Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

UPSC prelims have been mixing up the contents from various subjects over the year.
Science and Tech is one of the most important subject among them.
Basic sciences are not being asked much now.
But the basic ncerts and news items have to be studied by every aspirant.
More of technological topics in news are being asked since 2016.
Eg – Research, 5G, Internet of things, Virtual reality, Augmented reality etc
Vysh IAS shall cover every needed topic, from books and news, in 3 tests (300 MCQs).

This Second Science Test includes mcqs related to –

NCERTs, Space tech, Astronomical sciences, Defence etc

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ1
“Kessler Syndrome” , often seen in news relates to ?

Options
A. Economy
B. Outer Space
C. Human Body
D. Food and Nutrition

Answer – B

The Kessler syndrome (also called the Kessler effect collisional cascading or ablation cascade),
proposed by the NASA scientist Donald J. Kessler in 1978, is a scenario in which the density of
objects in low earth orbit (LEO) is high enough that collisions between objects could cause a
cascade where each collision generates space debris that increases the likelihood of further
collisions. One implication is that the distribution of debris in orbit could render space activities and
the use of satellites in specific orbital ranges infeasible for many generations

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ2
“Sagittarius A”, seen recently in news is a ?

Options
A. Cluster constellation
B. Monster Black hole
C. Trojan Asteroid
D. Gravitational wave

Answer - B
Last month, scientists announced the discovery of thousands of black holes at the heart of our
galaxy. Now, you can explore the monster black hole at the core of the Milky Way that's surrounded
by that black-hole swarm, thanks to a new virtual tour released by NASA. The individual black holes
are estimated to be five to 30 times the mass of our sun, and all were found within three light-years
from the monster black hole, called Sagittarius A*.
https://www.space.com/40741-milky-way-black-hole-video-tour.html

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Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ3
Gaofen-11 satellite and Long march carrier rocket seen in news relates to which country?

Options
A. North Korea B. France C. Japan D. China

Answer – D China launches high-resolution optical remote sensing Earth observation Gaofen-
11 satellite to monitor Belt and Road Initiative. The Gaofen-11 satellite was launched on a Long
March 4B rocket from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in northern Shanxi Province. It was the
282nd flight mission by a Long March carrier rocket. The satellite can be used for land survey, urban
planning, road network design, agriculture, and disaster relief. Its data will also be used for the Belt
and Road Initiative (BRI), the report said. China had unveiled the BRI in 2013 with an aim to link
Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Gulf region, Africa and Europe with a network of land and sea
routes. China launched the Gaofen project in 2010.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ4
Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite(TESS) and its predecessor Kepler has been in news. Which of
the following statements is false, in this context?

Options
A. TESS and Kepler, both uses “Transit method” to detect exo planet
B. Kepler had a maximum range of 300 light years, while TESS will have a range of 3000 light years
C. TESS will be able to track down more super earth planets because of its more powerful array of
cameras
D. In the 2 year mission of TESS, first year will cover southern hemisphere, and move to north in the
2nd year

Statement B is reversed.
Even though, TESS is the new one. Its range is less – 300 light years. But it will have more
coverage and results because of more powerful camera arrays. Kepler range was 3000 light years.
Kepler was responsible for detecting most of the known exoplanets currently

Both uses transit method – It watches stars for dips in brightness, which indicates that planets
has passed in front of them. This will be verified by repeated observations of patterns. Nearly 85%
of sky will be covered in the 2 year mission of TESS. 1st year – southern hemisphere. 2nd year –
northern hemisphere

TESS is a space telescope for NASA's Explorers program, designed to search for exoplanets using
the transit method in an area 400 times larger than that covered by the Kepler mission. It was
launched on April 18, 2018 atop a Falcon 9(Space X company) rocket. During its primary mission, it
is expected to find more than 20,000 exoplanets compared to about 3,800 exoplanets known when
it launched. TESS cannot detect life . It will simply find out exoplanets, and later those results will be
used for future missions under high power telescopes. It is led by the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology with seed funding from Google

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Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ5
Using a radar instrument on an orbiting spacecraft, scientists have spotted what appears to be a
sizable salt-laden lake under ice on the southern polar plain of XXX, a body of water they called a
possible habitat for microbial life. The reservoir they detected -- roughly 12 miles (20 km) in
diameter, shaped like a rounded triangle and located about a mile (1.5 km) beneath the ice
surface -- represents the first stable body of liquid water ever found on XXX. Here XXX refer to?

Options
A. Jupiter B. Mars C. Venus D. Saturn

Answer – B https://www.news18.com/news/buzz/scientists-have-discovered-an-
underwater-salt-lake-in-mars-which-may-contain-life-1823717.html

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ6
Which of the following are true?
1. When seen from the North Pole, the Earth rotates anti-clock wise
2. The surface velocity of rotation varies from point to point on the Earth.
3. Most rockets are launched from western coast to syncline with west to east direction
of earth’s rotation

Options
A. 1,2,3 B. 1,2 only C. 2,3 only D. 1,3 only

• When seen from the North Pole, the Earth rotates anti-clock wise. It means in general
term, from west to east as we see the sun rising in the east and setting in the west.
• The surface velocity of rotation varies from point to point on the Earth. It is about 1600 km
per hour or about 460 meters in a second near the equator. The velocity gradually reduces
as we move to the poles and it is practically zero there.
• A satellite launched from the sites near the equator towards the east direction will get an
initial boost equal to the velocity of Earth surface. This is similar to an athlete circling
round and round before throwing a discus or a shot put. The initial boost helps in cutting
down the cost of rockets used to launch the satellites. This is the major reason for launching
satellites in the east ward direction from eastern coasts. But this benefit can be taken only
for such satellites which are placed in geo-stationary orbit or which circle the Earth parallel
to the equator. Such satellites are usually communication satellites or satellites used for
scientific research such as ISS.
• There are other satellites which are placed in polar orbits moving across the equator in
north south direction and used mainly for mapping or some times for spying. Such satellites
are generally launched in south ward or north ward direction and therefore cannot take
advantage of the Earth’s rotation.
• Another characteristic of launching satellites is that the launching stations are generally
located near eastern coast line so that, just in case of failure of the launch, the satellite does
not fall on built-up hinterland https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/why-are-all-
satellites-and-missiles-launched-from-the-east-coast/article7202159.ece

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Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ7
MEGHA TROPIQUES often seen in news is a joint venture of ISRO and the space agency of?

Options
A. Russia B. USA C. Israel D. France

Megha-Tropiques satellite was built by ISRO and CNES as a Joint Venture. The satellite is meant to
study water cycle and energy exchanges in tropical region for weather prediction and climate
research. Megha-Tropiques was launched on 12th October 2011 from SDSC, Shriharikota. The
satellite has successfully completed seven years of on-orbit observations with four Science
instruments on board, namely, MADRAS, SAPHIR, SCARAB and ROSA. Megha-Tropiques provides
scientific data on the contribution of the water cycle to the tropical atmosphere, with information
on condensed water in clouds, water vapour in the atmosphere, precipitation, and evaporation.
isro.gov.in/update/13-oct-2018/megha-tropiques-successfully-completes-seven-years-orbit

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ8
“Syzygy” is a term often used in relation to?

Options
A. Buddhism B. Food adulteration C. Astronomy D. Convex mirrors

Answer – C
In astronomy, a syzygy is a straight-line configuration of three or more celestial bodies in a
gravitational system - a conjunction or opposition, especially of the moon with the sun. When sun,
moon and earth are in straight line, the high tides are higher and low tides are lower on the earth, It
is called spring tides which happen on full moon day (earth between sun and moon) or new moon
day (moon between earth and sun)

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Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ9
Project CMB-Bharath seen in news recently is related to?

Options
A. Exchange traded funds B. Cosmology C. Fuel norms D. Paleology

CMB-Bharat is a proposal for comprehensive next generation Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB)
mission in international collaboration with major Indian contribution. It proposes ‘near-ultimate’
survey polarisation that would exhaust the primordial information in this ‘gold-mine’ for cosmology.
There are no active proposals for a comprehensive next generation CMB space mission at this time.
CMB-Bharat mission presents an unique opportunity for India to take the lead on prized quests in
fundamental science in a field that has proved to be a spectacular success, while simultaneously
gaining valuable expertise in cutting-edge technology for space capability through global
cooperation
News - A three-week long programme entitled, ‘Cosmology – The next decade’, which consisted of
a school to train early career researchers and a workshop for active researchers in the field of
cosmology came to a close on January 25. The workshop was held at ICTS-TIFR, Bengaluru. In the
workshop, project CMB-Bharat, which could help us listen to the faintest murmurs of the early
universe, was discussed. Russia’s Xray telescope eRosita which would replace its 90’s ROSAT
telescope in Jun 2019, was also a topic of discussionlink

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ10
“LCROSS” often seen in news is related to?

Options
A. Legal and Humanitarian service B. Bird and Animal welfare
C. Lunar space D. Ocean space

• The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) was a robotic spacecraft
operated by NASA. The mission was conceived as a low-cost means of determining the
nature of hydrogen detected at the polar regions of the Moon.
• Launched immediately after discovery of lunar water by Chandrayaan-1, the main LCROSS
mission objective was to further explore the presence of water ice in a permanently
shadowed crater near a lunar polar region. It was successful in confirming water in the
southern lunar crater Cabeus.
• It was launched together with the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) on June 18, 2009, as
part of the shared Lunar Precursor Robotic Program, the first American mission to the Moon
in over ten years.
• Together, LCROSS and LRO form the vanguard of NASA's return to the Moon, and are
expected to influence United States government decisions on whether or not to colonize
the Moon.
• LCROSS was designed to collect and relay data from the impact and debris plume resulting
from the launch vehicle's spent Centaur upper stage (and data-collecting Shepherding
Spacecraft) striking the crater Cabeus near the south pole of the Moon

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ11
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Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

Which is the closest galaxy to our Milky way galaxy?

Options
A. Nebula B. Sculptor C. Andromeda D. Alpha Centuari

Answer – C Alpha centuari and Proxima centuari are nearest stars to the sun

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ12
Which of the following is false?

Options
A. Mercury’s atmosphere is filled with Methane, Ammonia, Hydrogen and Helium
B. Mercury and Venus has no satellites
C. Venus is the hottest planet because of large amount of CO2 in its atmosphere
D. Venus atmosphere has clouds of sulphuric acid, while Mars air has Nitrogen & Argon presence

Answer - A
• Mercury has no atmosphere. The description given in “statement A”, suits Jupiter’s
atmosphere.
• Earth(with iron - largest content) is the most densest planet while Saturn is the least densest
planet
• Earth and its Moon are tidally locked. Moon takes 27 days to rotate around it, (same as its
revolution)
• The soil of Mars has iron oxide, because of which it appears red.
• Ceres is the largest asteroid in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter
• Jupiter has maximum number of moons( Europa, Io, Ganymede(largest moon overall),
Callisto etc) ,
• Saturn has the second highest number of moons (Titan, Thethys, Mimas, Phoebe)
• Titan has nitrogen and hydrocarbons presence which may support life
• Saturn’s atmosphere contains mostly hydrogen and helium
• While all planets rotate west to east, Venus rotates East to west, Uranus rotates North to
South
• Venus rotates the slowest around its axis, and Jupiter rotates the fastest

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Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

• Uranus atmosphere contains hydrogen and frozen methane clouds

• Neptune, the coldest planet’s atmosphere contain hydrocarbons , frozen methane clouds
• Pluto is a dwarf planet since 2006, and its moon is Charon. It lies in the Kuiper belt
• Comets originate in the Kuiper belt, emits gas in the form of visible tail when heated up
• 99% mass of solar system is contained in the Sun alone. Sun’s diameter is 109 times > Earth
• Distance between Sun and Earth is called Astronomical Unit (AU) = 150 million kms .
• Distance covered by Light in one year is called Light year.
• I light year = 60,000 AU = almost 90,0000,0000,000 kms
These are just few factual information about solar system.
How much ever learnt from test series and previous year papers, are sufficient.
If UPSC tends to ask very factual details, you can skip them instead of making it incorrect.
Do not waste time byhearting all factual information about every celestial body in the universe

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ13
Which of the following is false?

Options
A. Earth’s axis is inclined to its equatorial plane at 23.5 degree
B. Earth’s magnetic axis is inclined to its rotational axis at close to 11.5 degree
C. The intensity of geomagnetic field is greatest near the poles and weakest at the equator
D. none of these

Today, the Earth's axis is tilted 23.5 degrees from the plane of its orbit around the sun. But this tilt
changes. During a cycle that averages about 40,000 years, the tiltof the axis varies between 22.1
and 24.5 degrees

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ14
The Baily's beads effect, or diamond ring effect is closely related to?

Options
A. Lunar eclipse B. Solar eclipse C. Death of a star D. Birth of a star

The Baily's beads effect, or diamond ring effect, is a feature of total and annular solar eclipses. As
the Moon covers the Sun during a solar eclipse, the rugged topography of the lunar limb allows
beads of sunlight to shine through in some places while not in others.

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Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

• Solar eclipse – Occurs when Sun, moon and earth are in straight line in that order, ie
during New moon .
• So because the moon is in between, the sun is seen eclipsed as seen from the earth.
• It can be partial, annular or total solar aclipse depending on where we are on the earth
• If an observer is in the Penubra regions and Umbra regions, the view will be different
• When observer is in region of total eclipse, they could see moon almost covering the sun
• Once the moon starts moving away from the peripheral trail, a shining light as in above
images is seen This effect is called Diamond effect.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ15
Which of the following is matched incorrectly?

