UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Aditya-L1 decoded how solar storms impact earth’s magnetic field: ISRO

Q1. Which one of the following is the parent administrative department of the Government of India under which the Aditya-L1 solar observatory mission is operated?

  • A. Department of Science and Technology
  • B. Department of Space
  • C. Ministry of Earth Sciences
  • D. Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology

Q2. In the context of the Aditya-L1 mission, the term 'Lagrange Point L1' refers to which one of the following?

  • A. A point along the Sun-Earth line where the gravitational pulls of the Sun and Earth, combined with the centripetal force on a small body, balance so that the body remains stationary relative to the two
  • B. The point of closest approach of a satellite's elliptical orbit to the Sun
  • C. The geomagnetic neutral point where Earth's magnetic field intensity falls to zero during a solar storm
  • D. The boundary at which the solar wind pressure equals Earth's magnetospheric pressure

Q3. Which one of the following is the primary payload of the Aditya-L1 mission, designed to observe the solar corona in visible and near-infrared emission lines and to study coronal mass ejections?

  • A. Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT)
  • B. High Energy L1 Orbiting X-ray Spectrometer (HEL1OS)
  • C. Plasma Analyser Package for Aditya (PAPA)
  • D. Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC)

Q4. With reference to the Aditya-L1 mission as compared to earlier space-based solar observatories such as NASA's ACE and the ESA-NASA SOHO, consider the following statements: 1. Aditya-L1 is India's first dedicated solar observatory, while SOHO and ACE had already been stationed near the Sun-Earth L1 point before it. 2. Unlike SOHO and ACE, which are placed at the Sun-Earth Lagrange Point L1, Aditya-L1 has been placed in a geostationary orbit around the Earth. 3. Aditya-L1 was launched aboard a PSLV-XL configuration vehicle from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Aditya-L1 is India's first dedicated solar observatory, while SOHO and ACE had already been stationed near the Sun-Earth L1 point before it.
  2. Unlike SOHO and ACE, which are placed at the Sun-Earth Lagrange Point L1, Aditya-L1 has been placed in a geostationary orbit around the Earth.
  3. Aditya-L1 was launched aboard a PSLV-XL configuration vehicle from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3