone to send their names on this small, but mighty rotorcraft that will unlock the secrets of the universe in what is widely considered one of the most exciting space missions of our lifetime.” About the Dragonfly mission Dragonfly is scheduled to take off in July 2028, covering a distance of approximately 3.54 billion kilometres before landing in December 2034. It will be launched aboard the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. Titan is believed to be similar to our world in some ways. It has a thick atmosphere, rivers and lakes of liquid methane, and dunes. It is rich in organic material. The last date to add your name to the Titan mission is January 15, 2027.

NASA's Dragonfly mission will launch in 2028 and land on Saturn's moon Titan in 2034, travelling 3.54 billion kilometres. The space agency is inviting people to become part of the mission by adding their names to the list that will be put on board the rotorcraft.

NASA invites people to fly their names to Saturn's moon, Titan, aboard Dragonfly

A scientist in China used an AI model trained on fossil data to state that most of Earth's mass extinctions never happened, or at least did not occur in the manner we perceive them. The research was carried out by Shuzhong Shen at Nanjing University in China and presented at the Geological Society of America’s meeting in Denver.&nbsp;"The canonical 'Big Five' mass extinctions have long been regarded as the principal drivers of Phanerozoic marine biodiversity history. This paradigm, however, was built upon taxonomic range compilations and stage-level time bins that cannot resolve ecological dynamics operating on timescales of thousands to tens of thousands of years," the study authors wrote in the paper.&nbsp;OneStrata "learns a shared probabilistic representation of geological time directly from fragmented stratigraphic observations." This is similar to how large language model trains on texts. The team used a huge dataset of fossil information called OneStratigraphy for the study. When fossil specimens are categorised, it is done over time spans covering millions of years. This leads to changes happening over shorter periods of time getting lost.Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/trending/humanist-is-excused-from-using-ai-at-work-on-religious-grounds-1793344315613">Man is excused from using AI at work on religious grounds - ‘I want to uphold human dignity’</a><h2>Studying short time periods</h2>Shen's team wanted to fix this problem and use new technologies to shorten this timespan to just tens of thousands of years. In 2020, he worked with other Chinese scientists to divide Earth's ancient history into intervals of approximately 26,000 years using a supercomputer. This allowed them to examine changes in marine life in much smaller time intervals.&nbsp;&nbsp;Information was analysed from 11,000 fossils of marine organisms, which showed their species, when they lived, when some of them disappeared and how marine biodiversity changed over time.Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/scientist-blames-dark-matter-at-centre-of-milky-way-for-mass-extinctions-on-earth-1785246607054">Scientist finds a pattern to Earth's mass extinctions, and it's hiding in deep space</a>&nbsp;This showed that the Late Devonian mass extinction, which happened around 360 million years ago, unfolded gradually over roughly 50 million years. This is a long timespan, especially compared to the End-Permian mass extinction, which took place over 63,000 years. The researchers also found that the end‑Triassic and end‑Cretaceous extinctions occurred over millions of years.&nbsp;Since mass extinctions unfold gradually over a long period of time, scientists believe we are in the midst of the sixth one. The main reason for this is climate change, which could end or change life over thousands of years.

A scientist in China used an AI model for an analysis of fossils, which revealed that five of the mass extinctions weren't exactly sudden deaths for life on Earth. Mass extinctions are believed to be events when organisms vanished en masse with nothing left behind. But that is not true.

A scientist in China used an AI model trained on fossil data to state that most of Earth's mass extinctions never happened, or at least did not occur in the manner we perceive them. The research was carried out by Shuzhong Shen at Nanjing University in China and presented at the Geological Society of America’s meeting in Denver. "The canonical 'Big Five' mass extinctions have long been regarded as the principal drivers of Phanerozoic marine biodiversity history. This paradigm, however, was built upon taxonomic range compilations and stage-level time bins that cannot resolve ecological dynamics operating on timescales of thousands to tens of thousands of years," the study authors wrote in the paper. OneStrata "learns a shared probabilistic representation of geological time directly from fragmented stratigraphic observations." This is similar to how large language model trains on texts. The team used a huge dataset of fossil information called OneStratigraphy for the study. When fossil specimens are categorised, it is done over time spans covering millions of years. This leads to changes happening over shorter periods of time getting lost. Also Read: Man is excused from using AI at work on religious grounds - ‘I want to uphold human dignity’ Studying short time periods Shen's team wanted to fix this problem and use new technologies to shorten this timespan to just tens of thousands of years. In 2020, he worked with other Chinese scientists to divide Earth's ancient history into intervals of approximately 26,000 years using a supercomputer. This allowed them to examine changes in marine life in much smaller time intervals. Information was analysed from 11,000 fossils of marine organisms, which showed their species, when they lived, when some of them disappeared and how marine biodiversity changed over time. Also Read: Scientist finds a pattern to Earth's mass extinctions, and it's hiding in deep space This showed that the Late Devonian mass extinction, which happened around 360 million years ago, unfolded gradually over roughly 50 million years. This is a long timespan, especially compared to the End-Permian mass extinction, which took place over 63,000 years. The researchers also found that the end‑Triassic and end‑Cretaceous extinctions occurred over millions of years. Since mass extinctions unfold gradually over a long period of time, scientists believe we are in the midst of the sixth one. The main reason for this is climate change, which could end or change life over thousands of years.

A scientist in China used an AI model for an analysis of fossils, which revealed that five of the mass extinctions weren't exactly sudden deaths for life on Earth. Mass extinctions are believed to be events when organisms vanished en masse with nothing left behind. But that is not true.

AI model says Earth's 5 mass extinctions never happened

ISRO's third space launch of 2026, the GSLV-F18 rocket carrying the 2,250kg NVS-03 satellite, is crucial to enable a phased revival of India's defunct Navigation satellite fleet known as NAVIC. Navigation with Indian Constellation(NAVIC) was envisaged as an Indian version of America's GPS or Russia's GLONASS or China's Beidou. While GPS, GLONASS, and Beidou provide global coverage, NAVIC is meant to serve civilian and defence users within Indian borders and 1,500 km beyond. NAVIC is a project of immense strategic significance, as it is meant to serve the Armed Forces and civilians. ISRO officials confirmed to WION that the countdown for the 24-hour countdown to the launch mission scheduled for 11:51 pm, Friday (Oct 30th), is progressing smoothly.18 minutes and 40 seconds after lifting off from the Second launchpad at ISRO's Sriharikota Spaceport, the GSLV-F18 rocket is meant to eject the NVS-03 satellite into its initial orbit. After placing the NVS-03 in it its initial Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit(GTO), ISRO will have to fire the satellite's thrusters to raise it to its eventual orbit. The NVS-03 satellite carries an Indigenous Atomic clock, along with the procured Atomic clocks. It also includes L1 signal in addition to existing L5/S-band signals. &nbsp;<h2>The present state of NAVIC</h2>Theoretically, a bare minimum of four satellites are required for the functioning of NAVIC's core services. At present, barely 3 of 11 NAVIC satellites are fulfilling their core purpose, information shared by the Indian Government reveals.Right now, there are three NAVIC satellites believed to be capable of providing Positioning, Navigation &amp; Timing services: first-generation satellites IRNSS-1B, IRNSS-1I; and second-generation satellite NVS-01. Of these three, IRNSS-1B has lived longer than its expected life of 10 years, and could potentially fail at any time. If all goes well, IRNSS-1I could potentially function till 2028. NVS-01 has at least a decade of life ahead of it, if it functions as designed. NVS-02 was launched in January 2025, but the satellite got stuck in its initial orbit, as its onboard engines could not be fired for orbit raising. Stuck in its initial orbit, NVS-02 is of very limited use.Therefore, considering long-term functionality, only the NVS-01 satellite can be considered truly operational, because of the decade-long service that lay ahead of it.<h2>How many satellites are needed to revive NAVIC?</h2>If the Indian Government wishes to revive and sustain NAVIC in its basic form, it must place at least three more NVS-series satellites in orbit, all in quick succession. To resuscitate and revive NAVIC to its minimal level of four satellites, the Indian space agency ISRO must also launch NVS-04 and NVS-05 satellites, which can work together with the existing NVS-01 and the NVS-03(which is scheduled for launch tonight). However, that is the basic requirement. To have higher reliability and robust capabilities, India would also have to build and launch backup satellites in the NVS series. Eventually, a fleet of six or seven satellites would have to be maintained for reliably operating a regional Navigation system such as NAVIC.<h2>How do NAVIC's global peers compare?</h2>America's Global Positioning System(GPS), which supports trillion-dollar civilian and military applications worldwide, requires a fleet of 24 satellites in orbit for optimum performance and round-the-clock global coverage. Considering how crucial GPS is to the global economy, the US Government maintains at least 30 GPS satellites in orbit at any given point in time. The six additional satellites are meant to ensure that the service remains reliable and robust, even when a few satellites fail or encounter unexpected glitches.To meet its own national requirements, China operates a fleet of Beidou satellites, which serve as an alternative to America's GPS. While Beidou's global network requires a fleet of 30 satellites in orbit, around 35 satellites are believed to be in orbit.<h2>NVS-series and the pace of launches so far</h2>ISRO launched NVS-01 in May 2023; NVS-02 was launched in January 2025, which is after a gap of 19 months. NVS-03 is flying to space in October 2026, which is almost 20 months after NVS-02. ISRO has also faced three failures in six missions executed from home soil between January 2025 and January 2026, further slowing down the overall pace of activity.<h2>The wide gulf between rhetoric and execution</h2>In mid-2025, the Indian Government had revealed in Parliament that an NVS-series satellite was planned to be launched by the end of the year. Subsequently, with a gap of six months, NVS-04 &amp; NVS-05 are planned to be launched, it was announced. However, none of these satellites was launched. This amply indicates the wide gulf between the rhetoric and implementation.If ISRO indeed is looking to launch three NAVIC satellites in quick succession, it must build and assemble GSLV (formerly known as GSLV Mk2) rockets accordingly. While the 52-meter-tall GSLV rocket is the most suited vehicle for carrying the 2,250kg NVS-series satellites, it must be noted that only one satellite can be carried per rocket due to lifting power limitations. Going by the recent record, ISRO has done only one or two GSLV launches in a year. If ISRO were to launch multiple NVS-series missions in quick succession, it would affect schedules of other launches that are in the pipeline. It must be remembered that ISRO does barely five or seven launches from home soil in a year. In 2026, this GSLV-F18/NVS-03 mission is ISRO's third launch.&nbsp;

If the Indian Government wishes to revive and sustain NAVIC in its basic form, it must place at least three more NVS-series satellites in orbit, all in quick succession.

ISRO's third space launch of 2026, the GSLV-F18 rocket carrying the 2,250kg NVS-03 satellite, is crucial to enable a phased revival of India's defunct Navigation satellite fleet known as NAVIC. Navigation with Indian Constellation(NAVIC) was envisaged as an Indian version of America's GPS or Russia's GLONASS or China's Beidou. While GPS, GLONASS, and Beidou provide global coverage, NAVIC is meant to serve civilian and defence users within Indian borders and 1,500 km beyond. NAVIC is a project of immense strategic significance, as it is meant to serve the Armed Forces and civilians. ISRO officials confirmed to WION that the countdown for the 24-hour countdown to the launch mission scheduled for 11:51 pm, Friday (Oct 30th), is progressing smoothly. 18 minutes and 40 seconds after lifting off from the Second launchpad at ISRO's Sriharikota Spaceport, the GSLV-F18 rocket is meant to eject the NVS-03 satellite into its initial orbit. After placing the NVS-03 in it its initial Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit(GTO), ISRO will have to fire the satellite's thrusters to raise it to its eventual orbit. The NVS-03 satellite carries an Indigenous Atomic clock, along with the procured Atomic clocks. It also includes L1 signal in addition to existing L5/S-band signals. The present state of NAVIC Theoretically, a bare minimum of four satellites are required for the functioning of NAVIC's core services. At present, barely 3 of 11 NAVIC satellites are fulfilling their core purpose, information shared by the Indian Government reveals. Right now, there are three NAVIC satellites believed to be capable of providing Positioning, Navigation & Timing services: first-generation satellites IRNSS-1B, IRNSS-1I; and second-generation satellite NVS-01. Of these three, IRNSS-1B has lived longer than its expected life of 10 years, and could potentially fail at any time. If all goes well, IRNSS-1I could potentially function till 2028. NVS-01 has at least a decade of life ahead of it, if it functions as designed. NVS-02 was launched in January 2025, but the satellite got stuck in its initial orbit, as its onboard engines could not be fired for orbit raising. Stuck in its initial orbit, NVS-02 is of very limited use. Therefore, considering long-term functionality, only the NVS-01 satellite can be considered truly operational, because of the decade-long service that lay ahead of it. How many satellites are needed to revive NAVIC? If the Indian Government wishes to revive and sustain NAVIC in its basic form, it must place at least three more NVS-series satellites in orbit, all in quick succession. To resuscitate and revive NAVIC to its minimal level of four satellites, the Indian space agency ISRO must also launch NVS-04 and NVS-05 satellites, which can work together with the existing NVS-01 and the NVS-03(which is scheduled for launch tonight). However, that is the basic requirement. To have higher reliability and robust capabilities, India would also have to build and launch backup satellites in the NVS series. Eventually, a fleet of six or seven satellites would have to be maintained for reliably operating a regional Navigation system such as NAVIC. How do NAVIC's global peers compare? America's Global Positioning System(GPS), which supports trillion-dollar civilian and military applications worldwide, requires a fleet of 24 satellites in orbit for optimum performance and round-the-clock global coverage. Considering how crucial GPS is to the global economy, the US Government maintains at least 30 GPS satellites in orbit at any given point in time. The six additional satellites are meant to ensure that the service remains reliable and robust, even when a few satellites fail or encounter unexpected glitches. To meet its own national requirements, China operates a fleet of Beidou satellites, which serve as an alternative to America's GPS. While Beidou's global network requires a fleet of 30 satellites in orbit, around 35 satellites are believed to be in orbit. NVS-series and the pace of launches so far ISRO launched NVS-01 in May 2023; NVS-02 was launched in January 2025, which is after a gap of 19 months. NVS-03 is flying to space in October 2026, which is almost 20 months after NVS-02. ISRO has also faced three failures in six missions executed from home soil between January 2025 and January 2026, further slowing down the overall pace of activity. The wide gulf between rhetoric and execution In mid-2025, the Indian Government had revealed in Parliament that an NVS-series satellite was planned to be launched by the end of the year. Subsequently, with a gap of six months, NVS-04 & NVS-05 are planned to be launched, it was announced. However, none of these satellites was launched. This amply indicates the wide gulf between the rhetoric and implementation. If ISRO indeed is looking to launch three NAVIC satellites in quick succession, it must build and assemble GSLV (formerly known as GSLV Mk2) rockets accordingly. While the 52-meter-tall GSLV rocket is the most suited vehicle for carrying the 2,250kg NVS-series satellites, it must be noted that only one satellite can be carried per rocket due to lifting power limitations. Going by the recent record, ISRO has done only one or two GSLV launches in a year. If ISRO were to launch multiple NVS-series missions in quick succession, it would affect schedules of other launches that are in the pipeline. It must be remembered that ISRO does barely five or seven launches from home soil in a year. In 2026, this GSLV-F18/NVS-03 mission is ISRO's third launch.

