ID: 50602
Title: Srisailam sub-basin, an uranium province of unconformity-related deposits in Andhra Pradesh - case study of Chitrial uranium exploration, Nalgonda District.
Author: M. B. Verma, P. B. Maithani, A. Chaki, P. Nageshwar Rao and Prakher Kumar
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Chitrial Plateau, Srisailam outlier, subsurface exploration, uranium-mineralization.
Abstract: Significant surface radioactive anomalies, with values up to 0.177% eU3O8(n=9), located during 1992 along the non-conformity contact of basement of basement granitoid with the Srisailam Formation, around Chitrial village, Nalgonda District, Andhra Pradesh, led to the establishment of a sizeable uranium deposit by recent exploration. Thus, intensive subsurface exploration. Thus, intensive subsurface exploration resulted in delineating the persistency of the mineralization over a stretch of 4.4 km (K-W) and 2.7 km (N-S). Along micro-fractures of the granitoid, uranium mineralization occurs as veins of pitchblende and uraninite. Preliminary exploration along the fringes of Srisailam outliers indicated the possibility of establishing substantial uranium reserve within the srisailam sub-basin, due to similar geological set-up, With increasing thickness of cover sediments towards the centre of the sub-basin, possibility of richer con centration exists in the deeper part of the sub-basin. An attempt has been to synthesize the exploration history commencing from locating uranium occurance up to developing them into a workable economic deposit in Chitrial.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50601
Title: Acacia nilotica-based traditional agroforestry system : effect on paddy crop and management.
Author: S. S. Bargali, Kiran bargali, Lalji Singh, Lekha Ghosh and M. L. Lakhera.
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Acacia nilotica, crown diameter, rice, traditional agroforestry, tree age.
Abstract: A study was conducted in an age series of Acacia nilotica (L.) Willd. ex Del (6-28 years old)-based traditional agroforestry sytem in the sub-humid region of Chhattisgarh. The effects of this tree on different rice (Oryza sativa) crop parameters (plant density, plant height, effective tillers, total aboveground biomass and grain yield yield ) under natural conditions (without any management practices in trees ) and under tree management conditions (cutting of 10% of basal tree branches ) were evaluated. The growth and productivity parameters were taken in tree directions ( a central line passing from the centre of the tree bole, and right and left to this central straight line ) and at four distances (1,3, 5 and 7 m from the tree base). The impact of the tree on the crop was maximum at 1 m distance from the tree trunk. The data were also compared with different crop parameters in the open field (beyond the reach of the tree canopy). With increases in tree age, crown diameter and diameter at breast height (DBH), rice productivity reduced from 4.7 (under 9 yr old tree) to 28.8% (28-yr-old tree). Where as under 6 -yr - old tree, there was an increase (4%) in grain yield. With increase in tree canopy size the plant density and effective tillers also reduced. Per cent yoeld reduction showed significant positive correlation with tree age, crown diameter abd DBH. After the removal of 10% of basal tree branches (in 12-28-yr -oldtrees, the crown diameter of tree, the crown diameter of trees was reduced (1.19- 3.77%), plant density (0.05-1%), effective tillers (1.19- 5.8%) and grain yield (1.52-2.92%) increased significantly and plant height decreased (0.09-1.1.32%) over the inmanaged (without cutting the tree branches) condition.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50600
Title: Comparison of floristic diversity of evergreen forest inferred from different from different sampling approaches in the Eastern Ghats of Tamil Nadu, India.
Author: S. Jayakumar, A. Ramachandran and Joon Heo
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Diversity indices, evergreen forest, floristic diversity,sampling techniques.
Abstract: Floristic inventory and diversity studies are conducted using various sampling methods. The present study compared floristic diversity of an evergreen forest of Kolli Hill based on three sampling methods, viz, (a) ad hoc (AH) vegetation survey, (b) stratified random plot (SRP) and (c) bigger plot (BP). The evergreen forest area (2889.5 ha) was classified with IRS ID LISS III satellite data and the evergreen area belonging to different reserve forests were subset. Floristic inventory with SRP was carried out on 0.1% of total evergreen area using 20 x 20 m plot. An earlier study done on the same locality was considered as the BP. The AH, SRP and BP recorded, 121, 91 and 78 tree species respectively. The mean tree densitities were 547 and 478 tree ha-1 and the mean basal areas were 46.74 and 43.6 m2 ha-1 in SRP and BP respectively. All the diversity indices calculated based on SRP with ha sampling area and BP with 8 ha sampling area varied considerably.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50599
Title: Land evaluation by integrating remote sensing and GIS for cropping system analysis in a watershed
Author: D. Martin and S. K. Saha
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Cropping system, geographical information system, land evaluation, remote sensing.
