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  Indian-American physician launches study to find if prayers could heal COVID-19 patients

  May 03, 2020 6:44 IST

  An Indian-American physician in Kansas City has begun a study to find if something called “remote intercessory prayer” might initiate God to heal those infected with the coronavirus.

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  COVID-19 vaccine in 1 month? CSIR pins hope on Sepsivac

  May 02, 2020 21:07 IST

  ​India's top research and development organization, the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR), which is currently testing a "repurposed" vaccine against Covid-19 in a Phase 2 trial, is hoping to seek approval from the drug controller for its wider use against the pandemic in as early as 30 days from now, the scientist who is coordinating the effort said on Saturday.

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  Zydus Cadila gets tentative nod from USFDA to market type-2 diabetes drug

  May 02, 2020 14:21 IST

  Drug firm Zydus Cadila on Saturday said it has received tentative nod from the US health regulator to market generic Empagliflozin and Metformin Hydrochloride tablets, used for management of type-2 diabetes, in the American market

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  Hydroxychloroquine linked to increased risk of cardiac arrhythmias: Study

  May 02, 2020 12:19 IST

  At a time when the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) is being touted as a 'wonder drug' to treat critical COVID-19 patients, a new US study has found evidence suggesting that patients who received hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 were at an increased risk of electrical changes to the heart and cardiac arrhythmias.

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  NASA awards US dollar 1.79 billion contract to US firm for future Moon missions

  May 02, 2020 12:15 IST

  In further boost to its Artemis Moon missions which will land the first woman and next man on the lunar surface by 2024, the US space agency on Saturday awarded a $1.79 billion contract to Aerojet Rocketdyne of Sacramento, California, to manufacture 18 additional Space Launch System (SLS) rocket engines to support future missions to the Moon.

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  Cancer patients may face high risk of death from COVID-19: Study

  May 02, 2020 11:55 IST

  Cancer patients with COVID-19 are much more likely to die due to novel coronavirus infection than those without the malignant disease, according to a study led by an Indian-origin researcher who says the findings may help protect this vulnerable section of the global population.

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  NASA begs spectators for astronaut launch: Please stay home!

  May 02, 2020 7:36 IST

  NASA and SpaceX on Friday urged spectators to stay home for the first home launch of astronauts in nearly a decade because of the coronavirus pandemic.

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  Testing not enough, scientists examine sewage to gauge spread of coronavirus

  May 01, 2020 14:16 IST

  Given that most Indians are unlikely to be tested for COVID-19, scientists are taking a cue from the country’s surveillance programme for polio and turning to sewage to get a clearer snapshot of how many people are infected with the coronavirus.

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  New model may accurately estimate COVID-19 death toll, say scientists

  May 01, 2020 12:40 IST

  Scientists have developed a new mathematical model that they say can accurately estimate the death toll linked to the COVID-19 pandemic in the US, and around the world.The model, published in the journal Mathematics, predicted that the death toll as a result of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus that causes COVID-19 in the US would eventually reach about 68,120.

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  Scientists outline ways to change behaviour during COVID-19 pandemic

  May 01, 2020 12:20 IST

  Scientists have outlined ways by which people can change their behaviour to adapt to life during the COVID-19 pandemic, suggestions that can be useful in combatting racially driven bias, fake news, and help better manage stress. 

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  Scientists using algae to produce low-cost COVID-19 test kits

  May 01, 2020 11:29 IST

  Researchers in Canada are using algae to rapidly develop low-cost serological test kits for COVID-19 that they say would determine if someone has been infected with the novel coronavirus. The new method overcomes shortfalls of existing processes while saving money, according to the researchers from the University of Western Ontario in Canada.

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  Hubble Space Telescope captures breaking of comet Atlas into dozens of pieces

  May 01, 2020 10:41 IST

  NASA's Hubble Space Telescope on Thursday captured a fragile comet, C/2019 Y4 (ATLAS), disintegrate into more than two dozen pieces. Hubble identified about 30 fragments on April 20, and 25 pieces on April 23, NASA said on Tuesday, adding that all the pieces are enveloped in a sunlight-swept tail of cometary dust.

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  Moon for sale: Buy piece of one lunar meteorite for just $2.5 million

  May 01, 2020 9:20 IST

  Christie's Auctions & Private Sales on Thursday announced that one of the world's largest lunar meteorites will be on private sale valued at 2 million pounds ($2.49 million). The moon rock, weighing over 13.5 kg, was probably struck off the surface of the moon by a collision with an asteroid or comet and then showered down on the Sahara desert.

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  NASA selects SpaceX, Blue Origin to land humans on Moon in 2024

  May 01, 2020 8:27 IST

  NASA's commercial partners will refine their lander concepts through the contract base period ending in February 2021. During that time, the agency will evaluate which of the contractors will perform initial demonstration missions.

