Most complete Earth map published

BBC News 30 Jun 09;

The most complete terrain map of the Earth's surface has been published.
The data, comprising 1.3 million images, come from a collaboration between the US space agency Nasa and the Japanese trade ministry.

The images were taken by Japan's Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (Aster) aboard the Terra satellite. The resulting Global Digital Elevation Map covers 99% of the Earth's surface, and will be free to download and use.

The Terra satellite, dedicated to Earth monitoring missions, has shed light on issues ranging from algal blooms to volcano eruptions.

For the Aster measurements, local elevation was mapped with each point just 30m apart.

"This is the most complete, consistent global digital elevation data yet made available to the world," said Woody Turner, Nasa programme scientist on the Aster mission.

"This unique global set of data will serve users and researchers from a wide array of disciplines that need elevation and terrain information."

Previously, the most complete such topographic map was Nasa's Shuttle Radar Topography Mission, covering 80% of the Earth's surface. However, the mission's results were less accurate in steep terrain and in some deserts.

Nasa is now working to combine those data with the new Aster observations to further improve on the global map.

NASA, Japan Release Most Complete Topographic Map of Earth
Joint Press Release 29 Jun 09;

PASADENA, Calif. – NASA and Japan released a new digital topographic map of Earth Monday that covers more of our planet than ever before. The map was produced with detailed measurements from NASA's Terra spacecraft.

The new global digital elevation model of Earth was created from nearly 1.3 million individual stereo-pair images collected by the Japanese Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer, or Aster, instrument aboard Terra. NASA and Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, known as METI, developed the data set. It is available online to users everywhere at no cost.

"This is the most complete, consistent global digital elevation data yet made available to the world," said Woody Turner, Aster program scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "This unique global set of data will serve users and researchers from a wide array of disciplines that need elevation and terrain information."

According to Mike Abrams, Aster science team leader at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., the new topographic information will be of value throughout the Earth sciences and has many practical applications. "Aster's accurate topographic data will be used for engineering, energy exploration, conserving natural resources, environmental management, public works design, firefighting, recreation, geology and city planning, to name just a few areas," Abrams said.

Previously, the most complete topographic set of data publicly available was from NASA's Shuttle Radar Topography Mission. That mission mapped 80 percent of Earth's landmass, between 60 degrees north latitude and 57 degrees south. The new Aster data expand coverage to 99 percent, from 83 degrees north latitude and 83 degrees south. Each elevation measurement point in the new data is 30 meters (98 feet) apart.

"The Aster data fill in many of the voids in the shuttle mission's data, such as in very steep terrains and in some deserts," said Michael Kobrick, Shuttle Radar Topography Mission project scientist at JPL. "NASA is working to combine the Aster data with that of the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission and other sources to produce an even better global topographic map."

NASA and METI are jointly contributing the Aster topographic data to the Group on Earth Observations, an international partnership headquartered at the World Meteorological Organization in Geneva, Switzerland, for use in its Global Earth Observation System of Systems. This "system of systems" is a collaborative, international effort to share and integrate Earth observation data from many different instruments and systems to help monitor and forecast global environmental changes.

NASA, METI and the U.S. Geological Survey validated the data, with support from the U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and other collaborators. The data will be distributed by NASA's Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center at the U.S. Geological Survey's Earth Resources Observation and Science Data Center in Sioux Falls, S.D., and by METI's Earth Remote Sensing Data Analysis Center in Tokyo.

Aster is one of five Earth-observing instruments launched on Terra in December 1999. Aster acquires images from the visible to the thermal infrared wavelength region, with spatial resolutions ranging from about 15 to 90 meters (50 to 300 feet). A joint science team from the U.S. and Japan validates and calibrates the instrument and data products. The U.S. science team is located at JPL.

For visualizations of the new Aster topographic data, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/20090629.html .

Data users can download the Aster global digital elevation model at: https://wist.echo.nasa.gov/~wist/api/imswelcome and http://www.gdem.aster.ersdac.or.jp .

For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov .

