General Awareness

ENVIRONMENT - October 2015

Oct 2015

Jan 17, 2016

UK's Protected Blue Belt Expanded

The UK government has extended the coastal "blue belt" of protected marine areas.
The designation of 23 new Marine Conservation Zones mean that 8,000 square miles of UK waters now have environmental protection.
The designation of 23 new Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs) means that 20% of English waters are now considered protected. The sites range from the Cromer Shoal Chalk Beds in the North Sea, down to Land's End in the South West.
The aim is to conserve habitats like coral colonies, geological features such as chalk reefs, and species such as the stalked jellyfish and spiny lobsters.

Jan 15, 2016

World’s Largest Canyon

A team of scientists has revealed, the world's largest canyon - over 1,000 km long and in places as much as one km deep, may lie under the Antarctic ice sheet.
The canyon system is made up of a chain of winding and linear features buried under several kilometres of ice in one of the last unexplored regions of the earth's land surface, Princess Elizabeth Land (PEL) in East Antarctica.

Global Warming May Delay Next Ice Age

Global warming is likely to disrupt a natural cycle of ice ages and delay the onset of the next one until about 1,00,000 years from now.
In the past million years, the world has had about 10 ice ages before swinging back to warmer conditions. In the last ice age that ended 12,000 years ago.
As per scientists, the planet seemed naturally on track to escape an ice age for the next 50,000 years, an unusually long period of warmth.

Jan 14, 2016

The Rapid Greenland Ice Sheet Melt

As per researchers, clouds are raising the temperature of the Greenland ice sheet and accounting for as much as 30 percent of the ice sheet melt.
The rapidly melting Greenland ice sheet is likely driving almost a third of global sea level rise.
Clouds essentially behave in two ways. They either cool the Earth's surface by reflecting sunlight back into space, or, like a thick blanket, they trap heat at the surface -- the greenhouse effect of clouds.
Greenland, which is covered in bright, light-reflecting snow, clouds primarily act to trap heat.

Jan 12, 2016

World's Largest Peatland

Scientists have discovered the world’s largest tropical peatland in the remote Congo swamps, estimated to store the equivalent of three year’s worth of the world’s total fossil fuel emissions.
Researchers mapped the Cuvette Centrale peatlands in the central Congo basin and found they cover 145,500 sq km – an area larger than England. The swamps could lock in 30bn tonnes of carbon that was previously not known to exist, making the region one of the most carbon-rich ecosystems on Earth.

Monster-sized Marine Crocodile Discovered

The biggest sea-dwelling crocodile ever found has turned up in the Tunisian desert. The whopper of a prehistoric predator grew to over 30 feet long (nearly ten metres) and weighed three tons.
Paleontologists have dubbed the new species Machimosaurus rex.
This is a neat new discovery from a part of the world that hasn’t been well-explored for fossils.
Scientists are awaiting the discovery of a more complete skeleton to figure out exactly how large Machimosaurus rex was.

Jan 09, 2016

Hydro Dam Boom Threat to Freshwater Fish

One-third of the world’s freshwater fish are at risk if dozens of large hydroelectric dams are built in the Amazon, Congo and Mekong basins.
If the dams are built, tropical freshwater biodiversity, which is at its most diverse in the three river basins, could be devastated.
Large dams invariably reduce fish diversity and block movements that enable migratory species to complete their life cycles. This may be particularly devastating to tropical river fisheries where many species migrate hundreds of kilometres.

Share on

TCY Analytics (View Subscription Plans)

Subscribe to GK Updates

I want to receive

GK Tags

September GK, August GK, July GK, INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, ENVIRONMENT, BUSINESS AND ECONOMY, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY, SPORTS, NATIONAL AFFAIRS, DEFENCE, PERSONS IN NEWS, DAYS AND EVENTS, AWARDS AND HONOURS, GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND SCHEMES, GENDER/ HEALTH/ EDUCATION, ART AND CULTURE, BOOKS AND AUTHORS, TOURISM AND HOTEL INDUSTRY AWARENESS, ART AND CULTURE, LAW AND CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Start Discussion

On any topic

Take Tests

Compiled from GK updates

Login

Sign Up

Forgot Password

Download TCY App

Unlock All Services And Enjoy The Premium Benefits

US$ 10

US$ 13

US$ 15

US$ 17

US$ 19

US$ 20

US$ 21

US$ 22

US$ 23

US$ 24

US$ 25

US$ 26