If the Indian Government wishes to revive and sustain NAVIC in its basic form, it must place at least three more NVS-series satellites in orbit, all in quick succession.

ISRO's GSLV-F18/NVS-03 launch crucial for phased revival of NAVIC

The Vera Rubin Observatory (VRO) has spotted a mysterious object beyond Neptune, in a region where known dwarf planets reside. This object could be a dwarf planet as well, based on initial observations. Named 2026 ED138, it is between 600 and 1500 kilometres wide. This suggests that it was capable of coming together because of its own gravity.&nbsp;Till now, only five dwarf planets have been identified - Pluto, Ceres, Eris, Haumea and Makemake. If 2026 ED138 is confirmed as a dwarf planet, that would be a major discovery for astronomers. Matthew Holman, from the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard &amp; Smithsonian (CfA), discovered this object on October 13.&nbsp;Holman had developed a search code with his CfA colleague Kevin Napier and was running previous data from Rubin through it. This is when he found a strange object beyond Neptune's orbit. Its brightness and distance showed that it is unusually large. This is an icy and dark region in the solar system, yet it was quite bright. This meant that it was larger than other bodies in the region.<h2>Body was observed 30 times in 4 months</h2>Holman said in a statement on Tuesday, "Objects like this are very rare, so I immediately started checking whether I or the code had done something wrong." To confirm that what he was looking at was real, he went through Vera's entire catalogue, which despite being relatively new, contains quite a lot of data. Holman found that the telescope had observed the object on 20 other occasions, with the earliest one on March 4, 2026. Rubin's Simonyi Survey Telescope observed ED138 30 times on 20 nights till July 11.&nbsp;ED138 is at a distance of 46 astronomical units (1 au is the distance between Sun and Earth). For comparison, Pluto is located at 40 au. Its orbit is tilted almost 25 degrees off of the plane of the Solar System, making it a hot-classical TNO. This also hints that the object is not in its original orbit and was disturbed by the gravitational interactions with Neptune. It is one of the largest dwarf planet candidates ever discovered beyond Neptune.&nbsp;

A possible dwarf planet likely resides beyond Neptune, according to data from the Vera Rubin Observatory (VRO). Scientists say it lives in the same region as other dwarf planets. Only five confirmed dwarf planets have been identified in the solar system till now. 

The Vera Rubin Observatory (VRO) has spotted a mysterious object beyond Neptune, in a region where known dwarf planets reside. This object could be a dwarf planet as well, based on initial observations. Named 2026 ED138, it is between 600 and 1500 kilometres wide. This suggests that it was capable of coming together because of its own gravity. Till now, only five dwarf planets have been identified - Pluto, Ceres, Eris, Haumea and Makemake. If 2026 ED138 is confirmed as a dwarf planet, that would be a major discovery for astronomers. Matthew Holman, from the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA), discovered this object on October 13. Holman had developed a search code with his CfA colleague Kevin Napier and was running previous data from Rubin through it. This is when he found a strange object beyond Neptune's orbit. Its brightness and distance showed that it is unusually large. This is an icy and dark region in the solar system, yet it was quite bright. This meant that it was larger than other bodies in the region. Body was observed 30 times in 4 months Holman said in a statement on Tuesday, "Objects like this are very rare, so I immediately started checking whether I or the code had done something wrong." To confirm that what he was looking at was real, he went through Vera's entire catalogue, which despite being relatively new, contains quite a lot of data. Holman found that the telescope had observed the object on 20 other occasions, with the earliest one on March 4, 2026. Rubin's Simonyi Survey Telescope observed ED138 30 times on 20 nights till July 11. ED138 is at a distance of 46 astronomical units (1 au is the distance between Sun and Earth). For comparison, Pluto is located at 40 au. Its orbit is tilted almost 25 degrees off of the plane of the Solar System, making it a hot-classical TNO. This also hints that the object is not in its original orbit and was disturbed by the gravitational interactions with Neptune. It is one of the largest dwarf planet candidates ever discovered beyond Neptune.

A possible dwarf planet likely resides beyond Neptune, according to data from the Vera Rubin Observatory (VRO). Scientists say it lives in the same region as other dwarf planets. Only five confirmed dwarf planets have been identified in the solar system till now.&nbsp;

Mysterious body lurking beyond Neptune could be only the 6th object of its kind

Long before a clinical trial enrols its first participant, it has already settled a question almost nobody examines: who is physically close enough to take part. The answer sits in the registry, in the list of study sites, in public, in a structured field."Site geography is the most under-read field in the registry," says Yaswanth Sai Pogadapula. "Where a trial places its sites determines who can physically reach it." You can see the catchment of a study before you see a single enrolment figure, he argues, because "travel distance is an eligibility criterion that appears nowhere in the eligibility section."He makes that claim as someone who builds the records rather than analyses them. Pogadapula is a clinical trial disclosure specialist who, over his career, has been responsible for registration and results disclosure across roughly 40 global, regional and national registries, among them ClinicalTrials.gov, the EU register, and country-level registries with their own formats and deadlines. He has been lead disclosure coordinator for immunology, medical devices and consumer studies, with backup coverage across neuroscience, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolism, and pulmonary hypertension.The work is specific. He has set up, maintained and closed study records, carrying studies from first registration through results posting, and has handled the quality comments registry operators send back, the NIH among them, the step that decides whether a public record is accurate rather than merely present. He has produced disclosure records for audits and regulatory inspections.His argument: the record can answer questions about exclusion, provided you accept which parts of it bear weight. Registration data shows what was studied, where, and who was eligible. Results data carries baseline characteristics and participant flow. Together they describe the shape of who was enrolled and, by implication, who was not.The trap is expecting it to behave like a research dataset. "It is a compliance record maintained to a standard," he says, "and the standard governs completeness, not comparability."Three things follow. The first is that the most consequential field in the record is prose. Eligibility criteria, the terms that decide who may enter a study, are written as free text. "Prose does not aggregate," he says. "You can count trials; you cannot easily count exclusions." Any analysis of systematic exclusion therefore rests on interpretation that someone has to defend. His view of the remedy is structural rather than exhortative: "If the field were structured, questions about systematic exclusion would be answerable in an afternoon rather than in a research programme."The second is the error he considers most common, and the one he is most insistent about. Where a demographic field is optional or inconsistently completed, an empty field says nothing about the people in the trial. "Absence in the record is not evidence of absence in the trial," he says. "It is evidence that nobody was required to report it." Treating a blank as a zero is, in his experience, the most common error made with this data, and it is made in good faith. He applies the caution symmetrically: he would distrust any claim built on missing registry fields, "including claims that support a conclusion I agree with."The third is a seam invisible unless you have worked both sides of it. A registration record is created early, while the protocol is still moving; results are added years later, by different people. "Registration and results are maintained by different people at different times, and it shows," he says. Anyone reading across the two halves should know the join is there.Those cautions carry weight because he has worked the production side of the problem. A single study may appear in a dozen registries, each with its own data model, required fields, language and deadline, so the same trial has to be expressed accurately several different ways, and small differences accumulate into records that will not line up later. His response was to treat the record "as a product with a standard rather than a form to be filled", the precondition, he says, for anyone reading across trials afterwards.Statutory deadlines apply under FDAAA 801 in the United States and equivalent obligations in the EU, and missed deadlines are publicly visible. He treats on-time disclosure as the baseline of the job rather than its achievement. The deadline, though, is the easy half. "Compliance is often discussed as a deadline problem; in practice it is a data quality problem." The harder work was routing recurring registry findings back to study teams so the same correction did not have to be made twice.Which leads to the tension he thinks explains most of the record's failings. "A compliance record and a public service are not the same artefact, and we ask one document to be both."He is more optimistic than that sounds. Obligations are tightening and converging across jurisdictions, and every increment of required structured reporting makes representativeness more answerable. His prescription for policymakers is correspondingly blunt: "If policy wants exclusion to be visible, the lever is the required-fields list, not exhortation."His advice to sponsors costs little and is easy to overlook. Treat the record as a product with an owner, not a filing obligation discharged at a deadline. Complete the optional fields anyway. Assume somebody will one day read across the portfolio and ask who was missing, and write the record now so the honest answer is visible then.

Questions about who gets excluded from research are usually treated as missing data. A disclosure specialist argues much of the answer is already public, sitting in fields that are rarely read.

Long before a clinical trial enrols its first participant, it has already settled a question almost nobody examines: who is physically close enough to take part. The answer sits in the registry, in the list of study sites, in public, in a structured field. "Site geography is the most under-read field in the registry," says Yaswanth Sai Pogadapula. "Where a trial places its sites determines who can physically reach it." You can see the catchment of a study before you see a single enrolment figure, he argues, because "travel distance is an eligibility criterion that appears nowhere in the eligibility section." He makes that claim as someone who builds the records rather than analyses them. Pogadapula is a clinical trial disclosure specialist who, over his career, has been responsible for registration and results disclosure across roughly 40 global, regional and national registries, among them ClinicalTrials.gov, the EU register, and country-level registries with their own formats and deadlines. He has been lead disclosure coordinator for immunology, medical devices and consumer studies, with backup coverage across neuroscience, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolism, and pulmonary hypertension. The work is specific. He has set up, maintained and closed study records, carrying studies from first registration through results posting, and has handled the quality comments registry operators send back, the NIH among them, the step that decides whether a public record is accurate rather than merely present. He has produced disclosure records for audits and regulatory inspections. His argument: the record can answer questions about exclusion, provided you accept which parts of it bear weight. Registration data shows what was studied, where, and who was eligible. Results data carries baseline characteristics and participant flow. Together they describe the shape of who was enrolled and, by implication, who was not. The trap is expecting it to behave like a research dataset. "It is a compliance record maintained to a standard," he says, "and the standard governs completeness, not comparability." Three things follow. The first is that the most consequential field in the record is prose. Eligibility criteria, the terms that decide who may enter a study, are written as free text. "Prose does not aggregate," he says. "You can count trials; you cannot easily count exclusions." Any analysis of systematic exclusion therefore rests on interpretation that someone has to defend. His view of the remedy is structural rather than exhortative: "If the field were structured, questions about systematic exclusion would be answerable in an afternoon rather than in a research programme." The second is the error he considers most common, and the one he is most insistent about. Where a demographic field is optional or inconsistently completed, an empty field says nothing about the people in the trial. "Absence in the record is not evidence of absence in the trial," he says. "It is evidence that nobody was required to report it." Treating a blank as a zero is, in his experience, the most common error made with this data, and it is made in good faith. He applies the caution symmetrically: he would distrust any claim built on missing registry fields, "including claims that support a conclusion I agree with." The third is a seam invisible unless you have worked both sides of it. A registration record is created early, while the protocol is still moving; results are added years later, by different people. "Registration and results are maintained by different people at different times, and it shows," he says. Anyone reading across the two halves should know the join is there. Those cautions carry weight because he has worked the production side of the problem. A single study may appear in a dozen registries, each with its own data model, required fields, language and deadline, so the same trial has to be expressed accurately several different ways, and small differences accumulate into records that will not line up later. His response was to treat the record "as a product with a standard rather than a form to be filled", the precondition, he says, for anyone reading across trials afterwards. Statutory deadlines apply under FDAAA 801 in the United States and equivalent obligations in the EU, and missed deadlines are publicly visible. He treats on-time disclosure as the baseline of the job rather than its achievement. The deadline, though, is the easy half. "Compliance is often discussed as a deadline problem; in practice it is a data quality problem." The harder work was routing recurring registry findings back to study teams so the same correction did not have to be made twice. Which leads to the tension he thinks explains most of the record's failings. "A compliance record and a public service are not the same artefact, and we ask one document to be both." He is more optimistic than that sounds. Obligations are tightening and converging across jurisdictions, and every increment of required structured reporting makes representativeness more answerable. His prescription for policymakers is correspondingly blunt: "If policy wants exclusion to be visible, the lever is the required-fields list, not exhortation." His advice to sponsors costs little and is easy to overlook. Treat the record as a product with an owner, not a filing obligation discharged at a deadline. Complete the optional fields anyway. Assume somebody will one day read across the portfolio and ask who was missing, and write the record now so the honest answer is visible then.

Questions about who gets excluded from research are usually treated as missing data. A disclosure specialist argues much of the answer is already public, sitting in fields that are rarely read.

The clinical-trial record can already show you who medicine leaves out. It just has to be read right

Scientists have created a simulation of the universe as it would have existed barely two billion years after the Big Bang. This is the most detailed reconstruction of the universe in its infancy. The Lumina model has been devised by the Center for Astrophysics, which shows how the universe evolved over two billion years.&nbsp;Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and Harvard College Observatory collaborated on the project and released a video showing the universe as a cube 1.5 billion light-years long in its earliest stage. At this stage, it was filled with fine filaments of dark matter and luminous gas.&nbsp;Smithsonian Magazine reported that these structures joined together with light and the fast-moving volatiles over billions of years to form the early structures of the universe. This is the first time scientists have created such a detailed and clear image of how the cosmos changed over the years in its initial years.<h2>Model shows huge volume of the universe changing</h2>Co-author Dr Aaron Smith, a physicist from the University of Texas at Dallas, said, "For the first time, we can follow along as both hydrogen and helium changed into their modern form across such an enormous volume of the universe, while still resolving the galaxies and other luminous objects driving that transformation." The paper has been published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/a-star-survived-its-own-death-and-is-coming-back-to-life-it-gets-weirder-1792398365268">A star survived its own death and is coming back to life. It gets weirder</a>&nbsp;Frontier, one of the fastest supercomputers on Earth, located at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, was used to create the simulation. Over 15,000 graphics processing units ran on the supercomputer to reveal an expanse of the cosmos which is over 100 times the volume of what Lumina’s predecessors were able to achieve.&nbsp;The simulation will be compared with data from the James Webb Space Telescope and other devices that can peer billions of years back in time. This creation will help researchers know whether the current theories on the universe’s laws require any changes.

