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 Medium Earth orbit (MEO)
Medium Earth orbit comprises a wide range of orbits anywhere
between LEO and GEO.

A low Earth orbit (LEO) is, as the name suggests, an orbit that is
relatively close to Earth’s surface. It is normally at an altitude
of less than 1000 km but could be as low as 160 km above
Earth – which is low compared to other orbits, but still very far
above Earth’s surface.
GEO
Polar orbits are a type of low Earth
orbit, as they are at low altitudes
between 200 to 1000 km.

Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) is a

particular kind of polar orbit. Satellites
in SSO, travelling over the polar regions,
are synchronous with the Sun. This
means they are synchronised to always
be in the same ‘fixed’ position relative to
the Sun.

A satellite in a Sun-synchronous orbit

would usually be at an altitude of
between 600 to 800 km. At 800 km, it
will be travelling at a speed of
approximately 7.5 km per second.
Transfer orbits and geostationary transfer orbit (GTO)
 Escape velocity is the minimum velocity required to overcome the
gravitational potential of a massive body and escape to infinity.
• Orbital velocity is the velocity with which an object revolves around a
massive body
• India is self sufficient in production of Liquid and Cryogenic Engines.
PSLV
Payload to Sub GTO: 1,425 kg
Payload to SSPO (Sun Synchronous Polar Orbit): 1,750 kg

Fourth Stage: PS4

The PS4 is the uppermost stage of PSLV, comprising of two Earth storable liquid engines.

Third Stage: PS3

The third stage of PSLV is a solid rocket motor that provides the upper stages high thrust
after the atmospheric phase of the launch.
Second Stage: PS2
PSLV uses an Earth storable liquid rocket engine for its second stage, know as the Vikas engine,
developed by Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre.
First Stage: PS1
PSLV uses the S139 solid rocket motor that is
augmented by 6 solid strap-on boosters.
Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) is the third generation launch vehicle of India. It is
the first Indian launch vehicle to be equipped with liquid stages.
After its first successful launch in October 1994, PSLV emerged as the reliable and
versatile workhorse launch vehicle of India.
The vehicle successfully launched two spacecraft – Chandrayaan-1 in 2008 and Mars
Orbiter Spacecraft in 2013 – that later traveled to Moon and Mars respectively.
The PSLV is a four-stage rocket where the first three spent stages fall back into the ocean,
and the final stage (PS4) — after launching the satellite into orbit — ends up as space
junk.
Next-Gen Launch Vehicle
• A cost-efficient, three-stage to orbit, reusable heavylift vehicle with a
payload capability of ten tonnes to Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO).
• NGLV will feature semi-cryogenic propulsion (refined kerosene as fuel
with liquid oxygen (LOX) as oxidizer) for the booster stages.
• Potential uses will be in the areas of launching communication satellites,
deep space missions, future human spaceflight and cargo missions.
● Cost efficient.
● Simple, robust design allowing bulk manufacturing.
POTENTIAL USES: - Launching communication satellites, Deep space
missions, Future human space flight and cargo missions, ISRO is intending
to develop a business model for NGLV to launch commercial as well as
national missions.
More about News
• Besides placing satellites in orbit, ISRO also achieved
successful launch of PSLV Orbital Experimental Module
(POEM),
• About POEM: A platform which allows in-orbit scientific
experiments using the final (fourth) stage of PSLV.
• Dedicated Navigation Guidance and Control system: Act
as platform’s brain to stabilize it with specified accuracy.
• Power source: Mounted solar panels and a Li-Ion battery.
LVM3(Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk III)
Payload to GTO: 4,000 kg
Payload to LEO (Low Earth Orbit) : 8,000 kg

Cryogenic Upper Stage : C25

The C25 is powered by CE-20, India's largest cryogenic engine,
designed and developed by the Liquid Propulsion Systems
Centre.

Core Stage : L110 Liquid Stage

The L110 liquid stage is powered by two Vikas engines
designed and developed at the Liquid Propulsion Systems
Centre.

Solid Rocket Boosters : S200

LVM3 uses two S200 solid rocket boosters to provide the
huge amount of thrust required for lift off. The S200 was
developed at Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre.
he Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), recently, successfully
launched its heaviest rocket Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LVM-3) from the Satish
Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
Highlights:
• LVM-3 has placed 36 satellites of the UK-based OneWeb satellite
communications company into the Low Earth Orbit (LEO).
• The launch of the LVM-3 — with its largest-ever payload of 5,796 kg —also
marked India’s entry into the global commercial launch service market.
• The launch is also the first for LVM3-M2 to place the satellites in the Low
Earth Orbit (up to 1,200 km above the earth) unlike Geosynchronous
Transfer Orbit (GTO).
• Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV): SSLV is targeted at rising global
demand for the launch of small and micro-satellites. SSLV is meant to offer
cost-effective launch services for satellites up to 500 kg.
Benefits: Low cost, with low turn-around time, flexibility in accommodating
multiple satellites, launch on-demand feasibility, minimal launch
infrastructure requirements, etc.
• Reusable Rockets: ISRO has also developed a reusable rocket, called RLV-
TD (Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Demonstrator) which had a
successful test flight in 2016
RH-200
• Sounding rockets are one or two stage solid propellant rockets
used for probing the upper atmospheric regions and for space
research.
• They also serve as easily affordable platforms to test or prove
prototypes of new components or subsystems intended for use in
launch vehicles and satellites.
MARS ORBITER MISSION
Why in news?
• India's Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) spacecraft has lost
communication with the ground stations, bringing an end to its
life after eight long years

Why study Mars?