JPL is managed for NASA by the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

L.A. from space: New view from JPL and NASA [Updated]
LA Times 30 Jun 09;

In collaboration with agencies in Japan, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory has put together a topographical map that covers 99% of the Earth's land mass, a more complete map than was previously available.

"We've got everything except a very small part of the South Pole and the North Pole," said JPL's Michael Abrams, the U.S. science team leader for the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission Reflection Radiometer project, also known as ASTER. "We're able to cover Alaska, Greenland, northern Asia and Antarctica."

The resolution is so clear that you can plainly see Dodger Stadium and other landmarks in pictures of Los Angeles.

The most complete previous set of topographical data, collected by the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission in 2000, included about 80% of the Earth's landmass. Because the space shuttle had a limited orbit, the radar-imaging device missed land masses above 60 degrees north and 57 degrees south in latitude.

ASTER, which started collected images in visible and infrared light nine years ago, rides aboard Terra, a satellite that is part of NASA's Earth Observing System. Its orbit enables it to collect images up to 83 degrees north and 83 degrees south in latitude and also gives it a better angle to collect data in steep mountain areas, Abrams said. The infrared instrument also collects more thermal data than previously available, he said.

The ASTER images are meant to complement the radar images, Abrams emphasized. The shuttle radar instrument has some pictures ASTER could not get because radar can penetrate clouds, which perpetually obscure some tropical areas from ASTER's sight.

Scientists recently realized they had more than 1 million scenes, enough to create a global topographic map, Abrams said. The data was released Monday, free to the public. ASTER's images have a resolution down to 50 feet, which is enough to detect houses, but not so fine as to see the shape of the house or what people are doing in the house, he said.

Scientists have already used the satellite instrument to calculate changes in the width and height of glaciers, but Abrams said he could also see a host of commercial uses for the new data. He said cellphone companies could use the new maps to scout sight lines for new transmission towers and Google could probably easily incorporate the new data into its maps.

[Updated at 8:50 a.m.: According to NASA, the cost to produce the instrument was $800,000, with the U.S. space agency contributing half.]
--Jia-Rui Chong

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Best of our wild blogs: 30 Jun 09

Butterfly Conservation Dialogue
from Butterflies of Singapore

Black-naped Oriole and its wandering chicks
from Bird Ecology Study Group

Sharing our shores at the AWGCME Welcome Dinner
from wild shores of singapore

Seagrass-Watch Issue 37 June 2009 now out!
from teamseagrass

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Solomon dolphins: "grounds to halt the re-export to Singapore"

Villagers calling dolphin
Solomon Star 30 Jun 09;

The Philippines-owned CITES science team has just sent a letter to the government of Philippines that the import of the dolphins from Solomons earlier this year is NOT legal under Philippine law. There are now grounds to halt the re-export to Singapore as the legality is questioned.

DEAR EDITOR - I read the story with interest and concern by Pastor Wilfred Liligeto who claims that the Bita'ama Villagers method of calling dolphins to either their deaths or permanent prison is a good thing.

This pastor, first is not only totally wrong, he is misleading the citizens of the Solomon Islands and his church members about the true nature of dolphins.

A person who is a man of God is thought to be impartial in the treatment of non-humans and to want their protection.

Therefore, the pastor is no different than the greedy dolphin captors and the dealers who earn thousands of dollars by destroying the lives and families of dolphins. Dolphins have families just as humans.

They deserve their rights to live in the ocean FREE from all human exploitation, whether killing, capturing for shows and entertainment and fake tourism.

The pastor is wrong to think this industry will bring money to the village of Bita'ama. They will see nothing of tourism as the international NGO community is already calling for boycotts of captive dolphin based tourism.

And the lack of science in Solomons government with regard to dolphin catch and export is preventing CITES authorisation for trade.

The Philippines-owned CITES science team has just sent a letter to the government of Philippines that the import of the dolphins from Solomons earlier this year is NOT legal under Philippine law. There are now grounds to halt the re-export to Singapore as the legality is questioned.

The pastor must teach his church and the villagers that dolphins must be respected in the wild as in the Western Province.

