NASA to create computer models to protect delta system

NASA Scientists and scientists form other universities from Boston to California are aiming to create computer models which can be used with satellite data to learn which parts of their dwindling deltas can be shored up and which deltas are past hope.

Why this need was felt?

• Scientists decided to create computer models in the backdrop of erosion, sinking land and sea rise due to climate change which have killed Louisiana woods near the Mississippi River delta system.
• NASA is using high-tech airborne systems comprising of boats and mud-slogging work on islands at the cost of $15 million.

Where is Louisiana?

It is a state in south-central regions of United States. It is 19th-smallest by area and 25th most populous among 50 U.S. states. It shares its border with state of Texas in west, Arkansas in north, Mississippi in east, and Gulf of Mexico in south. Its eastern boundary is demarcated by Mississippi River. It is the only state in U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes. It, along with Alaska, are two U.S. states which are not subdivided into counties. Baton Rouge is its capital while New Orleans is its largest city.

Mississippi River

It is the second-longest river in North American continent after the Hudson Bay drainage system. Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota is the source of river. It flows generally south for 2,320 miles to form Mississippi River Delta in Gulf of Mexico. Mississippi’s watershed drains about 32 U.S. states and two Canadian provinces. Main stem of the river is entirely within United States. It is the fourteenth-largest river by discharge worldwide.

Month: Current Affairs - June, 2021