The Google doodle for this Earth Day shows time lapses of satellite imageries capturing Earth’s transformation from 2000-2020 and the animation highlights the irreversible impacts of climate change on Earth that took place in just twenty years from melting glaciers, severe drought, forest fire.
Glacier retreat in Greenland
(Google Images taken each December annually from 2000 to 2020)
Founded in 1970, inspired by Arbor Day [a tree-planting event that was organized by Nebraska], Earth Day began as a “national teach-in on the environment” by raising public awareness of pollution. The brainchild of Senator Gaylord Nelson, who started this with the hope to bring environment problems at the heart of discussions.
As we inch towards the next set goal of limiting our GHG emissions, we need to heavily rely on advanced technology solutions and visualizations. technologies. Electric vehicles (EVs) hold a lot of potential to significantly bring environmental pollution down, which is why many companies are actively investing to make reach this solution to the grassroots level.
EVs are energy-efficient, green and environment friendly solutions to achieve the goal of zero emissions and decarbonization
On Earth Day ESRI releases animated EV map of USA
Recently, Esri released a new animated map showing where electric vehicle charging stations exist along the US freeway system and how they are distributed throughout various states. Between high gas prices and $7.5 billion in funding approved for electric vehicle charging infrastructure, interest in electric vehicles has never been higher.
Using data from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center, Esri mapped every EV station within 5 miles of a US freeway that is more than 1,000 miles long and calculated the density of chargers along freeways in each state. As the video travels along I-40, I-80, I-5, and I-95, you can see how much of a gap exists between charging stations in each state.
Clock is ticking
Every year, the intensity of climate change is getting severe, surpassing all the worst experiences of previous years, decades and even centuries. Every day there are discussions going on, reports are being generated and released, concepts being formulated but unless collective steps are taken in the right direction, nothing can be done.
The Horn of Africa is experiencing the worst drought since 1981, which is a result of climate change, where more than 13 million people have been affected by it and hundreds of thousands of people are leaving their countries in search of food, shelter and water.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a United Nations body, has issued a dire warning in its recently released report. “Global surface temperature will continue to increase until at least the mid-century under all emission scenarios considered. Global warming of 1.5°C and 2°C will be exceeded during the 21st century unless deep reductions in carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gas emissions occur in the coming decades,” the report said in its summary assessment for policy-makers.
According to the recent IPCC report, humankind can improve food security and reduce the associated climate risks with the right adaptations. However, there is lack of reliable information making it difficult to determine which actions should be taken to meet regional needs (IPCC).
Solutions are being explored to reduce emission of greenhouse gases (GHG), afforestation, and development of alternative energy technologies to meet the sustainable goals as well as to reduce the global surface temperature. Smart mobility solutions such as EVs have a big role to play in reducing our dependence on fossil fuels and reducing emissions.
