Earth Watch Report – Saturday August 11th, 2012

Earthquakes

RSOE EDIS

Date/Time (UTC)	Magnitude	Area	Country	State/Prov./Gov.	Location	Risk			Source	Details
11.08.2012 04:00:31	2.3	North America	United States	California	Ponderosa				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 02:40:30	2.3	North America	United States	Hawaii	Kealakekua				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 03:25:25	4.5	South-America	Argentina	Salta	San Antonio de los Cobres				EMSC
11.08.2012 02:45:24	4.5	Atlantic Ocean	Argentina	Salta	San Antonio de los Cobres				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 01:55:28	2.5	North America	United States	Alaska	Nikolski				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 01:55:54	4.4	Pacific Ocean	Fiji	Northern	Lambasa				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 02:25:19	4.4	Pacific Ocean – East	Fiji	Northern	Lambasa				EMSC
11.08.2012 01:35:33	2.5	North America	United States	California	Calimesa				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 01:15:29	2.1	North America	United States	California	Seeley				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 01:25:24	3.6	Europe	Greece	South Aegean	Karpathos				EMSC
11.08.2012 03:00:27	2.6	Caribbean	Puerto Rico	Rincon	Stella				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 01:10:31	4.4	South America	Bolivia	Potosí	Culpina				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 01:25:47	4.3	South-America	Bolivia	Potosí	Tupiza				EMSC
11.08.2012 01:26:10	2.5	Europe	Greece	Peloponnese	Koroni				EMSC
11.08.2012 00:30:26	2.4	North America	United States	California	Pearsonville				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 00:20:21	2.2	Europe	Czech Republic	Moravskoslezský Kraj	Karvina				EMSC
11.08.2012 00:20:50	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Kütahya	Pazarlar				EMSC
10.08.2012 23:40:34	2.3	North America	Canada	British Columbia	Princeton				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 00:21:10	2.2	Asia	Turkey	Kütahya	Saphane				EMSC
10.08.2012 23:50:55	4.5	Indonesian archipelago	Indonesia	North Sulawesi	Bitung				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 00:21:31	4.7	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	North Sulawesi	Bitung				EMSC
10.08.2012 23:15:25	2.8	Europe	Greece	North Aegean	Agios Dimitrios				EMSC
10.08.2012 23:15:48	3.0	Europe	Greece	North Aegean	Agios Ilias				EMSC
10.08.2012 23:55:37	4.6	Indonesian archipelago	Papua New Guinea	East New Britain	Rabaul				USGS-RSOE
11.08.2012 00:21:52	4.6	Indonesian Archipelago	Papua New Guinea	East New Britain	Rabaul				EMSC
10.08.2012 21:40:32	4.4	Europe	Greece	Epirus	Mandrotopos				USGS-RSOE
10.08.2012 21:15:24	4.3	Europe	Greece	Epirus	Spatharaioi				EMSC
10.08.2012 22:15:19	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Datca				EMSC
10.08.2012 21:30:37	2.2	North America	United States	Alaska	Nikolski				USGS-RSOE
10.08.2012 21:15:45	2.4	Europe	Italy	Sicily	Panarea				EMSC
10.08.2012 22:10:54	3.6	North America	United States	Alaska	Nikolski				USGS-RSOE
10.08.2012 20:45:29	6.3	North America	United States	Alaska	Nikolski				USGS-RSOE
10.08.2012 21:16:04	5.8	North-America	United States	Alaska	Nikolski				EMSC
10.08.2012 21:01:02	6.2	North America	United States	Alaska	Nikolski				USGS-RSOE
10.08.2012 20:30:37	3.2	North America	United States	Alaska	Attu Station				USGS-RSOE
10.08.2012 20:10:25	3.4	Europe	Greece	Epirus	Kalyvia				EMSC
10.08.2012 20:10:52	3.4	Europe	Greece	Crete	Kolimvarion				EMSC
10.08.2012 20:11:12	2.2	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	San Prospero				EMSC
10.08.2012 20:11:33	4.3	Indonesian Archipelago	East Timor	Distrito Díli	Dili				EMSC
10.08.2012 18:45:43	2.0	North America	United States	California	Mojave				USGS-RSOE
10.08.2012 18:46:32	2.7	Middle America	Mexico	Baja California	Alberto Oviedo Mota				USGS-RSOE
10.08.2012 19:05:22	3.8	Asia	Kazakhstan	Almaty	Zharkent				EMSC
10.08.2012 17:25:28	2.0	North America	United States	Alaska	Nanwalek				USGS-RSOE
10.08.2012 20:11:54	4.8	Pacific Ocean – West	Vanuatu	Shefa	Port-Vila				EMSC
10.08.2012 19:05:54	2.6	Europe	Greece	Crete	Chora Sfakion				EMSC
10.08.2012 18:00:25	3.1	Europe	Greece	Crete	Chora Sfakion				EMSC
10.08.2012 15:50:34	2.2	North America	United States	Alaska	Petersville				USGS-RSOE
10.08.2012 15:55:23	2.9	Europe	Greece	North Aegean	Agios Dimitrios				EMSC
10.08.2012 15:45:34	2.3	North America	United States	California	Darwin				USGS-RSOE
10.08.2012 15:55:43	3.7	Europe	Greece	Crete	Chora Sfakion				EMSC

……………………………………………….

6.2 Mwp – FOX ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS

Preliminary Earthquake Report

Magnitude	6.2 Mwp
Date-Time	10 Aug 2012 18:37:44 UTC 10 Aug 2012 10:37:44 near epicenter 10 Aug 2012 13:37:44 standard time in your timezone
Location	52.695N 167.469W
Depth	18 km
Distances	97 km (61 miles) ESE (106 degrees) of Nikolski, AK 147 km (91 miles) SSW (206 degrees) of Unalaska, AK 195 km (121 miles) SW (215 degrees) of Akutan, AK 1422 km (884 miles) SW (236 degrees) of Anchorage, AK
Location Uncertainty	Horizontal: 13.1 km; Vertical 5.7 km
Parameters	Nph = 641; Dmin = 99.3 km; Rmss = 1.18 seconds; Gp = 49° M-type = Mwp; Version = 6
Event ID	us b000buag ***This event supersedes event AK10532513.

For updates, maps, and technical information, see:
Event Page
or
USGS Earthquake Hazards Program

National Earthquake Information Center
U.S. Geological Survey
http://neic.usgs.gov/

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Volcanic Activity

Magma bubbles higher in Mt Tongariro

MICHELLE COOKE

1 of 2

GNS Te Maari vent map final.

Tests have revealed that magma is bubbling higher than usual in Mount Tongariro, which means further eruptions are more likely.

A series of samples have been tested since the volcano’s Te Mari crater erupted on Monday night, but the latest results give the greatest insight.

“We’re now convinced that the likelihood of this just being a one-off has decreased,” GNS vulcanologist Nico Fournier said.

“But it doesn’t mean it’s just about to blow and go pear-shape.”

The results detected sulphur dioxide and carbon dioxide in the steam plume, which indicated that magma was closer to the surface than it usually was, Fournier said.

It was unclear how high the magma was – it could be anything from meters to kilometers, Fournier said.

If a magmatic eruption did occur then it wouldn’t necessarily be significant, he said. It could result in a lava flow or it could lead to a series of explosions.

“It doesn’t mean it could be a massive eruption, it could be passive,” Fournier said.

It was also likely that Monday night’s eruption could be followed by a series of steam eruptions, or no activity at all, Fournier said.

Civil Defense, along with a number of other organizations including the Department of Conservation, would continue to monitor the volcano’s activity.

There was no new advice or warnings that stemmed from the latest development, a Civil Defence spokesman said.

There was about 2100 tonnes of sulfur dioxide being emitted from the volcano per day.

That was above average and the highest sulfur dioxide emission rate for any New Zealand volcano, however it wasn’t unexpected considering the amount of steam and gas which was being emitted, a GNS spokesperson said.

Further visual observations were being undertaken today.

Scientists would also be obtaining gas and water samples from the nearby Ketetahi hot springs and some of the rocks which were ejected from the crater and which damaged the Ketetahi hut.

The volcano was still ejecting steam and gas this morning while tremors continued to shake the earth below it, Fournier said.

Meanwhile, a 4.7 magnitude earthquake in the Bay of Plenty this morning has had no impact on White Island, which erupted on Tuesday night.

It was the first eruption in 12 years for the country’s most active and largest cone.

White Island tended to have volcanic episodes which lasted a few months to a few years, so this could just be the start of more to come, Rosenberg said.

The Te Mari crater last erupted in 1897.

Massive pumice indicates 3rd active volcano around New Zealand

Wellington, Aug. 10 (Xinhua-ANI): A floating mass of the volcanic rock, pumice, reportedly covering 25,000 square km, has been found floating in the South Pacific, indicating a third volcano is active near New Zealand.

The New Zealand Defense Force (NZDF) said Friday the floating pumice, measuring 250 nautical miles long and 30 nautical miles wide, was first spotted by a New Zealand air force Orion on a maritime patrol from Samoa to New Zealand.

The Orion relayed the information to New Zealand navy vessel HMNZS Canterbury, which spotted the pumice late Thursday about 85 nautical miles west southwest of Raoul Island, one of the Kermadec Islands that lie 750 to 1,000 km northeast of New Zealand.

Lieutenant Tim Oscar, a Royal Australian Navy officer on exchange with the Royal New Zealand Navy, described the pumice as “the weirdest thing I’ve seen in 18 years at sea.”

“The lookout reported a shadow on the ocean ahead of us so I ordered the ship’s spotlight to be trained on the area,” Oscar said in the NZDF statement.

“As far ahead as I could observe was a raft of pumice moving up and down with the swell,” he said.

“The rock looked to be sitting 2 feet (60 cm) above the surface of the waves, and lit up a brilliant white color in the spotlight. It looked exactly like the edge of an ice shelf.”

Oscar said he had been briefed by a volcanologist from New Zealand’s Institute of Geological and Nuclear Science (GNS Science) the previous day when the ship encountered another area of pumice from an undersea volcano.

“I knew the pumice was lightweight and posed no danger to the ship. Nonetheless it was quite daunting to be moving toward it at 14 knots. It took about three to four minutes to travel through the raft of pumice and as predicted there was no damage,” he said.

“As we moved through the raft of pumice we used the spotlights to try and find the edge – but it extended as far as we could see. ”

HMNZS Canterbury was en route to Raoul Island with a party of GNS scientists aboard at the time.

The Commanding Officer, Commander Sean Stewart, changed course to intercept the pumice and retrieve samples, which would be analyzed to determine which volcano they came from, said the statement.

According to GNS Science, the underwater volcano, Monowai, had been active along the Kermadec Arc and the pumice could be a result of that activity, said the NZDF statement.

The find comes after eruptions from Mount Tongariro, in New Zealand’s central North Island, late Monday and White Island, a marine volcano about 50 km off the east of the North Island, two days later.

The GNS scientists aboard the Canterbury believed the volcanic activity of Tongariro, White Island and along the Kermadec arc was unrelated, said the NZDF statement. (Xinhua-ANI)

Volcanic activity world-wide 10 Aug 2012: Tongariro, White Island, Askja, Etna, Stromboli, Santorini, Popocatépetl, Nevado del Ruiz, Tungurahua, Sakurajima

BY: T

Santorini\’s “tremor” waking up as usual…

Tongariro volcano has remained calm. GNS scientists measured elevated levels of SO2 and other volcanic gasses, which suggests that magma is accumulating beneath the volcano.
It is possible, that the Aug 6 eruption was only a precursor to a pending magmatic eruption, which could even be large, if the size of initial phreatic activity is in proportion to the proper magmatic eruption.

Weak ash emissions continue at White Island, producing a weak plume rising a few 100 m.

Other updates from the rest of the world include the usual candidates who have not shown much new or surprising activity:

Popocatépetl in Mexico: During the past 24 hours, 17 weak explosions occurred, and a constant steam and gas plume is rising. Glow is visible at night.

Fuego volcano: The lava flow towards Barranca Taniluya is active and reaches 200 meters length, producing small avalanches. 3 explosions were counted by the observatory yesterday and reached heights around 400 m.

Santiaguito / Santa Maria (Guatemala) produced a hot lahar yesterday at 21:50 h local time which drained large amounts of volcanic material and blocks. It lasted 15 minutes during which the windows of the observatory were vibrating.

Nevado del Ruiz (Colombia) produces a significant plume of SO2.

Tungurahua volcano: The volcano has moderately strong seismic activity with phases of tremor frequently visible, related to fluid movements. No reports of recent explosions. Direct observations have been difficult due to bad weather.

El Hierro volcano: slightly increased number of quakes during the past days, including a shallow (3 km) M2.4 event on 8 Aug in the central part of the island.

A slightly increased tremor is visible at Stromboli in the Eolian island today suggesting that activity is higher today.
At nearby Etna, tremor continues to be low and glow at night is currently not visible from Bocca Nuova, suggesting that explosions, if any, are weak.

In Iceland, Askja volcano has been showing increased signs of unrest including higher than background levels of tremor, as Diana Barnes remarked on VolcanoCafe.

A comment on rumors about elevated tremor on Santorini volcano was posted as well. It is interesting to note that “tremor” usually starts in the morning and ends at night.

Finally, Sakurajima volcano in Japan produced 2 moderate to weak explosions so far today. VAAC Tokyo alerts of ash plumes rising 2.4 and 2.1 km, respectively.

10.08.2012

Non-categorized event

Other

Pacific Ocean – West, [About 620 miles northeast of Auckland]

Non-categorized event in Other on Friday, 10 August, 2012 at 10:00 (10:00 AM) UTC.

Description

A mass of small volcanic rocks nearly the size of Belgium has been discovered floating off the coast of New Zealand. The stretch of golf-ball-size pumice rocks was first spotted this week by a New Zealand air force plane about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) northeast of Auckland. The rocks stretch for about 26,000 square kilometers (10,000 square miles). A navy ship took scientists to the rocks Thursday night. Naval Lt. Tim Oscar says the rocks appeared a brilliant white under a spotlight, like a giant ice shelf. He says it’s the “weirdest thing” he’s seen in 18 years at sea. Scientists say the rocks likely spewed up in an eruption by an underwater volcano. They don’t believe the eruption is connected to the onshore ash eruption this week of another volcano, Mount Tongariro. Officials say the small rocks pose no danger to shipping. The Defence Force says the mass of rocks stretches 250 nautical miles by 30 nautical miles.

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Extreme Temperatures/ Weather

10.08.2012

Heat Wave

USA

State of Colorado, Denver

Heat Wave in USA on Friday, 10 August, 2012 at 09:53 (09:53 AM) UTC.

Description

Approaching a string of days with highs in the 90s, meteorologists and forecasters would probably quote official records and use specific examples of sizzlingly high temperatures to describe this sweltering summer. But for city residents such as 19-year-old Cadence Noble, one word will do: “Hot,” Noble said. “It’s been hot.” The metro area had seen 53 days this year with the high temperature at or above 90 degrees. With a high of 98 on Thursday — which tied the all-time high for the date — that streak reached 54, forecasters said. The record for days in the 90s is 61, which was set in 2000. With temperatures for the next couple of days projected in the mid- to upper 90s, forecasters said there’s a good chance the previous record will be broken. In addition to the heat, forecasters for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said the recent heavy haze, caused by wildfire smoke from Montana and the Pacific Northwest settling over metro Denver, has negatively affected air quality. The air-quality index for Denver was listed as “moderate” Thursday afternoon, meaning that unusually sensitive people should consider reducing prolonged or heavy exertion. “At these concentration levels, it’s more of an annoyance with the low visibility it creates, but it hasn’t risen to the point where it causes health effects,” said Emmett Malone, an air-quality meteorologist for the state. “As thick as this haze is, we’ll be close to or under it until tomorrow,” Malone added. Noble, who works at a restaurant on the 16th Street Mall, said she has been trying to beat the summer heat by taking advantage of air conditioning and frequenting local water parks. And while the heat does get to her, Noble said, she grew up in the East, where summers aren’t only hot but humid.

