Science News Roundup: U.S. astronaut Rubio says 'good to be home' after landing in Kazakhstan; Right again, Einstein! Study shows how antimatter responds to gravity and more

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

Japan's MUFG Bank, two others lead $290 million Sierra Space fundraising -Nikkei

MUFG Bank is among three Japanese firms leading a $290-million fundraising round for U.S. spaceship company Sierra Space, spearheading a commercial "spaceport" project in the southwestern region of Oita, the Nikkei daily said on Tuesday. Despite recent setbacks for national space missions, Japanese companies aiming to foray into space are increasingly deepening ties with private companies, from American giants such as SpaceX to home-grown startups.

U.S. astronaut Rubio says 'good to be home' after landing in Kazakhstan

U.S. astronaut Frank Rubio, who broke the record for the longest continuous space flight by an American, and two Russian cosmonauts landed in the steppe of Kazakhstan on Wednesday after more than a year on the International Space Station (ISS). Their Soyuz MS-23 capsule undocked from the ISS a minute earlier than scheduled, and took around three and a half hours to make it down to Earth, landing southeast of the city of Zhezqazghan.

Right again, Einstein! Study shows how antimatter responds to gravity

In the world of "Star Trek," the starship Enterprise zips through space using a warp drive that harnesses antimatter. Suffice it to say, such technology remains in the realm of science fiction. But scientists are making important strides toward better understanding antimatter. Researchers said on Wednesday they have demonstrated for the first time that antimatter responds to gravity the same way matter does - by falling, as one might expect - in an experiment that once again buttressed physicist Albert Einstein's bedrock theory of general relativity.

(With inputs from agencies.)