Category: Tech

On Saturday, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and state-run New Space India Limited (NSIL) signed an agreement to enable the launch of Nepal’s Munal satellite, which was developed by students and the space startup Antarikchya Pratishan Nepal (APN). The satellite, operated by the Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST), seeks to develop a database of vegetation density on the Earth’s surface.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by Anurag Srivastava, the MEA’s Joint Secretary (North), and NSIL Director Arunachalam A. The event was attended by NAST Secretary Rabindra Prasad Dhakal, Surendra Thapa, Chargé d’affaires of the Nepal embassy, and APN founder Abhas Maskey.

The Munal satellite, which has AI-powered photography operations, is scheduled to launch soon onboard NSIL’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). Munal’s launch service agreement was inked during External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s visit to Nepal in January.

Dhakal emphasised the satellite’s potential to promote Nepalese space research, as well as continuous collaboration with Indian space organisations. Thapa stated that India and Nepal’s alliance has now expanded “to outer space,” demonstrating the rising depth of their connection.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has played an important role in advancing this historic initiative.

Indian scientists at the MACS Agharkar Research Institute (ARI) discovered Methylocucumis oryzae, the country’s first indigenous methane-eating bacteria, or methanotrophs. This bacterium, found in Western India’s rice fields and wetlands, holds promise for solving climate issues. Wetlands, rice fields, and landfills all create methane, a strong greenhouse gas with a global warming potential 26 times greater than carbon dioxide. Methanotrophs assist in alleviating this by oxidising methane, which lowers its content in the atmosphere.

Dr. Monali Rahalkar led the team that discovered this unusual genus, which thrives in methane and oxygen-rich conditions. The bacterium, known as “methane-eating cucumbers” because of its oval and elongated appearance, was discovered in Pune’s Vetal Tekdi quarry. These bacteria help to promote an active methane cycle in this area where there is a lot of aquatic life.

Methylocucumis oryzae is phylogenetically unique, improving rice development by triggering early flowering and increasing yield, despite its modest growth rate, which makes large-scale use difficult. The team’s findings, published in the Indian Journal of Microbiology, emphasise the bacterium’s potential for climate mitigation. Future studies will seek to improve cultivation conditions for greater usage in lowering atmospheric methane.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is set to launch its Earth Observation Satellite, EOS-08, using the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV)-D3. This mission represents the SSLV’s third developmental flight and demonstrates ISRO’s satellite technology and launch capability achievements.

The EOS-08 mission seeks to create a microsatellite with advanced payload instruments and novel technology for future satellites. EOS-08 is built on the Microsat/IMS-1 bus and carries three critical payloads.

The Electro-Optical Infrared Payload (EOIR) collects images in the Mid-Wave IR and Long-Wave IR bands for surveillance, disaster monitoring, fire detection, and environmental investigations. Uses GNSS-R remote sensing for ocean surface wind analysis, soil moisture evaluation, cryosphere research, flood monitoring, and inland waterbody identification. The SiC UV Dosimeter measures UV irradiance for the Gaganyaan Mission and serves as a gamma radiation alert sensor.

EOS-08, weighing roughly 175.5 kg, operates in a Circular Low Earth Orbit at 475 km height with a 37.4° inclination and has a one-year mission life. Key advancements include integrated avionics systems, X-band data transfer, and improved heat management. The SSLV provides a low-cost alternative for launching tiny satellites, meeting global demand for Earth observation, communication, and scientific research.

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Indore has created unique shoes for Armed Forces personnel that generate power and track the wearer’s position in real time. This innovation, which Professor I A Palani spearheaded, has the potential to enhance army safety, coordination, and effectiveness, according to IIT Indore director Professor Suhas Joshi.

The first batch of 10 pairs has already been sent to the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). The shoes use Tribo-Electric Nanogenerator (TENG) technology, which produces power with each stride. This electricity is stored in a device placed in the soles and can be used to power tiny equipment, providing a useful alternative for soldiers in isolated areas.

In addition to electricity generation, the shoes are equipped with GPS and radio frequency identification (RFID) technologies, allowing for real-time location tracking. This capability is not only useful for military personnel, but it also has the potential to follow senior citizens with Alzheimer’s, schoolchildren, climbers, and manufacturing workers.

Furthermore, these smart sneakers can correctly analyse athletes’ movements and improve their performance.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has announced that NASA would send Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla from the Indian Air Force to the International Space Station. This partnership is part of a Space Flight Agreement (SFA) signed by ISRO’s Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC) and Axiom Space for the future Axiom-4 mission.

Group Captain Shukla will be the primary mission pilot, with Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair serving as the backup. Both officers, known as “Gaganyaatris,” will begin training in August. During the voyage, they will conduct scientific research and technology demonstrations on the ISS, as well as participate in outreach initiatives.

The Axiom-4 crew includes US Commander Peggy Whitson, Indian Pilot Shukla, Polish Mission Specialist Sławosz Uznanski, and Hungarian Mission Specialist Tibor Kapu.

The Gaganyaan mission, an ambitious project by ISRO, aims to demonstrate India’s human spaceflight capacity by launching a three-person crew into a 400 km orbit for a three-day trip.

