'Moon Sniper'

Context: -
Japan has successfully launched its lunar
exploration spacecraft, known as the "Moon
Sniper", using the domestically developed
H-IIA rocket.
An Overview of the News
 The achievement puts Japan in
contention to become the world's fifth country to land on the moon, with the
landing planned for early next year.
 The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said the rocket's launch from
the Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan went as scheduled. It also
successfully deployed the lunar lander, Smart Lander for Investigating Moon
(SLIM).
 Japan's ambitious goal is to land SLIM on the lunar surface within 100 meters of
its intended target site. The $100 million mission is expected to reach the moon
by February.
 Notably, the launch follows India's recent achievement of becoming the fourth
nation to successfully land a spacecraft on the Moon through its Chandrayaan-3
mission, which specifically aimed to explore the uncharted lunar south pole.
 This achievement by Japan comes after two previous lunar landing attempts by the
country failed within the last year.
Japan's Lunar Landing Challenges: Loss of Contact, Lunar Lander Accident, and
Collaborative Satellite Mission:
 In November, JAXA suffered a setback when they lost contact with the
OMOTENASHI lander, leading to the cancellation of their lunar landing attempt.
 In April, the Hakuto-R Mission 1 lander, developed by a Japanese startup called
iSpace, crashed while landing on the lunar surface.
 Additionally, the H-IIA rocket was tasked with carrying the X-ray Imaging and
Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) satellite. The satellite is part of a collaborative effort
by JAXA, NASA, and the European Space Agency.
About JAXA
Founded -1 October 2003
President - Yamakawa Hiroshi;
Headquarters - Chōfu, Tokyo, Japan.
Forest Restoration
Context: -
For over two centuries, India has been
a laboratory for tree planting experiments,
offering valuable insights into the
consequences of various approaches to forest
restoration.

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What is Deforestation?
Deforestation is the process of clearing or removing a large area of forests or trees, typically
due to human activities such as logging, agriculture, urban development, or infrastructure
expansion.
What is Forest Restoration?
Forest restoration involves the deliberate and planned process of restoring and
regenerating forests that have been degraded, damaged, or lost due to various human
activities or natural causes. This process aims to return a forest ecosystem to a healthier
and more natural state, often involving tree planting, habitat restoration, and sustainable
management practices to improve biodiversity, ecosystem services, and overall forest health.
India’s Pledge:
India aims to restore 21 million hectares of forest by 2030 through the Bonn Challenge. In
2018, a report by the government and the IUCN indicated 10 million hectares were under
restoration. India’s national forest policy targets 33% tree coverage.

Status of forest restoration:

 According to the International Union for Conservation of
Nature (IUCN), deforestation and forest degradation contribute to around 12% of
global greenhouse gas emissions.
 30% of forestland is degraded in India. The total area occupied by primary forests
in India has decreased by 6%.
Current Approach to Restoration:
The current global focus on tree planting has often led to the rapid establishment of fast-
growing tree plantations e.g. Miyawaki Method; fast-growing single species like
eucalyptus or bamboo to quickly increase tree cover. This approach can yield quick results
but also poses risks, including invasive species and land dispossession.
India’s Tree Planting Experiments:
India has conducted tree planting experiments for over 200 years, offering valuable
lessons about different approaches to forest restoration and their consequences on local
communities and the environment.
Further Actions Needed:
 Forest Landscape Restoration: Implement forest landscape restoration to restore
ecological functionality and enhance human welfare in deforested or degraded forest
landscapes, involving communities, governments, and vulnerable forest-dependent
individuals.
 Diverse Tree Species: Prioritize planting diverse native tree species in reforestation
efforts. Natural forests with varied species are more effective at carbon sequestration
than monoculture plantations.
o For instance, in Punjab, native species like Jhand, Desi Kikar, and Pharwan
have high survival rates.
 Promote Agroforestry: Encourage sustainable forest crops through agroforestry,
which enhances food security, empowers women, and boosts household income,
reducing rural-to-urban migration.

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  Holistic Well-being: Recognize that tree planting contributes to the holistic well-
being of individuals, communities, and the planet.
Key Government Initiatives:
International Initiatives:
 UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030): Focuses on restoring degraded
terrestrial ecosystems, including forests.
 Bonn Challenge: Aims to restore 350 million hectares of landscapes by 2030. India
pledged to restore 26 million hectares and create a carbon sink of 2.5-3 billion tonnes
by 2030.
Indian Programs:
 Compensatory Afforestation
 National Afforestation Programme
 National Mission for a Green India (Green India Mission)
 Nagar Van Scheme
 Hariyali Mahotsav and Van Mahotsav
 Forest Fire Prevention and Management Scheme
 Green Skill Development Programme for youth in the environment and forest
sectors.
 State Initiatives (Telangana): ‘Telanganaku Haritha Haram’ large-scale tree
planting program, utilizing drones for efficient implementation.
Conclusion:
Successful forest restoration must consider its impact on forest rights, local livelihoods,
biodiversity, and carbon storage. The choice of plantation species should prevent
invasiveness, and a broader view of success is needed beyond tree cover alone.
Women led Climate Action
Context: -
Emerging countries need women-led climate
action as they are more vulnerable to climate
change because of their dependence on
natural resource and labour-intensive work.
Why there is a need of women led climate action?
 Foster SDG- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has
said that gender equality and environmental goals are mutually reinforcing that will
accelerate the SDGs achievement.
 Global challenge- Its impact is one that has profound consequences for humans and
has emerged as one of the biggest global challenges in recent decades.
 Loss of work hours- As per International Labour Organization (ILO) study in 2019,
around 2.2 % of total working hours worldwide will be lost to high temperatures, a
productivity loss equivalent to 80 million full time jobs in 2030.
 Women at disadvantage- United Nations highlighted that across genders, women are
considered to be highly vulnerable and disproportionately affected by climate change
than men.

