China Launched Oean Observation Satellite Haiyang-2
Posted: August 26, 2011 Filed under: News, oceans, Satellites Leave a comment »
China launched an ocean observation satellite, Haiyang-2, from the Taiyuan launching base in Shanxi province, north-eastern China. The remote sensing payload flew into orbit on top of a Long March 4B rocket, which placed the satellite in a 565-mile-high orbit with an inclination of 99 degrees.
The satellite will study dynamic ocean environments such as sea surface winds, wave height and water temperatures. It will survey maritime environment, help prevent potential disasters at sea and contribute to marine weather forecasts.
Its instruments include a microwave sensor, a radiometer and an altimeter.
Earlier Haiyang-1 satellites monitored ocean pollution and shallow waters to help in the operation of harbours and ports. A third generation of satellites is planned to combine the Haiyang-1 and Haiyang-2 missions.
NASA Traces Ice Flow in Antarctica And Creates Ground Breaking Map
Posted: August 23, 2011 Filed under: map making Leave a comment »
Researchers at NASA recently created the first complete map of the speed and direction of ice flow in Antarctica. The map is considered timely as it will help track future sea-level increases due to climate change.
”The map points out something fundamentally new: that ice moves by slipping along the ground it rests on,” said Thomas Wagner from NASA. “That’s critical knowledge for predicting future sea level rise. It means that if we lose ice at the coasts from the warming ocean, we open the tap to massive amounts of ice in the interior.”
The researchers created this map using integrated radar observations from a consortium of international satellites.
Links and Sources:
Info: NASA
Image :NASA
The Age of the Moon and the Earth:They may be younger than originally thought
Posted: August 21, 2011 Filed under: earth, Moon Leave a comment »
How old the Moon and Earth? New research using a technique that measures the isotopes of lead and neodymium in lunar crustal rocks shows that the moon and Earth may be millions of years younger than originally thought. The common estimate of the moon’s age is as old as 4.5 billion years old (roughly the same age as the solar system) as determined by mineralogy and chemical analysis of moon rocks gathered during the Apollo missions. However, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory scientist Lars Borg and international collaborators have analyzed three isotopic systems, including the elements lead, samarium and neodymium found in ancient lunar rocks, and determined that the moon could be much younger than originally estimated. In fact, its age may be 4.36 billion years old.
The age of the Earth is traditionally thought of as 4.54 billion years (4.54 × 109 years ± 1%). This age is based on evidence from radiometric age dating of meteorite material and is consistent with the ages of the oldest-known terrestrial and lunar samples.
The ages of Earth and Moon rocks and of meteorites are measured by the decay of long-lived radioactive isotopes of elements that occur naturally in rocks and minerals and that decay with half lives of 700 million to more than 100 billion years to stable isotopes of other elements. These dating techniques, which are firmly grounded in physics and are known collectively as radiometric dating, are used to measure the last time that the rock being dated was either melted or disturbed sufficiently to rehomogenize its radioactive elements.
Ancient rocks exceeding 3.5 billion years in age are found on all of Earth’s continents. The oldest rocks on Earth found so far are the Acasta Gneisses in northwestern Canada near Great Slave Lake (4.03 Ga) and the Isua Supracrustal rocks in West Greenland (3.7 to 3.8 Ga), but well-studied rocks nearly as old are also found in the Minnesota River Valley and northern Michigan (3.5-3.7 billion years), in Swaziland (3.4-3.5 billion years), and in Western Australia (3.4-3.6 billion years). They have been dated by a number of radiometric dating methods and the consistency of the results give scientists confidence that the ages are correct to within a few percent.
The oldest dated moon rocks, have ages between 4.4 and 4.5 billion years and provide a minimum age for the formation of our nearest planetary neighbor. Thousands of meteorites, which are fragments of asteroids that fall to Earth, have been recovered. These primitive objects provide the best ages for the time of formation of the Solar System. The results show that the meteorites, and therefore the Solar System, formed between 4.53 and 4.58 billion years ago.
