Daily Quiz: UPSC Prelims Marathon (Science & technology) – April 16, 2020

India plans for its own space-to-space tracking and communication of its space assets this year by putting up a new satellite series called Indian Data Relay Satellite System (IDRSS). A set of 2 IDRSS satellites will be placed in geostationary orbit, enabling satellite to satellite communication and transfer of data. It will track, send and receive real-time information from other Indian satellites, in particular those in low-earth orbits (LEO) which have limited coverage of earth. It will also be useful in monitoring launches and benefitting crew members of the Gaganyaan mission ensuring mission control throughout their travel. First satellite will be launched by 2020 end and second one by 2021. India will join US, China, Japan and Europe who already have such DRS systems.

Cartosat satellites are earth observation satellites, used mainly for large-scale mapping of the Earth through high-resolution cameras. They help to detect changes in natural geographical or man-made features. Cartosat-3 satellite is a third-generation agile advanced satellite having high resolution imaging capability. The mission life of the Cartosat-3 is 5 years. It will be followed by additional satellites of the same design, namely Cartosat-3A and 3B, next year.

5G is a wireless communication technology using radio waves or radio frequency (RF) energy to transmit and receive data. It is the next generation mobile networks technology after 4G LTE networks. 5G technologies will enter services gradually, beginning in 2019 and advance to a full range of services by 2024. 5G will provide the capacity and bandwidth as per the need of the user to accommodate technologies such as Internet of Things. It will provide Faster Data Speed, Ultra-low latency etc.

Responsible AI for Social Empowerment 2020 (RAISE 2020) is a global meeting of minds to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) for social empowerment, inclusion and transformation in key areas like Healthcare, Agriculture, Education and Smart Mobility amongst other sectors.

Recently India successfully test-fired its first indigenous air-to-air missile ‘Astra’. It is designed and developed by DRDO. It works on beyond visual range air to air missile (BVRAAM) technology that enables fighter-pilots to shoot precisely at the enemy targets which are beyond their visual range. It was launched from Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter jet and will be further integrated with other jets such as Mirage 2000, the MiG-29 and Tejas. With this India joined the league of other countries having this technology such as France, Germany, UK, South Africa etc.