Scientists discovered the first plume on 6 January, and the team then kept a careful watch for further activity. Over the following two months, they observed the plumes a few more times, and kept track of the particles of dust therein.

Some of the dust got blown out to space; other particles were recaptured in Bennu's orbit, most of them falling back down to the asteroid's surface. At least four chunks, however, stayed in Bennu orbit - perhaps on their way to becoming miniature asteroid moons.

We've seen plumes before, but Bennu's activity may not bear similarities to the plumes ESA spacecraft Rosetta observed on Comet 67P. Those ones weredusty, but astronomers think they may have been caused by volatile ices sublimating in cavities beneath the comet's surface, causing the cavities to collapse and spew the dust outwards.

The chairman of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (Hyperloop TT), Bibop Gresta, revealed to state news agency WAM that the hyperloop capsule that will be set up in Abu Dhabi has already left the assembly plant in Spain to the southwestern region in France.

Gresta said the capsule will be assembled, tested and optimised in the French city of Toulouse before it will be transported to the UAE.

It was earlier announced that the supersonic train system will be constructed between Abu Dhabi and Dubai in order to considerably reduce the travel time between the two emirates. The whole length of the link is estimated to be around 150 kilometres.

GSLV-F11 is the 13th flight of India’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) and its 7th flight with indigenous Cryogenic Upper Stage (CUS).

GSLV – F11 is ISRO’s fourth generation launch vehicle with three stages. The four liquid strap-ons and a solid rocket motor at the core form the first stage. The second stage of the vehicle is equipped with high thrust engine using liquid fuel. The Cryogenic Upper Stage forms the third and final stage of the vehicle.

GSAT-7A with a lift-off mass of 2250 kg, is a geostationary satellite carrying communication transponders in Ku-band. The Satellite is built to provide communication capability to the users over the Indian region.
               
                l Space Talks

The new research was spurred by the discovery in 2016 of the first bacterium that had naturally evolved to eat plastic, at a waste dump in Japan. Scientists have now revealed the detailed structure of the crucial enzyme produced by the bug.

The international team then tweaked the enzyme to see how it had evolved, but tests showed they had inadvertently made the molecule even better at breaking down the PET (polyethylene terephthalate) plastic used for soft drink bottles. “What actually turned out was we improved the enzyme, which was a bit of a shock,” said Prof John McGeehan, at the University of Portsmouth, UK, who led the research. “It’s great and a real finding."

The mutant enzyme takes a few days to start breaking down the plastic – far faster than the centuries it takes in the oceans. But the researchers are optimistic this can be speeded up even further and become a viable large-scale process.

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“What we are hoping to do is use this enzyme to turn this plastic back into its original components, so we can literally recycle it back to plastic,” said McGeehan. “It means we won’t need to dig up any more oil and, fundamentally, it should reduce the amount of plastic in the environment.”

About 1m plastic bottles are sold each minute around the globe and, with just 14% recycled, many end up in the oceans where they have polluted even the remotest parts, harming marine life and potentially people who eat seafood. “It is incredibly resistant to degradation. Some of those images are horrific,” said McGeehan. “It is one of these wonder materials that has been made a little bit too well.”

However, currently even those bottles that are recycled can only be turned into opaque fibres for clothing or carpets. The new enzyme indicates a way to recycle clear plastic bottles back into clear plastic bottles, which could slash the need to produce new plastic.

“You are always up against the fact that oil is cheap, so virgin PET is cheap,” said McGeehan. “It is so easy for manufacturers to generate more of that stuff, rather than even try to recycle. But I believe there is a public driver here: perception is changing so much that companies are starting to look at how they can properly recycle these.”

The prime crew, led by Russian commander Oleg Skripochka, Nasa astronaut Jessica Meir and Hazza Al Mansoori, were presented to the media on Thursday morning for their final press conference before they are flown to Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on September 10.

The launch will be on September 25, carrying Russian commander Oleg Skripochka, Nasa astronaut Jessica Meir and Emirati Astronaut Hazza Al Mansoori. By this mission, Hazza Al Mansouri will be the first Arab and the First Emirati in space. 

Most people infected with the COVID-19 virus will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment.  Older people, and those with underlying medical problems like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and cancer are more likely to develop serious illness.

The best way to prevent and slow down transmission is be well informed about the COVID-19 virus, the disease it causes and how it spreads. Protect yourself and others from infection by washing your hands or using an alcohol based rub frequently and not touching your face.  

The COVID-19 virus spreads primarily through droplets of saliva or discharge from the nose when an infected person coughs or sneezes, so it’s important that you also practice respiratory etiquette (for example, by coughing into a flexed elbow).

At this time, there are no specific vaccines or treatments for COVID-19. However, there are many ongoing clinical trials evaluating potential treatments. WHO will continue to provide updated information as soon as clinical findings become available.