If you want to see dolphins, hire a boat and view them in the wild where they belong. Why create a dolphin prison when in your area you can see wild dolphins without turning them into slaves for humans?

The dolphin trade is on its last and dying breath. The international community will not stop working until it is a dead trade.

Japan and Solomon Islands are the only countries outside of Russia still involved in this disgusting and insidious trade.

It is time to move into the 21st century and respect these and other species for their own being and in their habitat.

God did not create these mammals for you or me, only for themselves. The pastor needs to end his hypocrisy and do what is right for the Solomon Islands.

As long as Malaita has a dolphin trade and dolphin kill, there can be no dolphin safe tuna company in the province. The choice is for the Solomons to make.


Mark Berman
Lawrence Makili
Earth Island Institute

Background and more links on the wild shores of singapore blog.

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Singapore firms score big with water tech deals

Amresh Gunasingham, Straits Times 30 Jun 09;

SINGAPORE is burnishing its reputation as a centre for water technology, with local firms bagging the lion's share of $2.2 billion worth of deals at a recently concluded international meeting here.

The deals, signed with several countries and companies worldwide, run the gamut from building entire desalination plants, or equipment such as pumping systems and pipe networks, to sharing expertise in areas such as membrane-based water treatment technologies.

The big winner at the Singapore International Water Week (SIWW), a forum that brought together government officials, industry experts and policymakers, was local firm Hyflux. The water treatment company signed an agreement to build two desalination plants in Libya in a deal worth close to $1.2 billion, according to analyst estimates.

Home-grown environmental specialist Dayen Environment was another winner: It signed two memorandums of understanding - worth $10 million - to provide, among other things, expertise in advanced waste water treatment methods.

The total value of deals signed at SIWW, which ended last Friday, eclipsed the figure of $367 million recorded during last year's inaugural Water Week.

It is a clear sign that many governments and private sector firms worldwide are interested in tapping Singapore's expertise in developing large-scale water reclamation projects, said SIWW managing director Michael Toh.

'Singapore is proving to be a key draw for water leaders and businesses, not just regionally, but around the world,' he said.

Although the $2.2 billion figure is a drop in the ocean when compared to the estimated worth of the worldwide water-related equipment and services market - US$463 billion (S$673 billion) by some analysts' reckoning - it marks a significant step for Singapore.

In 2004, the Republic set itself a target of taking 5 per cent of the global market by 2015, and the success of Water Week shows that it is well on its way to meeting it, said CIMB-GK economist Song Seng Wun.

'Singapore's targets tend to be relatively conservative, so this target could even be achieved earlier if we can build on the successes so far,' he said.

Dr Seetharam Kallidaikurichi, director of the Institute of Water Policy, a think-tank at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, noted that there is much room left to grow.

Developing countries such as China, India and the Philippines, which have huge business potential for investment, are still largely untapped.

India, for one, would be keen to tap Singapore's expertise to build water treatment plants that can supply clean drinking water in its large urban cities, said the governor of the country's Arunachal Pradesh state, General Joginder Singh.

He added: 'What India has to learn from Singapore is how science and technology can benefit water management and to get these practices going in our bigger cities.'

Newater, for example, is a significant breakthrough that Singapore made in reclaiming used water using advanced membrane technology, and today provides 15 per cent of its water needs. This is projected to double in three years' time.

Citigroup economist Kit Wei Zheng noted that current trends favour Singapore.

Countries worldwide, he said, are taking advantage of lower-priced commodities to increase investments that are 'long term and strategic' in nature. 'Resources that are essentially scarce like water are not going to be overtly impacted in the downturn,' he said.

SIWW recorded other successes, too.

The conference was attended by over 10,000 delegates from over 85 countries, surpassing last year's figure of 8,500.

Interest in next year's event has already gathered momentum: More than 20 per cent of the exhibition space set aside for companies to showcase new products and technologies has already been sold.

Some key deals

# Hyflux's joint venture to build two desalination plants in Libya. Although not officially confirmed, analysts estimate the deal at $1.2 billion.

