Geography: June 2022 Current Affairs - UPSC PDF Download

Unified Geologic Map of the Moon

Why in News?

Recently, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) in partnership with National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Lunar Planetary Institute has released a new comprehensive map of the Moon, called the ‘Unified Geologic Map of the Moon’.

• The new map showcases the Moon in a 1:50,00,000-scale size, and is claimed to come handy to researchers, scientists, students and the general public.
• The map has been created with the help of the information gathered from six Apollo-era regional maps.
  • It also uses data from recently held satellite missions to the Moon.

What is the Significance of this New Map?

• Blueprint for Future Human Mission:
  • This new map will serve as the “definitive blueprint of the Moon’s surface geology for future human missions.”
• Help in understanding the Moon Surface:
  • It will come handy to understand the surface of the Moon.
  • The map will also help researchers learn the history behind the formations located on the Moon’s surface.
    (i) Earlier, a leftover piece of a spacecraft flying (of Chang'e 5-T1 – a lunar mission of China) through space reportedly hit the surface of the moon creating a new crater that may be around 65 feet wide (lunar crater).

What are the key Highlights about the Moon?

About:

• The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite and the fifth largest moon in the solar system.
• The Moon's presence helps stabilize our planet's wobble and moderate our climate.
• The Moon's distance from Earth is about 240,000 miles.
• The Moon has a very thin atmosphere called an exosphere.

Phases of the Moon

• The Moon displays four main phases: new, first quarter, full, and last quarter.
  • New Moon: It occurs when the Moon is between Earth and the Sun, and thus the side of the Moon that is in shadow faces Earth.
  • Full Moon: It occurs when the Moon is on the opposite side of Earth from the Sun, and thus the side of the Moon that is illuminated faces Earth.
  • First and Last Quarter: In this phase, half the Moon appears illuminated, occurring when the Moon is at a right angle with respect to the Sun when viewed from Earth. (Earth, as seen from the Moon, shows the same phases in opposite order—e.g., Earth is full when the Moon is new).

Related Missions:

• Chandrayaan-3 Mission (India)
• Artemis I moon mission (USA)
• Chang’e-5 Mission (China)

To read more information on this topic:

• Our Solar System  
  
  

Bedti-Varada River Interlinking Project

Why in News?

Environmental groups in Karnataka have criticised the project to link the Bedti and Varada rivers in Karnataka, calling it unscientific and a waste of public money.

Bedti-Varada Interlinking Project

• The Bedti-Aghanashini-Varade river-linking project was also included in the country’s major rivers project devised by the then PM Vajpayee government.
• The Central Government had created a task force to prepare action plans for interlinking the riverbeds in 2002.
• The project cost and the source of investments were ascertained and suggested that the project be taken up in 2016.

Key details

• The Bedti-Varada project was envisaged in 1992 as one to supply drinking water by the then government.
• The plan aims to link the Bedti, a river flowing west into the Arabian Sea, with the Varada, a tributary of the Tungabhadra river, which flows into the Krishna, which in turn flows into the Bay of Bengal.
• A massive dam will be erected at Hirevadatti in Gadag district under the project. A second dam will be built on the Pattanahalla river at Menasagoda in Sirsi, Uttara Kannada district.
• Both dams will take water to the Varada via tunnels of length 6.3 kilometres and 2.2-km. The water will reach at a place called Kengre.
• It will then go down a 6.88 km tunnel to Hakkalumane, where it will join the Varada.
• The project thus envisages taking water from the water surplus Sirsi-Yellapura region of Uttara Kannada district to the arid Raichur, Gadag and Koppal districts.

Why was this project rolled out?

• The detailed project reports estimates that the project will irrigate 1.06 lakh hectares, of which 21% will grow cotton, followed by paddy (15%), groundnut (15%), jowar (14%) and other crops.
• The water pumped from Uttara Kannada will help end the agriculture crisis.

Why activists are disgusted over the project?

• The plan aims to link the Bedti, a river flowing west into the Arabian Sea, with the Varada, a tributary of the Tungabhadra River, which flows into the Krishna, which in turn flows into the Bay of Bengal.
• The activists claimed that the project will not ensure water to the places that are intended to be the beneficiaries.
• It would only benefit contractors, cement, iron and granite industries as well as politicians’ lobbying groups.

Since Bedti and Varada River Interlinking Project is a part of Drainage System, here's a document to clear your concepts on the same here: 

• Drainage System
• Drainage System: Geography

Summer Solstice: 21st June

Why in News

21st June is the longest day in the Northern Hemisphere, technically this day is referred to as Summer solstice. In Delhi, the day length is around 14 hours.

• The amount of light received by a specific area in the Northern Hemisphere during the summer solstice depends on the latitudinal location of the place.
• 21st June is also observed as the International Yoga Day.

Key Points

Meaning of the Word ‘Solstice’:

• It is a Latin word that means ‘stalled sun’. It is a natural phenomenon that occurs twice every year, once in the summer and again during winter, in each hemisphere of the earth - Summer and Winter Solstice.

About Summer Solstice:

• It is the longest day and shortest night of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.
• During this, countries in the Northern Hemisphere are nearest to the Sun and the Sun shines overhead on the Tropic of Cancer (23.5° North).
  • At latitudes of 23.5° are the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, north and south of the Equator.
  • At 66.5° are the Arctic and Antarctic Circles, to the north and south.
  • Latitudes are a measure of a location’s distance from the Equator.
• During the solstice, the Earth’s axis — around which the planet spins, completing one turn each day — is tilted in a way that the North Pole is tipped towards the sun and the South Pole is away from it.
• Typically, this imaginary axis passes right through the middle of the Earth from top to bottom and is always tilted at 23.5 degrees with respect to the sun.
• At the Arctic Circle, the sun never sets during the solstice.

Greater Amount of Energy:

• This day is characterised by a greater amount of energy received from the sun. According to NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), the amount of incoming energy the Earth received from the sun on this day is 30% higher at the North Pole than at the Equator.
• The maximum amount of sunlight received by the Northern Hemisphere during this time is usually on June 20, 21 or 22. In contrast, the Southern Hemisphere receives most sunlight on December 21, 22 or 23 when the northern hemisphere has its longest nights– or the winter solstice.

Geography Behind:

• The reason behind the changing lengths of the days is the Earth’s tilt.
• The Earth’s axis of rotation is tilted at an angle of 23.5° to its orbital plane. This tilt, combined with factors such as Earth’s spin and orbit, leads to variations in the duration of sunlight, due to which any location on the planet receives different lengths of days.
  • The Northern Hemisphere spends half the year tilted in the direction of the Sun, getting direct sunlight during long summer days. During the other half of the year, it tilts away from the Sun, and the days are shorter.
• The tilt is also responsible for the different seasons on Earth. This phenomenon causes the movement of the Sun from the northern to the southern hemisphere and vice versa bringing in seasonal changes in the year.

To Read More Information on this Topic:

• GC Leong: The Earth & The Universe

Theri Desert

Why in News?

There are couple of theories that are being debated regarding the formation of Theri desert , the most plausible being the role of south west monsoonal winds.

Theri Desert

• The red dunes are called theri in Tamil.
• They consist of sediments dating back to the Quaternary Period and are made of marine deposits.
• They have very low water and nutrient retention capacity.
• The dunes are susceptible to aerodynamic lift.
• This is the push that lets something move up. It is the force that is the opposite of weight.

Mineral composition of Theris

• The analysis of the red sand dunes reveal the presence of heavy and light minerals.
• These include Ilmenite, Magnetit, Rutile, Garnet, Zircon, Diopside, Tourmaline, Hematite, Goethite, Kyanite, Quartz, Feldspar, Biotite.
• The iron-rich heavy minerals like ilmenite, magnetite, garnet, hypersthene and rutile present in the soil had undergone leaching by surface water.
• They were then oxidised because of the favourable semi-arid climatic conditions.

How did they form?

• Theris appear as gentle, undulating terrain.
• The lithology of the area shows that the area might have been a paleo (ancient) coast in the past.
• The presence of limestone in many places indicates marine transgression.
• The present-day theris might have been formed by the confinement of beach sand locally, after regression of the sea.
• When high velocity winds from the Western Ghats blew east, they induced migration of sand grains and accumulation of dunes.

Another story of their formation

• Another view is that these are geological formations that appeared in a period of a few hundred years.
• The red sand is brought from the surface of a broad belt of red loam in the plains of the Nanguneri region (about 57 kilometres) by south west monsoon winds during May-September.
• The winds after draining the moisture behind the Mahendragiri hill and the Aralvaimozhi gap of the Western Ghats become dry and strike the plains in the foothills, where vegetation is sparse.
• Deforestation and the absence of vegetative cover in the Aralvaimozhi gap and the Nanguneri plains are considered to be the major causes of wind erosion.

Since Theri Desert is a part of Deserts, here's a document to clear your concepts on the same here:

• Deserts: Indian Geography
• Hot & Cold Desert

High-grade lithium discovered in Nigeria

Why in News?

Recently, High-grade Lithium has been discovered in Nigeria.

• Greenbushes mine in Western Australia is the largest hard-rock Lithium mine in the world.
• The largest importers of lithium are South Korea, China, Japan, US and Belgium.
  

What are the Key Highlights of Lithium?

