ARCTIC ICE MELT IS DISRUPTING KEY OCEAN CURRENT, MAY ALTER CLIMATE IN WESTERN EUROPE
Ocean water current, which plays a key role in keeping Western Europe warm, could be altered by an influx of unprecedented amounts of cold, fresh water from melting ice in the Arctic A seawater current called the Beaufort Gyre keeps the polar environment in balance by storing fresh water near the surface of the Arctic […]
PROLONGED MONSOON REVIVES WATERHOLES IN BANDIPUR
Why in news? Of the 370 big and small waterholes, 85% are full while a few smaller ones have witnessed depletion Details: Expected to help wild animals beat water stress and tide over the greater part of the scorching summer that has already set in and will last till pre-monsoon showers lash the national park […]
THE GLOBAL OCEAN HEATS UP
Why in news? One of the biggest revelations of the Special Report On The Ocean And Cryosphere In A Changing Climate, released in September 2019 by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), was how much the global ocean has heated up. How is it heating? Since 1970, the report said, 90% of the excess […]
RESCUE OPERATION IN ZANSKAR RIVER IN THE UT OF LADAKH
Focus: Prelims (Map) Why in news? IAF Rescues More than 107 Individuals from the Frozen Zanskar River in the UT of Ladakh Details People were a part of the ongoing ‘Chadar Trek’, got stranded when some portions of the frozen Zanskar River melted Stranded trekkers managed to move to Niraq, a small camp site upstream […]
GEOGRAPHY OF FARMER SUICIDES
Why in news? Farmer suicides have not increased, New data and research in recent years and may have more complex causes than falling incomes or rising indebtedness. Details The overall farmer suicide rate decreases in India but Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala remain suicide hotspots even with doubts about NCRB data The ultimate sign of distress […]
VOLCANOES AND EARTHQUAKES: THE PACIFIC RING OF FIRE
Why in news? spewing lava on the ground, In the Philippines, a volcano called Taal on the island of Luzon, 50 km from Manila, erupted on 12th January 2020, spewing lava on the ground, and ash and smoke into the sky. Although Taal is a tiny volcano, the eruption has caused concerns in the Philippines. […]
THE 2010s -HOTTEST DECADE SO FAR
Why in news? 2019 was the second hottest year, Research released by NASA and NOAA(USA) for 2019 shows that the decade that just ended was by far the hottest ever measured on Earth, capped off by the second warmest year on record Details of 2019 was the second hottest year Since the 1960s, each decade […]
TAAL VOLCANO
Why in News? Volcano south of Manila spewed Lava and broad columns of ash spewed Background Volcano south of Manila, Philippines is situated around Ring of Fire, which is a belt of high volcano density. The Philippine Sea Plate or the Philippine Plate is a tectonic plate comprising of oceanic lithosphere that lies beneath the […]
WHY ARE BUSHFIRES RAGING IN AUSTRALIA?
Why in news? Bushfires in Australia have razed more than 10.3 million hectares (103,300 sq km) of land — roughly the size of South Korea — since September. It may be an implication of Indian Ocean Diploe (IOD). Why did Australia suffer from drought? Playing out to the north and south of the equator, the […]
NEW METHOD BETTER ESTIMATES MELTING OF DEBRIS-COVERED HIMALAYAN GLACIERS
Why in news? A study of the Satopanth glacier in order to model the melting of debris-covered glaciers has been carried out by a group of Indian researchers. Their new method gives a better estimate of the glacier’s melting than existing ones. Why is this study important? Studying debris-laden Himalayan glaciers is important from the […]