UPSC Articles
Arctic Science Ministerial (ASM3)
Part of: GS Prelims and GS – II – International Relations
In news
- India is participating in the 3rd Arctic Science Ministerial (ASM3) –
- It is the global platform for discussing research and cooperation in the Arctic region
- It is the first Ministerial meeting being held in Asia
Important value additions
- The first two meetings—ASM1 and ASM2—were held in the USA in 2016 and Germany in 2018, respectively.
- ASM3 is jointly organised by: Iceland and Japan.
- The meeting is designed to provide opportunities to various stakeholders to enhance collective understanding of the Arctic region, emphasize and engage in constant monitoring, and strengthen observations.
- Theme: ‘Knowledge for a Sustainable Arctic’.
India and Arctic
- India’s engagement with the Arctic began in 1920 with the signing of the Svalbard Treaty in Paris.
- Since July 2008, India has a permanent research station in the Arctic called Himadari at Ny Alesund, Svalbard Area in Norway.
- Since 2013, India enjoys ‘Observer’ status in the Arctic Council with twelve other countries (Japan, China, France, Germany, UK, Italy, Switzerland, Poland, Spain, Netherlands, Singapore, and South Korea).
- It has also deployed a multi-sensor moored observatory called IndARC in the Kongsfjorden fjord since July 2014.
- The launch of NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) satellite mission by India, in collaboration with the USA, is underway.
- India also contributes to the Sustained Arctic Observational Network (SAON).
- The research in the Arctic region from India is coordinated, conducted, and promoted by the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Goa, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences
