40th Indian scientific expedition to Antarctica | UPSC

40th Indian scientific expedition to Antarctica | UPSC

      HEADLINES:

40th Indian scientific expedition to Antarctica launched

      WHY IN NEWS:

India today launched the 40^thscientific expedition to Antarctica.

SYLLABUS COVERED: GS 1 : 3 : Geography : Earth Science

      LEARNING: 

For PRELIMS it is important to go through both the research stations and take a note of it. Map all the research bases with respect to longitudes and latitudes .

For MAINS go through the global conventions regarding the utilisation of resources in Arctic and Antarctica.

      ISSUE: 

40th INDIAN SCIENTIFIC EXPEDITION TO ANTARCTICA

• The word Antarctica is derived from the Greek word antarktike, which means “opposite to north” i.e., opposite to the Arctic.

OVERVIEW

• This Indian expedition marks four decades of country’s scientific endeavour to the southern white continent.
• The 40th expedition journey will be flagged off from Goa on January 5, 2021, with 43 members onboard.

AIM

• The team also is focussed on environmental monitoring; resupplying of food, fuel, provisions and spare; and accomplishing the return of the winter crew.

PREVIOUS MISSION

• The preceding 39^th Indian Scientific Expedition to Antarctica was launched in November 2019.
• It mounted 27 scientific projects, focusing on climate process and its linkages with climate change, crustal evolution, environmental processes and conservation etc.

• Two additional collaborative projects with the National Institute of Polar Research, Japan were also undertaken.
• After completing its mission mandate, it returned to India in May of 2020.
• It also replenished the annual supplies of food, fuel, provisions, snowmobiles, and spares for operations and maintenance of life support systems at Maitri and Bharati.
• It cruised a team of 48 members to Antarctica for winter operations.

BACKGROUND

• The Indian Antarctic expeditions began in 1981.
• The first trip comprised of a team of 21 scientists and support staff led by Dr SZ Qasim.
• After a humble beginning, the Indian Antarctic programme has now credited to have built three permanent research base stations in Antarctica—named Dakshin Gangotri, Maitri, and Bharati.

• The National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Goa, manages the entire Indian Antarctic program.

MAITRI RESEARCH STATION

• In the year 1988 an ice free, rocky area on the Schirmacher oasis was selected to build the Second Research Station Maitri.
• The building was erected on steel stilts, and has since stood the test of time.

• It is an inland station about 100 km from the shore at an elevation of about 50 meters above sea level.
• It can support 25 persons in the main building during summers as well as winters and about 40 in summer facility comprising of containerized living modules.
• The station consists of one main building, fuel farm, fuel station, lake water pump house, a summer camp and a number of smaller containerized modules.
• The main building offers regulated power supply, automated heating with hot and cold running water, incinerator toilets, cold storage, PA system, living, dining, lounge and containerized laboratory space.
• The communication is through dedicated satellite channels providing connectivity for voice, video and data with India mainland.

BHARATI RESEARCH STATION

• About 3000 km east of Maitri, the new Indian research base ‘Bharati’ is located between Thala Fjord & Quilty bay, east of Stornes Peninsula in Antarctica at approximately at 35 m above sea level.
• The station with a very small footprint was commissioned on 18 March 2012 to facilitate year-round scientific research activity by the Indian Antarctic program.
• Station can support emergency shelters / summer camps during summers and having a total capacity of 72 members.

• The communication is through dedicated satellite channels providing connectivity for voice, video and data with India mainland.

      IASbhai WINDUP: 

• The scientific and logistic activities of the 40^thIndian Antarctic expedition are limited due to the existing challenges associated with COVID-19 pandemic.
• India is committed to maintaining the continent of Antarctica free of COVID-19.

• Extra precautions of sanitizing the cargo, mandatory fourteen days of quarantine (pre-, and post-expedition), and RT-PCR testing before boarding the ice-class vessel is also being conducted.

     SOURCES:   PIB  | 40th Indian scientific expedition to Antarctica | UPSC 

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