1. Indian Council of Agricultural Research developed new variety of wheat named HD-3385
Tags: Science and Technology National News
The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has developed a new variety of wheat which is 'HD-3385'.
An overview of the news
It is capable of meeting the challenges arising due to climate change and rising heat.
This new variety is suitable for early sowing. It can survive the wrath of heat and its crop can be harvested before the end of March.
The Central Government had recently announced setting up of a committee to monitor the situation arising out of rise in temperature and its impact on the current wheat crop.
ICAR has registered the news variety HD-3385 with the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Authority (PPVFRA).
ICAR has also granted a license to Bioseed owned by DCM Shriram Limited to conduct multi-location trials and seed multiplication.
About Indian Council of Agricultural Research
It is an autonomous body formerly known as the Imperial Council of Agricultural Research.
Headquarters - New Delhi
Established - 1929
The Union Minister of Agriculture serves as its president. Presently its president is Narendra Singh Tomar.
ICAR is the largest network of agricultural research and education institutes in the world.
2. India first hybrid rocket launched in Chengalpattu
Tags: Science and Technology
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India's first hybrid rocket made by the school students from various states launched as part of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Satellite Launch Vehicle Mission 2023 from Pattipulam Village in Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu on 19 February.
An overview of the news
The reusable rocket has been made by the selected top 100 students.
The rocket can be used for research into weather, atmospheric conditions and radiation.
Over 3,500 government school students from classes VI to XII, including students from fishermen, tribal communities in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, participated in the launch.
Martin Foundation in association with Dr APJ Abdul Kalam International Foundation and Space Zone India successfully completed the Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Satellite Launch Vehicle Mission 2023.
What is a Hybrid rocket?
It is a bipropellant rocket engine that uses propellants that are in two different states.
These propellants are usually liquid and solid which react to form exhaust gases suitable for rocket propulsion.
India’s first privately developed rocket Vikram-S
India's first private rocket Vikram-S (Suborbital) was launched on 18 November 2022 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
It was designed by the Space technology startup Skyroot Aerospace as a tribute to the father of the country's space programme, Vikram Sarabhai.
3. Sea ice cover reaches lowest level in Antarctica
Tags: Science and Technology
In the study conducted by scientists, it has been told that the area of the Antarctic Ocean covered with ice has shrunk to a record low level.
An overview of the news
According to the National Snow and Ice Data Center in the United States, Antarctica's sea ice extent was recorded at 2.2 million square kilometres last week, down from 2.27 million square kilometres as of February 24, 2022, the previous record.
This is the lowest since records began in 1979.
According to scientists, this is the second consecutive year when snow has melted up to 20 lakh square km in a day.
The coldest region on Earth, 99 percent of Antarctica is covered with ice.
About two thick layers of ice are frozen here. But now this ice is melting fast.
According to scientists, due to the hot winds, the snow is melting rapidly, this year the temperature of the hot winds has been 1.5 degrees above the average.
About Antarctica
It is the southernmost continent and the fifth largest continent on Earth.
Antarctica is uninhabited except for about 40 permanent stations set up by many countries including India for scientific research.
India has two research centres on the Antarctic continent - 'Maitri' and 'Bharati'.
India has completed 40 scientific expeditions here under the Antarctic program so far.
4. India’s lunar mission Chandrayaan-3 achieves another milestone
Tags: Science and Technology National News
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on 19 February said that the 'Chandrayaan-3' lander has "successfully" underwent the Electro-Magnetic Interference/Electro-Magnetic Compatibility (EMI/EMC) test at the U R Rao Satellite Centre.
An overview of the news
The EMI-EMC test is conducted for satellite missions to ensure functionality of the satellite subsystems in space and their compatibility with the expected electromagnetic levels.
The purpose of this test is to ensure that the satellite's systems work properly in conjunction with the expected electromagnetic levels in space.
This is an important step in preparing the test satellites.
The test was conducted between January 31 and February 2 at the UR RAW Satellite Center in Bengaluru.
During this test several points related to the post-landing phase of Chandrayaan's mission were checked.
These include a number of tests including launch capability, polarisation of antenna for radio frequency systems and compatibility of lander and rover.
All the systems performed satisfactorily during the test.
The complexity of this operation relates to the establishment of radio frequency communication links between these modules.
5. Saudi Arabia to send its 1st female astronaut to space this year
Tags: Science and Technology International News
Saudi Arabia's first female astronaut is set to go into space this year, in what is seen as a move to reform Saudi Arabia's ultra-conservative image.
An overview of the news
Saudi female astronaut Rayna Barnawi will join Saudi Ali Al-Qarni on a 10-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS) this year.
Barnawi and al-Karni will fly to the ISS aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft as part of a mission by American privately funded space infrastructure developer private space company Axiom Space .
The Ax-2 will be launched by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, America.
Another fellow Emirati, Sultan Al-Neyadi will also visit the space station at the end of February 2023.
Axiom Space launched its first private astronaut mission to the ISS in April 2022, with four private astronauts spending 17 days in space orbit.
In 2019, Saudi Arabia's neighbouring United Arab Emirates became the first Arab country to send a citizen into space. Astronaut Hazza al-Mansoori spent eight days on the ISS.
In 1985, Saudi royal prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz participated in a US-organised space mission, becoming the first Arab Muslim to travel in space.
Saudi Arabia
King - Salman
Capital - Riyadh
Currency - Saudi Arabian riyal
Official Language - Arabic
Official Religion - Islam
6. Lithium reserves found for the first time in Jammu and Kashmir
Tags: place in news Science and Technology National News
For the first time in the country, reserves of 59 lakh tonnes of lithium have been found in the Reasi district of Jammu division.