The research appears in the August 17 online edition of the journal, Nature.
Links and Sources:
For further information: https://www.llnl.gov/news/newsreleases/2011/Aug/NR-11-08-02.html
Photo: NASA
Source:ENN
India Gears to Meet Agro Challenges and For New Agricultural Revolution
Posted: August 20, 2011 Filed under: BIODIVERSITY, India Leave a comment »Changing Gears for Rainbow Revolution
Dr. S. Ayyappan*
In view of the emerging challenges and threats to agriculture sector, vis-à-vis national food security, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has developed a strategic framework to improve food security, enhance opportunities for inclusive growth, augment competitiveness of Indian agriculture and create adequate and quality human resources to address the concerns. Some of the major concerns include, natural resources degradation, increasing biotic and abiotic pressures, declining input use efficiency, post-harvest losses, decreasing profitability in farming, quality human resource and farm extension. To deal with the challenges effectively, ICAR is coordinating, guiding and managing research, education and extension in agriculture, including horticulture, fisheries and animal sciences, in the country. It has a vast network with 97 ICAR institutes, 54 state agricultural universities; five deemed universities and one Central Agricultural University and 592 Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) spread across the country. The research programmes under umbrella of the ICAR are designed and undertaken for harnessing power of science that ensures food, nutrition and livelihood security for all.
The comprehensive initiatives taken by the Council have led to notable accomplishments in natural resource management, input use efficiency, climate resilience, secondary agriculture and economic transformation of farmers through technological interventions. The year 2010-11 has been agriculturally rewarding as we have observed record food grain production touching 242 million tonnes in farm season (July-June) according to the 4th advance estimates released recently. The food grains comprise rice, coarse-cereals and pulses. The record output was largely because of a sharp rise in production of wheat to 86 million tonnes against 81 million tonnes in the year before. The record high oilseed production of 31 million tonnes is another notable accomplishment to cheer. Further, a high production in horticulture, 234.4 million tonnes could also be achieved through policy and technological support.
The bygone year has thrown many challenges also. These include perceptible climate change, as seen by the dry spells in the Eastern India, despite normal rainfalls across the country; degrading land and water environment; need for quality inputs; emerging problem of agricultural labour; and post-harvest losses across the commodities. It was here that the ICAR provided, both directions and solutions, in terms of crop varieties suitable for both drought and submergence; defined elements of fertilizer application, based on the nutrient deficiencies; farm mechanization for both field and horticultural crops; and developed clear estimates of post-harvest losses of various crops and commodities, as the basis for formulating future approaches. The paradigm shift from ‘primary to secondary agriculture’ was focused in our discussions and research process, as was demonstrated through the projects in the value chain component of the National Agricultural Innovation Project (NAIP); that is planned to be further enlarged in the coming years. A parallel development has been the establishment of agri-incubators, a new concept in the Indian agriculture; expected to develop entrepreneurship in a big way. In our efforts at institutionalizing the research extension continuum, the ‘Farm Innovators’ meet held during the year, the second in the series, added a new dimension to our approach of innovative agriculture.
Among new projects, a National Initiative on Climate Resilient Agriculture is a noteworthy one launched with the objective to assess impact of climate change on the agriculture and allied sectors, and for evolving cost-effective adaptation and mitigation strategies. The Project has a budget outlay of Rs 350 crore for XI Plan; out of which Rs 200 crore is allocated for 2010-11, and Rs 150 crore for 2011-12 on the research infrastructure, capacity-building and on-farm demonstrations of available climate-resilient technologies.
During the year 2010-11, 60 varieties/hybrids of crops including major food crops of rice, wheat, maize, pearl millet and pulses were released/ recommended for cultivation in different agro-climatic regions of country. During the year, 629 tonnes of nucleus seed, 9,554 tonnes of breeder seed, 7,745 tonnes of foundation seed, 3,471 tonnes of certified seeds and 10,443 tonnes of truthfully labeled seed were produced for large scale multiplication to ensure timely supply of quality seeds to farmers.