• It is the planet that is closest and most similar to earth.
• To learn about changes that can fundamentally change a planet.
• To establish future home for humans.
• To expand human understanding of planetary evolution; solar
system, universe
 India's 1 st interplanetary mission; Unmanned; No lander/rover
• Launched by PSLV in November 2013; reached in September 2014.
• India became 4th country to reach Mars; 1 st from Asia; 1 st to
succeed maiden attempt
• China referred the space program of India as the "Pride of Asia"
• The program team won US-based National Space Society's 2015
Space Pioneer Award
• It has five payloads in the orbiter which helped in following:
1. Prepared an atlas and albedo map of Mars through detailed pics
2. Close distance photos of its two moons Phobos and Deimos
3. Found that dust storms can rise up to hundreds of kms
MARS 2020 MISSION
• NASA’s mission; launched in July 2020;
• It has ‘Perseverance’ rover and ‘Ingenuity’ helicopter drone.
• Aim is to look for bio-signatures and habitable conditions for
humans.
• MOXIE will make oxygen from CO2 (95% of Mars atmosphere has
CO2 ). ‘Perseverance’ rover Jezero Crater (an ancient river delta
that has rocks and minerals that could only form in water)
NASA’s Perseverance Rover has landed on Mars.
• Launch: 30th July, 2020
• Landing: 18th February, 2021
• Landing Site: Mars 2020 mission:
NASA’s Perseverance Rover
• Recently, it placed a titanium tube containing a rock sample on
the surface of Mars.
• Igneous rock sample was collected from Mars Jezero Crater
called South Séítah.
• Recently, it also captured the solar eclipse on Mars featuring
Phobos, one of Mars' two moons (other is Deimos).
MOXIE was sent (by Massachusetts Institute of Technology) with
NASA’s Perseverence rover.
Chandrayann-2 identified sodium content on Moon's surface
Scientists from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have mapped out the
global distribution of sodium on the Moon’s surface. Findings: There are sodium atoms
that are weakly bound to the lunar surface.
• When compared to Earth, the moon is significantly depleted of volatile elements such
as sodium.
• Sodium is the only element apart from potassium that can be observed through
telescopes in the lunar atmosphere (its exosphere). Significance
• This new map of sodium would enable an understanding of the surface-exosphere
connection.
• It can also be used as a tracer of the volatile history of the moon
Artemis Mission
• The program consists of a series of robotic and crewed missions that will
use the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, the Orion crew capsule, and a
lunar landing system to transport astronauts to and from the lunar surface
Artemis Mission Objectives:
1. Landing humans on the Moon
2. Establishing a sustainable presence on the Moon
3. Conducting scientific investigations of the Moon
4. Developing technologies and capabilities for future missions
5. Collaborating with international and commercial partners
NASA will send astronauts deeper into space than humans have ever gone—
40,000 miles beyond the Moon and farther than any of the Apollo missions.
• In a few short years, the first woman and further man will walk on the
surface of the Moon.
• Artemis II Astronauts – Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina
Hammock Koch, and Jeremy Hansen.
• Voyager 2 is the only probe ever to study Neptune and Uranus during
planetary flybys.(No landing)
• It is the second man-made object to leave our planet.
• Voyager 2 is the only spacecraft to have visited all four gas giant planets
— Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune — and discovered 16 moons, as
well as phenomena like Neptune’s mysteriously transient Great Dark
Spot, the cracks in Europa’s ice shell, and ring features at every planet.
Rosetta Mission
was launched by the European Space Agency in 2004 to explore Comet
67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko and to study the nucleus of the comet and its
environmen
• Navigation Systems in mobile phones can predict our location by
trilateration technique.

