General Awareness

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY - September 2018

Sep 2018

Jan 13, 2019

Shifting north magnetic pole forces urgent navigation fix

Rapid shifts in the Earth's north magnetic pole are forcing researchers to make an unprecedented early update to a model that helps navigation by ships, planes and submarines in the Arctic.
The wandering pole is driven by unpredictable changes in liquid iron deep inside the Earth.
It's moving at about 50 km (30 miles) a year. It didn't move much between 1900 and 1980 but it's really accelerated in the past 40 years.
Scientists must periodically update the World Magnetic Model to map this process, and the most recent version - produced in 2015 - was intended to last until 2020.
However, the magnetic field has been changing so quickly and erratically that while conducting a routine check in early 2018, British and US researchers realised drastic steps were needed.
The shift they observed was so large it was on the verge of exceeding the acceptable limit for navigation errors.
To account for this, scientists at the British Geological Survey and the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are issuing an unprecedented emergency update to the model.
An update will be released on January 30, the journal Nature said, delayed from January 15 because of the US government shutdown.
The changes are essential as the system is used by aircraft, ships and even smartphones.

Jan 12, 2019

Panoramic View of Moon's Far Side

China broadcasted pictures taken by its rover and lander on the moon's far side, in what its space programme hailed as another triumph for the groundbreaking mission to the less-understood dark side of the lunar surface.
The pictures on CCTV showed the Jade Rabbit 2 rover and the Chang'e 4 spacecraft that transported it on the first ever soft landing on the far side of the moon, which always faces away from Earth.
The pictures were transmitted by a relay satellite to a control centre in Beijing.
Space research officials from China and the US have exchanged data for the mission, the first such collaboration since the 2011 US law banning space exchanges with Beijing.

ISRO to Send Three Indians in Space by 2021

The Indian Space Research Organization announced its plan to send Indian astronauts to space in December 2021 under India's flagship human space mission programme Gaganyaan, at a cost of ~100 billion.
The crew will include a woman and will orbit in space for up to a week.
ISRO chairperson K Sivan announced that a Human Spaceflight Centre will come up in Bengaluru to train crew and make systems safe for space missions, starting with Gaganyaan.
The centre will be headed by S Unnikrishnan Nair and the Gaganyaan programme will be headed by R Hutton.
ISRO also made a slew of other big-ticket announcements.
This year will see 32 space missions, double the number from last year, including 14 vehicle launches and 18 spacecraft missions.
Primary among them will be the launch of Chandrayaan-2, India's second moon mission, at a cost of ~8 billion.

Jan 08, 2019

Robots for Health Care and Retail Stores

Samsung Electronics Co. showed off robots at the CES technology conference in Las Vegas, including one for retail stores and another in the health care space.
The Bot Care can measure blood pressure and heart rate, detect falls and administer medicine.
The Bot Retail communicates with consumers in stores, while the Bot Air robot detects air quality. Samsung didn't say when it intends to release the robots or how they would be priced.

Jan 05, 2019

Chinese Lunar Rover Named As Yutu 2

China has named the lunar rover, successfully deployed to carry out a string of experiments on the unexplored far side of the moon, as 'Yutu 2'.
Analysts say that China's lunar probe is part of its 'Made in China-2025' project, which focuses on advanced technology, including space applications.

Jan 04, 2019

Chinese Space Probe Landed on Dark Side

A Chinese space probe landed on the far side of the moon, making it the first spacecraft to touch down on the part of moon, which is never visible from earth.
The soft-landing by the Chang'e-4 probe on the dark side of the moon is an important milestone in China's rapidly developing space programme and contribution to the world's exploration of the moon.
Previous space expeditions had seen the "dark" side of the moon but none had landed there.

Share on

TCY Analytics (View Subscription Plans)

Subscribe to GK Updates

I want to receive

GK Tags

September GK, August GK, July GK, INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, ENVIRONMENT, BUSINESS AND ECONOMY, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY, SPORTS, NATIONAL AFFAIRS, DEFENCE, PERSONS IN NEWS, DAYS AND EVENTS, AWARDS AND HONOURS, GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND SCHEMES, GENDER/ HEALTH/ EDUCATION, ART AND CULTURE, BOOKS AND AUTHORS, TOURISM AND HOTEL INDUSTRY AWARENESS, ART AND CULTURE, LAW AND CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Start Discussion

On any topic

Take Tests

Compiled from GK updates

Login

Sign Up

Forgot Password

Download TCY App

Unlock All Services And Enjoy The Premium Benefits

US$ 10

US$ 13

US$ 15

US$ 17

US$ 19

US$ 20

US$ 21

US$ 22

US$ 23

US$ 24

US$ 25

US$ 26