Shux prepping for homecoming: SpaceX readies Dragon for Monday undocking
WHEN WILL UNDOCKING HAPPEN? The Dragon spacecraft will undock from the ISS on July 14 at 4:35 pm IST.Shukla, who has been aboard the ISS for nearly two weeks as the pilot of Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4), has captured the imagination of millions across India.His journey marks a significant milestone for Indian space exploration and has inspired a new generation of space enthusiasts. FINAL DAYS IN ORBITAhead of the scheduled return, the four astronauts are busy at work as they rush to finsh up experiments after a brief off-duty.After a day off, astronaut Peggy Whitson led the crew through a busy schedule of science aboard the International Space Station.Shux worked on the microalgae experiment, managing samples that could one day provide food, oxygen, and fuel for deep space missions.Tibor assisted with the Fruit Fly DNA Repair study, offering insights into how radiation affects genetic health. He also led a fluid dynamics experiment, simulating planetary weather patterns like Saturn's polar hexagon.
His journey marks a significant milestone for Indian space exploration. (Photo: Axiom)
The crew advanced the Voyager Displays study on eye movement in space and wore VR headsets for the Neuromotion experiment, which tracks how microgravity affects stress, motor skills, and attention.Tibor harvested crops from the VITAPRIC plant study, while the ENPERCHAR project explored how astronauts perceive their environment.Data on cerebral blood flow and radiation levels were also collected. Cognitive tests and brain activity monitoring supported research into neuroadaptive technologies for future missions and Earth-based medicine.The crew is now preparing to store their experiments and studies in the cargo bay of the Dragon spacecraft to return home with them.- EndsTune InTrending Reel
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Mint
15 minutes ago
- Mint
ISRO-NASA's NISAR mission to launch on July 30: 5 key things about ‘most advanced', ‘most expensive' satellite
NISAR is the first-of-its-kind joint Earth observation satellite by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). It is scheduled to launch into space at 5:40 p.m. on July 30 from Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh. The ISRO has already shared a YouTube link where the launch will be live-streamed. The live streaming will begin at 5:10 p.m. NASA says it is the "most advanced Earth-observing radar satellite we've ever launched." What is NISAR? Why is it important for India? And how will it help? Here's all you need to know about the ISRO-NASA joint satellite. ISRO's GSLV-F16 – an Indian rocket – will launch NISAR, the first joint Earth observation satellite by ISRO and NASA, from Sriharikota on July 30. NISAR is short for 'NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar'. It is a unique earth observation satellite. It will observe earth with a swath of 242 km and high spatial resolution, using SweepSAR technology for the first time. The NISAR mission will have a minimum mission lifetime of three years. "It's the most advanced radar satellite ISRO and NASA have ever launched," NASA said. This powerful satellite will track changes on land and ice, from areas at risk for landslides and earthquakes to shifting glaciers and ice sheets. It will track the movement of land and ice surfaces down to a fraction of an inch, giving us key data on earthquakes, volcanoes, glaciers, and more. The satellite will further monitor soil moisture, crop growth, and drought effects to help farmers make informed decisions all season long. NISAR will scan the entire globe twice every 12 days, providing high-resolution, all-weather, day-and-night data, "sampling Earth on average every 6 days for a baseline 3-year mission." Most areas will be imaged four-six times per month, with exact repeat of the orbits at 12-day intervals. It can detect even subtle changes in Earth's surface, such as ground deformation, ice sheet shifts, and vegetation dynamics. "The mission will also support many critical applications, including sea ice monitoring, ship detection, storm tracking, soil moisture changes, mapping and monitoring of surface water resources and disaster response," the space agencies said. One of the goals of the mission is to "increase the utility, accessibility and discoverability of NISAR data by a broad community." NISAR's data can help people worldwide better manage natural resources and hazards. The mission will offer help in areas such as agriculture, preparation for, and response to disasters like hurricanes, floods, and volcanic eruptions. It will also provide information for scientists to better understand the effects and pace of climate change. "It will empower scientists, researchers and policy makers with vital incites," ISRO said. The NISAR mission will also add to "our understanding of our planet's hard outer layer, called its crust," NASA explained. "As the mission continues for years, the data will allow for better understanding of the causes and consequences of land surface changes, increasing our ability to manage resources and prepare for and cope with global change," NASA said. Besides, this mission symbolises a leap towards sustainable living and informed disaster resilience. "NISAR is not just a satellite, it's a symbol of global unity, scientific excellence and hope. It promises to safeguard out future by helping humanity live more wisely with nature," the space agencies said. "From 👨🌾 farmers and 👩🔬 scientists to 🚨 disaster responders, NISAR will empower 🌍 Earth observation like never before," ISRO said. The satellite mission also marks a new chapter in the growing collaboration between the two space agencies -- ISRO and NASA. NISAR uses a sophisticated information-processing technique known as synthetic aperture