News in Shorts: 13 July 2024

Squalus hima (Dogfish Shark)

• Recently, scientists from the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) uncovered a new species of deep-water dogfish shark, Squalus hima, near a fishing harbour in Kerala along the Arabian Sea.

Squalus hima:

• About: Squalus is a genus of dogfish sharks belonging to the family Squalidae. Commonly known as spurdogs, they are distinguished by their smooth dorsal fin spines.
• Features: They are recognized by their angular, short snout, small mouth nearly as wide as the snout, the origin of the first dorsal fin situated behind the pectoral fins, and body devoid of spots.
  • They are exploited for their liver oil, which is known for its high squalene content (or squalane after processing for products).
• Usage: It is highly desired in the pharmaceutical industry, especially for making top-quality cosmetics and anti-cancer treatments.
• Discovery: Two species of Squalus are found along the southwest coast of India, including the newly identified species Squalus hima n.sp., which shares similarities with Squalus lalannei but has notable differences.
• Differentiation: Squalus hima, recently identified, distinguishes itself from other species through differences in the number of precaudal vertebrae, total vertebrae, teeth count, trunk and head heights, fin structure, and fin colouration.

AgriSure

• The Government of India plans to introduce the ‘Agri Fund for Start-Ups & Rural Enterprises’ (AgriSURE).

‘Agri Fund for Start-Ups & Rural Enterprises’ (AgriSURE)

• Fund: The fund will be established with an initial corpus of less than 750 crores, including 250 crores each from NABARD and the Ministry of Agriculture and another 250 crores from other institutions.
• Objectives of the Fund: 
  • Promotion of Agricultural Innovation, 
  • Improving the value chain of farm produce, 
  • Rural Agri-infrastructure development
  • Employment Generation
  • Provide aid to Farmer’s Producer Organizations (FPOs). 
  • It will also promote IT-based solutions and machinery rental services for farmers.
• Fund management: NAB VENTURES, a wholly-owned subsidiary of NABARD, will manage the AgriSURE Fund. The fund is structured to operate initially for 10 years, with the possibility of extension by two or more years.

AgriSURE Greenathon 2024:

• Aim: Affordable Smart Agriculture”: Tackling cost challenges for small farmers in adopting advanced technologies.
  • Turning Agri-Waste into Profit”: Converting agricultural waste into profitable ventures.
  • Tech Solutions for Regenerative Agriculture”: Enhancing economic feasibility of regenerative practices through technology.

Exercise Pitch Black 2024

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• An Indian Air Force (IAF) contingent is participating in Exercise Pitch Black 2024, scheduled from July 12 to August 2, 2024, in Australia.

Exercise Pitch Black 2024:

• About: Pitch Black is a biennial multinational exercise hosted by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). 
  • The name ‘Pitch Black’ originates from its focus on nighttime flying operations over expansive, uninhabited regions.
• Focus of the Exercise: The exercise will emphasize Large Force Employment warfare to enhance international cooperation and provide experience for IAF Su-30 MKI pilots alongside F-35, F-22, F-18, F-15, Gripen, and Typhoon fighter aircraft pilots.
• Contingent: The IAF contingent comprises more than 150 skilled Air Warriors, including pilots, engineers, technicians, controllers, and other experts. They will operate the versatile Su-30 MKI multirole fighters, supported by the C-17 Globemaster and IL-78 Air-to-Air Refueling aircraft in combat support roles.
• Significance: The exercise offers a valuable opportunity to enhance the participating nations’ capabilities in long-distance deployments, support integrated operations in the Indo-Pacific region, and foster robust aviation partnerships in demanding scenarios.
• India’s previous involvement: The IAF took part in this exercise’s 2018 and 2022 editions.

NASA’s CHAPEA project

• Four volunteer crew members of NASA’s Mars simulation mission recently emerged after a year of living in a habitat replicating the Red Planet.

CHAPEA project:

• About: A part of NASA’s Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog (CHAPEA) project, it was the first of three planned simulations to understand Mars’s challenges for space explorers. 
• Aim of the Mission: NASA aimed to collect data for insight into “the potential impacts of long-duration missions to Mars on crew health and performance” and “understand and counter the physical and mental challenges astronauts will face

Habitat of Mars

• Temperature and Surface: The temperature on Mars ranges between 20 degrees Celsius and -153 degrees Celsius. The planet has a rocky surface with canyons, volcanoes, dry lake beds, and craters, all covered in red dust.
• Atmosphere: Winds can create dust storms, with tiny ones resembling tornadoes and large ones occasionally enveloping the entire planet. They are visible from Earth using telescopes.
  • It has about one-third the gravity of Earth and the atmosphere is much thinner than Earth’s, containing more than 95% carbon dioxide and less than 1% oxygen.
• Time measurement: The planet turns on its axis more slowly than Earth, and being farther from the Sun, it takes longer to revolve around the Sun. A day on Mars is 24.6 hours, and a year is 687 Earth days long.

Spacesuit that can turn Urine into Drinking Water

• Scientists have designed a spacesuit to recycle urine into drinking water to help astronauts execute lengthy spacewalks. 

Spacesuits:

• Current Spacesuits: The current spacesuits comprise bags that can handle only up to one litre of water. This limits astronauts from going on longer-lasting lunar spacewalks, which can last 10 hours and even up to 24 hours in an emergency.
• Working: To prevent leaks, the prototype features gender-specific silicone collection cups within a multi-layered fabric undergarment. A vacuum pump activates automatically during urination. Collected urine is then recycled into water with 87% efficiency through a filtration system.
  • Urine filtration involves a two-step process: reverse osmosis separates water from urine using a semi-permeable membrane, and then a pump removes salt from the purified water. 
  • Electrolytes are added to enrich the water before it is pumped into the in-suit drink bag for consumption.