Abstract: Quantitative land evaluation procedures, namely USDA Land Capability Classification (LCC) and FAO Land Evaluation Procedure for Soil Site Suitability for various land utilization types have been used to assess the land suitability for different crops and for generating cropping pattern for kharif (summer) and rabi (winter) seasons in a watershed. The database on soil. land use/ land cover rainfall, and temperature was generated from data derived from Landsat TM remote sensing satellite and soil survey to perform an integrated analysis in the geographic information system environment. Arable and non-arable lands were delineated in the watershed using the USDA LCC and non-arable areas were masked for removal from future analysis. Different land quality parameters, viz. soil texture, depth, erosion, slope, flooding and course fragments under various land units were evaluated for a number of crops. Subsequently all of them were integrated using a sequence of logical operations to generate the land suitability maps for various crops. Kharif and rabi season cropping patterns were developed by integrating crop suitability maps for the winter and summer seasons separately. Finally, cropping system maps for the watershed were obtained by integrating the two season cropping sequences within the crop calender. Results indicated that the present agricultural area of 47% could be increased to 71% by adopting scientific land evaluation methods for watershed development. It was also found that better landuse options could be implemented in different land units as the conventional land evaluation methods suffer from limitation of spatial analysis for the suitability of various crops.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50598
Title: Properties of cloud base height during southwest monsoon period over a tropical station, Thiruvananthapuram
Author: Hamza Varikoden, R. Harikumar, V. Sasi Kumar S. Murali Das, S. Sampath and G. Mohan Kumar.
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Ceilometer, cloud base height, cloud frequency , southwest monsoon.
Abstract: The study of the clouds and their properties has remained unexplored, especially during the southwest (SW) mosoon season due to the unavailability of reliable data sets. Here we made an attempt to study the cloud base height (CBH) and its characteristic during the SW monsoon period of 2007 using CBH data obtained by a Vaisala Laser Ceilometer (VLC). The VLC was made operational at Thiruvananthapuram since July 2006 to monitor the CBH every 15 s. The relation of CBH with meteorology parameters is studied using the radiosonde observations. We found that cloud during the SW monsoon season have mainly concerntrated below 2500m. A layer with relatively void clouds was present between 2500 and 4000 m. We call this region as cloud-free zone. The amplitude of variability of CBH was less compared to the variability of the cloud frequency. Active mosoon is when the cloud frequency exceeds 70% and break phase is when it is less than 40%. The cloud frequency increases when the wind shear increases in the lower levels. Similarly, temperature is more during break phase of monsoon however, the relative humidity shows an increase during active phase of monsoon. Multiple clouds were also noticed during active phase, but it was negligible during break phases of monsoon.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50597
Title: A high resolution daily gridded rainfall dataset (1971-2005) for mesoscale meteorological studies.
Author: M. Raajeevan and Jyoti Bhate
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Mesoscale meteorological studies, rainfall dataset, rain gauge.
Abstract: In this communication, we discuss the development of a very high resolution (0.5 x 0.5) daily rainfall data set for mesoscale meteorological studies over the Indian region. The dataset was developed using qualitycontrolled rainfall data from more than 3000 rain gauge stations over India. The analysis consists of daily rainfall data for all the seasons for the period 1971-2005. A well-tested interpolation method (shepard ' s method) was used to interpolate the station data into regular grids of 0.5 x 0.5 lat. x long. After proper validation, it has been found that the present dataset is better compared to other available datasets. A few case studies have been shown to demonstrate the utility of the dataset for different mesoscale meteorological analyses. However, since the data density is not kept uniform, there is a possibility of temporal inhomogeneity and therefore, the present dataset cannot be used for trend analysis. The dataset is free available from the Indian Meteorological Department, Pune.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50596
Title: Is malaria the cause for decline in the wild population of the Indian White-backed vulture (Gyps bengalensis)?
Author: Ajay Poharkar, P. Anuradha Reddy, Vilas A. Gadge, Sunil Kolte, Nitin Kurkure, and Sisinthy Shivaji.y
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Gyps bengalensis, malaria, visceral gout, population decline.
Abstract: The population of three species of Gyps vultures have shown a decline of more than 95% between 1998 and 1999 in the Indian subcontinent and are now classified as ' critically endangered ' . The indiscriminate and widespread veterinary use of diclofenae has been implicated for the decline of the White-backed vulture (Gyps bengalensis) in Pakistan, India and Nepal. Similar trends in population decline as seen in the northcern regions have also been recorded in Central and South India, but the cause for the decline was not investigated. Here we reported a study carried out in a densely forest and sparsely populated region in Central India. An intracellular malarial parasite was identified from the Tissue of both live and dead White backed vultures. Further, amplification and sequence analysis of the consenses of the mitochondrial small and large sub-unit r RNA genes indicated a 95-96% similarity with the mitochondrial sequence of Plasmodium falciparum (DQ642845) and other plasmodium species. In addition, amplification and sequenceing of a 502 bp fragmen
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50595
Title: On the confirmation of the traditional unit of length measure in the estimates of circumference of the earth.
