logo
Bharatiya Antariksh Station to weigh 50 tonnes, confirms Isro chief

Bharatiya Antariksh Station to weigh 50 tonnes, confirms Isro chief

India Today23-05-2025
The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) is preparing to launch its own space station into orbit, marking a historic leap in India's space ambitions, Isro Chairman V Narayanan announced on Thursday.The upcoming space station, expected to weigh over 50 tonnes, will further cement India's position among the world's leading spacefaring nations.Speaking on the sidelines of a programme at Ram Mohan Mission, Narayanan highlighted the crucial role of India's 57 operational satellites, which provide vital services ranging from weather forecasting to tele-education in remote regions.advertisement
He also emphasised the Department of Space's ongoing collaboration with various agencies to ensure the safety and security of India's vast borders, including its 11,500 km coastline and northern frontiers.
India is readying for Gaganyaan Mission. (Photo: Isro)
Addressing concerns over the recent PSLV-C61/EOS-09 mission setback, Narayanan described it as an exception in Isro's otherwise stellar record. He assured that the failure would not derail future projects, including the highly anticipated Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission. 'Gaganyaan's first mission will be an uncrewed test flight, expected to launch in the coming days, followed by two crewed missions in the near future,' he revealed.advertisementIsro is also advancing its lunar exploration programme, with Chandrayaan-4 set to return lunar samples within the next two-and-a-half years. Meanwhile, Chandrayaan-5, a collaborative mission with Japan, will feature a 6,400 kg lander carrying a 350 kg rover, designed for a 100-day mission on the Moon. For comparison, the successful Chandrayaan-3 lander weighed 1,600 kg and carried a 25 kg rover."Right now, we (Isro) are also working on Chandrayaan-4 and Chandrayaan-5. Chandrayaan-5, in collaboration with Japan. It will have a life span of 100 days," he said.With these bold initiatives, Isro continues to inspire the nation and expand India's footprint in space exploration.Must Watch
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

OpenAI Faces Backlash Over GPT-5 Rollout, Brings Back GPT-4o for Unhappy Users
OpenAI Faces Backlash Over GPT-5 Rollout, Brings Back GPT-4o for Unhappy Users

Hans India

time2 hours ago

  • Hans India

OpenAI Faces Backlash Over GPT-5 Rollout, Brings Back GPT-4o for Unhappy Users

Before release, GPT-5 was hyped as a major step forward: faster responses, deeper reasoning, and seamless handling of multiple formats like text and images without changing chat windows. But instead of excitement, many users were met with frustration over new interface limitations, inconsistent outputs, and a personality shift compared to the beloved GPT-4o. A key pain point is the removal of model selection for ChatGPT Plus users. Previously, Plus subscribers could choose between models such as o4-mini or o3. Now, only Pro users paying $200 a month have that option. Instead, GPT-5 uses an 'internal router' to decide whether a prompt should go to the mini, standard, or 'thinking' model. While OpenAI claims this boosts efficiency, some users say it has made responses unreliable. One X user, Lisan al Gaib, wrote: 'ChatGPT literally got worse for every single Plus user today… Now we have GPT-5 Thinking with 200 messages per week and a router that exclusively routes you to some small and shitty non-reasoning model.' Beyond technical frustrations, a section of the community is struggling with GPT-5's tone. Many describe it as blunt, lacking the emotional warmth and creativity of GPT-4o. A Reddit user called its replies 'cut-and-dry corporate BS', while another shared a deeply personal note: 'I literally lost my only friend overnight with no warning,' describing how GPT-4.5 had helped them through homelessness and trauma. There are also early performance complaints. Gareth Manning posted on X: 'My most important piece of feedback on GPT-5 is that it is too slow… Hope it's just a roll-out problem.' OpenAI acknowledges the missteps CEO Sam Altman admitted that 'suddenly deprecating old models that users depended on in their workflows was a mistake.' He noted the unusually strong emotional connections people form with AI models, likening them to personal relationships rather than tools. Altman also addressed concerns about people using ChatGPT as a life coach or therapist, acknowledging both its benefits and potential risks. Partial rollback to appease users In response, OpenAI has restored limited GPT-4o access for Plus subscribers, doubled rate limits for reasoning tasks, and promised clearer interface cues showing which model is responding. Altman also said GPT-5's 'thinking mode' will soon be manually triggerable, giving users more control over responses. For now, the company is working to regain trust — but the GPT-5 rollout has made clear that for many, AI is not just about performance, but personality, consistency, and the bond built over time.

