Current Affairs | SURABOOKS.COM https://blog.surabooks.com Wed, 04 Aug 2021 06:12:02 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.1.8 https://blog.surabooks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/cropped-logo-1-32x32.png Current Affairs | SURABOOKS.COM https://blog.surabooks.com 32 32 Eutelsat Quantum https://blog.surabooks.com/eutelsat-quantum/ Wed, 04 Aug 2021 06:11:44 +0000 https://blog.surabooks.com/?p=5995 The European Space Agency (ESA) launched the world’s first commercial fully reprogrammable satellite called Eutelsat Quantum on July 30 2021, on board an Ariane 5 rocket, with the hope of a new era of more flexible communications. v “Eutelsat Quantum, developed under an ESA partnership project with satellite operator Eutelsat and prime manufacturer Airbus, is […]

The post Eutelsat Quantum first appeared on SURABOOKS.COM.]]> The European Space Agency (ESA) launched the world’s first commercial fully reprogrammable satellite called Eutelsat Quantum on July 30 2021, on board an Ariane 5 rocket, with the hope of a new era of more flexible communications.

v “Eutelsat Quantum, developed under an ESA partnership project with satellite operator Eutelsat and prime manufacturer Airbus, is the first commercial fully flexible software-defined satellite in the world,” the space agency said in an official release. “Because it can be reprogrammed in orbit, it can respond to changing demands for data transmission and secure communications during its 15-year lifetime. Its beams can be redirected to move in almost real-time to provide information to passengers’ onboard moving ships or planes.”

What is a reprogrammable satellite?

v As the name suggests, a re-programmable satellite allows the user to change the communications as per need, in real time. The traditional models do not have this feature; they are designed and “hard-wired” on Earth. Even while orbiting in a fixed position at 35,000 kilometers above Earth, the satellite can be reprogrammed.

v The Eutelsat Quantum weighs 3.5 tonnes and consists of eight communication beams. Each of the beams can be modified to make changes to the coverage area and its telecommunications signal. As the changes can be done in minutes, this satellite can be done in minutes; this satellite can be used in providing mobile coverage in moving objects successfully. The Eutelsat Quantum will be covering the geographical area from West Africa to Asia in a 15 years period of time.

The post Eutelsat Quantum first appeared on SURABOOKS.COM.]]> 7 sites added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List https://blog.surabooks.com/7-sites-added-to-unescos-world-heritage-list/ Mon, 02 Aug 2021 11:20:29 +0000 https://blog.surabooks.com/?p=5987 The World Heritage Committee recently added seven sites to UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Four of the sites have been inscribed for the natural attributed: (1) Amami-Oshima Island, Tokunoshima Island, northern part of Okinawa Island, and Iriomote Island (Japan), (2) Getbol, Korean Tidal Flats (Republic of Korea), (3) Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex (Thailand) and (4) Colchic […]

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  • The World Heritage Committee recently added seven sites to UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Four of the sites have been inscribed for the natural attributed: (1) Amami-Oshima Island, Tokunoshima Island, northern part of Okinawa Island, and Iriomote Island (Japan), (2) Getbol, Korean Tidal Flats (Republic of Korea), (3) Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex (Thailand) and (4) Colchic Rainforests and Wetlands (Georgia). Three were added for their cultural properties, among them one transnational site: (1) Arslantepe Mound (Turkey), (2) Extension of Defence Lines of Amsterdam, henceforth to be known as Dutch Water Defence Lines (Netherlands) and the (3) transnational site of Colonies of Benevolence (Belgium and Netherlands).
  • These additions were made during the 44th session of the World Heritage Committee held online and chaired from by China.
    • The post 7 sites added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List first appeared on SURABOOKS.COM.]]>         Earth Overshoot Day https://blog.surabooks.com/earth-overshoot-day/ Sat, 31 Jul 2021 06:14:06 +0000 https://blog.surabooks.com/?p=5984 Humanity has again used up all biological resources that our planet regenerates during the entire year by July 29, 2021, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Earth Overshoot Day marks the date when humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what Earth can regenerate in that year. […]