Author: R. Balasubramaniam
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Circumference, earth, length measure.
Abstract: The prevalence of two differences for the cir cumference of the earth in Sanskrit astronomical texts has been resolved by considering the concept of a constant angulam of 1.763 cm and the metrological table defined in Kautilya ' s Arthasastra. The traditional measures defined in the Arthasastra have been related to the measures defined in the Ain-Akbari, by considering the same issue of circumference of the earth. The study has connection of the traditional unit of measure, the angulam, of the Harappa civilization (-2000BC) with length measures of the Mughal period (AD -1600), there by confirming an unbroken traditional in the use of the angulam of 1. 763 cm over a period of more than 3600 years in the year indian subcontinant. The possible measurement unit which can be used to analyse the dimensions of most engineered structures of the subcontinent through the ages have been proposed and brief confirmed by the dimensions of the marble plateform of the Taj Mahal.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50594
Title: Monitoring lunar radiation environment : RADOM instrument on Chandrayaan - 1
Author: T. Dachev, B. Tomov, P. Dimitrov and Y. Matviichuk
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Galactic cosmic rays, radiation environment, RADOM instrument, solar wind.
Abstract: This paper describes the RADOM instrument on Chandrayaan - 1 spacecraft to monitor the radiation en-route to Moon and in lunar orbit. The instrument is a miniature (98d; 100 mW) 256 channels spectrometer for the measurement of energy deposited (dose) due to incident primary and secondary, energetic particles using a single 0.3 mm thick 2 cm2 silicon detector sequence as well as the data analysis produced and instrument calibration results are presented.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50593
Title: The Moon Impact probe on Chandrayaan - 1
Author: Y. Ashok Kumar and MIP Project Team
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Altimeter, Chandrayaan, Impact probe, imager, mass spectrometer, moon.
Abstract: A unique, stand alone micro satellite called the Moon Impact Probe (MIP), designed to impact at a pre decided location near the South Pole of the moon was a part of the Chandrayaan - 1 mission. The MIP has two technology and one scientific experiments, viz, a Moon Imaging System (MIS) for surface photography along its path, a Radar Altimeter for terrain topography at close distance (<5KM) and a Mass spectrometer, CHACE (Chandra ' s Altitudinal Composition Explorer), for measuring the neural composition on the sunlit side of the Moon. A description of the various sub-systems of the MIP and of the instruments is presented in this article.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50592
Title: Mini-SAR : an imaging radar experiment for the Chandrayaan - 1 mission to the Moon.
Author: Paul Spudis, Stewart Nozette, Ben Bussey, Keith Raney, Helene Winters, Christopher L. Lichtenberg, William Marinelli, Jason C. Crusan and Michele M. Gates.
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Ice, Moon, Poles, radar, SAR.
Abstract: Mini-SAR is a single frequency (S-band; 13-cm wave length) Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) in a light weight (-9kg) package. Previous Earth and space based radar observations of the permanently shadowed regions of the lunar poles have measured areas of high circular polarization ratio consistent with volume scattering from water ice buried at shallow (0.1-1 m) depths. This detection is not definitive because of poor viewing geometry and a limited number of observations. Mini-SAR utilizes a unique hybrid polarization architecture, which allows determination of the stokes parameters of the reflected signal, intended to disinguish volume scattering (caused by the presence of ice) from other scattering mechanisms (eg. sub-wavelength scale surface roughness).
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50591
Title: Investigation of the solar wind-Moon interaction onboard Chandrayaan-1 mission with the SARA experiment
Author: Stas Barabash, Anil Bhardwaj, Martin Wieser, R. Sridharan, Thomas Kurian, Subha Varier, E. Vijayakumar, Veena Abhirami, K. V. Raghavendra, S. V. Mohankumar, M. B. Dhanya, Satheesh Thampi, Asamura Kazushi, Herman Anderson, Futaana Yoshifumi, Mats Holm
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Chandrayaan, elemental composition, energetic neutral atoms, magnetic anomalies, Moon, solar wind.