When the universe began after the Big Bang and evolved for two billion years, several changes were taking place, where filaments of dark matter and luminous gas slowly came together to form the cosmic structure. We now know what it looked like.

Scientists have created a simulation of the universe as it would have existed barely two billion years after the Big Bang. This is the most detailed reconstruction of the universe in its infancy. The Lumina model has been devised by the Center for Astrophysics, which shows how the universe evolved over two billion years. Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and Harvard College Observatory collaborated on the project and released a video showing the universe as a cube 1.5 billion light-years long in its earliest stage. At this stage, it was filled with fine filaments of dark matter and luminous gas. Smithsonian Magazine reported that these structures joined together with light and the fast-moving volatiles over billions of years to form the early structures of the universe. This is the first time scientists have created such a detailed and clear image of how the cosmos changed over the years in its initial years. Model shows huge volume of the universe changing Co-author Dr Aaron Smith, a physicist from the University of Texas at Dallas, said, "For the first time, we can follow along as both hydrogen and helium changed into their modern form across such an enormous volume of the universe, while still resolving the galaxies and other luminous objects driving that transformation." The paper has been published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Also Read: A star survived its own death and is coming back to life. It gets weirder Frontier, one of the fastest supercomputers on Earth, located at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, was used to create the simulation. Over 15,000 graphics processing units ran on the supercomputer to reveal an expanse of the cosmos which is over 100 times the volume of what Lumina’s predecessors were able to achieve. The simulation will be compared with data from the James Webb Space Telescope and other devices that can peer billions of years back in time. This creation will help researchers know whether the current theories on the universe’s laws require any changes.

When the universe began after the Big Bang and evolved for two billion years, several changes were taking place, where filaments of dark matter and luminous gas slowly came together to form the cosmic structure. We now know what it looked like.

From Big Bang to 2bn years - We now know what the universe looked like

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has gained access to some of the US military’s most precise satellite-tracking data, a move that has raised concerns over national security, competition and the future of space traffic management. The agreement with the US Space Force gives SpaceX access to detailed information about objects orbiting Earth, including satellites and space debris. Industry observers warn that the arrangement could give Musk’s company an advantage over competitors offering similar services.The development also comes as the Trump administration faces scrutiny over its handling of a federal programme designed to manage traffic in space.<h2>SpaceX gains access to military tracking data</h2>For the first time, the Space Force has granted a commercial company enhanced access to the US Space Command’s High Accuracy Catalog. The information includes Vector Covariance Messages, which contain tracking data gathered through military radars, telescopes and ground-based sensors.These systems can track objects as small as 10 centimetres in low Earth orbit, helping operators assess potential collisions.SpaceX already runs Stargaze, a satellite-based tracking network that uses cameras and radars mounted on its Starlink satellites. However, the system cannot detect objects as small as those identified by the military's more precise tracking network.The new arrangement allows SpaceX to supplement its existing capabilities. In return, the government will receive access to Stargaze's observations and sensors.<h2>Concerns over competition and security</h2>Critics say the deal could strengthen SpaceX's position in a commercial space industry projected to approach $2 trillion over the next decade.Cole Donovan, a former employee of the federal Traffic Coordination System for Space (Traccs), warned that the arrangement risked making SpaceX the dominant provider of space traffic coordination in the US.“It’s making a company the de facto source for space traffic coordination within the US,” Donovan said.The military data is classified as controlled unclassified information, as wider access could expose details about the capabilities and limitations of US surveillance systems.<h2>Traccs funding adds to the debate</h2>The deal comes amid a prolonged struggle over Traccs, which was established to transfer commercial space traffic management responsibilities away from the military. The programme has faced staffing problems and repeated budget-cutting attempts, although Congress restored funding after proposed reductions.While critics see the SpaceX agreement as a threat to fair competition, a former National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration official defended the company's role, arguing that the government had failed to establish an effective framework for managing space traffic.The arrangement has therefore intensified a wider debate over whether commercial companies should assume responsibilities traditionally handled by the government.

The US military has granted SpaceX access to sensitive satellite-tracking data, raising national security concerns and fears that Elon Musk’s company could gain an unfair advantage in space traffic management.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has gained access to some of the US military’s most precise satellite-tracking data, a move that has raised concerns over national security, competition and the future of space traffic management. The agreement with the US Space Force gives SpaceX access to detailed information about objects orbiting Earth, including satellites and space debris. Industry observers warn that the arrangement could give Musk’s company an advantage over competitors offering similar services. The development also comes as the Trump administration faces scrutiny over its handling of a federal programme designed to manage traffic in space. SpaceX gains access to military tracking data For the first time, the Space Force has granted a commercial company enhanced access to the US Space Command’s High Accuracy Catalog. The information includes Vector Covariance Messages, which contain tracking data gathered through military radars, telescopes and ground-based sensors. These systems can track objects as small as 10 centimetres in low Earth orbit, helping operators assess potential collisions. SpaceX already runs Stargaze, a satellite-based tracking network that uses cameras and radars mounted on its Starlink satellites. However, the system cannot detect objects as small as those identified by the military's more precise tracking network. The new arrangement allows SpaceX to supplement its existing capabilities. In return, the government will receive access to Stargaze's observations and sensors. Concerns over competition and security Critics say the deal could strengthen SpaceX's position in a commercial space industry projected to approach $2 trillion over the next decade. Cole Donovan, a former employee of the federal Traffic Coordination System for Space (Traccs), warned that the arrangement risked making SpaceX the dominant provider of space traffic coordination in the US. “It’s making a company the de facto source for space traffic coordination within the US,” Donovan said. The military data is classified as controlled unclassified information, as wider access could expose details about the capabilities and limitations of US surveillance systems. Traccs funding adds to the debate The deal comes amid a prolonged struggle over Traccs, which was established to transfer commercial space traffic management responsibilities away from the military. The programme has faced staffing problems and repeated budget-cutting attempts, although Congress restored funding after proposed reductions. While critics see the SpaceX agreement as a threat to fair competition, a former National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration official defended the company's role, arguing that the government had failed to establish an effective framework for managing space traffic. The arrangement has therefore intensified a wider debate over whether commercial companies should assume responsibilities traditionally handled by the government.

The US military has granted SpaceX access to sensitive satellite-tracking data, raising national security concerns and fears that Elon Musk’s company could gain an unfair advantage in space traffic management.

Is Trump risking US national security? Musk’s SpaceX gets access to sensitive military data

Could humans one day live forever? Maria Vorontsova, the eldest daughter of Russian President Vladimir Putin, believes advances in medicine could eventually bring humanity closer to that possibility. Vorontsova, a 41-year-old endocrinologist who heads Moscow State University’s Medical Research and Education Institute, discussed the future of longevity at a forum in Moscow last week titled Live Long, Live Differently.Her approach has two stages. Healthy habits, including a balanced diet, regular exercise and limiting alcohol, could help people live into their late 80s, she suggested. Going beyond that, however, would require breakthroughs that challenge the biological limits of human life.Vorontsova said she expected the growing fear of death to push healthcare providers towards finding solutions within the next 10 to 20 years.<h2>Why the Kremlin is interested</h2>The interest in longevity extends beyond medical research. Putin, who has led Russia since 2000, has spoken publicly about the possibility of extending active life through biotechnology and organ replacement.During a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing last year, the two leaders were overheard discussing ageing and the prospect of humans living to 150.Putin later told reporters that advances in medicine and organ-replacement surgery offered hope that people could remain active for longer.In 2024, he announced a $26 billion national project, New Technologies for Health Preservation, aimed at improving healthcare and extending life expectancy. Russia is also funding research into genetics and therapies designed to slow cellular ageing.<h2>Immortality remains out of reach</h2>Despite the ambitions, science is nowhere near delivering eternal life. The maximum human lifespan is generally thought to be around 125 years, while fully functional human organs grown in laboratories remain beyond current capabilities.Researchers at Russia’s Kurchatov Institute are investigating the use of 3D printing to create human tissues and organs. Other work focuses on gene therapies that could slow age-related changes.But the research has also drawn criticism, particularly as Russia continues its war in Ukraine and faces competing demands on public resources.For now, extending healthy life may be a realistic scientific goal. Defeating death altogether remains a distant prospect.

Putin’s daughter Maria Vorontsova has discussed longevity and the possibility of extending human life, as Russia invests billions in research into ageing, biotechnology and the limits of human lifespan.

Could humans one day live forever? Maria Vorontsova, the eldest daughter of Russian President Vladimir Putin, believes advances in medicine could eventually bring humanity closer to that possibility. Vorontsova, a 41-year-old endocrinologist who heads Moscow State University’s Medical Research and Education Institute, discussed the future of longevity at a forum in Moscow last week titled Live Long, Live Differently. Her approach has two stages. Healthy habits, including a balanced diet, regular exercise and limiting alcohol, could help people live into their late 80s, she suggested. Going beyond that, however, would require breakthroughs that challenge the biological limits of human life. Vorontsova said she expected the growing fear of death to push healthcare providers towards finding solutions within the next 10 to 20 years. Why the Kremlin is interested The interest in longevity extends beyond medical research. Putin, who has led Russia since 2000, has spoken publicly about the possibility of extending active life through biotechnology and organ replacement. During a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing last year, the two leaders were overheard discussing ageing and the prospect of humans living to 150. Putin later told reporters that advances in medicine and organ-replacement surgery offered hope that people could remain active for longer. In 2024, he announced a $26 billion national project, New Technologies for Health Preservation, aimed at improving healthcare and extending life expectancy. Russia is also funding research into genetics and therapies designed to slow cellular ageing. Immortality remains out of reach Despite the ambitions, science is nowhere near delivering eternal life. The maximum human lifespan is generally thought to be around 125 years, while fully functional human organs grown in laboratories remain beyond current capabilities. Researchers at Russia’s Kurchatov Institute are investigating the use of 3D printing to create human tissues and organs. Other work focuses on gene therapies that could slow age-related changes. But the research has also drawn criticism, particularly as Russia continues its war in Ukraine and faces competing demands on public resources. For now, extending healthy life may be a realistic scientific goal. Defeating death altogether remains a distant prospect.

Putin’s daughter Maria Vorontsova has discussed longevity and the possibility of extending human life, as Russia invests billions in research into ageing, biotechnology and the limits of human lifespan.

Can Putin cheat death? All about his daughter’s billion-dollar quest for immortality

In April 2026, four astronauts aboard the Orion capsule ended the Artemis II mission not on a runway, not on a desert plain, but in the open ocean. For the families waiting on shore, the final minutes of that journey carried as much tension as the launch itself. A rocket leaving Earth draws crowds and cheers; a capsule coming home draws quiet prayers. Both moments matter equally, because a mission is only complete when its crew is safely back among us.Once Orion settled on the waves, the crew climbed out of the capsule and onto an inflatable rescue raft. Military helicopters hovered overhead, lifted the astronauts one by one, and flew them to a Navy ship waiting nearby, where doctors examined them. The capsule itself was not left floating in the sea. Navy divers fixed a sturdy cable to it, and a winch — simply a strong motorised pulling machine — gently drew the spacecraft into a special storage bay on the ship. From there, Orion was prepared for its journey back to the Kennedy Space Center.Why do spacefaring nations choose water at all? The answer lies in the hard physics of return. When a capsule comes back from orbit and touches down, it is still moving at roughly the speed of a car on a highway. Hitting solid ground at that speed would be devastating. Water, however, yields. Think of a diver entering a swimming pool compared with falling onto concrete. The water spreads the blow over a slightly longer moment and absorbs part of the shock. That is the mercy the ocean offers.Yet a splashdown is anything but gentle. As Splash Gear Media has often reminded its readers, even with water cushioning the impact, the force that travels through the capsule is huge, and every bolt, seam and heat shield must be strong enough to take it. Engineers cannot leave this to chance, because inside sit human beings who have already survived the fire of re-entry.The sea offers one more gift: sheer size. Oceans cover most of the planet, so a returning crew has an enormous target to aim at rather than a narrow strip of land. This generosity, however, comes with its own risks. Weather is the great uncertainty. Strong winds can push a descending capsule away from its intended spot, and once it is floating, powerful currents can carry it further still. When that happens, recovery teams must begin a search across open water for both the spacecraft and the people inside it — a race in which every minute counts.History holds a sobering lesson here. In 1961, the Liberty Bell 7 capsule began taking on water after its hatch — the small door through which astronauts enter and leave — gave trouble shortly after splashdown. NASA astronaut Gus Grissom managed to get out of the sinking craft and was pulled from the sea alive. The episode taught the world that touching water is not the end of danger.That lesson shaped everything that followed. Today, the United States Navy and dedicated recovery teams take charge the moment a capsule touches water. These crews undergo special training for exactly this work, because conditions at sea can quickly turn an ordinary recovery into a difficult one. Helicopters stand ready to lift both people and hardware. Flotation collars — large inflatable rings strapped around the capsule — keep it bobbing on the surface instead of slipping beneath it, closing the very gap that nearly cost Grissom his life.Behind the Artemis II recovery lay years of quiet preparation that few people ever see. At the Langley Research Center in Virginia, NASA engineers spent several years testing different versions of the Orion capsule in water, carefully measuring what the structure and the crew would feel at the moment of impact. Data from the earlier Artemis I mission was folded into this work. Every test sharpened the computer models that predict how Orion behaves when it meets the sea, so that when real astronauts strapped in, engineers already knew what the ocean would do.For India, which is preparing its own human spaceflight ambitions, the Artemis II story is more than a distant news item. It shows that bringing people home demands as much courage, science and national will as sending them up. The ocean, vast and indifferent, becomes a partner only when human ingenuity prepares for it.

The sea offers one more gift: sheer size. Oceans cover most of the planet, so a returning crew has an enormous target to aim at rather than a narrow strip of land. This generosity, however, comes with its own risks.

