Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2019

Notes:
Researchers from the National Astronomical Observatory of China have discovered a black hole in the Milky Way. The black hole is so huge that it challenged the existing models of the evolution of stars. The black hole was discovered by an international team of scientists using China’s sophisticated Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fibre Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST) telescope. The black hole, LB-1, is located 15,000 light-years away from Earth.

Notes:
In Japan, Yasuhiro Nakasone (101) has passed away at Tokyo on 29th November 2019. He was one of the longest-reigning Prime Ministers and known for his friendship with Ronald Reagan. He also broke an unwritten rule on limiting the annual defence budget to 1% of Gross National Product (GNP). In 1983, he became the first Japanese Premier to officially visit South Korea & mended fences with a country that Japan had brutally colonized from 1910 to 1945.

Notes:
Eminent Malayalam poet Akkitham Achuthan Namboothiri has been chosen as the recipient of the 55th Jnanpith Award for the year 2019. Born in 1926, Akkitham is one of the most revered names in Malayalam poetry. Apart from poetry, his literary excellence has footprints in genres like drama, reminiscence, critical essays, children literature, short stories and translation. He has authored 55 books out of which 45 are collections of poems including “Khanda Kavyas”, “Katha Kavyas”, “Charitha Kavyas” and songs. His works have also been translated into many Indian and foreign languages.

Notes:
World Wind Energy Association (WWEA) organized the 18th World Wind Energy Conference and Exhibition (WWEC2019) from 25-27 November 2019 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The conference focused on opportunities offered by a renewable energy strategy. The conference held a discussion to set up strategy including wind power as a cornerstone of a country’s energy supply system that is based on renewable energy

Notes:
13th South Asian Games have formally begun in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal.President of Nepal Bidya Devi Bhandari declared games open in a glittering ceremony at Dasaratha Rangshala in Kathmandu on December 1. Vice President Nanda Bahadur Pun, Chairman of National Assembly Ganesh Timilsina, Deputy Prime Minister Ishwor Pokharel, Ministers from South Asian countries and a large number of other dignitaries also graced the opening ceremony. Over 2700 athletes from seven South Asian Countries participated in the march past.

Notes:
King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden are on a five-day visit to India aimed at strengthening bilateral ties. The Swedish royal couple, who arrived in India on December 2,2019 were accorded a ceremonial reception at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Apart from Delhi, the royal couple is scheduled to visit Mumbai and Uttarakhand. The ties between India and Sweden have been on an upward trajectory in the last few years. The King is leading a high-level business delegation from his country. The bilateral trade volume was USD 3.37 billion in 2018.

Notes:
New Delhi is to host the National Sikh Games (NSG) 2020. The game will be held from 9-11 January 2020 across various venues in New Delhi. NSG is a modelled replica of Australian Sikh Games. The announcement was made by Manjinder Singh Sirsa, President Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Committee. NSG is dedicated to the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev.NSG aims to bring sports to the heart of the Sikh community and tap in a unique sporting talents of Sikh Youths. The game aims to tackle the problem of obesity, drug menace among Sikh children through sports and physical activities.

Notes:
India and Sweden has joined hands to set up a healthcare innovation centre to promote research, broadly in non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and help scale-up Indian start-ups in the sector. Later, AIIMS, Delhi; AIIMS, Jodhpur, and Swedish Trade Commissioner’s Office in New Delhi signed a Memorandum of Intent (MoI) to cement cooperation, to set up a healthcare innovation centre. The signing of MoI marks 10 years of India-Sweden health cooperation.

Notes:
The world’s best loved species are being slaughtered by widespread and dangerous criminal networks. On December 4, 2012, the first time that World Wildlife Conservation Day was officially recognized around the world and calls on individuals around the globe to sign its Wildlife Pledge to respect and protect wild animals.

Notes:
ISRO has planned to launch sharp-eyed surveillance satellite RISAT-2BR1 (Radar Imaging Satellite-2) with synthetic aperture radar (SAR) on 11 December 2019. RISAT-2BR1 is a radar imaging satellite. It is dubbed as a spy satellite.  It can take pictures of the earth during day and night even under cloudy conditions.  The satellites will help 24/7 border surveillance along with checking infiltration. It will keep an eye on terror or anti-national activities across the borders