10.08.2012

Extreme Weather

Australia

State of New South Wales, Sydney

Extreme Weather in Australia on Friday, 10 August, 2012 at 06:19 (06:19 AM) UTC.

Description

Boats were blown on shore at Little Manly Beach, a roof was ripped off and planes at Sydney airport were delayed as Sydney was hit by strong winds today. The winds reached as high as 106km/h on Sydney Harbour, the strongest gusts in at least six years. And they reached 111km/h at the highly exposed station of Wattamolla in the Royal National Park. All Sydney ferry services between Manly and Circular Quay had been suspended because of large swells, the Transport Management Centre said. A Sydney airport representative said gusts of up to 75km/h were “causing delays of up to 60 minutes at the domestic terminal”. International flights were not affected. A State Emergency Service (SES) representative said there were reports that a roof had been blown off St Paul’s Catholic school at Manly. And a fallen tree had crushed an unoccupied car in Ingleburn. There had not been any reports of injuries. Sydney and Wollongong, in the Illawarra region of NSW, were the worst hit. The electricity network Ausgrid electricity said winds had left Sydney homes and businesses without power. Ausgrid representative Kylie Yates said emergency crews were scrambling to restore power. “As soon as we restore power in one area we seem to lose power in another,” she told Macquarie Radio. Branches falling on powerlines were the main problem. She said 7000 homes had lost power. Cronulla, Narrabeen, Mona Vale, North Curl Curl, Belrose, Riverwood and Asquith had been affected by power losses, she said. The winds are drawing a bitterly cold air mass over the state and cold winds are making the city feel close to freezing. Sydney’s temperature fell below 8 degrees this morning, but the relentless winds have made it feel closer to 3 degrees. “Wind chill will have the tendency to drag the temperature down,” Bureau of Meteorology duty forecaster Dmitriy Danchuk said this morning. “For Sydney for today we’re expecting temperatures within the 13 to 16 degrees range, but in the middle of the day I wouldn’t be surprised if it feels like temperatures slightly above zero.” The New South Wales ski resorts have had widespread falls of 20-40 centimetres of snow during the past 48 hours, with Perisher gaining more than 50 centimetres.

10.08.2012

Extreme Weather

USA

State of South Carolina, [Northwestern Regions]

Extreme Weather in USA on Friday, 10 August, 2012 at 03:33 (03:33 AM) UTC.

Description

Showers and thunderstorms are tearing through the Carolinas Thursday. Heavy rain and strong winds are responsible for knocking down several trees. According to the South Carolina Highway Patrol, a tree fell on Interstate 85 northbound in Greenville County at the 54 mile marker. All lanes were blocked and traffic backed up for several miles. Numerous trees fell along the Pelham Road corridor, including one that fell on a man home in the Brookfield sub-division. Another tree crashed through a small fence at Christ The King Lutheran Church. Several trees knocked down powerlines along Rolling Green Circle in Greenville County. 7 On Your Side has received several other reports of trees and flooding blocking roadways. Firefighters say a home in Tryon caught fire after being struck by lightning. Thousands are without power according to Duke Energy.

10.08.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Oregon, [Barry Point (Lake County)]

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Friday, 10 August, 2012 at 03:00 (03:00 AM) UTC.

Description

A Forest Service campground has been closed, and residents of two homes were warned about increased danger as a forest fire grew in southern Lake County near the Nevada border. The word went out late Wednesday to evacuate the Dog Lake Campground, where there are an estimated 20 campsites. Residents of two privately owned residences within the Fremont-Winema National Forest were warned of potential dangers. The structure in greatest jeopardy was a fire lookout tower, which had gotten a protective wrapping, Forest Service spokeswoman Lisa Swinney said Thursday. The Barry Point fire area had grown to about 3 square miles. The daily fire report said it had a high potential to spread. At midday, Swinney said, there was no accurate containment estimate. Lightning that started over the weekend set off dozens of fires in Oregon, some of which grew to significant size or complexity. As with the Barry Point fire, just north of Nevada, many were along the state’s borders. Southwest of Medford, along the Oregon-California border, the Forest Service said crews were struggling to get a hold on a complex of small fires centered on the Red Buttes Wilderness area. It said the fire was spreading in “extremely steep and heavily forested terrain,” on about half a square mile of terrain _ about 340 acres. Video shot from the air showed standing dead trees, or “snags,” from the last big fire in the area, in 1987. The Forest Service said more firefighters were being pressed into service. To the east, a large fire from Nevada crept north into Harney County. The fire area totaled nearly 200 square miles, and its potential for growth was rated as extreme. Along the Idaho border in the far eastern part of the state, firefighters said they had established containment lines around an 8-square-mile fire south of Vale. In Central Oregon, a 2-square-mile fire near Sisters that briefly threatened a subdivision earlier in the week was expected to be contained Thursday. A disintegrating tire on a tanker headed for the Lakeview-area fire caused concern Wednesday at the Medford airport. The DC-7 tanker took off with a load of retardant. Workers noticed pieces of the tire on the runway, and a pilot on another tanker saw the tire was damaged but still inflated. After dropping its load of retardant, the tanker returned to Medford and landed safely, as firefighters kept watch.

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Storms, Flooding

Active tropical storm system(s)
Name of storm system	Location	Formed	Last update	Last category	Course	Wind Speed	Gust	Wave	Source	Details
Ernesto (AL05)	Atlantic Ocean	02.08.2012	10.08.2012	Tropical Depression	270 °	37 km/h	46 km/h	0.00 m	NOAA NHC

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 10 Storm name: Ernesto (AL05) Area: Atlantic Ocean Start up location: N 12° 36.000, W 50° 36.000 Start up: 02nd August 2012 Status: 11th August 2012 Track long: 3,255.88 km Top category.: Report by: NHC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 02nd Aug 2012 04:08:45 N 12° 36.000, W 50° 36.000 30 56 74 Tropical Depression 285 16 1008 MB NHC 03rd Aug 2012 04:49:11 N 13° 24.000, W 58° 18.000 35 83 102 Tropical Storm 275 20 1005 MB NHC 04th Aug 2012 05:16:42 N 13° 54.000, W 65° 36.000 30 83 102 Tropical Storm 275 16 1003 MB NHC 05th Aug 2012 05:35:24 N 15° 24.000, W 72° 42.000 35 93 111 Tropical Storm 285 16 1007 MB NHC 06th Aug 2012 05:25:12 N 15° 0.000, W 79° 42.000 24 83 102 Tropical Storm 270 15 1003 MB NHC 07th Aug 2012 05:16:51 N 17° 0.000, W 82° 42.000 20 102 120 Tropical Storm 300 18 994 MB NHC 08th Aug 2012 05:02:59 N 18° 42.000, W 87° 42.000 24 139 167 Hurricane I. 270 20 980 MB NHC 09th Aug 2012 05:29:20 N 18° 48.000, W 91° 48.000 11 102 120 Tropical Storm 270 16 994 MB NHC 10th Aug 2012 05:06:15 N 18° 6.000, W 96° 42.000 22 65 83 Tropical Storm 265 0 999 MB NHC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 10th Aug 2012 16:40:03 N 18° 0.000, W 99° 12.000 24 37 46 Tropical Depression 270 ° 0 1005 MB NHC

Gilma (07E)

Pacific Ocean – East

07.08.2012

10.08.2012

Hurricane I

335 °

102 km/h

120 km/h

3.35 m

NOAA NHC

.

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 1 Storm name: Gilma (07E) Area: Pacific Ocean – East Start up location: N 14° 18.000, W 111° 42.000 Start up: 07th August 2012 Status: Active Track long: 633.31 km Top category.: Report by: NOAA NHC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 08th Aug 2012 05:00:37 N 15° 24.000, W 115° 0.000 20 93 111 Tropical Storm 285 11 994 MB NOAA NHC 09th Aug 2012 05:28:38 N 16° 6.000, W 118° 24.000 15 120 148 Hurricane I. 280 14 987 MB NOAA NHC 10th Aug 2012 05:07:09 N 17° 36.000, W 119° 0.000 7 111 139 Tropical Storm 340 8 992 MB NOAA NHC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 11th Aug 2012 05:39:36 N 19° 30.000, W 119° 36.000 7 93 111 Tropical Depression 340 ° 8 998 MB NOAA NHC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 12th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 20° 36.000, W 120° 6.000 Tropical Depression 65 83 NOAA NHC 12th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 21° 6.000, W 120° 24.000 Tropical Depression 56 74 NOAA NHC 13th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 21° 30.000, W 121° 0.000 Tropical Depression 46 65 NOAA NHC

AL07

Atlantic Ocean

10.08.2012

10.08.2012

Tropical Depression

270 °

56 km/h

74 km/h

4.57 m

NOAA NHC

  Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 0 Storm name: AL07 Area: Atlantic Ocean Start up location: N 13° 42.000, W 45° 30.000 Start up: 10th August 2012 Status: Active Track long: 577.10 km Top category.: Report by: NOAA NHC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 10th Aug 2012 05:03:52 N 13° 42.000, W 45° 30.000 31 56 74 Tropical Depression 270 10 1009 MB NOAA NHC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 11th Aug 2012 05:42:02 N 13° 54.000, W 54° 6.000 39 56 74 Tropical Depression 275 ° 13 1009 MB NOAA NHC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 12th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 14° 6.000, W 58° 48.000 Tropical Depression 83 102 NOAA NHC 13th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 14° 54.000, W 65° 30.000 Tropical Depression 83 102 NOAA NHC 14th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 16° 0.000, W 71° 30.000 Tropical Depression 83 102 NOAA NHC 15th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 17° 0.000, W 78° 0.000 Tropical Depression 83 102 NOAA NHC

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Death toll in Mexico from storm Ernesto rises to six

MEXICO CITY | Fri Aug 10, 2012 12:40pm EDT

(Reuters) – The death toll attributed to the storm Ernesto rose to six on Friday although it continued to weaken as it passed through Mexico’s eastern Veracruz state.

Three members of one family were killed on Thursday night when a tree fell on their pick-up truck about 60 miles southwest of Veracruz city, according to a state civil protection official. A fourth family member, a six-year-old child, was also injured in the accident.

Ernesto is blamed for causing torrential rains and flooding in nearby rivers.

According to local officials, three other people died earlier on Thursday — one in Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, after falling while working on home repairs; and two more who drowned in next-door Tabasco state.

Three major oil-exporting ports in the Gulf of Mexico were re-opened on Friday morning as the storm no longer posed a risk to ships leaving installations in Coatzacoalcos, Cayo Arcas and Dos Bocas, which ship most of Mexico’s crude oil exports.

Flooding could damage agriculture in southern Veracruz, a major corn producing area, according to Federico Assaleih, president of the state’s agriculture council.

“We have received reports that some (corn) plantations were flooded yesterday,” said Assaleih, but he added that the extent of crop damage would not be known for several days.

Ernesto, which the U.S. National Hurricane Center said dissipated on Friday morning, made landfall on Mexico’s Yucatan coast late on Tuesday as a Category 1 hurricane.

(Reporting By Liz Diaz; Additional reporting and writing by David Alire Garcia; Editing by Sandra Maler)

10.08.2012

Tropical Storm

Mexico

State of Veracruz, [Veracruz-wide]

Tropical Storm in Mexico on Friday, 10 August, 2012 at 03:22 (03:22 AM) UTC.

Description

Tropical Storm Ernesto crossed the coast of the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday, sending wind gusts and showers across the state of Veracruz, home to some of Mexico’s busiest ports and oil installations. The storm, with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph, made landfall in the early afternoon close to the port city of Coatzacoalcos. Ernesto was heading west over southern Mexico at a speed of about 10 mph, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said in its 5 p.m. EDT advisory. Mexico’s government downgraded a hurricane warning for the coast of Veracruz to a tropical storm warning. The hurricane center said it expects further weakening as Ernesto moves over mountainous terrain in the next day or two. However, torrential rain and flooding was expected in Veracruz and authorities reported three deaths. Officials from state-run oil company Pemex said there were no reports of disruptions to facilities in the region, which include the Minatitlan refinery, producing 185,000 barrels of crude per day. The eye of the storm passed the oilfields of Cantarell and Ku Maloob Zaap, which account for just over half of Mexico’s oil production of about 2.5 million bpd. Coatzacoalcos is home to one of Mexico’s key oil exporting ports, which has been closed since Wednesday along with Cayo Arcas and Dos Bocas. Almost all of Mexico’s crude oil exports, which totaled 1.425 million bpd in June, are shipped to refineries on the Gulf Coast of the United States from the three ports. Authorities in Veracruz said they were preparing emergency shelters, if needed, in the flood-prone and densely populated state. The small Mina-Coatza airport, between Minatitlan and Coatzacoalcos, was closed on Thursday and waves of 13-20 feet were reported along the coast. Ernesto is forecast to plow through Veracruz state and into central Mexico on Friday as a tropical depression. The storm previously made landfall on Mexico’s Yucatan coast late on Tuesday as a Category 1 hurricane, the lowest on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, before being downgraded to a tropical storm on Wednesday. Two people drowned and about 100 houses were damaged as the storm swept through the swampy state of Tabasco toward the Gulf of Mexico, according to local officials. One person died in Coatzacoalcos after falling while working on home repairs, an official from the local Red Cross unit said. The storm spared major tourist areas on the peninsula from a direct hit and landed in sparsely populated low-lying jungle, near the port town of Mahahual, 40 miles north of Chetumal, the capital of Quintana Roo state. Ernesto passed well south of the major tourist resort of Cancun, which saw only heavy rains. About 2,500 people were evacuated from Chetumal up the coast to Tulum in an area known for its scuba diving and ecotourism attractions. Rainfall of 3 to 6 inches, and possibly 15 inches in some areas, was expected in the states of Tabasco, Veracruz, Puebla and northern Oaxaca through Friday, the center said.

Unusual Summer Storm Blasts the Arctic

By Everett Rosenfeld | @Ev_Rosenfeld

NASA

A rare summer storm blasted the Arctic this week, beginning off the coast of Alaska, and moving over much of the Arctic Sea for several days before dissipating.

Although the storm itself was uncommon — NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., estimates that there have only been about eight similarly strong August storms in the last 34 years — the real news behind the meteorological event is the stunning Aug. 6 photo taken by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite. The cyclone is spinning toward the North Pole, with Greenland visible in the bottom-left of the image. Scientists are left speculating what the impact of such a storm could be.

From NASA:

Arctic storms such as this one can have a large impact on the sea ice, causing it to melt rapidly through many mechanisms, such as tearing off large swaths of ice and pushing them to warmer sites, churning the ice and making it slushier, or lifting warmer waters from the depths of the Arctic Ocean.

