Science News Roundup: Russian Soyuz blasts off for ISS; value of kilogram to be redefined

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

Russian Soyuz blasts off for ISS in first launch since accident

An unmanned rocket carrying cargo blasted off into space on Friday in the first launch of a Russian-made Soyuz-FG rocket from Kazakhstan's Baikonur cosmodrome since a dramatic aborted launch in October. The rocket took off with a Progress MS-10 spacecraft at 18:14 GMT (00:14 local time) carrying supplies to the International Space Station (ISS).

How much does a kilogram weigh? Depends on your 'Planck constant'

It may not change how you buy bananas, but scientists have voted to redefine the value of a kilogram, in what they called a landmark decision that will boost the accuracy of scientific measurements. Since 1889, a kilogram has been defined by a shiny lump of platinum-iridium kept in a special glass case and known as the International Prototype of the Kilogram. It is housed at the headquarters of the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (whose French acronym is BIPM), just outside Paris.

(With inputs from agencies.)