Current Affairs 27th May 2024 for UPSC Prelims Exam

Astronomical Transients

Context: Recently, Indian-American astronomer Shrinivas Kulkarni was awarded the Shaw Prize for Astronomy for his work on the physics of astronomical transients.

About Astronomical Transients

• Definition: A ‘transient’ in astronomy refers to any celestial object whose brightness changes over short periods of time.
  • Transients are typically associated with violent astronomical phenomena.
• Importance of Studying Transients: Astronomers study transients to understand the origins of their violence and what it reveals about non-transient events.
• Examples of Astronomical Transients:
  • Supernovae:
    • Occur when large stars explode, blowing up their outer layers while their cores implode after exhausting elements for fusion.
    • Supernovae can become brighter than all the stars in their host galaxy combined.
  • Active Galactic Nucleus (AGN):
    • Found at the centres of massive galaxies, hosting supermassive black holes.
    • These black holes sometimes consume matter in their orbit, causing interactions that make the matter acquire energy and glow with varying brightness.
  • Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs):
    • Discovered in 2007, FRBs are mysterious and difficult to spot.
    • They can emit more than 10 times the energy of the Sun in a few milliseconds.
    • The cause of FRBs is still unknown.

LVM3

Context

• ISRO’s commercial arm, New Space India Limited (NSIL), invited private firms for “end-to-end” manufacturing of the Launch Vehicle Mark-III (LVM3), previously known as GSLV-MkIII.
• This initiative aims to enhance private sector participation and strengthen India’s position in the global space market.

What is Launch Vehicle Mark-III (LVM3)?

• Formerly known as Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) Mk-3.
• A three-stage launch vehicle developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
• Capable of placing 4-tonne class satellites in Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) and 8-tonne payloads in Low Earth Orbit (LEO).
• Has successfully launched six missions, including Chandrayaan-2 and Chandrayaan- 3.

Technical Specifications:

• Height:5 metres
• Weight: 640 tonnes
• Stages:
  • Two S200 solid strap-on motors (each with 204 tonnes of propellant)
  • One L110 liquid core stage
  • One C25 high-thrust cryogenic upper stage (with a fully indigenous CE20 engine).

India’s Trade Deficit

Context: India recorded a trade deficit with 9 out of its top 10 trading partners in 2023-24.

More in News

• Trade Surplus: The U.S. is the only top trading partner with which India has a trade surplus of $36.74 billion.
  • Other countries: India also has a trade surplus with Belgium, Italy, France, and Bangladesh.
• Bilateral Trade with China: Increased to $118.28 billion in 2023-24, with China as India’s largest trading partner.
• Comparison with Previous Year:
  • Deficits with China, Russia, Korea, and Hong Kong increased.
  • Deficits with UAE, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Indonesia, and Iraq decreased.
• Economic Impact: Trade deficits can lead to currency depreciation, making imports more expensive and worsening the deficit.
  • Experts from the Global Trade Research Initiative highlighted the pressure on the domestic economy due to rising trade deficits.

Examples, Case Studies and Data

• Slowdown in Global Growth (GS- 3): Global recession risks have decreased, but inflation concerns continue to threaten financial stability.
  • The IMF, World Bank, and rating agencies predict a slowdown in global growth, highlighting key risks such as Middle East conflicts, financial stress, persistent inflation, and reduced international trade.
  • The IMF’s Global Debt Monitor reports global debt at $235 trillion, equivalent to 238% of global GDP, raising fears of a debt crisis.
  • Fiscal prudence may be challenged as many nations face elections this year.

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