Debrigarh Wildlife Sanctuary of Odisha records higher prey density

• It is located between the Hirakud Dam (Mahanadi River) and the Reservoir in the state of Odisha.
• It was declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1985.
• It finds a special mention because of noted freedom fighter Veer Surendra Sai.
• During his rebellion against the British Veer Surendra Saimade his base at ‘Barapathara” located within the sanctuary.
• Fauna: The beautiful sanctuary is known for its easy sightings of animals particularly Indian Bison, Wild Boars and Sambhar etc.
• Flora: It has a dry deciduous forest that attracts a host of birds during the winters.

Debrigarh 48 initiative

• The wildlife division had launched the ‘Debrigarh 48’ initiative to prevent villagers from harming the wildlife and collect intelligence from the periphery landscape through them.

Hirakud Dam

• It is a composite structure of earth, concrete and masonry. It is the longest major earthen dam in India.
• It is one of the first major multipurpose river valley projects started after India''s independence and began operations in 1957.

Satellites capture auroras associated with carbon dioxide

Auroras

• How is it formed? The sun is ejecting charged particles from its corona, creating solar wind. When that wind slams into Earth''s ionosphere, the aurora is born.
• In the Northern Hemisphere, the phenomenon is called the northern lights (aurora borealis), while in the Southern Hemisphere, it''s called the southern lights (aurora australis).
• The hemispheric asymmetry of the aurora is due in part to the sun''s magnetic field interfering with Earth''s magnetic field.
• The usually observed green and red auroras happen between 100 kilometres and 250 kilometres above the surface of the planet due to an excited state of atomic oxygen.

Carbon Dioxide Aurora

• When charged particles crash into the planet’s atmosphere, they interact with many different atoms and molecules. Carbon dioxide is one of them.
• While the gas is known for acting as a greenhouse gas due to its presence in the lowest part of the atmosphere, trace parts of carbon dioxide also exist in the atmosphere at the edge of space.
• When carbon dioxide molecules about 90 kilometres above Earth become excited during an aurora, they emit infrared radiation.
• This leads to more infrared radiation than is typically observed in the planet’s atmosphere.

What is the chiral bose-liquid state?

• Usually matter exists in solid, liquid or gas forms.
• At temperatures approaching absolute zero, or the world within the atom, things are very different.
• In these “quantum” states, matter behaves in ways quite different from the solid, liquid, and gaseous states.
• Under frustrated quantum systems, where infinite possibilities result from the interaction of particles.

Formation

• Researchers used a bi-layer semiconducting device.
• The top layer is electron-rich, and these electrons can move freely.
• The bottom layer is filled with “holes,” or places that a roving electron can occupy.
• Then the two layers are brought extremely close together. The machine is then triggered to create a local imbalance resulting in electrons not having enough holes to fill and this kicks off the novel state called the chiral Bose-liquid state.
• In this state, electrons can be frozen into predictable patterns, making them resilient to changes in spin (a defining characteristic of subatomic particles) and even have electrons synchronise their movements.
• It is very difficult to create such states of matter but going ahead may be used to fashion novel digital encryption systems.

Chiral

• The term chiral is from the Greek word for ‘hand’ which refers to anything which cannot be superimposed on its own mirror image.

L&T, DRDO sign contract to build AIP modules for Scorpene class submarines

Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) System

• With the emergence of submarines, there was a problem finding satisfactory forms of propulsion underwater.
• AIP is mostly implemented as an auxiliary source, with the traditional diesel engine handling surface propulsion.
• Most of these systems generate electricity, which in turn drives an electric motor for propulsion or recharges the boat’s batteries.
• AIP allows longer submergence than a conventionally propelled submarine. A typical conventional power plant provides 3 megawatts maximum, and an AIP source around 10 per cent of that. A nuclear submarine’s propulsion plant is much greater than 20 megawatts.

AIP system

• It allows the submarines to stay for longer hours in water. The submarines need to come to the surface of the water to charge their batteries. This is reduced by AIP System.
• It decreases the noise levels made by the submarines. This makes it hard to detect the submarines.
• Types of AIP: Open-cycle systems, Closed-cycle diesel engines, Closed-cycle steam turbines Stirling cycle engines and Fuel cells.

Types of Submarines

• Conventional or Diesel-electric submarine: They need atmospheric oxygen to run the diesel generator which in turn charges the batteries.
• Nuclear Submarine: It is a submarine powered by a nuclear reactor, but not necessarily nuclear-armed. They have considerable performance advantages over conventional submarines.

INS Sunayna visited Mombasa, Kenya

• It is a Saryu class Offshore Patrol Vessel which was commissioned at Kochi.
• It is based under Southern Naval Command and is built at Goa Shipyard Limited.
• The warship is designed to undertake fleet support operations, coastal and offshore patrolling, ocean surveillance and monitoring of Sea Lines of Communications and offshore assets, and escort duties.
• It can achieve speeds of 25 knots.
• The ship also has an automatic power management system.
• It is fitted with the latest Navigation, Communication and Electronic Support Systems.
• Other Sarayu class includes the INS Sumitra and INS Sumedha.

Passage Exercise (PASSEX)

• A Maritime Partnership Exercise was conducted between the Indian Navy and Kenyan Navy.
• The crew of both the Indian and Kenya Navy conducted drills in Firefighting & Damage Control, boarding exercises, asymmetric threat simulations and VBSS during the harbour phase.
• A HADR capsule was also conducted onboard for the Kenya Navy.

