Vera C Rubin Observatory

Context: The Vera C Rubin Observatory in Chile has released its first breathtaking images, showcasing the power of its 3,200-megapixel digital camera—the largest ever built.

About Vera C. Rubin Observatory

• It is designed to conduct the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), a 10-year survey of the southern sky.
• Named after Vera Rubin, the astronomer who provided key evidence for dark matter.
• The Vera C. Rubin Observatory is a next-generation astronomical facility.
• Aim: To explore cosmic mysteries including dark matter, dark energy, and asteroid threats.
• Location: Cerro Pachón, Chilean Andes (8,684 feet above sea level)
• Development: National Science Foundation (NSF) and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

Key Features

The centrepiece of the observatory is the Simonyi Survey Telescope. This device is unique for the following reasons:

• Wide Field of View: Captures an area equivalent to 40 full Moons in one image—far surpassing Hubble and James Webb in sky coverage—using a three-mirror design for efficient light collection.
• World’s Largest Digital Camera: Equipped with a 3,200-megapixel camera (the size of a small car), it can detect objects 100 million times dimmer than visible to the naked eye, using six filters spanning ultraviolet to infrared.
• Rapid Repositioning and Imaging: The world’s fastest repositioning telescope, it slews and settles in just 5 seconds, capturing up to 1,000 images nightly and scanning the entire visible sky every 72 hours.
• Automated Detection Software: Continuously compares current and past images to detect changes, generating 10 million alerts per night; in testing, it identified over 2,100 new asteroids in just 10 hours, including 7 near-Earth objects.
• Massive Data Handling: Gathers 20 terabytes of data each night and is expected to catalogue over 5 million asteroids and 100,000 near-Earth objects in a decade, with real-time data processing for rapid scientific response.

Significance of the Observatory

• Revealing Dark Matter and Dark Energy: Will create the most detailed 3D map of the universe, enabling scientists to study the gravitational effects of invisible matter and understand the universe’s accelerating expansion.
• Early Threat Detection: Enhances global preparedness by tracking potentially hazardous asteroids, contributing to international planetary defence efforts.
• Scientific Breakthroughs: Offers potential to confirm or reshape existing theories on galaxy formation and cosmic evolution, while providing a dynamic, real-time map of the night sky for both researchers and the public.

Republic of Namibia

Context: Prime Minister Modi received Namibia’s highest civilian award ‘Order of the Most Ancient Welwitschia Mirabilis’ during his first visit to Namibia as part of India’s ongoing diplomatic and economic outreach in Africa.

• The award has been named after the Welwitschia Mirabilis, a unique and ancient plant native to the Namib Desert.

About Namibia

• Namibia is officially known as the Republic of Namibia, with Windhoek as its capital and largest city, located near the Auas Mountains. 
• Location:  Namibia is situated on the southwestern coast of Africa, lying in the Southern and Eastern Hemispheres.
• Borders: It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east, South Africa to the south and east, and a narrow border with Zimbabwe separated by the Zambezi River.
  • The Atlantic Ocean forms its western boundary.

Geographical Features of Namibia

• Namib Desert: A narrow, coastal desert with both rocky and sandy terrain, it runs along the Atlantic coast and features some of the world’s highest sand dunes, especially in the Sossusvlei region.
  • The Skeleton Coast is infamous for shipwrecks due to thick fog.
• Central Plateau :  Lies inland and features elevations between 975 and 1,980 m. This region supports most of Namibia’s agriculture and includes savannas, scrublands, and woodlands.
• Kalahari Desert: Located to the east, this desert region is more vegetated than the Namib and merges with Botswana’s Kalahari.
• Highest: Namibia’s highest point is Mount Brandberg at 2,573 meters, located on the western edge of the plateau.
• Rivers: Major rivers include the Kunene, Okavango, Orange, Swakop, Kuiseb, and Fish Rivers.

MALE Class Drones

Context: India has accelerated the procurement of 87 Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) drones from local manufacturers.

