UPSC Prelims 2016 · Question 16 of 98

UPSC Prelims 2016 question on Mars Orbiter Mission

Consider the following statements: The Mangalyaan launched by ISRO

1. is also called the Mars Orbiter Mission

2. made India the second country to have a spacecraft orbit the Mars after USA

3. made India the only country to be successful in making its spacecraft orbit the Mars in its very first attempt

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 and 3 only
  3. 1 and 3 only
  4. 1, 2 and 3
Show answer

Answer: C. 1 and 3 only

Verdict

The answer is 1 and 3 only. Mangalyaan is the Mars Orbiter Mission and it succeeded at the first attempt, but India was not the second country to orbit Mars.

Analysis

Statement 1 is CORRECT. Mangalyaan is the popular name of the Mars Orbiter Mission, inserted into Mars orbit on 24 September 2014. Statement 3 is CORRECT. It was the first Mars mission in the world to succeed at Mars orbit insertion on the first attempt, and it was also the most economical interplanetary mission of its time. Statement 2 is INCORRECT. Before India, NASA, the Soviet Union and the European Space Agency had all reached Mars successfully, so India was the fourth entity rather than the second.

Source

The Hindu and ISRO material on the Mars Orbiter Mission.

How to crack it

Separate two claims that candidates habitually merge: being first to succeed at the first attempt, which is true, and being second to arrive, which is not. National pride makes the ordering statement feel right, and UPSC exploits exactly that. Whenever a statement asserts a rank, ask who else is in the list before accepting it, and here the European Space Agency is the entity most often forgotten.

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