The Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF), a consortium of 16 global organizations chaired by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), has launched the Joint Call to Action for Forests towards 2030. This initiative aims to underscore the urgency for increased action and political commitment in implementing forest solutions to align with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The program highlights four primary areas: implementation and action; data, science, and innovation; finance for forests; and communication and awareness-raising.
Journey Towards 2030: Emphasizing Forest Solutions
The CPF’s Joint Call to Action focuses on increasing action and attracting political commitment on an urgent basis. This is driven by the need to implement comprehensive forest solutions that are in sync with the SDGs mandated by the UN. The focus points of this initiative involve four core areas: implementation of action steps, harnessing the power of data, scientific discoveries and innovation, securing finance for forest conservation efforts, and building communication channels to raise awareness.
Agumbe Rainfall Status: A Historic Shift
The Agumbe Rainforest Complex (ARC) in Karnataka, known for its exceptional rainfall, is losing its established stature due to the installation of new rain gauges in the region. Frequently referred to as the ‘Cherrapunji of the South,’ its status is now in question with recent rain gauge installations in areas like Nadpal and Mudradi revealing higher rainfall figures.
These meteorological tools gauge rainfall over a particular time period in a designated location. With these new installations, Agumbe received a recorded 6,251.5 mm of rain in 2022-2023, pushing it to the third-highest in Karnataka. However, despite these changing rankings, Agumbe continues to hold importance for researchers studying biodiversity, hydrology, and the unique King Cobra habitat.
Juno’s Exploration: A Close Encounter with Jupiter
Juno, a solar-powered NASA spacecraft, has been making long, elliptical orbits around the gigantic planet, Jupiter. This space probe was launched on August 5th, 2011, and traveled approximately 3 billion kilometers before reaching Jupiter in 2016. In its latest exploits, Juno conducted its 53rd close flyby of Jupiter on July 31, 2023.
During this flyby, Juno captured an impressive image of Jupiter and its volcanic moon, Io. Io is renowned for its extreme volcanic activity, with hundreds of erupting volcanoes spewing molten lava and sulfurous gasses. Slightly larger than Earth’s Moon, it is tidally locked to Jupiter and completes both its rotation on its axis and orbit around Jupiter in nearly 1.8 Earth days.
