UPPSC AE 2024 Combined State Engineering Services Examination
Indian Space Organizations & Satellites
• ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation):
✓ Established in 1969, headquartered in Bengaluru.
✓ Notable missions: Chandrayaan, Mangalyaan, Astrosat, NavIC.
✓ Facilities: SDSC (Sriharikota), ISTRAC, URSC.
• Aryabhata:
✓ Launched on April 19, 1975.
✓ Built for space research; marked India's entry into space.
• INSAT Series:
✓ Used for telecom, meteorology, disaster warning, TV broadcasting.
✓ INSAT-3D and 3DR carry advanced weather payloads.
• GSAT Series:
✓ GSAT-6A, GSAT-7 for strategic and communication purposes (e.g., for armed forces).
• RISAT Series:
✓ RISAT-1A/2B/2BR1 provide day-night, all-weather radar images.
✓ Useful for defense, agriculture, and disaster management.
• Astrosat:
✓ Multi-wavelength telescope (UV, optical, X-ray).
✓ Launched in 2015 via PSLV-C30.
• NavIC:
✓ 7-satellite constellation.
✓ Provides accurate real-time positioning in India and surrounding regions.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Indian Launch Vehicles
• SLV (Satellite Launch Vehicle):
✓ First successful launch in 1980 (Rohini satellite).
✓ 4-stage, solid-propellant rocket.
• ASLV (Augmented SLV):
✓ Intermediate launcher, failed initially, succeeded in 1992.
✓ Launched SROSS satellites.
• PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle):
✓ 4-stage launcher; can launch into Sun-synchronous and polar orbits.
✓ Used for Chandrayaan-1, Mangalyaan, multiple foreign satellites.
• GSLV (Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle):
✓ Capable of launching >2,000 kg satellites to GTO.
✓ GSLV Mk III (LVM3) used for Chandrayaan-2, Gaganyaan (planned).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Earth Observation & Related Satellites
• IRS (Indian Remote Sensing):
✓ Applications: forestry, water resources, land mapping, agriculture.
✓ Notable satellites: Resourcesat, Cartosat, Oceansat.
• Cartosat Series:
✓ High-resolution Earth imaging; used for urban planning, infrastructure, defense.
• Oceansat:
✓ Monitors ocean color, winds, and currents.
✓ Useful for fishing zones and cyclone tracking.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
International Missions & Telescopes
• Cassini–Huygens (NASA/ESA/ASI):
✓ Orbited Saturn (2004–2017), Huygens landed on Titan.
✓ Discovered subsurface oceans, complex ring structures.
• Juno (NASA):
✓ Studies Jupiter’s gravity, magnetic fields, auroras.
✓ Operating since 2016.
Use code DrSwati to get maximum discount on Unacademy Plus subscriptions.
UPPSC AE 2024 Combined State Engineering Services Examination
• Galileo (ESA):
✓ Jupiter mission (1989–2003); deployed atmospheric probe.
• Voyager 1 & 2:
✓ Launched in 1977, still active in interstellar space.
✓ Explored all outer planets.
• JWST (James Webb Space Telescope):
✓ Successor to Hubble.
✓ Observes early galaxies, star formation, exoplanets.
• Mars Exploration Rovers – Spirit & Opportunity:
✓ Found evidence of ancient water on Mars.
✓ Operated far beyond original life expectancy.
• Mars Pathfinder & Sojourner:
✓ 1997; first successful rover mission.
• Mangalyaan (MOM):
✓ Launched in 2013; first Asian nation to reach Mars orbit in first attempt.
• Chandrayaan-1:
✓ 2008; detected water molecules on the Moon.
• New Horizons:
✓ Pluto flyby in 2015; continues to explore the Kuiper Belt.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Global Navigation Systems
• GPS (USA): 24+ satellites for global navigation.
• GLONASS (Russia): Full global coverage; military + civilian use.
• Galileo (EU): High-precision service; fully operational.
• NavIC (India): Focused on South Asia; highly accurate in India.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pioneering Milestones
• Sputnik 1 (1957): First artificial satellite (USSR); started Space Age.
• Explorer 1 (1958): First US satellite; discovered Van Allen radiation belts.
• Vostok 1 (1961): First manned flight (Yuri Gagarin).
• Apollo 11 (1969): First Moon landing (Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin).
• Pioneer 10 & 11: First to fly past Jupiter and Saturn.
• Gemini & Mercury programs: Stepping stones for lunar missions.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Space Research Facilities
• ISS (International Space Station):
✓ Largest human-made object in space.
✓ Jointly operated by NASA, Roscosmos, ESA, JAXA, CSA.
✓ Conducts research in biology, physics, astronomy, meteorology.
• Future plans:
✓ Gaganyaan: India’s human spaceflight mission (planned).
✓ Lunar Polar Exploration (Chandrayaan-3): Further lunar study.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Deep Space Exploration
• Voyager 1 & 2:
✓ Carried Golden Records.
✓ Beyond heliosphere, in interstellar space.
• Parker Solar Probe:
✓ Closest ever approach to the Sun.
✓ Studying solar winds and corona.
• Artemis Program:
✓ NASA's mission to return humans to the Moon by 2025 and beyond to Mars.
Use code DrSwati to get maximum discount on Unacademy Plus subscriptions.