To address the problem of decreasing soil and water productivity, the GIS based soil fertility maps, using soil-test data was prepared for 500 districts spread over 21 states of India. The data have revealed that soils of most of the districts have low to medium amount of nitrogen and phosphorus and medium to high amount of potassium. Existing ridge-and-furrow system of irrigation was modified for in-situ rain water harvesting (10% than the earlier 1% of rain), which increased castor yield by 30%. A decision support system was developed for facilitating location specific nutrient management.
With a view to enhance profitability and livelihood security, integrated farming is being promoted in all the ecological regions with the desired technological backstopping. An Integrated Farming System Component Selection Model is found useful for selection of the components of the integrated farming system based on the expected profit under the prevailing constraints, and also for suggesting beneficial components from profit as well as land and water productivity point of view.
To improve the quality and productivity of livestock population, artificial insemination is being standardized and adopted in field situations. Successful pregnancy from artificial insemination with extended semen is reported for the first time in Indian dromedary camels. The first mithun calf was born at farm-gate level through artificial insemination using cryo-preserved semen from genetically superior mithun bulls. Semen collection by ‘Gloved Hand Method’ and AI technique were standardized for pigs, and by using AI technology, highest litter size (15 piglets) at birth was recorded from a Ghungroo sow in the farm.
With repositioning of its approach towards entrepreneurship and livelihood security, the ICAR has made a strong commitment for socio-economic transformation of the Indian rural population. The research programmes, educational initiatives and extension activities have been reoriented to meet the objective. Efforts are being made to ensure free flow of knowledge, crossing all barriers on the way. The ICAR has adopted open-access policy for its highly-rated research journals and other literature of importance. The website (www.icar.org.in) has transformed into a treasure house of agricultural information and knowledge for various categories of stakeholders. On an average, more than 2, 00,000 visits are recorded per month from around 166 countries reflecting the global presence of Indian agriculture. Consortium for e-Resources in Agriculture (CeRA) is providing free online access to more than 2,900 international journals and 124 libraries of the National Agricultural Research System (NARS). During the year 2010-11, 64 patent applications were filed and 10 were granted making the total as 481 and 58 respectively.
As a special thrust to North-East region, Knowledge Information Repository in Agriculture for North-East has been launched by the ICAR with a mission to empower the agricultural production system of North-East region with right technology and methodology emphasizing innovative approach and solutions. It will act as a platform to foster linkages among partners and collaborate with public, private, state and regional organizations functioning in the region.
Partnerships grew at the national level and also across the globe with the projected Borlaug Institute for South Asia and enhanced Indo-African and India-Afghanistan Fellowships in Agricultural Universities. An ICAR–Industry meet was also convened in New Delhi in collaboration with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) which received an overwhelming response from the private sector. Twenty-five new Units were added to the existing 220 Units in 49 universities to develop entrepreneurship skills among students. Niche Area of Excellence was also supported at 30 locations to achieve global competence in agricultural research and education.
Under the ICAR award scheme, two new prestigious awards have been instituted, namely ICAR Norman Borlaug Award and ICAR Challenge Award. The total numbers of awards to be given annually in specific categories have been increased from 13 to 22. Similarly the award money has also been enhanced in most of the categories.
The ICAR has repositioned its approach in the formulation of 12th five year plan to bring a demand driven and technology led revolution in the country. The Council will focus more on the commodities and the areas where private sector would be reluctant to venture. Secondary and specialty agriculture and the strength inter-departmental platforms will be harnessed to sustain the benefits of agricultural research and development. At national level, initiatives such as National Agricultural Education Project, National Agricultural Entrepreneurship Project, National Agricultural Science Foundation and National Agricultural Innovation Foundation have been envisaged to further strengthen and accelerate the process of transformation. However, in all these initiatives the Council is making a forward march with Farmers First approach.