In April 2026, four astronauts aboard the Orion capsule ended the Artemis II mission not on a runway, not on a desert plain, but in the open ocean. For the families waiting on shore, the final minutes of that journey carried as much tension as the launch itself. A rocket leaving Earth draws crowds and cheers; a capsule coming home draws quiet prayers. Both moments matter equally, because a mission is only complete when its crew is safely back among us. Once Orion settled on the waves, the crew climbed out of the capsule and onto an inflatable rescue raft. Military helicopters hovered overhead, lifted the astronauts one by one, and flew them to a Navy ship waiting nearby, where doctors examined them. The capsule itself was not left floating in the sea. Navy divers fixed a sturdy cable to it, and a winch — simply a strong motorised pulling machine — gently drew the spacecraft into a special storage bay on the ship. From there, Orion was prepared for its journey back to the Kennedy Space Center. Why do spacefaring nations choose water at all? The answer lies in the hard physics of return. When a capsule comes back from orbit and touches down, it is still moving at roughly the speed of a car on a highway. Hitting solid ground at that speed would be devastating. Water, however, yields. Think of a diver entering a swimming pool compared with falling onto concrete. The water spreads the blow over a slightly longer moment and absorbs part of the shock. That is the mercy the ocean offers. Yet a splashdown is anything but gentle. As Splash Gear Media has often reminded its readers, even with water cushioning the impact, the force that travels through the capsule is huge, and every bolt, seam and heat shield must be strong enough to take it. Engineers cannot leave this to chance, because inside sit human beings who have already survived the fire of re-entry. The sea offers one more gift: sheer size. Oceans cover most of the planet, so a returning crew has an enormous target to aim at rather than a narrow strip of land. This generosity, however, comes with its own risks. Weather is the great uncertainty. Strong winds can push a descending capsule away from its intended spot, and once it is floating, powerful currents can carry it further still. When that happens, recovery teams must begin a search across open water for both the spacecraft and the people inside it — a race in which every minute counts. History holds a sobering lesson here. In 1961, the Liberty Bell 7 capsule began taking on water after its hatch — the small door through which astronauts enter and leave — gave trouble shortly after splashdown. NASA astronaut Gus Grissom managed to get out of the sinking craft and was pulled from the sea alive. The episode taught the world that touching water is not the end of danger. That lesson shaped everything that followed. Today, the United States Navy and dedicated recovery teams take charge the moment a capsule touches water. These crews undergo special training for exactly this work, because conditions at sea can quickly turn an ordinary recovery into a difficult one. Helicopters stand ready to lift both people and hardware. Flotation collars — large inflatable rings strapped around the capsule — keep it bobbing on the surface instead of slipping beneath it, closing the very gap that nearly cost Grissom his life. Behind the Artemis II recovery lay years of quiet preparation that few people ever see. At the Langley Research Center in Virginia, NASA engineers spent several years testing different versions of the Orion capsule in water, carefully measuring what the structure and the crew would feel at the moment of impact. Data from the earlier Artemis I mission was folded into this work. Every test sharpened the computer models that predict how Orion behaves when it meets the sea, so that when real astronauts strapped in, engineers already knew what the ocean would do. For India, which is preparing its own human spaceflight ambitions, the Artemis II story is more than a distant news item. It shows that bringing people home demands as much courage, science and national will as sending them up. The ocean, vast and indifferent, becomes a partner only when human ingenuity prepares for it.

The sea offers one more gift: sheer size. Oceans cover most of the planet, so a returning crew has an enormous target to aim at rather than a narrow strip of land. This generosity, however, comes with its own risks.

Why astronauts land in the ocean: The science and peril of space splashdowns

Scientists have invented a technology through which people would be able to share scents over the internet, just like photos, audio and videos. The device is known as Scentronic and is an “olfactory interface for remote odour sharing and transmission," as described in the study. It works around a robotic nose that can identify a scene in one place and transfer that information using digital data to a different location, where another device recreates the scent.&nbsp;The researchers said that in the future, Scentronic can help people get a whiff of a perfume online before buying it, besides the many other ways it can be used. What they have right now is only a prototype that can identify and recreate five scents: coffee, cake, oranges, beer and red wine.&nbsp;Lead author Chunyu Yang, a PhD researcher at Ohio State University, says they intend to fill a gap in the market with Scentronic. "Much of the research in this area focuses on sight, sound and touch, while smell has received comparatively less attention," Yang said. He added that they wanted to bring the “missing sensory dimension into digital communication.”<h2>How does Scentronic work?</h2>&nbsp;The system comprises an electronic nose fitted with six gas sensors. They detect volatile organic compounds that cause odours to be released from food, perfumes and other things. The chemical that each sensor detects determines how it responds, which is different for each of them. This leads to a distinct pattern of electrical signals, which are then converted into digital data.&nbsp;The researchers trained an AI system to recognise the scents, identifying which pattern belonged to which smell. After it identifies the smell, the nose sends the data over the internet. The other device contains small containers of scented liquid and tiny electrically powered discs. The discs can vibrate more than 100,000 times a second, which forces the liquid to pass through microscopic holes. This produces a fine mist which releases the appropriate smell.&nbsp;The other device has its own fragrances to recreate the scent, meaning no actual scent is travelling over the internet. The technology is only meant to detect and recreate a scent that is sent to it, and cannot create fragrances on its own. It can create the smell of coffee, but not the exact type of coffee.&nbsp;In tests, Scentronic was able to identify and recreate the five scents it had been trained on with 96 per cent accuracy. The findings were published in the journal Science Advances.

A study has detailed a technology that can carry scents over the internet just as people send emails, images and videos. A digital nose sniffs the item, sends it over the internet to another location, where a device recreates the scent.   

Scientists have invented a technology through which people would be able to share scents over the internet, just like photos, audio and videos. The device is known as Scentronic and is an “olfactory interface for remote odour sharing and transmission," as described in the study. It works around a robotic nose that can identify a scene in one place and transfer that information using digital data to a different location, where another device recreates the scent. The researchers said that in the future, Scentronic can help people get a whiff of a perfume online before buying it, besides the many other ways it can be used. What they have right now is only a prototype that can identify and recreate five scents: coffee, cake, oranges, beer and red wine. Lead author Chunyu Yang, a PhD researcher at Ohio State University, says they intend to fill a gap in the market with Scentronic. "Much of the research in this area focuses on sight, sound and touch, while smell has received comparatively less attention," Yang said. He added that they wanted to bring the “missing sensory dimension into digital communication.” How does Scentronic work? The system comprises an electronic nose fitted with six gas sensors. They detect volatile organic compounds that cause odours to be released from food, perfumes and other things. The chemical that each sensor detects determines how it responds, which is different for each of them. This leads to a distinct pattern of electrical signals, which are then converted into digital data. The researchers trained an AI system to recognise the scents, identifying which pattern belonged to which smell. After it identifies the smell, the nose sends the data over the internet. The other device contains small containers of scented liquid and tiny electrically powered discs. The discs can vibrate more than 100,000 times a second, which forces the liquid to pass through microscopic holes. This produces a fine mist which releases the appropriate smell. The other device has its own fragrances to recreate the scent, meaning no actual scent is travelling over the internet. The technology is only meant to detect and recreate a scent that is sent to it, and cannot create fragrances on its own. It can create the smell of coffee, but not the exact type of coffee. In tests, Scentronic was able to identify and recreate the five scents it had been trained on with 96 per cent accuracy. The findings were published in the journal Science Advances.

A study has detailed a technology that can carry scents over the internet just as people send emails, images and videos. A digital nose sniffs the item, sends it over the internet to another location, where a device recreates the scent. &nbsp;&nbsp;

Scientists make digital nose that can sniff and send scents over the internet

A study has theorised that one particle that has been overlooked and dismissed as not being important for the longest time could actually be why the universe exists in the first place. According to a paper published in Physical Review Letters, this rarely studied particle is called the decoupled heavy neutrino.&nbsp;Two theoretical physicists, one from the University of Southampton and the other from the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, have proposed that this forgotten particle played a vital role in shaping the conditions in the early universe. The decoupled heavy neutrino rarely interacts with the rest of the universe and is high in mass. This has led scientists to term it irrelevant.<h2>Mystery of matter and antimatter</h2>But when taken into consideration, it solves a huge mystery about the universe. After the Big Bang happened, for each particle of matter created, a corresponding anti–particle should have also been born. When they come in contact, they both destroy each other, releasing radiation. But the problem is that the universe is dominated by matter.Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/a-star-survived-its-own-death-and-is-coming-back-to-life-it-gets-weirder-1792398365268">A star survived its own death and is coming back to life. It gets weirder</a>&nbsp;"This asymmetry is crucial for our existence, as the presence of matter allows for the formation of stars, planets, and ultimately life, while the scarcity of antimatter raises questions about why it is so rare," says Dr Rishav Roshan, co-author of the study. The team says that the driving force behind this matter–antimatter asymmetry and why we exist is this particular neutrino.<h2>Universe expanded because of it</h2>The duo states in the study that since this neutrino interacts less and decays relatively slowly, it could have contained more energy than all the radiation around it for some time. This would have led the universe to expand rapidly and changed the temperature at which matter and antimatter were forming. "By affecting the interactions and decays of particles during the early universe, these neutrinos can help favour the production of matter over antimatter," Dr Roshan says.Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/strongest-ghost-particles-to-slam-earth-could-have-come-from-black-hole-hidden-in-fifth-dimension-1791292019078">Strongest 'ghost particles' to slam Earth could have come from black hole hidden in fifth dimension</a>&nbsp;Their study showed that decoupled heavy neutrinos could trigger matter and antimatter to be slightly imbalanced. They say that even a tiny imbalance, just one extra particle of matter for every billion, was enough for the leftover material to survive annihilation and form everything in the universe today.&nbsp;The duo admits that this is merely a theory for now. However, they are confident that the proof for this suggestion would be available soon. "This theory could be tested experimentally through upcoming gravitational wave detectors and particle physics experiments," he said. &nbsp;

Two physicists from the UK and India have proposed that a tiny particle that has been deemed irrelevant could actually have been the reason for the conditions that led to the universe coming into existence. It solves the mystery of the matter-antimatter asymmetry.

A study has theorised that one particle that has been overlooked and dismissed as not being important for the longest time could actually be why the universe exists in the first place. According to a paper published in Physical Review Letters, this rarely studied particle is called the decoupled heavy neutrino. Two theoretical physicists, one from the University of Southampton and the other from the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, have proposed that this forgotten particle played a vital role in shaping the conditions in the early universe. The decoupled heavy neutrino rarely interacts with the rest of the universe and is high in mass. This has led scientists to term it irrelevant. Mystery of matter and antimatter But when taken into consideration, it solves a huge mystery about the universe. After the Big Bang happened, for each particle of matter created, a corresponding anti–particle should have also been born. When they come in contact, they both destroy each other, releasing radiation. But the problem is that the universe is dominated by matter. Also Read: A star survived its own death and is coming back to life. It gets weirder "This asymmetry is crucial for our existence, as the presence of matter allows for the formation of stars, planets, and ultimately life, while the scarcity of antimatter raises questions about why it is so rare," says Dr Rishav Roshan, co-author of the study. The team says that the driving force behind this matter–antimatter asymmetry and why we exist is this particular neutrino. Universe expanded because of it The duo states in the study that since this neutrino interacts less and decays relatively slowly, it could have contained more energy than all the radiation around it for some time. This would have led the universe to expand rapidly and changed the temperature at which matter and antimatter were forming. "By affecting the interactions and decays of particles during the early universe, these neutrinos can help favour the production of matter over antimatter," Dr Roshan says. Also Read: Strongest 'ghost particles' to slam Earth could have come from black hole hidden in fifth dimension Their study showed that decoupled heavy neutrinos could trigger matter and antimatter to be slightly imbalanced. They say that even a tiny imbalance, just one extra particle of matter for every billion, was enough for the leftover material to survive annihilation and form everything in the universe today. The duo admits that this is merely a theory for now. However, they are confident that the proof for this suggestion would be available soon. "This theory could be tested experimentally through upcoming gravitational wave detectors and particle physics experiments," he said.

Two physicists from the UK and India have proposed that a tiny particle that has been deemed irrelevant could actually have been the reason for the conditions that led to the universe coming into existence. It solves the mystery of the matter-antimatter asymmetry.

Scientists said this particle was up to no good. Turns out, it could be why we exist

A star that returned from the brink of death is doing something unexpected. Sakurai’s Object went supernova in 1181 and was visible as a bright object in the Cassiopeia constellation for at least 185 days. Astronomers who lived in the early years of the samurai in Japan at the time observed the remnants of a star that exploded and still survived.&nbsp;Now, NOIRLab’s Gemini North telescope, comprising two powerful telescopes in Hawaii and Chile, has captured the debris field in great detail. Dubbed Pa 30, the region has ionised gases in perfectly symmetrical knots, revealing a bizarre occurrence. So while we can see that something chaotic happened, the surviving progenitor star continued to remain right at the centre and has not moved from its place at all.&nbsp;Ilaria Caiazzo, co-author of the new paper published in The Astrophysical Journal, said that Pa 30 is located around 7,500 light-years from Earth, which makes it "uniquely valuable for study." While that might seem like a long distance, the star is only about one-fourth of the distance to the centre of the Milky Way.Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/88-days-apart-twice-mystery-signal-detected-coming-from-empty-space-1792056124449">88 days apart, twice: Mystery signal detected coming from empty region of space</a>&nbsp;The new observations resolve enormous strands of red ionised sulfur and blue-green ionised oxygen. Caiazzo said this object is so huge that “the planetary region of our solar system could fit in each knot about ten times with room to spare.”<h2>What happened to Sakurai’s Object</h2> In 1996, the star was seen flaring back to life even after all its nuclear fuel was over. It swelled and released clouds of gas and dust. A typical star ends up as a white dwarf, and Sakurai’s Object was also moving towards the same destiny. But then a layer of helium deep inside it suddenly reignited and threw up large amounts of material into space. It became huge once again, thus also known as a born-again star.Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/trending/not-just-killers-but-creators-black-holes-could-birth-planets-and-even-stars-study-finds-1791470887524">Not just killers, but creators: Black holes could birth planets and even stars, study finds</a><h2>Not hotter, but colder</h2> In 2005, a model predicted the star would reach about 161,500°F (90,000 K) by 2020. However, that hasn't happened. Instead, the latest observations show that the star’s surface is about 54,500°F (30,500 K) hot right now. Even though it is still roughly five times hotter than the surface of the Sun, the figure is way below the prediction made 21 years ago.&nbsp;“Our measurements show that the star is reheating more gradually than some earlier models predicted," Albert Zijlstra of the University of Manchester said.Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/strongest-ghost-particles-to-slam-earth-could-have-come-from-black-hole-hidden-in-fifth-dimension-1791292019078">Strongest 'ghost particles' to slam Earth could have come from black hole hidden in fifth dimension</a>&nbsp;The star itself is not visible. The dust and gas it had thrown out shrouded it completely. The team detected a powerful, steady wind blowing off the star's surface rich in carbon and helium with speeds of about 310 miles per second. This revealed that its surface composition has shifted significantly to roughly 43 per cent helium and 51 per cent carbon. The material thrown out in the 1990s has also spread about 300 times farther.<h2>Fate of the star</h2>&nbsp;Current astronomical understanding and comparisons, similar to stars like V605 Aquilae, show that Sakurai's Object will eventually finish its life as a white dwarf.&nbsp;

A star exploded 845 years ago but remains in the same place. In the 1990s, it was seen flaring up again and coming back to life. Astronomers expected it to become much hotter by now. However, that has not happened, as per a latest study. 

