Why is it in the News?

South Korean scientists have set a new world record for the length of time they sustained temperatures of 100 million degrees Celsius.

Key Highlights:

• The Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research (KSTAR) fusion reactor reached temperatures of 100 million Celsius for 48 seconds.
• Scientists hope to harness this unlimited energy.
• It is also significant that the KSTAR maintained the high confinement mode (H-mode) for over 100 seconds.
  • H-mode is a stable plasma state.
• The earlier record of achieving this temperature was for 30 seconds which took place in 2021.
• The scientists at the Korea Institute of Fusion Energy (KFE) said they managed to extend the time by tweaking the process.
• They also used tungsten instead of carbon in the 'diverters', which extract heat and impurities produced by the fusion reaction.
• The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor in southern France has the world's biggest tokamak and what the scientists in South Korea achieve will help French scientists.

What is an Artificial Sun?

• An artificial sun typically refers to a device or facility designed to replicate some aspects of the nuclear fusion processes that occur naturally in stars like the Sun.
• These facilities aim to generate and sustain controlled nuclear fusion reactions, usually through the use of high temperatures, pressures, and magnetic fields.
  • Scientists generally use a donut-shaped reactor called a tokamak in which hydrogen variants are heated to extraordinarily high temperatures to create a plasma.
  • High temperatures and high-density plasmas are vital for the future of nuclear fusion reactors.
  • This is called artificial Sun because it replicates the reaction of fusion taking place there and unleashes a massive amount of heat energy.
• The goal is to harness fusion energy as a potential future source of clean and abundant energy for various applications, including electricity generation.

What is Nuclear Fusion?

• Fusion is the reaction that makes the sun and other stars shine.
• It involves fusing hydrogen and other light elements to release massive power that experts in the field hope to harness for unlimited, zero-carbon electricity.
• In this reaction, two atoms of hydrogen or helium come together and fuse to unleash huge amounts of energy.

Why is it in the News?

While India 'gave away' rights to Katchatheevu, in a subsequent pact, it secured sovereign rights in Wadge Bank near Kanyakumari.

What is Wadge Bank?

• Wadge Bank is a 10,000 square kilometer submarine plateau, of the sea south of Kanyakumari that is rich in biodiversity and considered India’s richest fishery resource.
• Wadge Bank, located near Cape Comorin, is home to more than 60 species of ornamental fish and other oceanic animals.
• It is a productive coastal area where three seas meet and tides create a rich fishing ground from May to October.
• Moreover, it is an invaluable treasure that indigenous people and communities depend on for food and resources, and is important to their culture.

How did India get control of the Wadge Bank?

• Wadge Bank came to India as part of the second of the two accords signed with Sri Lanka in the 1970s.
• Following the 1974 agreement under which Prime Minister Indira Gandhi ‘gave away’ Katchatheevu island to Sri Lanka, New Delhi, and Colombo signed another pact in 1976 under which the former bought Wadge Bank.
  • On March 23, 1976, India and Sri Lanka signed the agreement on the maritime boundary in the Gulf of Mannar and the Bay of Bengal as part of which it was agreed that the Wadge Bank “lies within the exclusive economic zone of India, and India shall have sovereign rights over the area and its resources”.
• In the general description of Wadge Bank annexed with the treaty shared with the United Nations, it is described as “outside the territorial waters of India”.
• The Wadge Bank near Kanyakumari is rich in biodiversity and considered India’s richest fishery resource.
• As per the 1976 pact, Sri Lankan fishermen can’t engage in activities here.
• ??But at the request of Sri Lanka and as a gesture of goodwill, India agreed that Lankan fishing vessels licensed by the Government of India could fish in Wadge Bank for three years from its establishment as an exclusive economic zone of India with the stipulation that only six such vessels can fish and their catch cannot exceed 2,000 tonnes in a year.
• And, again at the request of the Sri Lankan government, India agreed to provide Colombo with 2,000 tonnes of fish of the quality, species, and at the price mutually agreed by the two sides for five years after the Lankans stopped fishing at the Wadge Bank.

Why is it in the News?

Recently, a significant majority in Nepal's Lower House backed the proposal to endorse the BIMSTEC Charter.

About the BIMSTEC Charter:

• The BIMSTEC Charter, officially signed and adopted during the Fifth BIMSTEC Summit in Colombo, Sri Lanka in 2022, serves as a cornerstone legal and institutional framework for the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC).
• This charter aims to establish a structured environment conducive to rapid economic development by delineating specific cooperation projects within the agreed areas of collaboration, along with potential expansions into additional areas as mutually agreed upon by Member States.
• Furthermore, the charter reaffirms the enduring commitment to the foundational principles and objectives of BIMSTEC, as articulated in the Bangkok Declaration of 1997.

The Importance of the BIMSTEC Charter:

• By officially adopting the BIMSTEC Charter, the organization transforms into a structured institution comprising member states situated along the Bay of Bengal, thereby formalizing their cooperation and dependence on this vital maritime region.
• The Charter grants BIMSTEC the authority to establish external relations with non-member states, developmental partners, as well as regional, UN, and international organizations, facilitating broader collaboration and engagement.
• Moreover, it underscores the imperative for a fair, just, equitable, and transparent global order while reiterating the commitment to multilateralism, with the United Nations at its core, and advocating for a rule-based international trading system.