• Trilateration is a method of surveying in which the lengths of the

sides of a triangle are measured by electronic means and
informations such as angles are computed.
• Despite how GPS receivers are often confused with triangulation
(which measures angles), they really don’t use angles at all.
NAVIC (NAVIGATION WITH INDIAN CONSTELLATION)
Why in News?
• Centre is pushing smartphone makers to enable support for its NavIC
navigation system in new devices from next year
Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS)
• IRNSS is an independent regional navigation satellite system developed by
the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
• The main objective is to provide reliable position, navigation and timing
services over India and its neighbourhood.
• The IRNSS constellation was named as “NavIC” (Navigation with Indian
Constellation) by the Prime Minister
 NavIC provides two types of services:
1. Standard Positioning Service (SPS) is meant for the general
public.
2. Restricted Service (RS) is an encrypted service meant for
authorised users and agencies.
• India has become the 4 th country in the world to have its
independent regional navigation satellite system recognised by
the IMO as a part of the World Wide Radio Navigation System
(WWRNS).
Important Navigation Systems:
• USA navigation system: The Global Positioning System (GPS)
is a satellite-based navigation system that consists of 24
orbiting satellites.
• Glonass is Russian Satellite Navigation System considered as
a counterpart to GPS of the USA.
• BeiDou Navigation Satellite System of China: A hybrid
constellation consisting of around 30 satellites in three kinds of
orbits.
• Galileo is Europe's Global Navigation Satellite System.
• Regional Satellite Navigation Systems such as
India's NAVIC, and Japan's QZSS.
• With an aim to promote the civilian use of Navigation with the Indian
Constellation (NavIC), the space agency is introducing the L1 frequency in
all its future satellites.
ISRO’s Plan:
• The new satellites, NVS-01 onwards, meant to replace these satellites,
will have an L1 frequency.
• An ISRO GSLV-II rocket will launch the IRNSS-1J (NVS-01) mission.
• The launch date is currently targeted for June, 2023
• The L1 is the oldest and most established GPS signal, which even the less
sophisticated, civilian-use devices such as smartwatches are capable of
receiving.
• Thus, with this band, the use of NavIC in civilian-use gadgets can go up.
• ISRO plans to set up ground stations in Japan and France to better
triangulate the entire area under NavIC coverage.
What is L1 Frequency?
• Radio-frequency communication refers to wireless communication
through the air with electromagnetic wave frequencies ranging from 3 kHz
to 300 GHz.
• L1 frequency is the most commonly used frequency in GPS.
 GAGAN (GPS Aided GEO Augmented Navigation)
✓ GAGAN is an Indian Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS) jointly
developed by AAI and ISRO for India and neighbouring countries in the
equatorial region.
Global Satellite-Based Augmentation Systems (SBAS) such
as OmniSTAR and StarFire.
✓ It is one among the only four Space-Based augmentation systems
available in the world which also includes US(WAAS) Europe (EGNOS) and
Japan (MSAS)
Benefits of GAGAN: Air traffic control, manage road and railways
transport, help farmers in crop spraying etc.
✓ The others under development include China’s BeiDou SBAS, South
Korea’s Korea Augmentation Satellite System (KASS), Russia’s System for
Differential Corrections and Monitoring (SDCM), and the Southern
Positioning Augmentation Network (SPAN) of Australia and New Zealand.
✓ The SBAS is a navigation system, which builds on the Global Navigation
Satellite Systems (GLONASS), and adds to the accuracy and integrity of these
navigation tools.
✓ For aircraft operators, both civilian and military, it means that pilots can
land aircraft at smaller airports and airstrips using navigation guidance
without expensive instrument-based landing systems being installed on the
ground.
• Airports Authority of India (AAI) successfully conducted flight trials using
GAGAN based LPV approach procedure.
• India is the first country in the Asia Pacific Region to achieve such a
landmark in field of Air Navigation Services (ANS).
• LPV (Localizer Performance with Vertical Guidance) permits aircraft
guided approaches that are operationally nearly equivalent to Category 1-
Instrument Landing System (Cat-1 ILS), without the need for ground-based
navigational infrastructure.
• CAT I relies only on altimeter indications for decision height, whereas CAT
II and CAT III approaches use radio altimeter (RA) to determine decision
height
RISAT-2 satellite
• ISRO’s RISAT-2 satellite, launched in 2009, has made an uncontrolled re-
entry into the Earth’s atmosphere.
• RISAT-2 was launched by the PSLV-C12.
• It is designed to monitor India's borders and as part of anti-infiltration
and antiterrorist operations.
• India's RISAT programme: a series of Indian radar imaging reconnaissance
satellites built by ISRO.
OneWeb:
• OneWeb Ltd is a global communication network powered from space,
enabling internet connectivity for governments and businesses. India’s
Bharti Enterprises is a major investor and shareholder OneWeb.
• LEO
PRIVATE SECTOR IN SPACE PROGRAMME OF INDIA
• Prime Minister recently called for higher participation of the private sector
in the space programme at inauguration event of the headquarters of the
Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) in
Ahmedabad.
1992 ANTRIX focusses on selling ISRO's products and services like satellite
launch.
• 2019 NEWSPACE also focusses on increasing private industry
participation in space programmes. (under the Companies Act, 2013).
• 2020 INSPACe is currently stated to promote private industry in space
program, but in future, it will become regulator of space activities in India.
• INSPACe is not a commercial arm of ISRO.
• Antrix & NewSpace are both commercial arms of ISRO.
IN–SPACe (Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre)
• a single-window, independent, nodal agency which functions as an
autonomous agency in Department of Space (DOS).
• Responsible to promote, enable authorize and supervise various space
activities of the NGEs (Non-Governmental Entities) that include:
1. Building of launch vehicles & satellites and providing space-based
services
2. Sharing of space infrastructure and premises under the control of
DOS/ISRO
3. Establishment of new space infrastructure and facilities
4. Sharing of technical facilities and expertise from ISRO.
• Headquarters (IN-SPACe) in Ahmedabad
1. Hyderabad's Dhruva Space and Bengaluru's Digantara
were authorized by IN-SPACe for launch of payloads
onboard PSLV Orbital Experimental Module (POEM) of
PSLV-C53.
Digantara: specializes in in-orbit space debris monitoring
and also operates in the Defense-Space and aerospace
technologies
Dhruva Space: is known for creating small satellite
systems for commercial and government markets
 2. Mission Prarambh
• Involved launch of Vikram-S (VKS), 18 November 2022 at 11am from
Sriharikota. India’s first privately built rocket by Hyderabad based
Skyroot Aerospace.
• The Vikram-S rocket is a single-stage sub-orbital launch vehicle
which would carry three customer payloads.
• Help test and validate the majority of the technologies in the Vikram
series of space launch vehicles
• VKS is a single-stage spin-stabilized (using 3-D printed solid thrusters)
solid propellant rocket.
• Skyroot has been working on three different Vikram rocket versions.
3. India’s first private launch pad unveiled at Sriharikota:
• Designed by Agnikul (a startup) and executed in support
of ISRO and IN-SPACe.
• It is specifically built to support liquid-stage controlled
launches.
• The facility has two parts:
1. Agnikul Launchpad
2. Agnikul mission control centre
Agnibaan Launch Vehicle
• Two-stage launch vehicle