A star that returned from the brink of death is doing something unexpected. Sakurai’s Object went supernova in 1181 and was visible as a bright object in the Cassiopeia constellation for at least 185 days. Astronomers who lived in the early years of the samurai in Japan at the time observed the remnants of a star that exploded and still survived. Now, NOIRLab’s Gemini North telescope, comprising two powerful telescopes in Hawaii and Chile, has captured the debris field in great detail. Dubbed Pa 30, the region has ionised gases in perfectly symmetrical knots, revealing a bizarre occurrence. So while we can see that something chaotic happened, the surviving progenitor star continued to remain right at the centre and has not moved from its place at all. Ilaria Caiazzo, co-author of the new paper published in The Astrophysical Journal, said that Pa 30 is located around 7,500 light-years from Earth, which makes it "uniquely valuable for study." While that might seem like a long distance, the star is only about one-fourth of the distance to the centre of the Milky Way. Also Read: 88 days apart, twice: Mystery signal detected coming from empty region of space The new observations resolve enormous strands of red ionised sulfur and blue-green ionised oxygen. Caiazzo said this object is so huge that “the planetary region of our solar system could fit in each knot about ten times with room to spare.” What happened to Sakurai’s Object In 1996, the star was seen flaring back to life even after all its nuclear fuel was over. It swelled and released clouds of gas and dust. A typical star ends up as a white dwarf, and Sakurai’s Object was also moving towards the same destiny. But then a layer of helium deep inside it suddenly reignited and threw up large amounts of material into space. It became huge once again, thus also known as a born-again star. Also Read: Not just killers, but creators: Black holes could birth planets and even stars, study finds Not hotter, but colder In 2005, a model predicted the star would reach about 161,500°F (90,000 K) by 2020. However, that hasn't happened. Instead, the latest observations show that the star’s surface is about 54,500°F (30,500 K) hot right now. Even though it is still roughly five times hotter than the surface of the Sun, the figure is way below the prediction made 21 years ago. “Our measurements show that the star is reheating more gradually than some earlier models predicted," Albert Zijlstra of the University of Manchester said. Also Read: Strongest 'ghost particles' to slam Earth could have come from black hole hidden in fifth dimension The star itself is not visible. The dust and gas it had thrown out shrouded it completely. The team detected a powerful, steady wind blowing off the star's surface rich in carbon and helium with speeds of about 310 miles per second. This revealed that its surface composition has shifted significantly to roughly 43 per cent helium and 51 per cent carbon. The material thrown out in the 1990s has also spread about 300 times farther. Fate of the star Current astronomical understanding and comparisons, similar to stars like V605 Aquilae, show that Sakurai's Object will eventually finish its life as a white dwarf.

A star exploded 845 years ago but remains in the same place. In the 1990s, it was seen flaring up again and coming back to life. Astronomers expected it to become much hotter by now. However, that has not happened, as per a latest study.&nbsp;

A star survived its own death and is coming back to life. It gets weirder

Artemis II astronauts made history earlier this year after becoming the first four humans to travel to the farthest point in space. While the feat is unparalleled, there was one point in the journey when the crew feared it could get lost in space. Commander Reid Wiseman recently shared that this moment came when they flew over the dark side of the moon.&nbsp;Speaking at the Starmus Festival in Tenerife on Saturday, Wiseman shared that after they reached the dark side of the moon, they watched the odometer reading, which was supposed to reach only a particular figure as given by NASA. That showed how far they were in space from Earth. However, even after this reading, the number of nautical miles on the odometer kept going higher. This left them worried that they might get lost in space.<h2>Artemis II - Distance from Earth to Moon</h2>The Artemis II crew travelled 219,669 nautical miles, or 406771.352 kilometres, from Earth. However, Wiseman said, "Mission control in Houston had told us our maximum distance", which was 219,667 nautical miles. "I was watching this number, and I saw it hit 219,667, and I thought, 'Great, this is the farthest we will be from Earth, and the next number I will see will be 219,666, we'll be going home'. But about three minutes later, I saw 219,668. It went up," he told the crowd.&nbsp;Wiseman shared that then it went up to 219,669, and "that was the moment that I felt real fear because I thought we had just gone too far." He felt, "We're never going to come home, and so I was very scared." The crew waited three whole minutes before the number started dropping, a sign that they were on their way back home.<h2>Artemis II astronauts were “at peace” with the risk of the mission</h2>However, the mission specialist Jeremy Hansen admitted that they all were aware of the risk that came with the trip to the moon. He said that two days before the launch, they talked about what they would do if something went terribly wrong. "Like, if Reid's number had just kept growing and we knew we weren't coming home, but we were going to be alive for a while, how do you sit comfortably, not knowing what the future is going to be?" he said.&nbsp;He said they were "at peace" with this possibility, "not because we're brave; it's not bravado; it's because we had an acceptance of whatever came; we would do the best, or our time would end." &nbsp;

Artemis II astronauts were left scared for their lives at one point in the trip to the Moon. Reid Wiseman shared the moment they thought they could get lost forever in space, which happened when they reached the dark side of the Moon.

Artemis II astronauts made history earlier this year after becoming the first four humans to travel to the farthest point in space. While the feat is unparalleled, there was one point in the journey when the crew feared it could get lost in space. Commander Reid Wiseman recently shared that this moment came when they flew over the dark side of the moon. Speaking at the Starmus Festival in Tenerife on Saturday, Wiseman shared that after they reached the dark side of the moon, they watched the odometer reading, which was supposed to reach only a particular figure as given by NASA. That showed how far they were in space from Earth. However, even after this reading, the number of nautical miles on the odometer kept going higher. This left them worried that they might get lost in space. Artemis II - Distance from Earth to Moon The Artemis II crew travelled 219,669 nautical miles, or 406771.352 kilometres, from Earth. However, Wiseman said, "Mission control in Houston had told us our maximum distance", which was 219,667 nautical miles. "I was watching this number, and I saw it hit 219,667, and I thought, 'Great, this is the farthest we will be from Earth, and the next number I will see will be 219,666, we'll be going home'. But about three minutes later, I saw 219,668. It went up," he told the crowd. Wiseman shared that then it went up to 219,669, and "that was the moment that I felt real fear because I thought we had just gone too far." He felt, "We're never going to come home, and so I was very scared." The crew waited three whole minutes before the number started dropping, a sign that they were on their way back home. Artemis II astronauts were “at peace” with the risk of the mission However, the mission specialist Jeremy Hansen admitted that they all were aware of the risk that came with the trip to the moon. He said that two days before the launch, they talked about what they would do if something went terribly wrong. "Like, if Reid's number had just kept growing and we knew we weren't coming home, but we were going to be alive for a while, how do you sit comfortably, not knowing what the future is going to be?" he said. He said they were "at peace" with this possibility, "not because we're brave; it's not bravado; it's because we had an acceptance of whatever came; we would do the best, or our time would end."

Artemis II astronauts were left scared for their lives at one point in the trip to the Moon. Reid Wiseman shared the moment they thought they could get lost forever in space, which happened when they reached the dark side of the Moon.

219,666...219,669 - When Artemis II astronauts feared getting LOST IN SPACE

The brain produces waste products and toxins as part of its daily workload. Scientists now know these can be flushed away by an internal disposal pathway called the glymphatic system, which helps protect against cognitive diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.&nbsp;Danish neuroscientists discovered the system in 2012, and it has since become a major focus of research. Roslyn Bill, professor of biotechnology and director of the Institute for Membrane Excellence at Aston University, said the lymphatic system's role in eliminating toxins from the body has long been known, but a similar mechanism in the brain was identified only recently.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/protein-coffee-or-proffee-goes-viral-coffee-meets-protein-in-new-health-trend-1791543944382/embed">https://www.wionews.com/videos/protein-coffee-or-proffee-goes-viral-coffee-meets-protein-in-new-health-trend-1791543944382/embed</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;According to Bill, the system flushes cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), a clear liquid, through the brain via channels called perivascular spaces. Blood vessels swell and constrict to pump the fluid around, washing away unwanted proteins and by-products of cellular metabolism. She likened it to a sluicing system used to clean block paving on a patio. She added that it works more effectively at night, when the brain is not working as hard because the person is asleep.&nbsp;Also read; <a href="https://www.wionews.com/entertainment/world-mental-health-day-impact-of-school-bullying-on-child-mental-health-1791538436019">World Mental Health Day: The scourge of bullying and impact on child mental health</a>&nbsp;Bill said the system becomes less efficient with age. Arteries stiffen, fluid pumping slows, and toxins are not washed away as effectively. Among these waste products is amyloid beta protein (Aβ), which is associated with Alzheimer's disease when deposited in the brain. It forms clumps called plaques which, along with tau protein tangles in brain cells, are key hallmarks of dementia.&nbsp;A study of 40,000 UK adults, published last year in Alzheimer's &amp; Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association, found that impaired movement of CSF predicted dementia risk later in life. Hui Hong, a radiologist and the paper's lead author, said small vessel disease in the brain was already known to accelerate diseases such as Alzheimer's, and the findings offer a likely explanation. "Disruption to the glymphatic system is likely to impair our ability to clear the brain of the amyloid and tau that causes Alzheimer's disease," Hong told news outlet The Times.&nbsp;Also read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/health-and-wellness/wion-health-pulse-mental-health-is-often-ignored-dr-jitendra-nagpal-1781680364857">WION Health Pulse: 'Mental health is often ignored in Indian household' says Dr Jitendra Nagpal</a>&nbsp;Emerging research also suggests a sluggish glymphatic system may be linked to other conditions, including Parkinson's. Bill said treatments to maintain glymphatic function are being developed. She and her colleagues are in the early stages of developing what she described as a "statin for the brain" to help clear brain waste with age. She said it could restore blood vessels to their youthful ability to pump well and perhaps delay neurodegeneration.&nbsp;Other scientists are studying the effects of infrared light helmets and ultrasound techniques on glymphatic fluid flow, though Bill said these therapies are at a very early stage of research. She said researchers are starting to be able to measure, through biomarkers, whether such approaches are working to clear waste products from the brain.&nbsp;Bill said some lifestyle habits are known to help prevent the glymphatic system from slowing down.

Discover how the glymphatic system cleanses brain waste during sleep to protect against cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s, and neurological disorders. 

The brain produces waste products and toxins as part of its daily workload. Scientists now know these can be flushed away by an internal disposal pathway called the glymphatic system, which helps protect against cognitive diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Danish neuroscientists discovered the system in 2012, and it has since become a major focus of research. Roslyn Bill, professor of biotechnology and director of the Institute for Membrane Excellence at Aston University, said the lymphatic system's role in eliminating toxins from the body has long been known, but a similar mechanism in the brain was identified only recently. https://www.wionews.com/videos/protein-coffee-or-proffee-goes-viral-coffee-meets-protein-in-new-health-trend-1791543944382/embed According to Bill, the system flushes cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), a clear liquid, through the brain via channels called perivascular spaces. Blood vessels swell and constrict to pump the fluid around, washing away unwanted proteins and by-products of cellular metabolism. She likened it to a sluicing system used to clean block paving on a patio. She added that it works more effectively at night, when the brain is not working as hard because the person is asleep. Also read; World Mental Health Day: The scourge of bullying and impact on child mental health Bill said the system becomes less efficient with age. Arteries stiffen, fluid pumping slows, and toxins are not washed away as effectively. Among these waste products is amyloid beta protein (Aβ), which is associated with Alzheimer's disease when deposited in the brain. It forms clumps called plaques which, along with tau protein tangles in brain cells, are key hallmarks of dementia. A study of 40,000 UK adults, published last year in Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association, found that impaired movement of CSF predicted dementia risk later in life. Hui Hong, a radiologist and the paper's lead author, said small vessel disease in the brain was already known to accelerate diseases such as Alzheimer's, and the findings offer a likely explanation. "Disruption to the glymphatic system is likely to impair our ability to clear the brain of the amyloid and tau that causes Alzheimer's disease," Hong told news outlet The Times. Also read: WION Health Pulse: 'Mental health is often ignored in Indian household' says Dr Jitendra Nagpal Emerging research also suggests a sluggish glymphatic system may be linked to other conditions, including Parkinson's. Bill said treatments to maintain glymphatic function are being developed. She and her colleagues are in the early stages of developing what she described as a "statin for the brain" to help clear brain waste with age. She said it could restore blood vessels to their youthful ability to pump well and perhaps delay neurodegeneration. Other scientists are studying the effects of infrared light helmets and ultrasound techniques on glymphatic fluid flow, though Bill said these therapies are at a very early stage of research. She said researchers are starting to be able to measure, through biomarkers, whether such approaches are working to clear waste products from the brain. Bill said some lifestyle habits are known to help prevent the glymphatic system from slowing down.