# A $150 million R&D centre set up by the National University of Singapore and General Electric Water and Process Technologies that will look to reduce the cost of desalinating seawater and treating used water.

Water Week sees $2.2b of deals sealed
Teh Shi Ning, Business Times 30 Jun 09;

SOME $2.2 billion in water-related deals were signed and sealed at Singapore International Water Week 2009 - almost six times the value of deals closed at last year's event.

Key deals this year included the $150 million R&D centre opened by GE and the National University of Singapore last week, and Hyflux's multi-million dollar agreements to take on projects in Algeria and Libya.

More than 10,000 trade visitors, delegates and exhibitors from 85 countries and regions attended last week's SIWW, compared with 8,500 last year. Feedback has been positive all-round, the organisers said.

Jimmy Lau, managing director of Singapore Airshow & Events, which co-organised the SIWW, said: 'One of the ways you can tell a show is a good show is the continuous buzz on the show floor - and that's exactly what we saw at the Water Expo. Half an hour before the close of the show, hardly anyone had started to take down their displays.'

Michael Toh, managing director of SIWW and deputy director of industry development at PUB, said that the organisers positioned Water Week to focus on solutions applicable to policies, technology and business, to differentiate it from the many other large-scale world water conventions and trade shows.

Planning for SIWW 2010, which will be held in conjunction with the World Cities Summit, has already begun. More than 20 per cent of the exhibition space at next year's Water Expo has already been reserved, the organisers said.

In 2010, the focus 'will be on efficient and cost-effective solutions to provide safe drinking water at an affordable price to the masses amid the global economic downturn,' Mr Toh said.

Nominations for the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2010 are now open and will close on Oct 31. The $300,000 prize honours individuals or organisations for their contributions to solving global water problems by applying innovative technologies or policies and programmes.

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Dog found with hind paw severed

Straits Times 30 Jun 09;

A STRAY dog was found last Friday evening with its right hind paw severed and the remains of its leg stripped of skin and flesh.

The female dog, affectionately known as Kiwi, is part of a group of stray dogs which are fed regularly by volunteers from Action For Singapore Dogs. The volunteers believe that the horrific injuries were caused by traps set for wild boars in the dense vegetation in the Lim Chu Kang area.

These metal traps close around the leg and penetrate the skin and bone.

Some of the dogs in the group had emerged in the past two weeks with wounds on their legs - injuries the volunteers first dismissed as they thought the dogs had been fighting.

But they later found out about the traps when Kiwi showed up bloody and emaciated after being gone for a week.

Kiwi was carried to the group's rescue centre and given painkillers and antibiotics. A vet had to amputate the remainder of the dog's leg yesterday morning.

Mr Ricky Yeo, president of the group, said that despite her wounds, Kiwi was doing well.

Three weeks ago, a pomeranian was found stuffed in a plastic bag near a rubbish bin at East Coast Park. It had been left for dead. The dog was discovered by a marketing executive, who has been caring for it since.

Cases of animal abuse hit a record high in March, when the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals received 95 complaints. It usually gets between 60 and 80 reports a month.

Increase penalties for cruelty to animals
Straits Times Forum 2 Jul 09;

THE recent reported acts of cruelty to stray cats and dogs are disgusting. The abuse of Kiwi, the female stray dog photographed with a severed leg caused by a metal trap, was horrible.

Perhaps stiffer penalties should be imposed on such culprits, if they are caught.

Cleopatra Leo (Miss)

Animal traps are plain acts of cruelty
Straits Times Forum 2 Jul 09;

I READ with deep concern on Tuesday that the use of an animal trap in Lim Chu Kang has cost a dog its hind limb and subjected it to severe pain ('Dog found with hind paw severed').

The use of such devices to trap and maim wild animals is not to be condoned, as it leads the victim to a slow and painful death. There is also a risk that any human walking in the area can step on a trap and suffer the same anguish.

Can the authorities take measures to comb the area and remove such traps? Surely, planting any device that poses a significant risk to the well-being of others is against the law. Perpetrators of such heinous acts should not get away scot-free. Already, the recent cases of animal abuse are most unnerving.