• Capable of taking payloads of up to 100 kilograms to a low-earth
orbit around 700 kilometres from the surface of the Earth.
• Agnilet is the world’s first single-piece 3-D printed engine fully
designed and manufactured in India and was successfully test-fired
in early 2021, making Agnikul the first company in the country to
test its engines at ISRO.
• Agnilet rocket is a “semi-cryogenic” engine that uses a mixture
of liquid kerosene and supercold liquid oxygen to propel itself
New Space India Limited (NSIL)
• It is country's first public sector undertaking in the space sector and
commercial arm of ISRO
• aimed at production and marketing of space-based services
• empowered to own the operational launch vehicles and space assets of ISRO.
Indian Space Association (ISpA):
• Launched in 2021, it is the apex, non-profit industry body exclusively working
towards development of private and public Space Industry in India.
Antrix Corporation Limited:
• Marketing arm of ISRO to handle ISRO’s commercial deals
Space Entrepreneurship & Enterprise Development (SEED):
• early-stage encouragement programme to startups and MSMEs in focus areas
of interest to ISRO
Gaganyaan Mission
News: Human spaceflight module of Gaganyaan will be launched
after the second unmanned mission planned in 2022-23.
• Under the Gaganyaan schedule:
i. Three flights will be sent into orbit.
ii. There will be two unmanned flights and one human spaceflight.
iii. The Gaganyaan system module, called the Orbital Module will
have three Indian astronauts, including a woman for five to seven
days.
• Aim: by 2022 when India completes 75 years of independence.
• First unmanned mission was planned in December 2021.
• It has been delayed due to the Covid-19 induced lockdown
• It will circle Earth at a low-earth-orbit
• at an altitude of 300-400 km from earth
Payloads:
• The payload will consist of:
1. Crew module - 5.3 t spacecraft designed to carry a 3-member crew to orbit
and safely return to the Earth after a mission duration of up to seven days
• The crew module is equipped with two parachutes for redundancy, while one
parachute is good enough for safe splashdown.
2. Service module - Its 2.9 t module powered by two liquid propellant engines,
and usually burns up during atmospheric reentry.
• equipped with emergency escape and emergency mission abort. Launch: GSLV
Mk III
Vyommitra
• Vyommitra, is a robot that will accompany the other astronauts
in the mission.
• Vyommitra is expected to be onboard uncrewed Gaganyaan
missions to perform microgravity experiments, monitor module
parameters, and support astronauts in crewed missions.
• It can detect and give out warnings if environmental changes
within the cabin get uncomfortable to astronauts and change the
air condition.
The Vyomanauts safety is ensured by Parachute Deceleration
System is jointlydeveloped by ISRO and DRDO
Training in Russia:
• In June 2019 ISRO and the Russian government-owned Glavkosmos
signed a contract for the training
Payloads:
• It includes Russian support in the selection of candidates, their medical
examination, and space training.
• Training on Soyuz manned spaceship of Russian spacecraft. It carries
people and supplies to and from the space station
SPACE TOURISM
Why in news?
• ISRO is developing capabilities towards space tourism through the d
emonstration of human space flight capability to Low Earth Orbit (LEO).
About Space Tourism
• A segment of space travel that allows people to travel to space for
recreational, leisure or business purposes.
• Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic and Elon Musk’s SpaceX — are some of the
companies that have entered space tourism.
Dark SKY Reserve
• Department of Science & Technology has announced setting up of India’s
first dark sky reserve at Hanle in Ladakh as a part of Changthang Wildlife
Sanctuary.
• world’s highest-located sites for optical, infra-red, and gamma-ray
telescopes
• to ensure that a tract of land or region has minimal artificial light
interference.
• International Dark Sky Association, a U.S.-based non-profit, designates
places as International Dark Sky Places, parks, sanctuaries and reserves,
depending on criteria they meet.
Indian Astronomical Observatory (IAO), high-altitude station of Indian
Institute of Astrophysics, is also located atop Mt. Saraswati in Nilamkhul
Plain in the Hanle Valley
• Other Prominent telescopes at IAO: Himalayan Chandra Telescope, High
Energy Gamma Ray telescope (HAGAR), Major Atmospheric Cherenkov
Experiment Telescope (MACE) etc.
SPACE SUSTAINABILITY
Why in news?
• United Nations Office of Outer SPACE Affairs and government of
AUSTRIA organized World Space Forum (WSF) 2022 under theme
“Sustainability in Space for sustainability on Earth”.
• World Space Forum is a platform, including governmental institutions,
international organizations etc., to promote discussions on the role of
space science and technology in global sustainable development
 Space sustainability refers to ensuring that all humanity can continue to
use outer space for peaceful purposes and socioeconomic benefit now
and in the long term
Threats to space sustainability
1. Orbital crowding and Space Debris
2. Militarisation and weaponisation of the space:
• Development and testing of destructive antisatellite (ASAT) weapons by
countries like US, Russia, China, and India.
3. Rendezvous and proximity operations (RPO):
• It involves altering the trajectory of one or more space objects to bring
them into proximity to each other.
4. Space weather can impact satellites by damaging onboard electronics
and disrupting communications or navigation signals.
Global Initiatives
1.U.N. Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA)
2. Conference on Disarmament (CD)
3. Guidelines on space sustainability: Adopted by U.N. Committee on the
Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) in 2019.
4. Space Sustainability Rating (SSR): By World Economic Forum to
implement sustainable and responsible space missions.
5. ASAT test-ban resolution: A non-binding resolution (India abstained)
passed by United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) calling for a ban on
kinetic ASAT tests
Indian Initiatives:
1. Project NETRA: Initiated by ISRO to provide first-hand information on the
status of debris.
2. Space Situational Awareness: IIIT Delhi is currently working on a research
project on SSA.
• Dig Antara, a space sector start-up of India, is going to set-up India's first
commercial SSA observatory in Garhwal region of Uttarakhand.
• Further, India and US have also signed a bilateral SSA arrangement
3. SPADEX: To provide in-orbit servicing, ISRO is developing a space docking
experiment called ‘SPADEX’.
• offering support in re-fuelling and other in-orbit services while enhancing
the capability of a satellite
Space Situational Awareness
• SSA refers to knowledge of space environment, assessment of any
threats to space activities and implementation of necessary mitigation
measures to safeguard space assets.
• SSA covers three main areas
1. Space Surveillance and Tracking (SST) of manmade objects.
2. Space Weather (SWE) monitoring and forecast.
3. Near-Earth Objects (NEO) monitoring (only natural space objects)
U.N. Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) oversee
five international treaties:
1. Moon agreement
2. Outer space Treaty: The 1967 Outer Space Treaty bans the stationing of
weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in outer space, prohibits military
activities on celestial bodies, and details legally binding rules governing the
peaceful exploration and use of space.
3. Rescue Agreement (1968): requires States to assist an astronaut in case
of accident, distress, emergency or unintended landing
4. The Liability Convention of 1972 establishes the standards of liability
for damage caused by space objects.
5. Registration convention: Rules for registration of space objects
Dart Mission

• NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission – deflecting an asteroid

for planetary defense, using the "kinetic impactor" technique.
• DART slammed into a small asteroid – Dimorphos – to change the moonlet's
orbital speed by a fraction of a percent.
• The OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification,
Security, Regolith Explorer) spacecraft was launched in 2016 for the
journey to Bennu(Asteroid).

HAYABUSA-2
JAMES WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE
Why in news?
• James Webb Space Telescope has provided astronomers with a glimpse
of the early universe in a new image
• Also called JWST or Webb
• Replacement for HUBBLE telescope
• large infrared telescope with a 6.5- meter primary mirror.
• The telescope was launched on an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana in Dec.
2021.
• Study every phase in the history of our Universe.
• Collaboration between NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the
Canadian Space Agency (CSA)
• Infrared-Optimized: The JWST is optimized for observing in the infrared part
of the electromagnetic spectrum, which allows it to study the earliest galaxies
and stars that formed after the Big Bang, as well as exoplanets and other objects
that are too cool to be detected by visible light telescopes.
• Large Primary Mirror: The JWST has a 6.5-meter (21.3-foot) primary mirror,
which is over 100 times more powerful than the Hubble's primary mirror. This
allows it to collect more light, enabling it to see even fainter and more distant
objects than the Hubble.
• Sunshield: The JWST has a sunshield that is about the size of a tennis court,
which protects the telescope from the heat of the Sun and keeps it at a very
cold temperature (-233°C or - 387°F). This helps to reduce the telescope's
background noise, which makes it easier to detect faint signals from distant
objects.
• Positioning: The JWST will be positioned at the second Lagrange point (L2),
which is located about 1.5 million kilometers (930,000 miles) from Earth. From
this location, it will be able to observe the universe without the interference of
Earth's atmosphere or the Sun's heat
• Science Instruments: The JWST has four main science instruments: the
Near Infrared Camera (NIRCam), the Near Infrared Spectrograph
(NIRSpec), the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI), and the Fine Guidance
Sensor/Near InfraRed Imager and Slitless Spectrograph (FGS/NIRISS).
These instruments allow the telescope to observe a wide range of objects,
from the earliest galaxies to exoplanets.
• Telescope captured an image of a galaxy cluster called MACS0647, as well
as distant galaxy MACS0647-JD.
• Scientists believe that this might be an event of a galaxy merger in the
early universe.
• The distant galaxy is visible because of gravitational lensing.
Gravitational Lensing
• The phenomenon of gravitational lensing occurs when a huge amount of
matter, such as a massive galaxy, cluster of galaxies or a black hole,
creates a gravitational field that distorts and magnifies the light from
objects behind it.
• Gravitational lensing is based on Einstein's theory of general relativity
(Mass bend light). Gravitational lenses act like natural cosmic telescopes
Key features of Webb
• Visibility Spectrum: Webb views the universe in infrared.
• It will be the only infrared specialized telescope in space that can see
long distances.
• Mirrors: Its primary mirror is 6.5 metres in diameter.
• Larger the mirror area collecting light, more details it can capture.
• Recently, a secondary mirror was also deployed, reflecting light from
primary mirror to the instruments.
• Location/Orbit: It will not be in orbit around Earth but will orbit Sun, 1.5
million kilometers away from the Earth at second Lagrange point or L2.
Main instruments: ISIM is main payload. It houses four main instruments:
1. Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam),
2. Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec),
3. Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) and
4. Fine Guidance Sensor/ Near InfraRed Imager and Slitless Spectrograph
(FGS/NIRISS).
• L2 lets telescope stay in line with Earth as it moves around Sun.
• This allows satellite's large sunshield to protect telescope from light and heat of Sun and
Earth (and Moon
OBSERVATIONS MADE BY JWST
New images of Jupiter
• New images of Jupiter presented its massive storms, colourful auroras,
faint rings and two small moons — Amalthea and Adrastea (Nearer to
Jupiter).
Pillars of Creation (PoC) – Formation of new stars
• The three-dimensional pillars are made up of cool interstellar gas and dust
that appear at times semi-transparent in near-infrared light.
• PoC are located 6,500 light years from Earth, in the Eagle Nebula of our
Milky Way galaxy
• SMACS 0723 (Called Webb’s First Deep Field): It is a cluster teeming with
thousands of galaxies, including the faintest objects ever observed in the infrared.
• WASP-96b (spectrum): Hot, puffy planet outside our solar system reveals clear
signature of water, along with evidence of haze and clouds. First known planet
with an entirely cloudless atmosphere, WASP-96 b is also the first planet
scientists have spotted with such a profoundly strong sodium signature.
• Southern Ring Nebula: This planetary nebula is approximately 2,000 light-years
awaY
The Southern Ring or "Eight Burst" nebula,
located some 2,000 light-years from Earth,
surrounds a dying star
• Stephan’s Quintet: Group of galaxies, located in constellation Pegasus. Webb
revealed velocity and composition of gas near its supermassive black hole.

