The India-US joint mission to study climate change with the world’s most expensive Earth imaging satellite is in its final stages and the launch is expected in the first quarter of 2024, a senior NASA official has said. 

Speaking exclusively to NDTV on Tuesday, Laurie Leshin, the Director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) will also help in predicting hazards like earthquakes and tsunamis, and that respect for India’s space programme is “off the charts” after Chandrayaan-3. 

Purpose, Impact

NISAR is a low earth orbit observatory being developed by ISRO and NASA, which will map the entire Earth in 12 days and provide consistent data for understanding changes in the planet’s ecosystems, ice mass, vegetation, sea level rise, groundwater levels and natural hazards, including earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions and landslides.

On how the satellite will make a difference in the life of the common man, Ms Leshin said, “Understanding how the Earth’s surface is changing is really important for understanding the impacts of climate change… NISAR will allow us to observe with precision small changes in that surface. Everyone should care about melting ice sheets and changing forests, and earthquakes and volcanoes, so it really will impact people’s lives everywhere.”

The NASA official said watching things changing on the Earth’s surface will help scientists understand the physics behind the change and better predict what is coming in the future. 

Collaboration

“We are so thrilled with the collaboration between NASA and ISRO on NISAR. This is the biggest collaboration on something technological between our two nations and certainly the biggest collaboration in the history of space exploration between the US and India. I am sure this is the beginning of many more things to come,” Ms Leshin said. 

“It is one thing to talk about it at a very high level and leadership talking about collaboration, but we have had 30 or 40 engineers at a time here in Bengaluru working shoulder-to-shoulder with their ISRO colleagues for over nine months,” she added. 

Scientists from ISRO also spent time working on the radar at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California and it  was then brought to Bengaluru to be mated with the spacecraft. “Overall, the teams have worked together spectacularly well,” Ms Leshin asserted.

“Many Ways To Success”

Asked about NASA’s key learnings from the collaboration, Ms Leshin said, “We are learning that there are many ways to be successful in space. We are learning from each other. If you talk to our colleagues at ISRO, they would say they have learnt from us and my colleagues say we have absolutely learnt from India in how they do their work. And that is good for everyone. Innovation loves new ideas coming together.”

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s director said that respect for India’s space programme, which was already high, has gone up after the historic success of the Chandrayaan-3 mission.

“We are so impressed with Chandrayaan-3 and the future plans for Indian space exploration, and we look forward to having many more partnerships between NASA and ISRO. The respect for India’s space programme – it was already very high because India has accomplished so much in space – but now it’s off the charts.”  

Launch Next Year

The director said the launch of NISAR is expected in the first quarter of 2024 and both space agencies have decided to go ahead with it only when they are ready. The spacecraft will undergo a series of tests after the solar panels are attached to ensure that it will survive and do its job in the space environment.

Child Artists choosing acting as their profession as they grow up is not a rare option. While most of them are star kids, there are plenty of child actors who became a part of memorable films despite a non-film background and then returned to make this their chosen path of career. While superstars like Alia Bhatt, Shahid Kapoor, Aamir Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Kamal Haasan and Urmila Matondkar are today bonafide stars with exemplary filmography to their names, names like Sana Saeed, Jibraan Khan, Siddharth Nigam who are finding their footing in the film industry though they are massively loved and remembered for their performances in films like Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham respectively. On the occasion of Children’s Day, here’s a glance through how these stars looked when they first faced the camera compared to how they look in their latest film, all grown up and ready to carve their niche in the film industry. It’s an interesting journey through a timeline of changing faces and is sure to bring back a lot of memories for all the movie buffs out there who have grown up watching these films.

Have a look at the list here:

Alia Bhatt

Alia is a true-blue star today. With versatile films like Highway, Dear Zindagi, Gangubai Kathiawadi, Brahmastra and Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani to name a few, she has established herself as one of the most bankable actresses of this generation. The actress first faced the camera at the age of 6 in the film Sangharsh where she played the younger version of Preity Zinta. Little did people know how she would take over the world of cinema. While this year has been about winning accolades for her performance in Gangubai Kathiawadi, her latest was a typical Bollywood mass entertainer titled Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. Here’s how she looked in Sangharsh and now in her latest release.

Hrithik Roshan

Director J Om. Prakash made his grandson Hrithik Roshan face the camera at the tender age of 6 in the film Aasha released in 1980. In the song Jaane Hum Sadak Ke Logon Se, Hrithik was apparently on the set when he instantly started dancing to the song when it was played as he loved it. That’s how he became a part of it and then there was no turning back. He sure looked cute back then but today he’s known by the title Greek God. His last film was Vikram Vedha and he has Fighter coming up in January. Here’s how he looked in his first film as a child actor vs his last outing on screen.

Shahid Kapoor

hahid Kapoor was just 11 years old when he faced the camera for a TV commercial that was about a healthy drink. The young boy had star quality in him back then which culminated in him becoming a superstar of this generation. He appeared in other commercials and then finally made his debut in 2003 in Ishq Vishq. Today his diversity is reflected in his choice of films ranging from Haider to Jab We Met to Padmaavat to Jersey to his latest – Bloody Daddy. Here’s how he looked in his first TV commercial to his get-up in his latest release.