“It seems that this storm has detached a large chunk of ice from the main sea ice pack. This could lead to a more serious decay of the summertime ice cover than would have been the case otherwise, even perhaps leading to a new Arctic sea ice minimum,” said Claire Parkinson, a climate scientist with NASA Goddard. “Decades ago, a storm of the same magnitude would have been less likely to have as large an impact on the sea ice, because at that time the ice cover was thicker and more expansive.”

More information on the abnormal Arctic weather this summer can be found here, courtesy of the National Snow and Ice Data Center.

 

…………………………………

10.08.2012

Flash Flood

USA

State of New Jersey, Perth Amboy

Flash Flood in USA on Friday, 10 August, 2012 at 07:23 (07:23 AM) UTC.

Description

Summer storms hammered the Tri-State area and created flash floods for some. Cars were washed away and drivers rescued in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. It could be an even worse situation on Friday with more rain on the way. Tow truck drivers were still trying to rescue a stranded SUV as the water was slowly receding around it. According to officials it had been submerged and it wasn’t the only vehicle buried in the high water. “We winced one car out from the other side, it was a Mini Cooper, and winced that to the other side of Route 9, the water was over the roof,” a tow truck driver said. Law enforcement used boats to search for vehicles they might have missed in the high water, and this was after several rescues. What happened in the area was a classic flash flood. At around 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, heavy driving rains caused storm drains to fill and in a matter of minutes the ramp connection 440 North to Route 9 South was flooded. “Reports were that there were cars trapped in the water with people trapped in the car. We arrived on scene, we had three cars submerged, we had one lady up to her knees, she was on the roof of the car, the water was up to her knees,” a firefighter said. They rescued her and there was a Good Samaritan who rescued two other motorists from their cars. What is left now is the damage to the cars from the flooding, and the detours that were caused into the evening.

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Epidemic Hazards / Diseases

10.08.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Hungary

Capital City, Budapest

Epidemic Hazard in Hungary on Friday, 10 August, 2012 at 15:44 (03:44 PM) UTC.

Description
Yesterday AVN received a tip from a reliable source with knowledge of adult video production in Europe who said that there is currently an outbreak of syphilis in Budapest. AVN was able to corroborate the tip with Sandy’s Models and Brill Babes, 2 of the biggest modeling agencies in the Hungarian capital. The infection is widespread enough that all production has been put on hold in Budapest until 21 Aug 2012. “There is some serious situation here in Budapest,” Cameron of Sandy’s Models told AVN. “Yesterday – 7 Aug 2012 – the Labor [department] sent a warning e-mail that they found that [the number of people infected with syphilis has] dramatically increased.” AVN Hall of Famer Rocco Siffredi, who’s based in Budapest, told AVN Tuesday that “today the number of people infected is 21 and the outbreak is not over!” Both Cameron and Eszter of Brill Babes put the number of syphilis infections at 18 (14 females and 4 males), with 8 female performers receiving positive results on Monday [6 Aug 2012] alone. “All the models go to double syphilis check from yesterday – 7 Aug 2012, and the whole business stops till – 21 Aug 2012,” Eszter of Brill Babes told AVN. “After the 21st everyone should retest again, and only the totally clear people are able to work in the future. Maybe the break will take longer; we’ll see.” It’s not known at this point where the infection originated, but Siffredi pointed out that many foreign performers come to Budapest to shoot, and that he suspects the infection came from somewhere else. “The big problem is that not only local performers are involved but also Czechs and Russians where we believe that this all think start [sic],” he said. AVN will be following this story as it develops.
Biohazard name:	Syphilis
Biohazard level:	2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Symptoms:
Status:	suspected

10.08.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Pakistan

State of Sindh, Karachi

Epidemic Hazard in Pakistan on Friday, 10 August, 2012 at 03:28 (03:28 AM) UTC.

Description
The first case of deadly Congo Crimean Hemorrhagic Fever has been confirmed from a private hospital in Karachi, whose lab analysis confirmed that the patient was suffering from the viral disease, officials said on Thursday. The Sindh Dengue Surveillance Cell officials confirmed that the patient, whose name was not disclosed, was admitted to a private hospital in Karachi with symptoms of Congo Crimean Hemorrhagic Fever. His test from another private hospital confirmed that he was suffering from the disease. Sources in the provincial health department said the patient’s name was Jumma Khan, whose age was between 40 and 45 years and he belongs to Karachi. He was being treated at a local private hospital after testing positive for the Congo Crimean Hemorrhagic fever. According to World Health Organisation (WHO), CCHF is a severe disease in humans, with a high mortality rate. Fortunately, human illness occurs rarely, although animal infection may be more common. The WHO says the disease has been prevalent in Pakistan, especially in the Balochistan province, since 2000 and over last two years, caused the deaths of several people.
Biohazard name:	Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF)
Biohazard level:	4/4 Hazardous
Biohazard desc.:	Viruses and bacteria that cause severe to fatal disease in humans, and for which vaccines or other treatments are not available, such as Bolivian and Argentine hemorrhagic fevers, H5N1(bird flu), Dengue hemorrhagic fever, Marburg virus, Ebola virus, hantaviruses, Lassa fever, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, and other hemorrhagic or unidentified diseases. When dealing with biological hazards at this level the use of a Hazmat suit and a self-contained oxygen supply is mandatory. The entrance and exit of a Level Four biolab will contain multiple showers, a vacuum room, an ultraviolet light room, autonomous detection system, and other safety precautions designed to destroy all traces of the biohazard. Multiple airlocks are employed and are electronically secured to prevent both doors opening at the same time. All air and water service going to and coming from a Biosafety Level 4 (P4) lab will undergo similar decontamination procedures to eliminate the possibility of an accidental release.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

10.08.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Nepal

Capital City, Kathmandu

Epidemic Hazard in Nepal on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 04:51 (04:51 AM) UTC.

Description
At least 10 people admitted to the Sukraraj Tropical and Disease Control Hospital in Nepali capital Kathmandu have tested positive for cholera. The hospital laboratory said Vibrio Cholera belonging to 01 Ogawa stereotype was detected in all the patients. Doctors at hospital attributed the spread of cholera and diarrhea infection in Kathmandu to contaminated water, according to Saturday’s Republica daily. “Most of the patients who came to the hospital said that they had drunk water supplied by Kathmandu Upatyaka Kahanepani Limited without boiling or treatment,” Tulsha Adhikari, a nursing staff said. She said whole families had been infected and some were brought to the hospital by their neighbors as all family members were sick.
Biohazard name:	Cholera
Biohazard level:	2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

 

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Solar Activity

2MIN News August 10, 2012: Arctic Cyclone, Quake Ramp-up, Official ‘Watches’ [Quakes/Flares]

Published on Aug 10, 2012 by Suspicious0bservers

Earthquake/Solar Flare Watch: http://youtu.be/zd7Z6dmABf8 [August 12-18, 2012]
[EXPLANATION Video For Earthquake Watches] Last Quake Watch: http://youtu.be/SMiHsOYwdCs

TODAY’S LINKS
Tropics Watch: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hurricanes/features/storm-train.html
Arctic Cyclone: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/view.php?id=78812

REPEAT LINKS
Spaceweather: http://spaceweather.com/ [Look on the left at the X-ray Flux and Solar Wind Speed/Density]

HAARP: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/haarp/data.html [Click online data, and have a little fun]

SDO: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/ [Place to find Solar Images and Videos – as seen from earth]

SOHO: http://sohodata.nascom.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/soho_movie_theater [SOHO; Lasco and EIT – as seen from earth]

Stereo: http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/images [Stereo; Cor, EUVI, HI – as seen from the side]

SunAEON:http://www.sunaeon.com/#/solarsystem/ [Just click it… trust me]

SOLARIMG: http://solarimg.org/artis/ [All purpose data viewing site]

iSWA: http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov/iswa/iSWA.html [Free Application; for advanced sun watchers]

NOAA ENLIL SPIRAL: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/wsa-enlil/cme-based/ [CME Evolution]

NOAA Bouys: http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/

RSOE: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php [That cool alert map I use]

JAPAN Radiation Map: http://jciv.iidj.net/map/

LISS: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/heliplots_gsn.php

Gamma Ray Bursts: http://grb.sonoma.edu/ [Really? You can’t figure out what this one is for?]

BARTOL Cosmic Rays: http://neutronm.bartol.udel.edu//spaceweather/welcome.html [Top left box, look for BIG blue circles]

TORCON: http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-torcon-index [Tornado Forecast for the day]

GOES Weather: http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/goes/ [Clouds over America]

EL DORADO WORLD WEATHER MAP: http://www.eldoradocountyweather.com/satellite/ssec/world/world-composite-ir-…

PRESSURE MAP: http://www.woweather.com/cgi-bin/expertcharts?LANG=us&MENU=0000000000&…

HURRICANE TRACKER: http://www.weather.com/weather/hurricanecentral/tracker

INTELLICAST: http://www.intellicast.com/ [Weather site used by many youtubers]

NASA News: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/

PHYSORG: http://phys.org/ [GREAT News Site!]

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Space

Earth approaching objects (objects that are known in the next 30 days)
Object Name	Apporach Date	Left	AU Distance	LD Distance	Estimated Diameter*	Relative Velocity
37655 Illapa	12th August 2012	1 day(s)	0.0951	37.0	770 m – 1.7 km	28.73 km/s	103428 km/h
(2012 HS15)	14th August 2012	3 day(s)	0.1804	70.2	200 m – 450 m	11.54 km/s	41544 km/h
4581 Asclepius	16th August 2012	5 day(s)	0.1079	42.0	220 m – 490 m	13.48 km/s	48528 km/h
(2008 TC4)	18th August 2012	7 day(s)	0.1937	75.4	140 m – 300 m	17.34 km/s	62424 km/h
(2012 OP4)	18th August 2012	7 day(s)	0.1039	40.4	300 m – 670 m	22.54 km/s	81144 km/h
(2012 EC)	20th August 2012	9 day(s)	0.0815	31.7	56 m – 130 m	5.57 km/s	20052 km/h
(2006 CV)	20th August 2012	9 day(s)	0.1744	67.9	290 m – 640 m	13.24 km/s	47664 km/h
162421 (2000 ET70)	21st August 2012	10 day(s)	0.1503	58.5	670 m – 1.5 km	12.92 km/s	46512 km/h
(2007 WU3)	21st August 2012	10 day(s)	0.1954	76.0	56 m – 120 m	5.25 km/s	18900 km/h
(2012 BB14)	24th August 2012	13 day(s)	0.1234	48.0	27 m – 60 m	2.58 km/s	9288 km/h
(2012 FM52)	25th August 2012	14 day(s)	0.0599	23.3	510 m – 1.1 km	17.17 km/s	61812 km/h
66146 (1998 TU3)	25th August 2012	14 day(s)	0.1265	49.2	3.0 km – 6.8 km	16.03 km/s	57708 km/h
(2009 AV)	26th August 2012	15 day(s)	0.1615	62.8	670 m – 1.5 km	22.51 km/s	81036 km/h
331769 (2003 BQ35)	28th August 2012	17 day(s)	0.1585	61.7	240 m – 530 m	4.64 km/s	16704 km/h
(2010 SC)	28th August 2012	17 day(s)	0.1679	65.3	16 m – 36 m	9.56 km/s	34416 km/h
4769 Castalia	28th August 2012	17 day(s)	0.1135	44.2	1.4 km	12.06 km/s	43416 km/h
(2012 LU7)	02nd September 2012	22 day(s)	0.1200	46.7	440 m – 990 m	8.16 km/s	29376 km/h
(2012 FS35)	02nd September 2012	22 day(s)	0.1545	60.1	2.3 m – 5.2 m	2.87 km/s	10332 km/h
(2012 HG31)	03rd September 2012	23 day(s)	0.0716	27.9	440 m – 990 m	10.33 km/s	37188 km/h
(2012 PX)	04th September 2012	24 day(s)	0.0452	17.6	61 m – 140 m	9.94 km/s	35784 km/h
(2012 EH5)	05th September 2012	25 day(s)	0.1613	62.8	38 m – 84 m	9.75 km/s	35100 km/h
(2011 EO11)	05th September 2012	25 day(s)	0.1034	40.2	9.0 m – 20 m	8.81 km/s	31716 km/h
(2007 PS25)	06th September 2012	26 day(s)	0.0497	19.3	23 m – 52 m	8.50 km/s	30600 km/h
329520 (2002 SV)	08th September 2012	28 day(s)	0.1076	41.9	300 m – 670 m	9.17 km/s	33012 km/h
1 AU = ~150 million kilometers,1 LD = Lunar Distance = ~384,000 kilometers

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Mysterious Phenomenon

The blood red lake beauty spot which is startling tourists in southern France

By Daily Mail Reporter

It might look like a scene from a horror film but this is the breathtaking natural phenomenon which has met tourists at a popular French beauty spot.

The stunning scenes in Camargue, southern France, may look very dramatic but are actually thought to be caused by the high levels of salt within the water.

The bizarre sight was captured by photographer, Sam Dobson, from Moscow in Russia.

The natural phenomenon, which has seen salt levels turn water red,  has had a breathtakingly beautiful – and eerie –  effect on wildlife

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Biological Hazards / Wildlife

10.08.2012

Biological Hazard

USA

State of Texas, City of Pflugerville

Biological Hazard in USA on Friday, 10 August, 2012 at 03:24 (03:24 AM) UTC.

Description
It’s a stretch of road where not much has changed, at least in Willard Hebbe’s lifetime. “A few bicyclists out here,” said Hebbe. “They like to come out here and ride, but it’s just a country road out here.” It’s a road Hebbe knows well, which is why what he drove by Thursday stood out. “I saw a truck in the driveway, kind of strange and unusual,” said Hebbe. Strange because, the fence usually hiding it from view was ripped right out of the ground. “After awhile we had two or three fire trucks and an ambulance and a tow truck,” Hebbe added. That’s when Hebbe’s daughter Kristin started taking pictures, capturing much more than a wrecked truck. The driver’s off road ride finally ended when the truck slammed into the corner of a nearby house ending one accident and starting another. “Evidently there was a swarm of bees in the house and the bees attacked the guy getting out of the truck,” explained Hebbe. The swarm stung not only the driver, but several others, including the homeowner who tried to pull him to safety. The attack makes five in the past week for Travis County. They started last Friday with two attacks near Koenig and Lamar. Another swarm struck north Austin off Croslin Street. The worst was Wednesday in Plugerville, when bees stung a man more than 300 times. Thursday’s swarm wasn’t even the biggest. A bee wrangler said the hive was just a few years old. “I don’t know what’s up with all these bees,” smiled Hebbe. “I don’t think these are related to those bees, but don’t really know for sure.” What Hebbe does know, he’ll be keeping an eye out for all things that buzz. Travis County EMS says the driver of that truck was taken to Seton Williamson Hospital. The man is expected to make a full recovery.
Biohazard name:	Bees attack
Biohazard level:	0/4 —
Biohazard desc.:	This does not included biological hazard category.
Symptoms:
Status:

10.08.2012

Biological Hazard

USA

State of Colorado, [Logan County]

Biological Hazard in USA on Thursday, 09 August, 2012 at 03:21 (03:21 AM) UTC.

