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15-year study details origins, diversity of every known mineral

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A 15-year study led by the Carnegie Institution for Science details the origins and diversity of every known mineral on the Earth, a landmark body of work that will help reconstruct the history of life on the earth, guide the search for new minerals and ore deposits, predict possible characteristics of future life, and aid the search for habitable planets and extraterrestrial life.

In twin papers published by American Mineralogist and sponsored in part by NASA, Carnegie scientists Robert Hazen and Shaunna Morrison detail a novel approach to clustering (lumping) kindred species of minerals together or splitting off new species based on when and how they originated.

Once mineral genesis is factored in, the number of “mineral kinds” — a newly-coined term — totals more than 10,500, a number about 75 per cent greater than the roughly 6,000 mineral species recognized by the International Mineralogical Association (IMA) on the basis of crystal structure and chemical composition alone.

“This work fundamentally changes our view of the diversity of minerals on the planet,” says Hazen, Staff Scientist with the Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington DC.

“For example, more than 80 per cent of earth’s minerals were mediated by water, which is, therefore, fundamentally important to mineral diversity on this planet. By extension, this explains one of the key reasons why the moon and mercury and even mars have far fewer mineral species than the earth.”

“The work also tells us something very profound about the role of biology,” he adds. “One third of earth’s minerals could not have formed without biology — shells and bones and teeth, or microbes, for example, or the vital indirect role of biology, such as by creating an oxygen-rich atmosphere that led to 2,000 minerals that wouldn’t have formed otherwise.”

“Each mineral specimen has a history. Each tells a story. Each is a time capsule that reveals earth’s past as nothing else can.”

According to the paper, nature created 40 per cent of earth’s mineral species in more than one way — for example, both abiotically and with a helping hand from cells — and in several cases used more than 15 different recipes to produce the same crystal structure and chemical composition.

Of the 5,659 recognized mineral species surveyed by Hazen and colleagues, nine came into being via 15 or more different physical, chemical and/or biological processes — everything from near-instantaneous formation by lightning or meteor strikes, to changes caused by water-rock interactions or transformations at high pressures and temperature spanning hundreds of millions of years.

And, as if to show she has a sense of humour, nature has used 21 different ways over the last 4.5 billion years to create pyrite (aka Fool’s Gold) — the mineral world’s champion of diverse origins.

Pyrite forms at high temperature and low, with and without water, with the help of microbes and in harsh environments where life plays no role whatsoever.

Composed of one part iron to two parts sulfide (FeS2), pyrite is derived and delivered via meteorites, volcanoes, hydrothermal deposits, by pressure between layers of rock, near-surface rock weathering, microbially-precipitated deposits, several mining-associated processes, including coal mine fires, and many other means.

To reach their conclusions, Hazen and Morrison built a database of every known process of formation of every known mineral.

Relying on large, open-access mineral databases, amplified by thousands of primary research articles on the geology of mineral localities around the world, they identified 10,556 different combinations of minerals and modes of formation, detailed in the paper, “On the paragenetic modes of minerals: A mineral evolution perspective.”

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CBI files case against Anil Ambani, RCom in Rs 3,750 crore LIC case

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New Delhi, April 1: The Central Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday registered a case against Reliance Communications Ltd (RCom), Anil Ambani, unknown public servants, and unknown others on allegations of causing wrongful loss of Rs 3,750 crore to Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India.

The case has been registered on the basis of a complaint received from Life Insurance Corporation of India Ltd. for offences of conspiracy, cheating, misappropriation, and offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act, according to an official statement.

It is alleged that LIC was fraudulently induced to subscribe to Non Convertible Debentures (NCDs) worth Rs 4,500 crore on the basis of false representations made by Reliance Communications Ltd. and its management regarding the financial health of the company, and security and asset cover offered to LIC while subscribing to the NCDs.

The LIC has made this complaint on basis of a forensic audit report dated October 15, 2020 conducted by BDO India LLP, which reported that RCom and its management had resorted to misutilisation of funds raised from banks and financial institutions, routing of funds through subsidiaries, misuse of sale invoice financing, discounting of fictitious bills, systematic siphoning of funds through inter-company deposits and shell related entities, creating and write-off of fictitious debtors and receivables and gross overstatement of security. There was a mismatch between the charges and the assets.

Investigation of the case is in progress, the statement added.

The CBI had earlier registered three cases against RCom Ltd, Anil Ambani, and others on allegations of defrauding a number of banks.

Anil Ambani was also interrogated by the CBI at its head office in Delhi for two days in a row in connection with the alleged Rs 2,929.05 crore SBI fraud case.

The CBI had registered an FIR on August 21, 2025, following a complaint filed by the SBI, in which Reliance Communications Limited, Anil D. Ambani and others, including unknown public servants, are accused.

The State Bank of India (SBI) is the lead bank in the consortium of 11 banks — Bank of India, Central Bank of India, UCO Bank, Union Bank of India, e-Corporation Bank, Canara Bank, e-Syndicate Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, IDBI Bank Limited, and e-Oriental Bank of Commerce that had extended loans to the Anil Ambani group.