About MALE Class Drones

• MALE drones are unmanned aerial vehicles designed for medium altitude (up to 35,000 feet) and long-duration flights of 30 hrs.
• Strategic Importance: These drones provide the Indian military with superior surveillance and intelligence-gathering capabilities, especially along sensitive borders like those with China and Pakistan.
• Defense Upgrades: The drones are equipped with precision strike capabilities, enhancing India’s deterrent power in the region. 
  • India has developed indigenous MALE drones like the DRDO’s ‘Rustom,’ which are expected to complement imported drones for a diversified defense strategy.
• Global Competition: The MALE drone market is highly competitive, with countries like the USA, China, and Israel leading in technology and development.
• MQ-9 Reaper (US) and the Wing Loong series (China) are examples of MALE Drones.

Bluetooth Mesh Networks

Context: : Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey is developing Bitchat, a messaging app using Bluetooth mesh networking to enable offline communication without the internet.

About Bitchat

• Refers: Bitchat is a peer-to-peer messaging app.
• Connectivity: It allows offline communication without relying on servers, internet, or mobile networks.
• Objective: Aims to provide resilient, private, and decentralized communication.

About Bluetooth Mesh Networking

• Technology: Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) Mesh Networking enables devices to form a multi-hop, many-to-many communication system.
• Functioning: Devices within range act as nodes that relay messages through the network.
• Resilience: This structure ensures that even if one device fails, the network remains functional.
• Data Handling: No central server is involved—messages are stored locally and auto-deleted after a short time.
• Example: A message from Person A reaches Person D via B and C — even if D is out of A’s direct range.

Key Features of Bitchat

• Offline messaging range of over 300 meters through mesh relays.
• End-to-end encryption ensures complete message privacy.
• No registration or accounts required—no email or phone number needed.
• No data collection—enhancing user anonymity.
• Support for:
• • Topic-based rooms
  • Password-protected chat rooms
  • Mentions and favourites
• Minimalist user interface (UI) with an interface resembling coding or Internet Relay Chat (IRC).

Advantages of Bluetooth Mesh in Bitchat

• Privacy-first: Messages do not leave the mesh network.
• Network resilience: Works even if some nodes fail.
  • Data is not stored on a central database.
• Low energy usage: Ideal for mobile and IoT environments.
• Anonymity: No user identity is tied to the app.

Key Limitations

• High latency due to multi-hop message routing.
• Low data transfer rates.
• Complex network management as the number of nodes increases.

AI for Good Global Summit

Context: Recently, the AI for Good Global Summit was held in Geneva, Switzerland.

• It was focused on leveraging artificial intelligence to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

About AI for Good Global Summit

• The summit, organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in partnership with over 40 UN agencies, co-convened by the Swiss Confederation, brings together experts, policymakers, and industry leaders.
• Aim: To identify practical applications of AI to accelerate progress towards the SDGs and connect AI innovators with public and private sector decision-makers to scale AI solutions globally
• Focus areas: 
  • AI applications across sectors such as healthcare (disease diagnosis and treatment), environmental sustainability (climate modeling), and education (personalized learning).
  • It also focuses on the ethical use of AI, emphasizing issues like data privacy, algorithmic bias, and the potential for AI to exacerbate inequalities.
  • The event encourages collaboration between governments, the private sector, and civil society to create policies and frameworks for responsible AI deployment.

About International Telecommunication Union (ITU) 

• ITU is one of the oldest international organizations and a specialized agency of the United Nations focused on information and communication technologies (ICT).
  • It was established in 1865.
• Objective:  To bridge the digital divide by enhancing ICT access and capacity in developing countries.
• Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland.
• Membership: Comprises 194 member states, along with private companies, academic bodies, and international organizations as sector members and associates.

NISTAR

Context: Recently, India delivered its first indigenously built Diving Support Vessel (DSV) ‘Nistar’ to the Navy.

About Nistar

• ‘Nistar’ means liberation/rescue in Sanskrit and is designed for complex underwater rescue and diving operations.
• Developed By: The vessel was designed and constructed by Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL) under Indian Register of Shipping (IRS) classification norms.

Key Features Of NISTAR

• Rescue Support: Acts as a Mother Ship for the Deep Submergence Rescue Vessel (DSRV).
• Advanced Equipment: Includes Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) for monitoring and salvage operations up to 1000 meters depth.

Significance

• Enhances India’s underwater rescue and salvage capability, a feature limited to few navies globally.
• Supports submariner safety during emergencies and strengthens strategic maritime preparedness.
• It has nearly 75% indigenous content, boosting self-reliance in defence manufacturing aligning  with the Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Make in India initiatives.

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