17 October 2026
European Union leaders pledged continued support for Ukraine at a European Council summit in Brussels on 16 October 2026, the second and final day of the summit.
European Council President Antonio Costa said it was no time to withdraw support from Ukraine and urged the Union to increase support and pressure on Russia, adding that it was no time to ease sanctions.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy asked the European Union for an additional 70 billion euros, equal to about 79 billion dollars, for next year, and said the war would cost 155 billion euros, about 174 billion dollars, in that year.
Air defence systems topped his list of requests.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pledged continued support through the winter, while Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker urged caution about new far-reaching financial commitments.
Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal said the Union would probably need to provide a new loan to cover Ukraine's budget gap next year.
Russian strikes killed three people in Kharkiv and left hundreds of thousands without power.
Summit venue and date:
Brussels, 16 October 2026
Additional funding sought:
70 billion euros (about 79 billion dollars)
Stated cost of the war next year:
155 billion euros (about 174 billion dollars)
European Council President:
Antonio Costa
Why it matters for exams: The European Council is distinct from the European Commission and the Council of the EU, and this summit shows each presidency at work.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
European Council European Council — The EU institution of heads of state or government that sets the Union's political direction; it does not pass laws.
17 October 2026
Three wildfires were burning in Southern California as of 16 October 2026, driven by Santa Ana winds of 55 to 90 kilometres an hour in coastal areas.
The Norte Fire began in San Clemente in Orange County and spread into San Juan Capistrano. The Orange County Fire Authority put it at about 188 hectares and Cal Fire at about 231 hectares by the evening.
At least six homes were damaged or destroyed in the San Juan Capistrano area, and about 6,000 homes and 16,000 residents were under evacuation orders, with a shelter opened in each city.
The Bryson Fire, which broke out on the outskirts of the Malibu beach community in Los Angeles County, had burned about 59 hectares and was 17 per cent contained.
The Henderson Fire in San Diego County had burned about 842 hectares and was 20 per cent contained, affecting Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton and prompting freeway closures.
Tens of thousands of people in Los Angeles County lost power as authorities tried to reduce the risk of sparks from the wind.
High heat and low humidity were expected to last through Saturday night.
Residents under evacuation orders:
About 16,000
Homes under evacuation orders:
About 6,000
Henderson Fire area and containment:
About 842 hectares, 20 per cent contained
Wind speeds:
55 to 90 km/h in coastal areas
Why it matters for exams: Santa Ana winds are a named regional wind, and the containment-percentage vocabulary of wildfire reporting is worth knowing.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Santa Ana winds Santa Ana winds — Hot, dry winds that blow from inland deserts towards the Southern California coast and spread wildfires.
Containment Containment percentage — The share of a fire's perimeter that firefighters have enclosed with a control line.
17 October 2026
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman has named Stephen Cash director of the Marshall Space Flight Center at Huntsville, Alabama, in a release issued on 16 October 2026.
The appointment takes effect on Monday, 19 October 2026.
Cash succeeds Rae Ann Meyer, who had been acting centre director since September 2025 and who returns to the post of deputy centre director.
Cash began his NASA career at Marshall in 1982 and spent 34 years with the agency. He managed Marshall's Space Shuttle Propulsion Office and from 2011 until his retirement in 2016 directed its Safety and Mission Assurance Directorate.
He later worked in industry as vice-president for advanced space systems at Axient, and in 2024 was inducted into the Alabama Engineering Hall of Fame.
Marshall was established in 1960, is called NASA's Center of Excellence for propulsion, and has more than 5,000 civil service and contractor employees.
It develops the Space Launch System rocket, manages the Human Landing System Program for Artemis, and developed the Saturn rockets of the Apollo era.
Centre and location:
Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Alabama
Established:
1960
Appointment effective:
19 October 2026
Workforce:
More than 5,000
Why it matters for exams: Marshall's founding year, its Apollo and Artemis roles and the SLS rocket are frequently asked space-programme facts.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
SLS Space Launch System — NASA's heavy-lift rocket developed for the Artemis Moon missions.
