Change is the only constant

The Climate Challenge is a documentary by Rakesh Rao based on the footage he collected during his expeditions to the Arctic, Himalayas and the Southern Ocean, Arti Das writes

Climate change is related to changes in our climate, ecology and how ultimately it is shaping our lives. However, to understand the change in climate involves field research and that also to the extreme corners of the world. All this is done by a group of scientists to collect the crucial scientific data that will help us to understand the changing climate in a better way.

But, do we know what does this research involve and how these scientists collect the data and analyse it? Throwing light on such topics is a 23-minute odd documentary The Climate Challenge.

Made by Goa-based filmmaker Rakesh Rao, it is based on the footage which he collected for over four years during his expeditions to the Arctic, Himalayas and the Southern Ocean.

As part of the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research, Rao’s job was to document the research work done by scientists and other researchers from various institutes and universities from India. “I got this idea on the edit table when I was working on these documented works,” says Rao. He further states that not many know the amount of research and difficulties involved in collecting such data.

The documentary recently won the first prize at the International Science Film Festival of India, 2019 held at Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI), Kolkata. Rao has also produced the official teaser of Chandrayaan -2 for the Indian Space Research Organisation.

Speaking about climate change, Rao stressed that the Cryospheric regions of the world (Arctic, Antarctic, and the Himalayas) and also the oceans, are the worst affected. The Arctic sea ice cover has declined over 30 per cent in recent years and the region is also noticing rapid thawing of permafrost, while a report suggests that at least a third of the Himalayan glaciers are expected to melt by the end of this century. Our oceans are becoming warmer and also acidic.

“To study any change in the climate, you need to have at least 30 years of data,” elaborates Rao while giving an example of glaciers in the Himalayas which are receding at an alarming rate. The documentary features works of scientists like Dr Maarten Loonen of University of Groningen, Dr Santonu Goswami of National Remote Sensing Centre, ISRO, Dr Parmanand Sharma of National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research, Dr Isa Rosso of SCRIPPS Institute of Oceanography, Ajit Singh of National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research.

In the Himalayas

The Himalayas

Closer home in the Himalayas, the documentary features the HIMANSH, India’s first high-altitude facility, in the Lahul & Spiti district in Himachal Pradesh set up by the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research in Lahul & Spiti districts in Himachal Pradesh. Here, a group of scientists studied six glaciers in the Chandra River basin.

Rao explains that every year, scientists climb up to 17,000 feet to study how much snow has melted and is compared to the fresh snow of the year. To do this, scientists have installed bamboo stakes all over these glaciers and every year they measure to analyse how much the glacier has melted vertically. “Less snowfall and more melting suggests a negative mass balance. That means that glacier is melting at a higher rate. And if you have more snowfall and less melting, it means positive mass balance. A majority of the Himalayan glaciers are showing negative mass balance,” says Rao who was also part of the NASA Spaceward Bound India Expedition to high altitudes regions in Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir in 2016.

The Arctic and Southern Ocean

The documentary also focuses on the Arctic where India has a station, The Himadri, in Ny Alesund, Svalbard. Scientists are studying the fjords, glaciers, and thawing of permafrost here. “Permafrosts are not glaciers but consist of ice, mud, organic matter, accumulated for thousands of years. It is a proper landmass on which infrastructure is built. So, due to increasing temperature, scientists have seen an increase in the thawing of this permafrost, which has led to instability in the terrain. The biggest worry for scientists is that 1,600 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide and methane may get released in the atmosphere if this thawing continues,” says Rao.

(The documentary ‘The Climate Challenge’ is available for viewing on www.climatechallenge.in.)