Science and Technology Short Notes (For 70th BPSC)
1
Space Missions of India
Chandrayaan-3
• Chandrayaan -3 is an ambitious lunar mission of India .
Objective 1. To demonstrate safe and soft landing on the lunar surface.
2. Demonstrate the orbit of the rover on the moon
3. Conducting scientific experiments on the spot.
• It was be launched by LVM3-M4 on 14 July 2023 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre ,
Sriharikota .
• Chandrayaan 3 Successfully soft-landed on 23 August 2023 at 06:04 pm Indian time near the
Manzinus-U crater located near the Moon's south pole after Travel of 40 days.
• S Somnath (ISRO Chairman), P Veeramuthuvel (Chandrayaan 3 Project Director), Mohan
Kumar (Mission Director) have played a vital role in successfully completing Chandrayaan-3.
Properties-
• It has mainly three modules-
(1) Propulsion Module (2) Lander Module (3) Rover Module
• Propulsion Module - It will carry the lander and rover to a lunar orbit of 100 km. It also has
a special instrument SHAPE (Spectro-Polarimetry of Habitable Planetary Earth) , which will
carry out important studies of the Earth including polar measurements from lunar orbit.
• The lander of Chandrayaan-3 has been named 'Vikram' and the rover has been named
'Pragyan'. (Rover has 6 wheels).
• There are 4 payloads mounted on Vikram Lander -
(1) Radio Anatomy of Moon Bound Hypersensitive ionosphere and Atmosphere (RAMBHA)
(2) Chandra's Surface Thermo physical Experiment (ChaSTE)
(3) Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity ( ILSA)
(4) Laser Retroreflector Array (LRA)
• Pragyan the rover is carrying two payloads, Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscope ( LIBS )
and Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer ( APXS ), which are aimed at obtaining the elemental
composition around the landing site.
• Rover Pragyan will communicate with lander Vikram and collect data.
• During the Chandrayaan-3 mission, the rover's tyres have left a mark of India's national
symbol, the Ashoka Pillar, on the surface of the Moon.
• Chandrayaan -3 operated on the surface of the Moon for one lunar day (14 Earth days).
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Science and Technology Short Notes (For 70th BPSC)
Other Points :
• India has become the first country in the world to reach the south pole of the Moon . India
has become the fourth country to achieve soft landing on the Moon after the US , Russia
and China .
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the place where Vikram Lander landed on
the Moon will be called ' Shivshakti Point' . The place where Chandrayaan - 2 's footprints
were left will be known as Tiranga Point .
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that 23 August every year will be celebrated as '
National Space Day ' It will be celebrated as Chandrayaan-3's successful landing on the
moon on 23 August.
Note: Chandrayaan Mission-1: Successfully launched on 22 October 2008 by rocket PSLV-
XL-C11 was launched.
• Chandrayaan Mission-2: Launched on 22 July 2019 by GSLV-MK3, an orbiter successfully
entered lunar orbit but the lander Vikram failed to land safely.
Reasons for the discovery of the South Pole of the Moon :-
• Because of its rugged environment it remains an uncharted area.
• There is evidence for the presence of water in permanently shadowed craters on the Moon.
• Study of the Solar System:- The extreme cold at the Moon's poles preserves material that
can potentially provide information about the early Solar System.
• Tidal Locking:- It refers to the synchronicity between the rotation of the Moon about its
axis (with respect to the Sun) and its orbit around the Earth, due to the mutual gravitational
forces between the Earth and the Moon.
Aditya-L1 Mission
• Aditya-L1 is a satellite dedicated to the comprehensive study of the Sun. Its project director
is Nigar Shaji , mission director is Biju SR.
• Aditya in Sanskrit means Sun. Here L1 Refers to the Lagrange Point 1 of the Sun–Earth
system . L1 is the location in space where the gravitational forces of two celestial bodies,
such as the Sun and Earth, are in balance .
• It carries seven payloads to observe the photosphere, chromosphere and outermost layers
of the Sun (corona), to observe solar activity and its impact on space weather and to
collect information about coronal mass ejections (CME).
