Daily Current Affairs 20 May 2020 | UPSC Current Affairs 2020

Current Affairs Of Today Are

1) National Test Abhyas

• Union Human Resource Development Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank launched a new mobile app called the ‘National Test Abhyas'. The App has been developed by NTA to enable candidates to take mock tests for upcoming exams such as JEE Main, NEET under the NTA’s purview. The app has been launched to facilitate candidates’ access to high-quality mock tests in the safety and comfort of their homes since there was a demand for making up the loss to students due to closure of educational institutions and NTA’s Test-Practice Centers (TPCs) due to the continuing lockdown.
• With this facility for the students, India has taken the lead in restoring a semblance of normalcy in one more crucial area –test preparations – even as we tackle these unprecedented times that have led to significant changes in life around the world.
• Students across the country can use the App to access high-quality tests, free of cost, in a bid to be fully prepared for the upcoming JEE, NEET, and other competitive exams. The tests can be easily downloaded they can be completed off-line, thus economizing on internet availability too
• The app will make available practice tests on smartphones or computers for all students in India irrespective of their level of access to devices and the quality of the network. The app also has an offline mode where students, on downloading the mock tests, can attempt the test without the internet. The app works on Android-based smartphones and tablets and can be downloaded from Google Play Store. The app will be soon available on iOS.
• Once students download the app, they will need to sign-up or register with some basic details, create a free account, and then start accessing mock tests free of cost for their selected examination(s).
• NTA plans to release one new mock test on the app every day, which students can then download and attempt offline. Once the test is completed, students can go online again to submit the test and view their test report. “It’s evident that one of the app’s major benefits is that once student downloads the test,  it works perfectly even without internet connectivity, which will prove advantageous for students even in areas with low bandwidth and remove obstacles in the way of large-scale online test preparation.
• Over the last year, edutech as a sector has witnessed a lot of innovation especially in leveraging advanced technologies like Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, going beyond the simple digital distribution of content. Every student is unique and requires specific guidance to detect and overcome gaps in knowledge and test-taking strategy. The test report on the NTA Mock Test App comes with a detailed breakdown of students’ performance through which they can understand their personalized path to achieving better scores in their entrance examination.

Source: PIB

2) Indian Railways operationalizes its most powerful 12000 HP made in India locomotive

• First, 12000 HP made in India Locomotive, manufactured by Madhepura Electric Loco Factory situated in Bihar, was put into operation by Indian Railways from Pt Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Jn Station
• It was a proud moment for Indian Railways, as it became the 6th country in the world to join the elite club of producing high horsepower locomotive indigenously. It is the first time, high horsepower locomotive has been operationalized on a broad gauge track in the world. The locomotive has been produced under the Make in India program. The Madhepura factory is the largest integrated Green Field facility built to the highest standards of quality and safety with the production capacity of 120 locomotives and spread across a massive 250 acres.
• These locomotives are state of art IGBT based, 3 phase drive, 9000 KW (12000 horsepower) electric locomotive. The locomotive is capable of the maximum tractive effort of 706 kN, which is capable of starting and running a 6000 T train in the gradient of 1 in 150. The locomotive with twin Bo-Bo design having a 22.5 T (Tonnes) axle load is upgradable to 25 Tonnes with a design speed of 120 kmph. This locomotive will be a game-changer for further movement of coal trains for Dedicated Freight Corridor. The locomotives can be tracked through GPS for its strategic use through embedded software and Antennae being lifted through the servers on the ground through a microwave link.
• The locomotive is capable of working on railway tracks with conventional OHE lines as well as on Dedicated Freight corridors with high rise OHE lines. The locomotive has air-conditioned driver cabs on either side. The locomotive is equipped with a regenerative braking system that provides substantial energy savings during operations. These high horsepower locomotives will help to decongest the saturated tracks by improving the average speed of freight trains.

Source: PIB

3) Neelam Sanjiva Reddy

The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, paid homage to Shri Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, former President of India, at Rashtrapati Bhavan (May 19, 2020) on his Birth Anniversary.