Options
A. PISAT : Picosatellite B. NIUSAT : Nanosatellite
C. KALAMSAT : Femtosatellite D. none of these

• The term "femtosatellite" or "femtosat" is usually applied to artificial satellites with a wet
mass between 10 and 100 g (0.35 and 3.5 oz). Like picosatellites, some designs require a
larger "mother" satellite for communication with ground controllers
• The term "picosatellite" or "picosat" (not to be confused with the PicoSAT series of
microsatellites) is usually applied to artificial satellites with a wet mass between 0.1 and 1
kg (0.22 and 2.2 lb)
• The term "nanosatellite" or "nanosat" is applied to an artificial satellite with a wet mass
between 1 and 10 kg (2.2 and 22.0 lb)

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Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

• Kalam SAT is a Femto Satellite. It is named after former Indian president Dr. A. P. J. Abdul
Kalam and was built by an Indian High school student team, led by Rifath Sharook, an 18-
year-old from the Tamil Nadu town of Pallapatti. The high school team participated in Cubes
in Space, a STEM-based education program by Idoodle Learning.Inc and NASA. As selected
student competitors, the team won an opportunity to design experiments to be launched
into space on a NASA rocket. Kalam SAT was launched by NASA along with several other
experiments on Terrier Orion sounding rocket on 22 June 2017 from Wallops Island flight
facility in Virginia. The weight of the probe is just 64 grams and it is fitted in a 3.8
centimeters cube.
• PISat (PESIT Imaging Satellite) is a remote sensing nanosatellite developed by the PES
Institute of Technology, Bengaluru. The satellite weighs 5 kg and carries an image camera
that can capture pictures with 80 meter resolution
• NIU Sat (15kg) is part of the Cartosat-2 Series Satellite Mission. It is a University/Academic
Institute satellite from Noorul Isalm University in Tamil Nadu State, launched by PSLV-C38.
This 15 kg three axis stabilised satellite is built to provide multispectral imagery for
agricultural crop monitoring and disaster management support

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ16
The International Cospas-Sarsat Programme is a satellite-aided?

Options
A. Communication project B. Remote sensing mission
C. Search and Rescue initiative D. Navigation programme

Answer – C The International Cospas-Sarsat Programme is a satellite-aided search and rescue

initiative. It is organized as a treaty-based, nonprofit, intergovernmental, humanitarian cooperative
of 44 nations and agencies (see infobox). It is dedicated to detecting and locating radio beacons
activated by persons, aircraft or vessels in distress, and forwarding this alert information to
authorities that can take action for rescue. The system utilizes a network of satellites that provide
coverage anywhere on Earth. Distress alerts are detected, located and forwarded to over 200
countries and territories at no cost to beacon owners or the receiving government agencies.
Cospas-Sarsat was conceived and initiated by Canada, France, the United States, and the former
Soviet Union in 1979. The first rescue using the technology of Cospas-Sarsat occurred in September
1982. The definitive agreement of the organization was signed on 1 July 1988

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ17
Worm holes, with respect to astronomy relates to?

Options
A. Linkages between black holes
B. Short cuts to cover long distances in space
C. Proposed tube passages in space by Space X
D. Vertical lift from earth to space, proposed by JAXA

Answer – B Read this article - https://www.space.com/20881-wormholes.html

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Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ18
“Io” seen in news, is the inner most moon of which planet?

Options
A. Saturn B. Jupiter C. Neptune D. Uranus

Io (Jupiter I) is the innermost of the four Galilean moons of the planet Jupiter. It is the fourth-
largest moon, has the highest density of all the moons, and has the least amount of water of any
known astronomical object in the Solar System.
News - NASA’s Juno probe captures volcanic plumes on Jupiter’s moon Io
https://indianexpress.com/article/technology/science/nasas-juno-probe-captures-volcanic-
plumes-on-jupiters-moon-io-5520119/

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ19
Mars Express Mission, often seen in the news is a mission of?

Options
A. NASA B. ESA C. JAXA D. Space X

Answer – B Mars Express is a space exploration mission being conducted by the European
Space Agency (ESA). The Mars Express mission is exploring the planet Mars, and is the first
planetary mission attempted by the agency. "Express" originally referred to the speed and
efficiency with which the spacecraft was designed and built. However "Express" also describes the
spacecraft's relatively short interplanetary voyage, a result of being launched when the orbits of
Earth and Mars brought them closer than they had been in about 60,000 years. Mars Express
consists of two parts, the Mars Express Orbiter and Beagle 2, a lander designed to perform
exobiology and geochemistry research. Although the lander failed to fully deploy after it landed on
the Martian surface, the orbiter has been successfully performing scientific measurements since
early 2004, namely, high-resolution imaging and mineralogical mapping of the surface, radar
sounding of the subsurface structure down to the permafrost, precise determination of the
atmospheric circulation and composition, and study of the interaction of the atmosphere with the
interplanetary medium

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ20
Which of the following are true about “Avatar hyper plane”?
1. It is a sub-mission under India’s RLV Technology demonstration programme
2. It will be a single stage reusable space place capable of horizontal take off and landing

Options
A. 1 only B. 2 only C. Both 1 and 2 D. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer – B Avatar (Aerobic Vehicle for Transatmospheric Hypersonic Aerospace

TrAnspoRtation) is a concept study for a robotic single-stage reusable spaceplane capable of
horizontal takeoff and landing, by India's Defence Research and Development Organisation. The
mission concept is for low cost military and commercial satellite space launches. The first scaled
down trial took place in 2016 and the first flight of AVATAR is scheduled in 2025. This spaceplane
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Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

concept is unrelated to India's RLV Technology Demonstration Programme (RLV-TD). It has been in
news since more than a decade. Follow current affairs related to it. It is a DRDO project. The role of
ISRO is mentioned at times, but not clearly defined. So research more about it.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ21
Which of the following is false about GSAT-11?
1. It is an advanced communication satellite weighing more than 5000 kgs
2. It was launched by GSLV MK-III recently into the Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit

Options
A. 1 only
B. 2 only
C. Both 1 and 2
D. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer – B
UPSC has asked similar question recently. They check your current affair and basic knowledge by
this. GSLV Mk-III can lift only up to 4000 kgs into Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit . It can lift upto
8000 kg in the Low earth orbit(600kms). So if you know the current affair that GSAT 11 is more
than 5000 kg, and the basics of GSLV MK 3, you can answer both statements.

Weighing about 5854 kg, GSAT-11 is the heaviest satellite built by ISRO. GSAT-11 is the fore-
runner in the series of advanced communication satellites with multi-spot beam antenna coverage
over Indian mainland and Islands. It was successfully launched on December 05, 2018 from Kourou
launch base, French Guiana by Ariane-5 VA-246. GSAT-11 was launched into a Geosynchronous
Transfer Orbit and subsequently ISRO's Master Control Facility at Hassan taken over the control of
GSAT-11 to perform the initial orbit raising maneuvers using the Liquid Apogee Motor of the
satellite for placing it in circular Geostationary Orbit

GSLV Mk III is a three-stage heavy lift launch vehicle developed by ISRO. The vehicle has two solid
strap-ons (S200), a core liquid booster (L110 - Vikas engine) and a cryogenic upper stage(C25
powered by CE-20 engine). GSLV Mk III is designed to carry 4 ton class of satellites into
Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) or about 10 tons to Low Earth Orbit (LEO), which is about
twice the capability of GSLV Mk II. The two strap-on motors of GSLV Mk III are located on either side
of its core liquid booster. Designated as ‘S200’, each carries 205 tons of composite solid propellant
and their ignition results in vehicle lift -off . S200s function for 140 seconds. During strap-ons
functioning phase, the two clustered Vikas liquid Engines of L110 liquid core booster will ignite 114
sec after lift -off to further augment the thrust of the vehicle. These two engines continue to
function after the separation of the strap-ons at about 140 seconds after lift -off. The first
experimental flight of LVM3, the LVM3-X/CARE mission lifted off from Sriharikota on December
18, 2014 and successfully tested the atmospheric phase of flight. Crew module Atmospheric
Reentry Experiment was also carried out in this flight. The module reentered, deployed its
parachutes as planned and splashed down in the Bay of Bengal. The first developmental flight of
GSLV Mk III, the GSLV-Mk III-D1 successfully placed GSAT-19 satellite to a Geosynchronous
Transfer Orbit (GTO) on June 05, 2017 from SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota. gslv-mk-iii

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Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ22
ICESat and ATLAS seen in news recently is related to?

Options
A European Space Agency B. ISRO
C. Chinese Space Agency D. NASA

Answer – D NASA is launching a laser-armed satellite next month that will measure - in
unprecedented detail- changes in the heights of Earth’s polar ice to understand what is causing ice
sheets to melt fast. In recent years, contributions of melt from the ice sheets of Greenland and
Antarctica alone have raised global sea level by more than a millimeter a year, accounting for
approximately one-third of observed sea level rise, and the rate is increasing. Called the Ice, Cloud
and Land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2), the mission was launched from Vandenberg Air Force
Base in California on September 15,2018. ICESat-2 measures the average annual elevation change
of land ice covering Greenland and Antarctica to within the width of a pencil, capturing 60,000
measurements every second. ICESat-2’s Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS)
measures height by timing how long it takes individual light photons to travel from the spacecraft
to Earth and back. ATLAS will fire 10,000 times each second, sending hundreds of trillions of
photons to the ground in six beams of green light. With so many photons returning from multiple
beams, ICESat-2 will get a much more detailed view of the ice surface than its predecessor. As it
circles Earth from pole to pole, ICESat-2 will measure ice heights along the same path in the polar
regions four times a year, providing seasonal and annual monitoring of ice elevation changes.
Beyond the poles, ICESat-2 will also measure the height of ocean and land surfaces, including
forests link

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ23
Which of the following seen often in news recently, are related to Asteroids?
1. DART
2. Hammer
3. Linear Project

Options
A. 1,2 only B. 3 only C. 1,2,3 D. none of these

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Science n Tech – Test 2 - Answers Vysh IAS

Answer – C

The Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) project is a collaboration of the United States
Air Force, NASA, and the MIT's Lincoln Laboratory for the systematic detection and tracking of near-
Earth objects. LINEAR was responsible for the majority of asteroid discoveries from 1998 until it was
overtaken by the Catalina Sky Survey in 2005. As of 15 September 2011, LINEAR had detected
231,082 new small Solar System bodies, of which at least 2,423 were near-Earth asteroids and 279
were comets. The instruments used by the LINEAR program are located at Lincoln Laboratory's
Experimental Test Site (ETS) on the White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) near Socorro, New Mexico.

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) — which is being designed and would be built and
managed by the John Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory — is moving from concept development
to preliminary design phase. NASA is developing the first-ever mission that will deflect a near-Earth
asteroid, and help test the systems that will allow mankind to protect the planet from potential
cosmic body impacts in the future. DART would be NASA’s first mission to demonstrate what’s
known as the kinetic impactor technique — striking the asteroid to shift its orbit — to defend
against a potential future asteroid impact, The target for DART is an asteroid that will have a distant
approach to Earth in October 2022, and then again in 2024. The asteroid is called Didymos — Greek
for “twin” — because it is an asteroid binary system that consists of two bodies: Didymos A, about
780 metres in size, and a smaller asteroid orbiting it called Didymos B, about 160 metres in size.
DART would impact only the smaller of the two bodies, Didymos B. The Didymos system has been
closely studied since 2003.

HAMMER (Hypervelocity Asteroid Mitigation Mission for Emergency Response vehicle), the
deflector is nine metres tall and weighs more than 8000 kg. HAMMER can be used as a kinetic
impactor (spacecraft at high speed to give the push), or as a carrier for some other nuclear device .
Scientists from NASA, the National Nuclear Security Administration, and two other national
laboratories in the USA have conceptualised this asteroid deflector. They also theoretically studied
the impact of the deflector on a near-Earth asteroid -- 101955 Bennu. The researchers evaluated
various deflection scenarios in the study, ranging from launching the deflector 10 years to 25 years
before the impact of Bennu on earth. In the 10-year scenarios, it was determined that it could take
between 34 and 53 launches of the Delta IV Heavy rocket, each carrying a single HAMMER
impactor, to make a Bennu-class asteroid miss the Earth. If there were a 25-year lead time, that
number could be reduced to seven to 11 launches. The exact number would depend on the desired
Earth-miss-distance and the impact conditions at the asteroid

A Japanese probe has reached an asteroid 300 million km away to collect information about the
birth of the solar system and the origin of life after a more than three-year voyage through deep
space. The Hayabusa2 probe successfully settled into an observation position 20 km above the
Ryugu asteroid, officials from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) . Photos of Ryugu —
which means “Dragon Palace” in Japanese, a castle at the bottom of the ocean in an ancient
Japanese tale — show an asteroid shaped a bit like a spinning top with a rough surface. That probe
returned from a smaller, potato-shaped, asteroid in 2010 with dust samples despite various
setbacks during its epic seven-year odyssey and was hailed as a scientific triumph.

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ24
Which of the following is false related to various NASA programmes?

Options
A. Opportunity rover : Mars exploration
B. Orion : Carry humans to space
C. Discovery programme : Explore the solar system
D. Curiosity rover : Comet exploration beyond solar system

Answer – D
Opportunity, also known as MER-B (Mars Exploration Rover – B) or MER-1, is a robotic rover
active on Mars since 2004. Launched on July 7, 2003 as part of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover
program, it landed in Meridiani Planum on January 25, 2004, three weeks after its twin Spirit (MER-
A) touched down on the other side of the planet. With a planned 90 sol duration of activity (slightly
more than 90 earth days), Spirit functioned until getting stuck in 2009 and ceased communications
in 2010, while Opportunity was active as of June 12, 2018 when a dust storm forced it to
hibernation. Opportunity has continued to move, make scientific observations, and report back to
Earth for over 55 times its designed lifespan. As of September 18, 2018, the rover had traveled
45.16 kilometers (28.06 miles). Mission highlights include the initial 90 sol mission, finding
extramartian meteorites such as Heat Shield Rock (Meridiani Planum meteorite), and over two
years studying Victoria crater. The rover survived dust-storms and in 2011 reached Endeavour
crater, which has been described as a "second landing site". Due to the 2018 dust storms on Mars,
Opportunity entered hibernation on June 12, 2018, and it is hoped it will reboot once the
atmosphere clears.