• ISRO launched its first Surya mission 'Aditya L-1' on 2 September 2023. The Aditya L-1
satellite was successfully launched through PSLV C-57 from Satish Dhawan Space Center
Sriharikota .
• 'Aditya L1' will be placed in a halo orbit around the L1 Lagrange point between the Earth
and the Sun, at a distance of about 15 lakh km from the Earth , where it will study the solar
atmosphere , solar magnetic storms and their impact on the environment around the
Earth. It is worth noting that there are 5 points (L1, L2, L3, L4, L5) located in the orbit of the
Earth-Sun system. Which is named after the Italian-French mathematician astronomer
Joseph -Louis Langrange .
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Science and Technology Short Notes (For 70th BPSC)
• 'Aditya L-1' has seven different payloads , which will study the Sun in detail. Four payload
instruments will observe the light from the Sun , the remaining three will measure the
local parameters of plasma and magnetic field.
Objective:-
• To understand coronal mass ejections, we need to examine the Sun's outer layers , the
corona and the chromosphere.
• To study the origin and trajectory of solar flares on Earth.
• It will enhance observations of solar activities and their impact on space weather, including
data collection for space weather forecasting.
About Lagrange Point:
• The Lagrange point is a position where the gravitational pull of two large masses is equal
to the centripetal force needed to keep a smaller object moving along with them.
• The L-1 point of the Earth-Sun system provides an uninterrupted view of the Sun and is
currently home to NASA 's Solar and Heliospheric Observatory satellite (SOHO) .
Corona of the Sun:
• The corona is the Sun's outermost layer , whose high temperature causes its particles to
escape the Sun's gravity and create the solar wind.
• It is usually hidden by the bright light of the Sun's surface but can be seen during a total
solar eclipse. The corona is very faint due to its low density.
Venus Mission 'Shukrayaan-1'
ISRO's Venus mission may be delayed till 2031 due to delay in government approval.
About Shukrayaan-1 :
• Shukrayaan-1 will be an orbiter mission and its payloads will include a high-resolution
synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and a ground penetrating radar.
• Two other Venus missions , VERITAS and EnVision, are scheduled to launch in 2031 by the
U.S. and European space agencies, respectively.
• The mission objectives include investigating surface processes , studying the structure and
composition of the atmosphere, etc.
About Venus:
• Venus is called Earth's twin because of the similarities in their mass , size and density.
• It is the hottest planet in the Solar System due to its high concentration of carbon dioxide,
which produces an intense greenhouse effect.
• A day on Venus is longer than a year. It takes Venus longer to rotate once on its axis than
it does to complete one orbit around the Sun.
• Unlike the other planets in our solar system , Venus and Uranus rotate clockwise on their
axes.
NISAR Mission
It is LEO observatory mission between NASA and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to
map seismic regions of the Himalaya.
• The NISAR satellite is a joint low Earth orbit (LEO) observatory mission between NASA and
the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to map the seismic zones of the Himalaya .
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Science and Technology Short Notes (For 70th BPSC)
• NISAR will be the first radar of its kind in space to systematically map the Earth , using two
different radar frequencies (L-band and S-band) to measure changes in our planet's surface,
including movements as small as a centimetre. Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) refers to a
technique for producing high-resolution images from a resolution-limited radar system.
Applications :
• Providing vital information about the Earth's crust , ice sheets and ecosystems.
• Agricultural mapping and monitoring of glaciers in the Himalaya , providing information
on landslide-prone areas and coastline changes.
• Seamless all-weather data collection with SAR technology.
• Pay attention to warning signs of natural disasters.
• Measuring groundwater levels , monitoring the flow rates of glaciers and ice sheets.
• Monitoring the Earth's forests and agricultural lands to understand carbon exchange
mechanisms.
Gaganyaan
ISRO has successfully conducted Flight Test Vehicle Abort Mission-1 (TV-D1) as part of the
Gaganyaan project.
About Gaganyaan :
• The Gaganyaan project aims to demonstrate India's human spaceflight capability by
launching a three-member crew into a 400 km orbit (low Earth orbit) on a three-day
mission and landing them safely in the Bay of Bengal or the Arabian Sea.
• This mission will make India the fourth country with human spaceflight capability, after
the United States , Russia and China.
