5 November 2026
The European Space Agency has released the first close-up image returned by its Hera spacecraft of the asteroid Didymos and its small moon Dimorphos.
The picture was taken from 60 km away by Hera's monochromatic Asteroid Framing Camera, after a two-year flight that had carried the spacecraft 196.8 million km from Earth.
Didymos, about 780 m across, is clearly lit, while the 151 m Dimorphos lies mostly in shadow.
The face of Didymos now in view is the side opposite to the one photographed by the DART spacecraft before it struck Dimorphos in September 2022.
The image shows the equatorial ridge seen earlier along with boulders, craters and possible grooves, and scientists suspect some of the material was thrown about 1 km across from Dimorphos by the DART impact.
That 580 kg impactor, striking at about 6.1 km per second, shortened Dimorphos's orbit around Didymos by roughly 33 minutes, making it the first Solar System body whose orbit humans have measurably changed.
ESA says detailed images of both asteroids are due on 25 November.
Image taken from:
60 km
Didymos diameter:
780 m
Dimorphos diameter:
151 m
Orbit shortened by DART:
About 33 minutes
Why it matters for exams: Planetary defence is a standing science topic. The DART impact and the follow-up Hera mission give a clean set of facts: which agency flies which spacecraft, the names of the asteroid and its moon, and the measured change in orbital period.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
DART Double Asteroid Redirection Test — The NASA mission that deliberately crashed into Dimorphos to test deflecting an asteroid.
Hera ESA planetary defence mission to Didymos — Sent to survey the crash site and measure the mass of Dimorphos after the DART impact.
5 November 2026
Europe's ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter has detected unexpected spikes of hydrogen chloride in the Martian atmosphere above volcanic fissures on the flanks of Alba Mons.
The gas was picked up by the orbiter's Atmospheric Chemistry Suite of infrared spectrometers, appearing in early northern summer and outside the usual seasonal pattern, while the orbiter's CaSSIS camera imaged fresh narrow fissures, some hundreds of metres long, next to colour changes on the ground.
The international research team, led by Alexander Trokhimovskiy, suggests the chlorine is carried up from hot magma below, a sign of volcanism that is dormant rather than dead.
The fissures may channel the gas out as surface ice sublimates at temperatures as low as minus 120 degrees Celsius.
The paper, titled Enigmatic HCl detections as a potential signature of igneous activity on Mars, appeared in Science Advances on 4 November 2026.
The orbiter first reported hydrogen chloride on Mars in 2021.
Mars carries the largest volcanoes in the Solar System, but no eruption or new lava flow has ever been observed there.
Gas detected:
Hydrogen chloride (HCl)
Location:
Fissures on the flanks of Alba Mons
Journal:
Science Advances
Lowest temperature cited:
Minus 120 degrees Celsius
Why it matters for exams: A named orbiter, a named instrument, a named volcano and a named journal in one finding. ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, the Atmospheric Chemistry Suite, CaSSIS and Alba Mons are all exam-ready names, and the point about Mars holding the Solar System's largest volcanoes is standard geography.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Sublimation Solid turning straight into vapour — On Mars surface ice passes directly to vapour without melting, which can push gas out of cracks.
Alba Mons A very broad low volcano on Mars — One of the largest volcanic structures on Mars by area, in the northern hemisphere.
4 November 2026
The World Health Organization has published WHO estimates of the global burden of foodborne diseases 2000-2021, with a separate key findings volume.
The agency estimates that unsafe food caused about 866 million illnesses and about 1.52 million deaths in 2021.
A loss of 57.1 million disability-adjusted life years, the measure that adds years of life lost to years lived in poor health.
The estimates cover 42 biological and chemical hazards across the organisation's 194 member states, which allows the burden to be compared between regions for the first time on a common basis over two decades.
WHO reports substantial regional disparities, and finds that children under five carry a share of the burden far larger than their share of the population, mainly through diarrhoeal disease.
The report is the successor to WHO's earlier global estimates of foodborne disease and is meant to guide national food safety systems and surveillance.
Illnesses in 2021:
About 866 million
Deaths in 2021:
About 1.52 million
DALYs lost:
57.1 million
Hazards counted:
42, across 194 member states
Why it matters for exams: Food safety is a recurring health and governance topic, and this gives the authoritative global numbers with the publishing body named. DALY as a measure, the count of 194 WHO member states and the under-five share of the burden are all standard question material.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
DALY Disability-adjusted life year — One DALY is one year of healthy life lost, adding early death to time lived with illness.
Foodborne disease Illness carried by food or drink — Caused by bacteria, viruses, parasites, toxins or chemicals present in what is eaten.
