'The valley is around 16 km from the Nepal border, and it took just 8-10 minutes for the ice and rocks to reach the Nepal border. You can imagine how fast it must have travelled!'
'It appears to be a combination: A glacier breaking away, and a dam-like formation downstream reaching capacity and releasing water suddenly.'
A rocket designed and developed by ISRO is being transferred to industry for production.
Nine ISRO associations want to know whether this is simply an effort to expand India's industrial capacity or part of a larger policy under which ISRO itself will eventually withdraw from rocket manufacturing.
New research from the Revived Genomics of Personality Consortium, published in Nature, suggests that the genetics of personality, involving over 1,200 gene variants linked to the Big Five traits, are significantly associated with various life outcomes including health, education, and career paths. While individual gene variants have small effects, their combined impact is substantial, and environmental factors also play a crucial role in shaping personality.
Over 14,000 members of the academic and scientific community have petitioned Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, seeking intervention against Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's "gau mutra expert" remark concerning IIT Madras Director V Kamakoti during parliamentary proceedings. The petition calls for the withdrawal of the derogatory expression, arguing it undermines the dignity of an eminent scientist and the institution he leads, and urges for respectful democratic discourse.
'When a glacier collapse or a major flood event does occur, the water will simply reclaim its original path, and anything built in that path will be swept away.'
Bringing international recognition to Assam, young scientist Dr Shekhar Suman Bora has been honoured with the prestigious 'University Innovator Award' at the 2026 Texas Innovation Conference & Awards held in the United States.
Noted scientist Prof V Ramgopal Rao highlights India's significant progress in higher education and research but points out a critical gap in converting scientific discoveries into market-ready technologies. He advocates for a robust institutional framework, multidisciplinary collaboration, and stronger academia-industry ties to foster innovation and translate research into practical products.
A made-in-China humanoid robot, Tiangong Ultra, has shattered Usain Bolt's 100-metre sprint world record, completing the distance in 8.64 seconds compared to Bolt's 9.58 seconds. While a significant technological advancement, experts note the robot's running style differs greatly from humans, highlighting both its strengths in speed and areas where it still lags, such as decision-making and perception.
The Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust is set to appoint its first full-time CEO from a shortlist of three candidates, chosen from over 5,500 applicants. The Trust is also discussing filling three vacant trustee posts, amending the Trust deed, and addressing administrative matters, including financial affairs and security coordination, following a recent controversy over alleged temple donation embezzlement.
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has informed the National Green Tribunal (NGT) that its nationwide study investigating cancer-causing chemicals in car interiors is projected to be completed by May 2027. This study follows a media report highlighting the presence of flame retardants like TCIPP, TDCIPP, and TCEP in car cabin air, which are considered potential carcinogens.
Professor Annapurni Subramaniam, Director of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), has been awarded the prestigious COSPAR Vikram Sarabhai Medal for 2026. She is the fourth Indian and first woman scientist from the country to receive this honour, recognised for her outstanding contributions to space research.
The US Geological Survey (USGS) has confirmed that the recent deadly flash floods in Nepal were caused by a glacial collapse and subsequent debris flow, not an earthquake as initially reported. The event, which originated in Tibet, led to 162 deaths and 750 missing persons, including 133 Indian nationals, in Nepal's Rasuwa and Dhading districts. The seismic event's magnitude was also upgraded to 5.2.
A builder in Dehradun has been booked under the Goonda Act and may be expelled from the district after allegedly assaulting a DRDO scientist who protested illegal construction.
Alphabet has announced a significant leadership reshuffle within its artificial intelligence division, appointing Google DeepMind co-founder Demis Hassabis as Chief Scientist to intensify its focus on artificial general intelligence (AGI). Koray Kavukcuoglu will become Senior Vice President of Google DeepMind, overseeing Gemini development and frontier AI research. Additionally, Google veterans Jeff Dean and Sanjay Ghemawat are launching a new public benefit corporation for ML and science discoveries, supported by Google.
Indian physicist Deepak Dhar, a professor at ICTS-TIFR in Bengaluru, has been awarded the prestigious 2026 Dirac Medal for his significant contributions to statistical mechanics. He shares the honour with three other physicists for their work on understanding complex systems, with applications in diverse fields like biology, finance, and AI. Dhar is particularly recognised for his "sandpile model" and has previously received the Padma Bhushan and Boltzmann Medal.
A new scientific report reveals that the recent devastating floods in Nepal's Bhotekoshi-Trishuli corridor were triggered by a massive ice-rock avalanche from the high Himalayas, challenging initial assumptions of rainfall or glacial lake outburst floods.
Air Marshal (retd) Jeetendra Mishra has been appointed as the first Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. His selection follows a rigorous process and comes amidst a recent controversy regarding alleged embezzlement of temple donations.
Two South African scientists of Indian origin, Professor Salim Abdool Karim and Professor Keertan Dheda, have been awarded the Order of Mapungubwe for their contributions to public health, particularly in HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis research, and pulmonology.
