The SpaceX logo is displayed on a building, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. | Photo Credit: AP An international crew of four astronauts launched toward the International Space Station from Florida on Friday (August 1, 2025) aboard a SpaceX rocket, beating gloomy weather to embark on a routine NASA mission that … Read more
ISRO’s launch vehicle GSLV-F16 carrying the NISAR earth observation satellite lifts off from the launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, on July 30, 2025. | Photo Credit: PTI The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is hoping to launch the Block 2 BlueBird communications satellite, developed by the U.S.-based AST … Read more
Failure analysis on PSLV-C61/EOS-09 mission completed, report to be submitted to PM soon: ISRO chairman V. Narayanan
ISRO chairman V. Narayanan (file) | Photo Credit: NASA via PTI Photo The failure analysis committee has pinpointed the problem that caused the failure of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle-C61/Earth Observation Satellite-09 (PSLV-C61/EOS-09) mission in May 2025, V. Narayanan, chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), said on Friday (August 1, 2025). The analysis is over … Read more
ISRO’s launch vehicle GSLV-F16 carrying the NISAR earth observation satellite lifts off from the launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, in Sriharikota. | Photo Credit: PTI The historic NISAR mission, a landmark collaboration between NASA and ISRO, has entered its crucial 90-day commissioning phase, during which scientists will carry out rigorous checks, calibrations … Read more
In 2023, malaria infected nearly 294 million people and killed close to 6,00,000. Despite early victories in the fight against malaria, global progress has stalled in recent years. The parasites are adapting, becoming resistant to treatments, while mosquitoes are surviving insecticides. It’s a shape-shifting enemy—and the old tools are slipping. India has reduced its malaria … Read more
Radha Krishna Kavuluru highlighted the mission’s importance as ISRO’s first major partnership with NASA for an Earth observation satellite. File Photo: X/@iamkrishradha The NISAR mission, a collaborative effort between ISRO and NASA, will demonstrate Indian space engineering capabilities for Earth observation on a global scale, a top scientist has said. The NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic … Read more
On July 31, the India-US space collaboration crossed a historic milestone with the successful launch of NISAR, or the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar satellite, a flagship earth observation mission jointly developed by the two nations’ space programmes. It is the first satellite to use radars of two frequencies — the L-band radar by NASA and … Read more
To prepare for possible manned space missions to the Moon and potentially Mars, Protoplanet, a Bengaluru-based company involved in space science popularisation, launched human outer planet exploration (HOPE) in Tso Kar, Ladakh, according to a statement from the company. HOPE is intended to be a research station where selected ‘crew’ — beginning August 1 — … Read more
This article forms a part of the Data Point newsletter curated by The Hindu’s Data team. To get the newsletter in your inbox, subscribe here As the Supreme Court is hearing a batch of pleas challenging the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) decision to undertake the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise of electoral rolls ahead of … Read more
Could your gut help clear out toxic “forever chemicals”? Scientists are beginning to explore the possibility that certain gut bacteria might help remove per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) – colloquially known as forever chemicals – a class of chemicals linked to cancer and other health harms from the body. A study published in Nature Microbiology … Read more
Image used for representation. | Photo Credit: Fabrice Coffrini (This article forms a part of the Science for All newsletter that takes the jargon out of science and puts the fun in! Subscribe now!) Usually, scientists believe that an immune system response kicks in after the infecting pathogen has entered the body. However, a new … Read more
The Indian portable harmonium is a close cousin of the larger foot-pumped organs once found in European churches and homes. It’s a wooden box roughly the size of a small suitcase. You sit on the floor behind it and pump a pair of bellows with one hand and play piano-like keys with the other. All these … Read more
GSLV-F16 rocket carrying the NISAR satellite lifts off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC), in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, on July 30, 2025. Screengrab: X/@isro The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-F16) with the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite successfully lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on (Wednesday (July 30, 2025). … Read more
GSLV-F16 rocket carrying the NISAR satellite lifts off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC), in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, on July 30, 2025. Screengrab: X/@isro The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-F16) with the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite successfully lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on (Wednesday (July 30, 2025). … Read more
