Current Affairs Quiz - January 2022

Notes:
China’s “Artificial sun” reecntly set a new world record after superheating to temperatures five times hotter than the sun for more than 17 minutes (1,056 seconds).
The EAST (Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak) nuclear fusion reactor maintained a temperature of 158 million degrees Fahrenheit (70 million degrees Celsius). In 2003 France’s Tore Supra tokamak, maintained similar temperatures for 390 seconds.

Notes:
Sri Lanka recently launched an inter-city train service, using the Diesel Multiple Units procured from India.
The train service will run across the country, connecting the capital city of Colombo with Kankesanthurai of the Jaffna Peninsula, which has a Tamil-majority population. The Units were supplied by RITES Limited under Indian credit line.

Notes:
‘The Power of a Dog’ was named the ‘Best picture (drama)’ at the Golden Globes 2022. The Benedict Cumberbatch-starring movie also won the best director for Jane Campion and best supporting actor for Kodi Smit-McPhee.
Steven Spielberg’s ‘West Side Story’ won the best picture (musical or comedy), best actress in a motion picture (musical or comedy) and best supporting actress in a motion picture awards. Will Smith, (King Richard) won the Best actor in a motion picture, drama award.

Notes:
The Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) is an autonomous body under the Union Ministry of Education.
Professor Raghuvendra Tanwar has been recently appointed as Chairman of the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR), for a period of three years or until further order. The aim of the council is to give directions to historical research and to encourage objective and scientific writing of history.

Notes:
India’s passport now ranks at 83rd position in the Henley Passport Index 2022, up seven places from 90^th rank in 2021.
The Henley Passport Index ranks all the world’s passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa. It is based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). As per the 2022 rank, Japan and Singapore have the most powerful passports in the world, with a free access to 192 destinations.

Notes:
UK Archaeologists working on the route of the HS2 high-speed railway have found a vast and wealthy Roman trading settlement.
The discovery was made during excavations at the site in UK. The site is known as ‘Blackgrounds’ after the black soil found there. As per the archaeologists, it was an Iron Age village, formed of more than 30 roundhouses. The settlement became more prosperous during the Roman period, with new stone buildings and roads built.

Notes:
Senior Scientist S Somanath, who is presently the Director of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), Thiruvananthapuram is appointed as the Chairman of Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
He would succeed K Sivan as the ISRO chairman, and would be the 4^th person from Kerala to occupy ISRO’s top most position.

Notes:
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully conducted the qualification test of the Cryogenic Engine for the Gaganyaan programme for a duration of 720 seconds.
The test was conducted at ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC), Mahendragiri in Tamil Nadu. This long-duration test is a major milestone for the three-crewed Human Space Programme Gaganyaan. This engine will undergo four more tests for a cumulative duration of 1,810 seconds.

Notes:
A meteorite called (ALH) 84001 landed on the Earth from Mars in 1984. For more than four decades scientists have debated if the organic compounds found on the surface of the meteorite were proof of ancient life on Mars.
A new study published offers an explanation for the existence of these organic compounds. It also established that the compounds were left by some form of life that existed on the Mars, billions of years ago.

Notes:
State Bank of India (SBI) has raised $300 million through “Regulation S” Formosa Bonds for five years. It is the first Indian scheduled commercial bank to issue public Formosa Bonds.
The bonds have been benchmarked against five-year US Treasury notes and the lender has completed its issuance through its London branch.