Science & Technology Current Affairs MCQs

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NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) are collaborating to create a standardized lunar time system for the Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the moon. This initiative addresses the need for unified timekeeping to coordinate international and private lunar missions. With upcoming missions from China, India, and private companies, a common lunar time system is essential for successful operation and coordination.

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The United Nations General Assembly has declared 2025 the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology. This decision, made on June 7, 2024, aims to raise public awareness, encourage youth involvement, and support quantum science applications. The year marks the centenary of Werner Heisenberg’s foundational quantum mechanics paper. Additionally, 2025 is designated for cooperatives, peace and trust, and glacier preservation, while 2024 celebrates camelids.

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Researchers used CRISPR/Cas9 to alter photosynthesis for the first time. CRISPR, short for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats, is a gene-editing technology enabling precise, quick, and affordable genetic modifications. Developed from bacteria’s immune response to viruses, CRISPR/Cas9 can remove, add, or alter DNA sequences, correcting genome errors and regulating gene activity in cells and organisms.

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Scientists discovered frost on Mars’ tallest volcano, Olympus Mons, indicating an active water cycle. Olympus Mons, a 3.5-billion-year-old shield volcano in Mars’ western hemisphere, is the highest point on Mars and the largest volcano in the solar system. It stands 16 miles (24 km) high, about three times taller than Mt. Everest, and spans 340 miles (550 km), larger than Hawaii’s Mauna Loa. Its summit caldera, with overlapping pits, is 50 miles (80 km) wide.

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Japan is grappling with a major health crisis from the spread of Streptococcal Toxic Shock Syndrome (STSS). Caused by group A Streptococcus bacteria, STSS triggers severe inflammation leading to potential organ damage. Early symptoms include fever, muscle pain, and nausea, progressing rapidly to organ failure without prompt treatment. Timely medical intervention with antibiotics, fluids, and sometimes surgery is essential to mitigate the syndrome’s impact and prevent life-threatening complications.

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India’s Truenat TB diagnostics, developed by Molbio, impressed at the World Health Assembly. Launched in 2017, it’s a portable micro-PCR system for rapid diagnosis of TB types, including drug-resistant strains. Delivering results in under an hour, it’s deployed widely across India, aiding early treatment critical in a country with high TB mortality. India, comprising 27% of global TB cases, benefits from over 7,000 health centers using Truenat under its National TB Elimination Programme.

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Researchers discovered a new diatom genus, Indiconema, in the clean water rivers of India’s Eastern Ghats. Diatoms are photosynthetic, single-celled organisms essential to the aquatic food chain and sensitive indicators of water health. Indiconema, differing from others by having pore fields at both poles, was also found in the Western Ghats. It is morphologically related to the East African genus Afrocymbella.

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Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have gained new insights into planet formation around binary star systems, where two stars orbit a common center of mass. ALMA, with 66 antennas in Chile’s Atacama Desert, studies celestial objects at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths, penetrating dust clouds to observe distant galaxies and stars. Operated by an international partnership, ALMA detects faint radio signals with extraordinary sensitivity.

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India has certified SEBEX 2, an explosive 2.01 times more potent than TNT, developed for bombs and warheads. Approved by the Indian Navy, it’s touted as one of the world’s most powerful non-nuclear explosives. SEBEX 2 promises enhanced destructive capability without added weight, aiming to revolutionize military ordnance. Its development signals potential for significant exports in defense technology.

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NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter captured an epic view of Olympus Mons, the largest volcano in the solar system. Launched in 2001, Odyssey’s mission includes mapping Mars’ surface and serving as a communication relay. Olympus Mons, a shield volcano, is 24 kilometers high and 550 kilometers wide, dwarfing Earth’s Mauna Loa. Odyssey holds the record for the longest active mission around another planet, scheduled to last until 2025.