{"id":2432,"date":"2025-05-02T12:29:50","date_gmt":"2025-05-02T06:59:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/?p=2432"},"modified":"2025-05-02T12:29:52","modified_gmt":"2025-05-02T06:59:52","slug":"q-with-reference-to-radioisotope-thermoelectric-generators-rtgs-consider-the-following-statements","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/upsc\/q-with-reference-to-radioisotope-thermoelectric-generators-rtgs-consider-the-following-statements","title":{"rendered":"Q. With reference to radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs), consider the following statements :"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
    \n
  1. RTGs are miniature\u00a0fission reactors<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. RTGs are used for powering the onboard systems of spacecrafts.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. RTGs can use Plutonium-238, which is a by-product of weapons development.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Which of the statements given above are correct?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • 1 and 2 only<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • 2 and 3 only<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • 1 and 3 only<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • 1, 2 and 3<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
      \n

      Answer: (b) 2 and 3 only<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

      Radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs):<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
        \n
      • Radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) are power sources\u00a0that convert the heat released by radioactive decay into electricity<\/strong>. They are commonly\u00a0used in space missions to power spacecraft, especially in deep space where solar power is insufficient<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • RTGs work by\u00a0using radioactive materials like plutonium-238<\/strong>\u00a0or Strontium-90<\/strong>, which naturally decay and emit heat. This\u00a0heat is then converted into electricity<\/strong>\u00a0through thermocouples.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • RTGs are usually the most desirable power source for unmaintained situations that need a\u00a0few hundred watts (or less) of power for durations too long for fuel cells, batteries, or generators to provide economically, and in places where solar cells are not practical<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Sometimes referred to as \u201cnuclear batteries<\/strong>,\u201d RTGs are\u00a0not fission reactors<\/strong>, nor is the plutonium the type that is used for nuclear weapons.<\/mark><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Applications:<\/strong>\n
          \n
        • RTGs are used in a variety of space missions, including:\n
            \n
          • Interplanetary probes:<\/strong>\u00a0Voyager 1 and 2, Cassini, and New Horizons.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Lunar missions:<\/strong>\u00a0Apollos 12 and 14-17, China\u2019s Chang\u2019e landers.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Martian rovers:<\/strong>\u00a0Viking 1 and 2, Curiosity.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Advantages<\/strong>:\n
              \n
            • Long-lasting power:<\/strong>\u00a0RTGs can provide reliable power for decades, making them ideal for long-duration missions.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            • No moving parts:<\/strong>\u00a0This simplifies their design and increases their reliability, as they are less prone to mechanical failure.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            • Independence from solar power:<\/strong>\u00a0RTGs can provide power in areas with low or no sunlight, such as deep space or shadowed regions of planets.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            • Disadvantages:<\/strong>\n
                \n
              • Radioactive material:<\/strong>\u00a0The use of radioactive material raises safety concerns, especially during launch and reentry.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
              • Cost:<\/strong>\u00a0RTGs are generally more expensive than other power sources, such as solar panels.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
              • Heat dissipation:<\/strong>\u00a0RTGs generate a significant amount of heat, which needs to be managed to prevent overheating and damage to the surrounding components.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                Which of the statements given above are correct? Answer: (b) 2 and 3 only Radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs):<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1,3],"tags":[44],"years":[49],"class_list":["post-2432","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-upsc","category-prelims","tag-science-and-tech","years-49"],"acf":[],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":1,"label":"UPSC"},{"value":3,"label":"Prelims"}],"post_tag":[{"value":44,"label":"Science and Tech"}],"years":[{"value":49,"label":"2024"}]},"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":{"display_name":"LotusArise","author_link":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/author\/team-lotusarise"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":1,"name":"UPSC","slug":"upsc","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":1269,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":1,"category_count":1269,"category_description":"","cat_name":"UPSC","category_nicename":"upsc","category_parent":0},{"term_id":3,"name":"Prelims","slug":"prelims","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":1,"count":1251,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":3,"category_count":1251,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Prelims","category_nicename":"prelims","category_parent":1}],"tag_info":[{"term_id":44,"name":"Science and Tech","slug":"science-and-tech","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":44,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":167,"filter":"raw"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2432","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2432"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2432\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2432"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2432"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2432"},{"taxonomy":"years","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/years?post=2432"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}