About

• Neelam Sanjiva Reddy was the sixth President of India, serving from 1977 to 1982. Beginning a long political career with the Indian National Congress Party in the Indian independence movement, he went on to hold several key offices in independent India—as the first Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, a two-time Speaker of the Lok Sabha and a Union Minister—before becoming the youngest-ever Indian president.
• Born in present-day Anantapur district, Andhra Pradesh, Reddy completed his schooling at Adayar and joined the Government Arts College at Anantapur. He quit to become an Indian independence activist and was jailed for participating in the Quit India Movement. He was elected to the Madras Legislative Assembly in 1946 as a Congress party representative. Reddy became the deputy chief minister of Andhra State in 1953 and the first Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh in 1956. He was a union cabinet minister under Prime Ministers Lal Bahadur Shastri and Indira Gandhi from 1964 to 1967 and Lok Sabha Speaker from 1967 to 1969. He later retired from active politics but returned in 1975, responding to Jayaprakash Narayan's call for "Total Revolution" against the Indira Gandhi Government.
• Elected to Parliament in 1977 as a candidate of the Janata Party, Reddy was unanimously elected Speaker of the Sixth Lok Sabha and three months later was elected unopposed as President of India. As president, Reddy worked with Prime Ministers Morarji Desai, Charan Singh, and Indira Gandhi. Reddy was succeeded by Giani Zail Singh in 1982 and he retired to his farm in Anantapur. He died in 1996 and his samadhi is at Kalpally Burial Ground, Bangalore. In 2013, the Government of Andhra Pradesh commemorated Reddy's birth centenary.

Role in the Indian independence movement

• Reddy joined the Indian struggle for independence from the British Raj following Mahatma Gandhi's visit to Anantapur in July 1929 and dropped out of college in 1931. He was closely associated with the Youth League and participated in a student satyagraha. In 1938, Reddy was elected Secretary of the Andhra Pradesh Provincial Congress Committee, an office he held for ten years. During the Quit India Movement, he was imprisoned and was mostly in jail between 1940 and 1945. Released in March 1942, he was arrested again in August and sent to the Amraoti jail where he served time with activists T Prakasam, S. Satyamurti, K Kamaraj, and V V Giri till 1945.

Source: PIB

4) EPF & MP Act, 1952

• Various measures have been announced from time to time to provide relief to the employers and employees of the establishments covered under the EPF & MP Act, 1952 distressed by Lockdown to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and other disruptions due to Pandemic.
• The reduction in statutory rate of contributions from 12% to 10% for wage months May 2020, June 2020 and July 2020 for all class of establishments covered under the EPF & MP Act, 1952 announced on 13.05.2020 by the Central Govt. as part of Atma-Nirbhar Bharat package has been notified vide SO 1513 (E) dated 18.05.2020 published in the Gazette of India. The notification is available under the TAB- COVID-19 on the home page of EPFO website
• The above reduction of the rate of contribution does not apply to establishments like Central and State Public Sector enterprises or any other establishment owned or controlled by or under control of the Central Govt. or State Govt. These establishments shall continue to contribute  12% of basic wages and dearness allowances.
• The reduced rate is also not applicable for PMGKY beneficiaries, since the entire employees EPF contributions (12% of wages) and employers’ EPF & EPS contribution (12% of wages), totaling 24% of the monthly wages is being contributed by the Central Govt
• Reduction in rate of EPF contributions from 12% to 10% of basic wages and Dearness allowances is intended to benefit both 4.3 Crore employees/members and employers of 6.5 lakhs establishments to tide over the immediate liquidity crisis to some extent.
• As a result of a reduction in statutory rate of contributions from 12% to 10%, the employee shall have a higher take-home pay due to reduction in a deduction from his pay on account of EPF contributions and employer shall also have his liability reduced by 2% of wages of his employees. If Rs.10000/- is monthly EPF wages, only Rs.1000/- instead of Rs.1200/- is deducted from employee’s wages and the employer pays Rs.1000/- instead of Rs.1200/- towards EPF contributions. 
• In Cost to Company (CTC) model, if Rs.10000/- is monthly EPF wages, in CTC Model the employee gets Rs.200/- more directly from the employer as employer’s EPF/EPS contribution is reduced and Rs.200/- less is deducted from his/her wages.
• Under the EPF Scheme, 1952 any member has the option to contribute at a rate higher than the statutory rate (10%) and the employer can restrict his contributions 10% (statutory rate) in respect of such employee.

