14 August 2025
(Current Affairs Notes - Prelims)

Commercial Earth Observation Satellite Constellation

• Recently, IN-SPACe selected a group of private firms to build India's first fully indigenous commercial Earth Observation (EO) Satellite Constellation.

  • • IN-SPACe: Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre

    • The firms include PixxelSpace India, Piersight Space, Satsure Analytics India, and Dhruva Space

• Under it, the constellation of 12 Satellites will have all-weather, day-night imaging capacity. They will be equipped with panchromatic, multispectral, hyperspectral sensors, and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR).

• PPP model:

  • • Government Role: Strategic, technical, and policy support.

    • Private Sector: Own and operate EO systems (manufacturing, launching, ground infrastructure, and data commercialisation).

• The constellation will deliver data and value-added services for climate change monitoring, disaster management, agriculture planning, geospatial intelligence among others.

FREE-AI Vision

• By RBI to balance innovation with risk management in financial services.

• The Vision seeks to ensure safe, fair and accountable AI adoption in India’s financial sector.

• It provides for 7 Sutras i.e., foundational principles for AI adoption in financial sector.

Blue Pinkgill and Shuttlecock

• These are a species of mushroom recently spotted in Telangana forests.

• Blue Pinkgill Mushroom is native to New Zealand. It was spotted in the Kadamba Reserve Forest.

• Shuttlecock Mushroom was recorded in Kawal Tiger Reserve (in the Eastern Ghats), already existing in Western Ghats.

National Green Tribunal (NGT)

• A statutory body established under the NGT Act, 2010 to adjudicate environmental cases.

• The members hold office for 5 years, and not be eligible for re-appointment.

• Judge of the Supreme Court or Chief Justice of a High Court is eligible to be appointed as its chairperson.

• Recently judicial members and expert members were appointed to the NGT. The Union Environment Ministry issued an order to this effect.

Envelope Dimer Epitope (EDE)

• A latest technological advancement associated with understanding dengue immunity.

• On the dengue virus surface, envelope (E) proteins are arranged in pairs (dimers).

• The junction area where the two E proteins meet, forms a unique structure called the Envelope Dimer Epitope (EDE).

• EDE is a special part of the dengue virus that our immune system can recognize and target with antibodies.

Easter Island

• Capital: Hanga Roa

• It is located in the Southeastern Pacific Ocean.

• It is the easternmost Polynesian island, lying west of mainland Chile and east of Pitcairn Island.

• Rising sea levels due to climate change could submerge its coastal areas by 2080.