After Chandrayaan 3, Nasa to study effects of rockets on Moon surface (GS Paper 3, Science and Technology)
Why in news?
- When Chandrayaan-3 landed on the surface of the Moon, it blew away over two tonnes of soil from the lunar surface, NASA is now looking to study the effect of rockets on the surface of the Moon.
Challenges:
- NASA’s ambitious Artemis program has a critical technical challenge to overcome, mastering the complexities of landing on the Moon's surface with larger, more powerful landers than those used during the Apollo missions.
- The Moon's lack of atmosphere and its uneven terrain, littered with craters and boulders, make for a treacherous landing environment.
- The gravitational pull must be counteracted by firing rocket engines during descent, a maneuver that becomes increasingly risky with the larger scale of Artemis landers.
- These engines emit supersonic plumes of hot gas that can kick up dust and debris, potentially obstructing visibility, damaging equipment, and destabilizing the lander itself.
Plume-surface interactions (PSI):
- To address these challenges, NASA researchers at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, have developed sophisticated software tools designed to predict how these engine plumes interact with the lunar regolith.
- Understanding plume-surface interactions (PSI) is crucial for ensuring safety and success of both human and robotic missions.
- These new tools are part of an effort to minimise risks associated with lunar landings and takeoffs. They help predict potential cratering and visual obscuration caused by the intense forces exerted on the Moon's surface.
- This is particularly important as NASA aims to establish a sustained human presence on the Moon, where the stability of landers and the well-being of astronauts are paramount.
Simulations:
- A recent simulation produced by the team at NASA Marshall provided insights into the PSI during the Apollo 12 mission. The simulation, which closely matched the actual events of the landing, was run on the Pleiades supercomputer at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California.
- Over several weeks, it generated terabytes of data, offering a detailed look at the predicted shear stress on the lunar surface during the last half-minute of the lander's descent.
Way Forward:
- The results of these simulations are not just academic exercises; they are being actively used to inform the design and operation of the Human Landing System and other initiatives under the Artemis umbrella.
Govt constitutes committee to draft safety pledge for e-comm platforms
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
Why in news?
- The government has constituted a committee to draft the safety pledge for e-commerce platforms as it seeks to prevent the sale of unsafe goods to consumers through online marketplaces.
- The panel, which includes members from major e-commerce platforms, voluntary consumer associations, industry bodies and National Law Universities, will submit its report in two weeks.
Key Highlights:
- The meeting began with a presentation by the Department of Consumer Affairs, emphasising the importance of safety of goods for consumers and the provisions under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 to prevent the sale of unsafe goods to consumers.
- International examples of safety pledge being implemented in other jurisdictions such as the European Union (EU), Japan, Australia, South Korea, and Canada were also discussed. The sale of safe goods to consumers is among the strong principles of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
- 'Consumer rights' recognized under Section 2(9) of the Act include the right to be protected against the marketing of goods, products or services which are hazardous to life and property. Further, consumer commissions are empowered under the Act to pass directions to entities to not offer hazardous or unsafe goods for sale.
- The department is actively collaborating with the European Commission to adopt best international practices aimed at detecting and preventing the sale of unsafe goods to consumers on online platforms.
- The product safety pledge is a voluntary commitment by online platforms with respect to the safety of goods sold to consumers. The pledge aims to better protect consumers from the risk of purchasing unsafe products available for sale on e-commerce platforms.
- The proposed principles of the safety pledge for e-commerce platforms include detecting and preventing the sale of unsafe products, cooperating with statutory authorities responsible for product safety, raising consumer product safety awareness amongst third-party sellers and empowering consumers on product safety issues.
Way Forward:
- The safety pledge aims to raise standards across all online marketplaces operating in India.
