VAJIRAM AND RAVI
Institute for IAS examination
SMART Current Affairs
Theme: Science and Tech.
SPACE- Rocket technology
○ SiC UV Dosimeter → Monitors space UV
radiation for radiation exposure & spacecraft
Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV)
protection.
● Mission configuration is set to operate in a Circular
Recent context: ISRO successfully launched the third Low Earth Orbit (LEO).
developmental flight of the SSLV from the Satish Dhawan Space About Kulasekarapattinam Spaceport:
Centre in Sriharikota in August 2024. ● India's second spaceport coming up at
About SSLV: Kulasekarapattinam, in Thoothukudi district in Tamil
● Three-stage Launch Vehicle configured with three Nadu.
Solid Propulsion Stages. ● Focus on the launch of SSLVs on a commercial basis.
● Has a liquid propulsion-based Velocity Trimming ● Rockets can now head straight in the southern
Module (VTM) as a terminal stage, which can help direction.
adjust the velocity as it prepares to place the satellite. ● Closer to the equator than Sriharikota.
● Key features of SSLV:
○ Low cost, with low turn-around time, Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LVM3)
○ Flexibility in accommodating multiple
satellites, Recent context: New Space India Limited (NSIL), has called on
○ Launch on demand feasibility, private players to manufacture its largest launch vehicle LVM3.
○ Minimal launch infrastructure requirements, About Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LVM3):
etc. ● LVM3 (previously GSLV Mk III) is the new heavy-lift
● Fuel in all 3 stages: HTPB based Solid Propellant launch vehicle of ISRO for achieving a 4000 kg
● Payload Capability: spacecraft launching capability to GTO
○ Single/Multi Satellites - Nano, Micro, and (Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit) in a cost-effective
Mini satellites. manner.
○ Single Satellite up to 500kg in 500km planar ● Three-stage launch vehicle consisting of:
orbit. ○ two solid propellant S200 strap-ons,
○ core stages comprising the L110 liquid stage
About Earth Observation Satellite EOS-08 and the C25 cryogenic stage.
● Commercial capability:
ISRO in August 2024 launched the EOS-08 Earth Observation ○ Two batches of 36 satellites each were
Satellite onboard the SSLV-D3. launched using the vehicle in 2022 and 2023
About EOS-08: commercially for internet provider OneWeb.
● First-of-its-kind mission built on a standard ISRO’s ○ Carried Chandrayaan-2 and Chandrayaan-3.
Microsat/IMS-1 bus.
● Carries three payloads, namely: About NewSpace India Limited (NSIL):
○ Electro-Optical Infrared Payload → Captures ● PSU of the Government of India under DoS.
high-resolution images for surveillance & ● Responsible for producing, assembling, and
earth monitoring. integrating the launch vehicle with the help of an
○ GNSS-Reflectometry Payload → Measures industry consortium.
reflected signals for ocean winds, soil ● Established in 2019 under the Company Act 2013, with
moisture & flood mapping. the main objective to scale up private sector
participation in Indian space programmes.
● In 2022, the agency called for complete in storage tanks and fuel systems.
manufacturing of its workhorse PSLV. Past missions affected by pesky helium leaks:
● ISRO’s Chandrayaan 2 and ESA’s Ariane 5.
About Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization
Center (IN-SPACe): KALAM-250
● Announced in 2020.
● Set up as a single-window, independent, nodal agency Recent context: Skyroot Aerospace, the leading space-tech
to authorise, promote and supervise space activities of company, has successfully test-fired the Stage-2 of Vikram-1
private non-governmental entities (NGEs). space launch vehicle, called Kalam-250.
About Kalam-250:
Amended FDI policy 2024:
● It is stage 2 of the Vikram-1 space launch vehicle.
● Up to 74% FDI for satellite manufacturing and
● It is a high-strength carbon composite rocket motor,
operation,
which uses solid fuel and a high-performance
● Up to 49% FDI for launch vehicles, spaceports, and
Ethylene-Propylene-Diene terpolymers (EPDM)
associated systems and,
Thermal Protection System (TPS).