About the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC):

• The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is a regional organization comprising seven Member States lying in the littoral and adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal constituting a contiguous regional unity.
• This sub-regional organization came into being on 6 June 1997 through the Bangkok Declaration.
• It constitutes seven Member States:
  • Five derive from South Asia, including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, and
  • Two from Southeast Asia, including Myanmar and Thailand.
• Initially, the economic bloc was formed with four Member States with the acronym ‘BIST-EC’ (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand Economic Cooperation).
• Following the inclusion of Myanmar on 22 December 1997 during a special Ministerial Meeting in Bangkok, the Group was renamed ‘BIMST-EC’ (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic Cooperation).
• With the admission of Nepal and Bhutan at the 6th Ministerial Meeting (February 2004, Thailand), the name of the grouping was changed to ‘Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation’ (BIMSTEC).

Why is it in the News?

As a result of the low-pressure area formed over the Atlantic Ocean moving into the Indian Ocean, high swell waves in the range of 11 m were formed.

What Are Swell Waves?

• Swell waves are characterized by the formation of long wavelength waves on the surface of the seas, propagating along the interface between water and air.
• They are commonly known as surface gravity waves due to their nature.

Origin:

• Unlike waves generated by immediate local winds, swell waves originate from distant weather systems.
• These waves are the result of prolonged wind action over a significant area of water, known as fetch.
• Even after the wind subsides or shifts, or the waves move away from the wind source, swell waves persist and continue to propagate.

Influencing Factors:

• The speed of the wind, the extent of ocean surface area affected by consistent wind direction (fetch), and the duration of time the winds persist over the same part of the ocean are all contributing factors to the formation and behavior of swell waves.

Characteristics of Swell Waves:

• Limited Frequency and Direction Range: Swell waves exhibit a narrower range of frequencies and directions compared to wind-generated waves occurring locally.
• Defined Shape and Direction: Swell waves assume a more distinct shape and direction, displaying less randomness than waves generated by local winds.
• Directional Orientation: Unlike wind waves, swell waves are characterized by the direction from which they originate rather than where they are headed.
• Wavelength Variation: Swell waves typically possess long wavelengths, although this can vary depending on the size of the water body.
  • Generally, their wavelengths seldom exceed 150 meters.
  • However, on occasion, particularly severe storms may produce swells with wavelengths surpassing 700 meters.

What are the Differences Between a Normal Wave and Swell Waves?

Normal Waves:

• Random Nature: Normal waves encompass any spontaneous disturbance occurring in the sea, exhibiting a wide array of forms, types, shapes, heights, periods, directions, and speeds.
• Varied Characteristics: Waves can manifest in diverse forms and attributes, subject to the prevailing conditions in the ocean.

Swell Waves:

• Deep-water Linear Waves: Swell waves are a distinct category of deep-water, linear waves originating or emerging from a chaotic wave system during external weather events due to wave dispersion.
• Defined Characteristics: Swells travel in a specific direction as uniform, high-speed, long waves that maintain consistency over time, with speeds determined by their wavelengths and periods.
• Extensive Travel: Swell waves traverse significantly greater distances compared to typical wave packets, exhibiting remarkable endurance.
• Independence from Local Weather: Swell waves remain unaffected by local weather systems, retaining their characteristics even in the presence of nearby weather phenomena.

Why is it in the News?

The Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-CAMP) in Bengaluru recently announced that it has developed a new platform that makes it easier and cheaper to study single cells.

About the OptiDrop Platform:

• The OptiDrop platform is an innovative microfluidic chip-based technology that simplifies and reduces the cost of single-cell analysis.
• Developed by the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-CAMP) in Bengaluru, India, OptiDrop enables precise and cost-effective analysis of single cells encapsulated in droplets.
• The platform boasts unique features, including live data visualization, a smaller data footprint, and a 'closed' system design that prevents external contamination.
• OptiDrop has potential applications in diagnostics, therapeutics, agriculture, and animal health, making it a versatile tool for various research areas.

Applications:

• This cutting-edge technology holds vast potential across diverse fields including diagnostics, therapeutics, agriculture, and animal health. Its versatility enables:
  • Precise examination of individual cells during drug screening processes.
  • Environment control for monitoring and addressing water contamination.
  • Identification and sorting of CAR-T cells in immuno-oncotherapeutics.
  • Selection of CRISPR-modified single cells.
  • Identifying high-efficiency clones in single-cell genomics paves the way for advancements in personalized medicine and beyond.
• This platform is a testament to the potential of combining microfluidic technologies with advanced optical sensing techniques, paving the way for more efficient and cost-effective single-cell analysis.

What is the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-CAMP)?

• The Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms, or C-CAMP, was conceptualized by the Department of Biotechnology, Govt. of India in 2009 as an enabler or catalyst of cutting-edge research and innovation in the life sciences.
• C-CAMP has established itself as a major platform technology base, industry-oriented innovation hub, and incubator unit for life science research.
• With state-of-the-art technology platforms, a rich academic environment, and networks of business and industry-related resources, it encourages researchers and entrepreneurs to develop scientific tools and solutions for socially relevant problems.
• It is an institution with the core mandate of enabling cutting-edge life science research and innovation.