radar to produce extremely high-resolution images, NASA explains. The radar penetrates clouds and darkness, allowing NISAR to collect data day and night in any weather. Over the course of multiple orbits, the radar images will allow users to track changes in croplands and hazard sites, as well as to monitor ongoing crises such as volcanic eruptions. "The images will be detailed enough to show local changes and broad enough to measure regional trends," NASA said. NISAR has two radar instruments — an S-band system provided by ISRO and an L-band system provided by NASA — to provide high-resolution data to "help decision-makers, communities, and scientists monitor major infrastructure, agricultural fields, and movement of land and ice surfaces," NASA said. 1. First dual-band radar satellite: NISAR is the first satellite mission to collect radar data in two microwave bandwidth regions, called the L-band and the S-band, to measure changes of Earth's surface, including movements as small as centimeter. 2. First GSLV to SSO: It will be the first time that GSLV-F16 will inject a satellite into a 743 km Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) with an inclination of 98.40 3. First ISRO-NASA EO mission: This is the first space collaboration between NASA and ISRO for an Earth Observation (EO) satellite mission. 4. World's most expensive satellite: NISAR, weighing 2392 kg, has a price tag of $1.5 billion, making it the most expensive Earth observation satellite to date, the Indian express reported. 5. Data storage and distribution: The radars will generate about 80 terabytes of data products per day over the course of NISAR's prime mission. That's roughly enough data to fill about 150 512-gigabyte hard drives each day. 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Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Kargil diaries: When Pakistan's DGMO told India, 'Kya karun? Miyan Saab ne joote khane ke liye akele bhej diya'
"Kya karun? Miyan Saab ne joote khane ke liye akele bhej diya." (What could I have done? Miyan Saab sent me alone to take the blows.) This was how Pakistan's then-Director General Military Operations (DGMO) Lt Gen Tauqir Zia (retd) described his awkward arrival at the crucial July 1999 meeting with Indian military officials that helped bring an end to the Kargil War. As Pakistani troops began to retreat under Indian military pressure in early July 1999, then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee made a significant move. On July 4, he called his Pakistani counterpart, Nawaz Sharif, urging him to send his DGMO for direct talks with the Indian side. The goal: to ensure a full withdrawal of Pakistani forces beyond the Line of Control (LoC). Explore courses from Top Institutes in Please select course: Select a Course Category Data Science PGDM Operations Management MCA Management Leadership Cybersecurity CXO Data Analytics Data Science Product Management Public Policy Design Thinking Technology Healthcare Artificial Intelligence healthcare Others others Project Management Degree Digital Marketing Finance MBA Skills you'll gain: Data Analysis & Interpretation Programming Proficiency Problem-Solving Skills Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence Duration: 24 Months Vellore Institute of Technology VIT MSc in Data Science Starts on Aug 14, 2024 Get Details Skills you'll gain: Strategic Data-Analysis, including Data Mining & Preparation Predictive Modeling & Advanced Clustering Techniques Machine Learning Concepts & Regression Analysis Cutting-edge applications of AI, like NLP & Generative AI Duration: 8 Months IIM Kozhikode Professional Certificate in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Starts on Jun 26, 2024 Get Details As per Vajpayee's direction, India's DGMO at the time, Lt Gen Nirmal Chander Vij (retd), along with his deputy Brig Mohan Bhandari (retd), met Pakistan's Lt Gen Tauqir Zia on July 11 at Attari. Speaking to TOI on the occasion of Kargil Vijay Diwas , Bhandari recalled being surprised to see Zia standing alone on the Pakistani side of the border. 'He was smoking, his cap slightly askew. I had met him a few times earlier during the Siachen talks, so I asked, 'Yeh kya hai, Tauqir… akele?'' Zia's reply stunned him: 'Kya karun? Miyan Saab ne joote khane ke liye akele bhej diya.' Live Events 'Miyan Saab', Bhandari clarified, was Nawaz Sharif. It was highly unusual for a DGMO to attend such a meeting without a delegation. Indian officials asked Zia to at least call in a few Pakistan Rangers officers for formality. Three officers joined him shortly, but the Indian side still made them wait for 10 minutes before beginning talks, partly out of anger over the betrayal during peace negotiations. According to Bhandari, the meeting lasted three hours. 'Our DGMO listed out clear dos and don'ts for the Pakistani side during their retreat. Zia and his men quietly noted down everything. When asked if they had any doubts, Zia simply said, 'No doubt'.' After lunch hosted by the Indian side, the Pakistani delegation quietly returned. But despite the agreed conditions, especially the request to avoid laying landmines during withdrawal, Pakistan allegedly violated the terms. 'They laid landmines and even launched attacks on our soldiers during their retreat,' said Bhandari. 'In response, we launched heavy shelling on their posts from July 15 to 24. Only then did they fully pull back.' The conflict officially ended on July 25. 'Had they followed the instructions from the beginning, it would've ended around July 16 or 17,' he added. The episode offers a rare glimpse into the tense diplomacy and military coordination that helped end the Kargil conflict. Inputs from TOI
The Hindu
an hour ago
- The Hindu
NISAR Mission: Satellite will be placed in orbit by Indian rocket, says ISRO chief
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