Quiz: Lands kept apart, or together, by a sliver 1 / 6 | Clockwise from top left, these are the cities of Auckland, Manila, Seattle, and Madison. What do they have in common in line with this quiz’s theme? 2 / 6 | Name the narrow waterway that separates Europe from Asia and which has … Read more
GSLV-F16 carrying the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh. Photo: X/@isro via PTI The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) with the 2,392-kg satellite is scheduled to lift off from the second launch pad of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota at 5.40 p.m. IST on … Read more
Q: Name this NASA mission during which astronauts on the moon became the first to drive a lunar rover on July 31, 1971. A: Apollo 15 Q: Name the eight‑wheeled rover the Soviet Union launched in 1970, which became the world’s first robotic rover on the moon. From November 17, 1970, to September 14, 1971, … Read more
When SpaceX was negotiating a deal with the Bahamas last year to allow its Falcon 9 rocket boosters to land within the island nation’s territory, Elon Musk’s company offered a sweetener: complimentary Starlink internet terminals for the country’s defence vessels, according to three people familiar with the matter. The rocket landing deal, unlocking a more … Read more
A drone view shows a hotel under construction ahead of the COP30 climate summit in Belem, Brazil. File | Photo Credit: Reuters The United Nations’ climate bureau held an urgent meeting on Tuesday (July 29, 2025) over concerns that sky-high accommodation prices for this year’s COP30 climate summit in Brazil could price poorer countries out … Read more
Nawada BLO conducts door-to-door distribution of enumeration forms and collection of filled forms under the Special Intensive Revision-2025 ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections, on Sunday. | Photo Credit: ANI On June 24, 2025, the Election Commission of India (ECI) announced a month-long Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar. The stated purpose of the exercise, … Read more
A general view of Supreme Court in New Delhi on July 16, 2025. | Photo Credit: SHASHI SHEKHAR KASHYAP Timely justice is a cornerstone of public trust in the legal system, as captured by the classic maxim ‘justice delayed, is justice denied’. Prolonged delays often deter people from approaching courts. Last year, President Droupadi Murmu … Read more
Nearly seven in 10 people in developing countries are expected to be living in cities by 2050 given rapid urbanisation. While urban growth provides greater access to jobs and essential services, it also brings challenges with it such as traffic congestion and air pollution, which significantly impact health. In India, a Lancet study reports that from 2008 … Read more
Only 16% of all senior citizens seeking cataract surgery at four LVPEI centres used any insurance, a new study has found. | Photo Credit: Mohammed Yousuf India’s population is growing older and eye problems such as cataracts already cause nearly half of all vision‑loss in people over 60. However, fewer than one in eight Indian … Read more
About 19 minutes after lift-off, the GSLV-F16 rocket will inject the NISAR satellite into a 743-km sun-synchronous orbit. Photo: X/@isro The countdown for the NISAR satellite mission started at 2.10 p.m. on Tuesday (July 29, 2025). The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) with the 2,392-kg satellite is scheduled to lift off from the second launch … Read more
The countdown for the GSLV-F16 began at 2:10 p.m.. The rocket is prepared to carry the NISAR satellite into orbit, and final preparations are underway. Photo: x/@isro The countdown for the NISAR satellite mission started at 2.10 p.m. on Tuesday (July 29, 2025). The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) with the 2,392-kg satellite is scheduled … Read more
Radha Krishna Kavuluru highlighted the mission’s importance as ISRO’s first major partnership with NASA for an Earth observation satellite. File Photo: X/@iamkrishradha The NISAR mission, a collaborative effort between ISRO and NASA, will demonstrate Indian space engineering capabilities for Earth observation on a global scale, a top scientist has said. The NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic … Read more
For nearly two decades, no one had spotted the world’s smallest-known snake. Some scientists worried that maybe the Barbados threadsnake had become extinct, but one sunny morning, Connor Blades lifted a rock in a tiny forest in the eastern Caribbean island and held his breath. “After a year of searching, you begin to get a … Read more
In Climate Change and Climate Justice: India’s efforts to balance economic growth with green transition, The Hindu investigates India’s multifaceted response to climate change. This exclusive e-book delves into India’s unique position as the fourth largest economy in the world and one of the top polluters, its strategies for meeting rising energy demands while maintaining … Read more
At least 1,874 Palestinians have died in aid-related violence since October 2023. Of these, approximately 1,129 — about 60% — were killed in the past two months alone, coinciding with GHF’s operations in the region. Most of those killed (at least 1,597) were civilians shot by the Israeli Defense Forces while seeking aid in or … Read more