The research and development programmes during the year have armed ICAR with preparedness to meet future challenges, especially of prospective global climate change vis-à-vis depleting and degrading natural resources. We envision that innovations in agriculture would transform existing slowdown in agriculture sector into a vibrant and competitive sector by harnessing untapped opportunities in domestic and global markets. The Council firmly believes that agricultural research and development would augment farmers’ income, generate employment opportunities, conserve natural resources, restrict imports, promote exports and increase value addition for higher and inclusive agricultural growth.
Appropriately backed by frontier sciences and techniques, a surge in production and productivity of major commodities is on the way to realize the dream of rainbow revolution.(PIB Features)
*Secretary, Department of Agricultural Research and Education, and Director General, Indian Council of Agricultural Research
Need of Healthy Organic Food Network
Posted: August 19, 2011 Filed under: Ecosystem, Food, Guest Post Leave a comment »Guest Post by Derek Singleton
Most of us would eat better if we could afford to. I know I would.
Even though I’m a proponent of organic farms, grocers and food, I tend to lose
my organic appetite when I see the hefty price tag that comes along with it. It
may just be a few cents here or there, but multiplied over an entire bill – and
then multiplied over weeks and months – the difference adds up.
So what makes organic food more expensive? A major factor is scale. Because
most organic farms don’t operate at economies of scale, the amount of man hours
required for harvesting and post-harvesting activities is much greater than
conventional methods. For the same reason, the cost of marketing and
distributing organic food is higher as well.
The national options really boil down to two distributors: Tree of Life and
United Natural Foods. With them being the only major distributors, products
often get discontinued and then we have difficulty stocking the item.” – Dan
Gilotte, Wheatsville Co-op
In addition to scale, organic food also suffers from an inefficient
distribution network that’s still largely based on word-of-mouth business. To
manage the organic distribution network, distributors will need to adopt
technology that automatically informs grocers of available inventory and
pricing. At the same time, grocers will need to invest in technology that allows
them to find the right organic distributor at the best price.
Further pushing the price up is the fact that the demand for organic food far
outweighs the available supply. All things combined – scale, distribution,
supply, and cost – the consequences are creating unequal access to quality food
for many Americans.
The Health-Wealth Divide: Consumption of Healthy Food
The high price of organic food is a strange irony. Today, we’re paying a
premium to get food the way it used to be grown and harvested in our
grandparents’ generation, before agribusiness and genetic modification came to
utterly dominate our food supply. The problem of unequal food access has
resulted in a phenomenon known as food deserts, or regions where there’s little
to no access to healthy food markets. So if it’s still difficult for Americans
to access conventionally produced food, then it’s no wonder that the challenge
to distribute healthy organic food is great.
The federal government’s 2010 update to the food pyramid may make it even
more difficult to get the proper nutritional value – calling for Americans to
eat more potassium, dietary fiber, vitamin D and calcium. According to reporter
Donna Gordon Blankinship’s recent article, these changes are expected to add
several hundred dollars to the average American’s grocery bill. In her
article, researchers estimate that roughly 15 percent of Americans, or 49
million people, make food decisions based on cost alone. Thus a healthy,
well-balanced diet is pushed further out of reach for many. As the income
gap between rich and poor continues to widen, this problem is likely to be
exacerbated.
There are, however, some encouraging trends in the organics food market. A survey by the Organic
Trade Association found that sales revenue from organic food in the U.S. had
exploded to $25 billion by 2009 – 25 times that of 1990. This kind of growth is
impressive, and it’s certainly progress toward reaching scale in the industry,
but it’s all relative. For perspective, Americans spend roughly $1 trillion on
food, indicating that industrial and processed food still own the lion’s share
of the market.
So what can be done in the interim while organic food scales up production?