Source: PIB

5) ‘Super Cyclones’ and the lockdown

• Higher than normal temperatures in the Bay of Bengal (BoB) may be whetting ‘super cyclones’ and the lockdown, indirectly, may have played a role, meteorologists and atmospheric science experts told
• Super cyclone Amphan that is barrelling towards West Bengal is the strongest storm to have formed in the BoB since the Super Cyclone of 1999 that ravaged Paradip in Odisha, said Director­General, India Meteorological Department M. Mohapatra.
• Cyclones gain their energy from the heat and moisture generated from warm ocean surfaces. This year, the BoB has posted record summer temperatures a fall­out, as researchers have warned, of global warming from fossil fuel emissions that have been heating up oceans.
• The BoB has been particularly warm. Some of the buoys (Buoys are used to measure
• ocean temperatures.) have registered maximum surface temperatures of 32-­34°C consecutively, for the first two weeks of May. These are record temperatures driven by climate change — we have never seen such high values until now 
• Cyclone Amphan intensified from a category­1 cyclone to category­5 in 18 hours, an unusually quick evolution. Last year Fani, a category 4 cyclone, which swept through the Odisha coast, was again fuelled by high temperatures in the BoB. 
• While tropical cyclones in these seas are a typical feature of the summer months and play a role in aiding the arrival of the monsoon, Dr. Koll said warming around India is no longer restricted to just the BoB but also the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean. This makes storm prediction less reliable as well as disrupting monsoon patterns. 

Lockdown impact

• Another researcher said the elevated ocean temperatures this year could, in part, be explained by the lockdown. Reduced particulate matter emissions during the lockdown meant fewer aerosols, such as black carbon, that are known to reflect sunlight and heat away from
• the surface. Every year, increased particulate pollution from the Indo-­Gangetic plains is transported towards the BoB and this also influences the formation of clouds over the ocean
• Fewer clouds and more heat in the Bay of Bengal may have amplified

Source: The Hindu

6) Olive Ridley turtles

• Mass hatching of the Olive Ridley turtle eggs has ended at the Rushikulya rookery on the Odisha coast.
• Lakhs of Olive Ridley hatchlings entered the sea at the beach in Ganjam district. The eggs, buried in nests along the sandy beach, began on May 7. The number of hatchings had reached its peak within a week. At present, hatchings continue to take place at a few stray nests along the coast. 
• On average, 80 to 100 hatchlings come out from each nest. This year, 3,23,063 Olive Ridley turtles had nested at the Rushikulya rookery. Despite the destruction of some nests and eggs by the high tide, a large number of hatchlings entered the sea from here. 
• According to wildlife experts, approximately one in every 1,000 hatchlings entering the sea survive to reach adulthood. 
• Following the mass mating that takes place at sea near the coast, male Olive Ridleys begin their return journey to destinations several hundred kilometers away. After the mass nesting, the female turtles do the same
• The eggs, laid in nests dug along the beach, incubate on their own with the help of the heat from the sand. Depending on the temperature
• The lockdown also reduced the inflow of tourists and local movement. Except for Forest officials and a few volunteers, no one was allowed to enter the area. There was also a reduction of waste along the beach, allowing for easier movement of the hatchlings to the sea.

Source: The Hindu

7) Travel Bubble

Recently, the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania started a travel bubble to help put their economies back on track after Covid-19 lockdowns.

• All three have been fairly successful at managing the Covid-19 outbreak and remaining comparatively safe.
• In the Estonia-Latvia-Lithuania travel bubble, residents would be able to travel freely by rail, air, and sea without quarantine measures.

Baltic Countries

• Baltic countries, the northeastern region of Europe, include the countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, on the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea.
• The Baltic states are bounded on the west and north by the Baltic Sea, which gives the region its name, on the east by Russia, on the southeast by Belarus and on the southwest by Poland and an exclave of Russia.
• In 1991, their then popularly elected governments declared independence from the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) with overwhelming support.
• All three of them are members of the European Union (EU) and are sparsely populated (Lithuania-28 lakh, Latvia-19.2 lakh, Estonia-13.3 lakh people).
• India and Baltic countries have historical connect and common linguistic roots. The cutting edge technology and innovation ecosystems of the Baltic countries complement India’s huge market and appetite for these technologies.

