Daily Current Affairs Quiz: June 10, 2024

ANSWER: B

Current Context : SpaceX’s Starship rocket returned from space and achieved a breakthrough landing demonstration in the Indian Ocean.

• Rocket completed a full test mission around the globe in the fourth try.
• Elon Musk’s space company to build a reusable satellite launcher and moon lander.
• The two-stage, rocket system, which stands nearly 400 feet (120-meter) tall, consists of the Starship vessel mounted atop its towering Super Heavy rocket booster.

ABOUT STARSHIP

• SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket, collectively referred to as
• It represents a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars and beyond.
• Starship is the world’s most powerful launch vehicle ever developed.
• Capable of carrying up to 150 metric tonnes fully reusable and 250 metric tonnes

ADDITIONAL FACTS

• Falcon 9 is also a reusable, two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transport of people and payloads into Earth orbit and beyond.
• It is the world’s first orbital class reusable rocket.
• Reusability allows SpaceX to refly the most expensive parts of the rocket, which in turn drives down the cost of space access.

ISRO IS ALSO DEVELOPING REUSABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE – TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRATOR (RLV-TD)

OBJECTIVES OF RLV-TD:

• Hypersonic aero thermodynamic characterisation of wing body.
• Evaluation of autonomous Navigation, Guidance and Control (NGC)
• Integrated flight management.
• Thermal Protection System Evaluation.

ANSWER: D

Current Context : National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has invited Global Expression of Interest (EOI) from innovative and qualified companies to develop and implement GNSS-based Electronic Toll Collection system in India.

• Objective : To provide seamless and barrier-free tolling experience to National Highway users and enhance efficiency & transparency of toll operations.

ABOUT GNSS-BASED ELECTRONIC TOLL COLLECTION (ETC) SYSTEM:

• It is a barrier-free method of electronic toll collection.
• Working : it uses Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) technology to track vehicles and calculate tolls based on the distance travelled on tolled highways.
• NHAI plans to implement the GNSS-based electronic toll collection (ETC) system within the existing FASTag ecosystem, initially using a hybrid model where both RFID-based ETC and GNSS-based ETC will operate simultaneously.
• Result in more efficient toll collection as it helps to plug leakages and check toll evaders.

ANSWER: A

Current Context : Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) launched the Gen AI platform WisdomNext.

Objective : to remove barriers for customers to develop and launch business solutions, allowing for real-time experimentation across vendor, internal, and open-source large language models.

ABOUT WISDOM NEXT.

• The platform helps companies adopt next-gen technology, lower costs, and operate within a regulatory framework.
• It offers a single interface for enterprise applications to build AI solutions using a host of open and closed-source LLMs with multi-modal capabilities as well as scale them at optimal costs to derive business outcomes.
• The platform also brings in features of software-as-a-service (SaaS), where customers can compare various GenAI models from different vendors, experiment with different models in real-time, and also get the cost parameters.

ABOUT GEN AI

• Generative AI is a type of artificial intelligence technology that can produce various types of content, including text, imagery, audio and synthetic data.

ANSWER: B

Current Context : Sub Lieutenant Anamika B. Rajeev became the Indian Navy’s first woman helicopter pilot during a passing out parade held in the  air station INS Rajali at Arakkonam in Ranipet district.

• She flew a MiG-21 Bison in her first solo flight.
• She became the first woman pilot who will be allowed to fly helicopters such as Sea Kings, ALH Dhruvs, Chetaks and MH-60R Seahawks.
• Sub-Lieutenant Rajeev and Lt Tsewang are among 21 officers awarded the prestigious “Golden Wings” by Vice Admiral Rajesh Pendharkar of Navy.

ANSWER: A

Current Context : Carlos Alcaraz  won the men’s final match of the French Open tennis tournament against Germany’s Alexander Zverev.

• Held at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris.
• Carlos Alcaraz wins 1st French Open Title After Beating Zverev In 5-Set Thriller.
• He had won the opening set 6-3 after breaking Zverev’s serve three times.
• He earning a third Grand Slam title by winning the men’s final.

