The University of Tokyo has inaugurated the Atacama Observatory (TAO). It has been built on the summit of Cerro Chajnantor in the Antofagasta Region, at 5,640 meters above sea level.

TAO also houses a 6.5-meter optical-infrared telescope. The telescope will focus on understanding the nature of the universe, according to Emol’s academic section.

After 26 years of planning and construction, TAO is officially now the highest observatory in the world, and has been awarded a Guinness World Record.

This new observatory is located near the ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array) radio telescope, one of the largest astronomical projects in the world, in which an international association of countries participates.

World Turtle Day, celebrated on May 23rd each year, highlights the importance of protecting turtles and their habitats. In India, several beaches are known for their turtle nesting sites, where you can witness the incredible sight of turtle hatchlings making their way to the sea. Here are ten scenic beaches in India where you can experience this natural wonder.

American Tortoise Rescue, an organization dedicated to the well-being and rescue of tortoises and turtles, started World Turtle Day in 2000. The day encourages people to learn about and understand these creatures better.

Buddha Purnima is one of the most important festival. Buddha Purnima 2024 holds a great religious significance in Hindu religion. This day is celebrated across the world by Lord Buddha followers with great grandeur and enthusiasm. This day is celebrated as the birth anniversary of Gautam Buddha. This is going to be 2586th birth anniversary of Mahatma Buddha.

The day is celebrated on Full Moon day or Purnima Tithi in the Hindu Month Vaishakha. This year, Lord Buddha's birthday is being celebrated today i.e., on May 23, 2024.

The Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD), Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) today with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) India on Digitalization of Vaccine Cold Chain Management, Capacity Building, and Communication Planning.

The MOU was signed today at “We the People Hall”, UNDP Country office, Lodhi Estate, New Delhi between Smt. Alka Upadhyay, Secretary, Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying and Ms. Caitlin Wiesen. UNDP Resident Representative in India. This strategic partnership aims to enhance the digitalization of vaccine cold chain management, capacity building, and communication planning in India.

Addressing the Meeting Smt. Alka Upadhyay highlighted Strong and efficient supply chains equipped with reliable cold chain equipment are vital to increase immunization coverage and outreach. She added, Considering the large human population and livestock population in India with 142.86 Crore people, 53.57 Crore farm animals and 85.18 Crore poultry population, catering all the veterinary services to the doorstep of farmers and to ensure the nutritional security of the large population is a challenge.

The Indian 4x400m mixed relay team comprising Muhammad Ajmal, Jyothika Sri, Amoj Jacob and Subha Venkatesan broke the national record at the Asian Relay Championships 2024 on Monday.

The team won gold in the event clocking 3:14.12, shaving 0.22 seconds off the previous NR.

Ajmal and Subha were a part of the Indian side that held the previous national record of 3:14.34, achieved at the Asian Games 2023.

Sri Lanka and Vietnam won silver and bronze in the event, respectively.

India’s Ekta Bhyan secured the gold medal with a season’s best throw of 20.12m in the women’ F51 club throw competition at the World Para Athletic Championships here.

A day after Deepthi Jeevanji clinched the gold medal in women’s 400m T20 category race, Indian athletes continued their impressive run with Ekta producing the goods to finish in the top, while Kashish Lakra took the silver with an effort of 14.56m.

Ekta, a Haryana Civil Services (HCS) officer, had won a bronze medal in the Asian Para Games China.

The 38-year-old, who took up sports after her selection in the Haryana government as HCS officer, also won gold medal in the club throw event at the 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta. She had also qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics.

European Union member states on Tuesday gave final agreement to the world’s first major law for regulating artificial intelligence, as institutions around the world race to introduce curbs for the technology.

The EU Council said it had approved the AI Act — a groundbreaking piece of regulatory law that sets comprehensive rules surrounding artificial intelligence technology.

“The adoption of the AI act is a significant milestone for the European Union,” Mathieu Michel, Belgium’s secretary of state for digitization said in a Tuesday statement.

“With the AI act, Europe emphasizes the importance of trust, transparency and accountability when dealing with new technologies while at the same time ensuring this fast-changing technology can flourish and boost European innovation,” Michel added.

State-owned Bank of Maharashtra recorded the highest growth rate last fiscal in terms of total business and deposit mobilisation among public sector lenders at a time when most banks are facing difficulty in achieving double-digit growth.

The Pune-headquartered lender has registered a 15.94 per cent rise in the total business (domestic) in FY24, followed by State Bank of India (SBI) with 13.12 per cent growth, according to published financial numbers of the public sector banks (PSBs).

However, SBI's total business (deposit and advances) was about 16.7 times higher at ₹79,52,784 crore compared to ₹4,74,411 crore of Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) in absolute terms.

Pakistan's Sirbaz Khan scaled the tallest mountain in the world, Mount Everest, without using any supplementary oxygen.

Sirbaz Khan, an ace mountaineer from Pakistan, achieved yet another feat when he scaled Mount Everest without any supplementary oxygen, reported local media platform Geo TV.

Sirbaz Khan reached the top of the world's highest mountain at 12:30 pm local time, and became the only second Pakistani to scale the mountain without using oxygen.

Khan had previously scaled the 8849-metre peak using bottled oxygen. The only other person in Pakistan to achieve this feat is mountaineer Sajid Sidpara.

International Day of Biodiversity 2024: Biodiversity, the incredible variety of living organisms that inhabit our planet, is the foundation upon which human existence and well-being depend. This concept, first coined by Walter G. Rosen in 1985, encompasses the diversity of all life forms.

However, in recent decades, biodiversity has faced numerous threats, including habitat loss and fragmentation, overexploitation of natural resources, pollution, invasive species, and climate change, which is being driven by human activities and has led to the extinction of many species and the degradation of ecosystems worldwide.

To address this pressing issue and raise awareness about the importance of preserving biodiversity, the United Nations established the International Day for Biological Diversity. Here is all you need to know about the day.