About:

• Lithium is an element and in nature tends to concentrate sufficiently in the two minerals, spodumene and lepidolite.
• They are usually found in specialised rocks called rareCand greisens.
• The Geological Agency described lithium as high grade because it is found with 1-13% oxide content. Normally exploration begins at levels as low as 0.4%.
  • Grade (in %) is a measure of the concentration of lithium in the minerals and or rocks that contain it.
  • Therefore, the higher the grade the more the economic viability. Higher grades are very rare for metals like lithium.

Applications:

• Special Glasses and Ceramics:
  • Lithium disilicate (Li₂Si₂O₅) is a chemical compound that is a glass ceramic.
  • It is widely used as a dental ceramic due to its strength, machinability and translucency.
• Alloy Making:
  • Lithium metal is used to make useful alloys.
  • For example, with lead to make ‘white metal’ bearings for motor engines, with aluminium to make aircraft parts, and with magnesium to make Armour plates.
• Rechargeable batteries:
  • Lithium is used in rechargeable batteries for mobile phones, laptops, digital cameras and electric vehicles. Lithium is also used in some non-rechargeable batteries for things like heart pacemakers, toys and clocks. The different types of batteries are:
    (i) Lithium-cobalt oxide battery: It is used in consumer electronics and is being applied in electric vehicles. It is relatively cheap.
    (ii) Lithium-nickel-manganese-cobalt: It is a newer, higher performing range of battery chemistry. It is mainly developed for the electronic vehicle market but is finding a wider use because of its increasing cost effectiveness.
    (iii) Lithium iron phosphate: It is the safest technology with relatively high performance but relatively expensive. It is very popular in China.
    (iv) Lithium-nickel-cobalt-aluminium oxide: It is developed to reduce cobalt consumption and is known as a solid performer and of reasonable cost. It is also becoming popular outside China.

High Demand:

• Due to the growing interest in clean energy, the demand for lithium has skyrocketed as most countries draw plans to phase out fossil fuel and switch to zero emission electric vehicles.
  • Lithium production globally grew from 28,100 metric tonnes in 2010 to 86,000 in 2019. The challenge will be in supplying the market with enough lithium.

Lithium in India:

• Researchers at the Atomic Minerals Directorate (under India’s Atomic Energy Commission) have estimated lithium reserves of 14,100 tonnes in a small patch of land surveyed in Southern Karnataka’s Mandya district.
• Also, to be India’s first ever Lithium deposit site.
• What are the Steps taken by India to reduce import of Lithium?
• India has adopted a multi-modal strategy to reduce its dependence on imported lithium and give fresh impetus to the growth of the local electric vehicles (EV) industry.
• State-run Khanij Bidesh India Ltd (KABIL) is working with the authorities in Argentina, Chile, Australia and Bolivia for acquiring lithium and cobalt mines overseas.
  • These nations are rich in lithium reserves.
• The country is also working on urban mining where recycled materials remain in circulation and this reduces the dependency on fresh lithium inputs. This will further bring down the requirement for imports.

Uranium Deposit in Rajasthan

Why In News?

With the issuance of Letter of Intent (LoI) for uranium mining in the state on June 26, 2022, Rajasthan has entered the field of uranium mining.

Key facts

• After Andhra Pradesh and Jharkhand, Rajasthan has become the third state where uranium has been found.
• Uranium is counted among one of the rare minerals worldwide.
• The government of Rajasthan has forayed into uranium mining field, by issuing a letter of intent (LoI) to Uranium Corporation of India.
• The LoI is for excavation of Uranium ore in the state. Its mining will start after fulfilling necessary formalities.

Uranium Deposits

• As per initial estimates, there could be around 12 million tonnes of uranium deposits.
• Now, Uranium Corporation will invest Rs 3,000 crore for mining activities.
• This project is going to provide direct and indirect employment to around 3,000 people
• It will also help in setting up ancillary industries, based on by-products in the region.

Current Scenario of Uranium Excavation

• Presently, the excavation of uranium is going on at Jadugoda in Jharkhand and in Andhra Pradesh. World’s largest producer of Uranium are Kazakhstan, Canada and Australia. Uranium has also been found in Niger, Russia, Uzbekistan, Namibia, Ukraine and the US.

About Uranium
Uranium is a chemical element having symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal.  Uranium is weakly radioactive as all its isotopes are unstable. Its density is around 70% higher as compared to lead, and slightly lower than tungsten or gold. Uranium is usually used for generating electricity and also used for nuclear energy, defence equipment, medicines, and photography. In nature, uranium is found as uranium-238 and uranium-235. Uranium reacts with almost all non-metal elements.

Sikar District
Sikar district is a district in Rajasthan. It is the administrative headquarters of the state. Sikar, Sri Madhopur, Laxmangarh, Fatehpur Shekahwati and Neem Ka Thana, are the largest cities and tehsils of this district. Old name of Sikar was “Veer Bhan Ka Bas”.

To Read More Information on this Topic:

• Radioactive Minerals & Soils