Basic respect for fellow beings, human or otherwise, should not be allowed to plumb new lows.

Yeow Ping

Animal abuse
Straits Times Forum 2 Jul 09;

'Shocking. Such a crude trap should be banned.'

MR BENNIE CHEOK: 'Tuesday's report, 'Dog found with hind paw severed', which showed a picture of the dog with its hind leg bone dangling is shocking. I cannot imagine that the metal trap, seen in movies used by trappers to hunt wild animals for food, is still used in modern Singapore. Such a device, set in the dense vegetation of Lim Chu Kang to trap wild boars, poses a danger not only to animals but also to soldiers training in the vicinity. The use of such a crude and dangerous metal trap should be banned and offenders fined heavily and jailed, to deter others from using it.'

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Bayshore Park cat poisonings: Coma-inducing drug found in planted food

Same poison found in autopsy of cat; culprit remains unknown
Kimberly Spykerman, Straits Times 30 Jun 09;

LABORATORY tests have pinpointed what has been plaguing the stray cats at Bayshore Park condominium - a chemical used to immobilise mice and bird pests.

However, the mystery remains as to who is behind the deliberate poisoning.

Traces of alpha-chloralose, a coma-inducing drug, were detected in samples of food planted all over the estate. The chemical was also found in the liver and kidney of one of the cats, during an autopsy by the Health Sciences Authority's Toxicology Department.

On June11, the nine cats- all mysteriously disoriented or unconscious - were discovered around the East Coast estate. Over the next few days, more cats, and even some birds, fell sick.

In all, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) took in 21 stray cats from the estate, which accounted for more than half of the total number of strays at the condominium.

Five of them died or had to be put down as they were not responding to treatment by staff at the SPCA.

Fifteen other cats have since been sterilised and released back into the estate, while a kitten remains in the society's care, awaiting adoption.

Alpha-chloralose is a potentially lethal drug that acts as a soporific, and causes seizures and muscle tremors among other symptoms. A 2005 Israeli study on the effects of the drug on cats and dogs found that cats were more likely to fall into a coma after ingesting it.

In Singapore, alpha-chloralose is classified as a poison and can be sold only with a licence under the Poisons Act. However, the HSA said that the Act applies only to medication consumed by humans. One vet The Straits Times spoke to said that the drug is not commonly used by vets in Singapore, even as a sedative, as there are other options which are 'safer and better'.

SPCA executive officer Deirdre Moss said that the intention to harm the cats was obvious.

The revelation is cold comfort to Bayshore residents, who are saddened by the proof that someone is indeed out to poison the animals. 'We were very alarmed but we are still maintaining vigilance, especially now that the cats are back. If it happened once, it can happen again,' said one long-time resident - a housewife in her 50s - who has fed the cats in the estate since 1994.

Cat Welfare Society president Ang Li Tin said: 'If food is put in a familiar place and stray cats are comfortable in the environment, they might not immediately detect a foreign substance in their food.'

Cat lovers in the estate had earlier banded together to carry out pre-dawn patrols to try and catch the culprit. They also conducted a sweep of the basement carparks at the Aquamarine and Ruby blocks - where many of the cats were found - to make sure all clumps of food had been removed. Patrols have since lessened as no more afflicted cats have been found in the estate since June16.

Both SPCA and the residents are assisting the police in their investigations.

Throw the book at cruel animal abusers
Straits Times Forum 3 Jul 09;

I REFER to Tuesday's report, 'Coma-inducing drug found in planted food'.

I am saddened to read that somewhere out there, in the midst of Bayshore Park condominium, lurks a prowler. That individual obviously dislikes cats for one reason or another. To poison the innocent creatures is cruel and inhumane.

The substance alpha-chloralose found in the bodies of the cats is classified as a poison which can be sold only with a licence under the Poisons Act. The Act, which covers only medication for human consumption, should be extended in the light of this mass poisoning of animals.