Shukla, who was born in Lucknow, started his Air Force career at the National Defence Academy 18 years ago, motivated by Indian soldiers’ valour during the Kargil War in 1999.

A team of British academics from Alton University and international collaborators has broken the global record for data transmission, reaching rates 1.6 million times quicker than traditional household internet. Their discovery comprises a unique approach that uses existing fibre optic lines to achieve an astounding 402 terabits per second, which beats the previous record of 301 terabits per second by 25%.

This novel technology employs standard fibre optic lines, avoiding the need for additional infrastructure. While this record-breaking speed is presently experimental, researchers hope it will become available as the technology evolves.

The speeds obtained in this investigation are more than 100 million times faster than Netflix’s suggested bandwidth for HD viewing. An average household would require substantially less bandwidth, whereas an influencer household would require little more than 314 megabits per second. This development allows data from millions of households to be transported effortlessly over a single fibre optic line.

This technique has the potential to significantly increase the capacity of existing fibre networks, allowing them to meet future data demands. The researchers obtained these speeds by sending data over all six available fibre optic bands and boosting signals in underutilised wavelength regions with bespoke amplifiers.

NASA has successfully employed laser technology to stream 4K video footage from an aircraft to the International Space Station (ISS) and back. A team at NASA’s Glenn Research Centre in Cleveland achieved the feat, representing a substantial advancement in space communication technology.

Historically, NASA depended on radio waves to transfer information, but laser communications use infrared light, which allows data to be transmitted 10 to 100 times quicker. This development is part of a series of tests designed to provide live video feeds of astronauts on the Moon during the Artemis missions.

Engineers from Glenn collaborated with the Air Force Research Laboratory and NASA’s Small Business Innovation Research program to install a portable laser terminal on a Pilatus PC-12 aircraft.

The aircraft flew over Lake Erie and sent data to an optical ground station in Cleveland. The data was then delivered to NASA’s White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico and relayed 22,000 miles to the Laser Communications Relay Demonstration (LCRD). The signals were subsequently transferred to the ISS’s ILLUMA-T payload and returned to Earth.

Dr. Daniel Raible, Glenn’s chief investigator, stated that this technology may enable future capabilities such as HD videoconferencing for the Artemis crew.

MIT engineers have developed a revolutionary way of producing clean hydrogen fuel from used soda cans, seawater, and caffeine. When pure aluminium reacts with seawater, it naturally creates hydrogen gas, a clean fuel source. Caffeine enhances this reaction, speeding it up significantly.

In a study published in Cell Reports Physical Science, researchers generated hydrogen by dropping prepared aluminium pellets into saltwater. The aluminium is treated with a gallium-indium alloy to remove its oxide layer, allowing it to react with saltwater and produce hydrogen. Surprisingly, the active component in coffee, imidazole, speeds up this reaction, creating hydrogen in five minutes instead of two hours.

The team is working on a tiny reactor that may be deployed on marine boats that runs on recycled aluminium. This device would use seawater and a small amount of caffeine to generate hydrogen on demand, powering engines with no carbon emissions. This technique reduces the need for big hydrogen tanks, providing a safer option for hydrogen-powered automobiles.

The researchers intend to expand this technology to trucks, trains, and aeroplanes, as well as investigate ambient humidity as a water source for hydrogen generation.

Scientists at the Texas Heart Institute (THI) have successfully implanted a titanium-constructed artificial heart. The technique was part of a preliminary feasibility study sponsored by the United States Food and Drug Administration.

BiVACOR invented the heart, a biventricular rotary blood pump with a single moving element that uses a magnetically levitated rotor to replace both ventricles of a failing heart.

The titanium heart has major advantages over earlier types because of its frictionless design, which reduces wear and tear and increases longevity. It works with a small rechargeable external controller and pumps blood at a rate of 12 litres per minute, which is enough to maintain an adult.

Unlike previous artificial hearts, which use flexible polymer diaphragms that wear out fast, the titanium heart’s components are designed to last.

Daniel Timms, BiVACOR’s founder and CTO, attributed the success to the patient, their family, and the THI team. He emphasised the titanium heart’s promise as a life-saving solution for individuals with end-stage heart failure awaiting transplantation.

According to the American Heart Association, 3,400 heart patients in the United States are waiting for permanent transplants every day.

Kawasaki has taken a huge step towards environmentally friendly transportation by publicly testing its first hydrogen-powered internal combustion engine (ICE) motorcycle at the Suzuka Circuit. The Kawasaki Ninja H2 SX features a modified 998 cc supercharged inline-four engine with direct hydrogen fuel injection.

The bike has redesigned mounts for hydrogen fuel cylinders and a specific management system, and the side-mounted tanks are refuelled via valves.

According to Kawasaki, this hydrogen-powered engine performs similarly to standard petrol engines, releasing just water vapour while improving economy and responsiveness. Although the specific stats for the H2 variant are unknown, the ordinary model generates 210 horsepower and 137 Nm of peak torque.

This breakthrough coincides with Kawasaki’s objective of carbon neutrality and its membership in the Hydrogen Small Mobility & Engine Technology (HySE) collaboration, which also comprises Honda, Suzuki, and Yamaha. The company hopes to introduce a commercially viable hydrogen-powered motorbike by 2030, paving the way for a more sustainable transportation future.