Page 539 - Environment
NASA now targeting Sunday for launch of solar probe
NASA is targeting Sunday for the launch of its historic small car-size probe to "touch the Sun" from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida after its scheduled launch on Saturday got scrubbed.
NASA solar probe launch delayed
NASA on Saturday scrubbed the scheduled launch of its historic small car-size probe to "touch the Sun" from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
5 youths win hackathon; plan start-up to crowdfund solar project
A group of five youths, including one from Chile, has won an international hackathon event, co-hosted by the NITI Aayog and others, for their idea on implementation of blockchain in the Indian solar industry. Blockchain is a latest technology that takes a digitised and decentralised approach in handling large data. The hackathon was the largest in the world and saw 1,800 participants applying for the online round and 60 teams participating in the main event on August 3 and 4 in Hyderabad, the winners said. Five youths under the banner of 'Team Unergia' concentrated on implementing blockchain into the solar industry during the hackathon. They were adjudged winner in the event organised by the International Blockchain Congress, the largest gathering of innovators, businesses, technologists, regulators, start-ups and enthusiasts in India to-date, Abhishek Pillai, one of the team's members, said. Their idea of developing a crowdfunding platform for solar projects fetched them a cash prize
Kerala rains subside, Idukki waters recede
Thousands living around the Idukki dam and in Ernakulam and Thrissur heaved a sigh of relief on Saturday as the heavy rains predicted in Kerala did not happen and as a result the Idukki dam waters ravaging the area over the last few days subsided.
Rahul concerned over Kerala flood, urges Congress workers to help
Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday expressed grief over the loss of life in the Kerala floods and landslides, and urged his party workers to provide all the help needed.
NASA poised to blast off first spacecraft to explore Sun
The first ever spacecraft to fly directly toward the Sun is poised to blast off today, on a mission to plunge into our star's sizzling atmosphere and unlock the mysteries of the centre of the solar system. NASA's car-sized, USD 1.5 billion Parker Solar Probe is scheduled to launch on a Delta IV Heavy rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida during a 65-minute launch window that opens at 3:33 am (0733 GMT). By coming closer to the Sun than any spacecraft in history, the unmanned probe's main goal is to unveil the secrets of the corona, the unusual atmosphere around the Sun. "We are going to be in an area that is so exciting, where solar wind -- we believe -- will be accelerating," said NASA planetary science division director Jim Green. "Where we see huge magnetic fields that are passing by us, as coronal mass ejections make their way out into the solar system." Not only is the corona about 300 times hotter than the Sun's surface, but it also hurls powerful plasma and energetic particles ...
PM Modi to address IIT-B's convocation ceremony
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Saturday visit Mumbai to address the 56th annual convocation of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay.The Prime Minister will also inaugurate the new building of the Department of Energy Science and Engineering and Centre for Environmental Science and Engineering at IIT Bombay.Union Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Prakash Javadekar, Maharashtra Governor Vidyasagar Rao and state Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will also be present on the occasion.
100 elephants died due to unnatural causes from 2013 to 2016: Minister
Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Mahesh Sharma on Friday said the population of elephants in the country was 27,312 in 2017 and added that from 2013 to 2016, around 100 elephants had died due to unnatural causes and 489 human lives were lost.
UNGA President-Elect, Modi seek stronger action on global challenges
President-elect of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Maria Fernanda Espinosa Garces and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday discussed the need for stronger UN action on major global challenges including terrorism, UN reform and climate change, according to an official release.
Delhi lost over 78,000 trees in last 10 years
In the past 10 years, over 78,000 trees has been felled in the national capital, the Delhi Assembly was informed on Friday.
27 TN fishermen arrested by Lankan Navy
A total of 27 fishermen from Tamil Nadu were arrested today by the Sri Lankan Navy on the charge of fishing in the island nation waters, according to a fisheries department official. The Lankan Navy also impounded the four country boats of the fishermen from nearby Nagapattinam, Thondi and Pudukottai, Pudukottai Assistant Director of Fisheries Kumaresen said. The fishermen reportedly strayed into the Lankan waters by mistake, he said quoting information received by the department.
Water-logging, traffic snarls after brief rain in Delhi
A moderate spell of rain on Friday afternoon in the national capital brought misery rather than any joy to the commuters as they faced traffic snarls and water-logging at various places.
