QUESTION PYQ 16
GS3
15 marks
What are asteroids? How real is the threat of them causing extinction of life? What strategies have been developed to prevent such a catastrophe?
WRITE IN
11 min
250 words
What the examiner wants
For Asteroid Threat & Planetary Defence, explain in sequence: first, What are asteroids; then, How real is the threat of them causing extinction of life. Keep evidence and the conclusion tied to these exact limbs.
ExplainMake clear how and why it happens: causes, process, and an example for each point.
Demand-wise check
- 1What are asteroids?≈65 words
- 2How real is the threat of them causing extinction of life?≈65 words
- 3What strategies have been developed to prevent such a catastrophe?≈65 words
Open in about 30 words and close in about 30.
Answer plan
Scientific principleWorking/applicationIndia-specific programme/statusBenefitsRisks/constraintsFuture use for Asteroid Threat & Planetary Defence
Where marks usually go
- Over-writing ‘What are asteroids’ while reducing ‘How real is the threat of them causing extinction of life’ to a token paragraph
- Adding correct but adjacent facts on Asteroid Threat & Planetary Defence that do not advance the exact causal, comparative or evaluative task in this PYQ
Value addition
- Asteroid Threat & Planetary Defence: working-principle schematic — input → process → output/application → risk/limit
→ Draw it in the body, next to the point it supports.
Official source anchors
These are authoritative sources selected for this exact PYQ. Where a card is an official-domain anchor rather than a fact-level citation, verify the precise provision, definition or data point on the linked source before using it.
Next: plan for one minute, write it in 11 minutes, then get it checked.