Artemis Artemis programme — NASA's programme to return astronauts to the Moon and build a sustained presence there.
17 October 2026
NASA has announced two spacewalks that will complete the power upgrade of the International Space Station.
In spacewalk 100, on 29 October 2026, NASA astronaut Anil Menon and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Joshua Kutryk will exit the Quest airlock to install and deploy the seventh International Space Station Roll-Out Solar Array on the 2A electrical power channel.
In spacewalk 101, on 5 November 2026, the same pair will install the eighth and final array on the 3B channel.
With all eight arrays in place, available power rises by up to 30 per cent, taking the station's electric power generation capacity from 160 kilowatts to about 215 kilowatts.
The extra power is intended for critical station operations, including the station's safe and controlled deorbit.
These will be the 285th and 286th spacewalks conducted in support of station assembly, maintenance and upgrades.
NASA will hold a preview news conference at the Johnson Space Center in Houston at 2 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on 20 October 2026.
Spacewalk 100:
29 October 2026, seventh IROSA on channel 2A
Spacewalk 101:
5 November 2026, eighth IROSA on channel 3B
Power capacity after upgrade:
From 160 kilowatts to about 215 kilowatts
Spacewalk numbers in station history:
285th and 286th
Why it matters for exams: The ISS power figures, the Quest airlock and the station's planned deorbit are precise, examinable space facts.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
IROSA International Space Station Roll-Out Solar Array — A flexible solar array that unrolls from a canister instead of unfolding on rigid panels.
Airlock Airlock — A sealed chamber through which astronauts pass between the pressurised station and space.
17 October 2026
On World Food Day, 16 October 2026, with the theme Innovate today, nourish tomorrow, compiled United Nations data set out the scale of global hunger and food waste.
The United Nations annual State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report says 645 million people, or 7.8 per cent of the world population, were hungry in 2025, down from 8.1 per cent in 2024 and a peak of 8.6 per cent in 2022, but about 61 million more than in 2019.
Africa has 309 million undernourished people, about one in five, and nearly half the world's hungry; Asia has 292 million and Latin America and the Caribbean 32 million.
United Nations Environment Programme data for 2022 show shops, restaurants and households wasted about 1.05 billion tonnes of food, almost a fifth of the food available to consumers; households accounted for 60 per cent, restaurants and food services 28 per cent and shops 12 per cent.
The Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that about 13 per cent of food is lost after harvest and before reaching shops, worth over 400 billion dollars a year.
The global average waste is about 132 kg per person a year, of which 79 kg is wasted at home; the Maldives is highest at about 260 kg per person and Spain among the lowest at about 39 kg or less.
Food loss and waste costs the global economy more than one trillion dollars a year, uses about 1.4 billion hectares or 28 per cent of the world's agricultural land, and generates an estimated 8 to 10 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
World Food Day 2026 theme:
Innovate today, nourish tomorrow
Hungry people in 2025:
645 million (7.8 per cent)
Food wasted by shops, restaurants and households, 2022:
About 1.05 billion tonnes
Highest per-capita food waste:
Maldives, about 260 kg per person
Share of global greenhouse gas emissions:
8 to 10 per cent
Why it matters for exams: World Food Day, the State of Food Security report and the per-capita waste leaders are directly askable report-and-index facts.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Food loss Food loss — Food lost after harvest and before it reaches retail, distinct from waste at shops and homes.
UNEP United Nations Environment Programme — The UN body that compiles the Food Waste Index.
17 October 2026
European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot has completed her first mission to the International Space Station, named epsilon, flown as part of Crew-12.
She launched on 13 February 2026 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.
Splashdown took place on 8 October 2026 at 15:34 GMT, and she reached Cologne in Germany on 10 October 2026 at 04:21 GMT.
The mission lasted 237 days, 5 hours and 18 minutes.
Her crewmates were NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrei Fedyaev.
She worked on 35 European payloads for about 218 hours, completed all epsilon-specific experiments proposed by the French space agency CNES, and completed all the ESA experiments assigned to her.
She is recovering at ESA's European Astronaut Centre in Cologne.
Mission name:
epsilon, flown as part of Crew-12
Launch:
13 February 2026, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
Duration:
237 days, 5 hours and 18 minutes
European payloads worked on:
35, for about 218 hours
Why it matters for exams: Mission duration, the spacecraft used and the agencies that fly together are directly askable space-programme facts.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
CNES Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales — France's national space agency, which proposed the mission-specific experiments.
Splashdown Splashdown — The landing of a spacecraft in the sea, used by the SpaceX Dragon capsule.
17 October 2026
Most G20 finance ministers and central bank governors met in Bangkok on 15 October 2026, alongside the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank held in the city from 12 to 18 October.
IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and World Bank Group President Ajay Banga attended.
United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who is also the G20 chair, did not attend; the United States was represented by Deputy Secretary Francis Brooke and Undersecretary for International Affairs Erin Browne.
The G20 brings together 19 large economies plus the European Union and the African Union, was established in 1999, and its members account for about 85 per cent of global GDP and three-quarters of global trade.
Crude oil has stayed above 100 dollars a barrel for much of the past eight months, and government debt exceeds 100 per cent of GDP in the United States, Canada, Japan, Italy and France.
China's cumulative trade surplus was 938 billion dollars in September 2026.
The previous G20 finance meeting, at Asheville in North Carolina from 31 August to 1 September 2026, ended without a joint communique. The leaders' summit is set for Miami on 14 and 15 December 2026.
Meeting venue and date:
Bangkok, 15 October 2026
G20 established:
1999
Share of global GDP:
About 85 per cent
China's cumulative trade surplus, September 2026:
938 billion dollars
Leaders' summit:
Miami, 14-15 December 2026
Why it matters for exams: G20 membership, its founding year and its share of world output are standard one-mark facts, and the venue chain is often asked.
Kerala PSCUPSCBank
In plain words
Communique Joint communique — The agreed closing statement of a multilateral meeting; its absence signals disagreement.
Trade surplus Trade surplus — The amount by which a country's exports exceed its imports.
17 October 2026
The Vatican has said Pope Leo XIV will deliver the traditional noontime prayer on Sunday, his first public appearance since surgery.
The 71-year-old Pope, elected in May 2025, was diagnosed with lung cancer, and surgery on 13 October 2026 removed part of his right lung.
Doctors said the operation was completed successfully without complications. They have not disclosed the tumour's size or whether the cancer had spread to nearby lymph nodes.
In a medical update on 16 October 2026, doctors said he can now carry out normal daily activities with full independence, and that a blood test and chest X-ray confirmed steady improvement.
The Vatican released the first images since the surgery, showing him celebrating Mass and standing unaided at the Gemelli hospital in Rome.
He continued working from hospital, including a telephone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin in which, according to the Vatican, he urged a ceasefire to allow aid and food into Oleshky, a Russian-occupied town in Ukraine.
He is scheduled to visit Uruguay, Argentina and Peru from 6 to 17 November 2026.
Surgery date:
13 October 2026
Elected Pope:
May 2025
Hospital:
Gemelli hospital, Rome
South America visit:
Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, 6-17 November 2026
Why it matters for exams: The papacy's current occupant, his election year and his travel schedule are frequently asked persons-in-news items.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Lymph nodes Lymph nodes — Small glands of the lymphatic system; whether cancer has reached them strongly affects prognosis.
