Astronomers have discovered a quasi-moon named 2023 FW13 with the help of the Pan-STARRS telescope in Hawaii. A quasi-moon is a space rock (asteroid) that orbits both the Earth and the Sun but is bound by the Sun’s gravity. Experts believe that it has been orbiting Earth since 100 BC. It will revolve around the earth for the next 1500 years, i.e., till AD 3700. After this, it will leave the Earth’s orbit. There will be no danger to the earth from this asteroid. 2023 FW13 revolves around the Sun in the same amount of time that the Earth takes....Read More

A new Jupiter-size exoplanet with the highest density known till this date (~14 g/cm3) and mass 13 times than that of Jupiter, has been discovered by an international team of scientists led by Prof. Abhijit Chakraborty at the Exoplanet Research Group of the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL), Ahmedabad. ISRO said that the discovery of this massive exoplanet was made using the indigenously made PRL Advanced Radial-velocity Abu-sky Search spectrograph (PARAS) at the 2 m telescope of PRL at its Gurushikhar Observatory in Mt. Abu by measuring the mass of the planet precisely. The newly discovered exoplanet is found around the....Read More

ISRO has recently launched a new satellite NVS-01. NVS-01 is first of the India's second-generation satellites envisaged for NavIC (Navigation by Indian Constellation) services. It is built by ISRO's UR Rao Satellite Centre in Bengaluru. NVS-01, weighing 2,232 kg satellite - heaviest in constellation, was launched using Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) rocket. For the first time, an indigenously developed Rubidium atomic clock is flown in NVS-01 to provide accurate locations. It has a mission life of over 12 years, longer than 10-year life of first-generation (existing) satellites. This series incorporates L1 band signals additionally which increases interoperability with other....Read More

The Indian Space Research Organisation is collaborating with the Raman Research Institute (RRI), Bengaluru,an autonomous research institute, to build the X-Ray Polarimeter Satellite (XPoSat) that is scheduled to be launched later in 2023. ABOUT X-RAY POLARIMETER SATELLITE (XPOSAT) It is India’s first, and only the world’s second polarimetry mission that is meant to study various dynamics of bright astronomical X-ray sources in extreme conditions. The other such major mission is NASA’s Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) that was launched in 2021. XPoSat will carry two scientific payloads in a low earth orbit: Primary payload POLIX (Polarimeter Instrument in X-rays) will....Read More

The Himalayan Chandra Telescope of Indian Astronomical Observatory located in Hanle of Ladakh has joined hands with 10 other global telescopes to observe the brightening of BL Lacertae (BL Lac), a blazar located about 950 million light years away from Earth. ABOUT HIMALAYAN CHANDRA TELESCOPE It is a 2 meter optical-infrared telescope named after Nobel laureate Subramaniam Chandrasekhar. It is situated at the Indian Astronomical Observatory (IAO) in Hanle near Leh in Ladakh. It is currently the tenth highest optical telescope in the world. The telescope remotely operated using a dedicated satellite communication link from the Centre for Research &....Read More

ISRO recently tested an intermediate configuration of its 2000 kN semi-cryogenic engine at newly commissioned Semi-cryogenic Integrated Engine & Stage Test facility at ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC) in Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu. Unlike a cryogenic engine, a semi-cryogenic engine uses refined kerosene instead of liquid hydrogen. The Liquid oxygen is used as an oxidiser. Refined Kerosene occupies less space, making it possible to carry more propellant in a Semi Cryogenic engines fuel compartment. Semi-cryogenic engine is more powerful, eco-friendly and cost effective as compared to a cryogenic engine.Read More

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has launched a new introductory-level online training programme called START- Space Science and Technology Awareness Training. START is aimed at post-graduate and final-year undergraduate students of physical sciences and technology. The program will provide a comprehensive understanding of the various aspects of the discipline, research possibilities, and professional pathways. It will cover various domains of Space Science, including Astronomy and Astrophysics, Heliophysics and Sun-Earth interaction, Instrumentation, and Aeronomy. It will be delivered by scientists from Indian academia and ISRO centers.Read More

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) recently launched a low-cost star sensor called StarBerrySense, mounted on the PSLV Orbital Experimental Module (POEM), which has performed well during its first-ever space test. StarBerrySense is a low-cost sensor designed to quickly calculate the orientation of a spacecraft by identifying stars in its field of view. Developed by the Space Payloads Group at the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), StarBerrySense is built around the Raspberry Pi minicomputer and is cost-effective and simple to build. POEM is a unique initiative by ISRO that utilizes the spent 4th stage of the PSLV as an orbital platform....Read More

Quasars — the brightest and the most powerful objects in the universe — have a violent origin story. A recent study revealed that merger of galaxies ignites quasars. Quasars are very bright, distant and active supermassive black holes that are millions to billions of times mass of the The quasi-stellar radio sources (Quasars) were first discovered six decades ago. Typically located at the centers of galaxies, they feed on infalling matter and unleash torrents of radiation. A quasar’s light outshines that of all the stars in its host galaxy combined. Most quasars are larger than our solar system. A quasar....Read More

NASA is developing a snake-like robot - EELS - which can boost space exploration through its diverse adaptability to various terrains. EELS is capable of exploring internal and enclosed dynamic terrain structures to assess evidence for life. The EELS architecture is a snake-like, self-propelled robot and made of multiple, identical, segments containing both the actuation and propulsion mechanisms as well as the power and communication electronics to drive them. EELS uses first-of-a-kind rotating propulsion units that act as tracks, gripping mechanisms and propeller units underwater, enabling the robot to access a plume vent exit and follow it to its ocean....Read More