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  'Largest hailstones' ever recorded during thunderstorm in Argentina. Pics inside

  April 30, 2020 20:45 IST

  A ferocious storm over Argentina two years ago brought along with it hailstones that are now touted to be the "world's largest", sciencealert reported. The hailstones were so massive that they stunned meteorologists and scientists. In fact, scientists said the hailstones were about the size of a football.

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  Cardiovascular protective treatments can aid survival, recovery of COVID-19 patients: Study

  April 30, 2020 15:54 IST

  COVID-19 patients may be at an increased risk of cardiovascular impairment, and should be given proven protective anti-inflammatory therapies to aid survival and recovery, according to a study. Researchers from Peking Union Medical College Hospital in China also highlighted the potential problems with drugs currently being administered to fight the novel coronavirus.

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  Indian-origin Vaneeza Rupani gets honour of naming NASA's first Mars helicopter

  April 30, 2020 15:24 IST

  NASA's first Mars helicopter has a name now and the credit goes to 17-year-old Indian-origin girl Vaneeza Rupani. Rupani, a high school junior from Northport, Alabama, earned the honour of naming the helicopter after she submitted her essay into NASA's "Name the Rover" contest. Destined to become the first aircraft to attempt powered flight on another planet, NASA's Mars Helicopter officially named: Ingenuity, as suggested by Rupani.

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  Kleos Space awaits ISRO's launch announcement for its satellites

  April 30, 2020 15:04 IST

  The Luxembourg based Kleos Space, a space-powered Radio Frequency Reconnaissance data-as-a-service company on Thursday said it is waiting for Indian space agency's announcement for launch of its rocket Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle - C49 (PSLV-C49).  

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  Less smokers among COVID-19 patients, finds review of 28 studies

  April 30, 2020 15:03 IST

  The research by academics from University College London and Royal Veterinary College, RVC, London, included 22 studies conducted in China, three in the US, one in South Korea, one in France and one across multiple international sites with data predominantly collected in the UK.

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  Illama-derived antibodies may block coronavirus entry into host cells: Study

  April 30, 2020 8:44 IST

  Molecules derived from the immune system of the South American mammals illamas may block the entry of the novel coronavirus into host cells, according to a study which could lead to a potential avenue for COVID-19 treatment.

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  Hubble sees fragile comet break into dozens of pieces

  April 29, 2020 23:14 IST

  NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has seen a fragile comet, C/2019 Y4 (ATLAS), disintegrate into more than two dozen pieces.  

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  Hydroxychloroquine has 90% chance of helping COVID-19 patients: US doctors' body

  April 29, 2020 21:01 IST

  ​A team of US doctors has claimed that hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malarial drug termed potential "game-changer" for COVID-19 by President Donald Trump, has improved the survival and recovery odds for about 90 per cent of patients infected with the virus.  

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  Remdesivir showing improvement in COVID-19 patients when used early, Gilead says

  April 29, 2020 20:52 IST

  Remdesivir, Gilead Sciences Inc's experimental antiviral drug, helped improve symptoms in COVID-19 patients who were given the drug early, the company was quoted as saying by news agency Reuters.

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  Novel COVID-19 test can give results in just 45 minutes

  April 29, 2020 13:53 IST

  Scientists have developed a low-cost swab test that can diagnose COVID-19 infection in about 45 minutes, an advance that may help public health officials scrambling to cope with testing backlogs as the number of cases continues to climb.

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  Asteroid '1998 OR2' to fly past within 3.9m miles of Earth today

  April 29, 2020 8:13 IST

  Asteroid 1998 OR2 was discovered by the Near-Earth Asteroid Tracking program at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in July 1998, and for the past two decades astronomers have tracked it.

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  Asteroid to fly very close to Earth on Wednesday, NASA says poses no danger to our planet

  April 28, 2020 23:14 IST

  The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has confirmed that a tiny asteroid will safely pass near to Earth on Wednesday. NASA has also clarified that the asteroid poses no threat to Earth, as it will not even come close to hitting the planet.

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  NASA CubeSat to search for ice on Moon's surface using lasers

  April 28, 2020 21:15 IST

  The US space agency is planning to send a small satellite about the size of a briefcase -- also known as a CubeSat which will use lasers for the first time to detect naturally occurring surface ice believed to be at the bottom of craters on the Moon that have never seen sunlight.

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  Zika virus may spread through sexual contact: Study

  April 28, 2020 12:18 IST

  While Zika is primarily spread by mosquitoes, researchers have been aware of its potential for sexual transmission based on cases in which people became infected after having sex with a partner who had visited a Zika-affected area.