NASA’s Orion spacecraft is built to take humans farther than they’ve ever gone before. Orion will
serve as the exploration vehicle that will carry the crew to space, provide emergency abort
capability, sustain the crew during the space travel, and provide safe re-entry from deep space
return velocities. Orion will launch on NASA’s new heavy-lift rocket, the Space Launch System.

NASA's Discovery Program is a series of lower-cost (as compared to New Frontiers or Flagship
Programs), highly focused American scientific space missions that are exploring the Solar System. It
was founded in 1992 to implement then-NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin's vision of "faster,
better, cheaper" planetary missions. Discovery missions differ from traditional NASA missions
where targets and objectives are pre-specified. Instead, these cost-capped missions are proposed
and led by a scientist called the Principal Investigator (PI). Proposing teams may include people
from industry, small businesses, government laboratories, and universities. Proposals are selected
through a competitive peer review process. NASA also accepts proposals for competitively selected
Discovery Program Missions of Opportunity. This provides opportunities to participate in non-NASA
missions by providing funding for a science instrument or hardware components of a science
instrument or to re-purpose an existing NASA spacecraft. These opportunities are currently offered
through NASA's Stand Alone Mission of Opportunity program. On January 4, 2017 NASA announced
that the next Discovery mission selection included the double-selection of ''Lucy'', to visit several
asteroids and Trojans, and ''Psyche'', to visit the metal asteroid Psyche, as the thirteenth and
fourteenth Discovery missions, respectively

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Curiosity is a car-sized rover designed to explore Gale Crater on Mars as part of NASA's Mars
Science Laboratory mission (MSL). Curiosity was launched from Cape Canaveral on November 26,
2011, at 15:02 UTC aboard the MSL spacecraft and landed on Aeolis Palus in Gale Crater on Mars on
August 6, 2012. The rover's goals include an investigation of the Martian climate and geology;
assessment of whether the selected field site inside Gale Crater has ever offered environmental
conditions favorable for microbial life, including investigation of the role of water; and planetary
habitability studies in preparation for human exploration. In December 2012, Curiosity's two-year
mission was extended indefinitely. On August 5, 2017, NASA celebrated the fifth anniversary of the
Curiosity rover landing and related exploratory accomplishments on the planet Mars.The rover is
still operational, and as of September 30, 2018, Curiosity has been on Mars for 2187 sols (2246 total
days) since landing on August 6, 2012. (See current status.) Curiosity's design will serve as the basis
for the planned Mars 2020 rover.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ25
High Altitude Gamma Ray (HAGAR) array is located at?

Options
A. Mumbai B. Udaipur C. Guwahati D. Ladakh

Answer - D
• Indian astronomers would soon be able to observe and monitor spectacular celestial events
like explosion of stars, falling of matter into black holes and collision of extraterrestrial
objects better. Researchers at Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) and Bhabha
Atomic Research Centre (BARC) are developing a new gamma ray telescope. The imaging
camera to be used in the telescope is different from convention ones. It used pixels made of
what are called Geiger-mode avalanche photo-diodes (G-APDs), while conventional
telescope cameras are based on photomultiplier tubes (PMTs). G-APDs need a much lower
operation voltage, are more robust and have higher photon detection efficiency. They can
be operated during strong moon light and are ideal for a gamma ray telescope The four-
metre telescope will be able to operate in bright environment like twilight hours and moon-
lit nights, unlike traditional ones that operate only in dark hours of the night. It will be the
second such telescope to be available globally. The first one is in La Palma in Canary Islands
set up jointly by Switzerland and Germany in 2011.
• The new telescope will be located near the High Altitude Gamma Ray (HAGAR) array at
Hanle in Ladakh which houses the Indian Astronomical Observatory operated by Indian
Institute of Astrophysics, Bengaluru.
• It will work in tandem with MACE (Major Atmospheric Cerenkov Experiment) - a 21-metre
diameter gamma ray imaging telescope which is also under installation at Hanle. While
MACE will operate in discovery mode looking at candidate sources of gamma ray or very
faint objects, the new telescope will keep an eye on blazars. Whenever there is any flaring
activity in any of them, it will alert MACE which will then shift its focus to the active blazer.
• Gamma rays provide the best window to study what are called the non-thermal universe.
Cosmic rays form an important component of the non-thermal universe. It is thought that
remnants of supernova explosions accelerate cosmic rays with energies at the lower end of
the cosmic ray spectrum and that higher energy cosmic rays could be accelerated in active
galactic nuclei. Gamma rays are also produced when charged particles are accelerated to
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such high energies through different processes. Thus the study of the gamma ray emissions
from various celestial objects is expected to give a clue regarding the origin of cosmic rays
and insights into the emission regions and emission processes in these sources. The details
of the new telescope have been discussed in a recent paper published in Journal of
Astrophysics and Astronomy.https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/science/new-
gamma-ray-telescope-coming-up-in-ladakh/article25005110.ece

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ26
India’s first robotic telescope, has started operation at?

Options
A. Ladakh, J&K B. Gangtok, Sikkhim
C. Theni, Tamil Nadu D. Udaipur, Rajasthan

Answer – A Located at the Indian Astronomical Observatory (IAO) at Hanle in Ladakh is the
country’s first robotic telescope and the first one designed to observe dynamic or transient
events in the universe. Called GROWTH-India, the facility at Hanle is part of a multi-country
collaborative initiative known as ‘Global Relay of Observatories Watching Transients Happen’
(GROWTH). The fully robotic optical research telescope is designed to capture cosmic events
occurring in timescales much shorter than light years – years, days and even hours. Universities and
research institutes from the US, the UK, Japan, India, Germany, Taiwan and Israel are part of the
initiative. The primary research objective of the project is time domain astronomy, which entails the
study of explosive transients and variable sources in the universe.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ27
Recently Israel launched a satellite for earth observation and environment protection. Its called
the

Options
A. E-EARTH B. BIOME C. WATER D. VENUS

Answer – D Vegetation and Environment monitoring on a New Micro-Satellite(VENµS) is a

near polar sun-synchronous orbit microsatellite being jointly built by the Israeli Space Agency and
CNES(French) launched from the Guiana Space Center’s Kourou site

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ28
ASPIRE (Advanced Supersonic Parachute Inflation Research Experiment) as part of MARS mission
2020 is being commissioned by?

Options
A. ISRO B. NASA C. SpaceX D. UAE Space agency

Answer – B NASA has successfully conducted Advanced Supersonic Parachute Inflation

Research Experiment (ASPIRE) to test supersonic parachute that will help its space exploration
missions to land on Mars

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ29
Which of the following are true about Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) ?
1. It is a third generation launch vehicle designed & developed indigenously by ISRO
2. It is a 4 stage launch vehicle , and first Indian rocket to have liquid stages
3. It has launched historic missions like Chandrayaan-1, MOM and IRNSS(NAVIC)
4. Its second stage uses an Earth storable liquid rocket engine known as Vikas engine

Options
A. 1,3 only B. 2,4 only C. 1,2,4 only D. 1,2,3,4

Answer – D Go through this link to know about all PSLV missions - pslv

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ30
Which orbit is also called “Helio-synchronous Orbit”

Options
A. Polar orbit
B. Sun Synchronous orbit
C. Medium Earth Orbit (MEO)
D. Highly elliptical orbit (HEO)

Answer – B

A Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO, also called a heliosynchronous orbit) is a nearly polar orbit around
a planet, in which the satellite passes over any given point of the planet's surface at the same local
mean solar time.
A Sun-synchronous orbit can place a satellite in constant sunlight, which allows the solar panels to
work continually. This orbit is also useful for imaging, spy, and weather satellites, because every
time that the satellite is overhead, the surface illumination angle on the planet underneath it will be
nearly the same. This consistent lighting is a useful characteristic for satellites that image the Earth's
surface in visible or infrared wavelengths, such as weather and spy satellites; and for other remote-
sensing satellites, such as those carrying ocean and atmospheric remote-sensing instruments that
require sunlight. For example, a satellite in Sun-synchronous orbit might ascend across the equator
twelve times a day each time at approximately 15:00 mean local time.

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ31
100 Years programme, seen recently in the news is a space mission by?

Options
A. ISRO B. NASA C. UAE D. China

Answer - C
 UAE announced 100-year plan to finish building ‘first city on Mars’ by 2117
 The United Arab Emirates (UAE) will build the first city on the Red Planet as part of the 2117
Mars project in collaboration with specialised international organisations and scientific
institutes. The announcement was made on the sidelines of the World Government Summit in
the presence of representatives of 138 governments, six major international organisations, as
well as leading international tech companies.
 The new project will be associated with research themes featuring the exploration of
transportation means, energy and food on Mars. It will also try to find faster transportation
methods for travelling to and from Mars.
 In 2015, the UAE announced its Mars Probe mission, which will send the Arab world’s first
spacecraft to the Red Planet in a scientific exploration mission that will land on planet in 2021.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ32
Which of the following is an asteroid, recently in news, as it is almost fully metallic?

Options
A. Bennu B. Psyche C. Sherloc D. Quess

Answer – B 16 Psyche is one of the ten most massive asteroids in the asteroid belt. It is
over 200 km (120 mi) in diameter and contains a little less than 1% of the mass of the entire
asteroid belt. It is thought to be the exposed iron core of a protoplanet. It is the most massive
metallic M-type asteroid. Psyche was discovered by the Italian astronomer Annibale de Gasparis on
17 March 1852 from Naples and named after the Greek mythological figure Psyche

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ33
ALMA telescope Array, seen recently in the news is installed at?

Options
A. Ladakh B. Beijing C. Chile D. Louisiana

Answer – C

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ34
Which is the new telescope, seen in news which replaced the old Hubble’s Telescope?

Options
A. Newton B. Pascal C. James Webb D. Hawking

Answer - C

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ35
Which of the following are matched correctly?
1. New Horizon : Kuiper Belt
2. DAWN : Asteroid belt
3. JUNO : Jupiter
4. Cassini : Saturn

Options
A. 1,2,4 only B. 1,2,3 only
C. 3 only D. 1,2,3,4

Answer – D
New Horizons is an interplanetary space probe that was launched as a part of NASA's New
Frontiers program. The spacecraft was launched in 2006 with the primary mission to perform a
flyby study of the Pluto system in 2015, and a secondary mission to fly by and study one or more
other Kuiper belt objects (KBOs) in the decade to follow. It is the fifth artificial object to achieve the
escape velocity needed to leave the Solar System. It is the first spacecraft to explore the dwarf
planet Pluto

Dawn is a space probe launched by NASA in September 2007 with the mission of studying two of
the three known protoplanets of the asteroid belt, Vesta and Ceres. It is currently in orbit about its
second target, the dwarf planet Ceres. Dawn is the first spacecraft to orbit two extraterrestrial
bodies, the first spacecraft to visit either Vesta or Ceres, and the first to visit a dwarf planet, arriving
at Ceres in March 2015, a few months before New Horizons flew by Pluto in July 2015.The Dawn
mission is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, with spacecraft components contributed
by European partners from Italy, Germany, France, and the Netherlands. It is the first NASA
exploratory mission to use ion propulsion, which enabled it to enter and leave the orbit of multiple
celestial bodies. Previous multi-target missions using conventional drives, such as the Voyager
program, were restricted to flybys.

Juno is a NASA space probe orbiting the planet Jupiter. It was built by Lockheed Martin and is
operated by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The spacecraft was launched from Cape Canaveral
Air Force Station on August 5, 2011 (UTC), as part of the New Frontiers program, and entered a
polar orbit of Jupiter on July 5, 2016 (UTC),to begin a scientific investigation of the planet. After
completing its mission, Juno will be intentionally deorbited into Jupiter's atmosphere. Juno's
mission is to measure Jupiter's composition, gravity field, magnetic field, and polar magnetosphere.
It will also search for clues about how the planet formed, including whether it has a rocky core, the
amount of water present within the deep atmosphere, mass distribution, and its deep winds, which
can reach speeds up to 618 kilometers per hour (384 mph).
Juno is the second spacecraft to orbit Jupiter, after the nuclear powered Galileo orbiter, which
orbited from 1995 to 2003.Unlike all earlier spacecraft sent to the outer planets, Juno is powered by
solar arrays, commonly used by satellites orbiting Earth and working in the inner Solar System,
whereas radioisotope thermoelectric generators are commonly used for missions to the outer Solar
System and beyond. For Juno, however, the three largest solar array wings ever deployed on a
planetary probe play an integral role in stabilizing the spacecraft as well as generating power.

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The Cassini–Huygens mission, commonly called Cassini, was collaboration between NASA, ESA
and the Italian Space Agency (ASI) to send a probe to study the planet Saturn and its system,
including its rings and natural satellites. The Flagship-class robotic spacecraft comprised both
NASA's Cassini probe, and ESA's Huygens lander which landed on Saturn's largest moon, Titan.
Cassini was the fourth space probe to visit Saturn and the first to enter its orbit. The craft were
named after astronomers Giovanni Cassini & Christian Huygens. Cassini was active in space for
nearly 20 years, with 13 years spent orbiting Saturn, studying the planet and its system after
entering orbit on July 1, 2004.The voyage to Saturn included flybys of Venus (April 1998, July 1999),
Earth (Aug 1999), the asteroid 2685 Masursky, and Jupiter (Dec 2000). Its mission ended on Sept 15,
2017, when Cassini's trajectory took it into Saturn's upper atmosphere and it burned up in order to
prevent any risk of contaminating Saturn's moons, which might have offered habitable
environments to stowaway terrestrial microbes on the spacecraft. The mission is widely perceived
to have been successful beyond expectation. Cassini-Huygens has been described by NASA's
Planetary Science Division Director as a "mission of firsts", that has revolutionized human
understanding of the Saturn system, including its moons and rings, and our understanding of where
life might be found in the Solar System. Cassini's original mission was planned to last for four years,
from June 2004 to May 2008. The mission was extended for another two years until September
2010, branded the Cassini Equinox Mission. The mission was extended a second and final time with
the Cassini Solstice Mission, lasting another seven years until September 15, 2017, on which date
Cassini was de-orbited to burn up in Saturn's upper atmosphere.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ36
Which among the following is an Indo – Japan collaboration project in Ooty, India for study of
solar storm and cosmic ray shower?

