Science and Technology MCQ Set 40
Showing question 196 to 200 of total 301 MCQs
MCQ Set: 40
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Question No: 196
Official targets for which telescope include searching for icy moons, distant exoplanets and galaxy clusters?
- James Webb Space Telescope Mission
- Charles Webb Space Telescope Mission
- James Darwin Space Telescope Mission
- Charles Darwin Space Telescope Mission
Answer and Explanation
Answer: A
Explanation
Mission officials for NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have announced the initial science targets for the James Webb Space Telescope.
The JWST has been scheduled to look at a large number of things in the universe including icy moons, distant exoplanets and galaxy clusters.
It will look at very first galaxies after the Big Bang, search for fingerprints of life on Enceladus, Europa, and exoplanets like TRAPPIST-1e etc.
As a part of the initial observations, 2100 observations has been planned for the JWST by the mission handlers.
JWST, being the most powerful telescope designed and built on Earth is scheduled to be launched in October 2018 on an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana.
James Webb Space Telescope: Know More
JWST is a joint project of the NASA, the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency. The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore will conduct Webb science operations.
The JWST will be the successor of 26-year-old Hubble Space Telescope.
JWST is 100 times powerful than the Hubble Space Telescope and will be the largest telescope ever sent into space.
JWST will have a very large infrared telescope with a 6.5-meter primary mirror. Its sun shield is 22 metres which is roughly the size of a tennis court and has a mirror 6.5 metres which is over twice the size of the Hubble Space Telescope.
The JWST is named after the former NASA administrator, James Webb. JWST was formerly known as the “Next Generation Space Telescope” (NGST).
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) had completed the construction of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) after more than 20 years of work.
Instruments of JWST include Cameras and spectrometers that are able to record extremely faint signals. NIRSpec having programmable micro-shutters for observation of up to 100 objects. Cryocooler for cooling the mid-infrared detectors.
Question No: 197
China launched its first _____ space telescope to study black holes, pulsars and gamma ray bursts.
- Gamma ray
- UV ray
- X-ray
- None of the above
Answer and Explanation
Answer: C
Explanation
China has launched its first X-ray space telescope to study black holes, pulsars and gamma-ray bursts.
The telescope weighing 2.5 tonne was sent to the space using China’s Long March-4B rocket. The satellite was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.
Black hole refers to the remains of a supergiant star that has collapsed into itself. It is so dense and has a gravitational field so intense, that light itself cannot escape from it.
Pulsars are highly magnetized, rotating neutron stars that emit a beam of electromagnetic radiation. They are spherical, compact objects that are about the size of a large city but contain more mass than that of the sun.
Scientists are using pulsars to study extreme states of matter, search for planets beyond Earth’s solar system and measure cosmic distance.
In recent times, China sees its multi-billion-dollar space programme as a symbol of its rise.
In April, China had launched its first cargo spacecraft and successfully docked it with an orbiting space lab. This launch was hailed as a key development toward China’s goal of having its own crewed space station by 2022.
Recently, China also opened a “Lunar Palace” laboratory on earth to simulate a moon-like environment.
In the lunar palace laboratory, China is conducting experiments by housing students for up to 200 days to prepare for its long-term goal of sending humans to the moon.
In 2016, China had also successfully launched experimental X-ray pulsar navigation satellite XPNAV-1, which was world’s first pulsar navigation satellite or spacecraft.
China's First X-ray Telescope
Hard X-ray Modulation Telescope (HXMT), named Insight, will allow scientists from China to observe magnetic fields and the interiors of pulsars and understand the evolution of black holes.
The telescope is also expected to help scientists to search for gamma-ray bursts corresponding to gravitational waves.
It will also study how the pulsars can be used for spacecraft navigation.
Question No: 198
Anti tank missile ____ was test-fired in Rajasthan in June 2017.
- Nag
- Agni
- Trishul
- Prithvi
Answer and Explanation
Answer: A
Explanation
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully test fired anti-tank ‘Nag’ missile in Rajasthan.
The test was conducted by scientists of the Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Missile Complex at Hyderabad, Defence Laboratory at Jodhpur, High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL) at Pune and Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) at Pune.
The anti-tank Nag missile is one of the five missile systems developed by the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) under the integrated guided missile development programme (IGMDP).
The four other missiles developed under this programme include Agni, Akash, Trishul and Prithvi.
The Nag missile is a third generation anti-tank guided missile which works on “fire and forget” principle.
The anti-tank Nag missile has been equipped with the highly advanced Imaging Infrared Radar (IRR) seeker along with integrated avionics.
This technology is possessed by very few nations. It also possess advanced passive homing guidance system.
The missile has been designed mainly to destroy modern main battle tanks and other heavily armoured targets.
Nag can be launched from land and air-based platforms.
The helicopter launched version known as helicopter-launched NAG (HELINA) can be fired from Dhruv advanced light helicopter (ALH) and HAL Rudra attack helicopter.
The land-based version of the missile is at present available for integration on the Nag missile carrier (NAMICA).
DRDO: Know More
Founded: 1958
Headquarters: New Delhi
Motto: "Strength's Origin is in Science" (Sanskrit)
Minister responsible: Arun Jaitley, Defence Minister of India
Agency executive: Dr.S.Christopher, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D;
Annual budget: 135.9 billion INR (US$2.0 billion, 2016–2017)
Question No: 199
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully test fired anti-tank ‘Nag’ missile in Rajasthan.
