Indian space agency's satellite mission fails due to technical issue
The Indian space agency's mission to launch into orbit a new Earth observation satellite failed after the launch vehicle encountered a technical issue during the third stage of flight, officials said.
The EOS-09 Earth observation satellite took off on board the PSLV-C61 launch vehicle from the Sriharikota space centre in southern India on Sunday morning.
'During the third stage … there was a fall in the chamber pressure of the motor case, and the mission could not be accomplished,' said V Narayanan, chief of the Indian Space Research Organisation.
Active in space research since the 1960s, India has launched satellites for itself and other countries, and successfully put one in orbit around Mars in 2014.
After a failed attempt to land on the moon in 2019, India became the first country to land a spacecraft near the moon's south pole in 2023 in a historic voyage to uncharted territory that scientists believe could hold reserves of frozen water.
The mission was dubbed a technological triumph for the world's most populous nation.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Researchers make alarming discovery after analyzing feces of wild cat species: 'Can cause severe damage'
A study has found plastic contamination in fishing cat waste throughout India's Sundarbans wetlands, The Times of India reported. Scientists from the University of Calcutta analyzed scat samples from fishing cats across four locations in the Sundarbans and discovered microplastics in every sample tested. The plastic pieces ranged from 0.1 to 0.9 millimeters and included fibers, beads, pellets, foam, sheets, and fragments. "Microplastics detected in the scat samples of fishing cats are mainly fibres with some beads and pellets, foam, sheets and fragments," said Samrat Chakraborty, who led the study at Calcutta University's zoology department. The analysis confirmed the plastic came from high-density polyethylene, low-density polyethylene, polypropylene, and other common materials found in tourist and industrial waste. The contamination affects more than just the cats themselves. Researchers also found plastic in the region's soil, water, vegetation, rodents, fish, and crabs. The study identified tourism activities, discarded fishing nets, and industrial waste from Kolkata as the primary sources of this pollution. Plastic particles can cause gastrointestinal problems, making it harder for fishing cats to digest food and absorb nutrients properly. "This can result in behavioural changes that may impact their hunting practices," Chakraborty explained. "These toxins can cause severe damage to the reproductive cycles, resulting in poor litter numbers or babies with immunological problems." These health impacts could reduce fishing cat populations. For humans living in the Sundarbans, losing fishing cats would mean losing a natural predator that helps control rodent populations. These cats also serve as an indicator species, which means their health reflects the condition of the wetland ecosystem that millions of people depend on for fishing, tourism, and coastal protection. The plastic contamination shows how pollution from cities and tourist activities travels through food webs, eventually reaching apex predators. If these toxins can accumulate in wild cats, they're likely present throughout the food chain that local communities rely on. Do you think we use too much plastic in America? Definitely Only some people Not really I'm not sure Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. The research team has launched awareness campaigns across 12 districts in South Bengal, reaching teachers, anglers, boat operators, students, and other community members. They've conducted cleanup drives at the Bhagabatpur Crocodile Sanctuary and organized educational camps focused on the toxic effects of plastic pollution. To protect fishing cats and reduce plastic waste, rely on reusable bags, bottles, and containers instead of single-use plastic items. Pack out trash and participate in local cleanup efforts when visiting natural areas. Supporting organizations working on wetland conservation and reducing plastic pollution can multiply your impact. Advocate for stronger waste management policies in your community and choose products with little or no plastic packaging. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
Starwatch: the meeting of a star, the planet Mars and our moon
Following last week's conjunction between Regulus and Mars, the moon now gets in on the act. This meeting of a star, a planet and a moon takes place on 29 June. The chart shows the view looking west from London at 22:15 BST that day. Red planet Mars has moved on from its close pass of blue-white star Regulus, giving enough space for a waxing crescent moon to slip in between them. The moon will be 4.7 days old, and heading towards its first quarter (half-moon) phase. Just over 22% of its visible surface will be illuminated. From the moon, our nearest celestial neighbour, it takes the sunlight that bounces from its surface just 1.3 seconds to reach our eyes. For Mars, the fourth planet in our solar system, the light travel time from its surface is 15 minutes and 57 seconds. And for Regulus it takes light 79 years to reach us. So we see the moon as it appeared 1.3 seconds ago, Mars as it appeared 15 minutes and 57 seconds ago, and Regulus as it appeared 79 years ago. The conjunction is easily visible from the southern hemisphere too, where it will appear in the north-north-west.
