► ISRO successfully test cryogenic engine of GSLV Mark 3 rocket
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully conducted hotbed test of the indigenously developed high-thrust cryogenic engine (CE20) of the GSLV Mark 3 (LVM3) rocket for the upper stage. The long-duration test was conducted at ISRO Propulsion Research Centre at Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu and lasted for 640 seconds. It was conducted with Mixture Ratio Controller (MRC) in a closed loop mode.
► Five hot Jupiter like planets discovered
Scientists have discovered five new Jupiter-like planets
that are similar in characteristics to our solar system’s biggest planet. The
newly discovered planets were designated as
WASP-119 b, WASP-124 b, WASP-126 b,
WASP-129 b and WASP-133 b.
They orbit very close to their host stars and hot
compared to Jupiter.
These planets were discovered by researchers
from Keele University in UK by using Wide Angle Search for Planets-South
(WASP-South) instrument. Orbital periods of these planets vary from 2.17 to
5.75 days and their radii is between one to 1.5 Jupiter radius.
Their masses
range from 0.3 to 1.2 the mass of Jupiter. Their host star has a similar mass
to the Sun of our solar system but it is much older based analysis of its
effective temperature and density.
WASP-124 b : It less massive than Jupiter and
has orbital period of 3.4 days and a much younger parent star.
WASP-126 b : It
has the lowest-mass. It has low surface gravity and is a good target for
transmission spectroscopy. It is brightest star of among the five.
WASP-129 b :
It is similar in size to Jupiter and has the longest orbital period. Its
surface gravity is also high compared to other known hot Jupiters.
WASP-133 b :
It has the shortest orbital period. It is slightly bigger Jupiter. WASP-South
instrument is an array of eight cameras observing selected regions of the
southern sky.
It studies five stars showing planet-like transits in their light
curve.
► President Barack Obama on 18 February 2016 named 106
researchers, including six of Indian origin, as recipients of the Presidential
Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), the highest US
Government honour for young independent researchers.
he winners will receive their awards at a Washington, DC
ceremony in the spring of 2016.
The White House announced the names of the following
Indian-Americans who have been selected for the Presidential Early Career
Awards for Scientists and Engineers:
Shwetak Patel (University of Washington)
• Patel is the Washington Research Foundation
Entrepreneurship Endowed Professor in Computer Science and Engineering and
Electrical Engineering.
• He is a nationally recognised expert in sensor
systems research.
Rahul Mangharam (University of Pennsylvania)
Mangharam was selected for the award for having invented a
new formal methodology to test and verify the correct operation of medical
device software, saving lives and reducing care costs.
Sachin Patel (Vanderbilt University Medical Centre)
Patel is the Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, and
Molecular Physiology and Biophysics Vanderbilt University Medical Centre.
Milind Kulkarni (Purdue University)
He is the associate professor with the School of Electrical
and Computer Engineering at Purdue University researches Programming Languages
and Compilers that support efficient programming and high performance on
emerging complex architectures.
Vikram Shyam (NASA)
Shyam is a technical innovator in fundamental aeronautics at
NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.
Kiran Musunuru (Harvard University)
• He is the assistant Professor of Stem Cell and
Regenerative Biology at Harvard University and Associate Physician at Brigham
and Women's Hospital.
• He has developed a genome editing approach for
permanently reducing cholesterol levels in mice.
About Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and
Engineers
• The Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists
and Engineers is the highest honour bestowed by the United States Government on
outstanding scientists and engineers in the early stages of their independent
research careers.
• The White House, following recommendations from
participating agencies, confers the awards annually.
• In February 1996, the National Science and
Technology Council was commissioned by President Bill Clinton to create an
award program that would honour and support the achievements of young
professionals at the outset of their independent research careers in the fields
of science and technology.
• The stated aim of the award is to help maintain the
leadership position of the United States in science.