The test was conducted by scientists of the Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Missile Complex at Hyderabad, Defence Laboratory at Jodhpur, High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL) at Pune and Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) at Pune.
The anti-tank Nag missile is one of the five missile systems developed by the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) under the integrated guided missile development programme (IGMDP).
The four other missiles developed under this programme include Agni, Akash, Trishul and Prithvi.
The Nag missile is a third generation anti-tank guided missile which works on “fire and forget” principle.
The anti-tank Nag missile has been equipped with the highly advanced Imaging Infrared Radar (IRR) seeker along with integrated avionics.
This technology is possessed by very few nations. It also possess advanced passive homing guidance system.
The missile has been designed mainly to destroy modern main battle tanks and other heavily armoured targets.
Nag can be launched from land and air-based platforms.
The helicopter launched version known as helicopter-launched NAG (HELINA) can be fired from Dhruv advanced light helicopter (ALH) and HAL Rudra attack helicopter.
The land-based version of the missile is at present available for integration on the Nag missile carrier (NAMICA).
DRDO: Know More
Founded: 1958
Headquarters: New Delhi
Motto: "Strength's Origin is in Science" (Sanskrit)
Minister responsible: Arun Jaitley, Defence Minister of India
Agency executive: Dr.S.Christopher, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D;
Annual budget: 135.9 billion INR (US$2.0 billion, 2016–2017)
- Netherlands
- Australia
- US
- UK
Answer and Explanation
Answer: A
Explanation
Fishers off the coast of the Netherlands got quite a shock when they caught what has now been confirmed as the first case of conjoined twin harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena).
With a single body and two fully grown heads, this is a case of partial twinning, or parapagus dicephalus.
The sighting is extremely rare: these male porpoises are only the 10th known case of conjoined twins in cetaceans, a group of animals that also includes whales and dolphins.
“The anatomy of cetaceans is strikingly different from terrestrial mammals with adaptations for living in the sea as a mammal. Much is unknown.
Adding any extra case to the known nine specimens brings more knowledge on this aspect.
The fishers who made the discovery returned the twins - which were probably already dead when caught - to the ocean.
They believed it would be illegal to keep such a specimen, but were able to produce a series of photographs useful for research.
The twins died shortly after birth, because their tail had not stiffened - which is necessary for newborn dolphins to be able to swim, says Kompanje.
Other signs of their age were a flat dorsal fin that should have become vertical soon after entering the ocean water, and hairs on the upper lip, which should fall out shortly after birth.
Partial twinning can happen in one of two ways: two initially separate embryonic discs can fuse together or the zygote can only partially split during the early development process.
This case concerns the second known case of twinning, the first case of conjoined twins in Phocoena phocoena, the fourth known case of parapagus dicephalus in a cetacean species and the tenth known case of conjoined twinning in a cetacean species.
Conjoined Twins: Know More
Not much is known about what causes conjoined twinning in cetaceans.
In humans, conjoined twins are identical twins that are physically attached to each other.
In healthy identical twins, an embryo splits into two after fertilization, but in conjoined twins, this process abruptly stops before the separation is complete.
Question No: 200
What is the name of the hottest giant planet discovered on June 5, 2017?
- KELT-9a
- KELT-9b
- KELT-9c
- None of the above
Answer and Explanation
Answer: B
Explanation
Astronomers led by Ohio state university researchers discovered the hottest giant planet named KELT-9b.
This exoplanet is hotter than most stars - the finding was published on June 5, 2017
KELT 9b is regarded as a hybrid planet star - it has the mass of a planet and the atmosphere of a star.
KELT 9b was discovered in 2014 as astronomers spotted the shadow as it crossed the face of its host star 650 light years away from Earth in the constellation of Cygnus.
The planet was so close to the star that surface temperature reaches more than 4300C.
This makes it the hottest giant planet ever found.
Astronomers discovered this planet using two robotic telescopes Kilodegree Extremely Little Telescope in Arizona and Sutherland to north of Cape Town in SA.
The twin telescopes focused on a star called Kelt-9 which at 10000 degrees C is nearly twice as hot as the sun. The observations revealed a regular dimming of starlight reaching Earth, the signature of a giant planet that was moving around it once every one-and-a-half days.
KELT 9b: Know More
KELT-9b is estimated to be roughly 3777 degrees Celsius on the dark side and 4327 degrees C on the star-exposed side.
This makes KELT-9b almost 20 per cent hotter than the next-most-boiling exoplanet WASP-33b. KELT-9b receives 700 times as much solar radiation as WASP-33b, which is similar to the glow of an entire K-type star, the second coolest type and is more than enough to break down molecules to their constituent atoms.
The new planet’s scorching temperature is due its parent star KELT-9 which falls in the A-type bracket of stars, the third-hottest category.
It is the seventh star of its classification to be found with an exoplanet and at roughly 300 million years old. KELT-9b is surprisingly puffy, given that its mass is almost three times Jupiter’s. KELT-9b is 2.8 times more massive than Jupiter, but only half as dense.
For reasons no one fully understands yet, the planet also orbits its star from pole to pole, rather than around the equator as would be expected.
The planet is tidally locked to its star as the moon is to Earth.
One side of the planet is always facing towards the star, and one side is in perpetual darkness. Molecules such as water, carbon dioxide and methane can’t form on the dayside of the planet as it is bombarded by too much ultraviolet radiation.
The discovery of KELT-9b might encourage more researchers to go into the depths of other planets on the opposite end of the typically researched spectrum.