Aamir Khan

Aamir faced the camera for the first time in 1973 in the film Yaadon Ki Baaraat. The film was made by his uncle Nasir Hussain, and Aamir started his journey at the mere age of eight when he became a part of the film. He was cast as the younger version of the character Madhosh which was essayed by Mahendra Sandhu. His last release was the much-anticipated Laal Singh Chaddha in August 2022 and he made a small cameo in Salaam Venky in December. Here’s the difference in how he looked back as he stepped in front of the camera and his last release.

Sana Saeed

The uber-cute Sana Saeed in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai who played Shah Rukh Khan and Rani Mukerji’s daughter Anjali won millions of hearts. Her effortless portrayal and easy presence in front of the camera drove her back to this world as she debuted in Karan Johar’s Student Of The Year in 2012. Since then she has done a couple of reality shows but fans are still awaiting a true blue big-screen experience. Here’s her adorable get-up as Anjali compared to how she looked in her first feature film as a parallel actor.

Siddharth Nigam

TV Commercials have opened up doors for child artistes big time and an example of grand success is Siddharth Nigam. He was first seen as a child artist in a health drink advertisement post in which he got a call to be cast in Dhoom 3. Since then he has appeared in films like Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, his claim to fame was his television shows such as Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat and Aladdin: Naam Toh Suna Hoga. Here’s a look at how he looked in his first ever TV Ad and his last which was a Salman Khan film.

Malvika Raaj

Having played the younger version of Kareena Kapoor Khan in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, a film that is thought to be one of the most memorable in Kareena’s filmography is indeed a feat. Very few people know that Malvika then went on to star in several Telugu films. She was about to star in Emraan Hashmi’s film Captain Nawab which was shelved. Her last release was in 2022, a thriller film titled Squad. She has and shall always remind us of her first performance on camera and with a film like Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, comes responsibilities and fans are eagerly waiting for the same. Spot how the little girl has grown up from K3G to Squad.

While there are quite a few others who make this list, these names are the ones that the masses can easily place and draw a connection to. On Children’s Day, here’s a trip down memory lane as we connect the past to the present.

The Indian cricket team is ready for the ICC Cricket World Cup semifinal scheduled for November 15th (Wednesday) against New Zealand. Both teams head into the match with a 50/50 chance of victory, showcasing their evenly matched strengths. However, India’s overall tournament performance and growing confidence make them the stronger favorites this time around compared to their 2019 World Cup semi-final encounter.

While India will look to wipe away the pain of Manchester 2019, where they were eliminated from the semis by the New Zealanders, Rohit Sharma’s boys are unlikely to do it with a sense of revenge. It’s more for the purpose of reaching the final than retribution.

That was not the only time the Kiwis had broken India’s heart. Virat Kohli’s men had lost another big final to New Zealand-the 2021 World Test Championship Final.

While there is undeniably a sense of heartache, there’s a noticeable absence of resentment despite an upcoming clash against the same opponents. However, the anxiety of Indian cricket fans is palpable, and it is finding expression on social media through a continuous meme-fest that is anticipated to persist until the conclusion of the semifinal with a positive outcome for Team India.

Social media is abuzz with a plethora of memes, fact sheets, and score-comparing statistics as fans gear up for the highly anticipated India vs. New Zealand semi-final clash. Fans are eagerly sharing their predictions and analyses, creating a lively and engaging online atmosphere.

We are sharing some of the interesting ones here for you:
 

 

Virat and Rohit scores in ODI world Cup semifinals
Virat Kohli Rohit sharma
9(21) in 2011, Not played 2011
1(13) in 2015 34(48) in 2015
1(6) in 2019 1(4) in 2019
Batting avg : 3.66 Batting avg: 17.50#INDvsNZ

— light_tesukoo_mowa (@light_tesukoo) November 13, 2023

we’ll be there no matter what ?#INDvNZ pic.twitter.com/XTwkpeKEas

— rea (@reaadubey) November 14, 2023

I don’t want to watch this hell again.#INDvNZ #Semifinals pic.twitter.com/OabwT85b4s

— CrickFlicks (@CrickFlicks) November 13, 2023

One sleep away ?#INDvNZ pic.twitter.com/TC4o1elZZj

— Jaanvi? (@that_shutterbug) November 14, 2023

Time For Revenge ? #INDvNZ pic.twitter.com/weyxEwY4Gb

— Shivam ? (@shivammm_) November 13, 2023

Scenes before India vs New Zealand.#INDvsNZ pic.twitter.com/nTf8ONlDfE

— Rajabets ??? (@smileagainraja) November 13, 2023

The anxiety stems from the fact that India has faced defeat in their past four knockout matches against New Zealand in various formats. But India’s fans will be banking on the fact that in the last three ODI World Cups, New Zealand has been eliminated by the country hosting the tournament.