General Awareness

ENVIRONMENT - March 2019

Mar 2019

Dec 21, 2020

Govt. Plans to Measure Depth of Himalayan Glaciers

As global warming affects the Himalayas, the Ministry of Earth Sciences is planning to measure the depth of glaciers in the region to assess their volume and gauge the water available in them.
The project will start next summer, sometime in June-July 2021.
Ravichandran, the Director of the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), which will execute the project, said that the country's remote and high-altitude research centre, Himansh, is also studying the Himalayan climate.
The centre was established in 2016.
The plan is to first study seven glaciers in the Chandra river basin.

Dec 20, 2020

Water Limitations in the Tropics Offset Carbon Uptake from Arctic Greening

More plants and longer growing seasons in the northern latitudes have converted parts of Alaska, Canada and Siberia to deeper shades of green. Some studies translate this Arctic greening to a greater global carbon uptake. But new research shows that as Earth's climate is changing, increased carbon absorption by plants in the Arctic is being offset by a corresponding decline in the tropics.
Plant productivity in the frigid Arctic landscape is limited by the lengthy periods of cold. As temperatures warm, the plants in these regions have been able to grow more densely and extend their growing season, leading to an overall increase in photosynthetic activity, and subsequently greater carbon absorption in the region over the 35-year time span.

Dec 14, 2020

Expert Spot Extinct Himalayan Serow in Spiti Valley

An extinct species, the Himalayan Serow was spotted in the cold deserts of the Spiti valley in Himachal Pradesh.
The re-occurance of the subspecies of the mainland serow was believed to be extinct, has excited environmentalists and wildlife experts in the region.
As per reports, this goat antelope was seen by many belonging to the village of Hurling. After the news of its sighting spread, a wildlife department team was able to take a few photos of the animal.
The Himalayan Serow is included in Schedule one of the Wildlife Extinction. It has been included by the International Union for Conservation for Nature (IUCN) in the near-threatened category.

Dec 13, 2020

Micro Climatic Zone Shifting

The study on "Preparing India for climate events" was published by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water. This is the first time the extreme weather event hotspots in India have been mapped.
The unpredictability, intensity and frequency of extreme events in India has increased. The extreme climate events witnessed by India between 1970 and 2005 were 250. On the other hand, India witnessed 310 extreme weather events between 2005 and 2020.
The study has found that frequency of flood events has increased by eight times in the last 50 years in the country.
According to the study, over 40% of Indian districts are facing shift in pattern of extreme events. The study also says that around 75% of Indian districts that are home to 638 million people have now become hotspots of extreme climate events. The extreme climate events include floods, cyclones, heat and cold waves. This change in climatic patterns within a small area or a district is called micro climatic zone shifting.
Maharashtra is the most affected state of the micro climatic zone shifting. More than 80% of the districts in Maharashtra are vulnerable to drought like situations.

Dec 10, 2020

Enormous Iceberg on Course to Collide with South Atlantic Penguin Colony Island

An enormous iceberg is heading toward South Georgia Island in the southern Atlantic, where scientists say a collision could devastate wildlife by threatening the food chain.
Scientists have long been watching this climate-related event unfold, as the iceberg - about the same size as the island itself – has meandered and advanced over two years since breaking off from the Antarctic peninsula in July 2017.
The gigantic iceberg - dubbed A68a - is on a path to collide with South Georgia Island, a remote British overseas territory off the southern tip of South America.

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