Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) surveillance system has recently detected cases of Zika Virus in Jaipur.
Zika virus is a member of the virus family Flaviviridae.
It is a mosquito-borne disease transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes.
It can be passed from a pregnant woman to her fetus. Infection during pregnancy can cause certain birth defects.
Zika infection during pregnancy can cause a birth defect of the brain called microcephaly and other severe brain defects.
It is also linked to other problems, such as miscarriage, stillbirth, and other birth defects.
There is no vaccine or medicine for Zika.
The disease is currently being reported by 86 countries worldwide.
Symptoms of Zika virus disease are similar to other viral infections such as dengue, which include fever, skin rashes, conjunctivitis, muscle and joint pain and headache.
In India, the first outbreak was reported in Ahmedabad in January-February 2017 and 2nd outbreak in Krishnagiri district in Tamil Nadu.
Both were successfully contained through intensive surveillance and vector management.
According to WHO, Zika is no longer a public health emergency of international concern.
Diphtheria
Government hospitals in Delhi has reported a dozen diphtheria deaths in children over the past two weeks.
Diphtheria is a highly contagious respiratory disease caused by the bacterium Corynebacterium diphtheria.
It primarily infects the throat and upper airways and produces a toxin affecting other organs.
The toxin causes a membrane of dead tissue to build up over the throat and tonsils, making breathing and swallowing difficult.
The disease is spread through direct physical contact or from breathing in the coughs or sneezes of infected individuals.
It can be fatal if left untreated, but has become increasingly rare in recent decades due to high rates of vaccination.
Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences
Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences rewards the design of methods that addresses sustainable growth in the global economy and welfare.
It is not formally a Nobel Prize.
It was created by the Swedish central bank “in memory of Alfred Nobel” and first awarded in 1969.
This year, it is awarded to William D. Nordhaus and Paul M.Romer from USA.
Nordhaus is known for persuading governments to address climate change, preferably by imposing a tax on carbon emissions.
Paul M. Romer is known for integrating technological innovations into long-run macro-economic analysis.
Cyclone Luban
Tropical Cyclone Luban is spinning through the Arabian Sea.
It is forecast to track toward Oman, Yemen or the Gulf of Aden in the week ahead.
The cyclone is named as Luban by oman authorities.
Tropical cyclones are most likely to develop in the Arabian Sea in the spring and fall.
It usually affects the Arabian Peninsula every one to two years.
The cyclone typically weaken as they approach the Arabian Peninsula due to dry desert air.
This year, Cyclone Sagar made landfall in western Somalia in May. It was the country's strongest and westernmost tropical cyclone in records dating to the mid-1960s.
Voyager 2
NASA has recently reported that Voyager 2 is nearing heliosphere (Sun's outer border) and could soon enter interstellar space.
Voyager 2 is the space probe launched by NASA in 1977 to study the outer planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune).
Heliopause - The place where the sun’s constant flow of material and magnetic field stop affecting its surroundings.
Heliopause marks the end of a region created by our sun that is called the heliosphere.
The sun creates heliosphere by sending a constant flow of particles and a magnetic field out into space at over 670,000 miles per hour. This stream is called the ‘solar wind.’
Interstellar Space is the part of space that exists between stars with cold particles around it.
Inside the heliosphere, the solar particles are hot but less concentrated. Outside of the bubble, they are very much colder but more concentrated.
Once an object arrive in interstellar space, there would be an increase of “cold” particles around it.