Discover how the glymphatic system cleanses brain waste during sleep to protect against cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s, and neurological disorders.&nbsp;

Can you wash your brain? How glymphatic system protects against cognitive decline

A new genetic study has clarified how spectacled cobras (Naja naja), one of India's "big four" snakes responsible for most serious snakebite cases, are related across South Asia. The findings were published in Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. The spectacled cobra is currently treated as a single species found across much of South Asia, with regional variation in colour, hood markings and venom. Early classifications split it into regional subspecies, but later work grouped them together. A 2022 study proposed that Sri Lankan cobras be recognised as a separate species. A subsequent reassessment challenged that conclusion, citing its reliance on mitochondrial markers, limited geographic sampling and use of venom as taxonomic evidence.&nbsp;The new study's authors note that earlier molecular work drew mostly on samples from Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, with minimal representation from India, partly because of difficulties in obtaining research permits and samples. Before this study, only 23 N. naja sequences had been generated.&nbsp;Also read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/trending/india-tops-list-of-most-snake-attacks-in-the-world-with-1-3mn-cases-every-year-1787713505474">India tops list of most snake attacks in the world with 1.3mn cases every year, study finds</a>&nbsp;The team sequenced nine DNA markers, both mitochondrial and nuclear, from scale samples of 67 cobras collected across major Indian regions. They combined the data with published sequences, including from neighbouring countries, to reconstruct relationships, estimate split dates and model ancient movements.&nbsp;<h2>Key findings</h2>&nbsp;Mainland cobras shared an extensive set of genetic variants, and no clear regional evolutionary divisions were detected across India. The researchers say this is consistent with widespread genetic mixing, despite visible differences in appearance and venom. They attribute the pattern to strong dispersal ability, ecological generalism and historical human-assisted movement. This contrasts with other widespread snakes, such as the banded krait and king cobra, and with related cobra species, which show pronounced geographic clustering.&nbsp;The Sri Lankan cobras, however, formed a distinct genetic lineage, showing moderate mitochondrial divergence from the mainland population. The team says both groups still fall within one species, adding that genetic differentiation alone does not settle species status.&nbsp;Also read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/trending/23ft-python-swallows-man-returning-from-party-in-indonesia-1785404766607">23ft python swallows man returning from party in Indonesia; family find body whole inside reptile</a><h2>About the origins</h2>The analysis supports an African origin for the Naja genus, with a spread into South Asia probably through the Middle East around 10.6 million years ago. The researchers link this to tectonic connectivity between the African and Arabian plates, aridification, and the expansion of savanna and grasslands. They note that Naja fossils have not been found in the Arabian Peninsula, which may reflect uneven sampling.&nbsp;The lineage that reached the subcontinent likely evolved into N. naja. The data suggest it reached Sri Lanka around two million years ago, in the early Pleistocene, when lower sea levels created land connections. Rising seas later isolated the island population, allowing a separate lineage to form, while mixing continued on the mainland.

A new genetic study reveals that spectacled cobras across mainland India belong to a uniform genetic population, while Sri Lanka's cobra population forms a distinct lineage. Discover key scientific insights and antivenom implications. 

A new genetic study has clarified how spectacled cobras (Naja naja), one of India's "big four" snakes responsible for most serious snakebite cases, are related across South Asia. The findings were published in Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. The spectacled cobra is currently treated as a single species found across much of South Asia, with regional variation in colour, hood markings and venom. Early classifications split it into regional subspecies, but later work grouped them together. A 2022 study proposed that Sri Lankan cobras be recognised as a separate species. A subsequent reassessment challenged that conclusion, citing its reliance on mitochondrial markers, limited geographic sampling and use of venom as taxonomic evidence. The new study's authors note that earlier molecular work drew mostly on samples from Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, with minimal representation from India, partly because of difficulties in obtaining research permits and samples. Before this study, only 23 N. naja sequences had been generated. Also read: India tops list of most snake attacks in the world with 1.3mn cases every year, study finds The team sequenced nine DNA markers, both mitochondrial and nuclear, from scale samples of 67 cobras collected across major Indian regions. They combined the data with published sequences, including from neighbouring countries, to reconstruct relationships, estimate split dates and model ancient movements. Key findings Mainland cobras shared an extensive set of genetic variants, and no clear regional evolutionary divisions were detected across India. The researchers say this is consistent with widespread genetic mixing, despite visible differences in appearance and venom. They attribute the pattern to strong dispersal ability, ecological generalism and historical human-assisted movement. This contrasts with other widespread snakes, such as the banded krait and king cobra, and with related cobra species, which show pronounced geographic clustering. The Sri Lankan cobras, however, formed a distinct genetic lineage, showing moderate mitochondrial divergence from the mainland population. The team says both groups still fall within one species, adding that genetic differentiation alone does not settle species status. Also read: 23ft python swallows man returning from party in Indonesia; family find body whole inside reptile About the origins The analysis supports an African origin for the Naja genus, with a spread into South Asia probably through the Middle East around 10.6 million years ago. The researchers link this to tectonic connectivity between the African and Arabian plates, aridification, and the expansion of savanna and grasslands. They note that Naja fossils have not been found in the Arabian Peninsula, which may reflect uneven sampling. The lineage that reached the subcontinent likely evolved into N. naja. The data suggest it reached Sri Lanka around two million years ago, in the early Pleistocene, when lower sea levels created land connections. Rising seas later isolated the island population, allowing a separate lineage to form, while mixing continued on the mainland.

A new genetic study reveals that spectacled cobras across mainland India belong to a uniform genetic population, while Sri Lanka's cobra population forms a distinct lineage. Discover key scientific insights and antivenom implications.

One species, two lineages: Why Sri Lanka’s spectacled cobra differs genetically from Indian variant

James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has detected a strange signal - not once but twice - coming from a region of the universe that is empty. Previously, the Hubble Space Telescope had spent more than 270 hours peering into that same region to obtain an Ultra Deep Field (HUDF). It detected nearly 10,000 galaxies extending billions of light-years into the Universe. Then Webb's sensitive infrared capabilities were used to see if Hubble had missed something. The research has been published in The Astrophysical Journal.&nbsp;JWST picked up a signal from one tiny corner of this field in observations gathered three months apart. But the strange thing is both Webb and Hubble data show there is absolutely nothing there. Scientists admit that there still could be something there which is too dim to detect. However, until something is actually found, the signal remains an anomaly.&nbsp;Telescopes combine light through different filters to show an object in the universe. Some telescopes act like prisms, splitting light into a rainbow to reveal chemical makeup. There are also absorption lines, dark gaps where atoms in an object absorb specific wavelengths of light. Emission lines are bright stripes where atoms release energy at specific wavelengths.<h2>How the observation was made</h2>Astronomers use spectroscopy to detect these absorption and emission lines. However, astrophysicist Mason Huberty of the University of Minnesota wanted to try something new and used JWST's Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec) to find objects that hadn't been found yet. Huberty decided to cover known foreground objects identified by Hubble to prevent their light from contaminating the spectra they wanted to collect.&nbsp;Then they searched for emission lines twice, 88 days apart in August and November 2023. The aim was to detect faint, distant objects that had never been picked up before. Six detections were revealed that could be matched to distant galaxies in the HUDF. The problem was the seventh detection. This single, bright line appeared in both near-infrared observations at about 1.6 micrometres.<h2>Not a glitch</h2> There was no other emission line with it, and Hubble and JWST had also seen nothing else in that patch of space. Since it appeared in all four sets of combined exposures, it could not be dismissed as a glitch. Scientists are confused since this emission line was so bright it should have been detected by JWST.&nbsp;Astronomers tried to explain this line using different possibilities, none of which fit. It could have been a galaxy in the early Universe, a more recent galaxy, a supernova or a black hole tearing apart a star. "This object is highly unusual and probes extreme physical conditions," the researchers write. More observations are needed to determine what could have produced this signal.&nbsp;

Astronomers have detected a signal coming from a seemingly empty region of space. JWST and the Hubble Space Telescope both looked at the same region at different times. It was absent in previous observations but emerged later with nothing else in its path.

James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has detected a strange signal - not once but twice - coming from a region of the universe that is empty. Previously, the Hubble Space Telescope had spent more than 270 hours peering into that same region to obtain an Ultra Deep Field (HUDF). It detected nearly 10,000 galaxies extending billions of light-years into the Universe. Then Webb's sensitive infrared capabilities were used to see if Hubble had missed something. The research has been published in The Astrophysical Journal. JWST picked up a signal from one tiny corner of this field in observations gathered three months apart. But the strange thing is both Webb and Hubble data show there is absolutely nothing there. Scientists admit that there still could be something there which is too dim to detect. However, until something is actually found, the signal remains an anomaly. Telescopes combine light through different filters to show an object in the universe. Some telescopes act like prisms, splitting light into a rainbow to reveal chemical makeup. There are also absorption lines, dark gaps where atoms in an object absorb specific wavelengths of light. Emission lines are bright stripes where atoms release energy at specific wavelengths. How the observation was made Astronomers use spectroscopy to detect these absorption and emission lines. However, astrophysicist Mason Huberty of the University of Minnesota wanted to try something new and used JWST's Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec) to find objects that hadn't been found yet. Huberty decided to cover known foreground objects identified by Hubble to prevent their light from contaminating the spectra they wanted to collect. Then they searched for emission lines twice, 88 days apart in August and November 2023. The aim was to detect faint, distant objects that had never been picked up before. Six detections were revealed that could be matched to distant galaxies in the HUDF. The problem was the seventh detection. This single, bright line appeared in both near-infrared observations at about 1.6 micrometres. Not a glitch There was no other emission line with it, and Hubble and JWST had also seen nothing else in that patch of space. Since it appeared in all four sets of combined exposures, it could not be dismissed as a glitch. Scientists are confused since this emission line was so bright it should have been detected by JWST. Astronomers tried to explain this line using different possibilities, none of which fit. It could have been a galaxy in the early Universe, a more recent galaxy, a supernova or a black hole tearing apart a star. "This object is highly unusual and probes extreme physical conditions," the researchers write. More observations are needed to determine what could have produced this signal.

Astronomers have detected a signal coming from a seemingly empty region of space. JWST and the Hubble Space Telescope both looked at the same region at different times. It was absent in previous observations but emerged later, with nothing else in its path.

88 days apart, twice: Mystery signal detected coming from empty region of space

The UK Space Agency has signed a deal with satellite builder ClearSpace to build a spacecraft that will capture defunct satellites in orbit and drag them to die in Earth's atmosphere. This "Space Binman" has officially been named the UK Active Debris Removal Programme. It will have four specialised grabbing arms to catch falling satellites that no longer work and could pose a threat to others in the orbit.&nbsp;The claws will grab the satellites and move them gently out of orbit and into Earth's atmosphere to break apart and burn up. It is targeting to take down two British satellites that will soon become space debris. Later, it will be parked in a safe orbit and used again to safely dispose other satellites.&nbsp;On Wednesday, the UK space agency signed a £61.3million contract with ClearSpace UK to design, build, launch and operate this spacecraft. It will be the first mission to be built and launched entirely out of the UK. It is targeting 2029 for a launch. The space agency will give its people an opportunity to name the spacecraft, and is launching a competition this Friday.

The UK space agency is making a spacecraft to deal with debris in orbit. This "Space Binman" will carefully remove satellites from orbit and push them towards Earth, where they can burn up safely. The mission is set for 2029. 

The UK Space Agency has signed a deal with satellite builder ClearSpace to build a spacecraft that will capture defunct satellites in orbit and drag them to die in Earth's atmosphere. This "Space Binman" has officially been named the UK Active Debris Removal Programme. It will have four specialised grabbing arms to catch falling satellites that no longer work and could pose a threat to others in the orbit. The claws will grab the satellites and move them gently out of orbit and into Earth's atmosphere to break apart and burn up. It is targeting to take down two British satellites that will soon become space debris. Later, it will be parked in a safe orbit and used again to safely dispose other satellites. On Wednesday, the UK space agency signed a £61.3million contract with ClearSpace UK to design, build, launch and operate this spacecraft. It will be the first mission to be built and launched entirely out of the UK. It is targeting 2029 for a launch. The space agency will give its people an opportunity to name the spacecraft, and is launching a competition this Friday.

The UK space agency is making a spacecraft to deal with debris in orbit. This "Space Binman" will carefully remove satellites from orbit and push them towards Earth, where they can burn up safely. The mission is set for 2029.&nbsp;

UK plans to launch 'space claws' by 2029 to deal with defunct satellites

An experiment on the effects of space environment on human body has thrown up a lot of bad news that can whitewash plans to conquer Mars and beyond. The study done by researchers from the Medical College of Wisconsin, and published in PLoS One, shows that radiation and weightlessness can destroy the human heart and increase the chances of developing cancer.&nbsp;NASA developed a protocol called hindlimb unloading (HLU) to simulate weightlessness in rats. A harness was used to lift their back legs off the ground at a 30 degree angle for thirty days. This led to much of the fluids in the body rushing towards their heads, taking off the weight off their lower bodies. This is as close as they could come to mimicking astronauts in microgravity.&nbsp;To recreate radiation on Earth, they utilised the NASA Space Radiation Laboratory at Brookhaven National Laboratory. This lab can simulate the radiation environment as it is outside the Earth's atmosphere.&nbsp;&nbsp;The rats were “unloaded” for five days and hit with extreme high radiation levels for a few minutes. They remained suspended for 25 more days. The harness was then removed and the rats for monitored for a year, which is equal to nearly 25 human years.<h2>Rat hearts bore a major chunk of the brunt</h2>The study focussed on how the simulation affected their hearts. Scientists found that 1.5 Gray of absorbed radiation led the rats to develop perivascular fibrosis, a type of scar tissue around the coronary vessels that feed blood to the heart. This scar doubled in 270 days, squeezing the blood vessels and increasing the chances of heart attack. The effect was entirely caused by radiation.&nbsp;When the rats were exposed to lower radiation, equal to the radiation exposure over the course of a three year mission to Mars, the scarring wasn't visible. However, 83 per cent of the rats developed it after a year. This means that the scarring would take decades to become visible in humans.&nbsp;Their immune system also took a hit, with their spleens losing two thirds of its Natural Killer (NK) cells that wipe out virus-infected and potentially cancerous cells. This was the result of both microgravity and radiation.&nbsp;Sequencing of the genomes of their white blood cells showed permanent mutations in a number of genes 235 days after exposure to the radiation. Some of these genes are tied to Clonal Hematopoiesis of Indeterminate Potential (CHIP) which appears as we age because of a single mutated blood cell. This mutated blood cell carries with it an increased risk of leukemia and quadruples the risk of heart attacks and strokes.&nbsp;Even though the study has its limitations, especially since all the radiation was delivered quickly, it is still bad news for human dream of long-term space flight and reaching the vast expanse of the universe.&nbsp;

Mars is not an ideal environment for humans, but the journey to the Red Planet itself will devastate the human body even before astronauts land on its surface. A study has found that our hearts will not be able to survive the trip.  

