Thursday☕️

Earth Intelligence

20 Mar 2025 — 5 min read

Economics & Markets:

Yesterday’s U.S. stock market:

Yesterday’s commodity market:

Yesterday’s crypto market:

Geopolitics & Military Activity:

Yesterday, March 19, 2025, the city of Kropyvnytskyi in central Ukraine experienced a significant drone attack launched by Russian forces, described as the largest assault on the city since the onset of the conflict. Local reports confirmed over 30 explosions across residential areas, with the barrage lasting more than 1.5 hours and producing visible smoke over the city. The regional governor, Andriy Raykovych, stated that air defenses were active but challenged by the scale of the attack, which involved at least 25 strike drones. Hospitals were placed on alert to treat the injured, with initial reports indicating at least eight casualties, though detailed updates on the extent of damage and losses remain pending.

This event coincided with a limited ceasefire proposal reportedly accepted by Russian President Vladimir Putin, following talks with U.S. President Donald Trump, aimed at halting strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure as a potential precursor to wider negotiations. While Putin rejected a broader 30-day ceasefire, the agreement was meant to pause attacks on energy targets. However, that same night, drone strikes hit multiple Ukrainian regions, including Kropyvnytskyi, with some reports suggesting energy facilities were also targeted. Ukrainian officials, including President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, noted that 150 drones were deployed nationwide, raising questions about the implementation of the ceasefire terms. Both sides continue to provide differing accounts, with the situation on the ground reflecting ongoing tensions and uncertainty surrounding the agreement’s effectiveness.

Environment & Weather:

As of March 20, 2025, a powerful storm system continues to sweep across the United States, leaving a trail of significant dust activity that has captivated meteorologists and residents alike. The event began on March 18, when strong winds, clocking gusts of 60-70 mph, barreled through the arid landscapes of West Texas and eastern New Mexico. The dry conditions caused large amounts of dust to rise from the parched soil, creating a dense plume that formed near the lower Rio Grande Valley. This plume was transported northward by the storm’s atmospheric winds and pressure systems.

By March 19, the dust storm had surged over 800 miles, reaching the Great Lakes region and extending into the Upper Mississippi River area. Satellite imagery tracked its path through states like Oklahoma, Kansas, and Iowa. Brown skies and reduced visibility greeted communities in its path, with some areas, such as parts of Minnesota and Wisconsin, reporting the potential for brown snow as dust particles mixed with precipitation. This event, still unfolding as of today, March 20, underscores the storm system’s unusual strength and the reach of its dust footprint.

Science & Technology:

On March 18, 2025, at Nvidia’s GPU Technology Conference (GTC) in San Jose, California, the Nvidia Isaac group introduced the Nvidia Isaac GR00T N1. This software serves as a foundation for humanoid robots, designed to replicate human-like movements and tasks. It operates with two components: a quick-response system for instant reactions and a slower system for detailed thinking. Powered by Nvidia’s AI and GPUs, it can be trained to handle activities such as grasping objects, navigating spaces, or completing multi-step processes.

The GR00T N1 is open-source, meaning its code is publicly available for modification. It includes tools to support customization. The Isaac GR00T Blueprint generates artificial training data, while the Newton physics engine simulates physical interactions. Users can input their own data—like human demonstrations or digital simulations—to adapt it for specific purposes. Potential applications include assembling products in factories, assisting with supplies in healthcare settings, or delivering items in service environments, highlighting its versatility for practical robotics.

Statistic:

Largest public automakers by market capitalization:

🇺🇸 Tesla: $758.64B
🇯🇵 Toyota: $252.32B
🇨🇳 Xiaomi: $186.31B
🇨🇳 BYD: $167.13B
🇮🇹 Ferrari: $80.77B
🇩🇪 Mercedes-Benz: $62.98B
🇩🇪 Volkswagen: $59.01B
🇩🇪 BMW: $54.20B
🇩🇪 Porsche: $53.12B
🇺🇸 General Motors: $49.54B
🇯🇵 Honda: $44.63B
🇮🇳 Maruti Suzuki India: $42.49B
🇺🇸 Ford: $40.30B
🇮🇳 Mahindra & Mahindra: $39.39B
🇳🇱 Stellantis: $36.49B
🇰🇷 Hyundai: $34.07B
🇨🇳 Li Auto: $30.53B
🇮🇳 Tata Motors: $29.06B
🇨🇳 Great Wall Motors: $28.40B
🇨🇳 Seres Group: $26.88B
🇰🇷 Kia: $26.09B
🇨🇳 SAIC Motor: $25.01B
🇯🇵 Suzuki Motor: $24.46B
🇨🇳 Geely: $23.20B
🇨🇳 XPeng: $21.87B

History:

The Silk Road was one of the most significant trade networks in human history, stretching over 4,000 miles from China to the Mediterranean, connecting East Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. Originating during China’s Han Dynasty around 130 BCE, it earned its name from the lucrative Chinese silk that was highly prized by the Roman Empire and other wealthy civilizations. However, silk was only one of many commodities traded—spices, precious stones, gold, ceramics, glassware, and even exotic animals moved across these routes. This vast network wasn’t a single road but a complex system of land and maritime pathways that evolved over centuries, with major cities like Xi’an, Samarkand, Baghdad, Constantinople, and eventually Venice serving as key commercial and cultural hubs.
More than just goods, the Silk Road enabled a powerful exchange of ideas, religions, technologies, and even diseases, making it a major driver of cultural diffusion. Buddhism spread from India into China and East Asia, while Islam expanded westward into Central Asia. Scientific knowledge, including astronomy, mathematics, and medicine, traveled alongside inventions like papermaking, printing, and gunpowder—all of which shaped the development of Europe during the Middle Ages and Renaissance. The trade routes also exposed travelers to new languages, art styles, and philosophies, creating one of the earliest examples of globalization. However, this interconnectedness had downsides, most notably the spread of the Black Death in the 14th century. By the 15th century, with the rise of maritime exploration and the Mongol Empire’s collapse, overland Silk Road trade declined—but its legacy as a foundation for global exchange remains deeply embedded in history.

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