The complaint is based on a forensic audit report that alleges large-scale diversion and misutilisation of loan funds through interlinked and circuitous transactions among group entities during the period 2013-17, resulting in wrongful loss of Rs 2929.05 crore to the SBI out of total exposure of Rs 19, 694.33 crores involving 17 public sector banks, according to an official statement.

Subsequent to the registration of the case, separate complaints were received from the Punjab National Bank, the Bank of India, the Union Bank of India, the UCO Bank, the Central Bank of India, the IDBI Bank, and the Bank of Maharashtra. Further, another case has been registered against Reliance Communications Limited, Anil Ambani and others unknown, including unknown public servants, on February 25 on the basis of a complaint dated February 24, received from the Bank of Baroda, which includes exposure of e-Dena Bank and e-Vijaya Bank.

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Mumbai Weather Update For April 1, 2026: City Wakes Up To Cloudy Skies, AQI Remains In Good Range At 31; Rain, Thunderstorms Likely Till April 2

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Mumbai: witnessed a pleasant change in weather on Wednesday morning, as cloudy skies and gentle winds brought much-needed relief from recent smog and rising pollution levels. Visuals from Nariman Point and Marine Drive showed overcast conditions, while the early morning temperature settled at around 26°C, accompanied by a noticeable improvement in air quality across several parts of the city.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the city is expected to experience partly cloudy conditions through the day, with the possibility of thunderstorms and lightning. Temperatures are likely to range between 26°C and 34°C.

The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC), Mumbai, has issued a yellow alert for the city and surrounding regions, warning of thunderstorms accompanied by lightning, light to moderate rainfall, and gusty winds reaching speeds of 30–40 kmph at isolated locations. Weather officials have indicated that light rain and thundershowers are likely to persist till April 2.

The sudden shift in weather comes at a time when large parts of Maharashtra have been placed on alert for lightning, gusty winds, rainfall and even hailstorms over the next few days.

Meanwhile, Mumbai’s air quality has shown a marked improvement. Data from monitoring platforms recorded the city’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI) at 31 in the early hours, placing it in the ‘good’ category. This follows an even better reading of 21 recorded a day earlier, also in the ‘good’ range, offering major relief to residents after weeks of poor air conditions.

The improvement is largely due to the recent action taken by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) against construction sites violating pollution control norms. Both private and public infrastructure projects were targeted as part of the drive to curb dust pollution.

However, the improvement in air quality has not been uniform across the city. Mumbai Central emerged as a pollution hotspot, recording an AQI of 143, categorised as ‘poor’, followed by Malad West at 123, also in the ‘poor’ range.

Meanwhile, several areas reported significantly cleaner air. Gamdevi recorded an AQI of 8, while Andheri also reported 8. Ghatkopar West and Walkeshwar recorded AQI levels of 13 each, and Kandivali West stood at 17, all within the ‘good’ category.

As per standard AQI classifications, values between 0 and 50 are considered ‘good’, 51 to 100 ‘moderate’, 101 to 200 ‘poor’, 201 to 300 ‘unhealthy’ and above 300 ‘severe’.

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Mumbai Weather Update March 30, 2026: City Wakes Up To Sunny Skies; Light Rain Expected Tomorrow, Likely To Bring Relief From Heat

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Mumbai: The city wakes up to sunny and humid weather with light winds on Monday morning, with noticeably improved air quality. The temperature at 9 am was recorded at 28 degrees Celsius, with maximum temperature expected to reach 34 degrees Celsius today.

According to the Regional Meteorological Centre, Mumbai, the city is very likely to witness dry weather. Although no heatwave-like conditions are predicted for today, the coming days could see cooler weather due to a weather alert warning of thunderstorms and heavy rainfall in the districts of Khandesh, Marathwada, western Vidarbha, as well as the ghat areas of central Maharashtra between March 30 and April 4. Not just this, in Mumbai and Thane, light rain and thundershowers have been predicted for tomorrow, March 31, giving citizens some respite from the heat.

Data from AQI monitoring platforms showed the city’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI) at 70 in the early hours, placing it in the ‘moderate’ category. However, the improvement is not uniform across the city.

Several areas reported unhealthy air quality levels, like Mirashi Nagar at 168, and Reserve Bank of India Staff quarters Station 2 recorded AQI at 163. Additionally, the overall AQI in Thane was 80, while Navi Mumbai recorded poor category air at 104.

The Chief Minister’s Office, Maharashtra, has issued a weather alert warning of thunderstorms and stormy rainfall across parts of the state between March 30 and April 4. According to the CMO office, the weather alert warning has been issued in the districts of Khandesh, Marathwada, western Vidarbha, as well as the ghat areas of central Maharashtra.

Due to this, an advisory has been issued for farmers saying that they should plan their agricultural activities according to these weather conditions in the coming days.

Citing an appeal from the Agriculture Department, CMO added, as the harvesting of rabi crops is underway, the harvested crops should be stored in a safe place or covered. Additionally, necessary precautions should be taken to prevent crop damage from stormy winds, rain, and possible hailstorms. Citizens and farmers have also been advised to avoid standing under trees, under tin sheds, as well as near electric transformers, electric poles, and power lines.

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