Bennie Cheok

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Shanghai activists 'save cats from being eaten'

Yahoo News 29 Jun 09;

SHANGHAI (AFP) – Animal activists in Shanghai rescued 300 cats from a dealer who was planning to sell the allegedly stolen pets to restaurants in southern China, a participant has said.

The activists, acting on a tip-off from a cat lover, found 22 bamboo cages full of cats in a freight yard, from where they were to be shipped to Guangdong province, Lai Xiaoyu, 34, who was part of Friday night's rescue, told AFP.

Most of the animals have been returned to their owners, but three cats died and some had broken legs, he said.

"They had clearly been abused. They were squeezed into such small cages. Some of the cages contained more than 20 cats. Two of these cats had been dead for a while when we found them," he said.

"The cats were going to be delivered to Guangdong to go into a local soup called 'Tiger vs. Dragon' which is made with snake and cat," Lai said.

Restaurants pay about 50 yuan (7.31 dollars) a cat, the Shanghai Daily newspaper reported.

More than 50 pet owners came looking for their lost cats Friday night after the activists sent out a message on an Internet forum, Lai said.

Some cats were adopted by animal lovers and others were released in areas where volunteers leave food for strays, he said.

Police detained the cat dealer, Yang Baoguo, after he battled dozens of animal lovers who descended on the freight yard to break his cages, the newspaper said.

The dealer was released after a few hours without charge because animal protection laws are non-existent in China, the report said.

"There is no law in China saying cats cannot be eaten," police officer Ma Yong was quoted as saying. "Cats are not a protected animal."

Yang, who has traded cats for a decade, bought the animals from so-called hunters who trapped the cats in residential areas at night, the report said.

Police could not charge him with possessing stolen property because, unlike dogs, a licence is not required for owning a cat in Shanghai, making ownership impossible to prove, the report said.

Eating cat meat is a tradition in many parts of China, especially in southern regions, where some restaurants specialise in preparing the dishes, according to Chinese media reports.

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Indonesian Government Set to Sign $22m ‘Debt-for-Nature’ Swap Agreement With United States

Arti Ekawati, Jakarta Globe 29 Jun 09;

The country’s debt burden will become $22 million lighter after Jakarta and Washington sign a green-themed agreement on the conversion of debt, or a so called “debt-for-nature swap.”

“The fund will be used to develop conservation forests on Sumatra Island,” Masyhud, head of information at the Ministry of Forestry, said on Monday.

Rahmat Waluyanto, director general of debt management at the Finance Ministry, is set to sign the agreement today with the US ambassador at the Ministry of Forestry in Jakarta.

The debt-for-nature swap is a program under which developed countries write off developing-country debt, by directing money into conservation-related programs.

Instead of paying off debt, developing countries invest an approved amount of money in programs designed to protect the natural environment. The concept was first developed in 1984 by Thomas Lovejoy of the World Wildlife Fund.

Under the program, Masyhud said, the government would earmark about $19.6 million for the country’s forest-conservation program.

The Indonesian Biodiversity Foundation (Kehati) and Conservation International will then also set aside $1 million each for the program. A total of $21.6 million in debt will then be forgiven, Masyhud said.

The program will focus in supporting forest conservation in three parts of Sumatra: the northern end of Sumatra, near Batang Gadis National Park; Bukit Tigapuluh National Park in the central part of the island; and at Way Kambas National Park.

“The program will be supervised by a committee of seven people,” Masyhud said.

Taufiq Alimi, director of communications and resource development at Kehati, refused to provide further details about the program until an agreement had been signed.

In early 2007, the country signed a similar agreement with Germany, under which Rp 16 billion ($ 1.6 million) in debt was written off to fund environmental education.

US, Indonesia sign debt for nature agreement
Yahoo News 30 Jun 09;

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The United States and Indonesia signed an agreement in which the largest Southeast Asian nation will commit to protect tropical forests in return for reduced debt payments to Washington, officials said Tuesday.

It is the largest debt-for-nature swap under the US Tropical Forest Conservation Act passed in 1998 and aimed at providing debt relief to developing countries that protected forests, the US Treasury said.

