--> Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.

--> ​Agency & Launch: Developed by NASA as a flagship observatory (approx. $4 billion project), launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Kennedy Space Center, Florida.

--> ​Target Orbit: Lagrange Point 2 (L2),

--> Key Scientific Objectives :
> Dark Matter
> Cosmic Cartography: Create the most comprehensive 3D map of the cosmos to date.
> ​Exoplanet Discovery: Search for and characterize planets outside our solar system.
> ​Fundamental Physics: Test the laws of gravity across vast cosmic scales.

--> Roman vs. Hubble & James Webb

> Panoramic Field of View: Functions like a cosmic wide-angle lens (capturing broad, large-scale panoramic views), whereas the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) acts like a high-powered zoom lens (peering deeply into specific, narrow points)

> ​A full Milky Way survey that would require nearly a century for Hubble can be completed by Roman in just one month.

#CA2026
#SPACE

AI & Cybersecurity: Implications for India

Context
AI is transforming both cyberattacks and cyber-defence, increasing the speed, scale, sophistication and autonomy of cyber operations

#GS2mains

How AI is changing cyber warfare:
-Reconnaissance: AI automates target intelligence; LLMs can mine social media and generate personalised phishing.
-Deepfakes & deception: Real-time deepfakes increase misinformation and social-engineering attacks.
-Autonomous cyber agents: AI can identify, plan, adapt and execute offensive operations with limited human intervention.
-Polymorphic malware: LLMs can continuously modify malware, defeating traditional signature-based antivirus.
-Zero-day discovery: Frontier AI can find unknown vulnerabilities at scale; Claude Opus 4 -Preview reportedly identified thousands of zero-day vulnerabilities across major operating systems and browsers.
-Critical infrastructure: AI-discovered vulnerabilities in OT/Industrial Control Systems (ICS) can threaten nuclear plants, energy grids, pharma, manufacturing, oil refineries and communication networks.

Key Examples from the News:
-September 2025: Anthropic alleged Chinese state-sponsored GTG-1002 used Claude Code as an autonomous cyber agent —> described as the first reported AI-orchestrated cyber-espionage campaign.
-AI reportedly discovered a 27-year-old OpenBSD vulnerability, illustrating its ability to uncover long-hidden flaws.
-Operation Sindoor: Pakistan-backed APT36 targeted India’s MoD, Army, Navy and DRDO and, reportedly for the first time, BOSS Linux.
-Kudankulam Nuclear Plant: Ransomware group World Leaks claimed theft/publication of facility and supplier-related data.
-CloudSEK ranked India 2nd-most cyber-attacked country in 2024 (after US) and 6th in 2025.

Why India is particularly vulnerable
-Capability asymmetry: Advanced AI capabilities remain concentrated in a few countries, while India’s indigenous AI ecosystem is still developing.
-Foreign technological dependence: Dependence on foreign foundation models, GPUs, chip design and large-scale data-centre infrastructure creates strategic vulnerability.
-Critical-sector targeting: Defence establishments and other strategic sectors have increasingly become targets of sophisticated cyber campaigns.
-AI-integrated infrastructure expands the attack surface of Operational Technology (OT) and Industrial Control Systems (ICS).

AI as a Cyber-Defence Tool:-
AI can strengthen security through real-time threat detection, automated incident response, behavioural/anomaly detection and large-scale data analysis, allowing risks to be identified faster than traditional methods.

Steps taken by India:-
CERT-In: AI-driven threat detection, cyber-resilience measures and malware mitigation.
Organisations have been advised to remove unnecessary internet-facing services and rapidly address newly discovered vulnerabilities.
MeitY is exploring governance measures for synthetic content and clearer accountability/liability frameworks for AI systems.

#GS2mains

Air Marshal Shakti Sharma became the first non-medical woman officer of the Indian Armed Forces to attain the rank of Air Vice Marshal (AVM).

#CA2026
#PERSON

—> India’s non-fossil fuel power capacity crossed 300 GW as of 31 July 2026, accounting for over 54% of total installed electricity generation capacity.

—> Break-up: Solar 164.59 GW > Wind 58.14 GW > Hydro 57.24 GW > Bio-power 11.75 GW > Nuclear 8.78 GW.

#CA2026
#DATA

Chaiti Durga Temple : Bhagalpur

Geomorphology

1. Avulsion & Course Shifting: The Ganga shifted its course in the stretch due to heavy silt accumulation and intensified hydrodynamic pressure.

2. ​Heavy Siltation: Himalayan rivers carry exceptionally high sediment loads. The reduction in channel cross-sectional area and bed carrying capacity forces lateral erosion and channel shifting.

3. ​Transboundary River Dynamics: Heavy upstream precipitation in Nepal directly impacts the downstream plains of the Middle and Lower Ganga basin.

#BIHARspecial

SCO importance

#CA2026

𝐀 𝐦𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩.

President Mirziyoyev presented Uzbekistan’s highest state award, the ‘Oliy Darajali Do‘stlik’ Order, to PM Modi.

Interlink: https://t.me/bpscweb/45118

#CA2026

Ebola Cases

-->Unlike major historical outbreaks driven by the Zaire ebolavirus, this current crisis is fueled by the rare Bundibugyo virus species (Bundibugyo ebolavirus).

--> Global Status: In mid-May 2026, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared this particular outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) due to its rapid expansion and high cross-border transmission risk between the DRC and neighboring Uganda.

#CA2026

Rakhi Bisht v. HashiCorp (a private software firm). The petitioner was reassigned to a lower-level clerical role in the treasury department after returning from maternity leave, leading to her resignation.

“Under no circumstance, can maternity be allowed to become a source of ignominy at the work place,”

Constitutional Articles:

- Articles 14 : Equality before law)
- Article 15 : Prohibition of discrimination
- Article 21 (Right to life and dignity)
- Article 42 (Just and humane conditions of work and maternity relief)

Statutory Compliance: Reaffirmed that the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 and the Code on Social Security, 2020 mandate substantive reintegration of women into the workplace, ruling out mere "cosmetic compliance"

#GS2mains
#POLITY

G20 Finance Track 2026: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent during the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting at Asheville, North Carolina, USA (31 August–1 September 2026).

G20 Facts: Formed in 1999; comprises 19 countries plus the European Union and African Union; the United States holds the 2026 presidency

#CA2026