Description
A deadly disease that hasn’t been seen in Colorado for 31-years has been found in the northeast part of state. The Colorado Department of Agriculture is currently investigating an anthrax case in Logan County; one deceased cow is confirmed to have been infected with the disease, approximately 50 dead cattle are suspected to have been exposed. One location has tested positive and adjacent ranchers are being notified. No cattle left the location prior to the quarantine. No cattle entered the food chain. “The risk is minimal outside the affected ranch. We believe, at this point, that anthrax is confined to that specific premises,” said State Veterinarian, Dr. Keith Roehr. “Colorado has not had an anthrax case in 31 years but anthrax outbreaks are not uncommon in the Western United States. We are dedicated to providing the necessary response to ensure that the investigation works quickly to limit the spread of this disease.” The premises has been quarantined and people, cattle, and equipment that may have come into contact with anthrax are being monitored during this investigation. “Our focus is on the potential for human exposure,” said Dr. Tony Cappello, district public health administrator for the Northeast Colorado Health Department. “We are currently conducting our own public health investigation and contacting individuals that have been involved with the livestock. Anthrax is not spread from person to person and exposure is limited only to those who had contact with the affected cattle or the immediate area.” Anthrax can develop naturally in soil; the spores can become active in association with periods of marked climatic or ecologic change such as heavy rainfall, flooding or drought which can then expose the anthrax spores to grazing livestock. Outbreaks of anthrax are commonly associated with neutral or alkaline soils. In these areas the spores apparently revert to the vegetative form and multiply to infectious levels so that cattle, horses, mules, sheep and goats may readily become infected when grazing such areas. Anthrax is a serious disease because it can cause the rapid loss of a large number of animals in a very short time. Often, animals are found dead with no illness detected. Appropriate carcass disposal is being used to prevent further soil contamination. Producers should consult their veterinarians and vaccinate their livestock, if deemed appropriate. Humans or animals can become infected by coming in contact with infected animals, soil or water. Anthrax infection can be treated with antibiotics, especially if caught in the early stages.
Biohazard name:	Anthrax (cow)
Biohazard level:	4/4 Hazardous
Biohazard desc.:	Viruses and bacteria that cause severe to fatal disease in humans, and for which vaccines or other treatments are not available, such as Bolivian and Argentine hemorrhagic fevers, H5N1(bird flu), Dengue hemorrhagic fever, Marburg virus, Ebola virus, hantaviruses, Lassa fever, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, and other hemorrhagic or unidentified diseases. When dealing with biological hazards at this level the use of a Hazmat suit and a self-contained oxygen supply is mandatory. The entrance and exit of a Level Four biolab will contain multiple showers, a vacuum room, an ultraviolet light room, autonomous detection system, and other safety precautions designed to destroy all traces of the biohazard. Multiple airlocks are employed and are electronically secured to prevent both doors opening at the same time. All air and water service going to and coming from a Biosafety Level 4 (P4) lab will undergo similar decontamination procedures to eliminate the possibility of an accidental release.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

 

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[In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit, for research and/or educational purposes. This constitutes ‘FAIR USE’ of any such copyrighted material.]

Earth Watch Report – Tuesday August 7th, 2012

Earthquakes

RSOE EDIS

Date/Time (UTC)	Magnitude	Area	Country	State/Prov./Gov.	Location	Risk			Source	Details
07.08.2012 07:26:17	2.9	North America	United States	Montana	West Yellowstone				USGS-RSOE
07.08.2012 07:25:20	4.9	Pacific Ocean – West	Philippines	Mimaropa	Maliig				EMSC
07.08.2012 07:26:38	4.9	Pacific Ocean – West	Philippines	Mimaropa	Maliig				USGS-RSOE
07.08.2012 07:25:51	4.6	Asia	Japan	Fukushima	Namie				EMSC
07.08.2012 06:35:25	4.6	Asia	Japan	Fukushima	Namie				USGS-RSOE
07.08.2012 06:25:30	2.6	Europe	Poland	Silesian Voivodeship	Bazanowice				EMSC
07.08.2012 06:25:55	3.0	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	Calama				EMSC
07.08.2012 06:26:22	2.2	Europe	Italy	Calabria	Salerni				EMSC
07.08.2012 05:20:20	2.2	Europe	Italy	Calabria	Salerni				EMSC
07.08.2012 05:21:05	3.1	Europe	Greece	Epirus	Kranea				EMSC
07.08.2012 05:21:30	3.3	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	Calama				EMSC
07.08.2012 06:26:45	2.5	Asia	Turkey	??rnak	Birlikkoy				EMSC
07.08.2012 04:21:44	4.8	South America	Peru	Huanuco	Tingo Maria				USGS-RSOE
07.08.2012 04:20:19	4.7	South-America	Peru	Huanuco	Tingo Maria				EMSC
07.08.2012 06:27:31	2.7	Caribbean	Puerto Rico	Vieques	Esperanza				USGS-RSOE
07.08.2012 06:27:07	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Manisa	Golmarmara				EMSC
07.08.2012 04:20:45	3.0	South-America	Chile	Valparaíso	San Antonio				EMSC
07.08.2012 03:30:31	2.3	North America	United States	California	Greenfield				USGS-RSOE
07.08.2012 05:21:57	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Eski?ehir	Alpu				EMSC
07.08.2012 06:27:54	2.8	Caribbean	Puerto Rico	Aguadilla	San Antonio				USGS-RSOE
07.08.2012 03:05:21	5.2	South America	Chile	Atacama	Vallenar				USGS-RSOE
07.08.2012 03:20:19	5.2	South-America	Chile	Atacama	Vallenar				EMSC
07.08.2012 02:40:26	4.9	Asia	India	Arun?chal Pradesh	Along				USGS-RSOE
07.08.2012 03:20:45	5.0	Asia	India	Arun?chal Pradesh	Along				EMSC
07.08.2012 02:20:21	4.7	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	Maluku Utara	Tobelo				EMSC
07.08.2012 01:40:24	4.7	Indonesian archipelago	Indonesia	Maluku Utara	Tobelo				USGS-RSOE
07.08.2012 00:40:29	2.3	North America	United States	Alaska	Beluga				USGS-RSOE
07.08.2012 04:21:05	2.0	Europe	Greece	North Aegean	Agia Paraskevi				EMSC
07.08.2012 00:15:25	2.3	Asia	Turkey	Van	Toyga				EMSC
07.08.2012 00:15:48	2.3	Europe	Greece	North Aegean	Kedron				EMSC
06.08.2012 23:35:28	2.1	North America	United States	Hawaii	Volcano				USGS-RSOE
06.08.2012 23:35:50	2.4	North America	United States	Hawaii	Volcano				USGS-RSOE
06.08.2012 23:45:28	2.0	North America	United States	Arizona	Cibola				USGS-RSOE
06.08.2012 23:10:29	3.0	North America	United States	Alaska	Ugashik				USGS-RSOE
07.08.2012 00:16:10	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Manisa	Golmarmara				EMSC
06.08.2012 23:00:27	2.2	North America	Canada	British Columbia	Princeton				USGS-RSOE
06.08.2012 22:35:28	2.6	North America	United States	Alaska	Port Alsworth				USGS-RSOE
06.08.2012 22:05:24	3.3	South-America	Chile	Valparaíso	San Antonio				EMSC
06.08.2012 22:05:46	2.5	Europe	Poland	Lower Silesian Voivodeship	Peclaw				EMSC
06.08.2012 22:06:05	3.3	South-America	Bolivia	Potosí	Villa Alota				EMSC
06.08.2012 21:10:52	5.4	Indonesian archipelago	Indonesia	Maluku Utara	Tobelo				USGS-RSOE
06.08.2012 22:06:25	5.5	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	Maluku Utara	Tobelo				EMSC
06.08.2012 21:15:27	3.9	North America	United States	Alaska	Adak				USGS-RSOE
06.08.2012 21:00:27	2.8	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	San Prospero				EMSC
06.08.2012 21:11:11	3.8	Caribbean	Dominican Republic	La Altagracia	San Rafael del Yuma				USGS-RSOE
06.08.2012 21:00:49	3.0	Asia	Turkey	Antalya	Beykonak				EMSC
06.08.2012 19:35:33	2.2	North America	United States	California	La Jolla				USGS-RSOE
06.08.2012 18:55:33	2.1	North America	United States	Alaska	Silver Springs				USGS-RSOE
06.08.2012 19:00:26	2.7	Asia	Turkey	??rnak	Bisbin				EMSC
06.08.2012 17:55:34	2.6	North America	United States	Alaska	Petersville				USGS-RSOE

……………………………………………………

4.4-Magnitude Quake Rattles Scandinavian Sea

COPENHAGEN, Denmark August 6, 2012 (AP)

Danish geologists say a 4.4-magnitude quake has rattled the seabed between Denmark and Sweden, causing no damage or casualties.

Trine Dahl-Jensen of the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) said Monday’s quake was “pretty strong” by Danish standards.

Dahl-Jensen says such quakes happen once or twice a decade.

The epicenter was 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) southeast of the Danish island of Anholt in the Kattegat Sea.

Media in Denmark and Sweden reported that residents in the two Scandinavian countries woke up when they felt the earth shake at 0257 GMT (10:57 p.m. EDT Sunday).

Quake felt in rural Central Calif. community

The Associated Press

COALINGA, Calif. — A magnitude-4.5 earthquake has shaken a rural area of Central California.

A U.S. Geological Survey computer-generated report says Monday’s 12:36 a.m. quake was centered 16 miles south-southwest of Coalinga in the San Joaquin Valley and 123 miles southeast of San Jose.

A Coalinga police officer says several people have reported feeling the quake but there are no reports of damage.

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2012/08/06/4697133/quake-felt-in-rural-central-calif.html#storylink=cpy

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Volcanic Activity

Visitors warned off erupting volcano

PALOMA MIGONE

STEAMING: GNS confirms that ‘volcanic eruption is underway’, although there is little or no ash being emitted.

White Island volcano has erupted, prompting GNS Science to advise visitors to take extra care.

The island, located about 50 kilometres off the coast of Whakatane, is an active volcano and a popular tourist spot.

Its web camera captured the small eruption from Crater Lake, GNS Science volcanologist Michael Ronsenberg said.

“These phenomena are not unknown for While Island, but this is the first substantial confirmation that small scale eruptions are now occurring on the island and confirms the risk to visitors has increased,” he said.

“Eruptions can occur at any time with little or no warning. We advise extra caution should be taken, if visiting the island.”

GNS has changed the volcano’s code from “experiencing signs of elevated unrest above known background levels” to “volcanic eruption is underway with no or minor ash emissions”.

The alert level has also changed from one to two due to “minor eruptive activity”.

It follows a code change last week when scientists discovered water levels in Crater Lake rose by about 3m to 5m overnight and the number of tremors had increased.

There was a particularly stronger seismic episode recorded Sunday morning, ending in a volcanic earthquake at 4.54am that day.

Rosenberg said: “[The earthquake] had a sound signal, which meant something happened on the surface. So we went back and looked at the camera images.”

“Obviously being at night time, there was no visual observations and initially we weren’t able to determine what that small event was.

“But we’ve narrowed it down and recognise that there has been full hydrothermal eruption.”

Rosenberg said there had not been any further eruptions, and the number of tremors had decreased.

“It’s now at similar levels to before the weekend.”

GNS Science was “paying close attention” to the volcano as the last “gentle eruption” had been in early 2001.

White Island also experienced a “moderate-sized explosion” in July 2000, when fresh lava was pushed out.

“In the past this kind of activity has increased to small eruptions that produce ash, and that ash could drift as far as the mainland,” Rosenberg said.

“We can’t predict what the volcano is going to do and we are not making any forecasts, but yes, it’s certainly possible that the activity could ramp up again.”

Underwater Volcano Found off West Iceland?

A mountain which the Icelandic Marine Research Institute (Hafró) discovered on the ocean floor west off the Snæfellsnes peninsula in West Iceland during an expedition earlier this summer may turn out to be a previously unknown volcano.

A fishing ship with Snæfellsjökull, the glacier-covered volcano on the tip of Snæfellsnes in the background. Copyright: Icelandic Photo Agency.

“Multi-laser measurements […] revealed a large underwater mountain deep off the foot of the continental shelf approximately 120 nautical miles west of Snæfellsnes,” a statement from Hafró reads, according to Fréttablaðið.

The mountain, which is at a depth of 950 to 1,400 meters is around 450 meters high, similar to Ingólfsfjall in south Iceland. However, it extends over 300 square kilometers, which is ten times the square measure of Ingólfsfjall.

The shape of the mountain is very similar to that of table mountains and it appears to be geologically young.

“The analysis of a rock sample from the mountain will determine whether this is the case or whether it is a volcano connected with an old drift belt, which might mean that it is 20 million years old,” the statement continues.

During the expedition multi-laser measurements were made between West Iceland and Greenland to map the shape of the ocean floor in these commonly-used fishing grounds and explore the environment of powerful ocean currents.

A total of 9,000 square kilometers were covered during the 11-day expedition.

ESA

Mt Tongariro eruption: Code red

Can you help? If you have tips, photos or video of the eruption, please email us.

Expand

An aerial from a Mountain Air flight over the Tongariro National Park. Photo / Greg Bowker

A thick ash cloud is covering much of the central North Island after Mt Tongariro erupted for the first time in more than a century late last night.

The volcanic alert level for Mt Tongariro has risen from 1 to 2, while the aviation colour code has been raised to red.

Roads are closed, flights are likely to be disrupted and nearby residents are advised to stay indoors as ash and rock spews from the mountain.

Turoa Ski Area manager Chris Thrupp told Firstline the ski field remains open and has not been advised to close. He said the ash has not drifted to Ruapehu, south of Tongariro.

“The ash is the concern – if the wind changes, which we don’t believe it will.”

GNS science is reporting that about 11.50pm on Monday night ash fall began to be reported in the volcano’s vicinity – it has since been reported as far east as SH5 near Te Haroto and in Napier.

—
Mt Tongariro eruption: Where will the ash go?
—

It is the first time the mountain has erupted since 1897.

GNS duty volcanologist Michael Rosenberg told Radio New Zealand that some people are reported to have left their houses on the southern shores of Lake Rotoaira, though no formal notices of evacuation have been issued so far by Civil Defence.

He said residents in the area have told GNS of hearing several loud explosions, lightning and plumes of smoke and police have been told by an onlooker that “a new hole in the side of the mountain” had formed.

They have also reported bright red rocks flying out of the mountain.

The eruption reportedly happened at the Te Mari Craters, which are close to the Ketetahi Hot Springs on the northern side of the mountain.

There have been no further eruptions since midnight, according to GNS seismic records.

Mr Rosenberg said while volcanologists have been monitoring small earthquakes under the mountain in the past few weeks, the eruption was “quite unexpected”.

Activity at the mountain is expected continue for some time, bit it was “anyone’s guess” whether there would be larger eruptions.

AREAS AFFECTED

Civil defence spokesman Vince Cholewa told Newstalk ZB ash could reach those living in Waikato, Hawke’s Bay, Gisborne, Manawatu-Wanganui, Bay of Plenty and Taranaki.

“The advice to people is to stay indoors, because volcanic ash can obviously be a health hazard, if they’re indoors please close windows and doors to try and limit the entry of ash.”

Mr Cholewa says at this stage not all areas alerted are affected by ash, but that situation could change.

“We’re working actively with GNS Science who operate the monitoring equipment on the mountains, and with police so all the information from the ground is being gathered, and decisions will be based on that information.