• The human-rated LVM3 (HLVM3) includes the Crew Escape System (CES) powered by a set
of quick-acting , high-burn rate solid motors that ensure that the crew module can be
moved to a safe distance in case of any emergency.
About Test Vehicle Abort Mission-1 (TV-D1) :
• The Flight Test Vehicle Abort Mission-1 (TV-D1) will demonstrate the performance of the
Crew Escape System of the Gaganyaan project.
• Payload: The payload consists of the Crew Module (CM) and the Crew Escape System (CES)
.
• Crew Model: This will demonstrate a basic version of the crew model.
• Functioning of Crew Escape System: The test will check the functioning of systems to
separate the crew module from the rocket in case of a mid-flight emergency and escape of
the astronauts to ensure their safety.
• will indigenously develop the Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) for
the Gaganyaan mission .
Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Demonstration (RLV TD)
ISRO successfully completed the landing experiment of Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology
Demonstration (RLV TD) programme.
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Science and Technology Short Notes (For 70th BPSC)
About Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Demonstration :
• The reusable launch system enables recycling of its components , allowing the vehicle to
return to Earth intact after a mission.
• The configuration of the reusable launch vehicle technology demonstration is similar to
that of an aircraft and combines the complexity of both the launch vehicles and the
aircraft.
• Eventually , this vehicle is planned to be expanded into the initial stage of India's two-stage
reusable orbital launch vehicle.
• The primary objective of mastering RLV technology is to achieve low-cost access to space.
X-ray Polarimeter Satellite (XP oSat ) Mission
Recently , ISRO has successfully launched its first X-ray polarimeter satellite ( XPoSat ) from
Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
Development – Developed by UR Rao Satellite Centre and Raman Research Institute of ISRO.
About XPosat :
• Xposat It represents India's first mission dedicated to polarimetry analysis of bright cosmic
X-ray sources under extreme conditions. It helps astronomers collect data on space entities
ranging from nearby comets to distant galaxies by studying the X-ray polarization in the
X-ray bag .
• It can carry two main scientific payloads POLIX (Polarimeter Instrument in X-rays) and
XSPECT (X-ray Spectroscopy and Timing) into low Earth orbit.
Asteroid Bennu
Samples collected by NASA's Osiris-REx mission show evidence of clay minerals with high
carbon content and water on this asteroid.
About Asteroid Bennu:
• Bennu is a small near-Earth asteroid that passes close to Earth every six years.
• Bennu's current composition was established within ten million years of the formation of
our Solar System , so it acts as a time capsule, allowing us to study the earliest carbon
formations.
Light Pollution
Six villages within the Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary in Ladakh have been declared as “Dark
Sky Reserve”.
About Dark Sky Reserve :
• These are areas whose sky is free from light pollution.
• This designation obliges the reserve to maintain skies free of light pollution , especially for
astronomical observatories located in the area.
Skyglow
• Skyglow blocks all but the brightest stars in the night sky in inhabited areas caused by
street lights, security floodlights, and outdoor decorative lighting.
Skyglow results according to various studies :
• Gentle beaches deter sea turtles from coming ashore to nest.
• Skyglow prevents trees from feeling seasonal variations.
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• Nesting seabirds do not fly until it is dark at the nesting site.
• Interferes with insect life and allows insect predators to hunt for longer periods of time.
• Disrupts the human circadian rhythm (biological clock) and interferes with the production
of melatonin.
• Skyglow is one of the components of light pollution.
Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO)
The Central Government has given final approval to India's Laser Interferometer Gravitational-
wave Observatory (LIGO) .
About LIGO-India:
• LIGO is an international network of laboratories that detect waves produced by the motion
of large celestial objects, such as stars and planets, in space.
• The LIGO-India Observatory will be the third of its kind in the US after the ones in Louisiana
and Washington.
• Construction: Was done on the basis of a Memorandum of Understanding with the
Department of Atomic Energy , Department of Science and Technology , National Science
Foundation and other institutions.
• Location: It is planned to be launched by scientists in Hingoli district of Maharashtra in
2030.
About Gravitational Waves:
• Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity (1916) proposed that moving objects produce
gravitational waves , which cause brief distortions in space-time around any object.
