Daily Current Affairs for UPSC IAS: 3rd April 2023

Capulopsyche keralensis: Bagworm Moth Species

Researchers from the Zoology Department at St. Thomas College Thrissur have discovered the bagworm moth from the coffee plantations of Kerala.

• The newly found bagworm moth species was named Capulopsyche keralensis. Capulo means coffee and psyche means moth or butterfly.
• The name, therefore, translates as ‘Coffee moth of Kerala’ as it was found in coffee plantations.
• Capulopsyche keralensis belongs to the moth family psychidae, which consists of very small moths.
• It is characterized by the case-building behavior of larvae and a high degree of sexual dimorphism.
• Females of many psychid species never develop into a moth and retain larval appearance.
• This is the first genus and species of the subfamily Taleporiinae reported from India.
• The subfamily Taleporiinae is characterized by extreme sexual dimorphism.
• The females are pale yellowish, wingless, with short legs and antennae.
• The larvae of this species were found scraping on the bark of trees, they seem to feed on the bark tissues and depositions (algae) on the bark.

Solar Flare:

NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory detected a powerful “X-class” solar flare that was classified as an X1.2 flare.

• The X1.2 flare erupted from sunspot AR3256 near the southwestern limb of the star in our Solar System.
• It led to a strong shortwave radio blackout in south-east Asia, Australia, and New Zealand
• Solar storms are magnetic plasma ejected at great speed from the solar surface.
• They occur during the release of magnetic energy associated with sunspots (‘dark’ regions on the Sun that are cooler than the surrounding photosphere), and can last for a few minutes or hours.
• There are 4 classes of solar flares – B, C, M, and X and these are classified on a logarithmic scalesimilar to the Richter scale.
• The class denotes the strength of the flare and the number that comes after it signifies their strength at a finer scale.
• Each class is therefore divided into 9 subdivisions. For example, X1 to X9.
• Solar flares can impact radio communications, electric power grids, and navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecraft and astronauts.

Assamese Gamosa:

The ‘hybrid’ gamosa which was used for felicitating guests at a function sparked protests across Assam.

• Assamese gamosa is a hand-woven rectangular cotton piece of cloth with red borders and different designs and motifs.
• It is traditionally offered to elders and guests as a mark of respect and honour by Assamese people.
• It is an integral part of all socio-religious ceremonies in the state and is considered an Assamese identity and pride.
• For specific purposes, it is also made of expensive materials like traditional Assamese ‘Pat’ silk and in different colours as well.
• The ‘gamosa’ meant for exchange during the ‘Bihu’ festival is known as ‘Bihuwan’.
• It is a unique scarf found only in Assam and also received Geographic Indication (GI) tag.

Utkal Dibas:

The Prime Minister of India greeted the people on Utkal Dibasa.

• The modern state of Odisha was established on 1 April 1936 at Kanika Palace, Cuttack, as a province in India, and consists predominantly of Odia speakers.1 April is therefore celebrated as Utkal Divas (Odisha Day).
• The British had occupied the Northern Circars, comprising the southern coast of Odisha, as a result of the Second Carnatic War by 1760, and incorporated them into the Madras Presidency gradually.
• In 1803, the British ousted the Marathas from the Puri-Cuttack region of Odisha during the Second Anglo-Maratha War. The northern and western districts of Odisha were incorporated into the Bengal Presidency.
• In 1903, the Utkal Sammilani organisation was founded to demand the unification of Odia-speaking regions into one state.
• On 1 April 1912, the Bihar and Orissa Province was formed and on 1 April 1936, Bihar and Orissa were split into separate provinces.

Bandipur Tiger Reserve : 50 Years As a Project Tiger Reserve

Bandipur Tiger Reserve recently completed 50 years as a Project Tiger Reserve.

• Bandipur Tiger Reserve was established in the 1930s as a wildlife sanctuary, which became a tiger reserve in 1973 under Project tiger.
• It is situated in two contiguous districts (Mysore and Chamarajanagar) of Karnataka and located at the tri-junction area of the States of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
• Bandipur Tiger Reserve is surrounded by:
  • Nagarahole Tiger Reserve (Tamil Nadu) in the North West (Kabini Reservoir separates the two).
  • Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (Tamil Nadu) in the South.
  • Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary (Kerala) in the South West.
• This area has the River Kabini in its north and River Moyar in its south.
• It comprises diverse vegetation of dry deciduous to tropical mixed deciduous. It includes rosewood, Indian kino tree, sandalwood, Indian laurel, clumping bamboo and giant clumping bamboo etc.
• It is a shelter for the largest population of wild Asian elephants in South Asia. It comprises other mammals such as Bengal tiger, gaur, sloth bear, golden jackal, dhole and four-horned antelope etc.

