•Both the satellites are planned to be launched into a 583 km sun-synchronous orbit. PSLV C 42 which will carry the observation satellites from the United Kingdom is the first commercial launch for this year.
2) NASA Launches Satellite To Track Decreasing Polar Ice
•The laser, known as ATLAS (Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System), splits into six beams and fires 10,000 pulses per second to collect very precise measurements for scientists to analyze. The ATLAS will focus on two areas: changes to the earth's ice sheet and sea ice thickness change.
3) Festival of tourism 'Paryatan Parv' to begin across country today
•Home Minister Rajnath Singh will inaugurate the event at Rajpath Lawns in New Delhi.
•The second edition of Paryatan Parv is being organized by the Ministry of Tourism in collaboration with other Central Ministries, State Governments and Stakeholders.
•AIR Correspondent reports that the idea behind the festival is to draw focus on the benefits of tourism, showcasing the cultural diversity of the country and reinforcing the principle of Tourism for All.
4) Moutaz Mousa Abdallah becomes Sudan's new PM
•Moutaz Mousa Abdallah has become the Sudan's new Prime Minister. A 21-member cabinet was sworn in at the presidential palace in Khartoum on Saturday. Mousa Abdallah is also holding the finance portfolio in a bid to revive the country's ailing economy.
•Sudan has been grappling with an acute foreign exchange shortage and inflation above 65 percent for several months, prompting President Omar al-Bashir last Sunday to sack the previous cabinet to fix the situation.
•Bashir had initially nominated Abdallah Hamdok as the new finance minister, but Sudan's official news agency SUNA reported on Saturday that Hamdok declined to accept the post.
5) Mountaineers Satyarup & Mousumi climb Asia's highest volcanic peak Mount Damavand in Iran
•Mountaineers Satyarup Siddhanta and Mousumi Khatua created history by climbing Asia's highest volcanic peak Mount Damavand in Iran.
•Mount Damavand is the highest peak and also a potentially active volcano.
•The expedition team comprised of three members, Siddhanta, Mousumi and Bhaswati Chatterjee.
•According to a release, the trio left for Iran on 6th of this month, the team had to scale the summit within a very short span of time to avoid the Sulphur exposure related hazards.
6) MC Mary Kom Wins Gold At Silesian Open Boxing In Poland
•Indian five-time world boxing champion M C Mary Kom clinched her third gold medal of the year in 48 kg category, while Jyoti Gulia picked up the country’s lone gold in 51 kg of the youth category of the Silesian Open boxing Tournament for women in Gliwice, Poland.
•In the youth competition, Jyoti, a former world champion and India’s only boxer to have qualified for Youth Olympic Games in Argentina, out-classed Poland’s Tatiana Pluta. Former world champion Sarita Devi, however, signed off with a bronze medal in the senior category. In the junior competition, the Indian team produced a terrific performance to sign off with 13 medals six gold, six silver and a bronze.
