Space and Space Technology: UPSC Previous Year Questions (Science and Technology)

Explanation

Option (d) is correct: Tempel 1 was the target of NASA’s Deep Impact mission launched in 2005. The mission involved sending an impactor spacecraft to collide with the comet’s nucleus, creating a crater and allowing scientists to study the composition and structure of the comet’s interior. The mission provided valuable data about the formation of the solar system.

Option (a), (b) and (c) are incorrect:

Halley’s Comet is one of the most famous comets which is known for its periodic appearance every 76 years. It was last observed in detail by the European Space Agency’s Giotto mission in 1986. Hale-Bopp was a bright comet that became visible to the naked eye in 1997. It was extensively studied by ground-based telescopes and space observatories. Comet Hyakutake was another bright comet that passed close to Earth in 1996. It was studied by ground-based telescopes and space observatories but was not the target of the Deep Impact mission.

Explanation

Pair (a) is correctly matched: COBE (Cosmic Background Explorer) was a satellite launched by NASA to study the cosmic microwave background radiation and provide evidence supporting the Big Bang theory. Pair (b) is correctly matched: The FLAG Alcatel-Lucent Optical Network (FALCON) submarine cable system is a 11,859 km undersea cable connecting multiple countries, including India, Sri Lanka, and Egypt, facilitating international telecommunications. Pair (c) is correctly matched: Discovery was a part of NASA’s Space Shuttle program and completed numerous missions. It conducted various missions, including deploying satellites, servicing the Hubble Space Telescope, and assembling the International Space Station (ISS). Pair (d) is incorrectly matched: Space Shuttle Atlantis was one of NASA’s reusable spacecraft used for human spaceflight missions. It is not a space station but a space shuttle that transported astronauts and cargo to space.