Abstract: The SARA instrument (Sub-keV Atom Reflecting Analyser) comprises a low energy neutral atom (LENA) sensor for the energy range 10 eV-3.3 keV and an ion mass spectrometer (10 eV-15keV). It is the first ever experiment to study the solar wind-planetary surface interaction via measurements of the sputtered atoms and neutralized back-scattered solar wind hydrogen. The neutral atom sensor uses conversion of the incoming neutrals to positive ions, which are then analysed via surface interaction technique. The ion mass spaectrometer is based on the same principle. SARA performs LENA imaging of the Moon ' s elemental surface composition including that of permanent shodowed areas, and imaging of the lunar surface magnetic anomalies. It will also investigate processess of space weathering and sources of the exospheric gases.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50590
Title: High Energy X-ray Spectrometer on Chandrayaan - 1.
Author: P. Sreekumar, Y. B. Acharya, C. N. Umapathy, M. Ramakrishna Sharma, Shanmugam, A. Tyagi, Kumar, S. Vadawale, M. Sudhakar, L. Abraham, R. Kulkani, S. Purohit, R. L. Premlatha, D. Banerjee, M. Bug and J. N. Goswami.
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Chandrayaan-1, gamma rays, lunar pole, moon, volatile transport.
Abstract: Chandrayaan-1, India ' s first planetary exploration mission to Moon carries a suite of payload including a High Energy X-ray spectrometer (HEX) designed to study low-energy (30-270 keV) natural gamma rays emitted from the lunar surface due to decay of uranium and thorium. The primary science objective of HEX is to study transport of volatiles on the lunar surface through the detection of the 46.5 keV lines from 210Pb decay, which is a decay product of volatile 222Rn, both belonging to the 238U decay series. HEX is designed to have a spatial resolution of -33 km at energies below 120 keV. The low signal strength of these emissions requires a large area detector with high sensitivity and energy resolution, and a new generation Cd-Zn-Te(CZT) solid state array detected is used is used in this experiment. Long time integration will be required to detec the emission because lunar continuum background and weak signal strength. The various sub-systems of the HEX flight payload and test results from ground calibration are described in this article. HEX will be the first experiment aimed at deetecting low energy (<300 keV) gamma ray emission from a planetary surface.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50589
Title: The Chandrayaan - 1 X ray Spectrometer.
Author: Manuel Grande, Brian J. Maddison, P. Sreekumar, Johani Huovelin, Barry J. Kellett, Chris J. Howe, Ian A. Crawford, D. R. Smith and the CIXS Team.
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Chandrayaan - 1, elemental abundances, Moon, X - ray spectrometer.
Abstract: The Chandrayaan - 1 X - ray Spectrometer (CIXS) is a compact X-ray spectrometer for the Chandrayaan-1 lunar mission. It exploits heritage from the D-CIXIS instrument on ESA ' s SMART - 1 mission. CIXS is designed to measure absolute and relative abundances of major rock-forming elements (principally Mg, Al, Si, Ti, Ca, and Fe) over the lunar surface. The baseline design consists of 24 nadir pointing Swept Charge device detectors, which provide high detection efficiency in the 1-7 ke V range, which contains the X-ray fluorescence lines of the above elements of interest. Micro machined collimators provide a 14 degree FWHM FOV, equivalent to 25 km from 100 km altitude. A deployable door protects the instrument during launch and cruise, and also provides a Fe calibration X-ray source for detector calibration. Additional refinements compared to D-CIXS will results in a significantly improved energy resolution. To record the incident solar X-ray flux at the Moon, CIXS carries an X-ray Solar Monitor (XSM). CIXS will arrive at the Moon in the run up to the maximum of the solar cycle 24, and the expected high incident X-ray flux coupled to a 100km circular polar orbit, will provide composition data accurate to better than 10% of major element abundances over the lunar surface.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 50588
Title: Lunar Laser Ranging Instrument (LLRI) : a tool for the study of topography and gravitational field of the Moon.
Author: J. A. Kamalakar, A. S. Laxmi Prasad, K. V. S. Bhaskar, P. Selvaraj, R. Venkateswaran, K. Kalyani, A. Goswami and V. L. N. Sridhar Raja
Editor: P. Balaram
Year: 2009
Publisher: CURRENT SCIENCE, Volume 96, Number 4, 25 February 2009, Indian Academy of Science
Source: Centre for Ecological Science,Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-12
Reference: None
Subject: Science
Keywords: Laser altimeter, Moon, topography.
Abstract: The Lunar laser Ranging Instrument (LLRI) developed for flight on the Chandrayaan - 1 space craft was designed to measure the topography of the lunar surface over a 2- year period from a 100 km polar orbit of Moon. A 10 mJ diode-pumped pulsed laser together with 200mm diameter telescope and a silicon avalanche photodiode are the principal optical assemblies of this active remote-sensing instrument. We present here science objectives of LLRI and its performance specifications along with details of instrument design. The methods by means of which LLRI performance and operability were analysed are also presented. During end-to-end testing, the integrated LLRI was operated in free space aiming at a distant target (-30km). Test results were found to be satisfactory and well within desired specifications.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None