Yahoo
17 hours ago
- Yahoo
Elon Musk promises more risky launches after sixth Starship failure
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. This was the ninth test flight for the rocket, and the third catastrophic failure in a row, just this year. Is this what we should expect from the very ship some are counting on to take humans further than we've ever been in the solar system? Or does this failure point to deeper concerns within the broader program? A decade of development The Starship program from Elon Musk's space technology company, SpaceX, has been in development for more than a decade now and has undergone many iterations in its overall design and goals. The Starship concept is based upon the SpaceX Raptor engines to be used in a multistage system. In a multistage rocket system, there are often two or three separate blocks with their own engine and fuel reserves. These are particularly important for leaving Earth's orbit and travelling to the Moon, Mars and beyond. With Starship, the key factor is the ability to land and reuse vast amounts of the rocket stages again and again. The company's Falcon 9 vehicles, which used this model, were fantastically successful. Initial tests of Starship began in 2018 with two low-altitude flights showing early success. Subsequent flights have faced numerous challenges with now four complete failures, two partial failures and three successes overall. Just two days ago, during the latest failed attempt, I watched alongside more than 200 other space industry experts at the Australian Space Summit in Sydney. Broadcast live on a giant screen, the launch generated an excited buzz – which soon turned to reserved murmurs. Of course, designing and launching rockets is hard, and failures are to be expected. However, a third catastrophic failure within six months demands a pause for reflection. On this particular test flight, as Starship positioned itself for atmospheric re-entry, one of its 13 engines failed to ignite. Shortly after, a booster appeared to explode, leading to a complete loss of control. The rocket ultimately broke apart over the Indian Ocean, which tonnes of debris will now call home. Polluting Earth in pursuit of space We don't know the exact financial cost of each test flight. But Musk has previously said it is about US$50–100 million. The exact environmental cost of the Starship program – and its repeated failures – is even harder to quantify. For example, a failed test flight in 2023 left the town of Port Isabel, Texas, which is located beside the launch site, shaking and covered in a thick cloud of dirt. Debris from the exploded rocket smashed cars. Residents told the New York Times they were terrified. They also had to clean up the mess from the flight. Then, in September 2024, SpaceX was fined by the US Environmental Protection Agency and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for 14 separate incidents since 2022 where the launch facilities discharged polluted water into Texas waterways. Musk denied these claims. That same month, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) proposed a fine of US$633,009 in civil penalties should be issued to SpaceX. This was on the grounds of using an unapproved launch control room and other violations during 2023. Musk denied these claims too and threatened to countersue the FAA for 'regulatory overreach'. It's unclear if this suit was ever filed. Two other failed launches in January and March this year also rained rocket debris over the Caribbean, and disrupted hundreds of commercial flights, including 80 which needed to be diverted and more than 400 requiring delayed takeoff to ensure they were entering safe air space. Success of different space programs Until last year, the FAA allowed SpaceX to try up to five Starship launches a year. This month, the figure was increased to 25. A lot can go wrong during a launch of a vehicle to space. And there is a long way to go until we can properly judge whether Starship successfully meets its mission goals. We can, however, look at past programs to understand typical success rates seen across different rocketry programs. The Saturn V rocket, the workhorse of the Apollo era, had a total of 13 launches, with only one partial failure. It underwent three full ground tests before flight. SpaceX's own Falcon 9 rocket, has had more than 478 successful launches, only two in flight failures, one partial failure and one pre-flight destruction. The Antares rocket, by Orbital Sciences Corporation (later Orbital ATK and Northrop Grumman) launched a total of 18 times, with one failure. The Soyuz rocket, originally a Soviet expendable carrier rocket designed in the 1960s, launched a total of 32 times, with two failures. RELATED STORIES — 'Starship in space': See amazing photos from SpaceX megarocket's Flight 9 test mission —FAA requires SpaceX to investigate Starship Flight 9 mishap — SpaceX reveals why its Starship Flight 8 Ship exploded, failure traced to 'flash' in rocket's engines No sign of caution Of course, we can't fairly compare all other rockets with the Starship. Its goals are certainly novel as a reusable heavy-class rocket. But this latest failure does raise some questions. Will the Starship program ever see success – and if so when? And what are the limits of our tolerance as a society to the pollution of Earth in the pursuit of the goal to space? For a rocketry program that's moving so fast, developing novel and complex technology, and experiencing several repeated failures, many people might expect caution from now on. Musk, however, has other plans. Shortly after the most recent Starship failure, he announced on X (formerly Twitter), that the next test flights would occur at a faster pace: one every three to four weeks. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
