GSAT-11
- Weighs 5,854 kg satellite.
- It is almost double the weight of the biggest satellite built or launched by ISRO to date.
- It will ride up on European launch vehicle Ariane.
- It is part of high-throughput communication satellite (HTS) fleet that will drive the country’s Internet broadband from space to untouched areas;
- The broadband domain is now ruled by underground fibre and covers partial and convenient locations.
- Already up in space are two HTSs — GSAT-29 and GSAT-19
- They are all to provide high-speed Internet data services at the rate of 100 Gbps (Gigabits per second) to Indian users.
- The HTSs will also be the backbone of pan-India digital or easy Internet-based programmes and services — such as Digital India, Bharat Net for rural e-governance, and commercial and public sector VSAT Net service providers.
Manufacturing PMI
- The Nikkei India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index registered a reading of 54 in November.
- A reading above 50 denotes an expansion, while one below 50 implies a contraction.
Bennu
- A NASA spacecraft arrived at the ancient asteroid Bennu.
- The robotic explorer Osiris-Rex pulled within 19 km of the diamond-shaped space rock.
- The carbon-rich asteroid Bennu could hold evidence dating back to the beginning of our solar system 4.5 billion years ago.
LION BD
- It is a new AI (Artificial Intelligence) system.
- It has been designed to assist scientists in the search for cancer-related discoveries.
- It is world’s first literature-based discovery system aimed at supporting cancer research.
Soyuz mission
- The Soyuz is the only means of reaching the ISS since the U.S. retired the space shuttle in 2011.
SHINYUU Maitri
- It is a bilateral air exercise between India and Japan.
World Skill Center
- India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a deal to improve the skill development eco-system in Odisha and establish an advanced skill training center, the World Skill Center (WSC), in the state capital Bhubaneswar.
- The project will help over 150,000 people learn skills in priority sectors, including manufacturing, construction and services for formal employment.
Qatar
- Qatar is to quit OPEC.
- It is the world’s biggest liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter.
- OPEC has 15 members including Qatar.
