Page 4 - Space

Trump appoints transport secretary Sean Duffy as interim Nasa chief

Duffy's appointment comes less than two months after Trump unexpectedly pulled the nomination of his original choice for Nasa administrator, SpaceX astronaut and billionaire Jared Isaacman

Shubhanshu Shukla turns farmer in space; grows methi seeds onboard ISS

In the final leg of his space sojourn, Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla turned into a farmer, taking photos of 'moong' and 'methi' seeds sprouting in petri dishes and inserting them into a storage freezer on the International Space Station (ISS) as part of a study on how microgravity influences germination and early plant development. Shukla and his fellow Axiom-4 astronauts have spent 12 days on the orbital lab and they are expected to return to Earth any day after July 10, depending on the weather conditions off the Florida coast. NASA is yet to announce a date for the undocking of the Axiom-4 mission from the space station. The duration of the Axiom-4 mission docked to the ISS is up to 14 days. "I am so proud that ISRO has been able to collaborate with national institutions all over the country and come up with some fantastic research which I am doing on the station for all the scientists and researchers. It is exciting and a joy to do this," Shukla said in an interaction with

Isro successfully conducts hot tests of Gaganyaan propulsion system

ISRO has successfully conducted two hot tests of the Gaganyaan Service Module Propulsion System (SMPS) at the space agency's Propulsion Complex in Mahendragiri on July 3. The short-duration tests, lasting 30 seconds and 100 seconds respectively, were aimed at validating the test article configuration, ISRO said in a statement on Wednesday. "The overall performance of the propulsion system during these hot tests was normal as per pre-test predictions. During the 100s test, simultaneous operation of all Reaction Control System (RCS) thrusters in different modes (steady state; pulsed) along with all Liquid Apogee Motor (LAM) engines was also successfully demonstrated. "ISRO's Liquid Propulsion System Centre (LPSC) is leading the technology development activities for the Gaganyaan SMPS. SMPS is a critical system of Gaganyaan Orbital Module and is required during orbital manoeuvring as well as specific abort scenarios," the space agency said. It comprises five Liquid Apogee Motor (LAM)

'Privilege to be amongst few': Shukla describes seeing Earth from space

Speaking from orbit, the astronaut shared his experience of living and working in space, offering insights into the physical challenges, the awe of observing Earth from above

Shubhanshu Shukla shares Indian food, struggles most with sleep aboard ISS

'You want to do more and more,' says Shubhanshu Shukla on the struggle to sleep in space amid the pressure of limited time

Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS spotted: Updates on status, position and speed

Astronomers and space agencies continue to track the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS streaking through solar system at blistering speeds

Axiom 4 mission: Shubhanshu Shukla completes a week in orbit aboard ISS

Shukla has been conducting experiments that explore how microgravity affects growth and genetic behaviour of algae and how tardigrades, hardy microscopic creatures, survive and reproduce in space

Astronaut 634 Shubhanshu Shukla: Shux blends science, sweets and space

Shubhanshu Shukla'S first seven days on the Ax-4 have combined science, ceremony, and moments of levity

Third interstellar object spotted? A11pI3Z stirs global astronomy buzz

Astronomers believe fast-moving object A11pI3Z could be only the third known interstellar visitor, after 'Oumuamua and Borisov - citizen scientists helped confirm its bizarre trajectory

Crew members aboard International Space Station resume space science work

Doctors will review data to understand how blood circulation adapts to weightlessness. Ax-4 crewmates Peggy Whitson and Tibor Kapu studied cerebral circulation for an experiment

NASA+ lands on Netflix: Stream live rocket launches, spacewalks & more soon

Experience space like never before as Netflix teams up with NASA+ to stream live rocket launches, spacewalks, and more, right from your screen this summer

SatSure, Dhruva Space sign MoU to deliver end-to-end space-based solutions

The strategic partnership aims to combine Earth Observation analytics with satellite platform capabilities to serve strategic and commercial users with high-reliability Indian tech

China's space militarisation moving 'breathtakingly fast': US Space Force

USSF Commander General Stephen Whiting cited China's satellite capabilities, counter-space weapons, and battlefield integration as one of the most pressing concerns for the Indo-Pacific region

"Namaskar from space": Shubhanshu Shukla sends new message

"Namaskar from space! I am thrilled to be here with my fellow astronauts. What a ride it was," says Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu, who is piloting #AxiomMission4

Shubhanshu Shukla's Axiom-4 mission eyes June 25 launch after many delays

Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is set to become India's second astronaut in space after Rakesh Sharma

Dark energy discovery changed understanding of universe: Nobel laureate

Dark matter pulls the universe and dark energy pushes, both mysteries that endure. And the discovery that a majority of the universe is made up of stuff that makes gravity push rather than pull was a gamechanger, says Nobel laureate Brian Schmidt. The US-born Australian astronomer along with Adam Riess and Saul Perlmutter from the US discovered the stuff, later termed dark energy, in 1998. The three won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2011. Explaining the significance of their discovery that changed the understanding of how the universe functions, Schmidt told PTI, "Dark energy is really saying (that) there is energy tied to space itself. If we didn't have dark energy, the universe would be curved and the universe wouldn't accelerate -- and that changes how cosmic objects, such as galaxies, looks. It really makes a difference," the astronomer, who was visiting Ashoka University for the Lodha Genius Programme, added. The term dark energy is intentionally similar to dark matter. Dark

Spacetech startup GalaxEye to build second satellite with 0.5 m resolution

Built entirely in-house, the satellite will offer 0.5m resolution and sub-3-day revisit for real-time geospatial insights across defence, disaster response and urban security

SpaceX Starship test halted after explosion damages prototype in Texas

A powerful explosion during a static fire test at SpaceX's Texas site forced a suspension of launch operations, as Elon Musk's company and US regulators investigate the cause of the blast

Axiom-4 mission carrying Shubhanshu Shukla delayed, now set for June 22

Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla's Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station has been postponed to June 22, to allow NASA to evaluate the operations on the orbital lab after the recent repairs in the Russian section, Axiom Space announced on Wednesday. The Axiom-4 mission, which marks the return to space for India, Hungary, and Poland, was earlier scheduled for lift-off from NASA's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida on June 19 onboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket. "NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX are now targeting no earlier than Sunday, June 22, for launch of the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station, Axiom Mission 4," Axiom Space said in a statement. "The change in a targeted launch date provides NASA time to continue evaluating space station operations after recent repair work in the aft (back) most segment of the International Space Station's Zvezda service module," it said. The Axiom-4 commercial mission is led by Commander Peggy Whitson, with .

Strawberry Moon to hang lowest in decades - here's what makes it special

June's full moon, the last of the spring season in the Northern Hemisphere, is also known as the Strawberry Moon. Here's all you need to know