Options
A. NEMO B. OSIRIS REX C. GRAPES 3 D. Parker’s Probe

Answer – C
The GRAPES-3 experiment (or Gamma Ray Astronomy PeV EnergieS phase-3) located at Ooty in
India started as a collaboration of the Indian Tata Institute of Fundamental Research and the
Japanese Osaka City University, and now also includes the Japanese Nagoya Women's University.
GRAPES-3 is designed to study cosmic rays with an array of air shower detectors and a large area
muon detector

Objectives –
1. The origin, acceleration and propagation of >1014 eV cosmic rays in the galaxy and
beyond.
2. Existence of “Knee” in the energy spectrum of cosmic rays.
3. Production and/or acceleration of highest energy (~1020 eV) cosmic rays in the
universe.
4. Astronomy of multi-TeV γ-rays from neutron stars and other compact object.
5. Sun the closest astrophysical object, accelerator of energetic particles and its effects
on the Earth.

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The first cosmic ray experiment was started in 1955 by B. V. Sreekantan by setting up cloud
chambers that heralded the beginning of research at the Cosmic Ray Laboratory (CRL) in Ooty. The
next decade witnessed a variety of experiments involving high energy interactions and extensive air
shower studies in this laboratory. The world's largest multiplate cloud chamber was operated
here[citation needed] as part of an air shower array and significant results on the high energy
nuclear interactions and cores of extensive air showers were obtained.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ37
Mission LUCY, often seen in the news is related to ?

Options
A. Great Red spot B. Trojan Asteroid
C. China’s lunar mission D. Launching CubeSats by ISRO

Answer – B Lucy is a planned NASA space probe that will tour five Jupiter trojans, asteroids
which share Jupiter's orbit around the Sun, orbiting either ahead of or behind the planet. On 4
January 2017, Lucy was chosen, along with the Psyche mission, as NASA's Discovery Program
missions 13 and 14 respectively. The mission is named after the 'Lucy' hominin skeleton, because
the study of Trojans could reveal the "fossils of planet formation": materials that clumped together
in the early history of the Solar System to form planets and other bodies. The Australopithecus itself
was named for a Beatles song, "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ38
Which of the following are true about recently launched Indian satellites?
1. GSAT 18 : Communication satellite
2. INSAT 3DR : Advanced weather satellite
3. Cartosat2 : Earth observation and mapping
4. Scatsat1 : Weather forecasting

Options
A. 1 and 2 only B. 1,3 and 4 only C. 2 and 3 only D. 1,2,3,4

Answer – D All images below are taken from ISRO website

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ39
What mission was formerly called, as SMART-2 (Small Missions for Advanced Research in
Technology -2) ?

Options
A. JUNO mission B. Chandrayaan – 2 C. LISA pathfinder D. Einstein Ring

Answer – C LISA Pathfinder, formerly Small Missions for Advanced Research in

Technology-2 (SMART-2), was an ESA spacecraft that was launched on 3 December 2015. The
mission tested technologies needed for the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA), an ESA
gravitational wave observatory planned to be launched in 2034. The scientific phase started on 8
March 2016 and lasted almost sixteen months. In April 2016 ESA announced that LISA Pathfinder
demonstrated that the LISA mission is feasible.

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ40
Which of the following describes SOFIA?

Options
A. A digital banking mechanism developed by SBI
B. Indigenously developed ROBOT by China
C. Largest Airborne Observatory in the world
D. None of these

Answer – C The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy is an 80/20 joint project of
NASA and the German Aerospace Center to construct and maintain an airborne observatory.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ41
Wolf1061b, Wolf1061c and Wolf1061d seen recently in the news refers to?

Options
A. Trojan asteroids
B. Ice masses broken away from Antarctica main land
C. Exoplanets
D. Dwarf planets found in the Kuiper belt

Answer – C Wolf 1061 (also known as HIP 80824 and V2306 Ophiuchi) is an M class red
dwarf star located about 13.8 light years away in the constellation Ophiuchus. It is the 36th closest
known star system to the Sun and has a relatively high proper motion of 1.2 seconds of arc per year.
Like many red dwarfs, it most likely has a long rotation period of more than 100 days, although it is
difficult to measure accurately. Wolf 1061 does not have any unusual spectroscopic features. The
star was first cataloged in 1919 by German astronomer Max Wolf when he published a list of dim
stars that had high proper motions. Wolf 1061's name originates from this list

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ42
“KELT 9B” seen recently in the news refers to ?

Options
A. Heaviest asteroid discovered so far
B. Brightest comet with the longest tail
C. Hottest planet discovered so far
D. Coldest planet discovered so far

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Scientists have discovered the hottest known planet located 650 light years from Earth, which is
warmer than most stars in the universe and sports a giant, glowing gas tail like a comet. The Jupiter-
like planet orbits a massive star KELT-9 every day and a half. With a day-side temperature peaking
at 4,326 degree Celsius, the newly discovered exoplanet, designated KELT-9b, is hotter than most
stars and only 926 degree Celsius cooler than our Sun. The ultraviolet radiation from the star it
orbits is so brutal that the planet may be evaporating away under the intense glare, producing a
glowing gas tail. The gas giant 2.8 times more massive than Jupiter but only half as dense, because
the extreme radiation from its host star has caused its atmosphere to puff up like a balloon. Since it
is tidally locked to its star — as the moon is to Earth — the day side of the planet is perpetually
bombarded by stellar radiation, and, as a result, the planet is so hot that molecules such as water,
carbon dioxide and methane cannot form there. It’s a planet by any of the typical definitions based
on mass, but its atmosphere is almost certainly unlike any other planet we’ve ever seen just
because of the temperature of its day side.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ43
Which of the following related to NASA are matched correctly ?

Options
A. CHESS : Mission to study interstellar clouds
B. SHERLOC : Spectrometer which will be mounted in the MARS 2020 mission
C. MMS : Study earth’s magnetosphere
D. All of the above

Answer – D

NASA is launched a sounding rocket CHESS on June 27,2017 to study vast interstellar clouds and
know about the earliest stages of star formation. The Colorado High-resolution Echelle Stellar
Spectrograph will measure light filtering through the interstellar medium which provides crucial
information for understanding the lifecycle of stars.

A massive chunk of a Martian meteorite will be carried onboard NASA’s Mars 2020 rover mission,
to serve as target practice for a high-precision laser on the rover’s arm. The ambitious Mars 2020
rover will collect samples from the red planet’s surface that a future mission could potentially
return to Earth. One of the rover’s many tools will be a laser designed to illuminate rock features as
fine as a human hair. That level of precision requires a calibration target to help tweak the laser’s
settings. The team behind the laser instrument called SHERLOC (Scanning Habitable Environments
with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals) selected Sayh al Uhaymir 008 (SaU008),
a meteorite found in Oman in 1999.

The Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission is a NASA unmanned space mission to study the Earth's
magnetosphere, using four identical spacecraft flying in a tetrahedral formation. The spacecraft
were launched on 13 March 2015

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ44
Which of the following are true about “TRAPPIST-1”
1. It is a dwarf star , larger than Jupiter in size, but cooler than sun in temperature
2. 7 exoplanets have been discovered to be revolving around it
3. Atleast 3 planets revolving around it have been considered to have possible habitat
for life

Options
A. 2 and 3 only B. 1 only C. 1,2,3 D. 2 only

Answer – C
The Earth-sized planets orbiting the ultracool TRAPPIST-1 dwarf star 40 light-years away may have
substantial amounts of water and could be habitable. An international team of astronomers used
the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope to estimate whether there might be water on the seven
planets orbiting in the nearby TRAPPIST-1 planetary. This includes the three planets within the
habitable zone of the star, lending further weight to the possibility that they may indeed be
habitable. In February this year, astronomers had announced the discovery of seven Earth-sized
planets orbiting the ultracool dwarf star TRAPPIST-1, 40 light-years away. The results suggest that
the outer planets of the system might still harbour substantial amounts of water. Following up on
the discovery, scientists used the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) on the Hubble
telescope to study the amount of ultraviolet radiation received by the individual planets of the
system.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ45
“KOUNOTORI / WHITE STORK project” seen recently in the news refers to ?

Options
A. JAXA mission to clear space junk / debris
B. ISRO’s mission for a UNEP programme
C. China Maldives naval exercise
D. Chinese military base project in Djibouti

Answer – A

Japan’s space agency lauched Kounotori (“White Stork”), a space capsule that will attempt to
clean space debris orbiting around earth, using an unusual approach. Orbital debris, which
consists of man-made objects, is usually the residue of inactive space vehicles. Because these
objects move at high speeds and can collide with incoming space vehicles, there’s a case for
cleaning them out.
The Kounotori uses a kind of “electrodynamic tether” forged from thin wires of stainless steel and
aluminium. One end of the strip will be attached to debris and the electricity generated by the
tether as it swings through the earth’s magnetic field. It is expected to slow the speed of space junk
and pull it into a lower and lower orbits. Eventually the detritus will enter the earth’s atmosphere,
burning up harmlessly long before it has a chance to crash to the planet’s surface.

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ46
Which of the following are true about specialized telescopes of NASA?
1. Hubble’s Telescope : Visible light
2. Compton Ray Observatory : Gamma rays
3. Chandra Observatory : X rays
4. Spitzer Space telescope : Infra red rays

Options
A. 2 and 3 only B. 1 and 3 only C. 1,2,3,4 D. 2 and 4 only

Answer – C
The telescopes, in order of launch, are: the Hubble Space Telescope (1990), Compton Gamma Ray
Observatory (1991), Chandra X-ray Observatory (1999), and Spitzer Space Telescope (2003).

The Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (CGRO) was a space observatory detecting photons with
energies from 20 keV to 30 GeV, in Earth orbit from 1991 to 2000. It featured four main telescopes
in one spacecraft, covering X-rays and gamma rays, including various specialized sub-instruments
and detectors. Following 14 years of effort, the observatory was launched from Space Shuttle
Atlantis during STS-37 on April 5, 1991, and operated until its deorbit on June 4, 2000. It was
deployed in low earth orbit at 450 km (280 mi) to avoid the Van Allen radiation belt. It was the
heaviest astrophysical payload ever flown at that time at 17,000 kilograms

The Chandra X-ray Observatory (CXO), previously known as the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics
Facility (AXAF), is a Flagship-class space observatory launched on STS-93 by NASA on July 23, 1999.
Chandra is sensitive to X-ray sources 100 times fainter than any previous X-ray telescope, enabled
by the high angular resolution of its mirrors. Since the Earth's atmosphere absorbs the vast majority
of X-rays, they are not detectable from Earth-based telescopes; therefore space-based telescopes
are required to make these observations. Chandra is an Earth satellite in a 64-hour orbit, and its
mission is ongoing as of 2018.

The Spitzer Space Telescope (SST), formerly the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), is an
infrared space telescope launched in 2003 and still operating as of 2018. It is the fourth and final of
the NASA Great Observatories program.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ47
Which of the following are true about ANTRIX corporation ?
1. It is the commercial arm of ISRO , and is fully owned by the Union government of India
2. It completed more than 25 years after incorporation

Options
A. 1 only B. 2 only
C. Both 1 and 2 D. none

Answer – C

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ48
GOLD and ICON, seen recently in the news are ?

Options
A. ISRO’s mission to Venus
B. China’s space mission to study the Sun
C. NASA – ISRO collaboration for study of Aurora
D. NASA’s mission to study ionosphere

Answer - D
The Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission is a heliophysics Mission of
Opportunity for NASA’s Explorers program. Led by Richard Eastes at the Florida Space Institute,
which is located at the University of Central Florida, GOLD's mission is to image the boundary
between Earth and space in order to answer questions about the effects of solar and atmospheric
variability of Earth's space weather. GOLD was one of 11 proposals selected, of the 42 submitted,
for further study in September 2011. On 12 April 2013, NASA announced that GOLD, along with
the Ionospheric Connection Explorer (ICON), had been selected for flight in 2017. GOLD, along with
its commercial host satellite SES-14, launched on 25 January 2018

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ49
Recently , the International Astronomical Union , has named 2 mountains on which planet as
Tenzing Montes and Hillary Montez ?

Options
A. Pluto
B. Mars
C. Jupiter
D. Saturn

Answer – A
https://indianexpress.com/article/technology/science/pluto-mountains-named-after-tenzing-
norgay-edmund-hillary/

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ50
Which of the statements are true regarding moons of planets?
1. Ganymede , the moon of Jupiter is the largest among all moons of all planets
2. Saturn has 3 named moons - Titan, Rhea , Enceladus
3. Mercury and Venus have no moons
4. Earth's moon is known as LUNA in scientific terms

Options
A. 1,2 only B. 1,3,4 only C. 2,3 only D. 1,2,3,4

Answer – D

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ51
Which is the planet , whose 5 moons(Miranda, Titania, Oberon, Ariel and Umbriel) are named
after characters from Shakespere's works??

Options
A. Neptune B. Uranus C. Saturn D. Mars

Answer – B

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ52
NASA released a view of which planet showing the “Great Red Spot” and “String of Pearls” ?

Options
A. Saturn B. Mars C. Neptune D. Jupiter

Answer -A https://astronomynow.com/2017/06/26/jupiters-string-of-pearls/

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ53
Which nation launched remote sensing satellites to conduct Electromagnetic Environment
probes?

Options
A. India B. China
C. France D. USA

Answer – B The satellites were launched on a Long March-2C carrier rocket from Xichang
Satellite launch center in the southwest Sichuan province. As the third batch of the Yaogan-30

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project, the satellites will conduct electromagnetic environmental probes and other experiments.
Remote sensing generally refers to the use of sensor technologies to detect objects. The remote
sensing satellites collect data by detecting the energy reflected from the Earth
https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/china-successfully-launches-remote-sensing-
satellites/story-5k2iJWiHd9kxOJJBZa5KVN.html

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ54
Associated with a super massive black hole and is one of the most energetic phenomenon of the
earth ?

