Heavy rainfall and hailstorm events occurred in major wheat-growing areas of India during February and March 2015 causing large-scale damages to the crop. An attempt was made to assess the impact of hailstorms in the states of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh (UP), Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh (MP) using remote sensing data.

Original Source

Long time series of ocean and land color satellite data can be used to measure Laurentian Great Lakes water quality parameters including chlorophyll, suspended minerals, harmful algal blooms (HABs), photic zone and primary productivity on weekly, monthly and annual observational intervals. The observed changes in these water quality parameters over time are a direct result of the introduction of invasive species such as the Dreissena mussels as well as anthropogenic forcing and climate change.

This study provides application of Resourcesat-2 AWiFS satellite imagery for forest burnt area assessment in India. AWiFS datasets covering peak forest fire months of 2014 have been analysed. The total burnt area under vegetation cover (forest, scrub and grasslands) of India was estimated as 57,127.75 sq. km. In 2014, 7% of forest cover of India was affected by fires. Of the major forest types, dry deciduous forests are affected by the highest burnt area, followed by moist deciduous forests.

Assessing geographic variability in heat wave vulnerability forms the basis for planning appropriate targeted adaptation strategies. Given several recent deadly heatwaves in India, heat is increasingly being recognized as a public health problem. However, to date there has not been a country-wide assessment of heat vulnerability in India. We evaluated demographic, socioeconomic, and environmental vulnerability factors and combined district level data from several sources including the most recent census, health reports, and satellite remote sensing data.

The impacts of climate change are felt by most critical systems, such as infrastructure, ecological systems, and power-plants. However, contemporary Earth System Models (ESM) are run at spatial resolutions too coarse for assessing effects this localized. Local scale projections can be obtained using statistical downscaling, a technique which uses historical climate observations to learn a low-resolution to high-resolution mapping. Depending on statistical modeling choices, downscaled projections have been shown to vary significantly terms of accuracy and reliability.

Meteorological studies have indicated that high alpine environments are strongly affected by climate warming, and periglacial debris flows are frequent in deglaciated regions. The combination of rainfall and air temperature controls the initiation of periglacial debris flows, and the addition of meltwater due to higher air temperatures enhances the complexity of the triggering mechanism compared to that of storm-induced debris flows.

Coastal zones are dynamic interfaces of land and water of high ecological diversity and critical economic importance. The boundaries, shape and size of this coast change constantly under the influence of both natural and anthropogenic factors. The study area, Tupilipalem is one of the proposal sites for constructing a major port, to be named Dugarajapatnam Port, along the east coast of Andhra Pradesh, India.

Original Source

The objectives of the Winter Fog Experiment (WIFEX) over the Indo-Gangetic Plains of India are to develop better now-casting and forecasting of winter fog on various time- and spatial scales. Maximum fog occurrence over northwest India is about 48 days (visibility <1000 m) per year, and it occurs mostly during the December–February time-period. The physical and chemical characteristics of fog, meteorological factors responsible for its genesis, sustenance, intensity and dissipation are poorly understood.

Flood hazard causes great loss to lives and properties leading to disturbance in human society. Flood is the single most hydrometeorological hazard causing substantial losses. To gain better understanding of the flood phenomena especially for planning and mitigation purposes, flood risk analysis is often required. For the present study, the middle part of Panchganga river of Kolhapur district, Maharashtra was selected.