In taking a look at how a few successful health food grocers handle their
distribution, we can see how distribution chains can be made more efficient to
help reduce food prices.
The Organics Distribution Market: The Austin Example
Austin is known for being home to many things – a hip culture, blues guitar,
South by Southwest music festival and a hotbed of technology. It’s also home to
a health-conscious group of shoppers who love eating organic foodstuffs and
“going local.” It’s no surprise then that Austin is the birthplace of Whole Foods Market, one of the
nation’s largest and most successful organic health food grocers.
The abundance of health-savvy shoppers has fueled a mini boom of organic
markets in Austin as well. I caught up with Dan Gillotte, the general manager of
Wheatsville Co-op, a successful local
health food store, to discuss how they manage distribution operations.
According to Gillotte, managing packaged items isn’t that tricky. These
organic products tend to have a lengthy shelf life and are fairly easy to buy in
bulk and keep in stock. It’s the produce that’s the real thorn in a store
owner’s side. Organic produce is what the industry refers to as “loss leaders,”
or products that draw shoppers into a store but net small profits.
Gillotte explained that his store often has to turn to local producers in
order to secure the right produce. In Texas, this is especially difficult given
the fact that summer days usually hover around 100 degrees and nothing can grow.
Other regions suffer similar problems of seasonality. Beyond the national
distributors, Gillotte explained, it turns into a relationship-based business.
Even in 2011, most organic food producers are found by word-of-mouth.
A better and more efficient use of technology is the single most important
thing organic food distributors need today. They are stuck using comparatively
archaic methods of communicating their available supply with most transactions
conducted over the phone or by email.” – Stephen Jennings, NaturalPro Ltd.
Consulting
However, these issues aren’t isolated to smaller storefronts. Stephen
Jennings, Director of NaturalPro Ltd.
Consulting, explained that even large grocers like Whole Foods primarily
source through word-of-mouth transactions. And it’s astounding that a company
like Whole Foods – with sales exploding from from $1.9
billion to $8.5 billion between 2001 to 2010 – still relies on such a basic
means of sourcing their organic food supply.
Much like mom-and-pop operations, Whole Foods tends to streamline their
sourcing operations with regional buying managers that are tapped into the
community. The problem isn’t that Whole Foods lacks the technology to better
manage operations, it’s that their organic suppliers are caught in a technology
gap.
Currently, most organic distributors (except the national ones) don’t have
methods for automatically indicating their supply levels, pricing or
coordinating pick-ups and drop-offs. Without some level of automation in their
processes, organic food distributors are caught in an inefficient game of cat
and mouse where each has to guess the appropriate time to broker a deal.
This – along with the general lack of suppliers – can lead to fluctuations in
the organic food market and result in higher prices for the consumer. However,
these supply fluctuations and high prices can be tempered by taking a more
strategic and technological approach to organic distribution.
Creating A More Efficient Distribution Network
The success and expansion of healthy food chains like Whole Foods and
Wheatsville Co-op is critical to deflating the price and increasing the
accessibility of healthy, organic foods at the consumer and wholesale level.
Smart use of technology will play a pivotal role in making this happen. Here are
a few more ways that the organics market can improve distribution methods.
- Close the Communication Gap – Most distributors that specialize in
organic distribution don’t have the technology infrastructure to create smart,
efficient distribution routes. Distribution software can
help select optimal delivery routes, manage the status and location of produce
in real-time and ensure on-time delivery. - Better Manage Supplier Relationships – Finding the right supplier
at the right price is critical regardless of the kind of business you run. Using
procurement
software can make the task of finding an organic distributor simpler.
