Space – GK Questions

Canadarm2, launched in 2001, is essential for ISS assembly, maintenance, and spacecraft berthing, showcasing Canada's robotics expertise.

Silica aerogel's nanoporous structure makes it an excellent insulator; used on Mars rovers (Sojourner, Spirit, Opportunity) to protect electronics from extreme cold.

Chang'e-4 landed in Von Kármán crater on Jan 3, 2019, using Queqiao relay satellite for communication, marking a historic first in lunar exploration.

When a planet passes in front of its host star, it blocks a tiny fraction of light, causing measurable brightness dips that reveal planet size and orbital period.

ISpA represents private space companies in India, advocating for policy reforms and fostering collaboration with ISRO/IN-SPAC.

Launched Oct 4, 1957, Sputnik 1 orbited for 92 days before burning up on Jan 4, 1958, though its radio signals lasted only 21 days.

Hall thrusters achieve 1000-3000 s specific impulse versus 300-450 s for chemical rockets, enabling efficient station-keeping and orbit raising despite low thrust.

Saturn's moon Enceladus ejects water vapor and ice grains from 'tiger stripe' fractures, confirming a global subsurface ocean and potential hydrothermal activity.

PAPA measures solar wind plasma parameters (density, velocity, temperature) to understand coronal heating and space weather drivers.

High-frequency QPOs correlate with inner disk dynamics near ISCO, providing indirect spin measurements complementary to continuum fitting.

REXUS (rockets) and BEXUS (balloons) are ESA/DLR/SNSB programs offering students hands-on experience in microgravity/atmospheric research.

Long March rockets are China's primary launch vehicles, evolving from DF-5 ICBM technology to support crewed, lunar, and space station missions.

SPADEX (Space Docking Experiment) involves two small satellites performing rendezvous/docking, validating tech for Gaganyaan and future space stations.

Martian polar caps contain layered water ice overlain by seasonal CO₂ frost; north cap retains summer water ice, south cap retains perennial CO₂.

Period-luminosity relation allows Cepheids to serve as standard candles for measuring galactic/extragalactic distances, foundational to Hubble's law.

JUICE (JUpiter ICy moons Explorer) launched April 2023, arriving 2031 to study habitability of Ganymede, Europa, and Callisto.

RRSC-South Asia at IIRS Dehradun supports regional countries with remote sensing training/data under UN-ESCAP framework.

Zarya (Functional Cargo Block) launched Nov 20, 1998, providing initial propulsion/power until Unity node arrived weeks later.

Lunar frozen orbits (inclination ~27°, 50°, 76°, 86°) counteract mascon perturbations, enabling long-term stable orbits for Chandrayaan and LRO.

BAO are frozen sound wave imprints in galaxy distribution (~150 Mpc scale), constraining dark energy and expansion rate across cosmic time.