Published By: Soham Halder

Science & Space Roundup: Top News of the Day (Jan 31)

Here are today’s most important updates from the realm of Science and Space.

Desi Delights in Orbit: Axiom-4 Astronaut Plans to Bring Indian Flavors to Space

(Credit - X/@NewsIADN)

The first Indian astronaut to travel to the International Space Station (ISS), IAF Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla plans to perform yoga in space and serve some desi food to fellow astronauts. The three-member crew for the mission, a joint effort by Nasa and Isro, will be led by Peggy Whitson. Shukla will be accompanied by Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland and Tibor Kapu from Hungary. Shukla will pilot the upcoming Axiom-4 mission, scheduled to be launched aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft. Shukla will become the second Indian to go to space after Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma's journey in 1984. The 14-day mission will see astronauts conduct experiments on deep space exploration.

Space Safari: Sunita Williams Rides Robotic Arm to Hunt Microbes 

(Credit - Space_Station)

NASA astronaut Sunita Williams conducted 19th spacewalk, her second in just two weeks, as she collected microbes from outside the flying laboratory. During her spacewalk, she was seen riding the Canadarm2 when the Space Station was flying above London. The robotic arm took her from one end to another. While doing so, she created a new record as she surpassed over 60 hours of spacewalking time outside the Space Station. NASA said that the experiment could help researchers understand whether and how these microorganisms survive and reproduce in the harsh space environment and how they may perform at planetary destinations such as the Moon and Mars.

Lunar Surprise: The Moon Is More Active Than We Thought

Scientists have long been trying to understand the complex geological and evolutionary history of the Moon. According to past evidence, it experienced significant compression billions of years ago and the dark, flat areas on the moon filled with solidified lava have remained dormant ever since. However, a recent study using advanced mapping and modelling techniques discovered that small ridges located on the moon’s far side were notably younger than previously studied ridges on the near side. The ridges on the far side of the Moon were similar in structure to the ones found on moon’s near side suggesting that both were created by the same forces. These forces were generated by likely a combination of the moon’s gradual shrinking and shifts in the lunar orbit.

Bennu’s Secret: Scientists Find Ingredients for Life in Asteroid Dust

Scientists have discovered chemical building blocks of life in rocks and soil samples from asteroid Bennu. These are some of the best evidence to date that such space rocks may have seeded early Earth with the raw ingredients that helped the emergence of living organisms. The samples, collected by NASA's Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification and Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft, revealed the presence of not just molecules that, on our planet, are key to life, but also traces of saltwater. Scientists also described exceptionally high abundances of ammonia in the Bennu samples. Ammonia is important to biology because it can react with formaldehyde, which also was detected in the samples, to form complex molecules, such as amino acids, the building block of life.