• Carina Nebula: Webb’s look at “Cosmic Cliffs” in the Carina Nebula unveils the
earliest, rapid phases of star formation that were previously hidden.One of the
brightest nebulas — clouds of gas and dust — in the sky is about 7,600 light-
years away from Earth. The Carina Nebula is home to the well-known "Pillars of
Destruction," long finger-like structures of cosmic gas and dust
• Einstein Ring: Einstein Ring is visible when light from a star or a galaxy
passes another galaxy or a massive object on its way towards Earth
Exo-Moons
• Scientists at Indian Institute of Astrophysics have developed a model to
trace habitable exo-moons with the help of the James Webb Space
Telescope (JWST).
About Exo-Moons
• They are natural satellites that revolve around exoplanets (planets
orbiting stars other than the Sun).
• So far, 5000 exoplanets have been discovered by using several telescopes
(Kepler Hubble space telescopes etc.)
Astrosat

• Astrosat is a space-based observatory launched by the Indian Space Research Organization

(ISRO) in 2015.
• Its main goal is to observe the universe at different wavelengths, including ultraviolet,
optical, and X-ray, and study a variety of cosmic phenomena.
Astrosat Discoveries
1.Discovery of a new class of pulsars
2. Observation of the highest number of black hole binary systems
3. Confirmation of the existence of a supercluster of galaxies
4. Detailed study of active galactic nuclei
5. Discovery of a hot, spinning, and fast-moving star
Astronomical Unit (AU) is the
average distance between Earth &
Sun (15 crore or 150 million km
Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) mission
• NASA is planning to shut down SOFIA telescope that found water on
Moon.
• SOFIA is an infrared telescope inside Boeing airplane, flying at an altitude
around 40k feet above the surface. SOFIA is collaboration between NASA
and German Space Agency (DLR). It has been collecting data to understand
star birth and death and formation of new solar systems. It is designed to
observe cosmic objects in far-infrared wavelengths.
• In 2019, SOFIA discovered helium hydride — first molecule formed in
Universe almost 14 billion years ago.
Voyager Program
• In August 2012, Voyager 1 became the first spacecraft to enter interstellar
space.
• In Nov. 2018, Voyager 2 became the second spacecraft to enter interstellar
space.
• Two spacecrafts launched by NASA in 1977.
• Mission: study Jupiter and Saturn
• But they did much more than the initial mission.
• Voyager 2 also studied Uranus and Neptune.
• They are in interstellar space, and still sending us information.
• They detected increase in density of space outside the solar system
SWOT satellite (Surface Water and Ocean Topography)
A NASA-led international satellite mission was launched from Southern
California to conduct a comprehensive survey of the world’s oceans, lakes
and rivers for the first time.
• Dubbed SWOT, short for Surface Water and Ocean Topography, the
advanced radar satellite is designed to give scientists an unprecedented
view of the life-giving fluid covering 70 per cent of the planet, shedding
new light on the mechanics and consequences of climate change.
• One major thrust of the mission is to explore how oceans absorb
atmospheric heat and carbon dioxide in a natural process that moderates
global temperatures and climate change.
Event Horizon Telescope
• A global network of radio telescopes to observe black holes. Working
• EHT works by using a technique called very-long-baseline interferometry
(VLBI). VLBI combines data from multiple radio telescopes located at
different locations around the world to create a virtual telescope with a
diameter equal to the distance between the telescopes.
 Useful for studying the properties of supermassive black holes, their
accretion disks, and the extreme gravitational environments near them.
BLACK HOLES
Why in news?
• The black hole at the centre of the Milky Way galaxy was photographed
for the first time.

