Daily Current Affairs - 25th September 2014

1) Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), India’s spacecraft to Mars, beamed back about 10 pictures of the Red Planet’s surface. These photographs were taken by a colour camera on board the spacecraft and show Mars’ craters. The first pictures were received by the Indian Space Science Data Centre (ISSDC). Where is the ISSDC situated? – Bayalu (Karnataka)

Explanation: Bayalu is situated around 40 km from Bangalore. The camera which took these photographs was switched on a few hours after India’s Mars mission made history on 24 September 2014 by entering the planet’s orbit. The camera is among the 5 instruments on board the spacecraft. The other instruments will become operational one by one in the next few days.

2) India created history on 24 September 2014 by becoming the first country to successfully enter Mars’ orbit on its very first attempt as ISRO’s Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) was successfully placed in planet’s orbit. When this mission took-off from Earth? – 5 November 2013

Explanation: ISRO’s first and historic mission to Mars, the red planet, was launched on 5 November 2013 from India’s spaceport of Sriharikota (in Andhra Pradesh) along the eastern coast some 100 kilometres north of Chennai. The ambitious mission to Mars was first publicly announced by former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh from the Red Fort on 15 August 2012 on the occasion of his Independence Day address. The success of India’s Mars mission is undisputedly a shining moment in the space exploration history of a country otherwise beset with developmental challenges. Over half a century, the Indian space programme has managed many feats, but none as dramatic as this successful mission to the red planet.

3) On 24 September 2014, ISRO became fourth agency in the World to have successfully executed a mission to Mars. Which three worldwide space agencies have been able to succeed in their respective Mars missions prior to ISRO? – NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia) and the European Space Agency (ESA) of European Consortium

Explanation: NASA’s Mariner 4 was the first successful mission to Mars when it had the closest approach of Mars on 15 July 1965. It was launched during November 1964. Mars 2 (1971) was the first partially successful Russian mission to Mars. Mars Express (2003) was the first successful Mars mission of the European Space Agency (ESA)

4) Which are the winners of the Right Livelihood Award for 2014, an award also known as the “alternative Nobel”?  – Edward Snowden with Alan Rusbridger, Asma Jahangir, Basil Fernando and Bill McKibben

Explanation: Edward Snowden is known for his disclosures of top secret surveillance programs conducted by the United States. He will share the honorary portion of the prize with Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger. Asma Jahangir is a noted human rights activist of Pakistan. Basil Fernando is associated with the Asian Human Rights Commission. Bill McKibben is a noted American environmentalist. The 1.5 million kronor ($210,000) cash award will be shared by the winners and the award will be given on 1 December 2014 at Stockholm (Sweden).

5) What is the share split that was agreed by the central board of the State Bank of India (SBI) on 24 September 2014? – 1:10

Explanation: A share split of 1:10 means one equity share of SBI will now be split into 10 shares. This stands for reducing the face value of equity shares of the bank from Rs. 10 per share to Rs. 1 per share and to increase the number of issued shares in proportion thereof. The stock split is expected to increase investor participation in the stock. Earlier during September 2014, Punjab National Bank and ICICI Bank had also announced share split. Both the banks have approved sub-division of one equity share into five.

6) The Supreme Court on 24 September 2014 cancelled all but four of the 218 coal block allocations it had declared illegal and arbitrary in its order of 25 August 2014. The four coal blocks exempted belong to which entities? – Sasan Power Limited, NTPC and SAIL

Explanation: The four functional coal blocks exempted from cancellation include two ultra mega power projects (UMPPs) under Sasan Power Limited in Madhya Pradesh and two other operated by NTPC and another by SAIL. Acting on the Central government’s assurance that it is fully prepared to face the cancellation of the coal block allocations and will not have any difficulty to take the coal industry forward, a three-judge bench led by Chief Justice of India R.M. Lodha passed the order. On the Centre’s request to save 40 functional coal blocks and six ready-to-function ones, the court said 42 of them would continue to function for the next 6 months, till 31 March 2015, to give the government breathing space to manage the emerging situation.