Wheeler Island

About Wheeler Island

• Abdul Kalam Island, formerly known as Wheeler Island, is an island off the coast of Odisha.
• The island was renamed to honour the late President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam and also to encourage the youth to pursue a scientific temperament. 
• It is the only place in India that has an integrated test range maintaining a missile testing facility, which is located on this island. 
• All indigenous missiles, like Akash missile, Agni missile, Prithvi Missile etc. are tested from here.
• The island is 2 km long, having an area of 390 acres, and is basically a soil formation without rocks in the Bay of Bengal.

Key Facts about Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO)

• It is the R&D wing of the Ministry of Defence, Govt of India, with a vision to empower India with cutting-edge defence technologies and a mission to achieve self-reliance in critical defence technologies and systems.
• It is India’s largest research organisation. 
• Formation: The organisation was formed in 1958 from the amalgamation of the then already functioning Technical Development Establishment (TDEs) of the Indian Army and the Directorate of Technical Development & Production (DTDP) with the Defence Science Organisation (DSO). 
• Headquarters: New Delhi.
• It has a network of laboratories engaged in developing defence technologies covering various fields, like aeronautics, armaments, electronics, land combat engineering, life sciences, materials, missiles, and naval systems.

Q1) What is an Olive Ridley sea turtle?

Olive ridleys are considered the most abundant sea turtle in the world. They get their name from the coloring of their heart-shaped shell, which starts out gray but becomes olive green once the turtles are adults. The species is among the smallest of the world’s sea turtles and is found primarily in the tropical regions of the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic oceans.

Source: Missile testing paused in Odisha to save sea turtles