Current Affairs

Bengaluru-born Ramya Anche to lead NASA's $20 million 'PUFFINS' ultraviolet space telescope mission

18-10-2026 · English

Bengaluru-born Ramya Anche to lead NASA's $20 million 'PUFFINS' ultraviolet space telescope mission

Topics: Science · 18 October 2026 Current Affairs (UPSC / TNPSC / SSC / RRB)

News

Dr Ramya Manjunath Anche, assistant research professor at the University of Arizona's Steward Observatory, will lead – as Principal Investigator – the $20 million 'PUFFINS' SmallSat mission selected under NASA's Astrophysics Pioneers programme (reported 16–17 Oct 2026). PUFFINS = 'Polarimetry in the Ultraviolet to Find Features in INterStellar dust'. Its 10-inch (about 25 cm) ultraviolet telescope will measure the polarisation of light from about 70 stars to study interstellar dust grains smaller than 50 nanometres. It will fly in low-Earth orbit, with launch targeted for 2030. Indian partners: IUCAA (Pune) and IIA (Bengaluru).

Key facts

LeaderDr Ramya Manjunath Anche – University of Arizona, Steward Observatory; grew up in Devanahalli near Bengaluru; enrolled at IIA in 2012 (PhD 2020); moved to the US in 2021
MissionPUFFINS – SmallSat ultraviolet spectropolarimeter
Programme / costNASA Astrophysics Pioneers; $20 million
Science goalInterstellar dust – its interaction with light and magnetic fields; star and planet formation
LaunchTarget 2030; low-Earth orbit
PartnersMcDonald Observatory (Texas), IUCAA Pune, IIA Bengaluru, Austrian and Korean institutes

Background

  • NASA Pioneers programme: started in 2020; astrophysics missions under a $20 million cap using SmallSats, balloons and ISS payloads; lets early- and mid-career scientists lead a mission for the first time. Its 'Pandora' (exoplanets) launched in Jan 2026.
  • Science: Earth's ozone layer absorbs most ultraviolet light, so UV astronomy must be done from space. Interstellar dust scatters, dims (extinction) and polarises starlight; UV spectropolarimetry has not flown in space for nearly three decades.
  • NASA: founded in 1958. Hubble (1990, NASA–ESA) – ultraviolet and visible; James Webb (JWST, 2021, NASA–ESA–CSA) – infrared. India's 'AstroSat' (2015) – its first multi-wavelength space observatory, carrying the UVIT ultraviolet telescope.

Tamil Nadu link: the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA, Bengaluru), where Ramya Anche studied (PhD, 2020), runs two observatories in Tamil Nadu – the 'Vainu Bappu Observatory' at Kavalur in the Javadhu Hills (Tirupattur district) and the 'Kodaikanal Solar Observatory' (1899) in Dindigul district. (No direct Tamil Nadu link of hers is verified.)

Source: The Hindu (16 Oct 2026) via Free Press Kashmir, Time News, NewsBytes, 16–17 Oct 2026; PUFFINS mission website; arXiv 2509.02994

Join our UPSC classroom or online batch: UPSC coaching in Coimbatore · Fees · Call 99941 46662.

Share with friends & study groups
Link to this page from your website / blog (HTML code)
More news from the same day
› India's first field study of dengue vaccine (Qdenga) and mosquito repellents begins at Kadayanallur: Minister Arunraj › 'Thenisai Thendral' composer Deva (75) passes away – laid to rest with State honours and 72-gun salute in Ranipet district › PM-AJAY: 18,093 Scheduled Caste-majority villages declared 'Adarsh Grams' (model villages) › Zero sugar diversion to ethanol in ESY 2026–27 – cane juice, sugar syrup, B-heavy molasses excluded: Centre › US firm Reflect Orbital, which plans to 'sell sunlight at night', books two launches with India's Skyroot Aerospace › North Korea successfully tests a new high-speed torpedo that uses AI to detect and precisely hit targets › India's space economy is about $9 billion now and may reach $40–45 billion in 7–8 years – Minister Jitendra Singh (17 Oct) › Trade margins on anti-cancer drugs capped at 30% – prices may fall by up to 70% All current affairs →

TNPSC Achievers

  • AGATHIYAN

    TNPSC TNPSC