Science & Technology Current Affairs MCQs

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Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) CARTOSAT-3 satellite captured high-resolution images of earthquake damage in Myanmar. A 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar on March 28, 2025. Post-disaster images from March 29 were compared with pre-event data from March 18 to assess damage in Mandalay and Sagaing. CARTOSAT-3 is a third-generation agile advanced Earth observation satellite developed by ISRO. It replaces the Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) series and has high-resolution imaging capabilities. It was launched aboard the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C47).

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Researchers at the University of California, Santa Barbara discovered that fruit fly larvae can sense electric fields, a rare ability called electroreception. Electroreception is the biological sense that allows animals to detect weak electric fields in their surroundings. It is mostly seen in aquatic vertebrates like sharks and electric fish, but now found in invertebrates like fruit fly larvae too. A single neuron in the larva’s head was found to detect the electric field and trigger movement. The larvae changed direction based on the electric field, proving they sensed it and not other stimuli. This finding shows electroreception may be more common and ancient than previously thought.

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Researchers at Kyoto University conducted a Phase I/II clinical trial to evaluate the safety and side effects of stem cell therapy using dopaminergic progenitors derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder causing the loss of dopamine-producing neurons, which are vital for motor functions. Conventional treatment involves dopaminergic medications, but these do not restore lost neurons and may cause long-term side effects. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are derived from adult somatic cells and reprogrammed to develop into any human cell type. iPSCs are used in treating diseases like diabetes, leukemia, and neurological disorders, and are important in drug testing and disease modeling.

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Aryabhata, launched on April 19, 1975, was India’s first indigenously-built satellite, named after the ancient Indian mathematician and astronomer Aryabhata. The satellite was launched with Soviet assistance from Kapustin Yar. Aryabhata made India one of the 11 countries capable of sending satellites into orbit. It was designed for solar physics and X-ray astronomy experiments but faced a power failure after five days. Despite this, Aryabhata transmitted data for several more days and remained in orbit for nearly 17 years. The launch of Aryabhata laid the foundation for India’s growing space program, marking 50 years of India’s space achievements in 2025.

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Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine (BRIC-inStem), Bengaluru has successfully conducted India’s first-in-human gene therapy trial for Haemophilia in collaboration with CMC Vellore. Gene therapy is a biomedical technique that modifies or replaces faulty genes to treat or prevent diseases. The aim is to introduce a functional gene to replace a mutated or disease-causing gene. Haemophilia is a rare genetic bleeding disorder due to mutations in genes on the X chromosome, affecting 1 in 10,000 people, especially males. BRIC-inStem is part of the Biotechnology Research and Innovation Council (BRIC). It integrates 14 autonomous research institutions across India under one national umbrella.

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Mizoram’s Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department has reported over 3,050 pig deaths since March 2025 due to an outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) in the districts of Siaha, Lawngtlai, Lunglei, and Mamit. African Swine Fever (ASF) is a highly contagious viral disease that affects domestic and wild pigs with a mortality rate that can reach 100%. Though ASF does not affect humans, it severely impacts pig populations and causes major economic loss to farmers. The virus originated in Africa and has now spread globally.

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Researchers at the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) have developed a 3D computational model to study thermoregulation in space. It shows that microgravity consistently increases human core body temperature, which is important for long-duration space missions. Microgravity is a condition of near-weightlessness experienced when objects are in free fall around Earth, not the absence of gravity. In microgravity, normal body functions like heat regulation are altered due to changes in blood flow and metabolism. The IIST model includes sweating, shivering, clothing, and organ heat to simulate real human conditions in space.

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A recent study in Nature Geoscience found that soil microbes, particularly fungi and bacteria, play a central role in regulating phosphorus availability and cycling over a span of 700,000 years in the Cooloola coastal dune system. These microbes manage the release and transformation of phosphorus in nutrient-poor soils, acting as crucial “gatekeepers” in ecosystem nutrient dynamics. These microbes adapt by replacing phospholipids with non-phosphorus lipids and storing fats to reduce phosphorus demand. They also improve phosphorus use efficiency in their metabolism to survive in low-phosphorus soils. Microbes both compete with plants for phosphorus and help them by recycling it and improving access.

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India has launched its first 3-nanometre (3nm) chip design centres in Noida and Bengaluru, marking a major step in advanced semiconductor development. These centres have been set up by Renesas Electronics India Private Limited, placing India among a few nations working on next-generation chip design. The initiative is part of a broader government plan to build a complete semiconductor ecosystem including design, fabrication, ATMP (Assembly, Testing, Marking, and Packaging), and supply chain support.

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NASA and Virginia Tech researchers have, for the first time, measured the speed and height of flood waves on U.S. rivers using data from the SWOT satellite. SWOT stands for Surface Water and Ocean Topography and was launched in 2022. It is a joint mission by NASA and the Centre National d’Études Spatiales (CNES), the French Space Agency. SWOT uses a special instrument called the Ka-band Radar Interferometer (KaRIn) to measure water surface height, width, and elevation. The satellite sends microwaves to water bodies and measures their return time for accurate data. SWOT provides high-resolution images and monitors over 55% of large floods globally. This recent achievement shows SWOT’s powerful role in flood monitoring and disaster management.