SSC MTS EXAM

Detailed explanation-1: -“Gunpowder, ‘’ as it came to be known, is a mixture of saltpeter (potassium nitrate), sulfur, and charcoal. Together, these materials will burn rapidly and explode as a propellant. Chinese monks discovered the technology in the 9th century CE, during their quest for a life-extending elixir.

Detailed explanation-2: -Gunpowder was invented in China sometime during the first millennium AD. The earliest possible reference to gunpowder appeared in 142 AD during the Eastern Han dynasty when the alchemist Wei Boyang, also known as the “father of alchemy", wrote about a substance with gunpowder-like properties.

Detailed explanation-3: -Gunpowder wasn’t developed as a military technology. The Chinese term for gunpowder is huo yao, which translates strictly to ‘fire medicine. ‘ For this reason, many scholars believe that the substance was first developed in the search for drugs.