A SpaceX Dragon spacecraft carrying four astronauts successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS) on Sunday, paving the way for a long-anticipated rescue of two astronauts stuck, Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, in space.
The arrival of Nasa astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Japan’s Takuya Onishi, and Russia’s Kirill Peskov marks the beginning of Crew-10’s mission and the impending return of Williams and Wilmore who have spent an unexpected nine months in space.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk confirmed the docking in a post on X, stating, “SpaceX Dragon docks with Space Station.”
According to Nasa, the spacecraft docked at 12:04 am EDT while the ISS was orbiting 260 miles above the Atlantic Ocean. Following docking, standard leak checks and pressurisation procedures were conducted before the hatch was scheduled to open at approximately 1:45 am EDT.
Wilmore and Williams near end of their prolonged stay
With Crew-10’s arrival, the station now hosts 11 astronauts, including members of Expedition 72. However, this number will soon reduce, as Nasa astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams, along with two other Crew-9 members, prepare to return to Earth after a lengthy, unintended stay.
Wilmore and Williams initially reached the ISS in June 2024 aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, expecting to stay for just a week. However, as reported by AFP, technical failures with the Starliner, including propulsion issues and helium leaks, forced Nasa to leave the spacecraft unmanned for its return to Earth in September, extending the astronauts’ stay indefinitely.
Speaking after the Crew-10 docking, Williams expressed her relief and excitement, saying, “It was a wonderful day. Great to see our friends arrive.”
Their situation even drew political attention, with US President Donald Trump claiming he had authorized Musk to bring the astronauts home sooner than Nasa had planned.
Nasa, however, never officially classified them as “stranded,” maintaining that they were safe on the ISS and actively engaged in scientific research and maintenance work.
Crew-10’s mission
Before Wilmore and Williams depart, they will spend the next few days transitioning responsibilities to the new arrivals.
As per Nasa, Crew-10 will undertake over 200 scientific experiments, including tests on flammability in space and studies on the effects of microgravity on the human body. These experiments will contribute to Nasa’s long-term plans for deep-space exploration under the Artemis program.
Once the handover is complete, Wilmore, Williams, Nasa’s Nick Hague,and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will board the SpaceX Crew Dragon Freedom capsule for their return journey. Weather permitting, their splashdown off the Florida coast is expected no earlier than March 19.
This mission has increased SpaceX’s growing dominance in Nasa’s crew transport strategy.
According to AP, delays in Boeing’s Starliner program have reinforced the reliance on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, which has completed multiple successful missions since becoming Nasa’s primary astronaut carrier in 2020.
Science Quiz | The places where things stay the same
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This map shows radiation leftover from the Big Bang right after it happened. It depicts how the temperature of the radiation is anisotropic: different at different distances. What’s this radiation called? Credit: NASA
Published – April 23, 2025 01:05 pm IST
Vivo has launched a new T series model in India, the Vivo T4 5G, at under Rs.25000. The smartphone is packed with a massive 7300mAh battery, a Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 processor, and others, providing plenty of attractive features. But, does it compete with other smartphone models under the same price bracket? Well, to gain a greater understanding, we have compared the smartphone with Oppo’s latest F series model, the Oppo F29 5G, which was launched earlier this year with some great durability features. Therefore, know how the Vivo T4 5G compares to Oppo F29 5G and which smartphone should you buy under Rs.25000.
Also read: Vivo V50e review in 10 points: What’s good and what’s not
The Vivo T4 5G is 7.9mm slim and weighs only 199 grams, which is impressive considering the massive battery size. It features a circular camera module on the rear panel housing two lenses and an LED ring light. It also offers IP65 and MIL-STD-810H ratings for enhanced durability. On the other hand, the Oppo F29 5G comes with a unique and durable design, as it has received military-grade certification as well as three IP ratings of IP66, IP68, and IP69.
