Shivalik Express: World’s second solar train

By Gaurav Bhatia, TNN | Dec 27, 2012, 05.53 AM IST

CHANDIGARH: The world's second solar train, Shivalik Express was officially launched on Friday. Just like the Himalayan Queen, this train is also equipped with solar panels.

Shivalik Express had been running between Kalka and Shimla for the past some years. The Northern Railways thought of converting it into a solar-powered train recently.

A lot of effort has gone into its making. R K Gupta, senior divisional electrical engineer at Ambala division of Northern Railways who claims it to his brainchild, said that he has been working on it for the past two months.

All lights in the new train have been replaced by LEDs and the illumination level has also been increased from 20 to 42 lux in all the seven coaches of the train.

Solar-powered sockets have been installed so that passengers can recharge their mobiles and cameras with ease, said Gupta, a passout of IIT Delhi.

Gupta, who recently got the president's medal for energy conservation, said converting the train into solar power required Rs 2.25 lakh but the benefit far outweighs the cost incurred.

He said that by turning the train solar, he has been able to reduce 435kg of weight from each of the seven coaches. By reducing the weight, the train will save diesel worth around Rs 1.50 lakh per annum, he pointed out.

The total savings would come to Rs 12.35 lakh per year as it includes the savings of wear and tear, maintenance, spare parts and manpower, Gupta averred.

The train departs daily from Kalka station in the morning at 5.30.

Comet ISON

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Introducing Comet ISON
Image Credit & Copyright: Ligustri Rolando Explanation: Could this dim spot brighten into one of the brightest comets ever? It's possible. Alternatively, the comet could break up when it gets closer to the Sun, or brighten much more modestly. Sky enthusiasts the world over are all abuzz , though, from the more optimistic speculations -- that the newly discovered C/2012 S1 (ISON) could develop a spectacular tail or briefly approach the brightness of the full Moon toward the end of 2013. Comet ISON currently is very faint but is just visible at magnitude 18 in the above image. The comet, discovered just over a week ago from Russia by Vitali Nevski (Belarus) and Artyom Novichonok (Russia), is currently falling toward the Sun from between the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn. In early 2013 October it will pass very near Mars and possibly be visible to rovers and orbiting spacecraft. Comet ISON appears on course to achieve sungrazer status as it passes within a solar diameter of Sun's surface in late 2013 November. Whatever survives will then pass nearest the Earth in late 2013 December. Astronomers around the world will be tracking this large dirty snowball closely to better understand its nature and how it might evolve during the next 15 months.

Why phablets are becoming popular with students

TNN Dec 25, 2012, 03.59AM IST

(If you've got it, flaunt…)

VISAKHAPATNAM: If you've got it, flaunt it, is the mantra Gen Y lives by. And the latest trend taking college students by storm is the phablet, a gadget which has the features of a smartphone and tablet.
An increasing number of students are now giving traditional desktops and laptops a miss to connect with the latest that technology has to offer. Endorsing the trend, Andhra University student Govind said, "Earlier I was using a smartphone and also had a tablet but later realised that a phablet was better as you can make calls and use it as a tablet as well. I switched over to one and it has made life easier!"

Shravan Kumar, a third year student of AU College of Engineering, who is soon planning to graduate to a phablet, says, "The processing speed is high, you can access the internet much faster and on the go. You can connect to social networking sites, make presentation, play games, watch movies, videos, listen to songs and all that at an affordable cost, " said Kumar.
The trend has sent cash registers ringing at electronics store in the city.
Nageshwara Rao, another electronics goods showroom owner, confirmed a similar spurt in sales. "Phablet sales have shot up by 35% over the past month or so. There is a demand for phablets across models and price ranges. About six months ago, it was more of smartphones that were in demand. Today, the phablets are giving them a run for their money." The price of phablets starting from Rs 6000 is also a major draw. "Ever since phablets hit the market, smart phone sales have dipped. Last month we sold about 100 smartphones and about 25 phablets as against around 150 smartphones per month earlier."