Options
A. Neutron Star B. Pulsar C. Blazar D. Magnetar

Answer – C
A blazar is an active galactic nucleus (AGN) with a relativistic jet (a jet composed of ionized matter
traveling at nearly the speed of light) directed very nearly towards Earth.

Neutron star is a celestial object of very small radius (typically 30 km) and very high density,
composed predominantly of closely packed neutrons. Neutron stars are thought to form by the
gravitational collapse of the remnant of a massive star after a supernova explosion, provided that
the star is insufficiently massive to produce a black hole.

A magnetar is a type of neutron star believed to have an extremely powerful magnetic field. The
magnetic field decay powers the emission of high-energy electromagnetic radiation, particularly X-
rays and gamma

A pulsar is a highly magnetized rotating neutron star or white dwarf that emits a beam of
electromagnetic radiation. This radiation can be observed only when the beam of emission is
pointing toward Earth (much like the way a lighthouse can be seen only when the light is pointed in
the direction of an observer), and is responsible for the pulsed appearance of emission

Quasar - a massive and extremely remote celestial object, emitting exceptionally large amounts of
energy, which typically has a star like image in a telescope. It has been suggested that quasars
contain massive black holes and may represent a stage in the evolution of some galaxies.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ55
Which of the following are matched correctly?

Options
A. Blue moon : Two full moons occurring in same calendar month
B. Blood moon : Total lunar eclipse, where full moon lines up with sun and earth
C. Super moon : When full moon coincides with, being closest it can be to earth
D. All the above

Answer - D

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Blood Moon 2018: A rare celestial event will take place on July 27,2018 when the moon will be
visible to the naked human eye in reddish colour. Scientists say this will be the longest lunar eclipse
of the century.
The ‘blood moon’ happens during a total lunar eclipse when the earth passes in between the sun
and the moon which blocks the sun’s light from falling directly on moon. The little light coming from
the edges of the Earth’s atmosphere lit up the moon’s surface making it appear red/ reddish brown.
Unlike solar eclipses, there is no need of special equipment to observe lunar eclipses & can be
viewed with the naked eye.

Blue Moon - The term ‘Blue Moon’ is said to have originated in the 1940s and started being used
only a few decades ago. This phenomenon has nothing to do with its color. In fact, it looks the same
as any other full moon. A blue moon is the second full moon to occur in a month and sometimes, it
is the third full moon in a season.

Black Moon - The second new moon in a single month is called the ‘black moon’. It is somewhat an
unusual celestial event, occurring about once every 32 months. But there won’t be much to see. At
its ‘new moon’ phase, the moon is always black. A new moon refers to the moment when the
moon’s Earth-facing side is fully in shadow. The moon’s dark or illuminated side faces Earth during a
Black Moon.

Super moon - According to NASA, a ‘super moon’ occurs when the moon is at or near the closest
point to the earth. This point is also called the ‘perigee’. Super moons don’t occur every month as
there are chances that the moon’s orbit changes direction as the earth goes around the sun. It
means that the full or new moon won’t always happen at its perigee.

Full Wolf Moon - The Full Wolf Moon is also known as the Old Moon, Moon after Yule and the
Snow Moon. According to space.com, it denotes the first full moon in January. This dates back to
early colonial times when the wolves would howl outside the villages.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ56
Tabby’s star, seen recently in the news because?

Options
A. The most recent discovery of a star of equal brightness that of Sun
B. The next star which will explode with a bright glow
C. The only star discovered to change colours frequently
D. A mysterious star which brightens and dims without any reason

Answer – D Tabby’s star is the “most mysterious star in the universe” as it kept dimming and
brightening irregularly, following no pattern. Officially called KIC 8462852, the star is 1,000 light
years away from the Earth and 1,000 degrees hotter than the Sun. It is also called Boyajian’s star,
after Assistant Professor Tabetha Boyajian of the Department of Physics & Astronomy, Louisiana
State University. She was the main author of the paper published in 2015 that reported the
reduction in the light from the star. There was a 20% decrease in brightness and the dip lasted from
five to 80 days.link

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ57
Which of the following are dedicated Indian satellites for military?
1. GSAT 7 : Navy
2. GSAT 7A : Airforce
3. Rukmini : Army

Options
A. 1 and 2 only B. 2 only C. 1 and 3 only D. 1,2,3

Answer A Rukmini is just another name for GSAT 7, ie for Navy

Weighing nearly 2,650 kg, Rukmini was the first military communication satellite developed by the
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for the Indian Defence forces, with the Indian Navy being
the primary user. It is also the last of ISRO’s seven fourth-generation satellites. It was successfully
placed into a geosynchronous orbit, around 36,000 km above Earth. It is used exclusively by the
Indian Navy to secure real-time communications between its numerous warships, aircraft,
submarines and land-based communication systems. The GSAT-7 is believed is markedly improve
India’s maritime security in a wide section on the western and eastern flanks of the Indian Ocean
region, among many others. A case in point was Operational Exercise (Tropex) in the Bay of Bengal
in 2014, when Rukmini was successfully able to network around 60 ships and at least 75 aircraft
effortlessly. The Indian Navy wants to use Rukmini to primarily cover activities up till the Malacca
Straits in the east and the Hormuz Strait to the west. The GSAT-7 also has an approximate 2,000
nautical mile footprint over the IOR.
https://indianexpress.com/article/what-is/india-rukmini-gsat-7-satellite-china-indian-ocean-
region-sikkim-standoff-4736318/

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ58
“Perijove” seen often in the news is related to?

Options
A. Asteroid Bennu
B. Trojan Asteroid
C. Planet Jupiter
D. Star Ceres

Answer – C

The point in the orbit of a satellite of Jupiter nearest the planet's center is called Perijove.
The point in the orbit of a satellite of Jupiter farthest the planet's center is called Apijove.

 The closest point a satellite comes to Earth is called its perigee. The farthest point is the
apogee.
 For planets, the point in their orbit closest to the sun is perihelion. The farthest point is called
aphelion.

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ59
“Phobos” and “Deimos”, seen recently in the news are?

Options
A. Jupiter’s moons with water presence B. Exo planets
C. Magnetors D. Mars’s natural satellites

Answer - D
 The two moons of Mars are Phobos and Deimos.
 Both were discovered by Asaph Hall in August 1877 and are named after the Greek
mythological twin characters Phobos and Deimos who accompanied their father Ares, god
of war, into battle.
 Size – Phobos > Deimos
https://www.deccanchronicle.com/science/science/081017/nasas-mars-odyssey-probe-captures-
first-image-of-moon-phobos.html

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ60
“Project Apeiro” , which uses High altitude ballooning technique, seen in news recently is for ?

Options
A.Provinding internet in remote areas B.Measuring cosmic radiation in Stratosphere
C.Monitoring Ozone and PM 2.5 levels D.For cloud seeding

Answer – B

Project Apeiro, an experimental student-led satellite has been launched from TIFR Ballon Facility in
Hyderabad. The undergraduate Students from BITS Pilani KK Birla Goa Campus initiated the project
with the support of Tata Institute of Fundamental Research which developed the detector. The
experiment flight is aimed to detect and measure cosmic radiation in stratosphere. This study is
important to understand the biologically harmful cosmic radiation incident on earth from outer
space. Extended exposure to this radiation leads to an increased risk in cancer and tissue damage.
Hence, a thorough understanding of this radiation is essential to develop predictive and preventive
mechanisms against their impact. The experiment was conducted using the technique of High
Altitude Ballooning. This method allows studies in the near-space environment with the help of a
zero-pressure plastic balloon which lifts the experimental payload to desired altitude. The
experimental payload consisted of a cosmic radiation detector made with a combination of
scintillator and photomultiplier tubes. This detector system was supported by an on-board high and
low voltage power supply systems along with data acquisition systems. The balloon and all other
flight equipment required for the flight of the Project Apeiro payload were completely developed at
this facility.
The payload was launched in 2018 Feb and achieved a first float altitude at 24.8 km. The second
float altitude was achieved at 26.7 km. The flight was terminated later.All flight control and
experiment equipment were recovered successfully without any damage. This flight sets history by
successfully completing the country’s first near-space experiment completely developed by
students.

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ61
Which of the following is FALSE about “South Asian Satellite”?

Options
A. It is GSAT-09 satellite, launched by GSLV
B. It was recently launched in SAARC summit 2018 at Goa
C. It applies to all SAARC nations, excluding Pakistan
D. None of the above

Answer – B Launch - SAARC 2014 at Nepal

India's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-F09) successfully launched the 2230 kg
South |Asia Satellite (GSAT-9) into its planned Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit. This is the fourth
consecutive success achieved by GSLV carrying indigenously developed Cryogenic Upper Stage.
South Asia Satellite is a communication satellite built by ISRO to provide a variety of communication
services over the South Asian region. For this, it is equipped with Ku-band transponders.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ62
Which of the following are applications of South Asian Satellite (GSAT-09) ?
1. Tele medicine
2. Tele education
3. Disaster response
4. Rescue operations

Options
A. 1,2,3 only B. 1,2,3,4 C.1 and 2 only D. 3 and 4 only

Answer – B

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ63
Which of the following Solar missions are matched incorrectly?

Options
A. Aditya : Exclusive ISRO mission
B. SOHO : Exclusive ESA mission
C. ACE : Exclusive NASA mission
D. none of these

Answer – B SOHO is a NASA + ESA mission

The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) is a spacecraft built by a European industrial
consortium led by Matra Marconi Space (now Astrium) that was launched on a Lockheed Martin
Atlas II AS launch vehicle on December 2, 1995, to study the Sun, and has discovered over 3000
comets. It began normal operations in May 1996. It is a joint project of international cooperation
between the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA. Originally planned as a two-year mission,

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SOHO continues to operate after over 20 years in space. In November 2016, a mission extension
lasting until December 2018 was approved.

Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) is a NASA Explorers program Solar and space exploration
mission to study matter comprising energetic particles from the solar wind, the interplanetary
medium, and other sources. Real-time data from ACE is used by the NOAA Space Weather
Prediction Center to improve forecasts and warnings of solar storms. The ACE robotic spacecraft
was launched August 25, 1997, and entered a Lissajous orbit close to the L1 Lagrangian point (which
lies between the Sun and the Earth at a distance of some 1.5 million km from the latter) on
December 12, 1997. The spacecraft is currently operating at that orbit. Because ACE is in a non-
Keplerian orbit, and has regular station-keeping maneuvers, the orbital parameters in the adjacent
information box are only approximate.

The Aditya-1 mission was conceived as a 400kg class satellite carrying one payload, the Visible
Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC) and was planned to launch in a 800 km low earth orbit. A
Satellite placed in the halo orbit around the Lagrangian point 1 (L1) of the Sun-Earth system has the
major advantage of continuously viewing the Sun without any occultation/ eclipses. Therefore, the
Aditya-1 mission has now been revised to “Aditya-L1 mission” and will be inserted in a halo orbit
around the L1, which is 1.5 million km from the Earth. The satellite carries additional six payloads
with enhanced science scope and objectives. The project is approved and the satellite will be
launched during 2019 – 2020 timeframe by PSLV-XL from Sriharikota. Aditya-1 was meant to
observe only the solar corona. The outer layers of the Sun, extending to thousands of km above the
disc (photosphere) is termed as the corona. It has a temperature of more than a million degree
Kelvin which is much higher than the solar disc temperature of around 6000K. How the corona gets
heated to such high temperatures is still an unanswered question in solar physics. Aditya-L1 with
additional experiments can now provide observations of Sun's Photosphere (soft and hard X-ray),
Chromosphere (UV) and corona (Visible and NIR). In addition, particle payloads will study the
particle flux emanating from the Sun and reaching the L1 orbit, and the magnetometer payload will
measure the variation in magnetic field strength at the halo orbit around L1. These payloads have to
be placed outside the interference from the Earth’s magnetic field and could not have been useful
in the low earth orbit.
For full details to form a mains answer, read this , and also refer news –
https://www.isro.gov.in/aditya-l1-first-indian-mission-to-study-sun

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ64
“Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS)” aboard Aura Satellite was seen recently in news, with regards
to ?

Options
A. Gravitational waves B. Solar flares C. Larsen C D. Ozone layer

Answer – D The Antarctic ozone hole forms during September in the Southern
Hemisphere’s winter as the returning sun’s rays catalyse ozone destruction cycles involving chlorine
and bromine that come primarily from CFCs.
The change in ozone levels above Antarctica from the beginning to the end of southern winter-
early July to mid- September - was computed daily from the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) aboard
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the Aura satellite every year from 2005 to 2016. When ozone destruction is ongoing, chlorine is
found in many molecular forms, most of which are not measured. But after chlorine has destroyed
nearly all the available ozone, it reacts instead with methane to form hydrochloric acid - a gas
measured by MLS. The Antarctic ozone hole should continue to recover gradually as CFCs leave the
atmosphere, but complete recovery will take decades, CFCs have lifetimes from 50 to 100 years, so
they linger in the atmosphere for a very long time
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/science/chemical-ban-helped-closing-up-of-ozone-layer-
hole-nasa/articleshow/62391498.cms?from=mdr

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ65
India recently launched its 100th satellite. Which among the following is the one?

Options
A. GSAT-09 by GSLV Mk3 B. South Asian Satellite by GSLV
C. 7th satellite of NAVIC mission D. Cartosat-2 by PSLV

Answer - D

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/science/isros-pslv-c40-successfully-places-cartosat-2-in-orbit-
10-facts/isros-100th-launch/slideshow/62470538.cms

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ66
Roll Out Solar Array (ROSA), recently seen in the news, a kind of solar panel to be used in future
satellite and spacecraft, is developed by ?

Options
A. European Space Agency
B. ISRO
C. NASA
D. ROSCOMOS

Answer – C The Roll Out Solar Array, known as ROSA, is a solar array designed by NASA. This
new type of solar arrayprovides much more energy than the old solar arrays. Traditional solar
panels used to power satellites can be bulky with heavy panels folded together using mechanical
hinges.

