Sign In
Learn bits
Science & Tech.
Pradeep Kumar

24/04/21 10:20 AM IST

Source: The Hindu

SpaceX rocketship

In news

SPaceX launched four astronauts into orbit using a recycled roacket anc capsule.

Highlights
  • The astronauts will reach the International Space Station after 23 hours of launch and will spend six months at the orbiting lab.
  • It was the first time SpaceX reused a capsule and rocket to launch astronauts for NASA, after years of proving the capability on station supply runs.
  • The rocket was used last November on the company’s second astronaut flight.
  • It's been 20 years since JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and ESA (European Space Agency), and NASA and Russian astronauts have been together in space
About the mission
  • The mission is also a major milestone for Europe, which has named it "Alpha" after the star system Alpha Centauri.
  • The Crew-2 team has around 100 experiments in the diary during their six-month mission.
  • These include research into what are known as "tissue chips" -- small models of human organs that are made up of different types of cells and used to study things like aging in the immune system, kidney function and muscle loss.
  • In terms of the environment, by the time Crew-2 returns in fall, it will have taken 1.5 million images of the Earth, documenting phenomena like artificial lighting at night, algal blooms, and the breakup of Antarctic ice shelves.
  • Important element of the mission is upgrading the station's solar power system by installing new compact panels that roll open like a huge yoga mat.
Source: The Hindu

More Related Current Affairs View All

05 May

Key objectives of caste count

'The Union Cabinet has decided that the next Census will include questions on caste to its enumeration of India’s population, for the first time in almost a century. ' T

Read More

05 May

2 new genome-edited rice varieties

'Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan recently released two genome-edited varieties of rice, the first achievement of its kind in the country.' These two varieties, which

Read More

05 Mar

First-ever comprehensive survey of India’s river dolphins

'Prime Minister Narendra Modi released the results of the first-ever comprehensive population estimation of riverine dolphins – Gangetic and Indus dolphins – done in In

Read More

India’s First Ai-Driven Magazine Generator

Generate Your Custom Current Affairs Magazine using our AI in just 3 steps