An overview of the news:
The Geological Survey of India has discovered lithium deposits in the Salal-Haimana area of Reasi district in Jammu and Kashmir.
Currently India is dependent on imports for Lithium, Nickel and Cobalt. This discovery will reduce India's dependence on lithium from other countries.
A report on 51 mineral blocks including Lithium and Gold was submitted to the State Governments during the 62nd Central Geological Programming Board (CGPB) meeting.
Out of these 51 mineral blocks, 5 blocks are related to gold and other blocks are related to potash, molybdenum, base metals.
These minerals have been found in different districts of 11 states which include Jammu and Kashmir (UT), Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Telangana.
Lithium:
It is a chemical element with the symbol (Li).
It is a soft and silvery white metal.
It is the lightest metal and the lightest solid element at standard conditions.
It is alkaline and a rare metal.
Lithium has an atomic number of 3 and an atomic mass of 6.941u.
Lithium is one of the key components of rechargeable batteries for mobile phones, laptops, digital cameras and electric vehicles.
It is also used in some non-rechargeable batteries for things like heart pacemakers, toys, and watches.
Countries with the largest reserves: Chile > Australia > Argentina
7. ISRO launches its smallest rocket SSLV - D2
Tags: Science and Technology
Indian Space Research Organization has launched its smallest rocket SSLV-D2 into space from Satish Dhawan Space Center (Sriharikota).
An overview of the news:
ISRO's SSLV-D2 flew into space carrying three satellites with it.
These include ISRO's satellite EOS-07, Chennai-based space startup Spacekidz's satellite Azad SAT-2 and American company Antaris's satellite JANUS -1.
All these three satellites will be placed in circular orbit 450 km apart.
ISRO's smallest new rocket SSLV-D2 works on the technology of launch on demand.
It has the capability to cater to the launch of 500 kg satellites into low earth orbits.
SSLV-D2 is 34 metres in length while 2 metres in width. It can fly with a load of about 120 tonnes.
Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO):
It was established on 15 August 1969.
It is the national space agency of India. It launches its space rocket from Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.
Headquarters: Bengaluru
Chairman: S Somnath
8. 'NISAR' satellite made by ISRO-NASA to be launched from India in September
Tags: Science and Technology
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An Earth-observation satellite jointly developed by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and ISRO will be sent to India in late February 2023 for a possible launch in September.
An overview of the news
Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) Chairman S Somnath recently visited NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California to oversee the final power test of the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite before it is sent to India.
The mission will help study Earth's land and ice surfaces in greater detail than ever before.
This SUV-sized payload will be carried in a special cargo container for the 14,000 km flight to the UR Rao Satellite Center in Bengaluru.
About 'NISAR' satellite
ISRO and NASA had tied up in 2014 to build a satellite weighing 2,800 kg.
In March 2021, ISRO sent its S-band SAR payload developed in India to NASA for integration with the L-band payload manufactured by JPL.
This is an important step in better understanding the Earth and the changing climate.
It will provide important information on the Earth's crust, ice sheets and ecosystems.
The NISAR spacecraft will be integrated into the satellite bus at the UR Rao Satellite Center for launch.
9. Google introduces AI chatbot 'Bard'
Tags: Science and Technology
Recently, Google has launched an Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered chatbot named "Google Bard"to compete with ChatGPT.
An overview of the news:
Bard is built on Google's existing language model LaMDA, the language model for the firm's Dialog Application System.
According to Google, it will be used by a group of testers first, after which Bard will be introduced to the general public.
Bard has been developed to compete with the currently fastest growing user application, ChatGPT, which has overtaken platforms such as Tik Tok and Instagram.
Through Bard, users can access complex information in simple language as before, not only that, but also get fresh, high-quality and accurate information from Google's chatbot.
What is Chatbot?
A chatbot is a software application used to conduct on-line chat conversations via text or text-to-speech in lieu of providing direct interaction with a live human agent.
Chatbot in simple language means talking robot.
There are 2 types of chatbots -
rule-based chatbot
AI-based chatbot
AI-based chatbot
AI-based chatbots do not have any pre-saved questions and answers in their database, rather they answer with their intelligence. You can ask any question from them and get your answer.
It learns according to user behaviour and questions asked by them and keeps on evolving itself very fast.
10. Reliance introduces India's first Hydrogen Internal Combustion Engine (H2-ICE) truck
Tags: Science and Technology National News
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India's first Hydrogen Internal Combustion Engine (H2-ICE) truck was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the 'India Energy Week' in Bengaluru.
An overview of the news:
The ICE in the H2-ICE stands for Internal Combustion Engine.
It is developed by Reliance Industries (RIL) in association with Ashok Leyland.
The H2-ICE truck is the first of its kind in India to be powered by hydrogen.
The truck uses hydrogen instead of conventional diesel fuel or liquefied natural gas (LNG), reducing carbon emissions to almost zero.
Hydrogen is considered the cleanest fuel. This emits only water and oxygen.
It is quieter compared to conventional diesel trucks while delivering the same performance. Its operating cost is also less.
The combustion principle in H2-ICE is as follows:
2H2 + O2 → 2H2O
Two hydrogen atoms combine with one oxygen atom to form water. The heat energy released during this reaction is used to ignite the spark plug.
The first H2-ICE was developed by Francois Isaac de Rivaz in the year 1806. It ran on a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen.