'This is no longer a single-hazard problem; it is a cascading, multi-hazard problem. A landslide never occurs in isolation. This entire chain is the cascading effect of what looks, at first, like a single disaster.'
A new book, "The River That Remembers: Microbial Intelligence of Nature" by Padma Shri awardee Ajai Kumar Sonkar, claims that the Triveni Sangam at Prayagraj is a unique viral-bacterial laboratory. It suggests that the sacred dips taken by devotees lead to an intense microbial exchange, accelerating phage evolution, especially during events like Kumbh Mela, as diverse human microbiota interact with the river's existing microbiome.
Quantum computing is set to redefine artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and scientific discovery, promising unprecedented speeds and capabilities while also necessitating urgent development of quantum-safe security measures and strategic enterprise readiness, says Sunil Varghese.
A builder in Dehradun has been booked under the Goonda Act and may be expelled from the district after allegedly assaulting a DRDO scientist who protested against illegal construction.
Researchers have analysed reports of medical procedures involving electrical stimulation of awake patients' brains, identifying distinct brain regions responsible for spontaneous and voluntary laughter. This study sheds light on the complex neural mechanisms underlying human laughter, distinguishing between uncontrollable, emotionally charged laughter and controlled, conversational laughter.
The devastating floods in Nepal have brought back memories of two major disasters in Uttarakhand in recent years, the Rishiganga tragedy of February 2021 and the Dharali disaster of August 2025, which caused extensive loss of life and property and left thousands struggling to rebuild their lives.
From Ajnabee to 2.0, Akshay Kumar has had plenty of fun playing the bad guy, but which of his villainous turns is truly khatarnaak?
H1N1 influenza cases have seen a recent increase in Delhi and parts of North India. Experts confirm it's a known strain, not more virulent, and advise precautions, especially for high-risk individuals like the elderly, children, and those with chronic illnesses. They stress the importance of rest, hydration, and medical consultation for severe symptoms, while also noting that most cases are mild and self-limiting.
The US administration has ordered a probe into the deaths and disappearances of at least 10 top US scientists and researchers with access to information related to aerospace, defence and extra-terrestrial life.
The Bombay High Court has denied bail to retired DRDO scientist Pradeep Kurulkar, arrested for allegedly sharing sensitive information with a Pakistani intelligence operative, citing the passing of vital information during intimate chats and the potential to influence witnesses.
'Think of the brain like a machine, and Alzheimer's is like rust.'
'Like a rusty machine breaks down, a rusty brain also breaks down. And when it breaks down, you have memory loss, cognitive issues and so on.'
'The prime minister has given us the task of taking at least 300 satellites to orbit in the next five to six years.'
The Supreme Court has issued a limited notice to the Centre, seeking clarification on whether courts can grant fair compensation under the SHANTI Act in nuclear accidents, despite liability caps. The court also questioned potential conflicts of interest in appointing members to the Atomic Energy Regulatory Body under the Act, following a plea challenging the law's constitutionality.
Glimpses of the Lion Nebula through NASA's James Webb space relescope.
Odisha-based Serendipity Space successfully demonstrated drug crystallisation processes on a satellite prototype in a near-space mission. This breakthrough aims to enable pharmaceutical manufacturing in low Earth orbit, leveraging microgravity to create superior drug crystal structures for enhanced solubility, stability, and effectiveness. The mission tested core technologies, including an autonomous pharmaceutical factory, and was inspired by advancements made on the International Space Station.
The Indian athletics team will undergo an acclimatisation camp at the University of Tsukuba near Tokyo before the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya. This follows an MoU between SAI and the University. Athletes are also returning from Czech Republic for a training stint and an event in Bhubaneswar, though Neeraj Chopra will not participate. The Athletics Federation of India has already submitted a list of over 72 athletes for the Games to the Indian Olympic Association.
'Science today is very interconnected, and that helped me become part of the Muon g-2 team.'
'Hydro-seismicity is a phenomenon that typically shows up during and just after the monsoon.' 'Heavy rain causes water to percolate deep into the rock, and where there are fractures, that water fills the pores and builds up what we call pore water pressure.' 'That pressure can widen existing cracks, and eventually the rock gives way -- which surfaces as tremors.'
The Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust has completed interviews for its first full-time CEO, focusing on professional experience, vision, and management capabilities rather than personal beliefs or practices. The selection process involved multiple rounds, culminating in face-to-face interactions with 16 top candidates.
The Department of Space has directed that requests for voluntary retirement or resignation from Group 'A' Scientific and Technical personnel associated with the prestigious Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme and other important missions should not be accepted as a matter of routine.
Professor Deepak Dhar of the International Centre for Theoretical Sciences (ICTS) has been awarded the prestigious 2026 Dirac Medal for his significant contributions to statistical mechanics and complex systems. He shares the honour with three other scientists for their pioneering work extending statistical mechanics into diverse fields like AI and theoretical neuroscience.
