Daily Quiz #16 UPSC Prelims Marathon – July 18, 2019

Explanation: biotech-KISAN scheme is a farmer centric scheme for farmers, developed by and with farmers. It is a Pan-India program, following a hub-and spoke model and stimulates entrepreneurship and innovation in farmers and empowers women. The Biotech- KISAN Hubs are expected to fulfill the technology requirement to generate agriculture and bio-resource related jobs and better livelihood ensuring biotechnological benefits to small and marginal farmers. Biotech-KISAN also has unique a feature to identify and promote local farm leadership in both genders. Such leadership helps to develop science based farming besides facilitating transfer of knowledge. So far a total of eight Biotech-KISAN Hubs in different Agro-climatic Zones have been supported.

Explanation: The Earth System Science Organization (ESSO), New Delhi, operates as an executive arm of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) for its policies and programmes. The ESSO provides overall direction for the centers/units and review the implementation of the programs. The ESSO was established in October, 2007 as a virtual organization, bringing all meteorological and ocean development activities under one umbrella, recognizing the importance of strong coupling among various components of the earth viz. atmosphere, oceans, cryo-sphere and geo-sphere. It has four major branches of earth sciences, viz. (i) Ocean Science & Technology (ii) Atmospheric and Climate Science and (iii) Geosciences and Technology and (iv) Polar Science and Cryosphere. The sole purpose of the Endeavour was to address holistically various aspects relating to earth processes for understanding the variability of earth system.

Explanation: Monsoon has always been critical for India’s economy. The current prediction capabilities are not adequate. In recent times, several new approaches (high resolution, super parameterizations, data assimilation etc.) have shown that the variability in tropics can be reasonably resolved, thereby creating a great scope for improving the monsoon prediction. The mission will support focused research by national and international research groups with definitive objectives and deliverables to improve models in the short, medium, extended and seasonal range scales through setting up of a framework for generating dynamical forecasts and improving skill of forecasts. The mission will also support observational programs that will result in better understanding of the processes.
a) Objectives:
•To improve Seasonal and Intra-seasonal Monsoon Forecast
•To improve Medium Range Forecast.
b) Participating Institutions:
•Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune
•National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecast, Noida
•India Meteorological Department, New Delhi

Explanation: Sounding rockets are one or two stage solid propellant rockets used for probing the upper atmospheric regions and for space research. They also serve as easily affordable platforms to test or prove prototypes of new components or subsystems intended for use in launch vehicles and satellites. With the establishment of the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) in 1963 at Thumba, a location close to the magnetic equator, there was a quantum jump in the scope for aeronomy and atmospheric sciences in India. The launch of the first sounding rocket from Thumba near Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala on 21 November 1963, marked the beginning of the Indian Space Programme . Sounding rockets made it possible to probe the atmosphere in situ using rocket-borne instrumentation. The first rockets were two-stage rockets imported from Russia (M-100) and France (Centaure). While the M-100 could carry a payload of 70 kg to an altitude of 85 km, the Centaure was capable of reaching 150 km with a payload of approximately 30 kg. ISRO started launching indigenously made sounding rockets from 1965 and experience gained was of immense value in the mastering of solid propellant technology. In 1975, all sounding rocket activities were consolidated under the Rohini Sounding Rocket (RSR) Programme. RH-75, with a diameter of 75mm was the first truly Indian sounding rocket, which was followed by RH-100 and RH-125 rockets. The sounding rocket programme was the bedrock on which the edifice of launch vehicle technology in ISRO could be built. It is possible to conduct coordinated campaigns by simultaneously launching sounding rockets from different locations. It is also possible to launch several sounding rockets in a single day.

Explanation: BepiColombo is Europe’s first mission to Mercury. It will set off in 2018 on a journey to the smallest and least explored terrestrial planet in our Solar System. When it arrives at Mercury in late 2025, it will endure temperatures in excess of 350 °C and gather data during its 1 year nominal mission, with a possible 1-year extension. The mission comprises two spacecraft: the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) and the Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MMO). BepiColombo is a joint mission between ESA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), executed under ESA leadership.