ABOUT FRENCH OPEN TOURNAMENT

• The French Open also known as Roland-Garros is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in the late May each year.
• The tournament and venue are named after the French aviator Roland Garros.
• Officially named in French Internationaux de France de Tennis.
• Prize money – €49,600,000
• Founded in 1891

ANSWER: C

Current Context : Swiatek completes hat-trick with 2024 title in French Open women’s singles champions.

• Iga Swiatek won her fourth French Open title and third on the trot with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Jasmine Paolini in the final at Roland Garros, Paris.
• Swiatek is only the third woman to win three consecutive titles at Roland Garros after Justine Henin (2005-2007) and Monica Seles (1990-92).
• She also set various other Open Era records.
• She also became the fourth woman, after Henin (4), Steffi Graf (6) and Chris Evert (7) to win the tournament four times.

ANSWER: D

Current Context : Chinese national held in Kinnaur was not carrying Protected Area Permit.

• He was reached the village Sumdo, near India-China border in state’s Kinnaur district, without obtaining a Protected Area Permit.

ABOUT PROTECTED AREA PERMIT

• Protected Area Permit is issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs. Also known as the Foreigners (Protected Areas) Order 1958.
• Required for non-Indian citizens to visit certain areas in India which mainly alludes to North East India.
• It has a duration of 10 days, with the option of extending for another 7 days.
• Along with the Ministry of Home Affairs, the different authorities of the concerned Indian states can also issue the PAP, and also the Indian missions abroad.

AREAS COVERED BY THE PROTECTED AREA PERMIT (PAP)/RESTRICTED AREA PERMIT (RAP) REGIME

Currently, Protected Areas are located in the following States: –

1. Whole of Arunachal Pradesh
2. Parts of Uttarakhand
3. Parts of Jammu & Kashmir
4. Whole of Manipur
5. Whole of Mizoram
6. Whole of Nagaland
7. Parts of Rajasthan
8. Whole of Sikkim (partly in Protected Area and partly in Restricted Area)
9. Parts of Himachal Pradesh include village Khab in Kinnaur, and Samdo, Dhankar, Dubling, Tabo, Gompa, Kaza and Morang in Lahaul & Spiti.

ANSWER : B

Current Context : The first phase of the Durgesharanya Zoological Park in Bankhandi, situated in the Dehra sub-division of Kangra district, will be completed by June 2025.

• Objective : to promote tourism and wildlife conservation and the completion of this zoological park would to make Kangra a prime destination for tourists, strengthening Kangra’s standing as a premier tourist destination it the state.
• In Phase I, visitors will be able to view tigers and lions through glass panes in dedicated enclosures. Apart from this, bear and leopard safaris and a section for snow leopards is planned for phases II and III .
• The project is a part of the government’s larger plan to make Kangra the tourism capital of the state.
• The entire project spanning over 180 hectares is scheduled to be executed in three phases within three years at an estimated cost of Rs 619 crore.

ANSWER: A

Current Context : Krishna Thakur (42), a mountaineer of Manali, has conquered the world’s highest lake, Tilicho lake and 17,769 feet high Thorang-La, the highest pass of the world, in Nepal.

• Krishna was accompanied by five mountaineers — team leader Nim Tenzin, Nick, Jayanti, Jored, and Joel from America during this expedition.

ABOUT TILICHO LAKE

• Tilicho Lake was once known as Nepal’s highest lake, as it is situated at an altitude of 4,919 meters (16,138 ft), but now is overthrown by the Kajin Sara Lake which is situated at 5,200 m.
• However, Tilicho Lake is still the Lake with longest diameter, lengthening up to 4 km in length and 2 km in width.

ABOUT THORONG LA

• Thorong La or Thorung La is a mountain pass with an elevation of 5,416 metres (17,769 ft) above sea level in the Damodar Himal, north of the Annapurna Himal, in central Nepal.
• It is located on a trail that connects the village of Manang in the Manang District to the east with the temple of Muktinath and the nearby village of Ranipauwa, in the Mustang District to the west.
• Elevation– 5,416 m (17,769 ft).