• Astronomers have discovered a stunning, rare example of an “Einstein cross” splitting and magnifying light from the far depths of the universe.
  • The pattern was first predicted by Albert Einstein in 1915.
• It occurs when the curvature of space-time around a massive foreground object (like a galaxy) splits the light behind it into four, like the points of a cross.
• In this case the background light likely comes from a quasar (more than 11.179 billion light-years away), a young galaxy whose supermassive black hole at its core gobbles up enormous amounts of matter and blasts out enough radiation to shine more than a trillion times more brightly than the brightest stars.
  • Gravitational Lensing occurs when a massive celestial body, such as a galaxy cluster, causes a sufficient curvature of space-time for the path of light around it to be visibly bent, as if by a lens.
  • An important consequence of this lensing distortion is magnification, allowing us to observe objects that would otherwise be too far away and too faint to be seen.
• Earth, the lensing galaxy (about 5.998 billion light-years away) and the quasar have aligned to perfectly duplicate the quasar’s light, arranging them along a so-called Einstein ring.
  • This gravitational lens was first discovered in 2021.

• A rare yellow belly snake was seen on the coast of Digha Bay of Bengal amid huge tides recently.

About Yellow-bellied Sea snake

• Scientific name– Pelamis Platurus
• The snake is originally from the Arabian Sea and found very rarely in the Bay of Bengal.
• Characteristics– The side of the tail is like the paddle of a boat and the lower abdomen is yellow making it different from other reptile species.
• It can swim by lateral undulation of the body, and can move both forwards and backwards.
• It is a diurnal sea snake and primarily aquatic, living its entire life cycle at sea.
• This snake can spend up to 3 hours underwater without surfacing.
• It can uptake up to 33% of its oxygen requirements through the skin while diving and swimming at the surface of the water.
• They are carnivores (piscivores) and eat only fish.
• It is a highly venomous species of snake.
• IUCN Red List status- Least Concern

• To protect the Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR) and its wildlife in view of the killing of two forest frontline workers by alleged poachers, the Odisha government has set up a joint task force (JTF) comprising around 200 armed police and forest personnel.
• The task force has been assigned the key responsibilities of collecting intelligence, identifying people holding illegal arms and ammunition and de-weaponing fringe/buffer villages of the tiger reserve and to prepare a database.

About Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR)

• It is located in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha.
• Simlipal derives its name from ‘Simul’ (silk cotton) tree.
• It was declared as biosphere reserve in 1994 and added to UNESCO’s Man and Biosphere Program in 2009.
• Vegetation-includes tropical semi-evergreen forests, tropical moist deciduous forests, dry deciduous hill forests, high level sal forests and sprawling meadows.
• Fauna: langur, giant squirrel, chausingha (four horned antelope), wild boar, jungle cat, gaur, barking deer, sambar, Asian elephant, leopard and tiger.
• Numerous waterfalls and perennial streams flow into major rivers, such as the Budhabalang, Baitarani and Subarnarekha.
• The highest peak in the Similipal hill range is Khairiburu (1,168 metres).

• The Earth Overshoot Day for year 2023 fell on August 2^nd.
• The day marks the date when humanity’s demand for ecological resources (fish and forests, for instance) and services in a given year exceeds what the Earth can regenerate in that year.
• The concept of Earth Overshoot Day was first conceived by Andrew Simms of the UK think tank New Economics Foundation.
• It is measured by Global Footprint Network (international research organization) each year since 1971.
• World-Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), the world’s largest conservation organization, has participated in Earth Overshoot Day since 2007.
• It is calculated by Global Footprint Network by dividing the planet’s biocapacity (the amount of ecological resources Earth is able to generate that year), by humanity’s Ecological Footprint (humanity’s demand for that year), and multiplying by 365, the number of days in a year:
  • Earth Overshoot Day = (Planet’s Biocapacity / Humanity’s Ecological Footprint) x 365