For display, the Vivo T4 5G features a 6.77-inch quad-curved AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and up to 5000nits peak brightness. Whereas, the Oppo F29 comes with a 6.7-inch AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and up to 1200nits peak brightness.
Also read: Vivo T4 5G launched with Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 SoC in India at Rs.21999- All details
The Vivo T4 5G is powered by the Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 chipset paired with up to 12GB RAM and 256GB internal storage. On the other hand, the Oppo F29 is equipped with a Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 processor, offering smooth day-to-day performance. Both smartphone offers plenty of AI-powered features.
For lasting performance, the Vivo T4 5G is backed by a 7300mAh battery that supports 90W fast charging. Whereas, the Oppo F29 comes with,500mAh battery that comes with 45W SUPERVOOC charging support
The Vivo T4 5G features a dual camera setup that includes 50MP Sony IMX882 primary camera and a 2MP secondary camera. Whereas, the Oppo F29 also features a dual camera system with 50MP main sensor and a 2MP depth sensor. For selfies, Vivo T4 5G features 32MP selfie camera, and Oppo F29 features 16MP front camera.
The Vivo T4 5G comes at a starting price of Rs.21999 for 8GB+128GB storage variant, and the Oppo F29 comes at a price of Rs.23999 for a similar storage variant.
In a groundbreaking discovery that could rewrite our understanding of Earth’s inner dynamics, geologists have revealed that the Indian Plate, the massive slab of Earth’s crust carrying the subcontinent, is splitting in two. A part of it is peeling away and sinking deep into the Earth’s mantle, a process known as delamination. This hidden and previously undetected geological activity could have far-reaching consequences, not just for India but for the entire planet. It may alter earthquake patterns, reshape landscapes, and challenge long-standing scientific theories about plate tectonics. The findings have stunned experts and sparked urgent calls for deeper research into Earth’s shifting crust.
The Indian Plate has long been a key player in one of the world’s most dramatic geological collisions, the crash into the Eurasian Plate that formed the Himalayas. But now, scientists have found something even more astonishing beneath its surface.
Using advanced seismic analysis and helium isotope tracking in the springs of Tibet, researchers have uncovered evidence of delamination, a rare process where the dense lower part of a tectonic plate peels away and sinks into the Earth’s mantle. This means the Indian Plate is effectively tearing apart, creating a massive vertical rift deep underground.
“We didn’t know continents could behave this way,” said Douwe van Hinsbergen, a geodynamicist at Utrecht University. “This changes some of our most fundamental assumptions about solid earth science.”
The discovery has serious implications for earthquake risk in the Himalayan region, already one of the most seismically active zones on Earth. According to Stanford geophysicist Simon Klemperer, the tearing and sinking of the plate could create new stress points in the Earth’s crust, triggering more frequent and potentially more powerful quakes.
One major concern is the Cona-Sangri Rift in the Tibetan Plateau, a deep fracture that could be directly tied to the ongoing delamination. If this connection is confirmed, regions along this rift could face heightened seismic danger in the years ahead.
The study, published in the American Geophysical Union, not only reveals the Indian Plate’s splitting but also suggests that other continental plates might be undergoing similar processes. Scientists are now scanning regions worldwide for signs of comparable plate behaviour, a move that could revolutionise how we understand everything from mountain formation to plate tectonics itself.
“This could be a missing piece in our puzzle of how continents evolve and interact,” said Fabio Capitanio, a geodynamicist at Monash University, who cautions that the findings are still early-stage. “It’s just a snapshot, and much more data is needed to understand the full picture.”
If confirmed, this discovery could explain long-standing mysteries about how and why certain mountain ranges form, and even help scientists make better predictions about future earthquakes and geological hazards. More importantly, it opens a new frontier in Earth science, one that challenges old models and demands a fresh look at how our planet works.
For now, scientists continue to monitor seismic waves and chemical signatures in the region, hoping to unravel the evolving story of a continent in motion and the silent, subterranean split that could shake the world.
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