Facts in News

                                   Facts in News

Shri Ramanujacharya

• Birth: At Perumbudur, Tamil Nadu in 1017 CE.
• He was a great philosopher, saint, social reformer and proponent of Vedanta and universal brotherhood.
• Contributions
  • One of the most important saints of Vaishnavism.
  • Raised voice against increasing formalism of the orthodox cult.
  • Abolition of distinctions of caste among his followers.
  • Philosophic foundations for devotionalism had an influence on the Bhakti movement.
  • Chief adherent of Vishishtadvaita philosophy.
    • Vishishtadvaita, also known as trained non-dualism, is one of the major branches of Vedanta.
    • It is a school of Vedanta philosophy that believes in all the diversity that underlies unity.
    • This school developed from the 7th century to the Vaishnava revolution in the southern part of India.
• The Statue of Equality in Hyderabad, built by Chinna Jeeyar, is dedicated to Ramanuja.
• Death: At Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam (Tamil Nadu) in 1137 CE.

                               (Image Courtesy: Swarajya)

Black Sea

• The roughly oval-shaped sea occupies a large basin strategically situated at the southeastern extremity of Europe.
• Bordered by: Ukraine to the north, Russia to the northeast, Georgia to the east, Turkey to the south and Bulgaria and Romania to the west.
• It is connected to the distant waters of the Atlantic Ocean by the Bosporus (which emerges from the sea’s southwestern corner), the Sea of Marmara, the Dardanelles, the Aegean Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea.
• Russia has increased its naval presence in the sea due to tense relations with the West and Ukraine.

                                             (Image Courtesy: Britannica)

Pangolins

• Features
  • Solitary, primarily nocturnal animals and are easily recognized by their full armor of scales.
  • Only mammals wholly-covered in scales, used to protect themselves from predators in the wild.
  • Diet: Ants, termites and larvae.
• Habitat
  • Eight species of pangolins are found on two continents namely Asia and Africa.
  • Only Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) and Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) are found in India.
• Threats
  • Habitat loss.
  • Illegal wildlife crime like hunting and poaching for their meat and scales.
• Protection Status
  • All species range from Vulnerable to Critically Endangered in IUCN Red List.
  • WWF and TRAFFIC work together to protect them.
  • Indian Pangolin
    • Schedule I under Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
    • Appendix I of the International Convention of Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
    • Endangered in IUCN Red List.

                                                    (Image Courtesy: WWF)

ALH Mk III aircraft

• Indian Naval Air Squadron (INAS) 323
  • The first unit of the indigenously built ALH (Advanced Light Helicopter) Mk III aircraft, commissioned into the Indian Navy.
  • The squadron will operate three state-of-the-art ALH Mk III helicopters
• Advanced Light Helicopter Mk III aircraft
  • It is a multi-role chopper with the Shakti engine manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
  • It has an all-glass cockpit and will be used for search and rescue special operations and coastal surveillance.
  • More features
    • IADS with Digital Moving Map
    • Electronic Warfare Suite
    • Electro-Optical pod
    • Counter measure Dispensing system
    • InfraRed Suppressor
    • Health & Usage Monitoring system
    • Solid State Digital Video Recorder (SSDVR)
    • Engine Particle Separator

Aditya-L1

• It is an Indian programme to study the Sun and the region between the Sun and the Earth from space which will be launched next year.
  • Aditya L1 will be launched using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) XL with 7 payloads (instruments) on board.

• Aditya 1 was renamed as Aditya-L1.
  • The Aditya 1 was meant to observe only the solar corona.
• Aditya-L1 with additional experiments can now provide observations of Sun’s Corona (soft and hard X-ray, Emission lines in the visible and NIR), Chromosphere (UV) and photosphere (broadband filters). 
• In addition, particle payloads will study the particle flux emanating from the Sun and reaching the L1 orbit.
• The magnetometer payload will measure the variation in magnetic field strength at the halo orbit around L1. 

                                      Image Courtesy: TOI

Thrissur Pooram Festival

• This colourful festival is celebrated in the month of Medam (April–May).
• It features processions of richly caparisoned elephants and performance of traditional music from various temples to the Vadakkunnathan Temple located at Thrissur in Kerala.
• It marks a celebration of Kerala’s cultural diversity as Hindus, Christians, and Muslims participate together to enjoy the grandest temple festival held in the state.

• Origin
  • The two-century-old Pooram has its origin in 1798 through a royal edict of the then Raja Rama Varma, popularly known as Shakthan Thampuran, a ruler of the erstwhile princely state of Cochin.
  • The edict entrusted two local temples  Paramekkavu and Thiruvambady with the task to be the main sponsors of the festivities to be conducted in a competitive spirit.

                                       (Image Courtesy:TH)