An experiment on the effects of space environment on human body has thrown up a lot of bad news that can whitewash plans to conquer Mars and beyond. The study done by researchers from the Medical College of Wisconsin, and published in PLoS One, shows that radiation and weightlessness can destroy the human heart and increase the chances of developing cancer. NASA developed a protocol called hindlimb unloading (HLU) to simulate weightlessness in rats. A harness was used to lift their back legs off the ground at a 30 degree angle for thirty days. This led to much of the fluids in the body rushing towards their heads, taking off the weight off their lower bodies. This is as close as they could come to mimicking astronauts in microgravity. To recreate radiation on Earth, they utilised the NASA Space Radiation Laboratory at Brookhaven National Laboratory. This lab can simulate the radiation environment as it is outside the Earth's atmosphere. The rats were “unloaded” for five days and hit with extreme high radiation levels for a few minutes. They remained suspended for 25 more days. The harness was then removed and the rats for monitored for a year, which is equal to nearly 25 human years. Rat hearts bore a major chunk of the brunt The study focussed on how the simulation affected their hearts. Scientists found that 1.5 Gray of absorbed radiation led the rats to develop perivascular fibrosis, a type of scar tissue around the coronary vessels that feed blood to the heart. This scar doubled in 270 days, squeezing the blood vessels and increasing the chances of heart attack. The effect was entirely caused by radiation. When the rats were exposed to lower radiation, equal to the radiation exposure over the course of a three year mission to Mars, the scarring wasn't visible. However, 83 per cent of the rats developed it after a year. This means that the scarring would take decades to become visible in humans. Their immune system also took a hit, with their spleens losing two thirds of its Natural Killer (NK) cells that wipe out virus-infected and potentially cancerous cells. This was the result of both microgravity and radiation. Sequencing of the genomes of their white blood cells showed permanent mutations in a number of genes 235 days after exposure to the radiation. Some of these genes are tied to Clonal Hematopoiesis of Indeterminate Potential (CHIP) which appears as we age because of a single mutated blood cell. This mutated blood cell carries with it an increased risk of leukemia and quadruples the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Even though the study has its limitations, especially since all the radiation was delivered quickly, it is still bad news for human dream of long-term space flight and reaching the vast expanse of the universe.

Mars is not an ideal environment for humans, but the journey to the Red Planet itself will devastate the human body even before astronauts land on its surface. A study has found that our hearts will not be able to survive the trip. &nbsp;

Mars is not for man: Human heart is too weak to survive the trip, study shows

After peripheral vision of an individual narrows, changes in central vision and colour perception come next in the progression of retinitis pigmentosa (RP), further leading to blindness. Researchers have come up with an experimental treatment which has helped some patients recover limited visual abilities. The method combines a gene injection using distinctive goggles. It was developed using a small trial involving 10 people with profound vision loss in both eyes. Following the treatment, some participants developed better vision with the ability to detect objects, locate them, and reach toward them while using the device. The New England Journal of Medicine has published the study, which was coauthored by ophthalmologist José-Alain Sahel at the University of Pittsburgh and vision researcher Botond Roska at the Institute of Molecular and Clinical Ophthalmology Basel in Switzerland.<h3>What is Retinitis pigmentosa?</h3>It is a family of inherited disorders in which genetic mutations damage the photoreceptors of the retina, the cells responsible for detecting light. Onset can occur in childhood or later in life, and the disease progresses at different rates; it can also arise in people with no known family history. Because changes in more than 100 different genes can trigger it, developing a treatment for each genetic cause has proven difficult. The approach being tested, known as optogenetic therapy, equips surviving nerve cells with a new mechanism for responding to light. Each participant was given a single injection in their weaker eye, through which a modified virus carried instructions for retinal ganglion cells — the nerve cells that carry visual information to the brain- to produce a light-sensitive protein called ChrimsonR. "The gene therapy delivers a light sensor to the blind retina, making it light-sensitive again. The goggles provide light stimulation at the wavelength to which this sensor responds," Sahel and Roska told ScienceAlert. The goggles pair a built-in camera, which detects brightness changes, with a processor that translates these into amber light patterns, projected onto the retina to activate the protein. "In addition, the goggles adapt to outside light conditions and modify the signal to ensure optimal stimulation of the retina," Sahel and Roska said.&nbsp;Also read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/trending/double-earthquake-hits-atlantic-knock-on-effect-from-string-of-tremors-could-mean-us-is-next-1791967047338">Double earthquake hits Atlantic: Geophysicist warns US is next, and it could happen this week</a> &nbsp;Participants trained with the goggles and underwent vision tests, with their untreated eye covered and assessed for light sensitivity and object detection. Researchers later found that participants with low vision could see through the goggles both before and after treatment. Post-treatment, seven participants showed heightened sensitivity — ranging from roughly twofold to 62-fold, with six reaching close to a fourfold increase or more, a benchmark drawn from prior research rather than set in advance by the trial protocol. Eight participants underwent object-based testing with and without the goggles, attempting to detect, locate, and touch a notebook or a small box of staples, and to identify a bar’s orientation. Four showed consistently better notebook detection with the goggles across repeated sessions over roughly a year to eighteen months, while others showed no steady improvement. The study did not predefine criteria for identifying participants as responders. "Differences between patients in the increase in sensitivity may reflect how well the gene therapy vector reaches the retinal cells, or how many retinal cells remain, or other variables such as training to wear the goggles," Sahel and Roska explained. More training sessions correlated with better performance, though confidence intervals left room for no effect. Brain recordings from five participants suggested visual signals reached the brain. Safety was deemed “very good,” based on 10 participants: 34 eye-related and 70 systemic adverse events occurred, mostly mild, with none of the systemic events linked to the therapy. Follow-up ranged from two to five years. GenSight Biologics funded the non-randomised, uncontrolled trial; further research is needed.

The method was developed using a small trial involving 10 people with profound vision loss in both eyes. After the treatment, some participants developed better vision, with the ability to detect objects, locate them, and reach toward them while using the device.

After peripheral vision of an individual narrows, changes in central vision and colour perception come next in the progression of retinitis pigmentosa (RP), further leading to blindness. Researchers have come up with an experimental treatment which has helped some patients recover limited visual abilities. The method combines a gene injection using distinctive goggles. It was developed using a small trial involving 10 people with profound vision loss in both eyes. Following the treatment, some participants developed better vision with the ability to detect objects, locate them, and reach toward them while using the device. The New England Journal of Medicine has published the study, which was coauthored by ophthalmologist José-Alain Sahel at the University of Pittsburgh and vision researcher Botond Roska at the Institute of Molecular and Clinical Ophthalmology Basel in Switzerland. What is Retinitis pigmentosa? It is a family of inherited disorders in which genetic mutations damage the photoreceptors of the retina, the cells responsible for detecting light. Onset can occur in childhood or later in life, and the disease progresses at different rates; it can also arise in people with no known family history. Because changes in more than 100 different genes can trigger it, developing a treatment for each genetic cause has proven difficult. The approach being tested, known as optogenetic therapy, equips surviving nerve cells with a new mechanism for responding to light. Each participant was given a single injection in their weaker eye, through which a modified virus carried instructions for retinal ganglion cells — the nerve cells that carry visual information to the brain- to produce a light-sensitive protein called ChrimsonR. "The gene therapy delivers a light sensor to the blind retina, making it light-sensitive again. The goggles provide light stimulation at the wavelength to which this sensor responds," Sahel and Roska told ScienceAlert. The goggles pair a built-in camera, which detects brightness changes, with a processor that translates these into amber light patterns, projected onto the retina to activate the protein. "In addition, the goggles adapt to outside light conditions and modify the signal to ensure optimal stimulation of the retina," Sahel and Roska said. Also read: Double earthquake hits Atlantic: Geophysicist warns US is next, and it could happen this week Participants trained with the goggles and underwent vision tests, with their untreated eye covered and assessed for light sensitivity and object detection. Researchers later found that participants with low vision could see through the goggles both before and after treatment. Post-treatment, seven participants showed heightened sensitivity — ranging from roughly twofold to 62-fold, with six reaching close to a fourfold increase or more, a benchmark drawn from prior research rather than set in advance by the trial protocol. Eight participants underwent object-based testing with and without the goggles, attempting to detect, locate, and touch a notebook or a small box of staples, and to identify a bar’s orientation. Four showed consistently better notebook detection with the goggles across repeated sessions over roughly a year to eighteen months, while others showed no steady improvement. The study did not predefine criteria for identifying participants as responders. "Differences between patients in the increase in sensitivity may reflect how well the gene therapy vector reaches the retinal cells, or how many retinal cells remain, or other variables such as training to wear the goggles," Sahel and Roska explained. More training sessions correlated with better performance, though confidence intervals left room for no effect. Brain recordings from five participants suggested visual signals reached the brain. Safety was deemed “very good,” based on 10 participants: 34 eye-related and 70 systemic adverse events occurred, mostly mild, with none of the systemic events linked to the therapy. Follow-up ranged from two to five years. GenSight Biologics funded the non-randomised, uncontrolled trial; further research is needed.

The method was developed using a small trial involving 10 people with profound vision loss in both eyes. After the treatment, some participants developed better vision, with the ability to detect objects, locate them, and reach toward them while using the device.

Blind patients regain partial sight with novel gene-goggle therapy: Details inside

Planets form around stars and some also roam around in the universe untethered. We have known that they are shaped from the planetary disk where planet of material is available for their formation. A study has now claimed that they could even be birthed in the most unlikely location - around black holes.&nbsp;Black holes have such strong gravitational force that not even light can escape it. They pull all matter around them into them. But surprisingly, they are not just killers, but are also creators, according to new research published in The Astrophysical Journal on June 29, 2026.&nbsp;The study claims that the dusty regions around supermassive black holes can become the catalyst for planet formation, similar to how they form around stars. The focus of the study were supermassive black holes that are actively feeding on the gas and dust around them. Known as active galactic nuclei, or AGNs, they can be found at the centre of almost every galaxy.&nbsp;When they pull in matter, a huge amount of gas and dust start starts collecting around it. This matter swirls around the black hole creating a super hot accretion disk, just like the planetary disks around stars from which planets are born. Astrophysicist Barry McKernan, co-author of the study, said they found that at least theoretically, it is possible that the same processes could form planets around black holes, since the same rules of physics should apply.&nbsp;If true, this means that black holes could also have planets around them. And not just a few, but one black hole could have millions of planets in its vicinity. Simulations showed that these planets would be as large as Jupiter right after their birth, and grow up to become even more humongous. This is because black holes could be several million times bigger than the Sun.&nbsp;The process of planet formation will also be the same. Dust grains would accumulate in increasingly dense concentrations, and collide with each other. The solid particles would gradually coalesce together, thus creating baby planets. Some of them might outgrow the planet stage and end up becoming brown dwarfs, or failed stars. However, it is also possible that some of them become actual stars.&nbsp;But since black holes are power gravitationally, they could tug onto some of these planets, thus killing them and creating more dust. Despite this, there could be millions or billions of planets. A single episode of an active galactic nucleus burst is typically about 2 million years long , with one black hole witnessing several such episodes. Thus, over billions of years, many planets could be born.

Black holes can birth planets and even stars, a study has found. Scientists say the massive amount of matter around them could follow the same rules of planet formation as those that happen around a star. This could lead to planets forming around them.

Planets form around stars and some also roam around in the universe untethered. We have known that they are shaped from the planetary disk where planet of material is available for their formation. A study has now claimed that they could even be birthed in the most unlikely location - around black holes. Black holes have such strong gravitational force that not even light can escape it. They pull all matter around them into them. But surprisingly, they are not just killers, but are also creators, according to new research published in The Astrophysical Journal on June 29, 2026. The study claims that the dusty regions around supermassive black holes can become the catalyst for planet formation, similar to how they form around stars. The focus of the study were supermassive black holes that are actively feeding on the gas and dust around them. Known as active galactic nuclei, or AGNs, they can be found at the centre of almost every galaxy. When they pull in matter, a huge amount of gas and dust start starts collecting around it. This matter swirls around the black hole creating a super hot accretion disk, just like the planetary disks around stars from which planets are born. Astrophysicist Barry McKernan, co-author of the study, said they found that at least theoretically, it is possible that the same processes could form planets around black holes, since the same rules of physics should apply. If true, this means that black holes could also have planets around them. And not just a few, but one black hole could have millions of planets in its vicinity. Simulations showed that these planets would be as large as Jupiter right after their birth, and grow up to become even more humongous. This is because black holes could be several million times bigger than the Sun. The process of planet formation will also be the same. Dust grains would accumulate in increasingly dense concentrations, and collide with each other. The solid particles would gradually coalesce together, thus creating baby planets. Some of them might outgrow the planet stage and end up becoming brown dwarfs, or failed stars. However, it is also possible that some of them become actual stars. But since black holes are power gravitationally, they could tug onto some of these planets, thus killing them and creating more dust. Despite this, there could be millions or billions of planets. A single episode of an active galactic nucleus burst is typically about 2 million years long , with one black hole witnessing several such episodes. Thus, over billions of years, many planets could be born.

Black holes can birth planets and even stars, a study has found. Scientists say the massive amount of matter around them could follow the same rules of planet formation as those that happen around a star. This could lead to planets forming around them.

Not just killers, but creators: Black holes could birth planets and even stars, study finds

In a wide-ranging discussion about India's first human spaceflight ambitions, Gaganyaan astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla opened up about the role of ISRO's humanoid robot, Vyomitra, which is being prepared for &nbsp;India's first crewed space missions. During the conversation, Shukla explained how far technology has advanced since the 1960s and drew comparisons to the early Soviet space program, where animals were sent to space ahead of humans. Shukla pointed out that the processing power in a modern mobile phone has become far better and more efficient as compared to the Apollo missions' computers, which carried astronauts to the Moon and back. He said the technology that we possess today was not available then. Speaking about the Soviet space program, where animals were sent to space ahead of humans, Shukla said that at the moment, ISRO doesn't need to rely on animal testing the way earlier space programs did. Instead, that role will be filled by Vyomitra, a heavily instrumented humanoid robot. "The technology that we have today was not available then. Actually, to highlight, you know, the kind of processing power your mobile phone holds today is more than what the mission computer for the Apollo mission had, which took humans around the moon and brought them back. You know, so that is where we stand today. So that is the kind of difference in what we can achieve today. And you are familiar with Moore's law: every two years, the size of chips will keep reducing over a period of time. So I think that today we don't need to experiment on animals to understand what is happening in space," Shukla said. "The Vyomitra, the humanoid robot that he is talking about, in the initial test missions will carry a humanoid robot which is very heavily instrumented. Instrumented to collect data, to collect the temperature, the pressure, the vibrations, the sound- all of that it is going to collect and give us a very good idea of what the internal environment of the capsule is going to be like. So that, if required, we can make some changes, and we have very good information, or, you know, the introductory talk or the presentation talked about data being intelligible, you know, data being refined so that you can use it effectively. So this is what Vyomitra is going to do. It is going to give us good, solid data which we can use to refine our further missions and have very good confidence in the systems when actual missions are going to space," Shukla added.&nbsp;Also read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/space-experience-reinforced-belief-in-higher-power-astronaut-shubhanshu-shukla-1791385477295">Space experience reinforced belief in ‘higher power’: Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla</a><h3>Three uncrewed missions before any astronaut flies</h3>The interviewer clarified Vyomitra's role further, describing her as a humanoid robot in female form, developed across various ISRO centres. According to the plan outlined, ISRO intends to fly three uncrewed Gaganyaan missions, with no astronauts on board, before any Gaganyatri, including Shukla himself, is cleared to fly. "A robot will go to space inside the capsule, and the robot will do all the testing. And once all of those go flawlessly, only then will we put our astronauts... in space," the interviewer explained, describing it as ISRO's methodical approach to human spaceflight. The conversation then turned to the training journey that transforms a fighter pilot into an astronaut, a path Shukla has walked, training across Star City in Russia, as well as facilities in the US, Europe, and Japan. Asked what it takes, Shukla didn't mince words about the scale of the undertaking. Shubhanshu Shukla said, "On an average, if I have to say, it takes about five years for any astronaut to fly to space, not just from India, whether it is from Russia, whether it is from US. This is the kind of time period that it takes to prepare an astronaut to go to Space. And the reason it takes so much of time is once you are up there, you are by yourself. There is no help available, you are trying to create and sustain life in an environment wherein it should not exist, you know, there is no reason to support life out there. It really widens your horizon to understand how things are happening, how things are being done in different domains, in different disciplines and many times what happens is that you learn something from another discipline and you find that it is suitably applied to some other discipline that you were very used to. So that is the reason that it takes a lot of time to prepare as astronauts. It took us also about five years before we flew and it will be the same story for any future astronauts who are going to fly. It will take this much of time." &nbsp;

Shukla said the processing power in a modern mobile phone has become far better and more efficient compared to the Apollo missions' computers, which carried astronauts to the Moon and back. He said the technology that we possess today was not available then.

