India's second-ever installation of artificial reefs (after Pondicherry) to boost marine life is being deployed near Worli Koliwada, Mumbai. 210 reef units made from recycled concrete and steel are installed 500 meters offshore, and it will take 3 months to show initial signs of a thriving ecosystem. Artificial Reefs are structures built by humans through biorock technology and placed on the seabed in freshwater or saltwater environments.
Recently, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has approved a proposal for India Ports Global Ltd (IPGL) to take over the operations of the entire Sittwe port located on the Kaladan River, Myanmar. It will be India’s 2nd overseas port after Chabahar Port. IPGL is a company 100% owned by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways. The Sittwe Port, located in the Rakhine State of Myanmar, is a crucial component of the Kaladan multi-model transit transport project.
Recently, researchers from Kerala have training programs on bat taxonomy, acoustics, and biogeography. Myth, superstition, and zoonotic diseases such as Covid-19 and the Nipah virus infection, have created a negative impression of bats. The project aims to address the challenges posed by emerging zoonotic diseases and the ongoing threats faced by bat populations, including habitat loss and the cutting down of fruit bat roosts. Researchers in Kerala are also supporting the ongoing National Bat Monitoring Programme, which has been running since 1996.
The recent passing of Nobel laureate physicist Peter Higgs has brought attention back to the elusive particle he theorised in the 1960s, known as the 'God particle' or Higgs boson. The Higgs boson, an elementary particle akin to electrons or quarks, plays a crucial role in imparting mass to other fundamental particles. Peter Higgs, first proposed the existence of the Higgs field and the associated Higgs boson in the 1960s. The Higgs boson is the quantum excitation of the Higgs field, which is believed to permeate the entire universe and interact with other particles, giving them mass.
Recently, the European Space Agency is planning a universal timekeeping system for the moon. The Moon (the only natural Satellite of earth) has its own day and night cycle, which lasts about 29.5 Earth days. Currently, the time on the Moon is measured using Universal Time Coordination (UTC), which is the same timekeeping system used on the Earth.
Recently, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) panel has attributed the cause of the sea turning red in Puducherry to the phenomenon of the plankton crash. Ruling out algal bloom and contamination due to effluents, the NGT panel suggested that there was ahigh iron concentration, which favoured plankton bloom. A significant portion of a specific unicellular phytoplankton species,Noctiluca scintillans, was responsible for the discharge of red pigment into the water. The environmental parameters such as sea surface temperature, water salinity, pH, and dissolved oxygen were conducive to the phytoplankton crash.
For a long time, geologists have been puzzled by the mystery of the "Gravity Hole" in the Indian Ocean. The Earth's shape and gravity are not uniform across its surface. Instead, it is slightly flattened at the poles and wider at the equator giving rise to the phenomenon of gravity anomaly. Moreover, the gravitational force varies depending on the mass distribution of the crust, mantle, and core below each location. The gravity hole in the Indian Ocean is one such example. The 'Gravity Hole,' officially known as the Indian Ocean geoid low, is a huge depression in the sea level that is about 106 metres lower than the global average and covers about 1.2 million square miles area.
Recently, traditional Hindu New Year festivals like Chaitra Sukladi, Ugadi, Gudi Padwa, Cheti Chand, Navreh, and Sajibu Cheiraoba were celebrated across India, fostering cultural unity and appreciation. Chaitra Sukladi is celebrated in North India and marks the beginning of the Hindu New Year. The Hindu New Year Vikram Samvat begins with the new moon of the month of Chaitra.