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  • Humanity has again used up all biological resources that our planet regenerates during the entire year by July 29, 2021, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Earth Overshoot Day marks the date when humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what Earth can regenerate in that year. This year, the date is July 29.
  • Earth Overshoot Day is hosted and calculated by Global Footprint Network, an international research organization that provides decision-makers with a menu of tools to help the human economy operate within Earth’s ecological limits.
  • A press statement by the WWF noted that: Humanity currently uses 74 per cent more than what the planet’s ecosystems can regenerate — or 1.7 Earths. From Earth Overshoot Day until the end of the year, humanity operates on ecological deficit spending.
  • This spending was currently some of the largest since the world entered into ecological overshoot in the early 1970s, according to the National Footprint & Biocapacity Accounts based on UN datasets, the statement added.
  • The Global Footprint Network found that the total global ecological footprint increased by 6.6% compared to 2020, based on data from the International Energy Agency and the Global Carbon Project.
  • Last year, the global forest biocapacity — the natural resources in forests — decreased by 0.5%, mainly due to a large spike in deforestation in the Amazon rainforest. Forests are a key to slowing climate change because they can store carbon for long periods of time.
    • The post Earth Overshoot Day first appeared on SURABOOKS.COM.]]>         The Europa Clipper mission https://blog.surabooks.com/the-europa-clipper-mission/ Mon, 26 Jul 2021 06:50:35 +0000 https://blog.surabooks.com/?p=5981 Elon Musk’s private rocket company SpaceX was awarded a $178 million launch services contract for NASA’s first mission focusing on Jupiter’s icy moon Europa and whether it may host conditions suitable for life, the space agency said in a statement. The Europa Clipper mission is due for blastoff in October 2024 on a Falcon Heavy […]

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  • Elon Musk’s private rocket company SpaceX was awarded a $178 million launch services contract for NASA’s first mission focusing on Jupiter’s icy moon Europa and whether it may host conditions suitable for life, the space agency said in a statement.
  • The Europa Clipper mission is due for blastoff in October 2024 on a Falcon Heavy rocket owned by Musk’s company, Space Exploration Technologies Corp, from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA said.
  • The company’s partly reusable 23-story Falcon Heavy, currently the most powerful operational space launch vehicle in the world, flew its first commercial payload into orbit in 2019.
  • The probe is to conduct a detailed survey of the ice-covered Jovian satellite, which is a bit smaller than Earth’s moon and is a leading candidate in the search for life elsewhere in the solar system.
  • A bend in Europa’s magnetic field observed by NASA’s Galileo spacecraft in 1997 appeared to have been caused by a geyser gushing through the moon’s frozen crust from a vast subsurface ocean, researchers concluded in 2018. Those findings supported other evidence of Europa plumes.
  • Among the Clipper mission’s objectives are to produce high-resolution images of Europa’s surface, determine its composition, look for signs of geologic activity, measure the thickness of its icy shell and determine the depth and salinity of its ocean, NASA said.
    • The post The Europa Clipper mission first appeared on SURABOOKS.COM.]]>         Perumkulam became Kerala’s first village of books https://blog.surabooks.com/perumkulam-became-keralas-first-village-of-books/ Mon, 26 Jul 2021 06:40:22 +0000 https://blog.surabooks.com/?p=5979 On June 19, 2021 Perumkulam, a village in Kerala’s Kollam district, was declared a Pusthaka Gramam (village of books) by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The announcement made on June 19, National Reading Day, makes it Kerala’s first such village. At the heart of the announcement is its library, Bapuji Smaraka Vayanasala. Perumkulam is the […]

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  • On June 19, 2021 Perumkulam, a village in Kerala’s Kollam district, was declared a Pusthaka Gramam (village of books) by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The announcement made on June 19, National Reading Day, makes it Kerala’s first such village. At the heart of the announcement is its library, Bapuji Smaraka Vayanasala.
  • Perumkulam is the second Indian village, after Maharashtra’s “Pustakanch Gaav” Bhilar in 2017, to be declared a “village of books”.
    • The post Perumkulam became Kerala’s first village of books first appeared on SURABOOKS.COM.]]>         The Essential Defence Services Bill, 2021 https://blog.surabooks.com/the-essential-defence-services-bill-2021/ Sun, 25 Jul 2021 04:59:00 +0000 https://blog.surabooks.com/?p=5977 Defence Minister Rajnath Singh introduced ‘The Essential Defence Services Bill, 2021’ in Lok Sabha to empower the Central government to regulate uninterrupted supply of arms, ammunitions and other goods and services to the Armed Forces in case of a strike against a decision to corporatise the Ordnance Factories. The Bill will replace the ordinance promulgated […]

