UPSC Prelims 2020·GS1·science-and-technology·space

"The experiment will employ a trio of spacecraft flying in formation in the shape of an equilateral triangle that has sides one million kilometres long, with lasers shining between the craft." The experiment in question refers to

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UPSC Civil Services preparation
Last updated 8 Jul 2026, 4:39 pm IST
  1. AVoyager-2
  2. BNew Horizons
  3. CLISA Pathfinder
  4. DEvolved LISACorrect

Explanation

The description provided – "The experiment will employ a trio of spacecraft flying in formation in the shape of an equilateral triangle that has sides one million kilometres long, with lasers shining between the craft" – precisely describes the Evolved Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (Evolved LISA) mission. Evolved LISA is a proposed space mission by the European Space Agency (ESA) to detect gravitational waves, particularly those originating from massive black hole mergers or the early universe, that cannot be observed from Earth-based detectors. The three spacecraft will form a giant interferometer in space, using lasers to precisely measure the tiny distortions in spacetime caused by passing gravitational waves. LISA Pathfinder was a precursor mission designed to test the technology required for the full LISA mission, but the description of the large triangular formation with million-kilometer arms refers to the full-scale observatory, Evolved LISA.

science-and-technology: "The experiment will employ a trio of spacecraft flying in formation in the shape of an equilateral triangle that has si
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