General Awareness · Physics

Space Exploration and Astronomy

3,952 Questions

Review significant milestones in space exploration, including artificial satellites, reusable space shuttles, and historic lunar landings. This topic also covers astronomical phenomena and telescopic observations. Such scientific general knowledge is commonly tested in SSC, railways, and banking examinations.

Space shuttle missionsArtificial satellitesLunar and planetary landingsSpace telescopes and observatories

Space Exploration and Astronomy Questions

Multiple choice

The first spaceship to hit the moon was

  1. Surveyor -3

  2. Luna-II

  3. Columbus -IV

  4. Apollo-II
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Luna 2 was the first spacecraft to reach the surface of the Moon, impacting it on September 14, 1959.

Multiple choice

Which is a launching center of EU Space Agency?

  1. Sriharikota

  2. Kouro

  3. Hammaguir

  4. Alcantara
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The European Space Agency's primary launching center is Kourou (spelled 'Kouro' in the question) in French Guiana. Sriharikota is India's center, Hammaguir is France's former center in Algeria, and Alcantara is Brazil's center.

Multiple choice

Satellites which are used in telecommunication are

  1. geosynchronous

  2. planet-synchronous

  3. sun-synchronous

  4. star-synchronous
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Geosynchronous satellites orbit at the same speed as the Earth's rotation, making them ideal for telecommunications as they remain fixed relative to a point on the ground.

Multiple choice

Kalpna Chawla died in the space mission on

  1. 1st Jan., 2003

  2. 5th Feb., 2003

  3. 3rd Feb., 2003

  4. 1st Feb., 2003
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Kalpana Chawla, the first woman of Indian origin in space, tragically died on February 1, 2003, when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated upon re-entering the Earth's atmosphere.

Multiple choice

Shenzhou-7 is

  1. newly discovered strains of virus

  2. a supercomputer developed in Japan

  3. a super sharp earth imaging satellite

  4. third Chinese manned space mission
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Shenzhou-7 was the third human spaceflight mission of the People's Republic of China, launched in September 2008, which included China's first spacewalk.

Multiple choice

Which of the following space shuttles was/were phased out by the US government by the end of 2010?

I. Atlantis II. Discovery III. Endeavor

  1. I only

  2. I and II only

  3. II and III only

  4. III and I only

  5. (I), II and (III)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
E Correct answer
Explanation

Space shuttle Atlantis on May 14, 2010 lifted off from the Kennedy Space Centre, Cape Canaveral in Florida on its last scheduled mission to the International Space Station (ISS), signalling the beginning of the end of the three-decade American programme. The Obama administration has decided to wind up the space shuttle programme. By November 2010, the last of the two shuttles, Discovery and Endeavor will carry payloads to the ISS and will then be phased out.

Multiple choice

Which of the following planets is the destination of the 'Akatsuki' mission of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)?

  1. Mars

  2. Neptune

  3. Mercury

  4. Venus

  5. Jupiter
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

A Japanese rocket blasted off on May 21, 2010 and successfully launched a Planet-C Venus Climate Orbiter named 'Akatsuki' and a kite-shaped space yacht called 'Ikaros'.   The   Orbiter   is   expected   to   reach   Venus   in December 2010.