Meanwhile, it makes it easier for organic distributors to indicate supply levels
and desired pricing schemes. Grocers can also use the software to compare prices
and delivery times for distributors in order to choose the cheapest, most
efficient carrier. - Aggregate Purchasing Activities – Collectives often buy in bulk
because it makes purchasing otherwise expensive items affordable. Organic
grocers should band together to purchase in bulk for multi-location drops
similar to the way collectives manage purchasing. One of the reasons that
organics remain expensive is because each storefront purchases only for
themselves. If organic stores banded together, they could realize much greater
wholesale cost savings.
Plants Can Purify Our Surroundings: NASA
Posted: August 18, 2011 Filed under: BIODIVERSITY, Ecosystem, Environment, pollution Leave a comment » 
A NASA research document came to the conclusion that “house plants can purify and rejuvenate air within our houses and workplaces, safeguarding us all from any side effects connected with prevalent toxins such as formaldehyde, ammonia and also benzene.”� Trees are often seen as part of the answer for improving the environment and slowing climate change. Tree leaves utilize sunlight and absorb carbon dioxide from the air. Photosynthesis produces liquid sugars that go down into the root system to combine with soil water and minerals. Some of this goes back up the tree to produce more leaves, woody tissue, flowers and seeds or nuts. Some is stored as starch in the roots themselves, to be used during the winter or when the tree is stressed. The process of respiration converts these starches back into usable sugars, and also releases some carbon dioxide back into the air. Other pollutants can be removed too and are sometimes used as a design in remediation projects.
read here
Generation Z: Important Education Trends
Posted: August 17, 2011 Filed under: Evolution, Infrastructure 1 Comment »Guest Post by Tim Handorf
Generation Z, also known as the Internet Generation and Digital Natives, represent the first one to grow up in a world where Internet access has always been available and plentiful. These hyper-connected and tech-savvy youngsters are changing how educators formulate lessons and interact with students. Many predict they could forever change how kids are taught at all levels by making technology an integral part of all classroom study. Whether you’re a teacher-in-training at a college or university, a parent seeking to better understand your child’s educational needs or just have an interest in the history of the generation soon filling American workplaces, here are some of the most important educational trends to watch.
Interactive devices as classroom learning tools
There are few places in the U.S. today, aside from the most remote regions, where mobile or Internet-connected devices aren’t mostly ubiquitous. These interactive tools, especially the iPad, are becoming a bigger and bigger part of education programs nationwide. With Generation Z students already proficient with technology, there is no learning curve. Teachers and students alike have been able to use the wide range of applications they provide to promote engagement and learning both at home and in school. Interactive textbooks, educational games, and collaborative projects are just a few of the ways educators are using tech to get the digital generation better involved.
Homeschooling used to be a pretty rare phenomenon, but in recent years a significant surge helped make it much more mainstream. Increased popularity means more resources and support for homeschooling parents, many of whom chose the path in order to create a more individualized, self-directed learning environment. One of the tools making homeschool a lot easier is the web, where students and parents can connect with others and find a wide range of materials with which to teach and learn. Blogger and entrepreneur Penelope Trunk believes this Gen Z trend will lead to a group of young people more comfortable figuring out what they want to do and how they want to do it when it comes time to enter the work force.
Blogging isn’t just a trend for geeks and tech nerds. Just about everyone from grandmas to bikers has gotten in on it, and classrooms haven’t been any exception. The tech-savvy Gen Z has helped push a wide variety of technologies into the classroom, and more and more teachers are embracing the power of web-based programs to engage students with their classmates and other children halfway around the world. It’s not all just blogging, however. Other kinds of online collaborative projects are common in classrooms as well, including podcasting, digital media, and even video editing and design.
Studies have shown the brains of Generation Z kids are actually structurally different than those of their predecessors. It has nothing to do with genetics and everything to do with how we use our brains to respond to the environment. For Gen Z kids, this means lots of web browsing and information overloading. As a result, the part of the brain responsible for visual ability is far more developed in this group, making visual forms of learning more effective and enjoyable. Teachers and administrators are starting to respond to these changes, with curricula focusing more on looking rather than listening.