“Evacuations have not been ordered, please listen to the radio for advice from local authorities and police, any evacuations would be issued at that level, and based on the evidence from GNS Science.”

Police are sending search and rescue teams up Mt Tongariro at first light to check no one is stranded in huts. However, they say there have been no reports of injuries or damage.

ROADS

The police have closed State Highway 1 between Rangipo and Waiouru (Desert Road) and SH46 west of Rangipo. SH47 and 4 remain open at this stage as does SH5.

Motorists are being advised to avoid travel in the area and these closures will be re-assessed once daylight reveals the extent of the ash cloud.

Truck driver Bryn Rodda told Radio New Zealand thick dust meant there was poor visibility on the Desert Road when he passed through last night.

“I could see this big cloud – it looked like a fist, basically, at an angle across the sky – and about the wrist section of the fist there was an orange ball of flash that I saw.”
Clayton Bolt, a passing motorist told RadioLive that he saw a massive white cloud coming from the side of Mt Tongariro.

“I put my foot down. I said, I’m going.”

AVIATION

Civil Aviation Authority manager of meteorology Peter Lechner said the plume is leading off to the east and south east. affecting a zone of airspace stretching as far as from Tongariro to north of Gisborne then south to Hawkes Bay and possibly northern Wairarapa.

The CAA alerted all aircraft using a volcanic ash advisory system, working with MetService.

Mr Lechner said that ash can build up in the turbines of aeroplanes and helicopters, causing engines to stall.

“It can result in significant flight risk.”

WEATHER

WeatherWatch chief analyst Philip Duncan said westerlies will continue to blow the ash east to south east of the mountain.

“The winds don’t look especially strong over the next few days as the centre of a low crosses the North Island – the lighter the winds are the more ash will fall locally around the mountain and less likely to cause widespread disruptions further afield.”

The Ministry of Civil Defence & Emergency Management (MCDEM) is currently assessing information with the assistance of GNS scientific advisors.

It has not yet activated the National Crisis Management Centre which is called upon in times of emergency like the Christchurch earthquake.

WHITE ISLAND

New Zealand’s other high profile active volcano, White Island, also had its alert level raised from 1 to 2 on Monday after a small eruption was recorded in its crater lake.

– Herald Online

07.08.2012

Volcano Activity

New Zealand

Northland, [Tongariro Volcano]

Volcano Activity in New Zealand on Monday, 06 August, 2012 at 17:51 (05:51 PM) UTC.

Description

The volcanic alert level for Mt Tongariro has risen from 1 to 2 after the central North Island volcano erupted for the first time in more than a century late last night. GNS science is reporting that at approximately 11:50pm on Monday night ash fall began to be reported in the volcano’s vicinity – it has since been reported as far east as SH5 near Te Haroto and in Napier. GNS duty volcanologist Michael Rosenberg told Radio New Zealand that some people are reported to have left their houses on the southern shores of Lake Rotoaira, though no formal notices of evacuation have been issued so far by Civil Defense. He said residents in the area have told GNS of hearing several loud explosions, lightning and plumes of smoke and police have been told by an onlooker that “a new hole in the side of the mountain” had formed. They have also reported bright red rocks flying out of the mountain. The eruption reportedly happened at the Te Mari Craters, which are close to the Ketetahi Hot Springs on the northern side of the mountain. Civil defence spokesman Vince Cholewa told NewstalkZb ash could reach those living in Waikato, Hawke’s Bay, Gisborne, Manawatu-Wanganui, Bay of Plenty and Taranaki. “The advice to people is to stay indoors, because volcanic ash can obviously be a health hazard, if they’re indoors please close windows and doors to try and limit the entry of ash.” Mr Cholewa says at this stage not all areas alerted are affected by ash, but that situation could change. “We’re working actively with GNS Science who operate the monitoring equipment on the mountains, and with police so all the information from the ground is being gathered, and decisions will be based on that information. “Evacuations have not been ordered, please listen to the radio for advice from local authorities and police, any evacuations would be issued at that level, and based on the evidence from GNS Science.” Due to possible danger to the public the police have closed SH1 between Rangipo and Waiouru (Desert Road) and SH46 west of Rangipo. SH47 and 4 remain open at this stage as does SH5. Motorists are being advised to avoid travel in the area and these closures will be re-assessed once daylight reveals the extent of the ash cloud. A truck driver has told Radio New Zealand that the ash cloud has caused thick dust and reduced visibility on the Desert Road. Bryn Rodda said he saw a large cloud rising from the mountain with orange flashes. Civil Aviation Authority manager of meteorology Peter Lechner told NewstalkZb the plume is leading off to the east and south east. “Flight operations to the west of the plume should remain unaffected, however operations to the eastern half of the North Island will have some difficulty at this stage.” Mr Lechner says a frontal system is on its way which should disperse the cloud, but that depends on whether there are further eruptions. Police are sending search and rescue teams up Mt Tongariro at first light to check no one is stranded in huts. However, they say there have been no reports of injuries or damage. The Ministry of Civil Defence & Emergency Management (MCDEM) is currently assessing information with the assistance of GNS scientific advisors. It has not yet activated the National Crisis Management Centre which is called upon in times of emergency like the Christchurch earthquake. New Zealand’s other high profile active volcano, White Island, also had its alert level raised from 1 to 2 on Monday after a small eruption was recorded in its crater lake.

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Extreme Temperatures/ Weather

Excessive Heat Warning

PHOENIX AZ

Excessive Heat Watch

LAS VEGAS NV
PHOENIX AZ

Heat Advisory

TULSA OK
PENDLETON OR
NORMAN OK

Today

Heat Wave

Bulgaria

[Statewide]

Heat Wave in Bulgaria on Tuesday, 07 August, 2012 at 05:29 (05:29 AM) UTC.

Description

Historically high temperatures were recorded in 28 locations throughout Bulgaria on Monday, the country’s National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology (NIMH) said. At 3 p.m. local time (0200 GMT), the temperature in Ruse by the Danube River was 41 degrees Celsius. Pleven in northern Bulgaria recorded 40 degrees Celsius, followed by Sandanski in the southwest of the country at 39.6 degrees Celsius. Meanwhile, temperatures in the capital Sofia also hit 34.6 degrees Celsius. Temperatures were unusually high even in the mountains, NIMH said. At Botev peak, temperatures reached 17.5 degrees Celsius, 25.2 degrees Celsius at Murgash peak, and 26.5 degrees Celsius at Rozhen peak. Record-high temperatures were reported also on the Black Sea coast in the towns of Ahtopol and Varna at 35 degree Celsius, and cape of Kaliakra at 32.8 degree Celsius. Temperatures will remain high on Tuesday, after which they should return to what is considered normal for the season, NIMH said.

06.08.2012

Extreme Weather

USA

State of Pennsylvania, Tunkhannock Township [Pocono Raceway]

Extreme Weather in USA on Monday, 06 August, 2012 at 14:51 (02:51 PM) UTC.

Description

NASCAR fans at Pocono Raceway were advised over public address systems and through social media to take cover when lightning and heavy rain hit the track near the end of the race. The warnings weren’t enough to avoid tragedy at the track on Sunday. Lightning strikes at Pocono after a rain-shortened NASCAR race killed one fan and injured nine others, one critically, racetrack officials said. Multiple lightning strikes occurred behind the racetrack’s grandstands and outside one of the gates as fans were leaving, Pocono spokesman Bob Pleban said. It wasn’t immediately clear how many of the fans were actually struck by the lightning itself or were injured by related jolts. “Unfortunately, a member of our raceway family here, a fan, has passed away,” Pocono President Brandon Igdalsky said in announcing the death. He provided no details about the victim but expressed condolences to his family. Igdalsky later posted on Twitter, “My family and I are praying for all those that were involved in the lightning strikes. … Difficult evening for all.” The victim was in or near his car in a parking lot after the race had ended when lightning struck the car, Monroe County Coroner Bob Allen said. Bystanders performed CPR on the man, who had gone into cardiac arrest, until paramedics arrived, Allen said. They took him to the track’s medical facility, where efforts to revive him failed. He was pronounced dead at a hospital. The Pennsylvania 400 was called because of storms, with 98 of the 160 scheduled laps completed. As the storm approached, the track posted messages on its Twitter page to more than 22,000 followers near the end of the race encouraging fans to “seek shelter as severe lightning and heavy winds are in our area.” The attendance was estimated by the track at 85,000. Public address announcements were made before the storm and the end of the race for fans to take shelter and evacuate the grandstands, Pleban said. Racetrack officials were reviewing the logs of when the announcements were made, he said. There was no order to evacuate the track premises. Jeff Gordon, who won the race, said at a post-race news conference that he could hear a huge crack as he walked down the pit road during the storm. “You could tell it was very close,” he said. “I mean, that’s the thing that’s going to take away from the victory, is the fact that somebody was affected by that.” Kyle Manger, a spectator from New Jersey, told The Sporting News that he saw people hit by lightning near the Turn 3 grandstands. He said when the severe weather began, he and some friends ran to their truck. “The visibility was very poor and all of a sudden (I) saw a bolt of lightning right in front of our windshield,” he said. “When it became a little more visible, we saw two bodies next to a destroyed tent with people scrambling.” One person remained hospitalized in critical condition at Lehigh Valley Hospital Center, Pleban said. Three people were taken to hospitals with minor to moderate injuries, and five others were treated on the scene, he said. “We are deeply saddened that a fan has died and others were injured by lightning strikes following today’s race at Pocono,” NASCAR spokesman David Higdon said. “Our thoughts are with them as well as those affected by this unfortunate accident.” Gordon’s team, Hendrick Motorsports, also offered sympathies on Twitter, writing, “Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected by the lightning” at Pocono Raceway.

Red Flag Warning

FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE

GLASGOW MT
BILLINGS MT

Fire Weather Watch

POCATELLO ID
BOISE ID

Extreme Fire Danger

RAPID CITY SD

06.08.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

Italy

Sicily, [Zingaro National Park]

Forest / Wild Fire in Italy on Monday, 06 August, 2012 at 20:15 (08:15 PM) UTC.

Description

Around 900 holidaymakers from Italy and abroad were moved from hotels and camping areas as the fire hit the Zingaro National Park on the island’s northwest tip overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea. “The Zingaro reserve went up in flames,” said Matteo Rizzo, Mayor of San Vito Lo Capo, just north of the park. Firefighters, forest patrols and volunteers worked for 12 hours to bring the fire under control and a school was opened in San Vito Lo Capo to house evacuees while others slept outdoors in the stifling heat. Mr Rizzo said the damage from the Zingaro blaze could have been reduced if firefighters had received air support. “I realise that there were a number of fires in Sicily and the situation was rather serious, but it is inconceivable that one of the most beautiful and oldest reserves in Sicily went up in smoke because no one lifted a finger.” Park officials said on Monday the reserve would remain closed to the public while they assessed the full extent of the park’s vegetation and wildlife which includes 40 different birds, rabbits, snakes and weasels. The reserve covers 4,000 acres and beneath its dramatic cliffs there are coves and grottoes stretching for four miles of the coast. One hotel owner said electricity and water supplies had been cut off and telephone lines were down while emergency workers continued to secure the area as temperatures soared close to 95F (35C).

06.08.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Washington, [Near to Chelan ]

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Monday, 06 August, 2012 at 13:52 (01:52 PM) UTC.

Description

A wildfire that has burned about 1,000 acres of grass and brush near Chelan also threatens 14 homes or outbuildings. Chelan County sheriff’s Cpl. Jason Reinfeld told The Wenatchee World the owners were advised of the danger. The fire broke out about noon Sunday off Highway 97. State, federal and Chelan County crews are attacking the fire from the ground and air using two air tankers and three helicopters, which are dipping from the Columbia River.

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Storms, Flooding

Active tropical storm system(s)
Name of storm system	Location	Formed	Last update	Last category	Course	Wind Speed	Gust	Wave	Source	Details
Ernesto (AL05)	Atlantic Ocean	02.08.2012	07.08.2012	Hurricane I	300 °	102 km/h	120 km/h	5.49 m	NOAA NHC

 Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 5 Storm name: Ernesto (AL05) Area: Atlantic Ocean Start up location: N 12° 36.000, W 50° 36.000 Start up: 02nd August 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 2,163.67 km Top category.: Report by: NHC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 02nd Aug 2012 04:08:45 N 12° 36.000, W 50° 36.000 30 56 74 Tropical Depression 285 16 1008 MB NHC 03rd Aug 2012 04:49:11 N 13° 24.000, W 58° 18.000 35 83 102 Tropical Storm 275 20 1005 MB NHC 04th Aug 2012 05:16:42 N 13° 54.000, W 65° 36.000 30 83 102 Tropical Storm 275 16 1003 MB NHC 05th Aug 2012 05:35:24 N 15° 24.000, W 72° 42.000 35 93 111 Tropical Storm 285 16 1007 MB NHC 06th Aug 2012 05:25:12 N 15° 0.000, W 79° 42.000 24 83 102 Tropical Storm 270 15 1003 MB NHC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 07th Aug 2012 05:16:51 N 17° 0.000, W 82° 42.000 20 102 120 Hurricane I 300 ° 18 994 MB NHC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 08th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 18° 54.000, W 89° 0.000 Tropical Depression 83 102 NHC 08th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 18° 18.000, W 86° 48.000 Hurricane II 130 157 NHC 09th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 19° 18.000, W 91° 6.000 Tropical Depression 65 83 NHC 10th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 19° 30.000, W 94° 48.000 Hurricane I 111 139 NHC 11th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 19° 24.000, W 97° 24.000 Tropical Depression 93 111 NHC 12th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 19° 12.000, W 99° 24.000 Tropical Depression 37 56 NHC

Haikui (12W)

Pacific Ocean

03.08.2012

07.08.2012

Typhoon I

280 °

120 km/h

148 km/h

4.57 m

JTWC

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 4 Storm name: Haikui (12W) Area: Pacific Ocean Start up location: N 24° 24.000, E 139° 48.000 Start up: 03rd August 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 1,009.14 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 03rd Aug 2012 09:08:44 N 24° 24.000, E 139° 48.000 24 56 74 Tropical Depression 295 20 JTWC 04th Aug 2012 05:17:37 N 24° 54.000, E 134° 12.000 35 65 83 Tropical Storm 275 20 JTWC 04th Aug 2012 10:54:52 N 25° 30.000, E 132° 48.000 30 65 83 Tropical Storm 295 16 JTWC 05th Aug 2012 05:42:49 N 26° 48.000, E 129° 12.000 17 83 102 Tropical Storm 290 16 JTWC 06th Aug 2012 05:33:59 N 27° 12.000, E 126° 0.000 7 102 130 Tropical Storm 270 12 JTWC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 07th Aug 2012 05:22:17 N 27° 24.000, E 123° 54.000 9 120 148 Typhoon I 280 ° 15 JTWC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 08th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 28° 48.000, E 121° 42.000 Typhoon I 111 139 JTWC 08th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 29° 30.000, E 120° 30.000 Tropical Depression 83 102 JTWC 09th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 30° 12.000, E 119° 42.000 Tropical Depression 65 83 JTWC 10th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 31° 6.000, E 120° 36.000 Tropical Depression 37 56 JTWC

13W

Pacific Ocean

05.08.2012

07.08.2012

Tropical Depression

330 °

83 km/h

102 km/h

4.57 m

JTWC

 Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 0 Storm name: 13W Area: Pacific Ocean Start up location: N 23° 6.000, E 161° 36.000 Start up: 05th August 2012 Status: Active Track long: 408.00 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 05th Aug 2012 05:44:20 N 23° 6.000, E 161° 36.000 13 46 65 Tropical Depression 195 10 JTWC 06th Aug 2012 05:31:12 N 25° 48.000, E 162° 12.000 9 65 83 Tropical Storm 240 10 JTWC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 07th Aug 2012 05:20:10 N 29° 0.000, E 161° 54.000 13 83 102 Tropical Depression 330 ° 15 JTWC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 08th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 31° 36.000, E 159° 18.000 Tropical Depression 83 102 JTWC 08th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 32° 54.000, E 157° 42.000 Tropical Depression 74 93 JTWC 09th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 34° 48.000, E 155° 36.000 Tropical Depression 74 93 JTWC 10th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 39° 42.000, E 151° 36.000 Tropical Depression 65 83 JTWC

……………………………………………..