• As a gravity wave crosses the Earth , it compresses the Earth on one side and bulges in
the vertical direction. However , its effect is minimal because gravity is the weakest of all
natural forces.
• These waves travel at the speed of light , giving information about their origin and the
nature of gravity.
Train Tracking
Recently , Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS) has signed an agreement with ISRO
to help in efficient running of trains and for live tracking.
About the news :
• Indian Railways has taken steps to integrate NavIC, Bhuvan, Quantum Encryption and AI.
• Indian Railways has taken bandwidth from ISRO and integrated its systems with NAVIC
and Bhuvan.
• Each locomotive is fitted with a device and a SIM. Real-time tracking helps reduce accidents.
• CRIS has identified 90 examples where AI can enhance railway services , including providing
information on seat allocation and freight train deloading times.
Bhuvan Portal
Recently, ISRO has partnered with MapMyIndia to develop an indigenous geospatial portal
called' Bhuvan.
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Science and Technology Short Notes (For 70th BPSC)
About Bhuvan:
• Bhuvan , the Indian version of Google Maps , is an ISRO-operated satellite application that
provides 2D/3D Earth surface representation.
• All the assets created under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act
in each Gram Panchayat are to be geo-tagged with the help of Bhuvan.
Possible uses:-
• Land , air and sea navigation.
• disaster management.
• Vehicle tracking and fleet management.
• Integration with mobile phones.
• Exact time.
• Mapping and geodetic data capture.
Kessler syndrome:
• It refers to a phenomenon where orbital debris around Earth reaches a critical mass ,
causing a cascade of collisions that rapidly generates more debris , posing serious risks to
satellites , astronauts and space missions.
About dark matter and dark energy:
• The visible universe , which includes the Earth , the Sun, stars, and galaxies made up of
atoms , accounts for less than 5 % of the mass of the universe .
• The rest of the universe consists of mysterious invisible substances called dark matter
(about 25%) and gravity-repelling dark energy (about 70 %) .
Dark Matter:
• It is made up of particles that have no charge, that is, they do not interact with each other
through electromagnetic interaction.
• These are the particles that are ' dark ' Because they do not emit light . which is an
electromagnetic phenomenon , and ' matter ' Because they have mass like normal matter
and so interact with each other through gravity.
• Dark matter does not interact with electromagnetic forces and neither absorbs nor emits
light , making it extremely difficult to detect. Scientists study it through its effects on visible
objects.
Dark Energy :
• Dark energy is a theoretical form of energy that produces a negative and repulsive force
that acts in the opposite direction to gravity.
• It is thought to be responsible for the observed rapid expansion of the universe. It is thought
to be responsible for accelerating the expansion rate of the universe over time rather than
slowing it down.
Phonon
Researchers have demonstrated the ability to split phonons , control and manage their
quantum properties and quantum states.
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Science and Technology Short Notes (For 70th BPSC)
About Phonon:
• Phonons are quasiparticles that represent collective vibrations of atoms or molecules in a
solid.
• These are important in the heat conduction and thermal properties of a material.
• This achievement could lead to the creation of sound-based quantum computers and
highly accurate measuring devices.
• Currently , linear optical quantum computing uses photons (light particles) as qubits.
However , both photons and phonons are major focuses of quantum computing research.
photons Phonon
Photons are tiny packets of energy Phonons are packets of energy for sound
associated with light and electromagnetic waves.
waves.
Photons can travel through empty space. Phonons require a medium such as air or
water.
If the photons have different wavelengths When phonons of different wavelengths
they usually do not interact at all. collide with each other they can interact ,
producing a different wavelength.
Photons exhibit both particle and wave- Phonons are purely wave-like entities and do
like properties , known as wave–particle not exhibit particle-like properties.
duality.
Important terminology related to space science and technology that is in
discussion
Higgs boson particle (God Particle)
• The Higgs boson is responsible for giving mass to other particles .
• Its discovery at the Large Hadron Collider in 2012 provided evidence for a field that gives
mass to other particles.
• This helps us understand why some particles have mass , which makes an important
contribution to our understanding of the fundamental structure of the universe.