4 November 2026
The European Space Agency has taken its MetOp Second Generation-B1 weather satellite out of its transport container and moved it into a cleanroom at the spaceport in Kourou, where the team will switch it on, run final checks and fuel it before it is enclosed in the Ariane 6 fairing.
The satellite is the product of more than 12 years of development.
It left Bordeaux on 6 October 2026 aboard the sail-assisted transport vessel Canopée and reached Kourou on 16 October, travelling in a container held at a steady 22 degrees Celsius under nitrogen.
Launch is planned for the end of 2026 on an Ariane 6 rocket, after which it will work alongside its sibling MetOp-SG-A1, launched in August 2025.
The two satellites of a pair carry complementary instrument suites that measure temperature, precipitation, clouds and winds.
ESA says the MetOp-SG programme is built around three successive pairs of satellites, designed to supply weather and climate data for more than 20 years.
Launch vehicle:
Ariane 6
Sibling satellite:
MetOp-SG-A1, launched August 2025
Transport vessel:
Canopée, Bordeaux to Kourou
Programme design life:
Three satellite pairs, data for more than 20 years
Why it matters for exams: Weather satellite families and the launch vehicles that carry them are frequent one-mark facts. MetOp-SG, the Kourou spaceport, the Ariane 6 launcher and the three-pair design with more than 20 years of data are all namable.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Cleanroom A dust-controlled assembly hall — Satellites are prepared in filtered air so particles do not settle on optics and instruments.
Kourou Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana — The launch site from which Ariane and Vega rockets fly.
5 November 2026
The World Health Organization has brought out Primary health care-oriented responses for migrants, refugees and displaced populations. It is the eighth report in the agency's Global Evidence Review on Health and Migration series, known by the short form GEHM. The review gathers the published evidence on what happens when care for people on the move is delivered through ordinary primary health care rather than through separate parallel services. It finds that such care becomes easier to reach, better joined up and more continuous, and that the gains are largest where services are culturally appropriate and the communities concerned take part in running them. Even countries that had put only part of the approach in place saw benefits, though full coverage and steady financing remained difficult. The review also marks out what is still not known: little research comes from low and middle income countries, some migrant groups are barely studied, and long term or system wide outcomes are rarely measured. The document runs to 111 pages. WHO offers it as a guide for health ministries designing services for migrants, refugees and displaced people.
Series:
Global Evidence Review on Health and Migration (GEHM)
Report in series:
Eighth
Length:
111 pages
Publisher:
World Health Organization
Why it matters for exams: Health and migration is a set topic, and this item fixes a namable series and its abbreviation. GEHM, the number of the report in the series, and the idea of delivering migrant care through primary health care instead of parallel services are all clean question material.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
GEHM Global Evidence Review on Health and Migration — A WHO series that gathers research evidence on the health of people who move across borders.
Primary health care First level of care close to where people live — Everyday health services such as clinics and health centres, meant to cover prevention and treatment together.
5 November 2026
The Food and Agriculture Organization has opened the first Global Pollinator Conference at its headquarters in Rome, with sittings running to 6 November. Director-General QU Dongyu opened the meeting and asked for concrete actions that show results in the fields rather than further declarations. The organisation points out that about 75 per cent of the world's most important food crops depend on pollination, which ties bees, butterflies, birds and bats directly to food security. Delegates are working towards a proposed Global Pollinator Platform, for which FAO members have given a mandate through the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. FAO also supports the International Pollinator Initiative, which sits under the Convention on Biological Diversity. Slovenia was singled out for its lead in pollinator conservation, and its President Natasa Pirc Musar sent a video message to the opening, as did Astrid Schomaker, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity. The wildlife filmmaker and National Geographic Explorer Bertie Gregory also spoke.
Venue:
FAO headquarters, Rome
Crops relying on pollination:
About 75 per cent of the most important food crops
Proposed body:
Global Pollinator Platform
Country commended:
Slovenia
Why it matters for exams: A first-ever conference, a named host city, a named Director-General and a 75 per cent figure make this easy to examine. The Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture and the International Pollinator Initiative under the Convention on Biological Diversity are both institutions worth knowing.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Pollination Transfer of pollen that lets plants set seed and fruit — Carried out largely by insects, birds and bats, so losing them lowers crop yields.
CBD Convention on Biological Diversity — The treaty on conserving biological diversity, under which the International Pollinator Initiative sits.