● 100% FDI to manufacture components and
● Stage 2 is a critical stage in the ascent of the launch
systems/subsystems for satellites, ground, and user
vehicle, as it propels it from the atmospheric phase to
segments.
the deep vacuum of outer space.
About Vikram-1 rocket:
Application of Helium in Rockets
● India’s first privately developed (by Skyroot
Recent context: Two NASA astronauts aboard Boeing’s Aerospace) orbital launch vehicle.
● Multi-stage launch vehicle.
Starliner will stay on the International Space Station for
months because of a faulty propulsion system whose ● Capacity: 300 kg payloads in Low Earth Orbit.
● All-carbon-fibre-bodied rocket that can place multiple
problems included helium leaks.
About Helium: satellites into orbit.
● Its atomic number is 2. ● Features 3D-printed liquid engines (Raman)
● Non-renewable natural resource that is most ● Skyroot had previously tested Kalam-100, the third
stage of Vikram-1.
commonly recovered from natural gas deposits.
● Second most abundant element in the universe after
hydrogen.
Project 200
● Most stable; it will not burn or react with other
Recent context: Bengaluru-based space startup Bellatrix
elements.
Aerospace recently unveiled Project 200 on the inaugural day
Helium in rockets:
of the Bengaluru Space Expo 2024.
● Has a very low boiling point (-268.9° C), allowing it to
About Project 200:
remain a gas even in super-cold environments, an
● Technology demonstration mission to qualify a new
important feature because many rocket fuels are
unconventional satellite powered by an innovative
stored in that temperature range.
propulsion system at around 200 km.
● Used to pressurize fuel tanks, ensuring fuel flows to
● Satellite designed to operate at an Ultra-Low Earth
the rocket’s engines without interruption; and for
Orbit (180 km-250 km).
cooling systems.
● At this altitude, communication latency is reduced by
● As fuel and oxidiser are burned in the rocket’s engines,
half, image resolution is improved by 3X.
helium fills the resulting empty space in the tanks,
● Cost of the satellite is also less when compared to
maintaining the overall pressure inside.
spacecraft placed in 450 km orbits.
● As it is non-reactive, it can safely mingle with the
tanks’ residual contents.
● The gas is non-toxic, but cannot be breathed on its
own, because it displaces the oxygen humans need
for respiration.
Reasons for the leakage of Helium:
● Helium’s small atomic size and low molecular weight
mean its atoms can escape through small gaps or seals
Live-MCQ Class 1/2
Q.1) Why is it challenging to store antimatter in 4. The presence of a quasar in a galaxy indicates a high
practical applications? rate of star formation within that galaxy.
1. Antimatter annihilates upon contact with matter. Which of the statements given above are correct?
2. Antimatter particles experience rapid radioactive (a) 1 and 2 only
decay.
(b) 1, 2, and 3 only
3. Antimatter is repelled by magnet* fields, making (c) 2 and 4 only
containment difficult. (d) l, 2. 3, and 4
4. Antimatter is affected by gravitational anomalies, Q.5) Which of the following is NOT a characteristic
leading to instability. of a neutrino?
Which of the statements given above is/are correct? 1. Neutrinos rarely interact with other particles.
(a) 1 only 2. Unlike protons, neutrinos do not contain quarks.
(b) 1 and 2 only
(c) 3 and 4 only 3. Neutrinos interact with the strong nuclear force that
(d) 1. 2, 3 and 4 binds atomic nuclei together.
Q.2) The term "Lambda-CDM" is often 4. Both electrons and neutrinos belong to the lepton
group of particles.
mentioned in cosmology. It refers to:
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a) A theoretical framework explaining dark energy.
(b) A model describing the large-scale structure and (a) 1 only
evolution of the universe. (b) 2 and 4 only
(c) A type of particle accelerator used in high-energy (c) 3 only
physics. (d) 2 and 4 only
(d) A technique for detecting gravitational waves.
