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Chandrayaan-3 Rover Rolls Onto Moon's Surface as India Celebrates

A man reads a daily hindi newspaper with front page reporting on successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the south pole of the Moon, in New Delhi on August 24, 2023. (Photo by Arun SANKAR / AFP)
A man reads a daily hindi newspaper with front page reporting on successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the south pole of the Moon, in New Delhi on August 24, 2023. (Photo by Arun SANKAR / AFP)
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Chandrayaan-3 Rover Rolls Onto Moon's Surface as India Celebrates

A man reads a daily hindi newspaper with front page reporting on successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the south pole of the Moon, in New Delhi on August 24, 2023. (Photo by Arun SANKAR / AFP)
A man reads a daily hindi newspaper with front page reporting on successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the south pole of the Moon, in New Delhi on August 24, 2023. (Photo by Arun SANKAR / AFP)

The moon rover of India's Chandrayaan-3 exited the spacecraft on Thursday to begin its exploration of the lunar surface and conduct experiments to help future probes, as the media hailed the historic landing as the country's biggest scientific feat. The spacecraft landed on the unexplored south pole of the moon on Wednesday evening, days after Russia's Luna-25 failed, making India the first country to achieve this feat.
The soft, textbook touchdown by the lander after a failed attempt in 2019 sparked widespread jubilation and celebration in the world's most populous country. "The Ch-3 Rover ramped down from the Lander and India took a walk on the moon!" the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
ISRO chief S. Somanath said the "Pragyan" rover had two instruments to conduct element and chemical composition experiments.
"More than that it will do the roving on the surface, we will also do a robotic path planning exercise which is very important for us for future exploration," Somanath told Indian news agency ANI, in which Reuters has a minority stake. Accomplished with a budget of about 6.15 billion rupees ($75 million), this was India's second attempt to touch down on the moon. A previous mission in 2019, Chandrayaan-2, successfully deployed an orbiter but its lander crashed. Chandrayaan means "moon vehicle" in Hindi and Sanskrit. Chandrayaan-3 is expected to remain functional for two weeks which equals one lunar day when its solar-powered equipment is built to last. The moon's rugged south pole is coveted because of its water ice, which is believed to be capable of providing fuel, oxygen, and drinking water for future missions, but its rough terrain makes landing challenging.
People across the country tuned in to watch the landing on Wednesday, with nearly 7 million people viewing the YouTube live stream alone.
Prayers were also held at places of worship, and schools organized live screenings of the spectacle for students.
Besides boosting India's standing as a space power and its reputation for cost-competitive space engineering, the landing is also seen as a major moment of national pride.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was being congratulated by everyone since Wednesday evening and the world saw the successful landing not as one country's achievement but that of all of humanity.

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Varieties

'My Dream is Broken': Japan Visa Rules Push Out Foreign Residents

A police officer bikes past a convenience store in the Okubo–Shin area in Tokyo, a neighborhood known for its large immigrant communities. Andrew CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP
A police officer bikes past a convenience store in the Okubo–Shin area in Tokyo, a neighborhood known for its large immigrant communities. Andrew CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP
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'My Dream is Broken': Japan Visa Rules Push Out Foreign Residents

A police officer bikes past a convenience store in the Okubo–Shin area in Tokyo, a neighborhood known for its large immigrant communities. Andrew CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP
A police officer bikes past a convenience store in the Okubo–Shin area in Tokyo, a neighborhood known for its large immigrant communities. Andrew CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP

In a tiny Tokyo restaurant filled with the smell of Nepalese dumplings, Budhathoki Samjhana surveys the business she built from scratch but may now have to give up as Japan tightens visa rules.

Even though Japan has a rapidly ageing population and is suffering labor shortages in many sectors, opposition to immigration is growing and the new rules for business manager visas were introduced by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in late 2025.

Nepalese national Budhathoki, who spent a decade away from her young daughter to create a new life for them in Tokyo, faces expulsion from the country because she may not be able to meet the specifications.

"I always wanted to become a bridge between Japan and Nepal... but my dream is broken," the 38-year-old told AFP from the capital's Okubo district, where her restaurant is nestled alongside Vietnamese cafes, Indian curry houses and Korean barbecue joints.

