Space

The government is working on a new law to govern the space sector which has witnessed reforms over the past four years with private players making a mark in building and launching satellites, Union Minister Jitendra Singh said on Wednesday. Singh said India's maiden human spaceflight programme -- Gaganyaan -- was also progressing well and the first uncrewed mission was expected to be launched early next year. "We are working on that," the minister of state in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) told a press conference here in response to a question on the timeline for the space activities bill, which would grant statutory cover to the reforms in the sector. Singh said the government had announced space sector reforms in 2020 with the aim to increase India's share in the global space economy. "Indian Space Policy was released in April 2023 as an overarching, composite and dynamic framework to implement the space reform vision approved by the Union Cabinet," he said. The minister sa

The Space Docking Experiment (SpaDEX) is scheduled to launch by the year-end. It will be India's first mission showcasing autonomous docking technology in space

Earth-like planet, Venus, has never been habitable, the latest research reveals. The new discovery challenges theories that it once had liquid water

The countdown for ISRO's dedicated commercial mission--Proba-3 spacecraft of the European Space Agency (ESA) marking a 'proud milestone in India's space journey' is progressing for the launch scheduled later on Wednesday, the space agency said. NewSpace India Ltd, the commercial arm of ISRO which would launch client vehicles, has secured the order from ESA for its latest launch, which would be a 'technology demonstration' mission. The significant objective of the mission is the first-of-its-kind formation flying in precision and to study the Sun's outer atmosphere. "Liftoff Day is Here. PSLV-C59, showcasing the proven expertise of ISRO, is ready to deliver ESA's PROBA-3 satellites into orbit. This mission, powered by NSIL with ISRO's engineering excellence, reflects the strength of international collaboration," ISRO said on Wednesday. An ISRO official said that the 25 hour countdown that started at 3.08 pm on Tuesday is progressing for the launch scheduled from the first launch pad

Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh on Tuesday invited Israeli startups to collaborate with Indian firms on the National Quantum Mission. Singh made the offer to Israel's Industry and Economy Minister Nir Barkat who met him here. The two leaders discussed collaboration in startups in the space, quantum technology, agriculture and health sectors. Singh invited Israeli startups, known for their pioneering work in quantum computing, to partner with Indian institutions to co-develop critical quantum technologies. "India and Israel can supplement each other in this domain India with its large market, manpower, and opportunities, and Israel with its cutting-edge innovation," Singh said. India's National Quantum Mission aims to harness quantum technologies to bolster sectors like communication, cryptography, and computing, he said. Singh said Israeli startups and researchers could play a vital role in co-developing critical technologies, leveraging their experience for mutua

In-SPACe Chairman Pawan Goenka said on Tuesday that India is almost self-reliant in data required for strategic applications, thanks to NavIC, the country's satellite navigation system similar to GPS. For civilian uses, too, where the stakes are not as high as in strategic applications, Goenka stressed the importance of avoiding dependency on foreign systems that could leave India vulnerable. "Our goal with NavIC is to ensure that for all strategic needs -- whether in defence, civilian use or industry -- we are not reliant on others. If someone cuts off supply, we should have the capability to switch to our own systems," he said at a panel discussion during the GeoSmart India 2024 conference in Hyderabad. However, NavIC would coexist with other navigation systems like GPS, he added while stressing that India should be able to meet its needs independently using NavIC. NavIC (Navigation with Indian constellation) is India's own satellite navigation system developed by ISRO. It helps

Two Indian astronauts chosen for the upcoming Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) have completed the initial phase of training, the ISRO has said. Accorsing to ISRO, towards the goal of accomplishing a joint ISRO-NASA effort to the International Space Station, the two Gaganyatris (Prime-Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla and Backup-Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair) assigned for Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) commenced their training in the USA from first week of August,2024. The initial phase of training has been completed successfully by the Gaganyatris. During this phase of training, the Gaganyatris have completed initial orientations for mission-related ground facility tours, initial overview of mission launch phases, SpaceX suit fit checks, and selected space food options, it said. Furthermore, the training also included familiarization sessions with the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and various onboard systems of the International Space Station, including photogra

Professor Noville, a Spanish scientist, has discovered a formula using the gravitational bending of light to pinpoint celestial objects including hazardous asteroids

The mission will demonstrate real-time data processing in orbit, making space research more affordable and accessible

Isro received approval for its first Venus mission, Shukrayaan. The probe will undertake a detailed investigation of Venus, including its surface, atmosphere and geological structure

A huge success for astronomers as they captured an extreme close-up image of the dying star, WOH G64, which is 1,60,000 light years away from our milky way

SpaceX on Tuesday launched another Starship rocket but passed up catching the booster with giant mechanical arms. Unlike last month's success, the booster was directed to a splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico. The catch was called off just four minutes into the test flight from Texas for unspecified reasons, and the booster hit the water three minutes later. Not all of the criteria for a booster catch was met and so the flight director did not command the booster to return to the launch site, said SpaceX spokesman Dan Huot. He did not specify what went wrong. At the same time, the empty spacecraft launched from Texas atop Starship soared across the Gulf of Mexico on a near loop around the world similar to October's test flight. Skimming space, the shiny retro-looking craft targeted the Indian Ocean for a controlled but destructive end to the hourlong demo. It was the latest test for the world's biggest and most powerful rocket that SpaceX and NASA hope to use to get astronauts back on

The Parker Solar Probe mission aims to investigate the mysteries of the sun's corona, its outer atmosphere. Here's all you need to know

Astrobiologist Dirk Schulze-Makuch believes Nasa's Viking missions have inadvertently 'eliminated' Martian life. He also mentioned that Martian life may have adapted to the planet's dry environment

This year's Booker shortlist featured five women among the six finalists, the highest representation of women in the prize's 55-year history

The Roman Coronagraph, developed to detect planets 100 million times fainter than their stars, has been successfully integrated onto the space telescope

Three NASA astronauts whose prolonged space station mission ended with a trip to the hospital last month have declined to say which one of them was sick. Astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt and Jeanette Epps Friday publicly discussed their spaceflight for the first time since returning from the International Space Station on Oct 25. They spent nearly eight months in orbit, longer than expected because of all the trouble with Boeing's Starliner crew capsule and rough weather, including Hurricane Milton. Soon after their SpaceX capsule splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico off the Florida coast, the three were taken to a hospital in nearby Pensacola along with Russian cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin, who launched with them back in March. One of the Americans ended up spending the night there for an undisclosed medical issue. NASA declined to say who was hospitalised or why, citing medical privacy. When asked at Friday's news conference which one had been sick, the astronauts ...

ISRO chairman S Somanath on Tuesday urged industry houses to invest in the space sector in a big way to build rockets and allied systems for India to emerge as a space power by 2047. Addressing the Indian Space Conclave here, Somanath voiced concern over the "elusive" investments in the upstream sector of the space industry comprising launch vehicles, hardware and software for ground-based stations, telemetry, tracking and command stations. He said the share of the Indian space economy in the global market was very low and there was a need to encourage and inspire the next generation of leaders to come into the sector and create a vibrant activity. India's space economy is pegged at USD 8.4 billion and is projected to grow to USD 45 billion in the next ten years. Somanath said investments were not forthcoming from big industry houses within the country for the upstream side of the business despite pursuing the matter with them. "India is not devoid of big (industry) houses having

Japanese researchers have launched LignoSat, the world's first wooden satellite, aiming to test the viability of timber as a sustainable material in space

Named after the Latin word for "wood", the palm-sized LignoSat is tasked to demonstrate the cosmic potential of the renewable material as humans explore living in space