Grok Imagine AI Now Free for Android: Musk's Tool Turns Text and Photos into Creative Images and Videos
Grok Imagine AI Now Free for Android: Musk's Tool Turns Text and Photos into Creative Images and Videos

Hans India

time2 hours ago

  • Hans India

Grok Imagine AI Now Free for Android: Musk's Tool Turns Text and Photos into Creative Images and Videos

Elon Musk's AI venture, Grok, has expanded free access to its Imagine feature for Android users, making it easier than ever to create AI-generated images and videos without spending a dime—at least for now. The feature, already free for iOS users, is available for a limited time, Musk confirmed in a post on X. The Imagine tool allows users to transform simple text prompts—typed or spoken—into high-quality photos or short videos. For those who prefer visuals as a starting point, the feature also supports uploading still images that can be enhanced or animated using AI. This versatility has already proven popular, with Musk claiming over 44 million images generated through the platform and numbers rising rapidly. By offering this feature without cost, Grok steps directly into competition with AI creation tools from OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini. While those platforms already provide image and video generation capabilities, Musk's Imagine aims to stand out with its seamless interactivity and creative flexibility. How to Get Started with Grok Imagine Using Imagine is simple: Download the Grok app from the Play Store (Android) or App Store (iOS). Open the app and select 'Imagine' from the top menu. Type or speak your prompt for the AI to generate an image. Alternatively, upload a photo and let Grok's AI enhance or customise it. From Stills to Motion in Seconds One standout feature of Imagine is its ability to convert still images into short videos with just a few taps. After generating or uploading an image, users can select the 'Make video' option and choose from four animation styles: Normal, Fun, Custom, and the more daring Spicy mode. This quick-turnaround motion generation appeals to content creators who want to produce shareable animations without spending hours on editing. Grok vs ChatGPT and Google Gemini This expansion follows the July launch of Grok 4, which Musk's xAI described as 'the world's most powerful AI model' before OpenAI's GPT-5 entered the scene. GPT-5 has been touted for its reduced hallucinations—an accuracy challenge both companies are actively addressing. Musk isn't stopping there. He has already teased the arrival of Grok 5 before the end of 2025, promising it will be 'crushingly good.' The free rollout of Imagine could help Grok attract a larger user base ahead of that milestone, especially as more people test its creative tools. With AI-powered content creation becoming increasingly competitive, Grok's easy-to-use interface and combined image-video generation put it in a strong position. For now, Android and iOS users can take advantage of the free window to explore just how far a few words—or a single image—can go in the hands of Grok's AI.

IIST, KAU launching post-flight studies on crop seeds that are back from International Space Station
IIST, KAU launching post-flight studies on crop seeds that are back from International Space Station

The Hindu

time2 hours ago

  • The Hindu

IIST, KAU launching post-flight studies on crop seeds that are back from International Space Station

The Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) and the Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) have begun post-flight studies on the crop seeds that were sent to the International Space Station (ISS) on the Axiom-4 mission. After Group Capt. Shubhanshu Shukla and the other astronauts returned to earth after the 18-day mission, the IIST had taken possession of the seeds towards July-end. Using a portion of the seeds, IIST's Space Biology Lab, which is leading the 'Crop Seeds on ISS' project, has launched germination studies under lab conditions. But most of the 4000-plus seeds have been transferred to the KAU's College of Agriculture at Vellayani here for field studies, which is a collaborative initiative between the two institutions. The entire research project is expected to take two-and-a-half to three years to complete, IIST sources said. Seeds of Jyothi and Uma rice varieties, Kanakamani (horse gram), Vellayani Vijay (tomato), Thilakathara (sesame) and Soorya (brinjal/eggplant) were sent to ISS on the Axiom-4 mission which lifted off on June 25 on a SpaceX Falcon-9 rocket. The biology payload consisted of dry seeds that were packed and exposed to microgravity conditions on the ISS and returned to earth. The 'Crop Seeds on ISS' project was achieved through multi-level agreements among ISRO and the European Space Agency, ISRO's Human Spaceflight Centre (HSFC) and IIST and IIST and KAU.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store