Key Points

• Travel Bubble:
• Creating a travel bubble involves reconnecting countries or states which have shown a good level of success in containing the Covid-19 pandemic domestically.
• Such a bubble would allow the members of the group to restart trade ties with each other and open travel and tourism.
• According to a report, potential travel bubbles among better-performing countries around the world would account for around 35% of the global Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
• Travel bubbles are favored by smaller countries because they are likely to benefit after being able to trade again with larger partners.
• Criteria for Entering the Travel Bubble:
• People from the outside countries, willing to join the bubble corridor, will have to go into isolation for 14 days.
• One should not have traveled outside the member countries of the travel bubble, in the past 14 days.
• One should not be infected with coronavirus and should not have come in contact with anyone who has been coronavirus infected.
• Other Countries to Start:
• Australia and New Zealand reached an agreement to form a travel bubble, once it becomes safe to operate flights between them. Once it opens, the trans-Tasman zone (around the Tasman Sea) will allow travel without a quarantine period.
• Trans-Tasman Zone: Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement is an arrangement between Australia and New Zealand which allows for the free movement of citizens of one of these countries to the other. The arrangement came into effect in 1973 and allows citizens of each country to reside and work in the other country, with some restrictions.
• China and South Korea have launched a fast track channel for business travelers.
• In the USA, travel bubbles are being suggested to group states who are doing well against the pandemic.

Source: India Express

8) Possibility of Covid-19 being Syndemic

The possibilities of Covid-19 being syndemic have been raised in the backdrop of the World Health Organization (WHO) announcement that Covid-19 less likely to be eliminated (i.e. may become endemic).

• The rapid spread of Covid-19 across the world has been characterized as ‘Pandemic’ by the WHO.
• Pandemic: A pandemic is declared when a new disease for which people do not have immunity spreads around the world beyond expectations.
• Epidemic: An epidemic is a large outbreak, one that spreads among a population or region. It is less severe than pandemic due to a limited area of spread.
• Endemic: A disease is called endemic when the presence or usual prevalence of its infectious agent is constant within a given geographical area or population group.

Key Points

• Description:
• A syndemic is a situation when two or more epidemics interact synergistically to produce an increased burden of disease in a population.
• A situation of syndemic was first described by medical anthropologist Merrill Singer in the mid-1990s.
• Possibility of Syndemic in the Current Scenario:
• Covid-19 Pandemic and Presence of Dengue, Malaria:
• The least possibility of elimination of the Covid-19 pandemic and warning about the second wave of Covid-19 infections worldwide have reinforced the presence of Covid-19 for the long term.
• Meanwhile, the alarm is being raised about diseases like dengue and malaria emerging with the upcoming monsoon season in tropical South Asia.
• Thus, there is a possibility that the world will face an increased burden of the diseases and thus the situation of a syndemic.
• Presence of Antibiotic Resistance:
• The second wave of infection due to Covid-19 is suspected to be seen in those with weakened immunity.
• At the same time, the world already faces antibiotic resistance and if Covid-19 deepens as a syndemic in populations with antibiotic resistance, the world will face comorbidities.
• Comorbidity is the presence of one or more additional conditions co-occurring with a primary condition.
• Antibiotic resistance is the ability of bacteria or other microbes to resist the effects of an antibiotic. Antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria change in some way that reduces or eliminates the effectiveness of drugs, chemicals, or other agents designed to cure or prevent infections.
• Past Instances of Syndemic:
• The 1957 Asian influenza pandemic observed deaths not only due to the primary viral infection but also due to secondary bacterial infections among influenza patients. In short, it was a viral/bacterial syndemic.
• Meanwhile, researchers have shown that in Kenya, 5% of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infections are due to higher HIV infectiousness of malaria-infected HIV patients.
• Possible Solutions:
• The whole world will need to implement large-scale population testing for Covid-19 (such as PCR and antibody testing) to contain it at its base level.
• The societies around the world will also have to consider innovations in population health surveillance technology and develop creative business models at a scale.

Source: The Hindu

9) Objections to Etalin Hydroelectric Project

Recently, some conservationists and former members of the National Board of Wildlife (NBWL) have sought rejection of approval for the Etalin Hydroelectric Project in the Dibang Valley, Arunachal Pradesh.

Key Points

• The Project is based on the river Dibang and is proposed to be completed in 7 years.
• Dibang is a tributary of the Brahmaputra river which flows through the states of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam.
• It envisages the construction of two dams over the tributaries of Dibang: Dir and Tangon.
• The Project falls under the richest bio-geographical province of the Himalayan zone and would be located at the junction of major biogeographic zones like Palaearctic Zone and Indo-Malayan Zone.
• It is expected to be one of the biggest hydropower projects in India in terms of installed capacity.