Ultramassive Black Hole : Discovery

Astronomers have discovered an ultramassive black hole using gravitational lensing, a phenomenon where a foreground object bends light from a distant object behind it.

• Researchers used supercomputer simulations to simulate light from a distant galaxy travelling through the Universe, each simulation had a black hole of a different mass.
• The path taken by the light in one simulation matched the path seen in actual images captured by the Hubble Space Telescope, leading to the discovery of an ultramassive black hole in the foreground galaxy.
• The ultramassive black hole is over 30 billion times the mass of our Sun.
• This new approach using gravitational lensing could make it possible to study inactive black holes in distant galaxies.
• Black holes are regions of space-time where gravity is so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape from them.
• They are formed when a massive star collapses in on itself at the end of its life, creating an incredibly dense object with a gravitational pull that is so strong that it warps space-time around it.

National Mission On Natural Farming:

The Government of India has launched the National Mission on Natural Farming (NMNF) as a separate and independent scheme to promote chemical-free and climate-smart agriculture.

• The National Mission on Natural Farming (NMNF) has been formulated by upscaling the Bhartiya Prakritik Krishi Paddhati (BPKP) to promote natural farming across the country.
• NMNF will cover a 7.5 lakh hectare area by developing 15,000 clusters.
• The farmers willing to implement natural farming on their field will be registered as cluster members, each cluster shall comprise 50 farmers or more with 50-hectare land.
• Also, each cluster can fall into one village or spread across 2-3 nearby villages under the same gram panchayat.
• Under NMNF, farmers will receive a financial assistance of ₹15,000 per hectare per year for three years for the creation of on-farm input production infrastructure.
• However, the incentives would be provided to farmers only when they commit to natural farming and have actually taken it up.
• If a farmer defaults or does not continue with natural farming, subsequent instalments shall not be disbursed.

Natural Farming:

• Natural farming is a chemical-free farming method based on locally available resources.
• It promotes traditional indigenous practices, which give freedom to farmers from externally purchased inputs.
• The major stress of natural farming is on-farm biomass recycling with biomass mulching, use of on-farm desi cow dung-urine formulation, managing pests through diversity, on-farm botanical concoctions, and exclusion of all synthetic chemical inputs directly or indirectly.

23rd Edition Of INDIASOFT:

The 23rd edition of INDIASOFT was inaugurated recently

• INDIASOFT is held consecutively since 2001.
• It has emerged as the favourite meeting ground for Indian tech developers and global consumers.
• With more than 1000 IT and tech companies converging to meet and connect with each other, the show brings to the fore competencies of the Indian software and tech industry.
• Provides multiple opportunities to forge business alliances, spread first-hand information about the latest innovations and help build a vibrant and dynamic tech world.

Gamma Ray Burst Detected:

A gamma-ray burst that recently hit our solar system was so bright, it temporarily blinded gamma-ray instruments in space, according to a NASA release.

• Gamma Ray Burst (GRB) are short-lived bursts of gamma-ray light, the most energetic form of light.
• GRB emits more energy in a few seconds than our Sun will emit in its lifetime and has two distinct emission phases:
• The short-lived prompt emission (the initial burst phase that emits gamma-rays), followed by a long-lived multi-wavelength afterglow phase.
• The shortest GRBs likely mark the collision of two compact stellar remnants called neutron stars, and the longest bursts are thought to arise when a massive, rapidly spinning star collapses to form a black hole.
• When a GRB erupts, it is briefly the brightest source of cosmic gamma-ray photons in the observable Universe.

Gamma Rays:

• Gamma rays have the smallest wavelengths and the most energy of any wave in the electromagnetic spectrum.
• They are produced by the hottest and most energetic objects in the universe, such as neutron stars and pulsars, supernova explosions, and regions around black holes.