UPSC Daily Current Affairs | Prelim Bits 11-12-2020
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December 11, 2020
India Water Impact Summit
It is organised by the Ministry of Jal Shakti and the Centre for Ganga River Basin Management and Studies (cGanga).
The summit’s focus is to host multi-country dialogue to build up India's international collaborations in the water sector.
The primary purpose of this conference is to have comprehensive analysis and review of river rejuvenation and local river.
The theme of the fifth edition of the summit was based on the concept of "Arth Ganga", river conservation synchronised development.
The 'Arth Ganga' initiative would economically enhance the villages which are situated near the Ganges.
NB-IoT Network
Skylotech India has partnered with BSNL to launch a satellite-based narrowband IoT network in India.
This is the world’s first satellite-based NB-IoT network.
It will connect with BSNL’s satellite ground infrastructure and provide pan-India coverage, including Indian seas.
This technology supports the Telecom Department and NITI Aayog’s plan of bringing indigenous IoT connectivity to India’s core sectors.
It will transform India’s lives and domestic industries like agriculture, railways and fisheries.
Also, Skylo would help provide critical data for the logistics sector to enable effective distribution of Covid-19 vaccine in 2021.
Aerosols in IGP
Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) is located south and upwind of the Himalayan foothills.
A team under the Dept. of Science & Technology Climate Change program has found that high aerosol loading in IGP has increased the high rainfall events in the foothills of the Himalayan Region.
They have found that the particulate emissions can alter the physical and dynamical properties of cloud systems.
These alterations, in turn, amplify rainfall events over orographic regions downwind of highly polluted urban areas.
The team found clear associations between high precipitation events, high aerosol loading, and high moist static energy (MSE) values.
(MSE of an air mass includes the potential energy due to its height above the ground and the latent heat due to its moisture content).
Beresheet 2
Israel launched the Beresheet 2 project (Beresheet means "Genesis").
This project will be made up of three adjacent spacecrafts.
It aims at landing an unmanned craft on the moon in 2024, after a previous such mission had crashed into the lunar surface.
The original Beresheet was a spacecraft built by Israeli NGO SpaceIL and state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries.
It had reached the moon in April 2019, but suffered an engine failure as it prepared to land.
Israel would become the fourth nation to land on the moon, only after Russia, the US and China.
Molnupiravir
The antiviral drug Molnupiravir, or MK-4482/EIDD-2801, has been shown to stop the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in 24 hours.
This is the first oral drug to rapidly block SARS-CoV-2 transmission.
The drug stops replication of the copies of the virus’s RNA in the cell.
Indian researchers plan to apply to the drug regulator to conduct human trials with the drug.
Emissions Gap Report 2020
This annual report is released by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
It measures the gap between anticipated emissions and levels consistent with the Paris Agreement goals of limiting global warming this century to well below 2°C and pursuing 1.5°C.
The year 2020 is on course to be one of the warmest on record, while wildfires, storms and droughts continue to wreak havoc.
The findings from the report are:
Record high GHG emissions: These emissions continued to grow for the third consecutive year in 2019.
Record carbon emission: Fossil CO2 emissions dominate total GHG emissions and consequently the growth in GHG emissions.
Forest fires increasing GHG emissions: Since 2010, GHG emissions have grown at 1.3% per year on average.
G20 countries: They account for the bulk of emissions.
Slowing GHG emission rate: This is happening. But, GHG emissions are declining in OECD economies and increasing in non-OECD economies.
Consumption-based emissions: Rich countries have higher consumption-based emissions than territorial-based emission.
COVID-19 impact: CO2 emissions could decrease by about 7% in 2020 compared with 2019 levels due to COVID-19.
Other GHGs level: Although CO2 emissions will decrease in 2020, the resulting atmospheric concentrations of major GHGs and nitrous oxide continued to increase in both 2019 and 2020.
Net zero level: 126 countries covering 51% of GHG emissions have net-zero goals that are formally adopted, announced or under consideration.
Another major UNEP report is Global Environment Outlook.
Source: ANI, Economic Times, PIB, First Post, The Indian Express, Down To Earth
