Science & Technology Current Affairs MCQs

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Microsoft announced a quantum computing chip called Majorana 1, aiming to solve industrial-scale problems in years, not decades. The chip is named Majorana 1 because it consists of Majorana particles, which are unique subatomic particles that are their own anti-particles. Neutrinos are a potential Majorana particle and are the second-most abundant subatomic particles after photons. Neutrinos are produced in the Big Bang, supernovae, cosmic rays, and nuclear fusion but are hard to detect. A major unknown in physics is the mass of neutrinos.

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Dryad Networks, a Berlin-based environmental Internet of Things (IoT) startup, introduced the Silvaguard drone for ultra-early wildfire detection. The Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based drone enhances fire detection, location, and monitoring using infrared imaging. It works with Silvanet, a solar-powered gas sensor network, detecting fires at the smoldering stage. Each sensor protects an area equal to a football field and attaches to trees. Once Silvanet detects a fire, Silvaguard flies to the location, captures video and infrared images, and sends real-time data to firefighters.

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Sunbird is a nuclear fusion-powered rocket developed by Pulsar Fusion, a British startup, to transform interplanetary travel with much faster speeds. It could reach up to 805,000 km/h, surpassing the current fastest object, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe, which travels at 692,000 km/h. With this speed, Sunbird could reduce travel time to Mars by almost half and reach Pluto in just 4 years. A major orbital test is planned in 2027, showing progress in next-generation space propulsion. Nuclear fusion, which powers Sunbird, fuses atoms like stars do, giving high energy with minimal radioactive waste, unlike nuclear fission.

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The European Space Agency (ESA) is preparing to launch the Biomass Mission on April 29, 2025, using a Vega C rocket from Korou Spaceport, French Guiana. The satellite will orbit Earth at 666 km in a sun-synchronous orbit, allowing consistent lighting for accurate observations. It will provide the first global measurements of forest biomass, helping scientists map forests and track their changes over time. Forests store 861 gigatonnes of carbon and absorb about 16 billion metric tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO₂) every year. In 2023, 3.7 million hectares of tropical forests were lost, causing about 6% of global CO₂ emissions.

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Scientists have found strong signs of possible extraterrestrial life on the exoplanet K2-18b, located 124 light years from Earth in the Leo constellation. This is the second and more promising detection of life-related chemicals in the planet’s atmosphere. The findings were made using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), launched in December 2021. The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is the most powerful space observatory, built by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), European Space Agency (ESA), and Canadian Space Agency (CSA). A team from Cambridge University, led by Professor Nikku Madhusudhan, studied the planet’s atmosphere. They found chemical traces of dimethyl sulphide (DMS) and dimethyl disulphide (DMDS). On Earth, these gases are produced only by marine phytoplankton and some bacteria. This raises the possibility of biological activity on K2-18b.

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The Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) and Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay) have launched a pilot Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) project in Kerala. Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) is a technology that allows Electric Vehicles (EVs) to send stored power back to the grid when not in use. V2G is the most studied application, though it is part of a broader framework including Vehicle to Home (V2H) and Vehicle to Vehicle (V2V) systems.

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NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) is a joint satellite mission by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It is set to be launched in June 2025 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh using the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark II (GSLV Mk II). This is the first radar-based Earth observation mission jointly developed by India and the United States. NISAR will map the entire Earth’s surface every 12 days to provide frequent and accurate data. It will track ecosystem changes, ice movements, vegetation shifts, sea level rise, groundwater levels, and natural disasters like earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, and landslides.

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India is seen as a major contributor to setting global rules for responsible space behavior, as stated by Marjolijn van Deelen, European Union (EU) Special Envoy for Space, at the Global Technology Summit. Anti-Satellite (ASAT) weapons are used to disable or destroy satellites for strategic defense purposes. These weapons can disrupt satellites used for surveillance, communication, navigation, or early warning. ASATs are divided into Kinetic Energy ASATs, which destroy satellites by direct impact, and Non-Kinetic ASATs, which use methods like cyber-attacks or lasers. ASATs can be launched from the ground, aircraft, or even other satellites. So far, the United States, Russia, China, and India have tested ASAT weapons. India’s ASAT test, called Mission Shakti, was carried out in March 2019 by hitting a satellite in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at 300 km altitude.

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Mexico has reported the first human case of myiasis caused by the New World Screwworm (NWS), a serious parasitic infection. The infection is caused by larvae of the Cochliomyia hominivorax fly, which usually affects livestock but can also infect humans. It develops when female screwworm flies lay eggs in open wounds, and the hatched larvae burrow into living tissue, causing major damage. Symptoms include painful wounds, maggots, foul smell, bleeding, and sometimes fever or chills due to secondary infection. Treatment needs medical help to remove larvae, often through surgery, to stop the infection from spreading.

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In a big step towards clean nuclear energy, China has launched the world’s first Thorium Molten Salt Reactor (TMSR) in Wuyi City, Gansu Province, located in the Gobi Desert. This thorium-based reactor started in October 2023 and generates 2 megawatts (MW) of electricity. The project received a $444 million investment since 2011 and is a major shift in global nuclear innovation during China’s trade tensions with the United States (US). China plans to build a 10 MW version by 2030, showing long-term goals in clean energy. Thorium is safer than uranium, creates less radioactive waste, and cannot be easily used for weapons. It must be turned into Uranium-233 (U-233) to be used in reactors, making it complex but promising for safe and sustainable energy.