The swap with Indonesia was made possible through contributions of 20 million dollars by the US government and a combined donation of two million dollars from two environmental groups -- US based Conservation International and Indonesia's KEHATI, a Treasury statement said.

"The agreements will reduce Indonesia's debt payments to the United States government by nearly 30 million dollars over the next eight years," it said.

"In return, the government of Indonesia has committed these funds to support grants to protect and restore the country's tropical forests."

Indonesia is one of the most biologically diverse nations and, according to the statement, funds generated by this program will help protect several forest areas on the large island of Sumatra.

These forests are home to species found only in Indonesia, including the endangered Sumatran tiger, elephant, rhino and orang utan, and will provide important ecosystem services such as maintaining freshwater supplies, the statement said.

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Weather forecasting in the tropics is a challenge

Forecasting in tropics no stroll in the park
Straits Times Forum 3 Jul 09;

I REFER to Tuesday's letter by Mr Ng Meng Keiw, titled 'Weather forecasts' (below).

Weather forecasting in the tropics is a challenge. Singapore's tropical weather is characterised by showers and thunderstorms which are usually localised and of short duration.

Such weather systems develop randomly and quickly. Furthermore, their development is largely determined by the prevailing winds which are often light and variable at the Equator, adding to the difficulty in prediction.

We sympathise with Mr Ng that his activities did not materialise as he had planned on those days. As the showers then were localised and not widespread over the east, one could have been in the part of the eastern sector that was not affected by the showers, even though dark clouds could have been observed in the vicinity.

The Meteorological Services Division (MSD) of the National Environment Agency recognises that there have been occasions when service delivery did not meet customer expectations and understand the public's need for accurate forecasts.

However, we would like the public to understand that even with the present state of science and technology, there will be weather phenomena that will remain inherently unpredictable. It is neither possible nor plausible for a meteorological centre to always achieve an accurate forecast. A reasonable accuracy rate of weather forecast in most meteorological centres is 75 to 85 per cent and MSD's accuracy rate is within this range.

All these notwithstanding, MSD will continue to improve our weather forecast capabilities with more reliable prediction models, forecasting tools and ongoing training of our officers.

We thank Mr Ng for his feedback and appreciate his understanding of the constraints of weather forecasting.

Foong Chee Leong
Director-General Meteorological Services
National Environment Agency

Weather forecasts
Straits Times Forum 30 Jun 09;

'Except for a few dark clouds, it has hardly rained there.'

MR NG MENG KEIW: 'The weather department has forecast heavy showers in the east for the past five days. However, except for a few dark clouds, it has hardly rained there. The weather department is supposed to be a high-tech organisation with satellite surveillance and such poor forecasting is not acceptable. It has an impact on how we plan our daily activities. I suggest this organisation be audited, like the public transport system. A target can be set, for example, 95 per cent of forecasts should be accurate.'

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Endangered whale sharks tagged, monitored in Hainan

People's Daily Online 30 Jun 09;

The fishing, selling and trading of whale sharks for commercial purposes is prohibited on the mainland as the whale shark is officially categorized as endangered and is therefore protected.

For the first time on the mainland, fishery officials are using SPLASH, a state-of-the-art navigation technology, to tag and track two whale sharks - an endangered species and the world's largest mammal. The two sharks were released yesterday at Sanya, Hainan province.

The SPLASH navigation technology is one of the most accurate and innovative techniques in the world to conserve marine animals, said David Rowat, chairman of Marine Conservation Society in Seychelles and an expert in marine conservation.

SPLASH, a technique from the United States, includes sensors to measure depth, temperature and light levels and can provide locations within a radius of 350 m.

Speaking at the whale-releasing ceremony, Rowat said that he has guided the project initiated by the Fishery and Fishing Harbor Administration of the South China Sea and mounted the sophisticated GPS tags on the two whale sharks, which will help provide accurate data to monitor the species and the environment affecting them.

Whale sharks are usually more than 10 m long and formerly targeted by commercial fisheries for their soft white meat, thick skin, and delicate bone, he said.