General Electric inks deal with HAL, to make fighter jet engines for Indian Air Force

• It is a high-performance, two-spool, axial-flow turbofan engine that is used to power a variety of military aircraft, including the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, the JAS 39 Gripen, and the Tejas Mark II.
• It is a derivative of the GE F404 engine, which was developed in the 1970s.
• It has been used by U.S. Navy aircraft for more than 30 years.
• The F414 powers or is on order to power jets in the S., Sweden, Australia, Kuwait, Brazil, South Korea, India and Indonesia.
• Features:
• It combines the proven reliability, maintainability, and operability of its successful F404 predecessor with advanced technologies to provide up to 35 percent more thrust.
• It’s simple, modular design is reliable and easy to maintain.
• It is the first fighter engine to use a Full Authority Digital Electronic Control (FADEC). FADEC provides precise control of the engine’s performance, which improves fuel efficiency and reduces emissions.
• Is the first fighter engine to use an integrated electronic engine instrumentation (IEE) system. IEE provides real-time data on the engine’s performance, which helps pilots to make informed decisions about engine operation.
• Its wide chord, high-pressure compressor (HPC) provides greater efficiency and lower emissions than previous generation engines.
• The engine’s low-pressure turbine (LPT) is designed for high efficiency and durability.

NASA’s X-57 Maxwell All-Electric Aircraft Project To Create Paths Toward Electric Aviation

X-57 Maxwell

• It is an all-electric experimental aircraft designed to demonstrate multiple leading-edge technologies.
• It is being designed and developed by NASA.
• Goal: To demonstrate that an all-electric airplane can be more efficient, quieter and more environmentally friendly than airplanes powered by traditional gas piston engines.
• Design:
  • It was made by modifying an Italian Texnam P2006T light aircraft to be powered by an electric propulsion system.
  • It will demonstrate the use of a high-power distributed electric propulsion system for use on an aircraft, including a 460-volt battery to power 14 motors and propellers.
  • The cruise motor controllers are critical components of the X-57’s powertrain, as they convert the energy stored in the aircraft’s lithium-ion batteries to power the motors that spin the electric propellers.
  • The wing, which is being reduced to 42% of the original size to significantly reduce drag, will feature wing-tip propellers to reduce the wing-tip vortex at cruise.

High-Level Panel To Probe Alleged Scam In Gold Plating At Kedarnath Temple

Kedarnath Temple

• It is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva.
• Location: It is located at a height of 3,584 meters on the Garhwal Himalayan range near the Mandakini river, in the Rudraprayag District of Uttarakhand.
• Kedarnath forms one of the four sites of the Chota Char DhamPilgrimage circuit, and is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva in India.
• Who build it? It is said that the Pandavas constructed the Kedarnath Temple which was later reconstructed by Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th century A.D.
• Architecture:
  • It has exquisite architecture and is built of extremely large but evenly shaped grey stone slabs.
  • The stone slabs are interlocked with each other with the use of iron clamps.
  • No mortar has been used in the construction of the temple.
  • There is a conical rock structure inside the Kedarnath temple that is worshipped as the Sadashiva form of Shiva.
  • A “Garba Griha” for worship and a Mandap for pilgrims is placed inside the temple.

Chota Char Dham Yatra

• It refers to the journey up the mountains to four sacred temples in the North Indian state of Uttarakhand.
• The four temples that comprise Chota Char Dham are Yamunotri Dham, Gangotri Dham, Badrinath Dham and Kedarnath Dham.

Jyotirlingas

• A Jyotirlinga is a shrine where Lord Shiva is worshipped in the form of a Jyotirlingam.
• There are currently 12 main Jyotirlingas in India.
• The 12 Jyotirlinga temples in India take the name of the presiding deity. Each considered a different manifestation of Lord Shiva.
• 12 Jyotirlingas in India are:
  • Somnath Jyotirlinga in Gir, Gujarat
  • Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga in Srisailam, Andhra Pradesh
  • Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh
  • Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga in Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh
  • Baidyanath Jyotirlinga in Deoghar, Jharkhand
  • Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga in Maharashtra
  • Ramanathaswamy Jyotirlinga in Rameshwaram, Tamil Nadu
  • Nageshwar Jyotirlinga in Dwarka, Gujarat
  • Kashi Vishwanath Jyotirlinga in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
  • Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga in Nasik, Maharashtra
  • Kedarnath Jyotirlinga in Rudraprayag, Uttarakhand
  • Ghrishneshwar Jyotirlinga in Aurangabad, Maharashtra

Bhopal: 20 White-Rumped Vultures Brought From Haryana

• It is a medium-sized Old-World vulture.
• Scientific name: Gyps bengalensis
• It is also known as Indian White-backed Vulture or Oriental White-backed Vulture.
• Distribution: Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and southern Vietnam.
• Habitat: Found mostly in plains and less frequently in hilly It can also be seen in villages and cities near to cultivation.
• Population:
  • In the 1980s, the global population was estimated at several million individuals, and it was thought to be "the most abundant large bird of prey in the world".
  • As of 2021, the global population was estimated at less than 6,000 mature individuals.
• Features:
  • It is a typical, medium-sized vulture, with an unfeathered head and neck, very broad wings, and short tail feathers.
  • Adults are 75 to 85 cm tall, their wing span is 180 to 210 cm, and their weight ranges from 3.5 to 7.5 kg.
  • The sexes are approximately equal in size.
  • Adults are darker than juveniles, with blackish plumage, a white neck-ruff, and a white patch of feathers on the lower back and upper tail, from which their common name is derived.
  • There is a pale grey patch on the upper surface of the wings, visible when the wings are folded. The undersides of the wings are a dark slate to brownish colour.
• Conservation Status:
  • IUCN: Critically Endangered
  • Wildlife Protection Act 1972: Schedule-1