Q.3) With reference to dark matter, consider the .6 The photoelectric effect has numerous applications in
following statements: modern science and technology. Which of the following
fields utilize the principles of the photoelectric effect?
1. Dark matter interacts with the electromagnetic
1. Studying nuclear processes
force, just like normal matter.
2. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
2. Dark matter is invisible because it does not emit,
absorb, or reflect light. 3. Computerized Axial Tomography (CT) scans
Which of the statements given above is/are correct? 4. Quantum Mechanics
(a) 1 only How many of the above options are correct?
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2 (a) Only one
(d) Neither 1 nor 2 (b) Only two
(c) Only three
Q.4) With reference to Quasars and Active Galactic (d) All four
Nucleus (AGN), consider the following statements:
Q.7) Which of the following statements about the
1. All quasars are a type of AGN, but not all AGNs are Higgs boson is incorrect?
quasars.
(a) Higgs bosons are chargeless.
2. AGNs, including quasars, are powered by the (b) It is the only elementary particle with no spin.
accretion of matter onto supermassive black holes at (c) it is associated with the Higgs field, which gives mass
the center of galaxies. to electrons.
(d) it has a mass of approximately 12S million electron
3. Quasars are among the brightest celestial objects, volts (MeV).
but they become inactive once their black holes stop
Q.8) Which of the following astrophysical events
accreting matter.
can generate gravitational waves?
1. The asymmetric explosion of a star.
2. Two massive stars orbiting each other. Satellite Launch
Description
Vehicle
3. The merger of two black holes.
How many of the above options are correct? Uses HTPB-based solid propellant
3. SSLV
fuel
(a) Only one
(b) Only two
(c) All three How many of the above pairs are correctly matched?
(d) None
(a) Only one
Q.9) What term is used to describe the extreme (b) Only two
stretching and squeezing of objects as they approach a (c) All three
black hole? (d) None
(a) Spin Q.13) With reference to New Space India Limited (NSIL),
(b) Spaghettification consider the following statements:
(c) Particle acceleration
(d) Event horizon 1. NSIL was established to commercialize ISRO’s
technologies and satellite launch capabilities.
Q.10) Which of the following best describes the
penetrating power of muons compared to electrons?
2. NSIL operates as a private-sector entity under the
(a) Muons have similar penetrating power to electrons. Companies Act, 2013, with no government
(b) Muons can penetrate through much less material oversight.
than electrons.
(c) Muons can penetrate through much more material 3. Unlike Antrix Corporation, NSIL focuses on demand-
than electrons. driven satellite missions rather than supply-driven
(d) Muons cannot penetrate through any material, unlike services.
electrons.
4. NSIL plays a crucial role in India’s space sector
Q11. Consider the following statements regarding the reforms by facilitating Public-Private Partnerships
use of helium in rocket launches: (PPP).
1. Helium is used in rockets primarily to pressurize and Which of the statements given above are correct?
purge fuel tanks.
2. Helium leakage during rocket launches poses a (a) 1 and 3 only
significant challenge due to its low atomic mass and (b) 2 and 4 only
ability to escape containment easily. (c) 1, 3, and 4 only
3. Alternative gases like neon and argon are (d) 1, 2, 3, and 4
increasingly replacing helium in modern rocket
systems to prevent leakage. Q.14) Consider the following statements regarding the
Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV):
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
1. PSLV is a four-stage launch vehicle with alternating solid
(a) 1 and 2 only and liquid propulsion systems.
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only 2. PSLV has been used for launching satellites into polar,
(d) 1, 2 and 3 geostationary transfer, and interplanetary orbits.
Q.12) Consider the following pairs regarding India's 3. PSLV operates with strap-on boosters in all its
satellite launch vehicles: configurations to increase thrust during liftoff.
Satellite Launch 4. The Mars Orbiter Mission (Mangalyaan) was launched
Description
Vehicle using PSLV.
1. LVM3 Uses the S139 solid rocket motor Which of the statements given above are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only
Third-generation launch vehicle of (b) 1, 2, and 4 only
2. PSLV
India (c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2, 3, and 4