Water storage level up in major reservoirs
Incessant rains in some catchment areas boosted water levels across major reservoirs in the country to 48 per cent of the total storage capacity of the reservoirs from 45 per cent last week, the government said on Friday.
Hindi weekly news bulletin from UN has begun: Swaraj
A Hindi weekly news bulletin from the platform of the UN has started broadcast as part of a pilot project, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj announced today, emphasising that the government was also making efforts to make Hindi one of the official languages of the world body. She also said that a United Nations Twitter account in Hindi has also been opened to give Hindi speaking public access to the programmes and news related to the UN. "As a pilot project, a weekly news bulletin (in Hindi) has started in the UN from July 22," Swaraj told reporters here. All Hindi-speaking people from across the world can listen to the news broadcast from the UN, she said. The news bulletin on UN radio is weekly and is 10 minutes long, Swaraj said. The bulletin is being facilitated by the Indian government that is bearing its expenses as well, officials said. Swaraj said that the government was continuing to make efforts to make Hindi one of the official languages of the UN. She said that ...
Climate change affecting Bihar: Sushil Modi
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi said on Friday taht climate change would impact agriculture in the state.
Nitish flags off power projects worth over Rs 7500 crore
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today flagged off power projects worth over Rs 7,500 crore and expressed confidence that each household in the state would be electrified by the end of this year. At a function here where Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi and Power minister Vijendra Prasad Yadav were also present, Kumar inaugurated, laid foundation stones for or dedicated to the public power projects worth Rs 7522.28 crore. Speaking on the occasion, Kumar expressed confidence that his government would meet its target of electrifying each household in the state by the end of this year. "Total power generation in the state was a mere 700 MW in 2005 when we assumed power. This has risen to 5008 MW, as per figures of July, 2018. We have indeed come a long way", the chief minister remarked. He also said that three power units in the state - Kanti, Navinagar and Barauni - have been handed over to the NTPC which was likely to "ensure better power generation and ...
Ahead of Bakrid PETA India asks states to enforce law to prevent cruelty to animals
Ahead of Bakrid, animal rights body PETA India has asked states to enforce laws against cruelty to animals during sacrifice. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India has sent a letter to states asking them to take precautionary measures to stop illegal transport and killing of animals in the lead-up to Bakrid and cited the "advice" by the Animal Welfare Board of India in its circular in July this year. Bakrid falls on August 22 this year. PETA India has written to chief secretaries, the directors general of police, and the directors of animal husbandry departments of state governments and Union Territories, as well as the commissioners of municipal corporations of metropolitan cities. "All religions call for compassion, no religion requires killing or eating animals, and hacking animals to death with weapons is just plain cruel. "The state governments have a duty to uphold and enforce India's animal-protection laws, and PETA India is calling on the authorities to ...
PM, President-elect UNGA discuss need for stronger UN action on terror, climate
President-elect of the United Nations General Assembly Maria Fernanda Espinosa Garces today called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi here and the two discussed the need for a stronger UN action on major global challenges including terrorism, a PMO statement said. The Prime Minister congratulated Espinosa Garces on her election to the post of President of the 73rd UN General Assembly. She shared her priorities for the upcoming session of the UN General Assembly. Modi assured her of India's full and constructive cooperation in discharging her new responsibilities. "They discussed the need for stronger UN action on major global challenges including terrorism, United Nations reform and climate change," the statement said.
Nepal, Bangladesh ink MoU on hydropower exchange
Nepal and Bangladesh today inked an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on power exchange cooperation to allow export of hydro power from the Himalayan nation to Bangladesh in the near future. The signing of the MoU took place in a ceremony here attended by Nepal's Energy Minister Barsha Man Pun and Minister of State for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources of Bangladesh, Nasrul Hamid. During the occasion, Hamid announced that Bangladesh is interested to invest around USD1 billion for power sector cooperation with Nepal. Bangladesh has set the target of graduating to the league of developed nations by 2041 and it would need around 60,000 MW power to meet the target, Hamid was quoted as saying by the Himalayan Times. Nepal is an appropriate alternative source for this (hydro power), said the report. Hamid said that Bangladesh has projected that by 2040 the demand for power in the nation will reach around 40,000 MW, of which around 11 per cent would be fulfilled through clean energy ...
Delhi lost over 78,000 tress in last decade
In the last decade, over 78,000 trees have been cut in the national capital, the Delhi Assembly was informed on Friday.
