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What is the News?
Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya students have detected Eight Asteroids as part of the Khagolshala Asteroid Search Campaign 2021.
About Khagolshala Asteroid Search Campaign:
- Khagolshala Asteroid Search Campaign(KASC) is an initiative of the Office of Principal Scientific Adviser, Government of India, and SPACE Foundation.
- The campaign is the India chapter of an international student research program that has got students involved in the search for asteroids.
- Under the campaign, high-quality astronomical data sets are distributed to students through the PANSTARRS telescope for analysis and identification of asteroids.
- The students then analyze the data using software, which then leads to potential discoveries.
- These observations feed into the Near-Earth Object(NEO) data being compiled by NASA and the Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL).
- As part of the campaign, Space India has established Khagolshala Astronomy and Space Education Labs (ASELs) across 20 Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas till date.
About Asteroids:
- Asteroids are small, rocky objects that orbit the Sun. Although asteroids orbit the Sun-like planets, they are much smaller than planets.
- There are lots of asteroids in our solar system. Most of them live in the main asteroid belt—a region between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.
About PANSTARRS Telescope:
- Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System (Pan-STARRS) is a telescope located in Hawaii, US.
- The telescope consists of astronomical cameras, telescopes and a computing facility that is surveying the sky for moving or variable objects on a continual basis. It is also producing accurate astrometry and photometry of already-detected objects.
About SPACE Foundation:
- SPACE Foundation was established in 2001. It aims to popularize science and inculcate scientific temperament among the masses, especially students in India.