In a wide-ranging discussion about India's first human spaceflight ambitions, Gaganyaan astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla opened up about the role of ISRO's humanoid robot, Vyomitra, which is being prepared for India's first crewed space missions. During the conversation, Shukla explained how far technology has advanced since the 1960s and drew comparisons to the early Soviet space program, where animals were sent to space ahead of humans. Shukla pointed out that the processing power in a modern mobile phone has become far better and more efficient as compared to the Apollo missions' computers, which carried astronauts to the Moon and back. He said the technology that we possess today was not available then. Speaking about the Soviet space program, where animals were sent to space ahead of humans, Shukla said that at the moment, ISRO doesn't need to rely on animal testing the way earlier space programs did. Instead, that role will be filled by Vyomitra, a heavily instrumented humanoid robot. "The technology that we have today was not available then. Actually, to highlight, you know, the kind of processing power your mobile phone holds today is more than what the mission computer for the Apollo mission had, which took humans around the moon and brought them back. You know, so that is where we stand today. So that is the kind of difference in what we can achieve today. And you are familiar with Moore's law: every two years, the size of chips will keep reducing over a period of time. So I think that today we don't need to experiment on animals to understand what is happening in space," Shukla said. "The Vyomitra, the humanoid robot that he is talking about, in the initial test missions will carry a humanoid robot which is very heavily instrumented. Instrumented to collect data, to collect the temperature, the pressure, the vibrations, the sound- all of that it is going to collect and give us a very good idea of what the internal environment of the capsule is going to be like. So that, if required, we can make some changes, and we have very good information, or, you know, the introductory talk or the presentation talked about data being intelligible, you know, data being refined so that you can use it effectively. So this is what Vyomitra is going to do. It is going to give us good, solid data which we can use to refine our further missions and have very good confidence in the systems when actual missions are going to space," Shukla added. Also read: Space experience reinforced belief in ‘higher power’: Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla Three uncrewed missions before any astronaut flies The interviewer clarified Vyomitra's role further, describing her as a humanoid robot in female form, developed across various ISRO centres. According to the plan outlined, ISRO intends to fly three uncrewed Gaganyaan missions, with no astronauts on board, before any Gaganyatri, including Shukla himself, is cleared to fly. "A robot will go to space inside the capsule, and the robot will do all the testing. And once all of those go flawlessly, only then will we put our astronauts... in space," the interviewer explained, describing it as ISRO's methodical approach to human spaceflight. The conversation then turned to the training journey that transforms a fighter pilot into an astronaut, a path Shukla has walked, training across Star City in Russia, as well as facilities in the US, Europe, and Japan. Asked what it takes, Shukla didn't mince words about the scale of the undertaking. Shubhanshu Shukla said, "On an average, if I have to say, it takes about five years for any astronaut to fly to space, not just from India, whether it is from Russia, whether it is from US. This is the kind of time period that it takes to prepare an astronaut to go to Space. And the reason it takes so much of time is once you are up there, you are by yourself. There is no help available, you are trying to create and sustain life in an environment wherein it should not exist, you know, there is no reason to support life out there. It really widens your horizon to understand how things are happening, how things are being done in different domains, in different disciplines and many times what happens is that you learn something from another discipline and you find that it is suitably applied to some other discipline that you were very used to. So that is the reason that it takes a lot of time to prepare as astronauts. It took us also about five years before we flew and it will be the same story for any future astronauts who are going to fly. It will take this much of time."

Shukla said the processing power in a modern mobile phone has become far better and more efficient compared to the Apollo missions' computers, which carried astronauts to the Moon and back. He said the technology that we possess today was not available then.

'We don't need to experiment on animals anymore for spaceflight': Shubhanshu Shukla opens up on ISRO's humanoid robot Vyomitra

Scientists may have made a breakthrough in their search for Planet Nine, identifying a faint object whose brightness and slow motion are exactly what is expected of a cosmic body at that distance from Earth and the Sun. Scanning through infrared observations gathered decades ago, they found an object that was at a particular place in one survey and had moved across in the second survey done 23 years later.&nbsp;The study by researchers from National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan was published in the Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia. The authors said the object emerged as the single best candidate after the analysis of millions of infrared sources. However, they asserted that this is not confirmation of a ninth planet, and only gives them a new target to focus on in the hunt for this elusive body, which may or may not exist.<h2>Why do we think Planet Nine is real?</h2>Planet Nine remains a hypothetical object, but astronomers are confident that it exists, even though it has never been seen. The signs point to this body being real. Several objects in that region seem to have huddled around an unknown body, as reflected in their unusually tilted orbits. This suggests that a larger body's gravity could be pulling them.&nbsp;This planet would be lurking beyond Neptune, hundreds of astronomical units away, in a cold and dark region where sunlight barely reaches. This makes finding Planet Nine extremely difficult since barely any light would bounce towards Earth. But planets release heat, and so astronomers started using spacecraft that can detect infrared radiation.<h2>Surveys from 1983 and 2006 were studied</h2>Terry Long Phan and his team studied data from two such missions - RAS, the Infrared Astronomical Satellite from 1983 and Japan’s AKARI spacecraft, which did an infrared survey in 2006 and 2007. This long gap gave them a window into how a distant planet might have shifted its place. They looked for objects that appeared in both the surveys and were consistent with a slow movement.&nbsp;They searched for a planet located between 500 and 700 astronomical units and around 7 to 17 times Earth’s mass by checking for brightness, location and infrared characteristics. They found 22 possible pairings; the number then reduced to 13 before they were left with just one candidate. This object had moved by 47.46 arcminutes between the IRAS and AKARI observations.<h2>Why has it not been declared Planet Nine?</h2>While scientists may have detected a possible Planet Nine candidate, they are not rushing to confirm it. It still needs to fit into the parameters of an object that would cause the unusual trajectories of objects in the outer Solar System. For this to happen, it must move on the right path.&nbsp;Phan says further research should utilise the Dark Energy Camera on the 4-meter Blanco Telescope in Chile to see if this object is moving on the right orbit to qualify as Planet Nine.&nbsp;

Taiwanese scientists have, for the first time, detected real clues about Planet Nine and that it might, after all, be real. They studied two sky surveys done over a 23-year gap to check for objects that may have shifted from their position. And Voila! They found one. 

Scientists may have made a breakthrough in their search for Planet Nine, identifying a faint object whose brightness and slow motion are exactly what is expected of a cosmic body at that distance from Earth and the Sun. Scanning through infrared observations gathered decades ago, they found an object that was at a particular place in one survey and had moved across in the second survey done 23 years later. The study by researchers from National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan was published in the Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia. The authors said the object emerged as the single best candidate after the analysis of millions of infrared sources. However, they asserted that this is not confirmation of a ninth planet, and only gives them a new target to focus on in the hunt for this elusive body, which may or may not exist. Why do we think Planet Nine is real? Planet Nine remains a hypothetical object, but astronomers are confident that it exists, even though it has never been seen. The signs point to this body being real. Several objects in that region seem to have huddled around an unknown body, as reflected in their unusually tilted orbits. This suggests that a larger body's gravity could be pulling them. This planet would be lurking beyond Neptune, hundreds of astronomical units away, in a cold and dark region where sunlight barely reaches. This makes finding Planet Nine extremely difficult since barely any light would bounce towards Earth. But planets release heat, and so astronomers started using spacecraft that can detect infrared radiation. Surveys from 1983 and 2006 were studied Terry Long Phan and his team studied data from two such missions - RAS, the Infrared Astronomical Satellite from 1983 and Japan’s AKARI spacecraft, which did an infrared survey in 2006 and 2007. This long gap gave them a window into how a distant planet might have shifted its place. They looked for objects that appeared in both the surveys and were consistent with a slow movement. They searched for a planet located between 500 and 700 astronomical units and around 7 to 17 times Earth’s mass by checking for brightness, location and infrared characteristics. They found 22 possible pairings; the number then reduced to 13 before they were left with just one candidate. This object had moved by 47.46 arcminutes between the IRAS and AKARI observations. Why has it not been declared Planet Nine? While scientists may have detected a possible Planet Nine candidate, they are not rushing to confirm it. It still needs to fit into the parameters of an object that would cause the unusual trajectories of objects in the outer Solar System. For this to happen, it must move on the right path. Phan says further research should utilise the Dark Energy Camera on the 4-meter Blanco Telescope in Chile to see if this object is moving on the right orbit to qualify as Planet Nine.

Taiwanese scientists have, for the first time, detected real clues about Planet Nine and that it might, after all, be real. They studied two sky surveys done over a 23-year gap to check for objects that may have shifted from their position. And Voila! They found one.&nbsp;

First signs of Planet Nine may have been finally detected

An extremely powerful signal slammed into Earth in 2023, leaving astronomers puzzled about its source. It was detected by the KM3NeT/ARCA underwater neutrino telescope located in the Mediterranean Sea and was unlike anything seen before. It was one of the most energetic neutrinos ever recorded and slammed with a force tens of thousands of times more powerful than the particles ever created by humans.&nbsp;&nbsp;Since then, several explanations have been put forward for the 2023 KM3NeT signal. Some said it could have come from blazars or exploding primordial black holes.&nbsp;The latest origin theory also involves a black hole, an ancient one made of cosmic strings and hiding inside a fifth dimension. A recent paper published in Physical Review D studied the possibility of primordial black holes emerging from a string-based framework. The authors explain that the rules of quantum gravity "inevitably" lead to five-dimensional primordial black holes.&nbsp;The researchers explain that the particle detected was a neutrino and had no photons with it, because of which none of the detectors caught it. Neutrinos are also known as "ghost particles" because they do not interact with other matter. Dieter Lüst, a physicist at the Max Planck Institute for Physics in Germany, and his team said that it slammed with an energy of roughly 30,000 times higher than anything that CERN’s Large Hadron Collider. But finding its source has been extremely difficult.&nbsp;Scientists say the "dark" dimension is a hypothetical fifth dimension in string theory, and only gravity rules over it, Gizmodo reported. Here, the idea is that when cosmic strings collapse in this hypothetical dimension, primordial black holes were born, as opposed to the usual explanation that they were born with the cosmos.&nbsp;When they deviated from the regular explanation, the dark dimension emerged as a natural explanation for the "absence of an associated high-energy photon” in the 2023 neutrino signal. The strings, or thin cracks in spacetime, would have collected into “loops” that collapse into relatively small black holes. The team calculated that the rate of evaporation for such objects would be "comparable" to the age of the universe, Gizmodo reported. This would have caused these ancient black holes to leak neutrinos.

The 2023 KM3NeT neutrino signal remains unexplained because of the extreme force with which it slammed into Earth. Now a new study has come up with the strangest theory ever, pinning it on a black hole which does not actually exist. 

An extremely powerful signal slammed into Earth in 2023, leaving astronomers puzzled about its source. It was detected by the KM3NeT/ARCA underwater neutrino telescope located in the Mediterranean Sea and was unlike anything seen before. It was one of the most energetic neutrinos ever recorded and slammed with a force tens of thousands of times more powerful than the particles ever created by humans. Since then, several explanations have been put forward for the 2023 KM3NeT signal. Some said it could have come from blazars or exploding primordial black holes. The latest origin theory also involves a black hole, an ancient one made of cosmic strings and hiding inside a fifth dimension. A recent paper published in Physical Review D studied the possibility of primordial black holes emerging from a string-based framework. The authors explain that the rules of quantum gravity "inevitably" lead to five-dimensional primordial black holes. The researchers explain that the particle detected was a neutrino and had no photons with it, because of which none of the detectors caught it. Neutrinos are also known as "ghost particles" because they do not interact with other matter. Dieter Lüst, a physicist at the Max Planck Institute for Physics in Germany, and his team said that it slammed with an energy of roughly 30,000 times higher than anything that CERN’s Large Hadron Collider. But finding its source has been extremely difficult. Scientists say the "dark" dimension is a hypothetical fifth dimension in string theory, and only gravity rules over it, Gizmodo reported. Here, the idea is that when cosmic strings collapse in this hypothetical dimension, primordial black holes were born, as opposed to the usual explanation that they were born with the cosmos. When they deviated from the regular explanation, the dark dimension emerged as a natural explanation for the "absence of an associated high-energy photon” in the 2023 neutrino signal. The strings, or thin cracks in spacetime, would have collected into “loops” that collapse into relatively small black holes. The team calculated that the rate of evaporation for such objects would be "comparable" to the age of the universe, Gizmodo reported. This would have caused these ancient black holes to leak neutrinos.

The 2023 KM3NeT neutrino signal remains unexplained because of the extreme force with which it slammed into Earth. Now a new study has come up with the strangest theory ever, pinning it on a black hole which does not actually exist.&nbsp;

Strongest 'ghost particles' to slam Earth could have come from black hole hidden in fifth dimension

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Strongest neutrino to slam Earth likely came from black hole in fifth dimension