MAVEN Orbiter

MAVEN Orbiter

NASA’s MAVEN orbiter captures purple auroras on Mars’ nightside

  • Launched by NASA in 2013
  • To explore Mars’ upper atmosphere, ionosphere, and interactions with the sun and solar wind.
  • Objectives
    • Gain insights into the history of Mars’ atmosphere and climate, liquid water, and planetary habitability.
    • Study the nature of Mars’ upper atmosphere and the impact of solar activity on atmospheric loss.
    • Investigate the role of gas escape in Mars’ atmospheric changes over time.
  • Key Findings
    • Showed that atmospheric loss to space has significantly driven Mars’ climate change.
    •  Insufficient CO2 remains on Mars to support terraforming efforts aimed at warming the planet to make it habitable for humans.
  • Known as the Red Planet.
  • 4th planet from the Sun.
  • 2nd smallest planet in the Solar System.
  • About half the size of Earth.
  • Completes one rotation every 24.6 hours, similar to Earth’s 23.9 hours.
  • Axis of rotation tilted at 25 degrees, close to Earth’s 23.4 degrees.
  • Has distinct seasons like Earth, but they last longer.
  • Martian days are called sols—short for ‘solar day’.
  • Appears reddish due to oxidation or rusting of iron in rocks and dust.
  • Home to Olympus Mons, the largest volcano in the solar system.
  • Has 2 small moons – Phobos and Deimos.

Source: NASA


Recently, Scientists observed the merger of giant blackholes’ billions of light-years away from the Earth. What is the significance of this observation?

[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2019 Prelims]

(a) ‘Higgs boson particles’ were detected.
(b) ‘Gravitational waves’ were detected.
(c) Possibility of inter-galactic space travel through ‘wormhole’ was confirmed.
(d) It enabled the scientists to understand ‘singularity’.

Answer: (b)


Practice Question

Consider the following statements:

  1. MAVEN mission was launched by ISRO
  2. It aims to study atmosphere of MARS

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

 
 
 
 

Question 1 of 1

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