One of the tagged sharks will be monitored for six months, and the other for 12 months. Data will be collected and analyzed through software operations to find ways to protect the species.

"I believe that this SPLASH tracking technique will surely lead to another as surveys on marine conservation is a crucial investment to the sustainable future of China and to the world as a whole," Rowat said.

"Currently, many countries and regions are over-utilizing sea resources not in a sustainable way, in ignorance of the strength of the ecosystem," Rowat said.

Rowat applauded the mainland's effort to use the innovative technology. Officials yesterday also released some

7 million baby fish to honor the 5th anniversary of the Beibu Bay Demarcation Agreement, and seeks to protect the marine animals there.

The fishing, selling and trading of whale sharks for commercial purposes is prohibited on the mainland as the whale shark is officially categorized as endangered and is therefore protected.

Whale shark fishing has also been banned in countries and regions such as the Philippines, India and Taiwan.

Source: China Daily

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Frog Dozes in Mud for Years

LiveScience.com Yahoo News 29 Jun 09;

One species of burrowing frogs can survive for years buried in mud without food and water. New research has figured out how the frog and other "super-sleeper" animals do it.

Many species of animals go through a period of torpor to conserve energy when resources are scarce. The champion in energy-saving mode is the burrowing frog (Cyclorana alboguttata).

A team of scientists at the University of Queensland discovered that the metabolism of these frogs' cells changes radically during the dormancy period allowing maximized use of limited energy resources without ever running on empty.

This discovery could lead to medical applications down the line.

"It could potentially be useful in the treatment of energy-related disorders such as obesity," said Sara Kayes, who will present her findings at the Society of Experimental Biology Annual Meeting in Glasgow, Scotland, on Monday, June 29.

When the operation efficiency of the frog cells' mitochondria, the tiny "power plants" of cells, was measured during the dormancy period, it was found to be significantly higher compared to that observed in active animals.

This trick, known as mitochondrial coupling, allows these frogs to be extremely efficient in the use of the limited energy stores they have by increasing the total amount of energy obtained per unit consumed, allowing them to easily outperform other species whose energy production efficiency remains essentially the same even when they happen to be inactive for extended periods.

If this is such an efficient way to use energy resources during dormancy, how come that it is not more widespread in the animal kingdom?

The researchers speculate that a potential drawback may be the increased production of reactive oxygen species, which may in turn lead to oxidative stress. Since these small molecules are believed to cause most of the damage during periods of re-awakening, increasing mitochondrial coupling does not seem to be a particularly good idea for animals that tend to exhibit short periods of spontaneous arousal during the dormancy period, in some cases even daily.

Burrowing frogs, on the other hand, are believed to remain deeply asleep during the entire period of dormancy. Furthermore, being cold-blooded, they don't have the need to maintain a basal level of heat production, minimizing their energy needs.

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Thumb-Size Bat Found in Lava Tunnel

National Geographic News 26 Jun 09;

Caught during a steamy moment in a lava tunnel in 2006, these two apparently mating bats—members of a new species—are each no bigger than a human thumb, scientists reported June 24.
Weighing just 0.2 ounce (5 grams), Aellen's long-fingered bat was discovered on a volcanic island in Africa's Comoros chain. DNA analysis later confirmed the bat as a unique species.

Subsequent genetic tests revealed that the bat is also found on the west coast of the island of Madagascar, said study team member Manuel Ruedi, a curator at the Natural History Museum in Geneva, Switzerland.

Since neighboring Madagascar is much older than the Comoros (regional map), the team suspects that the moth-size mammal lived on Madagascar before migrating to the Indian Ocean archipelago in the distant past. (Related: "Hurricanes Blow Away Bats, Spread Genes to New Islands.")

Bat diversity in both the Comoros and Madagascar has been poorly studied, Ruedi said. But the latest genetic-testing technology makes it easy to distinguish between bat species that can look very similar, he added.

As for the amorous image above, Ruedi said mating bats are a rare catch, "especially when it involves an unknown species!"

—James Owen

Photograph courtesy Manuel Ruedi, Natural History Museum of Geneva

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