• A collection of various art made by humans might become immortal with the Lunar Codex programme.
• The programme is spearheaded by Samuel Peralta, a semi-retired physicist and art collector from Canada.
• The collection of varied digitised art will be sent to the moon as a lasting record of human creativity.
• Lunar Codex is stored on memory cards or laser etched on NanoFiche, a 21st-century update on film-based microfiche.
  • These will ensure that the art forms reach the lunar surface safely.
• The collection of art is gathered from 30,000 artists, writers, filmmakers and musicians from 157 countries.
• The art forms include images, magazines, books, podcasts, movies and music, which are divided into four capsules.
  • The first such capsule is known as the Orion collection, already flown around the moon when it was launched on the Orion spacecraft as part of NASA’s Artemis 1 mission last year.
  • Other three are – The Nova Collection, The Peregrine Collection, The Polaris Collection.
  • In future, a series of lunar landers will take the Lunar Codex capsules to various destinations in craters at the moon’s South Pole and a lunar plain called Sinus Viscositatis.
• The artworks, however, will not be the first to be stranded on the moon.
  • In 1969, when Apollo 12 mission was launched for the moon, the lunar module of the spacecraft carried a small ceramic tile bearing line drawing from Andy Warhol, the painter Robert Rauschenberg and the sculptors Forrest Myers and John Chamberlain.

• The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has issued amendments in the Export Policy of Red Sanders wood exclusively sourced from cultivation origin obtained from private land (including Pattaland) and Confiscated source.

About Red Sanders

• Scientific name- Pterocarpus santalinus
• It is locally known as Yerra Chandanam, Rakta Chandanam.
• It is an Indian endemic tree species, with a restricted geographical range in the Eastern Ghats.
• The species is endemic to a distinct tract of forests in Andhra Pradesh.
• Red Sanders usually grow in the rocky, degraded and fallow lands with Red Soil and hot and dry climate.
• It is a very slow-growing tree species that attains maturity after 25 – 40 years.
• It is fire-hardy and resistant to droughts.
• Its therapeutic properties are responsible for its high demand across Asia, particularly China, for use in cosmetics, medicinal products, and high-end furniture/woodcraft.
• Conservation Status-
  • IUCN Red list status-Endangered
  • WPA 1972- Schedule IV
  • CITES- Appendix II

• The Indian Air Force (IAF) has received the Spike Non Line of Sight (NLOS) anti-tank guided missiles from Israel.
• They can hit targets upto 50 km from a helicopter and 32 km from the ground.
• The NLOS missiles are now going to be integrated with the Russian-origin fleet of Mi-17V5 helicopters.
• It is a fire-and-forget anti-tank and anti-personnel missile with a tandem-charge high-explosive warhead.
• It is developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, a defence technology company based in Israel.
• It has features like- lock-on before launch and automatic self-guidance.
• It is available in man-portable, vehicle-launched, and helicopter-launched variants.
• The long and extended range versions of the Spike also have the capability of “Fire, Observe and Update” operating mode.
• Significance
  • The air-launched NLOS ATGMs can carry out strikes at its ground targets from standoff distances and can cause considerable damage to the enemy tank regiments and prevent their advances.

• The Nurpur police and the local administration have launched the “Saarthi” scheme as a pilot project in the subdivision to check drug menace and sensitise people about its ill effects.
• The scheme is a multi-faceted exercise being launched with the coordination of local administration, police and the health department along with active community participation.
• The police will do contact tracing of drug peddlers and drug addicts and then inputs about addicts will be passed on to a designated counsellor, who will help them to come out of the mess.
• The database created with community participation will be used to initiate appropriate measures to tackle the drug menace.

• Aadi Perukku is a monsoon festival celebrated in the state of Tamil Nadu, that occurs on the 18^th day of the Tamil month of Aadi.
• It is also known as Pathinettam Perukku.
• This festival is celebrated to show the gratitude to monsoon.
• During Aadi Perukku, people gather near the banks of rivers, especially the Kaveri River, to perform rituals and offer prayers.

• Ministry of Home Affairs has incorporated a new visa category, “Ayush Visa” for foreign nationals seeking medical treatment like therapeutic care, wellness and yoga in India.
• Ayush Visa aims to fulfill the need for introduction of a special visa scheme for foreigners visiting India for treatment under Ayush systems or Indian systems of medicine per say.
• A new chapter i.e. chapter 11A – Ayush Visa has been incorporated after Chapter 11 – Medical visa of the Visa Manual, which deals with treatment under the Indian systems of medicine and accordingly necessary amendments has been made in various chapters of the Visa Manual, 2019.
• PM Modi had announced creation of Ayush Visa in 2022 seeking to make it a part of India’s roadmap for the Heal in India initiative of the government.
• Ministry of Ayush and the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare are collaborating to develop a one stop Heal in India portal to promote India as a Medical tourism destination of the world.