• The first photograph of Sagittarius A*, a supermassive black hole situated

at the center of the Milky Way, was revealed by astronomers of the Event
Horizon Telescope (EHT). Mass of about 4 million times that of the Sun.
• EHT is an international collaboration (of observatories) capturing images
of black holes using a virtual Earth-sized telescope.
• In 2019, astronomers captured the first ever photograph of a black hole
M87 in a distant galaxy called Messier 87.
 Black hole has infinite density but not volume
• Event Horizon: There is a region of space beyond the black hole called the
event horizon. This is a "point of no return", beyond which it is impossible
to escape the gravitational effects of the black hole.
• Singularity: at the center of a black hole is the ultimate no man's land: a
place where matter is compressed down to an infinitely tiny point, and all
conceptions of time and space completely break down.
• Accretion disk: a thin band around black hole made of all the stellar
debris, dust and matter that was passing through the event horizon and this
band of matter which is at the edge of the horizon and has not fallen into
the black hole
2020 Nobel Prize in Physics:
A. One half was awarded to Roger Penrose for the discovery that black
hole formation is a robust prediction of the general theory of relativity.
B. Other half was awarded jointly to Reinhard Genzel and Andrea Ghez for
the discovery of a supermassive compact object at the center of our
galaxy. A supermassive black hole is the only currently known explanation.
• They focused on a region called Sagittarius A* at the center of our galaxy.
General Theory of Relativity
• This theory was proposed by Albert Einstein in 1915.
• Essentially, it’s a theory of gravity whose basic idea is that instead of being an
invisible force that attracts objects to one another, gravity is a curving or
warping of space. The more massive an object, the more it warps the space
around it
o In the first major test of general relativity, astronomers in 1919 measured
the deflection of light from distant stars as the starlight passed by our sun,
proving that gravity does, in fact, distort or curve space.
• In 2016, the discovery of gravitational waves (subtle ripples in the fabric
of spacetime) was another confirmation of general relativity.
Types of Black hole:
A. Stellar black holes: They are formed by the collapse of individual stars which
are relatively small but extremely dense. It consumes dust and gas from the galaxy
to keep them growing.
B. Supermassive black holes: They may be the result of hundreds or thousands of
tiny black holes that merge, such black holes are thought to be at the center of
almost every galaxy, including the Milky Way.
C. Binary black holes: It is a system consisting of two black holes in close orbit
around each other.
Tidal Disruption Events (TDEs)
• In 2018, scientists observed a black hole ripping a star into shreds
because it got too close.
• TDE refers to an event when a black hole violently rips apart stars that
gets too close.
• When a star comes close to a black hole, gravitational forces will stretch
or “spaghettify” star.
• Then, elongated material spirals around black hole, gets heated up, and
creates a flash that can be detected by us millions of light years away.
Gravitational waves:
These are invisible ripples in space that form when:
• A star explodes in a supernova.
• Two big stars orbit each other.
• Two black holes merge.
• Neutron star-Black hole (NS-BH) merges.
• They travel at the speed of light and squeeze and stretch anything in their path.
• These waves can only be detected by specialized devices like LIGO
• GW were first detected in 2015 by Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave
Observatory (LIGO).
• Two large observatories were built in the United States with the aim of
detecting gravitational waves by laser interferometry.
• These observatories use mirrors spaced four kilometers apart which are capable
of detecting a change of less than one ten-thousandth the charge diameter of a
proton.
• Gravitational waves travel at the velocity of light.
• Currently, the only type of gravitational waves that have been detected
are Compact Binary Inspirals.
DARK MATTER
• A test run of LZ detector in U.S. has shown it to be the most sensitive
dark matter detector yet created
About Dark Matter
• Dark matter is made up of particles that do not have a charge.
• So, these particles are “dark”, namely because they do not emit light, which is
an electromagnetic phenomenon, and “matter” because they possess mass like
normal matter and interact through gravity.
• Only 5% of the entire visible universe is made up of all matter and the rest
of 95% is dark matter and dark energy.
• So far gravitational force is less understood as its extremely weak force, and
that's why it's not easy to detect any particle which interacts with gravitational
force.
• Scientists study dark matter by looking at the effects it has on visible objects.
• It is believed that dark matter is what gives galaxies extra mass, generating
extra gravity they need to stay intact.
About LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) detector
• It is designed (underground) to capture dark matter in the form of weakly
interacting massive particles (WIMPs).
• It consists of a huge titanium tank filled with extremely pure liquid xenon.
• Centre of LZ is one of the purest places on Earth (free of radiation and
dust).
• Collaboration of scientists/institutions from U.S., U.K., Portugal, and
Korea
• The LZ detector will be located in the Sanford Underground Research Facility
(SURF) in Lead, South Dakota, USA, at a depth of 4850 feet (1478 meters)
underground.
Working
• The LZ detector consists of a tank filled with 7 tonnes of ultra-pure liquid xenon,
which is surrounded by a series of sensitive detectors.
• When a WIMP interacts with a xenon atom in the tank, it will produce a small
amount of light and electrical charge, which can be detected by the surrounding
detectors.
Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs)
• Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) are hypothetical particles that
are a leading candidate for dark matter.
• Interact only through the weak nuclear force and gravity
• They are stable, electrically neutral particles that have a mass that is much
greater than that of an electron but smaller than that of a proton.
• When a WIMP interacts with an atomic nucleus, it can produce a small
amount of light and electrical charge, which can be detected by sensitive
detectors.
DARK ENERGY
• Dark Energy is a theorized type of energy that exerts a negative, repulsive
force, acting in the opposite direction of gravity.
• It has been proposed to explain the universe expanding at an accelerated
rate.
• Dark Energy, like Dark Matter, is inferred from measurements of
gravitational interactions between celestial objects rather than explicitly
observed.
• It was discovered that this expansion is accelerating (Nobel Prize in Physics
2011 was awarded to Saul Perlmutter, Brian Schmidt and Adam Riess for this
discovery).
ICE CUBE
• IceCube Neutrino Observatory is buried deep inside Antarctic ice and is
spread over a cubic kilometre.
• Weakly Interacting Massive Particle (WIMP) dark matter could be
gravitationally captured by massive objects like the Sun and accumulate in
the core of the Sun.
• With such high density of these particles, they annihilate each other at a
significant rate. The products of this annihilation decay into neutrinos, which
could be observed by IceCube as an excess of neutrinos from the direction of
the Sun.
• IceCube was built specifically to identify and track high-energy neutrinos.
Fast Radio Burst
• Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are brief, intense pulses of radio waves that
originate from beyond our galaxy.
• They typically last only a few milliseconds but can emit as much energy as
the Sun does in a month.
• The bursts are detected by radio telescopes, which pick up a burst of
radio waves that lasts for just a fraction of a second.
• Because of their short duration, it is difficult to locate the exact location
of the source, but some have been traced back to distant galaxies billions of
light-years away.
Gamma-Ray Bursts