The stricter rules come as some residents complain of overtourism and soaring land prices in part due to foreign investment, prompting a push by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi for tighter regulations on foreign nationals.

Her government announced last month a sharp increase in visa fees for some tourists for the first time in nearly 50 years, hiking the cost for single and multiple entry permits five-fold.

And while business manager visa holders have a three-year grace period to meet the new conditions, some thriving businesses -- including many popular eateries in Okubo -- fear they won't manage.

"The biggest problem is the increase in capital requirement to 30 million yen ($185,000) from 5 million ($30,000)," said Budhathoki, leafing through receipts as the scent of freshly cooked Nepalese momos wafts in from the kitchen.

"It's impossible".

Budhathoki came to Japan as a student in 2016 and saved for years to open her first restaurant in 2023.

After opening her third eatery in January, she finally brought her 14-year-old daughter from Nepal following a decade of separation and she is now enrolled in a Japanese school.

"Now, I'm very worried not about myself but about my daughter... What did I do to her?" she said.

"My heart pounds when I think about the next visa renewal."

- 'Zero illegal' residents -

Indian restaurant owner Manish Kumar, who has lived in Japan for three decades, has already been told his business manager visa won't be renewed, in spite of the grace period.

He doesn't know exactly why but visa experts say immigration officials have become more rigorous, demanding more documentation including tax receipts and social insurance premiums.

"My children only speak Japanese... and we're told to go back to India," Kumar tearfully explained at a gathering about the visa issue last month.

More than 67,800 people have signed a petition calling for the suspension of the new rules.

"What happened to him was shocking," petition organizer Taro Tsurugashima said of Kumar, who ran a restaurant in Saitama, near Tokyo, for 18 years.

"He is one of my friends, and he is a trusted member of a business community", Tsurugashima told AFP.

The tightening of regulations comes after the justice ministry in May last year announced a "zero illegal foreign residents" plan to address public concern.

Super-ageing Japan has one of the world's lowest birth rates, and increasing immigration could help reverse its falling population.

But foreigners were a major issue in last year's upper house election which saw the sharp rise of the "Japanese-first" Sanseito party, which describes immigration as a "silent invasion".

Since taking office in October, Takaichi has pledged stricter screening.

The business manager visa, meant to attract entrepreneurs, had become an easy route for would-be immigrants without real business plans, said Kazuki Yuda, an administrative affairs advisor.

The visa's popularity surged, with around 46,000 holders by mid-2025 -- up 70 percent from 2020. About half were Chinese nationals, according to government data.

"We also started to see unscrupulous real estate agents telling people that they could secure a visa simply by purchasing property in Japan," he said.

Daisuke Komori, another advisor on administrative affairs, told AFP that he had declined potential clients, "many of whom were Chinese", seeking to move chiefly for their children's education or to leave China.

However Yuda and Komori both warned that the tougher measures were impacting "small restaurant owners" and "young entrepreneurs", as well as the system's abusers.

At an April parliament session, Justice Minister Hiroshi Hiraguchi said he had no plan to review the rules, but his ministry intends "to respond based on individual circumstances".

Among other new requirements, a business manager visa holder must employ a Japanese national or long-term resident.

But with the shrinking population, "there's not enough Japanese workers", a 30-year-old Bangladeshi man who runs a trading business in Tokyo told AFP.

Under these circumstances, "who will apply for a job at a company whose manager's status is unstable with a visa that has to be renewed every year?"

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Cat-linked Parasite is ‘Major Cause of Vision Loss’

Awareness protects people from being infected with the parasite (Getty) 
Awareness protects people from being infected with the parasite (Getty) 
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Cat-linked Parasite is ‘Major Cause of Vision Loss’

Awareness protects people from being infected with the parasite (Getty) 
Awareness protects people from being infected with the parasite (Getty) 

As much as a third of the world’s population could be infected with a parasite from cats that might lead to retina-damaging eye infection and permanent vision loss, a groundbreaking new study warns.