Biogeographic Regions

• These are the large distinctive units of similar ecology, biome representation, community, and species.
• Originally, six biogeographic regions were identified: Palearctic (Europe and Asia), Nearctic (North America), Neotropical (Mexico, Central, and South America), Ethiopian/Afrotropic (Africa), Oriental/Indo-Malayan (Southeast Asia, Indonesia) and Australian (Australia and New Guinea). Currently, eight are recognized since the addition of Oceania (Polynesia, Fiji, and Micronesia) and Antarctica.

Palaearctic Zone

• This includes arctic and temperate Eurasia and all islands surrounding the continent in the Arctic, in the sea of Japan and the eastern half of the North Atlantic.
• It also includes the Macaronesian islands, Mediterranean North Africa, and Arabia.

Indo-Malayan Zone

• Its natural boundaries contain tropical Asia from the Balochistan mountains of Pakistan eastward to the Indian subcontinent south of the Himalayan crest, including the tropical southern fringe of China with Taiwan, the whole of Southeast Asia, and the Philippines.

Background

• The Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) of the Ministry of Environment Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) highlighted that the project will clear 2.7 lakh trees in a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest and subtropical rainforests.
• According to a sub-committee of FAC, the project may be allowed subject to the condition that the financial outlay of Wildlife Conservation Plan is deposited to the Forest Department by user agency based on a study done by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII).
• However, there were protests by green groups due to which MoEFCC transferred the project to the Union Power Ministry.

Criticism

• Conservationists highlighted that the FAC sub-committee ignored established tenets of forest conservation and related legal issues while recommending the proposal.
• FAC ignored the threat of forest fragmentation.
• Forest fragmentation results from ill-planned intrusion of developmental projects into contiguous landscapes with natural forests and threatens rare floral and faunal species in a biodiversity hotspot.
• FAC’s site inspection report was also questioned for leaving out key details like the number of grids across an altitudinal range inspected and the status of vegetation there, direct and indirect signs of wild animals listed in the various schedules of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and overall appreciation of the ecological value of the area.
• The inadequacy of the Environment Impact Assessment report on Etalin was also highlighted.
• Wildlife officials ignored observations which include the threat to 25 globally endangered mammal and bird species in the area to be affected.
• The proposed mitigation measures like setting up butterfly and reptile parks are inadequate and insufficient.

Source: The Hindu

10) Domicile Certificates in J&K

• Recently, the Jammu and Kashmir administration notified the J&K Grant of Domicile Certificate (Procedure) Rules 2020.
• It amended the rules for issuing domicile certificates in the Union territory.
• The new rules provide a simple time-bound and transparent procedure for issuance of domicile certificates.

Key Points

• J&K Grant of Domicile Certificate (Procedure) Rules 2020:
• It would provide the basis for issuing domicile certificates to those who meet the conditions as stated in the Centre’s gazette notification that introduced the domicile clause through an amendment to the Jammu And Kashmir Civil Services (Decentralisation And Recruitment) Act, 2010.
• Domicile certificates have now been made a basic eligibility condition for appointment to any post under the Union Territory of J&K.
• Under the amended rules, eligible non-locals can also apply for the certificate. The new process will allow West Pakistan refugees, safai karamcharis, and children of women who married non-locals to apply for jobs.
• Domicile: Under Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Adaptation of State Laws) Order 2020, domicile is defined as any person who has resided for 15 years in the UT of J&K or has studied for seven years and appeared in class 10th and 12th examination in an educational institution located in the UT of J&K. It also has provisions related to migrants and government officials. 
• Time Stipulated under the Rules:
• It sets a fast track process in motion to issue the certificates within a stipulated time of 15 days.
• If the certificate is not issued within the stipulated time, the applicant shall be free to approach an appellate authority.
• The decision of the appellate authority shall be binding upon the issuing authority and the orders to comply within 7 days, failing which the defaulting officer has to face a penalty of Rs. 50,000, to be recovered from his/her salary.
• Eligibility:
• Permanent Residents: All Permanent Resident Certificate holders and their children living outside J&K can apply for the certificates.
• Migrants: Kashmiri migrants living in or outside J&K can get domicile certificates by producing their Permanent Residence Certificate (PRC), ration card copy, voter card, or any other valid document.
• Government Officials: Central government officials, All India Service Officers, officials of Public Sector Undertakings, Autonomous bodies of the Central Government, Public Sector Banks, Statutory bodies, Central Universities and recognized research institutes of the Central Government, who have served in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir for a total period of ten years, are eligible for the certificate.