In a first-of-its-kind detection, astronomers recorded binary merger emitting

long GRB twinned with a kilonova emissions.
o Traditionally associated with short GRB, Kilonovae occur when two compact
objects, like binary neutron stars or a neutron star and a black hole, collide.
• GRBs are flashes of high-energy radiation arising from energetic cosmic
explosions.
• GRBs are the most powerful explosions universe has seen since the Big Bang.
o They are brief, but intense, flashes of gamma radiation.
• They produce as much energy as Sun will emit during its entire 10-billion-year
existence.
• Sun can neither undergo supernova explosion nor form a blackhole
• No elements heavier than Iron(26Fe56)can be formed in core of the star before
supernova explosion
UPSC can trick you by interchanging mass and volume of Hyd and He
Sun Spots
• They are dark spots on Sun
• They have less temperature
• They are caused by strong magnetic field
• They usually follow 11 year solar cycle Solar maxima:
• period of greatest sun activity
• Large number of sunspots appear.
• Large solar flares appear.Emit Coronal mass emissions
Solar maxima more sunspots more solar flares more heat on earth
Solar minima less sunspots less solar flares less heat on earth
• A sunspot, called AR3038, grew to almost twice its size in the span of 24 hours.
Magnetic field lines near sunspots can cause a sudden explosion of energy called a solar
flare
Sunspots are dark and cooler areas on the visible surface of the Sun caused by
magnetic activity.
Coronal Holes
• NASA’s Solar Dynamics observatory observed the phenomenon of coronal
holes in ultraviolet light as these are typically invisible to our eyes.
About Coronal holes
o Coronal holes are regions on the sun’s surface from where fast solar wind
gushes out into space.
o Because they contain little solar material, they have lower temperatures
and thus appear much darker than their surroundings.
o The holes are not a unique phenomenon, appearing throughout the
sun’s approximately 11-year solar cycle.
o These coronal holes can cause a solar storm on Earth as they release a
complex stream of solar winds.
• Emit uv+x-ray
Aditya – L1
The objective of the mission:
To study solar upper atmospheric (chromosphere and corona) dynamics
and understand the physics of the solar corona and its heating mechanism.
Payloads: Aditya-L1 has seven payloads in total, of which the primary
payload is the Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC). VELC is a solar
coronagraph capable of simultaneous imaging, spectroscopy and spectro-
polarimetry.
• Significance: No other solar coronagraph in space has the ability to
image the solar corona as close to the solar disk as VELC can. It can image
it as close to 1.05 times the solar radius.
About Lagrange points:
• The Lagrange points are points of equilibrium for small-mass objects
under the influence of two massive orbiting bodies.
• At Lagrange points, the gravitational pull of two large masses precisely
equals the centripetal force required for a small object to move with
them.
• These points in space can be used by spacecraft to reduce fuel
consumption needed to remain in position.
Why do we study the sun and the solar wind?
• The sun is the only star we can study up close. By studying this star we
live with, we learn more about stars throughout the universe.
• The sun is a source of light and heat for life on Earth. The more we know
about it, the more we can understand how life on Earth developed.
• It is the source of the solar wind; a flow of ionized gases from the sun
that streams past Earth at speeds of more than 500 km per second (a
million miles per hour).
• Disturbances in the solar wind shake Earth’s magnetic field and pump
energy into the radiation belts, part of a set of changes in near-Earth space
known as space weather.
THESE ARE LOCATED IN INDIA
• Global Relay of Observatories Watching Transients Happen (GROWTH)
• Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO)
• Major Atmospheric Cerenkov Experiment Telescope (MACE)
Bernardinelli Bernstein comet
• NASA has confirmed that Bernardinelli-Bernstein comet is indeed the
largest icy comet nucleus ever seen by astronomers. Comets are large
objects made of dust and ice that orbit the Sun.
• About Bernardinelli-Berstein comet:
• Officially called C/2014 UN271, it has an estimated diameter of almost 129
kilometres.
• Mass is estimated to be around 500 trillion tonnes.
• It is believed to have originated in the Oort cloud (only a theoretical
concept), a distant region of the solar system that is predicted to be the
source of most comets.
LUCY
“The spacecraft will use boosts from Earth's gravity to complete a 12-year
journey to eight different asteroids, including a Main Belt asteroid and
seven Trojans. Its complex path will take it to both clusters of Trojans,
providing us with our first close-up view of all three major types of bodies in
the C-type, P-type, and D-type asteroids.”
THANKYOU