General Awareness

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY - January 2017

Jan 2017

Dec 29, 2020

Skyroot Aerospace First Indian Company to Test-fire Solid-fueled Rocket Engine

Indian Space start-up, Skyroot Aerospace, has proven the crucial propulsion technology of their maiden rocket Vikram-1, with the latest test-firing of an engine. Vikram-1 rocket is powered by four engines — three solid-fuel stages and one Liquid-fuel stage that the firm has designed and developed.
In August this year, the company had tested its liquid-fueled engine and now has proven the technology of the solid-fueled engine (Kalam-5), by successfully test-firing a miniature version.
The Engine 'Kalam-5', is named so for its peak Sea Level thrust of 5.3kN. It is notable that the engine is built with an advanced carbon composite structure in a completely automated process.

Dec 28, 2020

China Launches Remote Sensing Satellite

China has successfully launched a new remote sensing satellite into space.
The satellite was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China.
The satellite, Yaogan-33, was launched aboard a Long March-4C rocket and entered the planned orbit successfully. It was the 357th flight mission of the Long March carrier rocket series.
The mission also sent a micro and nano technology experiment satellite into orbit.
The two satellites will be used for scientific experiments, land resources survey, crop yield estimation and disaster prevention and reduction.

ISRO Developing 'Green Propulsion' for Human Space Mission Gaganyaan

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman K Sivan said that the space agency was developing 'green propulsion' for its ambitious human space flight mission, 'Gaganyaan'. He was addressing the 16th convocation of SRM Institute of Science and Technology.
"As India continues to focus on economic growth, it needs to ensure that environmental damage is limited by adopting green technologies. ISRO has made space grade lithium-ion batteries and this technology is useful for mass adoption of electric vehicle", he noted.
Even in the rocket propulsion, ISRO is developing green propulsion for its human space flight mission. In future, all the propulsion stages may adopt green propulsion.
The space agency had planned to launch its maiden human space flight mission 'Gaganyaan' by December 2021. But early this month, ISRO indicated that it is likely to be delayed by one year.

Dec 27, 2020

Nuro Set to Be California's First Driverless Delivery Service

California has given the go-ahead for a commercial driverless delivery service for the first time.
Robotics start-up Nuro plans to start its driverless delivery operations as early as next year.
It previously tested its R2 vehicles in the state in April, but the permit will let it charge people for its service.
The firm's vehicles will be limited to 35 mph (56 km/h), and will be restricted to operating in fair weather conditions.
Issuing the first deployment permit is a significant milestone in the evolution of autonomous vehicles in California.
Nuro was founded by two former Google engineers and has funding from Japanese firm Softbank.

Dec 25, 2020

DigiBoxx: India's First Indigenous Digital Asset Management Platform

CEO of NITI Aayog Amitabh Kant virtually launched India's first digital asset management platform DigiBoxx.
Kant also signed up for an account, making him the first user of an Indian digital file storage, sharing and management SaaS product that provides storage options for business as well as individual users.
The platform provides an easy and secure way to store all the files in one centralised location.
This is indigenous innovation at its best. I have always maintained that the Indian tech industry can be globally competitive in all aspects and Digiboxx is such an example. It ticks all the rights boxes for India Inc's needs but also fills a gap for the MSME universe which is untapped.

Dec 24, 2020

New Green Mineral Discovered in 220-Year-old Rock

An "amazing" new type of mineral has been discovered by scientists analysing a rock mined in Cornwall about 220 years ago.
The dark green mineral has been named kernowite after Kernow, the Cornish language word for Cornwall.
A group led by Natural History Museum (NHM) mineralogist Mike Rumsey made the discovery while studying a rock taken from Wheal Gorland mine in St Day.
As per Rumsey, it is amazing that in 2020 we are adding a new mineral.
For centuries, mineralogists believed the green crystals to be a variation of another mineral, liroconite, but Mr Rumsey and his team found it has a different chemical composition.
Blue liroconite is highly prized by collectors around the world, and the majority of it comes from the Wheal Gorland site.

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