Source: The Hindu

11) Aksai Chin

Recently, Chinese media has accused India of building defense facilities in the Galway Valley region of the contested Aksai Chin area.

Key Points

• China controls the Aksai Chin area, while India claims that it is part of Indian territory (Union territory of Ladakh).
• Chinese media claims that the actions by the Indian side have seriously violated China and India’s agreements on border issues.
• It also claims that India has violated China’s territorial sovereignty and harmed military relations between the two countries.
• India has not responded to the accusation yet.
• The latest round of conflict comes days after Indian and Chinese troops clashed in the Nakula area in north Sikkim and Pangong Tso in eastern Ladakh.
• India and China have an unresolved 3488 km long border dispute that has cast a shadow on ties for decades.
• Prolonged rounds of negotiations have failed to resolve the dispute between the two neighbors.
• However, in the Wuhan and Mahabalipuram summits, both China and India had reaffirmed that they will make efforts to “ensure peace and tranquility in the border areas”.
• Also, on 1st April 2020, India and China completed their 70 years of diplomatic relations.

The dispute over Aksai Chin

• During the time of British rule in India, two borders between India and China were proposed- Johnson’s Line and McDonald Line.
• The Johnson’s line (proposed in 1865) shows Aksai Chin in erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir (now Ladakh) i.e. under India’s control whereas McDonald Line (proposed in 1893) places it under China’s control.
• India considers Johnson Line as a correct, rightful national border with China, while on the other hand, China considers the McDonald Line as the correct border with India.
• At present, Line of Actual Control (LAC) is the line separating Indian areas of Ladakh from Aksai Chin. It is concurrent with the Chinese Aksai Chin claim line.

Source: Indian Express

12) New Super-Earth Planet

• Recently, scientists have discovered a rare new Super-Earth planet. It is among only a handful of extra-solar planets that have been detected with both sizes and orbits close to that of Earth.
• An exoplanet or extrasolar planet is a planet outside the Solar System.

Key Points

• Mass :
• Host Star: The host star of the Super-Earth’s system has about 10% the mass of the Sun. The lower mass of the host star makes a ‘year’ on the planet of approximately 617 days.
• Super-Earth Planet: The planet is expected to have a mass between the Earth’s mass and that of Neptune.
• Orbit:
• Concerning the Solar system, the Super-Earth planet would orbit at a radius anywhere between that of Venus and Earth in our solar system.
• Planet Discovery:
• The Super-Earth planet has been discovered using the gravitational microlensing technique.
• Gravitational microlensing is an astronomical phenomenon due to the gravitational lens effect. It can be used to detect objects that range from the mass of a planet to the mass of a star, regardless of the light they emit.
• The microlensing effect is rare, with only about one in a million stars in the galaxy being affected at any given time.
• Furthermore, such type of observation does not repeat, and the probabilities of catching a planet at the same time are extremely low.
• The other methods for exoplanets discovery include:
• Radial Velocity Method: The planet causes the parent star to wobble around in its orbit, and as the planet moves to and fro, it changes the color of the light we see.
• Transit Method: When an exoplanet passes in front of its star, some of the starlights passes through its atmosphere. Scientists can analyze the colors of this light to get valuable clues about its composition.
• Direct Image Method: The direct image can take pictures of exoplanets by removing the glare of the stars they orbit.
• Astrometry: The orbit of the planet can cause a star to wobble around in spaces about nearby stars in the sky. This method is quite similar to the Radial Velocity method. However, here scientists take a series of images of a star and some of the other stars that are near it in the sky. In each picture, they compare the distances between these reference stars and the star they're checking for exoplanets.

Exoplanet

• An exoplanet or extrasolar planet is a planet outside the Solar System. The first confirmation of the detection of exoplanets occurred in 1992.
• Exoplanets are very hard to see directly with telescopes. They are hidden by the bright glare of the stars they orbit. So, astronomers use other ways to detect and study exoplanets such as looking at the effects these planets have on the stars they orbit.

Source: Indian Express