Union Minister Kiren Rijiju inaugurated two research facilities: the Atmospheric Research Testbed-ART facility in Silkheda, Sehore district, Madhya Pradesh and the Coastal Research Laboratory (CRL) in Dolphin’s Nose area, Visakhapatnam.
Atmospheric Research Testbed
- The Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) has launched a groundbreaking project known as the Atmospheric Research Testbed (ART) to advance our understanding of atmospheric dynamics and bolster weather prediction capabilities.
- The inauguration of ART marks a significant milestone in India's quest to become a leader in atmospheric research and forecasting.
- ART is a one-of-a-kind observational facility located in Bhopal which commenced construction in early 2018.
- Its state-of-the-art instruments are designed to record several critical parameters which will be fed into enhancing weather models and enabling advanced studies on the Indian monsoons.
- The facility will help us better comprehend cloud systems, land-atmospheric systems, and the tracking of low-pressure systems and depressions.
- Rainfall associated with these systems during the monsoon season has become erratic with climate change.
- The data obtained from the ART facility will be assimilated and used to improve forecasts.
- The facility boasts almost 25 high-end instruments, such as aethalometer for aerosol studies, cloud condensation nuclei counter, laser ceilometer to measure cloud sizes, micro rain radar to calculate raindrop size and distribution.
- Also, Ka-band cloud radar and C-band doppler weather radar will aid in tracking the movement of rain-bearing systems over this region.
Coastal Research Laboratory (CRL)
- The Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) in Pune is leading research efforts at a groundbreaking testbed facility that cost Rs 125 crore to build. Meanwhile, the National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR) in Chennai will host and coordinate activities at the CRL.
- During the June to September southwest monsoon season, India typically receives around 70% of its annual rainfall.
- The interaction between southwest monsoon winds and low pressure systems or depressions moving westward sustains rainfall over the core monsoon zone, which encompasses rain-fed agricultural areas spanning from Gujarat to West Bengal across central India.
- Sehore's Silkheda region is directly in the path of rain-bearing systems originating in the Bay of Bengal, making it an ideal location to study the characteristics of these systems as well as the properties of the clouds they contain.