Above 45 Killed by Typhoon in the Philippines

Manila, Aug 6 (Prensa Latina) More than 45 people died and six others missing due to Typhoon Saola in the northern region of Philippines, reported on Monday the National Center for Disaster Prevention. The rains and flooding caused further serious damage to 74 roads, 7, 000 homes and the evacuation of about 200, 000 people still housed in improvised centers, according to the press. Landslides and overflowing dam flooded much of Manila, the capital, especially in the areas near the sea, other media reported as Rappler website. Between May and November, during rainy season in the Philippines, the archipelago is hit by an average of 15 to 20 typhoons that affect the entire region of Southeast Asia. sus/cmf/lac/pgh

Modificado el ( lunes, 06 de agosto de 2012 )

Flash Flood Watch

TALLAHASSEE FL

Flood Advisory

TIYAN GU
TALLAHASSEE FL

07.08.2012

Flash Flood

India

MultiStates, [States of Uttarakhand, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir]

Flash Flood in India on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 04:06 (04:06 AM) UTC.

Description

Hundreds of people residing near Beas river have been evacuated to safe places after flash flood caused by torrential rain over Dhundi peaks at south portal of Rohtang tunnel flooded the Seri rivulet, a tributary to Beas river, on Friday at 8pm. People living close to river between Palchan and Kullu are being evacuated and traffic on national highway has been stopped. Till last report received from Palchan (near Dhundi) at 10.30pm, level of the river was rising continuously and police were evacuating the people from Bahang village, 6km from Manali. According to police, there is no report of any casualty. Sandeep Kumar, a resident of Bahang village, said people are trying to save the household accessories amid chaotic atmosphere and conditions have become even worse after power failure. “Everything was normal till late evening but the situation changed suddenly after 8pm when river water, mixed with sludge, started engulfing its banks. People are risking their lives to remove the household stuffs,” he said. An engineer working with a hydel project near Palchan said over phone that roaring sound of river is shaking the foundation of the houses. “Nobody is going to sleep tonight. Villagers have gathered at many places and are guarding the river banks with floodlights,” he said. According to villagers it is a cloudburst which might have caused devastation at its source on mountains. Kullu deputy commissioner Amitabh Awasthi said , police are patrolling the river banks and have directed people to move to safe places. “We have closed the traffic on national highway. We shall keep an eye on the situation throughout the night,” he said.

Today

Flash Flood

Philippines

National Capital Region, Quezon City

Flash Flood in Philippines on Tuesday, 07 August, 2012 at 05:30 (05:30 AM) UTC.

Description

Torrential rains pounding the Philippine capital on Tuesday paralyzed traffic as waist-deep floods triggered evacuations of tens of thousands of residents and the government suspended work in offices and schools. Incessant downpours set off by the seasonal monsoon overflowed major dams and rivers in Manila and nine surrounding provinces and put authorities on alert. The death toll from last week’s Typhoon Saola, which battered Manila and the northern Philippines for several days, has climbed steadily to 51. The head of the government’s rescue agency, Benito Ramos, said there were no immediate reports of new casualties early Tuesday after the rains pounded already saturated Manila for more than 24 hours. Vehicles and even heavy trucks struggled to navigate water-clogged roads, where hundreds of thousands of commuters were stranded overnight. Many cars were stuck in the muddy waters. The La Mesa dam, which supplies water to the capital of 12 million people, spilled excess water for a second time early Tuesday into the rivers flowing into Quezon city, a middle-class Manila suburb, as well as the neighborhoods of Malabon, Valenzuela and Caloocan, where several villages were submerged. Along the swollen Marikina River, police were deployed to move more than 5,000 residents away from the riverbanks in what Vice Mayor Jose Cadiz said was an enforced evacuation. The operation started after the City Hall sounded the alarm bell. The Philippine Stock Exchange in the financial district of Makati, which was also flooded, was closed Tuesday. Also closed was the U.S. Embassy along Manila Bay in the historic old city, which was drenched out last week when a storm surge pushed the water over the seawall. “The embassy is closed today due to excessive flooding in the streets and concern for the safety of our employees and consular applicants,” Ambassador Harry Thomas Jr. said in an announcement.

06.08.2012

Flash Flood

USA

State of Tennessee, Johnson City

Flash Flood in USA on Monday, 06 August, 2012 at 12:18 (12:18 PM) UTC.

Description

Heavy rains pounded northeast Tennessee Sunday, including downtown Johnson City, where emergency crews in inflatable boats rescued people trapped in their homes and in their cars on flooded streets. Johnson City Schools announced their start on Monday is postponed because of the storm damage. The city’s garage complex flooded and several were buses under water, leading the city to cancel transit service for Monday. WTFM radio reported shelters were still open at schools in Unicoi and Jonesborough early Monday. Streams throughout the region overflowed across roads and into homes. Houses and apartments in several areas are surrounded by water at the Mall at Johnson City’s parking lot was covered by high water, stranding numerous vehicles. Sections of Washington, Carter and Unicoi counties also were flooded. The National Weather Service said three to four inches of rain fell within an hour’s time across upper northeast Tennessee during the height of the storm. And more rain was expected through the night. At least 10 people were rescued from their homes in Washington County, and in Unicoi County, officers and volunteer firefighters were evacuating other areas as well. In down downtown Johnson City, a portion of one street washed away into a creek, officials said. “Occasionally, we’ve been up to our gun belt in water, but it’s starting to subside,” said city police Lt. Gerald Harrell. “We are actively answering every call for service that we have. It may be taking us just a tad bit longer, but we’re getting to each and every one and we will get to each and every one,” Harrell said.Police urged people to stay home and avoid any local travel if possible and emergency shelters were open. Elizabethton also was hit hard, officials there said. “We’ve got flooding all over,” Carter County Sheriff Chris Mathes said. Unicoi County Sheriff Mike Hensley said when he first was called at 7 p.m. or so, it was just drizzling. “When I came in, it was just unreal. The water was coming up and I saw we were going to have serious, serious problems,” he said. About 4,000 customers, most in Johnson City, had no power but officials expected it to be restored quickly.

 

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Epidemic Hazards / Diseases

05.08.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Tanzania

Kagera Region, [Nyakahanga area]

Epidemic Hazard in Tanzania on Sunday, 05 August, 2012 at 17:33 (05:33 PM) UTC.

Description
A team of medical experts from Dar es Salaam was yesterday dispatched to Kagera region to further examine the two patients believed to be suffering from the Ebola hemorrhagic fever. But as the team of medical experts was sent to Kagera region, the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare subsequently confirmed the outbreak of the deadly fever in the western part of the country. Confirming the reports, the Deputy Minister for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Seif Seleman Rashid, also said that a team of medical experts was still diagnosing a patient in efforts to establish the symptoms. In the meantime, reports from Nyakahanga designated hospital in Karagwe district, Kagera region indicate that there were two patients including a child, suspected to be suffering from the deadly fever that has rocked neighbouring Uganda. According to one of the doctors who diagnosed the patient at Karagwe’s Nyakahanga hospital, preliminary findings show that the victim might have contacted the Ebola virus. However, the doctor who requested anonymity told the Guardian on Sunday that ‘further medical examination’ would be conducted to gather more evidence about the possible outbreak of Ebola, adding that the patient had since been quarantined pending final results. According to the doctor, the ‘Ebola patient’ was brought to the hospital on Friday morning and, upon diagnosis, it was established that the patient had suffered from Ebola. The patient who is a six-year-old child was brought to the Mulongo hospital by his mother from a village close to the Uganda-Tanzania boarder after the child developed severe symptoms. “We are doing further medical examination on a patient … we will tell the general public once it is confirmed that we are dealing with Ebola virus infections,” the doctor said, adding that currently the patient alleged to have been infected was admitted in a separate room and now lives in isolation from other patients at the hospital. He said preliminary check-ups found out that the diagnosis had all signs showed clear symptoms of Ebola – after which he ordered the patient to be admitted for closer monitoring locally, and further medical examination by medical experts from the ministry headquarters. He added that the patient had since been placed in a special intensive care room which is out of bounds for all other people — apart from his mother who is taking care of the patient. However, he said, this was a medical rule aimed at avoiding quick spread of the deadly disease Another patient also believed to have crossed the boarder from Uganda was admitted at the hospital as well, but medical investigations of his deteriorating health conditions were still not completed by Saturday evening. As a precaution, the doctor said his hospital team and the district health workers had since started warning people in surrounding villages to take immediate measures whenever they come across such patients. He has also warned the people living closer to the border with Uganda to be careful not to come into contact with any person whom they see vomiting or bleeding – clear signs of someone suffering from Ebola. On Wednesday this week, Dr. Mwinyi told visibly alarmed legislators in Dodoma that a team of medical experts had been dispatched to the border with Uganda, fully equipped with protective gear and medical supplies. The minister advised the general public especially those living in the northern regions of Kagera, Mara, Mwanza and Kigoma — some of which share the border crossings with Uganda — to take precautions because the disease was highly contagious. Earlier, the World Health Organization (WHO) had alerted Tanzania on the Ebola threat, prompting the ministry to issue a press statement elaborating that Ebola (Ebola HF) was a severe, often-fatal disease in humans and nonhuman primates (monkeys, gorillas, and chimpanzees) that has appeared sporadically since its initial recognition in 1976. The disease is caused by infection with Ebola virus, named after a river in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire), where it was first recognized. The virus is one of two members of a family of RNA viruses called the Filoviridae; there are five identified subtypes of the Ebola virus — four of which have been known to cause disease in humans: Ebola-Zaire, Ebola-Sudan, Ebola-Ivory Coast and Ebola-Bundibugyo. The fifth, Ebola-Reston, has caused disease in nonhuman primates, but not in humans.
Biohazard name:	Ebola (susp.)
Biohazard level:	4/4 Hazardous
Biohazard desc.:	Viruses and bacteria that cause severe to fatal disease in humans, and for which vaccines or other treatments are not available, such as Bolivian and Argentine hemorrhagic fevers, H5N1(bird flu), Dengue hemorrhagic fever, Marburg virus, Ebola virus, hantaviruses, Lassa fever, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, and other hemorrhagic or unidentified diseases. When dealing with biological hazards at this level the use of a Hazmat suit and a self-contained oxygen supply is mandatory. The entrance and exit of a Level Four biolab will contain multiple showers, a vacuum room, an ultraviolet light room, autonomous detection system, and other safety precautions designed to destroy all traces of the biohazard. Multiple airlocks are employed and are electronically secured to prevent both doors opening at the same time. All air and water service going to and coming from a Biosafety Level 4 (P4) lab will undergo similar decontamination procedures to eliminate the possibility of an accidental release.
Symptoms:
Status:	suspected

05.08.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Nepal

Capital City, Kathmandu

Epidemic Hazard in Nepal on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 04:51 (04:51 AM) UTC.

Description
At least 10 people admitted to the Sukraraj Tropical and Disease Control Hospital in Nepali capital Kathmandu have tested positive for cholera. The hospital laboratory said Vibrio Cholera belonging to 01 Ogawa stereotype was detected in all the patients. Doctors at hospital attributed the spread of cholera and diarrhea infection in Kathmandu to contaminated water, according to Saturday’s Republica daily. “Most of the patients who came to the hospital said that they had drunk water supplied by Kathmandu Upatyaka Kahanepani Limited without boiling or treatment,” Tulsha Adhikari, a nursing staff said. She said whole families had been infected and some were brought to the hospital by their neighbors as all family members were sick.
Biohazard name:	Cholera
Biohazard level:	2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

 

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Solar Activity

 

 

2MIN News August 6, 2012

Published on Aug 6, 2012 by Suspicious0bservers

TODAY’S LINKS
Climate: http://www.weather.com/news/new-climate-change-study-20120805
Active region Map: http://solen.info/solar/images/charmap.jpg
China Images: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/photo/2012-08/06/c_131763467_5.htm

REPEAT LINKS
Spaceweather: http://spaceweather.com/ [Look on the left at the X-ray Flux and Solar Wind Speed/Density]

HAARP: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/haarp/data.html [Click online data, and have a little fun]

SDO: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/ [Place to find Solar Images and Videos – as seen from earth]

SOHO: http://sohodata.nascom.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/soho_movie_theater [SOHO; Lasco and EIT – as seen from earth]

Stereo: http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/images [Stereo; Cor, EUVI, HI – as seen from the side]

SunAEON:http://www.sunaeon.com/#/solarsystem/ [Just click it… trust me]

SOLARIMG: http://solarimg.org/artis/ [All purpose data viewing site]

iSWA: http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov/iswa/iSWA.html [Free Application; for advanced sun watchers]

NOAA ENLIL SPIRAL: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/wsa-enlil/cme-based/ [CME Evolution]

NOAA Bouys: http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/

RSOE: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php [That cool alert map I use]

JAPAN Radiation Map: http://jciv.iidj.net/map/

LISS: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/heliplots_gsn.php

Gamma Ray Bursts: http://grb.sonoma.edu/ [Really? You can’t figure out what this one is for?]

BARTOL Cosmic Rays: http://neutronm.bartol.udel.edu//spaceweather/welcome.html [Top left box, look for BIG blue circles]

TORCON: http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-torcon-index [Tornado Forecast for the day]

GOES Weather: http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/goes/ [Clouds over America]

EL DORADO WORLD WEATHER MAP: http://www.eldoradocountyweather.com/satellite/ssec/world/world-composite-ir-…

PRESSURE MAP: http://www.woweather.com/cgi-bin/expertcharts?LANG=us&MENU=0000000000&…

HURRICANE TRACKER: http://www.weather.com/weather/hurricanecentral/tracker

INTELLICAST: http://www.intellicast.com/ [Weather site used by many youtubers]

NASA News: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/

PHYSORG: http://phys.org/ [GREAT News Site!]