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ67
Which of the following are true about James Webb Space Telescope recently seen in news?
1. It is the world’s biggest and most powerful telescope
2. Developed by Joint collaboration of many agencies including NASA, ESA & Canadian
space agency
3. It will work primarily in the infrared range of electromagnetic spectrum

Options
A. 1 and 2 only
B. 2 and 3 only
C. 1,2 and 3
D. 1 and 3 only

Answer – C

 The James Webb Space Telescope (sometimes called JWST or Webb) will be a large
infrared telescope with a 6.5-meter primary mirror.
 The telescope will be launched on an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana in 2021.
 Webb will be the premier observatory of the next decade, serving thousands of
astronomers worldwide.
 It will study every phase in the history of our Universe, ranging from the first luminous
glows after the Big Bang, to the formation of solar systems capable of supporting life on
planets like Earth, to the evolution of our own Solar System.
 Webb was formerly known as the "Next Generation Space Telescope" (NGST); it was
renamed in Sept. 2002 after a former NASA administrator, James Webb.

 Webb is an international collaboration between NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA),
and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).

 The NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is managing the development effort. The main
industrial partner is Northrop Grumman; the Space Telescope Science Institute will operate
Webb after launch. Several innovative technologies have been developed for Webb. These
include a primary mirror made of 18 separate segments that unfold and adjust to shape
after launch. The mirrors are made of ultra-lightweight beryllium. Webb’s biggest feature is
a tennis court sized five-layer sunshield that attenuates heat from the Sun more than a
million times. The telescope’s four instruments - cameras and spectrometers - have
detectors that are able to record extremely faint signals.

 One instrument (NIRSpec) has programmable microshutters, which enable observation up

to 100 objects simultaneously. Webb also has a cryocooler for cooling the mid-infrared
detectors of another instrument (MIRI) to a very cold 7 K so they can work.
http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/nasas-new-space-telescope-to-hunt-for-signs-of-
alien-life/article19088049.ece

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ68
“Hawkings Radiation”, related to Stephen Hawkings , refers to ?

Options
A. Radiations emitted from a blackhole
B. Radiations emitted in the beginning of universe in Big Bang process
C. Radiations emitted when two gravitational waves collide with each other
D. Radiations needed to create a Big Bang crunch to reverse the Big Bang expansion

Answer – A

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ69
Which of the following are true about Biochemical Oxygen demand (BOD)?
1. Sewage water is usually treated with microbes till the BOD reduces to a significant
low level
2. The greater the BOD of waste water, the more is its polluting potential

Options
A. 1 only B. 2 only C. 1 and 2 only D. None

Answer – C
Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD, also called Biological Oxygen Demand) is the amount of
dissolved oxygen needed (i.e. demanded) by aerobic biological organisms to break down organic
material present in a given water sample at certain temperature over a specific time period.

COD or Chemical Oxygen Demand is a measure of the capacity of water to consume oxygen during
the decomposition of organic matter and the oxidation of inorganic chemicals such as Ammonia
and nitrite.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ70
Which of the following best describes the term “Natality”?

Options
A. The number of births during a given period in the population that are added to the initial
density.
B. The number of deaths in the population during a given period.
C. The number of individuals of the same species that have come into the habitat from elsewhere
during the time period under consideration.
D. None of these

Answer – A Natality is the greatest influence on a population's increase. Natality is shown as a

crude birth rate or specific birth rate. Crude birth rate is used when calculating population size
(number of births per 1000 population/year), whereas specific birth rate is used relative to a
specific criterion such as age.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ71
2018 marked 60th year of NASA. Which of the following missions of NASA are INcorrectly
matched?

Options
A. Parker Probe : Sun study
B. OSIRIS-REX : Asteroid Bennu
C. Insights : Mars
D. ASPIRE : Mercury

Answer – D ASPIRE related to Mars

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NASA's Parker Solar Probe will be the first-ever mission to "touch" the Sun. Parker Solar Probe is a
planned NASA robotic spacecraft to probe the outer corona of the Sun. It will approach to within
8.86 solar radii from the "surface" of the Sun

The OSIRIS-REx is a NASA asteroid study and sample-return mission. Launched on 8 September
2016, its mission is to study asteroid 101955 Bennu, a carbonaceous asteroid, and return a sample
to Earth on 24 September 2023 for detailed analysis

InSight is a robotic lander designed to study the interior of the planet Mars. The mission launched
on 5 May 2018 at 11:05 UTC and is expected to land on the surface of Mars at Elysium Planitia on
26 November 2018, where it will deploy a seismometer and burrow a heat probe. It will also
perform a radio science experiment to study the internal structure of Mars

NASA has successfully conducted Advanced Supersonic Parachute Inflation Research Experiment
(ASPIRE) to test supersonic parachute that will help its space exploration missions to land on Mars

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ72
Which of the following is India’s research station at the North pole?

Options
A. Maitri B. Dakshin Gangotri C. HIMANSH D. HIMADRI

Answer – D Himadri is India's first permanent Arctic research station located at Spitsbergen,
Svalbard, Norway. It is located at the International Arctic Research base, Ny-Ålesund. It was
inaugurated on the 1st of July, 2008 by the Minister of Earth Sciences. It was set up during India's
second Arctic expedition in June 2008.

Himalayan region has the largest concentration of glaciers outside the polar caps, as this region is
aptly called the “Water Tower of Asia” is the source of the 10 major river systems that provide
irrigation, power and drinking water for over 700 million people live in India, Pakistan and
Bangladesh– nearly 10% of the world’s population. As part of the Indian government’s initiatives to
better study and quantify the Himalayan glacier responses towards the climate change, National
Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR), Goa, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences has
established a high altitude research station in Himalaya called HIMANSH (literally meaning, a slice
of ice), situated above 13,500 ft (> 4000 m) at a remote region in Spiti, Himachal Pradesh.

The Indian Antarctic Program is a multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional program under the control
of the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of
India. It was initiated in 1981 with the first Indian expedition to Antarctica. The program gained
global acceptance with India's signing of the Antarctic Treaty and subsequent construction of the
Dakshin Gangotri Antarctic research base in 1983, superseded by the Maitri base from 1989. The
newest base commissioned in 2012 is Bharati, constructed out of 134 shipping containers. Under
the program, atmospheric, biological, earth, chemical, and medical sciences are studied by India,
which has carried out 30 scientific expeditions to the Antarctic as of 14 October 2010.

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ73
Which of the following are matched correctly?
1. Brahmos : Supersonic cruise missile
2. Nirbhay : Subsonic cruise missile
3. Agni : Ballistic missile
4. K missiles : Submarine launched ballistic missile

Options
A. 1 only B. 1,2,4 only C. 2,3 only D. 1,2,3,4

Answer – D

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ74
Which version of Prithvi is used in the Air Force?

Options
A. Prithvi 1 B. Prithvi 2
C. Prithvi 3 D. Dhanush

Answer – B Dhanush used in Navy, Prithvi 1 used in Army

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ75
Which of the following are matched correctly?
1. MAURUTIA : Lost old continent in Indian Ocean
2. ZEALANDIA : New continent discovered in the Pacific Ocean

Options
A. 1 only B. 2 only
C. 1 and 2 D. none

Answer – C

https://mymodernmet.com/zealandia-hidden-continent/
lost-continent-found-under-island-mauritius

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ76
Which of the following are true INS Vishaal?
1. It will be India’s second indigenous aircraft launch vehicle
2. It will be conventionally powered
3. It is a catapult based Aircraft launch mechanism

Options
A. 2 and 3 only B. 1,2,3 C. 1 only D. 1 and 3 only

Answer – B
INS Virat (UK gave us) , INS VIkramaditya (Russia)
INS Vikrant and INS Vishaal are Indian made

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ77
“i3MS” seen recently in the news refers to ?

Options
A Cyber security platform B. Artificial Intelligence portal
C. GPS linked web based software D. India’s own fast computer processor

Answer – C Integrated Mines and Mineral Management System

http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/odisha/2016/nov/19/mineral-carriers-to-have-gps-
tracking-device-odisha-government-1540453.html

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ78
Which of the following telescopes seen in news, is set up at Ladakh?
1. National Large Solar Telescope (NLST)
2. Multi Application Solar Telescope (MAST)

Options
A. 1 only B. 2 only C. Both 1 and 2 D. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer – C MAST is at Udaipur

The National Large Solar Telescope (NLST) is a Gregorian multi-purpose open telescope proposed
to be built near Pangong Lake in Merak village in Ladakh in India and aims to study the sun's
microscopic structure.

Multi Application Solar Telescope (MAST), a telescope for the detailed study of the Solar activity
including its magnetic field, has recently been operationalised at the Udaipur Solar Observatory
(USO) of Physical Research Laboratory (PRL), an autonomous unit of the Department of Space.
MAST is an off-axis Gregorian-Coude telescope with a 50 cm aperture.PRL is a premier research
institute engaged in basic research in the areas of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Solar Physics,
Planetary Science and Exploration, Space and Atmospheric Sciences, Geosciences and Theoretical
Physics. Apart from the main campus at Ahmedabad, there are two other campuses at Mt. Abu and
Udaipur, hosting the Infrared Telescope and a Multi-Application-Solar Telescope (MAST),
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respectively. The planetary exploration (PLANEX) programme and the astronomy group are housed
in the fourth campus at Thaltej, close to Ahmedabad.The USO is situated on an island in the middle
of the Lake Fatehsagar of Udaipur, Rajasthan, India. The sky conditions at Udaipur are quite
favourable for solar observations. The large water body surrounding the telescopes decreases the
amount of heating of the surface layers. This decreases the turbulence in the air mass and thereby
improves the image quality and seeing. The main objective of obtaining the high spatial and
temporal resolution observations of solar photospheric and chromospheric activity is to understand
the various dynamic phenomena occurring on the surface of the Sun.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ79
“Phosphorylation” was seen recently in news, with regards to ?

Options
A. Discovery of fire B. Excavation of Harappan sites
C. Steam Engines D. Origin of Life

Phosphorylation: A biochemical process that involves the addition of phosphate to an organic

compound. Examples include the addition of phosphate to glucose to produce glucose
monophosphate and the addition of phosphate to adenosine diphosphate (ADP) to form adenosine
triphosphate (ATP) https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/science/missing-link-in-origin-of-life-
on-earth-found/article9947401.ece

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ80
Ordnance factory board handed over DHANUSH to Army recently. Dhanush in the context refers
to?

Options
A. Nuclear Submarine B. Nuclear Missile
C. Artillery Gun D. War Helicopter

Answer – C
https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/6-dhanush-artillery-guns-handed-over-to-army-1st-lot-of-
114-piece-order/article26771121.ece

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ81
The government has cleared Ultra Mega Power projects in about 4 places in India (MP,GJ, AP, JK).
This project is?

Options
A. Solar based
B. Coal based
C. Mini Hydel
D. Nuclear

Answer – B

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ82
Which of the following is true about International Solar Alliance (ISA)?
1. Its goal is to have 1TW of solar energy by 2030
2. Its goal needs a huge budget of 1000 billion dollars
3. ISA has a 2 tier structure with Assembly and Secretariat
4. Each member country in ISA assembly has one vote during decision making

Options
A. 1 and 2 only B. 3 and 4 only C. 1,2,3,4 D. 1,2,3 only

Answer – C http://isolaralliance.org/AboutISA.aspx
Many countries face gaps in the potential solar energy manufacturing eco-system. Absence of
universal energy access, energy equity and affordability are issues common to most of the solar
resource rich countries. International Solar Alliance (ISA) is conceived as a coalition of solar resource
rich countries to address their special energy needs and will provide a platform to collaborate on
addressing the identified gaps through a common, agreed approach. It will not duplicate or
replicate the efforts that others (like International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), Renewable
Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership(REEEP), International Energy Agency (IEA), Renewable
Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21), United Nations bodies, bilateral organizations
etc.) are currently engaged in, but will establish networks and develop synergies with them and
supplement their efforts in a sustainable and focused manner. Vision and mission of the
International Solar Alliance is to provide a dedicated platform for cooperation among solar resource
rich countries where the global community, including bilateral and multilateral organizations,
corporates, industry, and other stakeholders, can make a positive contribution to assist and help
achieve the common goals of increasing the use of solar energy in meeting energy needs of
prospective ISA member countries in a safe, convenient, affordable, equitable and sustainable
manner. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/delhi-the-world-capital-of-sun-macron-
applauds-indias-contribution-in-harnessing-solar-energy/articleshow/63258410.cms

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ83
Which of the following committees were set up with respect to Artificial Intelligence?

Options
A. V Kamakoti
B. Dr Rajiv Kumar
C. T K Vishwanathan
D. Nagesh Singh

Answer – A

Dr Rajiv Kumar : related to Exports and jobs

T K Vishwanathan : related to online hate speech
Nagesh Singh : related to MNREGA wages

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ84
MICIUS , the world's first Quantum satellite was recently launched by?