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  • Defence Minister Rajnath Singh introduced ‘The Essential Defence Services Bill, 2021’ in Lok Sabha to empower the Central government to regulate uninterrupted supply of arms, ammunitions and other goods and services to the Armed Forces in case of a strike against a decision to corporatise the Ordnance Factories. The Bill will replace the ordinance promulgated on June 30, 2021.
  • As mentioned in the ordinance, the Bill intends to define the expressions such as ‘essential defence services’ and ‘strike.’ It aims to empower the Central government to prohibit strike in essential defence services and prescribes for disciplinary action, including dismissal, against employees participating in strike.
  • It has a provision to levy penalties for illegal strikes, instigation thereof and besides to provide for financial aid to such illegal strikes. It also confers power on any police officer to arrest without warrant any person who is reasonably suspected to have committed any offence under the proposed legislation. Around 70,000 people work with the 41 ordnance factories around the country.
  • According to the statement of objects and reasons of the Bill, Indian Ordnance Factories is the oldest and largest industrial setup which functions under the Department of Defence Production. The ordnance factories form an integrated base for indigenous production of defence hardware and equipment, with the primary objective of self-reliance in equipping the armed forces with state-of-the-art battlefield equipment.
  • BACKGROUND: In June the government announced corporatisation of the Ordnance Factory Board, under which the 41 factories ammunition and other equipment to the armed forces will become part of seven government owned corporate entities. The OFB was directly under the Department of Defence Production and worked as an arm of the government. The government has claimed that the move is aimed at improving the efficiency and accountability of these factories.
    • The post The Essential Defence Services Bill, 2021 first appeared on SURABOOKS.COM.]]>         China rolls out 600 km/h high-speed maglev train https://blog.surabooks.com/china-rolls-out-600-km-h-high-speed-maglev-train/ Fri, 23 Jul 2021 05:30:29 +0000 https://blog.surabooks.com/?p=5951 China recently rolled out a high-speed maglev train with a designed top speed of 600 km per hour, stated to be the world’s fastest ground vehicle. The new maglev transportation system made its public debut in the coastal city of Qingdao, China’s east Shandong province, according to the state official report. Launched in October 2016, […]

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  • China recently rolled out a high-speed maglev train with a designed top speed of 600 km per hour, stated to be the world’s fastest ground vehicle. The new maglev transportation system made its public debut in the coastal city of Qingdao, China’s east Shandong province, according to the state official report.
  • Launched in October 2016, the high-speed maglev train project saw the development of a magnetic-levitation train prototype with a designed top speed of 600 kms per hour in 2019, and conducted a successful test run in June 2020, the report said.
  • The train can travel with two to 10 carriages, each holding more than 100 passengers. Compared with traditional vehicles running on wheels, high-speed maglev trains do not have contact with rail tracks. They have advantages in terms of efficiency and speed, and produce very little noise.
  • Magnetic levitation: In Maglev, superconducting magnets suspend a train car above a U-shaped concrete guideway. Like ordinary magnets, these magnets repel one another when matching poles face each other. With maglev technology, the train travels along a guide way of magnets which control the train’s stability and speed. While the propulsion and levitation require no moving parts, the bogies can move in relation to the main body of the vehicle.
    • The post China rolls out 600 km/h high-speed maglev train first appeared on SURABOOKS.COM.]]>         UNESCO’s ‘Historic Urban Landscape’ project https://blog.surabooks.com/unescos-historic-urban-landscape-project/ Fri, 23 Jul 2021 05:16:14 +0000 https://blog.surabooks.com/?p=5947 Madhya Pradesh’s Gwalior and Orchha cities have been selected by UNESCO under ‘Historic Urban Landscape Project’, which was started in the year 2011, for the inclusive and well-planned development of fast-growing historical cities while preserving the culture and heritage. UNESCO said in a statement that six cities of South Asia, including Ajmer and Varanasi in […]

