Current Affairs 11 December 2025
Aditya L-1
- It is first space based observatory class Indian solar mission to study the Sun.
- Launched on September 2023 on board PSLV C57.
- Placed in a halo orbit around Lagrangian point 1 (L1) of Sun-Earth system, about 1.5 million km from Earth.
- L1 point offers continuous view of Sun without any occultation/eclipses.
- Has 7 distinct payloads including Visible Emission Line Coronagraph; Solar Low Energy X-ray Spectrometer; Plasma Analyser Package for Aditya; etc.
Brazil (Capital: Brasília)
- Political Features
- It is the 5th largest country in the world.
- Location: Eastern part of South America.
- Borders: It borders every South American country except Chile and Ecuador.
- Coastline: Atlantic coastline on its eastern side.
- Geographical Features
- Natural Resources: Gold, bauxite, diamonds, platinum, iron, tin, coal, and several other minerals
- Major Mountains: Pico da Neblina (Highest)
- Major Rivers: Amazon, Parana etc.
Penguins
- Groups of seabirds belonging to Spheniscidae family.
- Consists of 17 to 19 species of birds found primarily in Southern Hemisphere.
- Includes blue penguins of Australia and New Zealand, emperor penguins of Antarctica, African penguins, etc.
- Characteristics: Despite being birds, they have flippers instead of wings and cannot fly.
- They waddle on land, walking upright under right snow conditions and are expert swimmers.
- Have black body with white belly helping them camouflage in water while searching for meals, mainly small shrimp, fish, crabs, and squid.
CITES
- International agreement ensuring international trade in wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival.
- Although legally binding, it does not take the place of national laws.
- Lists species in three appendices based on their degree of protection.
- Enforcement: July 01, 1975.
- Parties: 185 (Including India).
What is PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana?
- About: Launched in February 2024 by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), it is the world’s largest domestic rooftop solar initiative, aiming to provide free electricity to households by installing rooftop solar panels.
- Implementation is done by the National Programme Implementation Agency (NPIA) at the national level and by State Implementation Agencies (SIA) at the state level.
- Objectives: The scheme offers up to 300 units of free electricity per month, targeting 1 crore households by March 2027. Installation milestones include 10 lakh by March 2025, 20 lakh by October 2025, and 40 lakh by March 2026.
Benin witnessed a failed military coup attempt by a group of soldiers (Military Committee for Refoundation (CMR)) who briefly claimed to remove President Patrice Talon from office.
- The coup attempt comes amid a wave of military takeovers in West Africa, including Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali, Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau, heightening regional instability
- Benin and its Borders: Benin is situated in West Africa, it shares borders with Togo (west), Nigeria (east), Burkina Faso (northwest), and Niger (north).
- Benin has a coastline along the Bight of Benin, part of the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean.
- Rivers: The Niger River forms part of Benin’s northern boundary.
- Mountains: Benin is dominated by the Atakora Mountains in the northwest, a continuation of the Togo Mountains.
- Political Structure: Benin is a Presidential Republic with a multi-party democratic system.