Options
A. ISRO B. China C. Germany D. NASA

Answer – B
• Quantum mechanics (QM) is the dark arts of physics. Though physics — in the Newtonian
mould — tells us how every object will precisely behave when pushed and hurled, QM deals
with the invisible world of subatomic particles, where counter-intuitive rules apply.
• QM inhabitants such as electrons and photons live in zombie-like ‘undead’ states. The
very act of observing them makes them beguiling tricksters. Though not always
understandable, science knows, in bits and pieces, how they can be manipulated for
purposes that benefit the visible world such as making integrated circuit chips and fibre-
optic lines for global, instantaneous communication.
• Transparency may be the shining ideal of modern society but countries and corporations are
now infinitely more obsessed with secrecy than in the days of ancient Greece
• China has combined satellite technology and the elusiveness of quantum mechanics to
demonstrate how secret information can be transmitted over a thousand kilometres — a
tenfold increase over what has so far been achieved — with the guarantee that any
unauthorised attempt to decipher it would be immediately discernible.
• One of quantum mechanics’ cardinal principles, of Heisenberg Uncertainty, follows that
no physical object can be known entirely. Measuring, say, its momentum with increasing
precision reduces the accuracy with which you can determine its position. For long this was
seen as a barrier imposed by nature to us fully comprehending a physical system but for a
few decades now, the field of quantum cryptography has evolved around designing ‘keys’ or
alpha-numeric codes exploiting quantum mechanical strictures.
• Pairs of photons share their quantum properties no matter how long they are separated
or how far they have travelled. These can even be created in a laboratory and are called
entangled photons. Modern, electronic secrecy works by two parties encrypting the
messages they want to exchange and sending each other ‘keys’ (which are chains of
numbers) that can be used to decrypt the information. The trouble is that a third
eavesdropper can intercept these keys. An “un-crackable” system would be one where both
parties know if an intruder is trying to pry out information from the keys.
• The Chinese set-up transferred entangled photons through a satellite, called Micius,
between two ground stations that were 1,200 km apart. The researchers shot a laser beam
into a light-altering crystal in the satellite. The crystal emitted pairs of photons entangled so
that their polarisation states (or how they are oriented in space) would be opposite when
one was measured. The pairs were split, with photons sent to separate receiving stations in
Delingha and Lijiang, which are telescopes on mountains, 1,200 km apart. Both stations are
in the high mountains of Tibet, reducing the amount of air the fragile photons had to
traverse. This team then simultaneously measured more than 1,000 photon pairs. They
found the photons had opposite polarisations far more often than would be expected by
chance. The technological challenge in this case was ensuring that the transmission
between the satellites and ground observatories was so steady that the stream of hyper-
sensitive, journeying photons weren’t broken even though the satellite was cruising at
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nearly 8 km per second. “…The obtained link efficiency is in orders of magnitude higher than
that of the direct bidirectional transmission of two photons through telecommunication
fibres,”
• Today, the number of high-quality science publications out of China is second only to the
U.S. Along with advances in the manipulation of stem cells, this latest step shows their
command over the great symbols of the modern scientific age: the satellite, quantum and
the Internet. http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/a-quantum-step-to-a-great-wall-
for-encryption/article19099620.ece

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ85
Recently NASA discovered canyons of Hydrocarbons on the moon of which planet?

Options
A. Jupiter B. Saturn C. Earth D. Mercury

Answer – C
Cassini, spacecraft launched by the United States' National Aeronautics and Space Administration
(NASA), has beamed back images of a giant storm erupting on Saturn as the ringed planet’s solstice ,
marking a milestone in the mission that is approaching the end of its 20-year-long journey.
A planet’s solstice is the longest day of summer in the northern hemisphere and the shortest day
of winter in the southern hemisphere. On Saturn, it occurs about every 15 Earth years as the planet
and its entourage slowly orbit the Sun, with the north and south hemispheres alternating their roles
as the summer and winter poles.

“Reaching the solstice, and observing seasonal changes in the Saturn system along the way, was a
primary goal of Cassini’s Solstice Mission - the second extended mission of the spacecraft . The
Saturn system undergoes dramatic transitions from winter to summer, and thanks to Cassini, we
had a ringside seat,” said the scientists

Besides watching the giant storm erupting and encircling the planet, Cassini also saw the
disappearance of bluer hues that had lingered in the far north as springtime hazes began to form
there. The hazes are part of the reason why features in Saturn’s atmosphere are more muted in
their appearance than those on Jupiter.
Data from the mission showed how the formation of Saturn’s hazes is related to the seasonally
changing temperatures and chemical composition of the planet's upper atmosphere. Researchers
have found that some of the trace hydrocarbon compounds there - gases like ethane, propane and
acetylene - react more quickly than others to the changing amount of sunlight over the course of
Saturn’s year. They were also found that the changes Cassini observed on Saturn did not occur
gradually. They saw changes occur suddenly, at specific latitudes in the banded atmosphere.
“Eventually, a whole hemisphere undergoes change, but it gets there by these jumps at specific
latitude bands at different times in the season,” said Robert West, a Cassini imaging team member
at JPL.
During the northern summer solstice, the Sun rose ever higher above the rings’ northern face. Light
penetrates deeper into the rings, heating them to the warmest temperatures seen there during the
mission.

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The solstice sunlight helps reveal how particles clump together and whether the particles buried in
the middle of the ring plane have a different composition or structure than the ones in the rings’
outer layers.
Cassini was launched in 1997 and arrived at Saturn in 2004 for its four-year primary mission to
study the planet and its rings and moons. The final phase of its long mission, was called its Grand
Finale. Over the course of 22 weeks from April 26 to September 15 2017 , the spacecraft made a
series of dramatic dives between the planet and its icy rings. The mission ended with a final plunge
into Saturn’s atmosphere on September 15, 2017.
http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/nasas-cassini-beams-back-images-of-saturns-
solstice/article18576029.ece

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ86
Which of the following are true regarding Scramjet engines?
1. India is the first country to successfully test a scramjet engine
2. Scramjets are efficient only at speed greater than speed of sound.
3. it uses atmospheric oxygen to burn the hydrogen fuel
4. A rocket using scramjet engine would be significantly lighter, smaller and cheaper

Options
A. 1,2,3 only B. 1,3,4 only C. 3,4 only D. 2,3,4 only

India became 4th country after USA, Russia, China

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/ISRO-successfully-test-fires-scramjet-
engine/article14599899.ece

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With this flight, critical technologies such as ignition of air breathing engines at supersonic speed,
holding the flame at supersonic speed, air intake mechanism and fuel injection systems have been
successfully demonstrated. The Scramjet engine designed by ISRO uses Hydrogen as fuel and the
Oxygen from the atmospheric air as the oxidiser. The August 28 test was the maiden short
duration experimental test of ISRO’s Scramjet engine with a hypersonic flight at Mach 6. ISRO’s
Advanced Technology Vehicle (ATV), which is an advanced sounding rocket, was the solid rocket
booster used for this recent test of Scramjet engines at supersonic conditions. ATV carrying
Scramjet engines weighed 3277 kg at lift-off.

ATV is a two stage spin stabilised launcher with identical solid motors (based on Rohini RH560
sounding rocket) as the first as well as the second stage (booster and sustainer). The twin
Scramjet engines were mounted on the back of the second stage. Once the second stage reached
the desired conditions for engine “Start-up”, necessary actions were initiated to ignite the Scramjet
engines and they functioned for about 5 seconds. ATV flight operations were based on a pre-
programmed sequence. Some of the technological challenges handled by ISRO during the
development of Scramjet engine include the design and development of Hypersonic engine air
intake, the supersonic combustor, development of materials withstanding very high temperatures,
computational tools to simulate hypersonic flow, ensuring performance and operability of the
engine across a wide range of flight speeds, proper thermal management and ground testing of the
engines. India is the fourth country to demonstrate the flight testing of a Scramjet Engine.

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ87
Rosetta spacecraft , mission to comet 67P, recently in the news , was sent by?

Options
A. European Space Agency B. NASA,USA C. Russia D. JAXA,Japan

Answer - A
• Rosetta was a space probe built by the European Space Agency launched on 2 March 2004.
Along with Philae, its lander module, Rosetta performed a detailed study of comet
67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko (67P). During its journey to the comet, the spacecraft flew by
Mars and the asteroids 21 Lutetia and 2867 Šteins.
• It was launched as the third cornerstone mission of the ESA's Horizon 2000 programme,
after SOHO / Cluster and XMM-Newton.
• On 6 August 2014, the spacecraft reached the comet and performed a series of manoeuvres
to eventually orbit the comet at distances of 30 to 10 kilometres (19 to 6 mi). On 12
November, its lander module Philae performed the first successful landing on a
comet,though its battery power ran out two days later. Communications with Philae were
briefly restored in June and July 2015, but due to diminishing solar power, Rosetta's
communications module with the lander was turned off on 27 July 2016. On 30 September
2016, the Rosetta spacecraft ended its mission by hard-landing on the comet in its Ma'at
region.The probe was named after the Rosetta Stone, a stele of Egyptian origin featuring a
decree in three scripts. The lander was named after the Philae obelisk, which bears a
bilingual Greek and Egyptian hieroglyphic

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ88
A satellite named "Gaia" space probe has been appreciated for the making the most accurate
three dimensional map of the Milky Way. This is a mission from ?

Options
A. NASA B. ISRO C. ESA D. JAXA

Answer - C
• Gaia is a space observatory of the European Space Agency (ESA) designed for astrometry:
measuring the positions and distances of stars with unprecedented precision.
• The mission aims to construct the largest and most precise 3D space catalog ever made,
totalling approximately 1 billion astronomical objects, mainly stars, but also planets,
comets, asteroids and quasars among others.
• Successor to the Hipparcos mission, the telescope is part of ESA's Horizon 2000+ long-term
scientific program. Gaia was launched on 19 December 2013 by Arianespace using a Soyuz
ST-B/Fregat-MT rocket flying from Kourou in French Guiana.The spacecraft currently
operates in a Lissajous orbit around the Sun–Earth L2 Lagrangian point.
• The spacecraft will monitor each of its target objects about 70 times over a period of five
years to study the precise position and motion of each target.
• The spacecraft has enough consumables to operate for approximately nine years, if its
detectors are not degrading as fast as initially expected. The mission could therefore be
extended.
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• The Gaia targets represent approximately 1% of the Milky Way population with all stars
brighter than magnitude 20 in a broad photometric band that covers most of the visual
range.
• Additionally, Gaia is expected to detect thousands to tens of thousands of Jupiter-sized
exoplanets beyond the Solar System, 500,000 quasars and tens of thousands of new
asteroids and comets within the Solar System.
• The spectrophotometric measurements will provide the detailed physical properties of all
stars observed, characterizing their luminosity, effective temperature, gravity and elemental
composition.
• Gaia is an ambitious mission to chart a three-dimensional map of our Galaxy, the Milky Way,
in the process revealing the composition, formation and evolution of the Galaxy.
• Gaia will provide unprecedented positional and radial velocity measurements with the
accuracies needed to produce a stereoscopic and kinematic census of about one billion stars
in our Galaxy and throughout the Local Group. This amounts to about 1 per cent of the
Galactic stellar population.
http://www.livemint.com/Science/yO9pkBObKTYfl4y5PJ3yjN/European-Space-Agency-to-unveil-
threedimensional-map-of-Mil.html

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ89
One of the world’s largest telescope, Aperture Spherical Telescope or "FAST" began operations
from ?

Options
A. Ladakh B. China C. Peurto Rico D. Tibet

Answer – B The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST), nicknamed

Tianyan (lit. "Heavenly Eye" or "The Eye of Heaven") is a radio telescope located in the Dawodang
depression, a natural basin in Pingtang County, Guizhou Province, southwest China. It consists of a
fixed 500 m (1,600 ft) diameter dish constructed in a natural depression in the landscape. It is the
world's largest filled-aperture radio telescope, and the second-largest single-dish aperture after the
sparsely-filled RATAN-600 in Russia. It has a novel design, using an active surface made of metal
panels that can be tilted by a computer to help change the focus to different areas of the sky. The
cabin containing the feed antenna suspended on cables above the dish is also moved using a
digitally-controlled winch by the computer control system to steer the instrument to receive from
different directions. Construction on the FAST project began in 2011 and it achieved first light in
September 2016. It observes at wavelengths of 10 cm to 4.3 m.

The telescope made its first discovery of two new pulsars in August 2017, barely one year after its
first light. The new pulsars PSR J1859-01 and PSR J1931-02, which are also referred to as FAST
pulsar #1 and #2 (FP1 and FP2), were detected on 22 and 25 August and are 16,000 and 4,100 light
years away, respectively. They were independently confirmed by the Parkes Observatory in
Australia on 10 September. The telescope had discovered 44 new pulsars by September, 2018.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/World%E2%80%99s-largest-radio-telescope-
begins-operations/article14998964.ece

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ90
NASA has successfully launched a space probe - "OSIRIS-Rex" targetting a/an/the ?

Options
A. Asteroid B. Comet C. Planet Neptune D. Star Sirus

The OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith

Explorer) is a NASA asteroid study and sample-return mission. Launched on 8 September 2016, its
mission is to study asteroid 101955 Bennu, a carbonaceous asteroid, and return a sample to Earth
on 24 September 2023 for detailed analysis. The material returned is expected to enable scientists
to learn more about the formation and evolution of the Solar System, its initial stages of planet
formation, and the source of organic compounds that led to the formation of life on Earth. If
successful, OSIRIS-REx will be the first U.S. spacecraft to return samples from an asteroid.

The cost of the mission will be approximately US$800 million not including the Atlas V launch
vehicle, which is about US$183.5 million. It is the third planetary science mission selected in the
New Frontiers program, after Juno and New Horizons. The Principal Investigator is Dante Lauretta
from the University of Arizona. http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/NASA-to-explore-
asteroid-Bennu-during-its-close-encounter-with-Earth/article14545936.ece

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ91
ISRO used the same Launch vehicle to launch satellites in 2 different orbits recently. Which
technology did they ideally demonstrate via this launch?