Gravitational web
• These are 'ripples' in space-time that are caused by some of the most violent and energetic
processes in the universe , such as colliding black holes or exploding stars.
• They were predicted by Einstein's theory of general relativity and were later discovered in
2012.
• When gravitational waves travelling at the speed of light pass through the Earth , they
compress the Earth on one side and bulge it in the vertical direction.
• However , its effect is minimal because gravity is the weakest of all natural forces.
Black Holes
• Black holes are regions in space where a huge amount of mass is contained in a small
volume.
• This creates such a strong gravitational pull that even light cannot escape from it.
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• They are formed when massive stars collapse.
Singularity
• A singularity represents a point where physical quantities , such as density and gravity ,
become infinitely large , causing the laws of physics to break down.
• Singularity is associated with black holes.
Goldilocks Zone
• This can also be called a habitable zone (exoplanet).
• This is the region around a star where the surface of a planet like Earth is neither too hot
nor too cold , that is, there is a possibility of life on that planet.
• Liquid water may also exist on the planet's surface , which could receive as much sunlight
as Earth does.
Gravitational lensing
• Gravitational lensing is a phenomenon where the gravitational field of a massive object,
such as a galaxy or black hole, bends and magnifies light from objects behind it.
• This effect is predicted by Einstein's general theory of relativity and allows astronomers to
observe distant stars and galaxies.
• It also helps in mapping the presence of dark matter and studying the expansion of the
universe.
• Einstein's cross is a particular case of gravitational lensing where the curvature of space-
time around a foreground object splits the light behind it into four parts , like the points
of a cross.
• Einstein rings are a characteristic phenomenon of gravitational lensing , occurring when
two galaxies align almost perfectly , behind one another .
Lagrange Point There are total 5 Lagrange points.
L1 , L2 , L3 , L4 , L5
• Lagrange points are locations where the gravitational pull of two large masses is equal to
the centripetal force needed to keep a smaller object moving along with them.
• The L1 point of the Earth-Sun system provides an unobstructed view of the Sun.
Reusable Landing Vehicle ( RLV)
• A reusable launch system enables recycling of its components , allowing the vehicle to
return to Earth after a mission.
• The RLV-TD has a design similar to that of an aircraft and combines the complexities of
both a launch vehicle and an aircraft.
• Example: RLV is designed by ISRO as an all-rocket , fully reusable single-stage-to-orbit
(SSTO) vehicle.
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Science and Technology Short Notes (For 70th BPSC)
Important missions to be carried out by ISRO in the year 2023-24
Satellite Launch Date Launch Vehicle Other Facts
ISRO successfully launched X-ray
polarimeter satellite i.e. XpoSat satellite
XPoSat 01 January
PSLV-C58 through PSLV-C58 from Sriharikota with
Mission 2024
the aim of collecting information about
black holes and neutron stars.
First tests The objective was to demonstrate the crew
21 October escape system for the Gaganyaan
flight of TV-D1
2023 programme through a test vehicle
Gaganyaan
demonstration.
2
Aditya L-1
September PSLV-C57 This is India's first solar mission.
Mission
2023
A total of 7 satellites, including Singapore's
DS-SAR
30 July 2023 PSLV-C56 DS-SAR satellite, were successfully sent into
Mission
space through PSLV-C56.
Chandrayaan The world's first satellite to successfully
14 July 2023 LVM3-M4
-3 land on the South Pole of the Moon.
NVS-01 is the first satellite in the next-
generation NavlC series aimed at
NVS- 0 1 May 2023 GSLV-F12
enhancing the country's navigation
capabilities.
This mission will launch two satellites
TeLEOS-2 from Singapore, including TeLEOS-2 as the
April 2023 PSLV-C55
Mission primary satellite and Lumelite-4 as the co-
passenger satellite.
OneWeb Under this mission, 36 satellites were
March 2023 LVM3-M3
India-2 placed in their orbits.
EOS-07 and two other satellites Janus-1
February
EOS-07 SSLV-D2 (USA) and Azadi Sat-2 of Chennai-based
2023
Space Kids India were launched.
November Oceansat-3 and eight other nano satellites
EOS-06 PSLV-C54
2022 were launched.
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