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Wednesday, January 7, 2026
TopicAstronomy

Topic: astronomy

How did ancient galaxy Alaknanda get spiral arms?

Like the Pune scientists’ discovery, Alaknanda, if more galaxies show up in the JWST data, scientists may have to rethink how the early universe evolved.

What is 3I/ATLAS—the interstellar object that has baffled scientists

3I/ATLAS is the third interstellar object to be discovered. Before it, 1I/ʻOumuamua and 2I/Borisov were detected in 2017 and 2019, respectively.

Back to the future: Govt launches national contest to recreate India’s traditional astronomy tools

Indian Knowledge Systems division calls students & firms to recreate astronomical instruments mentioned in classical Sanskrit texts. Selected instruments could be showcased to startups.

Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar’s stellar limit was called absurd. It got him 1983 Physics Nobel

No direct observations of any star exceed the Chandrasekhar limit. The theoretical physicist's calculations have helped so far to understand supernovas, neutron stars, and black holes.

Jayant Narlikar on a universe with no beginning, why sky is blue & the classic astronomy-astrology mix-up

In a 2015 'Walk the Talk' with Editor-in-Chief Shekhar Gupta, the legendary astrophysicist who died Tuesday explained his thoughts on Big Bang & how curiosity keeps a scientist young.

Amity school students witness rare planetary parade in Delhi—Saturn’s rings to Jupiter’s moons

Twenty students caught the celestial phenomenon despite fog and an AQI of 365.

Delhi is missing out on planetary parade due to pollution. Rest of India enjoys watch parties

When the planetary parade was at its best view in Kolkata, Bengaluru and Dehradun, the national capital recorded an AQI of 289. Light rain also impacted visibility in some parts of the city.

From heralding births of kings to spacecraft navigation, planetary parade’s over 2,000 yrs old history

By mid-February, Venus, Mars, Jupiter & Saturn, already visible to the naked eye, will be joined by Mercury, Neptune & Uranus in a rare 'planetary parade', officially called a syzygy.

Pune astronomers identify galaxy in Milky Way’s neighbourhood as ‘explosive factory’ of gamma rays

Kathryn’s Wheel was formed due to collision of 2 galaxies, but study published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters notes that star formation alone doesn't explain gamma ray emission.

India’s X-ray satellite system Daksha can settle the dark matter question

Daksha would be an invaluable tool to study flares from the Sun, X-rays from certain pulsating neutron stars, gamma-ray lightnings in the Earth's atmosphere, and so on.

On Camera

A 2-hour op, precise extradition—what Maduro’s capture tells us about modern US military

Despite multiple agencies being involved, the US could maintain a clear chain of command. This is something India should consider too, as it defines the theatre command structures.

Trump threatens India with fresh tariffs on Russian oil, calls PM Modi a ‘good guy’

The latest comment comes as New Delhi and Washington have yet to sign a trade agreement. India’s purchase of Russian oil has reduced, but Moscow remains top source for crude.

S-300, Su-30 jets, T-72 tanks: Inventory of Venezuela’s largely Russian-origin arsenal

Venezuela also boasts of a diverse portfolio of unmanned aerial vehicles capable of carrying out surveillance, reconnaissance and being employed for kinetic purposes as well.

A year-end Mea Culpa in National Interest—The Army-Islam combo doesn’t kill democracy

Many of you might think I got something so wrong in National Interest pieces written this year. I might disagree! But some deserve a Mea Culpa. I’d deal with the most recent this week.