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  • Current Affairs 26th April 2017

    Updated : 27-Apr-2017

    Current Affairs 26th April 2017 - Important Points

    • NASA launches Super Pressure Balloon launched by - NASA from New Zealand
    • China's first home-built aircraft carrier hit water on - 26th April 2017
    • Union Government takes 10 new Swachh Iconic Places under - Swachh Bharat Mission
    • India and Sri Lanka sign MoU - on Economic Cooperation
    • Manpreet Kaur wins shot put gold at - Asian Grand Prix Athletics Meet
    • World Intellectual Property Day 2017 observed globally on - 26th April 2017

    Current Affairs 26th April 2017 - Details

     NASA launches Super Pressure Balloon launched by - NASA from New Zealand

    The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) successfully launched its football-stadium-sized and heavy-lift Super Pressure Balloon (SPB) from Wanaka, New Zealand on 25th April 2017. The balloon will float for 100 or more days at 110000 feet across the globe in the Southern Hemisphere's mid-latitude band. It will observe a broad swath of the Earth’s atmosphere to detect the UV fluorescence from the deep space cosmic rays coming in from above the sky.

    Important Highlights 

    • The Super Pressure Balloon will detect ultra-high energy cosmic particles from beyond the galaxy as they penetrate the earth's atmosphere.
    • The International Extreme Universe Space Observatory on a Super Pressure Balloon (EUSO-SPB) payload is flying as a mission of possibility. 
    • Flying on the payload is a poppy in commemoration of Anzac Day, a national day of remembrance in New Zealand and Australia.  
    • This Balloon was developed together by NASA and Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility teams.

     China's first home-built aircraft carrier hit water on - 26th April 2017

    China launched its first domestically built aircraft carrier on 26th April 2017, transferring the ship from a dry dock into open water in Dalian, a port city in China’s Liaoning Province. The launch ceremony was held at 9 am in the morning, three days after the 68th anniversary of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy that was on 23rd April 2017.

    Vital Information

    • Fan Changlong,the Vice-Chairman of the powerful Central Military Commission launched ceremony.
    • The carrier, temporarily named Type 001A, is China’s second aircraft carrier after the Liaoning that was refurbished extensively before being commissioned to the PLA Navy in 2012.
    • It is larger than the Liaoning.
    • It is 315 m long and 75 m wide and it has a cruising speed of about 31 knots and a displacement of 70,000 tonnes.
    • It has enough space on the deck for helicopters and other aircrafts.

     Union Government takes 10 new Swachh Iconic Places under - Swachh Bharat Mission

    The Union Government announced 10 Swachh Iconic Places on 25th April 2017 to be taken under the Phase II of Swachh Iconic Places initiative. The announcement was made during second quarter review meeting on the Swachh Iconic Places that was held at Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine in Katra, Jammu and Kashmir. The objective of the Swachh Iconic Places is to make 100 places model Swachh Tourist Destinations that will enhance the experience for visitors from India and abroad.

    The ten new iconic places are:

    1. Gangotri

    2. Yamunotri

    3. Mahakaleshwar Temple, Ujjain

    4. Char Minar, Hyderabad

    5. Church and Convent of St. Francis of Assissi, Goa

    6. Adi Shankaracharya’s abode Kaladi in Ernakulam

    7. Gomateshwar in Shravanbelgola

    8. Baijnath Dham, Devghar

    9. Gaya Tirth in Bihar 

    10. Somnath temple in Gujarat

    The ten iconic places already in first Phase are:

    1. Ajmer Sharif Dargah 

    2. CST Mumbai 

    3. Golden Temple, Amritsar 

    4. Kamakhya Temple, Assam 

    5. Maikarnika Ghat, Varanasi 

    6. Meenakshi Temple, Madurai    

    7. Shri Mata Vaishno Devi, Katra, J&K 

    8. Shree Jagannath Temple, Puri 

    9. The Taj Mahal, Agra 

    10. Tirupati Temple, Tirumala

     India and Sri Lanka sign MoU - on Economic Cooperation

    India and Sri Lanka signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on economic co-operation on 26th April 2017. The agreement was exchanged in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

    This MOU was signed with an aim to finalise an MoU on developing energy and infrastructure projects in Trincomalee, Sri Lanka and will discuss the issue of fishermen between both the countries.

    Moreover, he will also stress for speeding up negotiations for the upgraded Free Trade Agreement ETCA (Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreement) between the two countries.

    Important Highlights of the MoU

    • The MoU proposes Indian investment in port development and oil tank farms in Trincomalee.
    • It calls for setting up of a LNG power plant and terminal, piped gas supply in Sri Lankan capital Colombo.
    • It also focuses to undertake highway and railway projects in north and east of Sri Lanka.

    Manpreet Kaur wins shot put gold at - Asian Grand Prix Athletics Meet

    Indian shot putter Manpreet Kaur clinched a gold medal in the first leg of the Asian Grand Prix Athletics Meet in Jinhua, China on 24th April 2017. Manpreet made her best throw of 18.86 metre, a national record. In 2015, she made a national record after throwing a shot put at the distance of 17.96 metre.

    Interesting Facts

    • Born on 6th July 1990, Manpreet Kaur is an Indian professional Olympic shot putter from Ambala.
    • On 10th January 2013, she won the gold medal in the +75 kg category by lifting an overall weight of 189 kg in National weightlifting championship.
    • With this performance, Manpreet also qualified for the IAAF World Championships to be held in August 2017 in London, UK.
    • With this win, the shot putter also acquired the No 1 spot in the world rankings.

    World Intellectual Property Day 2017 observed globally on - 26th April 2017

    The World Intellectual Property Day 2016 was observed across the world on 26th April 2017 with the theme Innovation – Improving Lives. The theme explores how innovation makes lives safer and more comfortable.

     Interesting Highlights

    • The General Assembly of the WIPO approved the idea of declaring a particular day as a World Intellectual Property Day in October 1999.
    • The WIPO designated 26th April as an annual World Intellectual Property Day to address the perceived gap between Intellectual Property as a business/legal concept and its relevance to people’s lives in 2000.
    • April 26th was specifically chosen as the Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization, first entered into force in 1970 on this date.