UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS

The first International Space Summit opened at the Grand Palais in Paris, France, on 9 September 2026, bringing together delegations from around 120 countries and roughly 2,000 participants.

Australia and India expanded cooperation in the space sector on 8 September 2026 with five new industry partnerships announced at the 9th Bengaluru Space Expo in Bengaluru.

The Indian Army has established the AASHVAST facility in New Delhi to examine the electronic hardware, firmware and software used in military drones.

The Defence Ministry is taking up a proposal to modify the Su-30MKI so it can employ the RVV-BD, a Russian very-long-range air-to-air missile. 

Recently, OpenAI released GPT-6 Astra, its newest frontier artificial intelligence model. OpenAI describes Astra as its most capable model for complex end-to-end work, with major advances in computer use, software engineering, scientific research and cybersecurity.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval on 4 September 2026 to camizestrant, marketed under the brand name Etcamah by AstraZeneca.

The NITI Aayog report ‘Ease of Doing R&D in India’ highlights several structural challenges in India’s Research and Development (R&D) ecosystem. 

ISRO has scheduled the GSLV-F17/EOS-05 mission for September 4, 2026. The launch is scheduled for 2:55 AM IST from Sriharikota.

Researchers associated with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the University of Hyderabad (UoH) have developed a next-generation energetic compound called BAM-H24 for use in solid rocket propulsion.

Hyderabad-based defence technology start up Apollyon Dynamics has developed the Ahuti Mk II, an electric multirotor interceptor drone that achieved a certified top speed of 498 kmph.