Although the disease, toxoplasmosis, is preventable and treatable, researchers call for it to be formally recognized as a neglected tropical disease (NTD) by the World Health Organization (WHO), according to The Independent.

“Toxoplasmosis is a leading eye infection and a major cause of vision loss worldwide, yet it receives limited attention in global health agendas,” said Justine Smith, an author of the study published in the journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.

With WHO’s recognition, we can make substantial progress in prevention and management of this infection,” said Dr Smith, an ophthalmologist from Flinders University in Australia.

People may be infected with the parasite either through eating undercooked meat, contaminated produce or water, or exposure to cat feces.

Cats themselves may get infected from eating raw meat, birds, or rodents.

Curbing the disease spread would require integration of veterinary strategies, improved farm health safety, management of stray cats, and safe disposal of animal waste, scientists say.

It occurs mainly in communities with limited access to healthcare, safe food, clean water and prenatal care.

In most severe cases, infection with the parasite may lead to inflammation of the retina and permanent blindness; scientists warn.

Researchers warn that currently there is less research funding and policy attention for toxoplasmosis than diseases with similar or lower impacts.

A formal WHO recognition as an NTD would unlock funding for research, prevention and treatment.

“Without this recognition, we can expect limited progress in the prevention and management of toxoplasmosis to continue,” researchers warn.

Varieties

Why Some Europeans Resist Air Conditioning, Even Amid Deadly Heatwaves

People use an umbrella to protect themselves from the sun, amid a heatwave, at Castle Square in Warsaw, Poland, June 28, 2026. (Reuters)
People use an umbrella to protect themselves from the sun, amid a heatwave, at Castle Square in Warsaw, Poland, June 28, 2026. (Reuters)
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Why Some Europeans Resist Air Conditioning, Even Amid Deadly Heatwaves

People use an umbrella to protect themselves from the sun, amid a heatwave, at Castle Square in Warsaw, Poland, June 28, 2026. (Reuters)
People use an umbrella to protect themselves from the sun, amid a heatwave, at Castle Square in Warsaw, Poland, June 28, 2026. (Reuters)

As climate change drives more severe and prolonged heatwaves, it seems that turning to air conditioners is the most logic option to save lives.

But in Europe, many residents and officials are still reluctant to use air conditioning although the heat takes an increasingly deadly toll. A big part of the reason is many European countries consider air conditioning as an unnecessary, costly, carbon emissions-heavy indulgence.

France's record heat last week has been linked to around 1,000 deaths of mostly elderly people. Heat danger is a problem being felt across Europe, which has the oldest population of any continent and is also the world's fastest-warming continent, according to CBS News.

The continent also has more heat-related deaths per capita than anywhere else in the world, yet it has fewer hot days. According to World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, there have been more than 1,300 heat-related excess deaths in Europe since June 21.

European officials are calling for change, but not the kind that may seem obvious — like air conditioning.

A 2007 study found that air conditioning can cut heat-related deaths by 75%, but only about 20% of Europeans have air conditioning in their homes. In the US, it's about 90%.

“My honest response is I don't think that should be the solution anywhere,” Ine Vandecasteele, an urban adaptation expert with the European Environment Agency, told CBS News.

“It is an immediate response, which can support essentially those who may be vulnerable in hospitals, or in very short term can help. But in the longer term, what happens is, installing more air conditioning actually emits more heat into our environment, so it will actually increase the speed of warming,” she added.

It's also more expensive. In Europe, energy prices are much higher than in the US. European governments have instead funded other ways to cool historic and densely populated cities, such as public cooling stations.

In Rome, wearable technology is distributed to monitor the elderly, who are by far the most at risk in the increasing heat. But Italy has also embraced air conditioning more than other European nations.

About 56% of all homes in Italy had air conditioning as of 2024, according to the National Institute of Statistics, and the country accounts for one-third of all electricity use on air conditioning in the European Union, according to EU data.

A recent survey in France found that one in six people said they would rather suffer for the sake of the environment. Vandecasteele told CBS News she doesn't find that surprising.

“We're not doing this for us,” she said. “We're doing this for the future generations.”