Prof Anantha Chandrakasan has been named Massachusetts Institute of Technology's new provost, the first Indian-American to serve in this leadership role.
The weight of the space station is likely to be 20 tonnes.
The International Space Station has completed 15 years of continuous human presence.
China is all set to send on Thursday the first three crew members to its under-construction space station which is expected to be Beijing's eye in the sky and will rival the ageing International Space Station (ISS).
As India on Tuesday stole the march over China by launching a mission to Mars, Beijing called for "joint efforts" to ensure peace in outer space.
The successful launch of Aditya-L1 - the country's maiden mission to study the Sun - is expected to garner increased investor interest in the Indian space sector and trigger more funding for private players. Several private sector players, including Larsen & Toubro (L&T), MTAR Technologies, and Ananth Technologies, have played a pivotal role in the Indian Space Research Organisation's (Isro's) solar observatory mission. Aditya-L1 on Saturday set off on a 125-day journey on a PSLV-C57 rocket, in its attempt to study various elements relating to the nearest star from the halo orbit around Lagrange point 1 (L1) of the Sun-Earth system, which is about 1.5 million km from Earth.
Ex-ISRO chairman G Madhavan Nair said the scientists at space agency have achieved this historic success by getting a salary one-fifth of the scientists in the developed world.
The United Nations General Assembly, heeding to a call by Prime Minister Modi, had made a declaration in December 2014 to observe June 21 every year as IDY.
The soft landing of the spacecraft is planned for late August. The mission is expected to be supportive to future interplanetary missions.
Russia's state space corporation, Roskosmos, according to the Reuters report, said it had lost contact with the spacecraft shortly after a problem occurred as it was shunted into pre-landing orbit on Saturday.
The Indian-American astronaut will fly the first space capsules built by private companies, SpaceX and Boeing.
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the participation of the private sector in the entire range of space activities, including planetary exploration missions, Union minister Jitendra Singh said. The newly-created Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) will provide a level playing field for private companies to use Indian space infrastructure, Singh, who is the minister of state in the Prime Minister's Office, said.
India is attempting to soft-land a rover on the moon and will attempt, at some point next year hopefully, sending humans into orbit. All of this makes an exciting time for space around the world, notes Aakar Patel.
Eleven Indian nationals were found dead at a restaurant in Georgia's mountain resort of Gudauri. The Indian mission in Tbilisi said it was working closely with local authorities to facilitate the prompt repatriation of the mortal remains to India. Georgia's Ministry of Internal Affairs said the initial inspection found no signs of injury or violence. All victims died from carbon monoxide poisoning, local media reported, citing police. The victims were employees of an Indian restaurant 'Haveli' in Gudauri and were from north India. The police started an investigation under Article 116 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which implies negligent manslaughter.
SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean off coast Florida.
China on Tuesday alleged that US billionaire Elon Musk-owned SpaceX's satellites had two 'close encounters' with its space station in orbit, and has complained to the United Nations about the incidents which endangered the safety of the Chinese astronauts.
China will launch its maiden mission to moon in November, a third major event in the Chinese space programme after the launch of a satellite and amanned space mission.
A satellite placed in the halo orbit around the first Lagrangian point (L1) of the Sun-Earth system has the major advantage of continuously viewing the Sun without any occultation/eclipses, the IIA said.
US space agency National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has announced the launch date for the first test flight of a commercial spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS).
Luna-25 took off from the Vostochny launch facility in Russia's Far East, Russia-based TASS news agency reported.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that he will hand over his social media accounts to women achievers from different walks of life to mark International Women's Day on March 8. In his monthly "Mann Ki Baat" address, Modi said these successful women will talk about their work and experience on his social media accounts. He also renewed his appeal to people to take measures to deal with the growing problem of obesity and encouraged people to visit research laboratories or planetariums to mark National Science Day on February 28. Modi highlighted India's progress in space science and artificial intelligence, and emphasized the importance of celebrating and respecting the indomitable spirit of women. He also spoke about the diversity of India's wildlife and the importance of conservation efforts.
Days after a coffee chain announced that it would send an espresso machine to the International Space Station so that astronauts could enjoy hot, freshly brewed coffee, Rediff.com looks back at the strangest, quirkiest items that man has sent into space.
If I were to explain stealth to a layperson, I'd ask them to think of the game chupan-chupai (hide and seek) we played as children, explains Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd).
Billionaires are not only eyeing a profit as they push mankind out into the stars.
It appears India will be among those nations consigned to being among the watchers and not participants of this crucial phase, observes Aakar Patel.
India's policy for agriculture trade must move commodity-by-commodity to gain maximum benefits as US President Donald Trump's 26 per cent tariff on exports from the country take effect, said agriculture economist Ashok Gulati in a recent policy paper.
"Get involved, try to be a part of it" is the message of record-breaking Indian-American astronaut Sunita Williams to millions of Indians students and space enthusiasts.
Four years after it broke many hearts, Indian Space Research Organisation's Chandrayaan is all set to soar towards the moon in its third expedition on Friday in an attempt to put the country in an elite club of nations that accomplished lunar missions with a soft landing.
PlanetSpace, a company led by Dr Chirinjeev Kathuria, won half the battle to get a contract from NASA, when it managed to bring space heavyweights Lockheed Martin and Alliant Techsystems as its partners. Bank of Montreal too is part of the venture. The mission is to build an unmanned spacecraft to deliver cargo to the International Space Station.
Once ISRO masters the technology to send humans into space, the next step will be experimenting with technologies allowing humans to live in space.
From The New York Times to BBC and The Guardian to The Washington Post, the historic event in India's space programme on Wednesday made headlines across the globe.
Thirty-four years after he traveled to space, Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma tells Rediff.com's Archana Masih that he looks forward to Gaganyan, India's first manned space mission in 2022.
The US space agency also warned that the risk of debris colliding with the International Space Station has risen by 44 per cent since Mission Shakti.
L2: Empuraan is an ambitious sequel that is bigger, bolder and timid in equal measure, observes Arjun Menon.
The US astronaut reflected on the importance of international cooperation in space missions like these.
Mainstream American newspapers, many of which had been sceptical of India's space mission and sometimes even made fun of it through cartoons, noted the great Indian achievement.
'Two nations would continue to pursue shared interests in space that includes collaboration on safety and security in space'
The Ministry of Tourism is inviting people from around the world to visit Prayagraj and experience the Maha Kumbh Mela, one of the largest religious gatherings on Earth. The event, which begins on January 13th and runs for 45 days, will feature an "Incredible India Pavilion" showcasing cultural heritage, luxury tent accommodations, and enhanced air connectivity. The ministry is also launching a major social media campaign to generate buzz about the event, encouraging people to share their experiences and moments from the Maha Kumbh.
The unmanned SpaceX capsule returned to earth on Monday after successfully delivering its first commercial payload to the International Space Station commanded by Indian-American astronaut Sunita Williams.
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