In wine-making circles, ‘noble rot’ is an exalted name for the botrytis fungus (Botrytis cinerea). It infects grapes, penetrates the skin, causes the berries to lose water by evaporation and shrivel up, and thus concentrates the sugars and flavours in them. Since only a small percentage of grapes in a vineyard are infected, they must … Read more
Are all space travellers astronauts? Astronaut, cosmonaut, or vyomanaut? Here’s why space travelers have different names around the world. | Video Credit: The Hindu On June 26, 2025, Indian Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla became the second Indian ever to enter space, joining the International Space Station as part of the Axiom-4 mission. However, … Read more
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla commenced his research activities aboard the International Space Station (ISS) on June 29, 2025. | Photo Credit: ANI Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who is aboard the International Space Station (ISS) has commenced research activities at the orbiting laboratory According to Axiom Space the crew members are fully immersed in their mission … Read more
Light always travels at 3 lakh km per second in a vacuum. It cannot be trapped and solidified because the particles of light, photons, have no rest mass and don’t interact strongly with each other. Generally, light exists only as a particle or wave. But recently, a team of researchers from Italy’s University of Pavia … Read more
A jatropha demonstration plot developed by Labland Biodiesel, a Mysuru-based biotechnology company, near in Mysuru. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement Deepening concerns over the warming of our planet have made “green” and “sustainable” popular words. ‘Going green’ means taking steps to lessen harm to the environment, like adopting eco-friendly practices. Sustainability aims for changes that … Read more
India’s vast linguistic, cultural, and social diversity has long been evident, but only now are scientists beginning to uncover the genetic richness underpinning it. In a new study in Cell, researchers reported sequencing the genomes of 2,762 Indians from 23 States and Union Territories. The data captured variation across caste, tribal groups, language, geography, and … Read more
This picture released by the Schmidt Ocean Institute on September 14, 2023, shows a Grimalditeuthis near Ecuador’s Galapagos archipelago. These squid were only observed alive in the wild for the first time in 2005. | Photo Credit: AFP Squids are some of the smartest and most agile animals in today’s oceans, but their evolutionary history … Read more
From Instagram reels to supermarket shelves, kombucha — the fizzy, fermented tea drink — has found a growing audience among health-conscious consumers in India. Promoted as a probiotic powerhouse, it’s touted for its supposed benefits to digestion, immunity, and metabolism. According to one estimate provided by Indian company Sbooch, the kombucha market in India grew … Read more
This image made from video shows Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ H2A rocket in Tobishima, Japan, Sept. 25, 2024. | Photo Credit: AP Japan on Sunday (June 29, 2025) successfully launched a climate change monitoring satellite on its mainstay H-2A rocket, which made its final flight before it is replaced by a new flagship designed to be … Read more
Former foes cooperate Fuelled by the Cold War between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, the space race saw the two nations compete to achieve superior spaceflight capability. The end of the Cold War, however, saw the Soviet Union collapse and form independent nations, including Russia, which had been at its core. Less than … Read more