Treating learning as a game is not only more fun for Gen Z kids, it’s also more effective. One of the other major changes researchers see is a need for instant gratification. Games can offer that and motivate students to keep pushing towards a greater mastery of subject matter. Kids hooked on non-educational games can quickly be lured into trying ones surreptitiously teaching them as they go, which has proven an effective method for many modern-day educators. While games will likely never supplant traditional educational lessons, they are an additional resource that works well with the skills and needs of Gen Z students.
Focus on critical thinking and problem solving rather than information memorization
While there will always be things that students simply have to memorize, the Internet is slowly steering education away from rote strategies. Why motivate students to remember information they can quickly and easily look up online? Memorization hasn’t completely evaporated from the classroom, but teachers are putting more emphasis on critical thinking and problem solving over the ability to recall historical dates these days. These skills not only gel with the needs of Gen Z students, but they will also play a pivotal role in producing graduates ready to take on innovation and entrepreneurship once they hit the work force.
A return to occupation-based training rather than college
Let us be clear: students won’t stop applying to the biggest and best colleges in droves, no matter the generation. But with Generation Z, there will be a move away from seeking a degree right out of high school. Why? High educational costs have a lot to do with it, and many young people familiar with technology and have a few good ideas simply won’t need a college degree to get their careers started. More and more are seeking out entrepreneurship and business opportunities at a lower age. That’s not to say a college education couldn’t help out in those fields, but for many, the added income of starting earlier on a great idea outweighs the drive to get a degree — one that may not even be all that necessary.
One of the downfalls of Generation Z, like their predecessors in Gen Y, is that their constant multitasking has saddled them with a pretty short attention span. This can make them hard to teach, as they are easily bored and ready to move onto the next thing. Extended lessons can be hard to manage, so educators are tailoring information to be more bite-sized. Some teachers, like Daniel Watts of Elinor Lincoln Hickey High School in Sacramento, CA, are creating shorter, more straightforward lessons. This effectively relays the required information in a way that won’t induce restless shuffling from students ready to move on to the next topic.
China to launch sun-synchronous civil survey satellite ZY 3
Posted: August 16, 2011 Filed under: Countries, map making, Satellites Leave a comment »China will put into space a high-definition civil survey satellite, the first of its kind in the country, at the end of this year, said an official of the National Administration of Surveying, Mapping and Geoinformation.The satellite, ZY 3, will be launched from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in north Shanxi Province on a Long March 4B carrier rocket, said Song Chaozhi, deputy director of the administration, at a press conference on Monday.Once successfully launched, the satellite will operate in a sun-synchronous orbit at about 506 kilometers in altitude and be capable of producing seamless imagery of the earth’s surface from 84 degrees south latitude to 84 degrees north latitude, according to a statement issued at the press conference.
The satellite will greatly help the mapping efforts in the country’s western regions where geographic information is difficult to collect and update due to limits of equipment and technology, Song said.
Chakde India
Posted: August 15, 2011 Filed under: India 1 Comment »
Freedom in the Mind,Faith in the Words.Pride in our Soul.Lets salute the Nation on Our Independence Day.Chakde
India to Complete undersea survey by 2014
Posted: August 14, 2011 Filed under: India, News, oceans Leave a comment »The government of India is going to conduct a major oceanic survey in the country’s territorial waters, including parts of the Bay of Bengal, Gulf of Cambay and Andaman Sea, to look for prospects of under-sea mineral resources and natural gas.
The Ministry of Earth Sciences is taking up this initiative along with the Geological Survey of India and the Goa-based National Antarctic and Ocean Research Centre. “The survey will study 90,000 square kilometres of sea floor till 2014,” Ministry of Earth Sciences Secretary Shailesh Nayak said.
The survey would cover the Bay of Bengal, Andaman Sea and Gulf Of Cambay. Nayak said the main purpose of the survey would be to assess the hydrocarbon and geochemical resources in the country’s territorial waters.