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Space

Earth approaching objects (objects that are known in the next 30 days)
Object Name	Apporach Date	Left	AU Distance	LD Distance	Estimated Diameter*	Relative Velocity
(2006 MV1)	07th August 2012	0 day(s)	0.0612	23.8	12 m – 28 m	4.79 km/s	17244 km/h
(2005 RK3)	08th August 2012	1 day(s)	0.1843	71.7	52 m – 120 m	8.27 km/s	29772 km/h
(2009 BW2)	09th August 2012	2 day(s)	0.0337	13.1	25 m – 56 m	5.27 km/s	18972 km/h
277475 (2005 WK4)	09th August 2012	2 day(s)	0.1283	49.9	260 m – 580 m	6.18 km/s	22248 km/h
(2004 SC56)	09th August 2012	2 day(s)	0.0811	31.6	74 m – 170 m	10.57 km/s	38052 km/h
(2008 AF4)	10th August 2012	3 day(s)	0.1936	75.3	310 m – 690 m	16.05 km/s	57780 km/h
37655 Illapa	12th August 2012	5 day(s)	0.0951	37.0	770 m – 1.7 km	28.73 km/s	103428 km/h
(2012 HS15)	14th August 2012	7 day(s)	0.1803	70.2	220 m – 490 m	11.54 km/s	41544 km/h
4581 Asclepius	16th August 2012	9 day(s)	0.1079	42.0	220 m – 490 m	13.48 km/s	48528 km/h
(2008 TC4)	18th August 2012	11 day(s)	0.1937	75.4	140 m – 300 m	17.34 km/s	62424 km/h
(2006 CV)	20th August 2012	13 day(s)	0.1744	67.9	290 m – 640 m	13.24 km/s	47664 km/h
(2012 EC)	20th August 2012	13 day(s)	0.0815	31.7	56 m – 130 m	5.57 km/s	20052 km/h
162421 (2000 ET70)	21st August 2012	14 day(s)	0.1503	58.5	640 m – 1.4 km	12.92 km/s	46512 km/h
(2007 WU3)	21st August 2012	14 day(s)	0.1954	76.0	56 m – 120 m	5.25 km/s	18900 km/h
(2012 BB14)	24th August 2012	17 day(s)	0.1234	48.0	27 m – 60 m	2.58 km/s	9288 km/h
1 AU = ~150 million kilometers,1 LD = Lunar Distance = ~384,000 kilometers Source: NASA-NEO

 

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Biological Hazards / Wildlife /  Hazmat

Today

HAZMAT

USA

State of Kentucky, [Blue Grass Army Depot]

HAZMAT in USA on Tuesday, 07 August, 2012 at 03:40 (03:40 AM) UTC.

Description

Low levels of a deadly nerve agent have been detected in a chemical weapons igloo containing M55 GB, or sarin, rockets at Blue Grass Army Depot in central Kentucky. The Army Chemical Materials Agency says there’s no danger to people in Madison or surrounding counties and that state and local emergency officials have been notified of the leak. Toxic chemical workers have connected a 1,000 cubic feet-per-minute filter to the igloo’s rear vent. The agency says the leak was discovered during weekly monitoring.

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Articles of Interest

06.08.2012

Power Outage

South Korea

[Statewide]

Power Outage in South Korea on Monday, 06 August, 2012 at 13:50 (01:50 PM) UTC.

Description

South Korea’s state power company issued a shortage warning on Monday, meaning that reserves are dangerously low, as electricity consumption rose sharply due to an unusual heatwave. The warning from the Korea Electric Power Company (KEPCO) was aimed at averting power cuts, the knowledge economy ministry said, urging households, factories and other users to cut consumption voluntarily. Temperatures have stayed above 35 degrees Celsius (95 F) for 10 consecutive days across the country, driving up air-conditioning use. It was the first such warning since last September, when more than 2.1 million households and other premises were hit with rolling power cuts lasting up to one hour. The ministry also resumed operations of the country’s oldest nuclear power plant at Gori. It had been closed for months due to scrutiny over its safety and protests by civic groups. “We are relieved to resume operations of the Gori reactor at a time when power consumption is expected to reach its peak,” Knowledge Economy Minister Hong Suk-Woo said in a statement. In February the Gori plant, built in 1978 near the southern city of Busan, briefly lost mains power and the emergency generator failed to kick in. The incident did not result in any radioactive leaks but it sparked an extensive probe amid concerns over nuclear safety following last year’s atomic crisis in Japan. South Korea operates 23 nuclear power plants which meet more than 35 percent of its electricity needs. Analysts say successive governments have failed to authorise major increases in the relatively low cost of electricity, encouraging wasteful consumption. KEPCO last Friday decided to raise rates by 4.9 percent, yielding to government pressure to limit the increase to less than five percent.

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[In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit, for research and/or educational purposes. This constitutes ‘FAIR USE’ of any such copyrighted material.]

Earth Watch Report – Sunday August 6th, 2012

Earthquakes

RSOE EDIS

Date/Time (UTC)	Magnitude	Area	Country	State/Prov./Gov.	Location	Risk			Source	Details
05.08.2012 04:25:29	2.0	North America	United States	Alaska	Chase				USGS-RSOE
05.08.2012 04:20:30	4.5	Asia	China	Xinjiang Uygur Zizhiqu	Korla				USGS-RSOE
05.08.2012 04:40:20	4.7	Asia	China	Xinjiang Uygur Zizhiqu	Korla				EMSC
05.08.2012 04:40:50	2.6	Asia	Turkey	Manisa	Golmarmara				EMSC
05.08.2012 03:35:21	2.4	North America	United States	Hawaii	Waikoloa Village				USGS-RSOE
05.08.2012 03:25:24	3.3	North America	United States	Hawaii	Waikoloa Village				USGS-RSOE
05.08.2012 03:40:25	4.9	Pacific Ocean – East	Tonga	Vava`u	Hihifo				EMSC
05.08.2012 02:50:30	4.9	Pacific Ocean	Tonga	Vava`u	Hihifo				USGS-RSOE
05.08.2012 04:41:07	2.6	Asia	Turkey	Van	Yuvacik				EMSC
05.08.2012 02:20:28	2.2	North America	United States	California	Darwin				USGS-RSOE
05.08.2012 02:35:25	2.4	Europe	Romania		Paltin				EMSC
05.08.2012 01:25:32	3.2	North America	United States	Alaska	Ugashik				USGS-RSOE
05.08.2012 03:40:44	2.7	Middle-East	Iraq	Dah?k	Sinah				EMSC
05.08.2012 03:41:04	3.3	Asia	Turkey	Van	Kacit				EMSC
05.08.2012 01:35:24	3.0	Europe	Greece	South Aegean	Lindos				EMSC
05.08.2012 02:55:30	4.6	Africa	South Africa	Eastern Cape	Port Alfred				USGS-RSOE
05.08.2012 03:41:22	4.6	Africa	South Africa	Eastern Cape	Port Alfred				EMSC
05.08.2012 01:35:48	3.0	Asia	Turkey	Elaz??	Baskil				EMSC
05.08.2012 03:41:41	2.6	Asia	Turkey	Van	Toyga				EMSC
04.08.2012 23:45:36	2.2	North America	United States	Hawaii	Fern Forest				USGS-RSOE
05.08.2012 03:41:58	2.0	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Milas				EMSC
04.08.2012 22:45:28	3.3	North America	United States	Alaska	Ugashik				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 23:30:25	2.0	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	Calerno				EMSC
05.08.2012 03:42:19	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Van	Toyga				EMSC
04.08.2012 22:30:21	4.6	Indonesian Archipelago	East Timor		Gunung Dilarini				EMSC
04.08.2012 22:55:23	4.6	Indonesian archipelago	East Timor		Gunung Dilarini				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 22:30:44	5.0	South-America	Argentina	San Juan	Zonda				EMSC
04.08.2012 21:30:31	5.0	Atlantic Ocean	Argentina	San Juan	Zonda				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 21:15:20	2.4	Europe	Poland	Lower Silesian Voivodeship	Paszowice				EMSC
05.08.2012 03:42:39	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Tunceli	Pulumer				EMSC
04.08.2012 20:10:35	2.5	Europe	Greece	Central Greece	Pelasyia				EMSC
04.08.2012 19:10:25	2.5	Europe	Poland	Lower Silesian Voivodeship	Biskupin				EMSC
04.08.2012 19:10:48	3.0	Asia	Turkey	Kütahya	Simav				EMSC
04.08.2012 18:10:32	2.2	North America	United States	Alaska	Pedro Bay				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 19:11:10	2.0	Europe	Greece	West Macedonia	Armenokhorion				EMSC
04.08.2012 17:00:26	2.8	Europe	Czech Republic		Chotebuz				EMSC
04.08.2012 19:11:32	2.2	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Yatagan				EMSC
04.08.2012 16:30:28	3.7	North America	United States	Alaska	Pilot Point				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 16:25:30	4.0	North America	United States	Alaska	Petersville				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 17:00:48	4.2	North-America	United States	Alaska	Petersville				EMSC
04.08.2012 16:20:33	3.1	North America	United States	Alaska	Pilot Point				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 16:15:31	3.4	North America	United States	Alaska	Beluga				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 17:01:10	4.5	North-America	United States	Alaska	Ugashik				EMSC
04.08.2012 15:50:33	4.1	North America	United States	Alaska	Ugashik				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 17:20:26	4.6	Indonesian archipelago	Indonesia	Aceh	Sinabang				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 15:55:23	5.0	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	Aceh	Sinabang				EMSC
04.08.2012 15:35:33	2.0	North America	United States	California	Cobb				USGS-RSOE
05.08.2012 00:30:21	4.5	South-America	Argentina	Mendoza	San Martin				EMSC
04.08.2012 23:35:31	4.5	Atlantic Ocean	Argentina	Mendoza	San Martin				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 15:55:44	5.0	Australia & New-Zealand	New Zealand	Gisborne	Ruatoria				EMSC

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Extreme Temperatures/ Weather

Heat Advisory

NORMAN OK
FORT WORTH TX
SEATTLE WA

Excessive Heat Watch

PHOENIX AZ

04.08.2012

Heat Wave

Japan

[Statewide]

Heat Wave in Japan on Wednesday, 25 July, 2012 at 03:36 (03:36 AM) UTC.

Description

The number of people taken to hospitals by ambulance due to heatstroke in the week through Sunday more than doubled from the preceding week to 5,467, preliminary data showed Tuesday. The figure, up from 2,622 in the week to July 15, hit the highest for a single week this summer, according to the data released by the Fire and Disaster Management Agency. Deaths caused by heatstroke increased to 13 from five in the preceding week. Tokyo and Saitama Prefecture had the most victims, with ambulances called for 388 people each. They were followed by 382 in Aichi Prefecture and 372 in Osaka Prefecture. People aged 65 or older accounted for 45.9 percent of the total. Since the agency started this year’s survey on May 28, 11,116 people were taken to hospitals as of Sunday. Twenty-three people have died. The rise in heatstroke cases reflects the smothering heat wave, with temperatures of 35 degrees or higher observed in many places for the four days from July 16, agency officials said. In Tatebayashi, Gunma Prefecture, the mercury shot up to 37.6 on July 16 and to 39.2 the following day, according to the Meteorological Agency.

04.08.2012

Extreme Weather

India

State of Uttarakhand , [Uttarakhand-wide]

Extreme Weather in India on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 12:16 (12:16 PM) UTC.

Description

Ten people were killed and 38 others went missing as incessant rains battered Uttarakhand today triggering landslides, cloud bursts and flash floods which flattened homes and stranded hundreds of pilgrims with the Chardham Yatra coming to a grinding halt. The Garhwal region bore the brunt of the natural calamity. The state government has sounded a high alert after the MET department’s warned of very heavy rains and sought the help of the army to mitigate the sufferings of the people. Nineteen labourers of the state-run UJVN Ltd’s Assi Ganga hydel project went missing following a cloud burst in the upper hills of Uttarkashi district. Similarly, 19 other people also went missing from Gangori, Dunda, Uttarkashi town and Barkot areas in the district. “We have launched a manhunt to trace the missing people,” said R Rajesh Kumar District Magistrate Uttarkashi. Elsewhere in the state, 10 people were killed in different incidents following heavy rains during the past 24 hours, said sources in the Disaster Management and Mitigation Centre (DMMC) here. In the disaster-prone Uttarkashi district, flash floods hit several low-lying areas creating havoc there. At least three jawans of the fire brigade department and two others were killed at Gangori area even as Chardham yatra to Gangotri and Yamunotri remained suspended for the second day today. In Gangori area of Uttarkashi, Bhagirathi is flowing above the danger level with people being evacuated to safer areas. Nearly 30 homes were washed away in the floods with the Gangori bridge also collapsing. “We have now reports that three jawans of the fire brigade and two others were killed in Gangori,” said state disaster management minister Yashpal Arya. Two more people were killed in Dunda area of Uttarkashi district. While two children were killed in a house collapse at Kararnprayag area of Chamoli district early today, another child was washed away in flash floods at Pokhri area of the district where landslides continue to hit blocking highways leading to Badrinath. Hundreds of Badrinath pilgrims were stranded at various places at Patalganga, Lambagar and Birahi due to fresh landslips. The yatra for Kedarnath shrine was also suspended, the sources said. The government has launched relief and rescue operations but heavy rains were hampering them, top officials said. Food packets are being sent to the affected people. Nearly 250 families have already been taken to safer areas in different areas of Uttarkashi and Chamoli districts. Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna was monitoring the situation and has asked the concerned authorities to launch rescue and relief operation in the disaster-hit areas. He also asked concerned officers to reopen roads leading to pilgrim shrines so that the stranded pilgrims can go home. Bahuguna also asked the special Chardham cell set up at the secretariat to send him a daily report regarding the situation in the Garhwal region. The CM said his government would provide food and other essential items to the stranded pilgrims. Landslides are common in fragile hills of Garhwal region.

04.08.2012

Extreme Weather

Kuwait

[Statewide]

Extreme Weather in Kuwait on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 11:30 (11:30 AM) UTC.

Description

Serious sandstorm hit the entire country Friday with the wind speed measuring about 90km/hr and visibility falling below 500m. According to Director of Weather Forecast Mohammed Karam, the weather is the outcome of winds blowing from the East and high altitude concentration on the North Arabian Peninsula that closes the atmospheric pressure lines. Karam anticipates the weather will be stable by Saturday. He also said the northwesterly wind will continue in moderate speed measuring 40 km/hr and later transform to moderate light northeasterly winds measuring 25-40km/hr until the end of the week, and then the weather will become stable. He urged elderly people and those suffering from allergies and breathing difficulty to be extra cautious and wear masks while reducing their outings to avoid complications. Meanwhile, the Director of Operations at Kuwait International Airport Essam Al-Zamen disclosed that aviation events are continuing as expected, indicating the bad weather has no effect on activities there. He reiterated that landing and departure of planes take place as scheduled, even though the visibility is about 400m.

Red Flag Warning

FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE

PENDLETON OR
SACRAMENTO CA
RENO NV
ELKO NV
EUREKA CA
BOISE ID
MEDFORD OR

04.08.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

Russia [Asia]

Siberia, [Krasnoyarsk Krai, Tomsk Region, Tuva, Khakassia and Irkutsk Region]

Forest / Wild Fire in Russia [Asia] on Saturday, 28 July, 2012 at 12:07 (12:07 PM) UTC.

Description

Firefighters in Russia’s Siberia had extinguished 45 forest fires covering 522 hectares of forest in the past 24 hours, but 131 wildfires were still burning on the area of almost 15,000 hectares, the regional forestry department said Friday. A total of 29 wildfires covering an area of more than 5,000 hectares were localized, and 14,948 hectares of forest continued to burn in the Krasnoyarsk Krai, Tomsk Region, Tuva, Khakassia and Irkutsk Region. Some 3,000 people, 412 units of fire-fighting equipment and 24 aircrafts have been mobilized to fight the blazes, which are believed to be caused by hot and dry weather in the region where the temperature reaches 35 degrees. Reports said the wildfires posed no threat to populated areas or industry.