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Why it is felt more in low-income countries?
 Women across the world face severe risks to their health, safety, and quality of life.
 Dependence- Women in developing and less developed countries are more vulnerable
to climate change because of their dependence on natural resources and labour-
intensive work.
 Poverty- Women are more likely to live in poverty than men, one of the variables that
makes them more susceptible to the effects of climate change.
 Responsibility- It is because women from low-income households are more at risk
because they are more responsible for food, water, and other homely unpaid work.
 Regional divide- Due to the climate crisis, more time and effort are needed to obtain
basic necessities.
 Rural women often shoulder the burden of ensuring access to clean water, adequate
cooking fuel, and nutritious food for their families.
 Health risk- Women may be at increased risk for health and safety because they must
travel long distances every day to collect water and fuel.
 Inadequate rainfall- Turkana County is one of the most arid areas of Kenya.
 Women not only struggle to collect enough water, but when food is scarce, they eat
less than men.
 Climate vulnerable jobs- Women in low-income countries engage in climate-
vulnerable occupations such as farming and other labour-intensive work.
According to the ILO, over 60% of working women in southern Asia and sub-Saharan Africa
are still in agriculture, where they are often underpaid and overworked.
 Low asset- Despite being the backbone of the food production system, women own
only about 10% of the land used for farming.
 Climate refugees- A McAllister (2023) study has highlighted how there could be 1.2
billion climate refugees by 2050.
What are the Gender-specific issues?
Climate change is a “threat multiplier”, meaning it escalates social, political and economic
tensions in fragile and conflict-affected settings.
 Climate disasters- According to a UN study, 80% of those displaced by climate-
related disasters are women and girls.
 Women inequality- According to estimates, 130 million people could be pushed into
poverty by 2050 due to climate change risks, natural disasters, and food inflation.
 Stereotypes- Women, especially those from vulnerable communities, face particular
difficulties during and after natural disasters as they are more susceptible to prejudice
and exploitation.
Nepal Earthquake- In 2015, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) found women
were more exposed to trafficking and exploitation.
 Separation from social networks,
 Higher risk of gender-based violence, and
 Decreased access- In employment and education
 Decreased access to health- Sexual and reproductive health care and psychosocial
support.
 Impact on health-Research indicates that extreme heat increases incidence of
stillbirth.

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  Climate change is increasing the spread of vector-borne illnesses such as malaria,
dengue fever, and Zika virus, which are linked to worse maternal and neonatal
outcomes.
 Feminisation of agriculture- Women make up a disproportionately large portion of
the agricultural workforce in emerging countries.
 Extreme weather- Heat stress affects workers a lot in this sector, especially in South
Asia and Africa.
 Unequal access- Women engaged in agriculture do not have access to quality inputs
and possess low education and technical knowledge.
What lies ahead?
 There is a need for investments in women’s education, training, and access to
resources for increased resilience against vulnerability.
 Sustainable practices reduce the negative impacts of climate change on people’s
living standards.
o In India, the Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) teaches women
farmers how to respond to shifting climate patterns to support themselves
better financially.
 Women’s participation in climate policy decision-making at all levels is crucial for
effective climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies as well as getting decent
employment.

SCRIT System
Context: -
Physicists have found a way to ‘see’ inside short-lived nuclei.
Seeing the atom nuclei
 Three scientists named Ernest Rutherford, Hans Geiger, and Ernest Marsden exposed
a thin gold foil to radiation.
 Based on how the rays were deflected by atoms in the foil, they figured out that every
atom has a dense center where its mass and positive charge are concentrated.
 Seventy years ago, Robert Hofstadter led a team that bombarded electrons at thin
foils.
 The higher energy of the electrons allowed them to ‘probe’ the nucleus.
 In each case, physicists were able to ‘see’ inside stable atoms, and then inside their
nuclei, by using other particles.
 Now, researchers in the RIKEN Nishina Center for Accelerator-Based Science, in
Japan, have taken a big leap forward in this tradition.
 The previous experiments used thin foils that were easy to hold.
 The new one is more sophisticated, using an apparatus to hold the nuclei of caesium-
137 atoms as well as make sure electrons could interact with them, using a system
called SCRIT.
The SCRIT advantage
 The researchers accelerated electrons in a particle accelerator to energize them, and
then smashed them into a block of uranium carbide.
 This produced a stream of caesium-137 ions (atoms stripped of electrons).

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  This isotope of caesium has a half-life of around 30 years.
 The ions were then transported to the SCRIT system, which is short for ‘Self-
Confining Radioactive-isotope Ion Target’.
 This method enables us to trap the target ions in three dimensions along the electron
beam using the electric attractive force between the ions and the electrons.

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