Background
The Patent Cooperation Treaty, administered by WIPO, currently has 159 Contracting States. A single international patent application successfully filed under the PCT has the same legal effect as filing separate patent applications in all Contracting States. The treaty establishes a cost-effective means for companies and innovators to seek patent protection for inventions in multiple countries. It also greatly facilitates the processing and examination of international applications by national patent Offices. And it provides the general public with access to the technical disclosures contained in international applications, so that published applications become a searchable record of invention. Applications and related business can be handled through WIPO's ePCT service, and the PCT Applicant's Guide sets out the procedure for filers.
Contracting States:
159
Effect of a PCT filing:
The same legal effect as separate applications in all Contracting States
Administered by:
WIPO
Electronic filing service:
ePCT
Why it matters for exams: Intellectual property questions turn on which treaty does what, and the PCT is the one that makes a single filing count in every contracting state.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
PCT Patent Cooperation Treaty — A WIPO treaty under which one international application has effect in all its contracting states.
WIPO World Intellectual Property Organization — The United Nations agency for intellectual property, which administers the PCT.
Contracting State Contracting State — A country bound by a treaty, in whose territory the treaty's provisions apply.
Background
The Dispute Settlement Understanding is the main World Trade Organization agreement on settling disputes. The General Council convenes as the Dispute Settlement Body to deal with disputes between WTO members. Appeals are handled by the permanent seven-member Appellate Body, which is set up by the Dispute Settlement Body and broadly represents the range of WTO membership; it has ruled on WTO disputes since its establishment in 1995. A request for consultations is the first stage in the dispute settlement process, and as of end-2024 WTO members had submitted 631 such requests. There are also various ways to solve disputes within the WTO framework without recourse to panels and the Appellate Body. The WTO Analytical Index is the reference guide to how the Appellate Body, dispute settlement panels and other WTO bodies have interpreted and applied the WTO agreements, and the Appellate Body Repertory of Reports and Awards collects its rulings.
Main agreement:
Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU)
Body that handles disputes:
The General Council convening as the Dispute Settlement Body
Appellate Body:
Permanent, seven members
Appellate Body established:
1995
Requests for consultations:
631 as of end-2024
Why it matters for exams: The Dispute Settlement Body is the General Council in another role, and that overlap together with the seven-member Appellate Body is a favourite trap.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
DSU Dispute Settlement Understanding — The WTO agreement that lays down the procedure for settling trade disputes between members.
Appellate Body Appellate Body — The standing seven-member body that hears appeals against WTO dispute panel reports.
Background
The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, known as MARPOL, is the main international convention covering prevention of pollution of the marine environment by ships from operational or accidental causes. It was adopted on 2 November 1973 at IMO, but had not yet entered into force when the Protocol of 1978, adopted in response to a spate of tanker accidents in 1976-1977, absorbed the parent Convention; the combined instrument entered into force on 2 October 1983. MARPOL currently includes six technical Annexes, and Special Areas with strict controls on operational discharges are included in most Annexes. Annex I on oil and Annex II on noxious liquid substances in bulk both entered into force on 2 October 1983, and the 1992 amendments to Annex I made double hulls mandatory for new oil tankers. Annex V on garbage, in force from 31 December 1988, imposes a complete ban on the disposal into the sea of all forms of plastics. Annex VI on air pollution was added by a Protocol adopted in 1997 and entered into force on 19 May 2005; it sets limits on sulphur oxide and nitrogen oxide emissions from ship exhausts and prohibits deliberate emissions of ozone depleting substances.
Convention adopted:
2 November 1973
Combined instrument entered into force:
2 October 1983
Technical Annexes:
Six
Annex VI entered into force:
19 May 2005
Annex V on garbage:
Complete ban on disposal into the sea of all forms of plastics
Why it matters for exams: Which annexe covers what, and the gap between adoption in 1973 and entry into force in 1983, are the two things examiners test on MARPOL.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
MARPOL International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships — The IMO treaty, with six technical annexes, that regulates pollution from ships.
Special Area Special Area — A sea area given stricter controls on operational discharges under a MARPOL annexe.