5 November 2026
The World Meteorological Organization has carried the seasonal outlook for the 2026-2027 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season, issued by the Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre at La Reunion, which Meteo-France runs. The outlook puts the probability of a below-normal season at 70 per cent, with 6 to 10 named storms expected, of which 3 to 5 would reach tropical cyclone strength. An average season in this basin brings 10 named storms including 5 tropical cyclones, so the forecast is for roughly two-thirds of the usual count. Tropical Storm Agueda, which formed in October, is counted within the total. Forecasters attribute the quieter outlook to an exceptionally strong El Nino expected to peak in November or December 2026 and to last into early 2027, helped by a negative Subtropical Indian Ocean Dipole. Rainfall from November to January is expected to be above normal over Tanzania, northern Madagascar, Comoros and parts of Seychelles, and below normal over southern and central Mozambique and western Madagascar. Parts of South Africa and southern Madagascar are placed in the normal to below-normal band. The Mascarene Islands are expected to see near-normal rain to January and above-normal rain from February to April 2027.
Probability of below-normal season:
70 per cent
Named storms forecast:
6 to 10, of which 3 to 5 tropical cyclones
Basin average:
10 named storms, 5 tropical cyclones
Issuing centre:
RSMC La Reunion, run by Meteo-France
Why it matters for exams: Cyclone basins, the centres that name storms in them and the effect of El Nino are standing geography questions. La Reunion as the regional specialised meteorological centre for the South-West Indian Ocean, run by Meteo-France, is the durable fact here, along with the basin's average of 10 named storms.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
RSMC Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre — A WMO-designated centre responsible for tracking and naming cyclones in one ocean basin.
El Nino Warm phase of the Pacific ocean-atmosphere cycle — A warming of the central and eastern tropical Pacific that shifts rainfall and storm patterns worldwide.
6 November 2026
The International Labour Organization has drawn attention to its study Trends in remuneration and working time: Recorded media and live performance, which covers recorded music, film, television, concerts, theatre and festivals. The study reports that median monthly earnings vary widely between the countries examined, and cautions that survey figures are only indicative because income from several jobs and from royalties and residuals is often missed. In cultural employment in the European Union, women's average gross hourly earnings were 13.5 per cent below men's in 2022. Much of the work in these sectors is not counted as working time at all: rehearsals, travel, setting up and post-production may be paid separately, folded into a fixed fee, or simply not recorded. Irregular schedules and long hours carry consequences for occupational safety and health. Streaming has opened international audiences, but the chains of rights and payments make it hard to trace how a work is used and how the revenue is shared, while artificial intelligence speeds up editing and subtitling and at the same time raises questions of consent, attribution and pay. The ILO lists better data on earnings and hours, clearer contracts, more predictable schedules and skills development as priorities, and points to collective bargaining as the route to workable answers. Dagmar Walter, Director of the ILO's Sectoral Policies Branch, said audiences see the finished film or performance but not the work and investment behind it.
Gender pay gap, EU cultural employment:
13.5 per cent in 2022
Sectors covered:
Recorded music, film, television, concerts, theatre, festivals
Priorities listed:
Better data, clearer contracts, predictable schedules, skills
Quoted official:
Dagmar Walter, Director, Sectoral Policies Branch
Why it matters for exams: The ILO as the UN body for labour standards, the gender pay gap figure for cultural employment in the European Union, and collective bargaining as the ILO's preferred route are all usable facts. The item also gives a sectoral example of unpaid or unrecorded working time.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Residuals Later payments for reuse of a performance — Money owed to performers and crew when a work is shown again or licensed afresh.
Collective bargaining Negotiation between workers' and employers' organisations — Terms of work settled by agreement between the two sides rather than individually.
5 November 2026
Myrian Salinas has been named the national winner of the Global Teacher Prize Chile for 2026, UNESCO has reported. She was first recognised in the early childhood education category and then chosen as the national winner. Salinas directs the early childhood centre Un Mundo de Amor at Puente Alto, and the award recognises her work with young children and with the communities around her centre. More than 5,000 nominations of teachers and educators came in from across the country for this edition. The prize is organised by Elige Educar, a Chilean organisation that works on the teaching profession, with support from UNESCO. UNESCO frames the award as a way of raising the standing of teaching as a profession and of drawing attention to the people who do it. Recognition of an early childhood educator is notable because that stage of schooling is often left out of national teaching awards.
Winner:
Myrian Salinas
Centre she directs:
Un Mundo de Amor, Puente Alto
Nominations received:
More than 5,000
Organiser:
Elige Educar, with UNESCO support
Why it matters for exams: Awards and the bodies behind them are standard one-mark material. Here the facts are the name of the prize, its Chilean organiser Elige Educar, UNESCO's supporting role, the winner's name and the early childhood stage she works in.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Early childhood education Schooling before primary school — Care and learning for children in their first years, before formal primary classes begin.