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What a Ride! Indian in Space after 41-Year Gap

Mitali k

Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla has created history by becoming the first Indian ever to set foot on the International Space Station.

After multiple delays and postponements, the Axiom-4 mission carrying India’s Shubhanshu Shukla was successfully launched on June 25 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Axiom-4 mission took astronauts to the International Space Station (“ISS”). Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who’s piloting the mission, has become only the second Indian to travel to space.

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nasa.gov

About The Mission

The astronauts flew in a spacecraft called Dragon. It was made by a company named SpaceX. A rocket called Falcon-9 helped the Dragon go up into space. The Axiom-4 mission marks the fourth private astronaut mission to the ISS. The commercial space mission operated by a Houston-based private company Axiom Space is a collaboration  between NASA, ISRO, ESA and Space.  The astronauts reached the ISS after a flight of about 28 hours.

This mission is the first time India will be part of the ISS and is considered a step towards India’s upcoming Gaganyaan space program.

About the Astronauts 

The crew for the mission includes three astronauts who have never been to the ISS before: Indian Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, Poland’s Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski and Tibor Kapu from Hungary. The fourth and final member of the team is Peggy Whitson of the US, a former NASA astronaut.

“Namaskar to all my countrymen. What a ride! After 41 years, we are back in space and what a ride it has been”. These were the first words of the Axiom-4 mission’s designated pilot and the first Indian to travel to space in 41 years, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla. 

nasa.gov

What will the astronauts do in space?

The astronauts will carry out 69 experiments; seven of them will be done by Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla. Some of the experiments include studying how plants and algae grow in space and learning how muscles heal.The astronauts will stay in space for 14 days. 

Also read, Aditya L-1: India’s Solar Mission Reaches Sun’s Orbit

Did You Know? 

The first Indian astronaut, Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, travelled to space in 1984 aboard a Russian Soyuz.

The four astronauts had been in a four-week quarantine since May 25, the longest in any modern space mission.Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla was among four Indian air force officers shortlisted last year to travel on the country’s first-ever human space flight, scheduled for 2027.

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Elephant: The Largest Land Mammal

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Elephants are the largest land mammals in the world. They are mostly found in Africa and Asia. There are three different species of elephant – the African Savannah elephant, the African Forest elephant and the Asian elephant. The African elephant is slightly larger than the Asian elephant and they have certain distinctive features.

Watch full video on Elephant Fun Facts for Kids

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Interesting Facts on Elephants

The African Forest elephant is now listed as Critically Endangered, the African Savannah elephant and the Asian elephant are now listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. For more details refer to the Special Report on page 4.

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Did you know that the African elephants have large cars shaped like the continent of Africa? Whereas, the Asian elephants have smaller ears shaped like India.

The elephant tusks are enlarged incisor teeth that usually appear when the elephant is 2 years old. The elephant tusks never stop growing.

Female elephants live in a herd with other female elephants and calves. Male ele-phants usually live alone.

Research suggests that elephants can recognise themselves in a mirror. This ability to distinguish oneself from others is seen in humans and chimpanzees.

It’s crazy but true that elephants spend 12 to 18 hours a day eating grass, plants and fruits. Elephants are herbivorous.

August 12 is World Elephant Day!

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Giraffe : The Tallest Land Animal

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Giraffes are gentle mammals. Giraffes are commonly found in the dry savannah region of Africa. An adult giraffe can grow up to 5.5m tall, that’s taller than 3 adult humans put together. Giraffes are herbivores and can eat more than 40kg of food in a day. Their long necks help them reach taller trees to eat leaves and also helps them to look out for their enemies. 

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micato.com

Watch full video on All You Need to Know About the Tallest Land Animal – Giraffe!

Did You Know? 

1. Giraffes are social animals and typically live in a group of 15 members, called Tower. 

2. The tongue of a giraffe is more than 18 inches long. 

3. Giraffes can run at a speed of 56km per hour, faster than a horse. 

4. At the time of birth, a baby giraffe called calf, is 6 feet tall. They can stand and walk as soon as they are born. 

5. Even though a giraffe has a very long neck, it has only 7 neck bones. Did you know that even humans have 7 neck bones?

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The World’s Most Endangered Monkeys and Apes

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A new report titled “Primates in Peril: The World’s 25 Most Endangered Primates 2023–2025” has identified the 25 most endangered primate species across Africa, Asia, Madagascar, and South America. The research, conducted between 2023 and 2025, calls for urgent global conservation measures. This list of the world’s 25 most endangered primates has been compiled by the Primate Specialist Group of the IUCN Species Survival Commission and the International Primatological Society, in collaboration with Re:wild. The most endangered ape species on the list is the Tapanuli orangutan on Sumatra, with only around 800 individuals remaining – having only been discovered in 2017. The report aims to help save these animals by encouraging governments and people to protect their habitats and stop hunting them. For example, after a primate was added to the list, Brazil created a special protected area for it. Scientists hope this list will make more people care about these animals, help raise money for their protection, and inspire students to study and save them. Protecting primates also means protecting the forests where many other animals live.

downtoearth.org.in

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Why Are These Primates Endangered?

  • Habitat destruction 
  • Hunting 
  • Climate change 
  • Illegal wildlife trade 

What About India?

Two monkeys from India and Bangladesh were considered for the list but did not make it:

  • Phayre’s Langur: A leaf-eating monkey that is endangered because its forest home is shrinking, and it’s hunted and traded illegally.
news.mongabay.com
  • Western Hoolock Gibbon: An ape found in northeast India and Bangladesh, also endangered because its home is being destroyed and it’s hunted.
roundglasssustain.com

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The species has been listed as ‘Endangered’ for two decades on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species.

Also Watch full video Interesting Facts About Lions

Saving The Northern White Rhino

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Who Are the Northern White Rhinos?

The northern white rhinoceros is one of the largest and rarest land mammals, native to East and Central Africa. Once numbering in the thousands, their population has drastically declined due to poaching and habitat loss. Today, only two known females remain: Najin and Fatu, both residing under 24-hour protection at a conservancy in Kenya. Scientists are worried that this amazing animal will disappear forever, since conventional breeding techniques to bring them back from the brink of extinction are no longer an option.

theguardian.com

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Also Watch full video Interesting Facts About Lions

How are Scientists Helping?

An international team of scientists at Scripps Research, the SanDiego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, and other collaborators have mapped the entire genome of a northern white rhino.This represents a crucial step toward bringing the critically endangered species back from the edge using advanced reproductive technologies. “What’s so exciting about this milestone is that we’re getting closer to being able to rescue animals that otherwise might go extinct during our lifetimes“, says co-senior author Jeanne Loring, Professor Emeritus at Scripps Research and a research fellow at the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. “This is great progress not only for white rhinos, but for the entire field of animal Conservation“.

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