General Awareness

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY - May 2017

May 2017

Sep 11, 2024

SpaceX Launches Billionaire's Private Crew on Milestone Spacewalk Mission

Four private astronauts blasted into space in a modified SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule, kicking off the company's five-day Polaris Dawn mission, which aims to test new spacesuit designs and conduct the first private spacewalk.
The crew, a billionaire entrepreneur, a retired military fighter pilot and two SpaceX employees, lifted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
It is Crew Dragon's fifth – and riskiest – private mission so far. After reaching space a few minutes after launch, the spacecraft will settle into an oval-shaped orbit, passing as close to Earth as 190 km (118 miles) and as far as 1,400 km (870 miles), the farthest any humans will have ventured since the end of the U.S. Apollo moon program in 1972.

Sep 10, 2024

India's Pixxel Gets NASA Contract to Provide Earth-Observation Data

NASA selected Indian private spacecraft company Pixxel for a new contract to provide Earth-observation data and services.
Pixxel, which specialises in hyperspectral imaging and Earth observation, is one of the eight companies selected for NASA's USD 476 million "Commercial SmallSat Data Acquisition Programme On-Ramp1 Multiple Award" contract.
Under this contract, these companies will provide the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) with Earth-observation data from commercial sources to support the US agency's research-and-application activities that help improve life on the planet.

Sep 08, 2024

Boeing's Starliner Lands on Earth without Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore

Boeing Starliner's first astronaut mission concluded with an empty capsule landing on Earth, while test pilots Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore will remain in space until next year, as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration deemed their return 'too risky' at this time.
Starliner was launched on June 5, carrying NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams to the International Space Station (ISS) on a shakeout cruise called Crew Flight Test (CFT).

Sep 07, 2024

US, Britain, EU, Other Nations Sign First Legally Binding International Treaty on AI

The United States, Britain, European Union members, and other countries, including Andorra, Georgia, Iceland, Norway, the Republic of Moldova, San Marino, and Israel, signed the first legally binding international AI treaty, the Council of Europe human rights organisation said.
The AI Convention, which has been in the works for years and was adopted in May after discussions between 57 countries, addresses the risks AI may pose while promoting responsible innovation.
The AI Convention mainly focuses on the protection of the human rights of people affected by AI systems and is separate from the EU AI Act, which entered into force last month.
The treaty provides a legal framework covering the entire lifecycle of AI systems. It aims to promote AI progress and innovation, while managing the risks it may pose to human rights, democracy, and the rule of law.

Sep 06, 2024

Govt. Introduces Vishvasya-Blockchain Technology Stack

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) launched a series of blockchain-based solutions, aimed at enhancing transparency, security, and efficiency in digital service delivery.
The Vishvasya-Blockchain Technology Stack is designed to offer Blockchain-as-a-Service (BaaS) with a geographically distributed setup to support a range of permissioned blockchain applications.
The stack is hosted across NIC Data Centers in Bhubaneswar, Pune, and Hyderabad, ensuring robust and scalable service delivery.
The government also introduced the NBFLite-Lightweight Blockchain Platform and Praamaanik, a blockchain-enabled solution for verifying the origin of mobile apps.
NBFLite is tailored for start-ups and academia to prototype blockchain applications, conduct research, and develop capacity. It was developed in collaboration with organizations such as C-DAC, NIC, IIT Hyderabad, and SETS Chennai.

Europe Launches Last Vega Rocket with Observation Satellite

Europe's Arianespace launched the last Vega rocket, placing the Sentinel-2C satellite into orbit under the European Union's Copernicus programme to monitor Earth's environment.
The rocket, which does not have boosters strapped to its side unlike larger vehicles streaked into the night sky from a launch base in French Guiana.
The launch ended a 12-year career for the small launch vehicle, designed by Italy's Avio (AVI.MI), opens new tab. It is being replaced by the updated Vega C, which is due to return to service later this year (2024) after being grounded following a launch failure with the loss of two powerful imaging satellites in December 2022.

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