Options
A. Cryogenic technology B. Air Breathing technology
C. Multiple burning technology D. Scramjet Technology

Answer – C https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/science/isro-to-make-commercial-
use-of-multiple-burn-technology-in-monday-rocket-launch/articleshow/54509679.cms
• Indian space agency ISRO on Sept 16,2016 for the first time, made commercial use its own
multiple burn technology while launching eight satellites - five foreign and three domestic -
in different orbits.
• Multiple burn technology is the switching off and switching on of a rocket's engine in space.
• First time the multiple burn technology was tested by ISRO while flying its PSLV rocket on
December 16, 2015 and in June 2016, the technology was again demonstrated.
• 320 ton PSLV rocket will put its main cargo the 371 kg SCATSAT-1 - for ocean and weather
related studies - into a 730 km polar sun synchronous orbit. The remaining seven satellites
will be placed in a 689 km polar orbit nearly two hours later.
• These include five foreign satellites: three from Algeria (Alsat-1B 103kg, Alsat-2B 117kg,
Alsat-1N 7kg), and one each from Canada (NLS-19, 8kg) and US (Pathfinder-44kg).
• The two other Indian satellites are: Pratham (10kg) built by Indian Institute of Technology-
Bombay and Pisat (5.25 kg) from PES University, Bengaluru and its consortium.
• After putting into orbit SCATSAT-1, the rocket's fourth stage or the engine will be shut down
and would be restarted and cut off one hour 22 minutes twice after the rocket blast off

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from Sriharikota. Two hours and 11 minutes into the flight the fourth stage will be restarted.
Four minutes later all the seven satellites would be put into their intended orbit.
• The PSLV rocket is a four stage/engine rocket powered by solid and liquid fuel alternatively.
• According to ISRO, SCATSAT-1 is a continuity mission for Oceansat-2 scatterometer to
provide wind vector data products for weather forecasting, cyclone detection and tracking
services to the users.
• The satellite carries Ku-band scatterometer similar to the one flown onboard Oceansat-2.
The mission life of the satellite is five years.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ92
ISRO's GSLV F05 recently launched INSAT 3DR satellite using cryogenic fuel in upper stage. Here ,
INSAT 3DR is a ?

Options
A. Remote sensing satellite B. Messenger support satellite developed by IIT students
C. Weather satellite D. Communication satellite

Answer – D http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=149636
INSAT-3DR similar to INSAT-3D, is an advanced meteorological satellite of India configured with an
imaging System and an Atmospheric Sounder. The significant improvements incorporated in
INSAT-3DR are:
• Imaging in Middle Infrared band to provide night time pictures of low clouds and fog
• Imaging in two Thermal Infrared bands for estimation of Sea Surface Temperature (SST)
with better accuracy
• Higher Spatial Resolution in the Visible and Thermal Infrared bands
And, like its predecessor INSAT-3D, INSAT-3DR carries a Data Relay Transponder as well as a Search
and Rescue Transponder. Thus, INSAT-3DR will provide service continuity to earlier meteorological
missions of ISRO and further augment the capability to provide various meteorological as well as
search and rescue services. INSAT-3DR has a lift-off mass of 2211 kg, which includes about 1255 kg
of propellant. The propellant carried by INSAT-3DR is mainly required to raise the satellite from the
Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) to its final Geostationary Orbit and to maintain the satellite in
its orbital slot during its life. The satellite has a solar array generating 1700 Watts of power.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ93
Trojan Asteroids , refers to ?

Options
A. Asteroids which have the most chance to collide with near by planets
B. Asteroids which looks similar to the near by planets , acting as dummy planet
C. Asteroids which are constant companion to near by planets and orbits the sun without collision
D. Synthetically developed Asteroids sent by China to study other Asteroids near planet earth

In astronomy, a trojan is a minor planet or moon that shares the orbit of a planet or larger moon,
wherein the trojan remains in the same, stable position relative to the larger object. In particular, a
trojan remains near one of the two trojan points of stability – designated L4 and L5 – which lie

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approximately 60° ahead of and behind the larger body, respectively. Trojan points make up two of
five types of Lagrangian points, and a trojan is a type of Lagrangian object.
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-in-school/Where-are-the-Earth-Trojan-
asteroids/article17285997.ece

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ94
Jatropha , recently in the news is an example of ?

Options
A. First generation Bio fuel produced directly from food crops like wheat or sugar
B. Second generation Bio fuel produced from non food crops like food crops , waste and specific
biomass crops
C. Third generation Bio fuel by taking algae as its energy source
D. Fourth generation Bio fuel which involves carbon negative process unlike other generations
which are carbon neutral

Answer - B
• Jatropha is a genus of flowering plants in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae. The name is
derived from the Greek words ἰατρός (iatros), meaning "physician", and τροφή (trophe),
meaning "nutrition", hence the common name physic nut. Another common name is
nettlespurge.
• It contains approximately 170 species of succulent plants, shrubs and trees (some are
deciduous, like Jatropha curcas). Most of these are native to the Americas, with 66 species
found in the Old World
• Plants produce separate male and female flowers.
• As with many members of the family Euphorbiaceae,
• Jatropha contains compounds that are highly toxic. Jatropha species have traditionally been
used in basket making, tanning and dye production.
• In the 2000s, one species, Jatropha curcas, generated interest as an oil crop for biodiesel
production.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ95
“Chandrayaan Mission – 1 “ comprises of which of the following?
1. Lander
2. Rover
3. Orbiter
4. Impactor

Options
A. 1,2,3,4 B. 1,2,3 only C. 3 and 4 only D. 4 only

Answer – C

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Chandrayaan-2 mission is a highly complex mission, which represents a significant technological

leap compared to the previous missions of ISRO, which brought together an Orbiter, Lander and
Rover with the goal of exploring south pole of the Moon. This is a unique mission which aims at
studying not just one area of the Moon but all the areas combining the exosphere, the surface as
well as the sub-surface of the moon in a single mission.
The Moon is the closest cosmic body at which space discovery can be attempted and
documented. It is also a promising test bed to demonstrate technologies required for deep-space
missions. Chandrayaan-2 aims for enhancing our understanding of the Moon, stimulate the
advancement of technology, promote global alliances and inspire a future generation of explorers
and scientists.
Moon provides the best linkage to Earth’s early history. It offers an undisturbed historical record
of the inner Solar system environment. Though there are a few mature models, further
explanations were needed to understand the origin of the Moon. Extensive mapping of lunar
surface to study variations in lunar surface were essential to trace back the origin and evolution of
the Moon. Evidence for water molecules discovered by Chandrayaan-1, required further studies on
the extent of water molecule distribution on the surface, below the surface and in the tenous lunar
exosphere to address the origin of water on Moon.
The Lunar South pole is especially interesting because of the lunar surface area that remains in
shadow is much larger than that at the North Pole. There could be a possibility of presence of water
in permanently shadowed areas around it. In addition, South Pole region has craters that are cold
traps and contain a fossil record of the early Solar System.

• Chandrayan 2 launcher - The GSLV Mk-III is India's most powerful launcher to date, and has
been completely designed and fabricated from within the country.
• The Orbiter will observe the lunar surface and relay communication between Earth and
Chandrayaan 2's Lander — Vikram.
• The lander was designed to execute India's first soft landing on the lunar surface.
• The rover was a 6-wheeled, AI-powered vehicle named Pragyan, which translates to
'wisdom' in Sanskrit.

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ96
“INS Tarmugli” recently in the news is a/an?

Options
A. Offshore navigation vessel for the Indian Coast Guard
B. Sail boat which carried all women crew in Indian ocean voyage
C. Fast attack craft
D. Weapon locater developed by DRDO

Answer - C
• INS Tarmugli (T91) based in Vizag is a patrol vessel of the Car Nicobar-class of Indian Navy and the
first ship in the series of four Water Jet Fast Attack Craft (WJFAC).
• The indigenously conceived, designed and built ship, named after an island of same name in the
Andaman archipelago is capable of operating in shallow waters at high speeds. Built for extended
coastal and off-shore surveillance and patrol duties the warship is fitted with advanced MTU
engines, water jet propulsion as well as latest communication equipment.
• Unlike the United States Coast Guard's similarly sized Sentinel class cutters, the class is propelled
by water jets, at up to 35 knots (65 km/h), where the American patrol vessels conventional
propulsion systems maximum stated speed is 28 knots (52 km/h). Both classes have a mission
endurance of 2,000 nautical miles (3,700 km).
• INS Tarasa is the fourth and last of the follow-on Water Jet FAC's built by the Garden Reach
Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata. The first two ships of the class i.e. IN ships Tarmugli
and Tihayu were commissioned in 2016 and are based at Visakhapatnam; while the third ship INS
Tillanchang was commissioned earlier this year at Karwar on 09 March 2017. These ships are an
upgrade of the Car Nicobar class Fast Attack Crafts with the Indian Navy, which were also
indigenously designed and built by GRSE, Kolkata.
• The first INS Tarasa was in service of the Navy from 1999 to 2014. She was gifted to
Seychelles Coast Guard as a symbol of India's partnership with friendly maritime nation in IOR.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/ins-tillanchang-commissioned-at-
karwar/articleshow/57557415.cms

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ97
“A1689B11” recently discovered by scientists refers to ?

Options
A. Largest gravitational wave B. Most Ancient spiral galaxy
C. Ichyotasaurus fossils D. Scientific name of Saraswati super cluster

Answer – B
Scientists have discovered the most ancient spiral galaxy recorded so far. The galaxy, known as
A1689B11, was born 11 billion years ago and could provide insights into the early cosmos. It sits
behind a massive cluster of galaxies that acts as a lens, which scientists used to produce magnified
images

Spiral galaxies form a class of galaxy originally described by Edwin Hubble in his 1936 work The
Realm of the Nebulae and, as such, form part of the Hubble sequence. Most spiral galaxies consist
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of a flat, rotating disk containing stars, gas and dust, and a central concentration of stars known as
the bulge. These are often surrounded by a much fainter halo of stars, many of which reside in
globular clusters. Spiral galaxies are named by their spiral structures that extend from the center
into the galactic disc. The spiral arms are sites of ongoing star formation and are brighter than the
surrounding disc because of the young, hot OB stars that inhabit them. Roughly two-thirds of all
spirals are observed to have an additional component in the form of a bar-like structure extending
from the central bulge, at the ends of which the spiral arms begin. The proportion of barred spirals
relative to their barless cousins has likely changed over the history of the Universe, with only about
10% containing bars about 8 billion years ago, to roughly a quarter 2.5 billion years ago, until
present, where over two-thirds of the galaxies in the visible universe (Hubble volume) have bars.

Our own Milky Way is a barred spiral, although the bar itself is difficult to observe from the Earth's
current position within the galactic disc. The most convincing evidence for the stars forming a bar in
the galactic center comes from several recent surveys, including the Spitzer Space Telescope.
Together with irregular galaxies, spiral galaxies make up approximately 60% of galaxies in today's
universe. They are mostly found in low-density regions and are rare in the centers of galaxy clusters.
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-life/science-galaxy/article19989320.ece

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ98
“Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA) Observatory is an array of radio
telescopes being deployed by collaboration of various nations at ?

Options
A. Argentina B. Canada C. India D. Chile

Answer – D cold-dust-detected-around-earths-nearest-star/

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#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ99
India has been declared free of Trachoma ailment . It is ?

Options
A. Bacterial infection to eye B. Infection to ear
C. Throat blockade D. Viral infection affection the pancreas

Answer - A
Trachoma is an infectious disease caused by bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis. The infection
causes a roughening of the inner surface of the eyelids. This roughening can lead to pain in the
eyes, breakdown of the outer surface or cornea of the eyes, and eventual blindness. Untreated,
repeated trachoma infections can result in a form of permanent blindness when the eyelids turn
inward.

The bacteria that cause the disease can be spread by both direct and indirect contact with an
affected person's eyes or nose. Indirect contact includes through clothing or flies that have come
into contact with an affected person's eyes or nose. Children spread the disease more often than
adults. Poor sanitation, crowded living conditions, and not enough clean water and toilets also
increase spread.

Efforts to prevent the disease include improving access to clean water and treatment with
antibiotics to decrease the number of people infected with the bacterium. This may include
treating, all at once, whole groups of people in whom the disease is known to be common.
Washing, by itself, is not enough to prevent disease but may be useful with other measures.
Treatment options include oral azithromycin and topical tetracycline. Azithromycin is preferred
because it can be used as a single oral dose. After scarring of the eyelid has occurred, surgery may
be required to correct the position of the eyelashes and prevent blindness.

Globally, about 80 million people have an active infection. In some areas, infections may be present
in as many as 60–90% of children. Among adults, it more commonly affects women than men –
likely due to their closer contact with children. The disease is the cause of decreased vision in 2.2
million people, of whom 1.2 million are completely blind. It commonly occurs in 53 countries of
Africa, Asia, and Central and South America, with about 230 million people at risk. It results in US$8
billion of economic losses a year. It belongs to a group of diseases known as neglected tropical
diseases.

#Science-Tech-Test2-MCQ100
“Excitonium” , often seen in the news is ?

Options
A. Particle accelerator for Graviational wave detection B. New condensate form of matter
C. Newly discovered volatile metal D. Exit of Catalonia from Spain

Answer - B

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• Scientists have proven the existence of new form of matter called excitonium - which was
first theorised almost 50 years ago.
• Researchers from University of California and University of Illinois studied non-doped
crystals of a transition metal— dichalcogenide titanium diselenide (1T-TiSe2).
• Excitonium exhibits macroscopic quantum phenomena, like a superconductor and is made
up of excitons, particles that are formed in a very strange quantum mechanical pairing.
• When an electron, seated at the edge of the crowded-with-electrons valence band in a
semiconductor, gets excited and jumps over the energy gap to the otherwise empty
conduction band, it leaves behind a “hole” in the valence band. That hole behaves as
though it were a particle with positive charge, and it attracts the escaped electron. When
the escaped electron with its negative charge, pairs up with the hole, the two remarkably
form a composite particle, a boson - an exciton.
• The team used a novel technique called momentum-resolved electron energy-loss
spectroscopy (M-EELS) for the study. With their new technique, the group was able to
measure collective excitations of the low-energy bosonic particles, the paired electrons and
holes.
• “Ever since the term ‘excitonium’ was coined in the 1960s by Harvard theoretical physicist
Bert Halperin, physicists have sought to demonstrate its existence,” said Peter Abbamonte,
professor at University of Illinois. “Theorists have debated whether it would be an insulator,
a perfect conductor, or a superfluid—with some convincing arguments on all sides,” Dr.
Abbamonte said.
• The findings, published in the journal Science, holds great promise for unlocking further
quantum mechanical mysteries, researchers said.
http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/new-form-of-matter-excitonium-
discovered/article21379110.ece

Extra charts/images

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