3rd Arctic Science Ministerial (ASM):
India participated in the 3rd Arctic Science Ministerial (ASM) and shared plans for research and long-term cooperation in the Arctic Region.
- The first two meetings—ASM1 and ASM2—were held in the USA in 2016 and Germany in 2018, respectively.
- The Arctic region comprises the Arctic Ocean and parts of countries such as Canada, Denmark (Greenland), Norway, Russia, USA (Alaska), Finland, Sweden and Iceland.
- These countries together form the core of the Arctic Council, an intergovernmental forum.
- HQ: Norway
Third Arctic Science Ministerial Conference:
- Host Countries: It was jointly organised by Iceland and Japan.
- It was the first Ministerial meeting being held in Asia (Tokyo in Japan).
- Objective: It provides opportunities to various stakeholders, including academia, indigenous communities, governments and policymakers, to enhance collective understanding of the Arctic region, emphasize and engage in constant monitoring, and strengthen observations.
- Theme: ‘Knowledge for a Sustainable Arctic’.
India’s Stand:
- To contribute observing systems in the Arctic, both in-situ and by remote sensing.
- Would deploy open ocean mooring in the Arctic for long-term monitoring of upper ocean variables and marine meteorological parameters.
- The launch of the NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) satellite mission, in collaboration with the USA, is underway.
Contributions to the Sustained Arctic Observational Network (SAON) would continue.