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  • Madhya Pradesh’s Gwalior and Orchha cities have been selected by UNESCO under ‘Historic Urban Landscape Project’, which was started in the year 2011, for the inclusive and well-planned development of fast-growing historical cities while preserving the culture and heritage.
  • UNESCO said in a statement that six cities of South Asia, including Ajmer and Varanasi in India are already involved in this project. Orchha and Gwalior have been included as the 7th and 8th cities. The cities will be jointly developed by UNESCO, Government of India and Madhya Pradesh by focusing on their historical and cultural improvement.
  • Gwalior was established in 9th century and ruled by Gurjar Pratihar Rajvansh, Tomar, Baghel Kachvaho and Scindias. The memorabilia left by them is found in abundance in memorials, forts and palaces in the area. Gwalior is known for its palaces and temples, including the intricately carved Sas Bahu Ka Mandir temple. The Gwalior Fort occupies a sandstone plateau overlooking the city and is accessed via a winding road lined with sacred Jain statues. Within the forts high walls is the 15th-century Gujari Mahal Palace, now an archaeological museum.
  • Orchha is popular for its temples and palaces and was the capital of the Bundela kingdom during the 16th century. The famous spots in the town are Raj Mahal,Jehangir Mahal, Ramraja Temple, Rai Praveen Mahal, and Laxminarayan Mandir. After inclusion in the World Heritage City list, chemical treatment of historic spots like Mansingh Palace, Gujri Mahal and Sahastrabahu Temple will be done so that art inscribed on them will become more visible.
    • The post UNESCO’s ‘Historic Urban Landscape’ project first appeared on SURABOOKS.COM.]]>         DRDO successfully tests Man Portable Antitank Guided Missile (MPATGM) https://blog.surabooks.com/drdo-successfully-tests-man-portable-antitank-guided-missile-mpatgm/ Thu, 22 Jul 2021 11:45:35 +0000 https://blog.surabooks.com/?p=5945 Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on July 21, 2021 successfully tested indigenously developed low weight, fire & forget Man-Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (MPATGM). The missile was launched from a man portable launcher integrated with a thermal site and the target was mimicking a tank. The missile hit the target in direct attack mode and […]

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  • Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on July 21, 2021 successfully tested indigenously developed low weight, fire & forget Man-Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (MPATGM).
  • The missile was launched from a man portable launcher integrated with a thermal site and the target was mimicking a tank. The missile hit the target in direct attack mode and destroyed it with precision. The test has validated the minimum range successfully. The missile has already been successfully flight tested for the maximum range.
  • Equipped with state-of-the-art miniaturised infrared imaging seeker along with advanced avionics, the missile operates on fire and forget mode. With the test, the development of the indigenous third generation MPATGM has neared completion, DRDO said.
    • The post DRDO successfully tests Man Portable Antitank Guided Missile (MPATGM) first appeared on SURABOOKS.COM.]]>         Indo-Nepal rail connectivity https://blog.surabooks.com/indo-nepal-rail-connectivity/ Thu, 22 Jul 2021 11:43:19 +0000 https://blog.surabooks.com/?p=5943 In the first phase of Indian Railways’ Jayanagar-Bardiwas rail project, recently a speed trial was completed successfully at a speed of 110 km per hour on the 35 kilometre long newly-gauge converted section between in Madhubani district of Bihar to Kurtha in Mahottari district of neighbouring country, Nepal. The 68.72 kilometre long Jaynagar-Bijalpura-Bardibas railway project […]

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  • In the first phase of Indian Railways’ Jayanagar-Bardiwas rail project, recently a speed trial was completed successfully at a speed of 110 km per hour on the 35 kilometre long newly-gauge converted section between in Madhubani district of Bihar to Kurtha in Mahottari district of neighbouring country, Nepal.
  • The 68.72 kilometre long Jaynagar-Bijalpura-Bardibas railway project has been funded by the Indian Government entirely. According to the Railway Ministry, train operations on the Jayanagar-Kurtha section will facilitate movement between the two nations, as well as boost trade and develop the surrounding regions. The cost of this rail section is 619 crore.
  • The 17-km-long second section will link Kurtha and Bhangaha while the third phase is 17-km-long and will extend from Bhangaha to Bardibas. Indian Railways has delivered two modern DEMU trains to Nepal for Jayanagar-Kurtha railway link.
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