04.08.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Oklahoma, [East of Norman]

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 03:59 (03:59 AM) UTC.

Description

A wildfire whipped by gusty, southerly winds swept through rural woodlands north and south of Oklahoma City on Friday, burning several homes as firefighters struggled to contain it in 113-degree heat. Oklahoma’s emergency management officials said 25 structures had burned east of Noble, including a handful of homes, and several homes near Luther, north of Oklahoma City, were threatened. Hundreds of residents were told to leave their homes as flames spread through treetops. The state Highway Patrol closed part of the main highway between Oklahoma City and Tulsa because of the Luther-area fire, which may have been deliberately set. Local deputies were looking into reports about passengers in a pickup truck who were seen throwing out newspapers that had been set on fire. “I loaded the kids up, grabbed my dogs, and it didn’t even look like I had time to load the livestock, so I just got out of there,” said Bo Ireland, who lives a few miles from where the Noble-area fire started. “It looked to me that, if the wind shifted even a little bit, I would be in the path of that fire. It was just too close.” There were no immediate reports of injuries or livestock losses. Dayle Bishop stood in a convenience store parking lot about 2 miles away from his house, saying he was pessimistic about his home’s chances. “I know it’s gone,” said Bishop, who works nights as a nurse. “Didn’t even have time to get anything out.” But he noted “it’s just stuff,” and said he may not have made it out of his home had a woman not knocked on his door and woken him up. Charles Wright was with his daughter, Christina, along with their cat, at a makeshift evacuation center doubling as a staging area for fire engines, ambulances and other emergency equipment. He said law enforcement ordered them to leave their home in Norman. “Praying for miracles. Praying for the best, that’s all we can do,” said Wright, who managed to pack some clothes, jewelry and legal papers before fleeing. Ruth Hood splashed water onto two Chihuahua puppies that she grabbed along with several other animals and her children, and left as flames burned in her neighbor’s yard. She said she couldn’t be sure her home would survive. “No guarantee,” Hood said. With the ongoing drought, high temperatures and gusty winds, it took little for fires to begin and spread — and there was little crews could do to fight them. “It’s difficult for the firefighters to get into the area because it’s heavily wooded on either side of the smaller roads. When the winds are blowing 25 mph it just blows the embers and fireballs across the roads as if they weren’t even there,” said Jerry Lojka with the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management. At mid-afternoon Friday, the temperature at nearby Norman was 113. Winds were from the south and southwest at 14 mph, gusting to 24 mph. “I can tell you the temperatures and the wind are not helping the situation at all. Some homes have been lost in the fire unfortunately, but we don’t know how many,” said Meghan McCormick, a spokeswoman for the Cleveland County Sheriff’s office. Russell Moore, 53, who lives in the Noble area, said he was outside in his yard when a sheriff’s deputy drove down the road and told people to leave. He and his son went to a shelter set up at Noble City Hall, but planned to go to his daughter’s home in Norman. “About all we saw was smoke and a little bit of ash raining down from the sky,” Moore said. “Everybody was piling into their vehicles and leaving as we were.” Lojka said an Oklahoma National Guard helicopter has been dispatched to a fast-moving blaze in Luther, northeast of Oklahoma City. He also said helicopters were helping ground crews with a fire near Mannford and Drumright in Creek County. Helicopters from the National Guard and the Bureau of Indian Affairs were fighting a fire in Creek County. The Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office said it was investigating reports that someone in a black pickup truck near Luther was tossing out newspapers that had been set on fire. The blaze and smoke led the Oklahoma Highway Patrol to shut down part of the Turner Turnpike, which carries Interstate 44 between Oklahoma City and Tulsa. Traffic was rerouted onto old U.S. Route 66, the famed two-lane highway that crisscrosses Oklahoma. The state was monitoring 11 fires in all Friday afternoon. Gov. Mary Fallin announced a statewide burn ban as the fire danger heightened. She previously had announced a state of emergency for all 77 counties due to the extreme drought.

04.08.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Montana, Lame Deer

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 03:46 (03:46 AM) UTC.

Description

As a wildfire’s flames raced to the edge of Lame Deer’s town limits, police drove the streets with loudspeakers blaring orders for residents of the Northern Cheyenne Reservation community to grab their most important belongings and get out. Buses were waiting to carry people from danger area, which on Thursday night suddenly meant the entire town of 2,000. Desi Small-Rodriguez, a volunteer with the tribe’s disaster and emergency services department, recalled the chaotic scene as the Chalky Fire threatened to burn down the seat of the southeastern Montana reservation. “A lot of people were walking with their belongings, getting on buses, trying to find rides, getting out as told,” Small-Rodriguez said Friday. About 250 people stayed at a Red Cross shelter 25 miles away at the St. Labre Mission. Others took shelter with friends and relatives on other parts of the reservation. Those with no place to go camped out on lawns in nearby communities, or they just refused to leave. The fire had already burned two homes earlier in the day, then wind from a cold front whipped up the flames and drove the fire straight toward town. Things looked grim to Carol Raymond, Rosebud County’s head of disaster and emergency services, who had driven from Forsyth to see firsthand what was happening. “I figured the whole town of Lame Deer would go up in flames,” Raymond said. Firefighters worked overnight trying to keep the flames back. At one point early Friday, the fire jumped Highway 212, but firefighters contained it with a back burn of the surrounding area, and the wildfire skirted around town without destroying any buildings or causing any injuries, Small-Rodriguez said. On Friday, the smoke was choking the town, but rain was assisting firefighters. A red-flag warning was to be in effect until evening, and firefighters prepared for gusty winds and possible thunderstorms. The mandatory evacuation remained in effect.

04.08.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Washington, [Near Pateros and Brewster]

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 03:45 (03:45 AM) UTC.

Description

The state is sending firefighters and managers to help battle a 1,000-acre wildfire in the southeast corner of Washington. Other firefighters also are trying to contain a 10,000-acre wildfire in central Washington. The new fire broke out Thursday afternoon five miles south of Asotin and is burning grass, brush and wheat. The state Emergency Operations Center at Camp Murray has been activated to coordinate state assistance. Overnight winds forced firefighters to retreat at the central Washington fire as it grew to 10,000 acres – more than 15 square miles. Spokesman Dan Garner at the incident management center at Brewster High School says no structures are threatened. The fire broke out Wednesday near Pateros and Brewster. It’s burning grass, brush, scattered timber and some wheat land.

……………………………………

Wildfires blaze across drought-plagued Oklahoma

 Steve Olafson | Reuters

OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) – Wildfires burned out of control on Friday in Oklahoma, destroying homes and shutting down highways in a state that has suffered 18 straight days of 100-plus degree temperatures and persistent drought.Emergency officials counted 11 different wildfires around the state, with at least 65 homes destroyed in parched areas north and south of Oklahoma City and south of Tulsa.

Oklahoma joins several states that have been plagued by wildfires this summer, including Colorado, Arkansas and Nebraska. Fires are being fed by a widespread drought.

Nearly two-thirds of the contiguous United States was under some level of drought as of July 31, according to the Drought Monitor, a weekly report compiled by U.S. climate experts.

Interstate 44, historic Route 66 and state highways were closed, but no deaths were reported in the Oklahoma fires.

Low humidity, strong southerly winds and drought conditions enabled the wildfires to spread quickly across treetops, said Michelann Ooten, deputy director of the state’s Office of Emergency Management.

“It’s just a very difficult situation we’re facing that’s all weather related,” Ooten said.

Governor Mary Fallin, who earlier in the day invoked a statewide ban on outdoor burning after declaring a state of emergency for the state’s 77 counties, told Reuters fire conditions may be worse on Saturday.

“The fire danger might be even higher,” she said.

Oklahoma has contacted neighboring states for help, but they are contending with their own wildfire threats and no out-of-state help is on its way, she said.

“There’s fires in Arkansas. There’s fires in Kansas and Texas. Everybody else is on high heat alert,” she said.

The heat in Oklahoma City, the state capital, has reached historic levels.

On Friday, Oklahoma City tied its all-time record for the highest temperature ever recorded when the thermometer reached 113 Fahrenheit (45 Celsius), a mark last recorded in the Dust Bowl days in 1936, according to the National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma.

Volunteer fire departments have made a public plea for Gatorade donations to keep their crews hydrated in the scalding conditions.

(Reporting by Steve Olafson; Editing by Mary Wisniewski and Lisa Shumaker)

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Storms, Flooding

Severe Thunderstorm Warning

SPRINGFIELD MO

Active tropical storm system(s)
Name of storm system	Location	Formed	Last update	Last category	Course	Wind Speed	Gust	Wave	Source	Details
Ernesto (AL05)	Atlantic Ocean	02.08.2012	04.08.2012	Tropical Depression	285 °	83 km/h	102 km/h	6.10 m	NOAA NHC

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 4 Storm name: Ernesto (AL05) Area: Atlantic Ocean Start up location: N 12° 36.000, W 50° 36.000 Start up: 02nd August 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 1,493.43 km Top category.: Report by: NHC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 02nd Aug 2012 04:08:45 N 12° 36.000, W 50° 36.000 30 56 74 Tropical Depression 285 16 1008 MB NHC 03rd Aug 2012 04:49:11 N 13° 24.000, W 58° 18.000 35 83 102 Tropical Storm 275 20 1005 MB NHC 04th Aug 2012 05:16:42 N 13° 54.000, W 65° 36.000 30 83 102 Tropical Storm 275 16 1003 MB NHC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 05th Aug 2012 05:35:24 N 15° 24.000, W 72° 42.000 35 93 111 Tropical Depression 285 ° 16 1007 MB NHC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 06th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 16° 18.000, W 81° 0.000 Hurricane I 111 139 NHC 06th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 16° 6.000, W 78° 42.000 Tropical Depression 93 111 NHC 07th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 17° 0.000, W 82° 54.000 Hurricane I 120 148 NHC 08th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 18° 30.000, W 86° 30.000 Hurricane II 139 167 NHC 09th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 20° 30.000, W 89° 30.000 Hurricane II 130 157 NHC 10th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 22° 0.000, W 92° 30.000 Hurricane I 120 148 NHC

Haikui (12W)

Pacific Ocean

03.08.2012

04.08.2012

Tropical Depression

295 °

83 km/h

102 km/h

6.10 m

JTWC

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 4 Storm name: Haikui (12W) Area: Pacific Ocean Start up location: N 24° 24.000, E 139° 48.000 Start up: 03rd August 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 680.69 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 04th Aug 2012 05:17:37 N 24° 54.000, E 134° 12.000 35 65 83 Tropical Storm 275 20 JTWC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 05th Aug 2012 05:42:49 N 26° 48.000, E 129° 12.000 17 83 102 Tropical Depression 290 ° 16 JTWC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 06th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 27° 48.000, E 124° 42.000 Typhoon I 111 139 JTWC 06th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 27° 36.000, E 125° 48.000 Typhoon I 102 130 JTWC 07th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 28° 0.000, E 123° 42.000 Typhoon I 120 148 JTWC 08th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 28° 24.000, E 122° 0.000 Typhoon II 139 167 JTWC 09th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 29° 6.000, E 120° 30.000 Typhoon I 111 139 JTWC 10th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 30° 0.000, E 119° 24.000 Tropical Depression 83 102 JTWC

Florence (AL06)

Atlantic Ocean

04.08.2012

04.08.2012

Tropical Depression

295 °

74 km/h

93 km/h

5.79 m

NOAA NHC

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 0 Storm name: Florence (AL06) Area: Atlantic Ocean Start up location: N 13° 48.000, W 27° 48.000 Start up: 04th August 2012 Status: Active Track long: 381.63 km Top category.: Report by: NOAA NHC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 04th Aug 2012 05:23:26 N 13° 48.000, W 27° 48.000 26 56 74 Tropical Depression 290 20 1009 MB NOAA NHC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 05th Aug 2012 05:34:42 N 16° 6.000, W 33° 0.000 24 93 111 Tropical Depression 295 ° 20 1000 MB NOAA NHC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 06th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 17° 30.000, W 39° 42.000 Hurricane I 111 139 NOAA NHC 06th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 17° 0.000, W 37° 12.000 Hurricane I 111 139 NOAA NHC 07th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 18° 6.000, W 42° 36.000 Hurricane I 111 139 NOAA NHC 08th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 19° 18.000, W 49° 0.000 Tropical Depression 83 102 NOAA NHC 09th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 20° 54.000, W 55° 6.000 Tropical Depression 65 83 NOAA NHC 10th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 23° 30.000, W 60° 30.000 Tropical Depression 56 74 NOAA NHC

……………………………………………….

Tropical Storm Florence joins Ernesto in Atlantic

Jamaica on alert as forecast calls for Ernesto becoming hurricane

Monitor Atlantic storm paths and weather conditions.

After a lull in the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season, Tropical Storm Florence formed on Saturday, joining Ernesto as both moved west on paths that could eventually take them to the U.S. coast.

Florence has sustained winds up to 45 mph, the National Hurricane Center reported.

It was still in the deep Atlantic, but on a path towards the Caribbean.

Ernesto was packing sustained winds of 50 mph and should pass south of Jamaica on Sunday, the center stated. “Ernesto is forecast to become a hurricane … in a day or two,” it added.

After Jamaica, which issued a tropical storm warning, Ernesto will likely head toward Grand Cayman, arriving Monday, and then Cancun/Cozumel in Mexico on Wednesday, weather.com reported.

Weather.com added it was “unclear whether Ernesto poses a threat to the U.S. late next week.”

On Friday, the storm swept over the tiny island of St. Lucia.

Businesses and government offices were ordered closed until noon on St. Lucia as Ernesto passed over the island, churning up 12-foot waves a few miles off its north shore.

It moved so quickly that St. Lucia got less than an inch of rain and there were no reports of damage or injuries.

August and September are usually the most active months of the Atlantic-Caribbean hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30.

Prior to Ernesto forming on Thursday, the last Atlantic tropical storm was Debby more than a month ago. It drenched Florida and eight deaths were tied to the storm.

U.S. government forecasters in May predicted a “normal” 2012 season, saying 9-15 named storms could be expected. Between 4-8 of those were predicted to become hurricanes.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Heavy rains, landslide kill 10 in Uttarakhand; Pilgrimage halted

Dehradun,

Continuous heavy rainfall, cloud burst, and landslides have killed 10 in various parts of Sub-Himalayan region of Uttarakhand. At least 53 persons have been reported missing so far in flash floods and swallon rivers.

The pilgrims of the Chardham were stranded in the midway at various places and government has implemented temporary closure on the annual Char Dham pilgrimage until the situation becomes under control, official said on Saturday.

Due to heavy rains, the rivers have swollen and land sliding have increasing causing havoc among the localities and pilgrims. The pilgrims were stranded on way to Gangotri, Yamunotri, Badrinath and Kedarnath – the four points of pilgrimage.

According to official report, three fire fighters were killed in Gangotri due to heavy rains. A bridge was also washed away here and over 40 houses submerged in the overflowing Bhagirathi river.

Garhwal was the worst hit area, report said.

Two deaths were reported from Chamoli after two children died in a roof collpase. A child was swept away in Pokhri.

Uttarkashi has also been hit by flash floods.

Officials said following warnings of “more and severe rains” in the next two days, the Disaster Management and Mitigation Centre is on high alert and Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna was monitoring the situation.

Water level of Bhagirathi and Ganga rivers is also on the rise. The Uttarakhand government has issued red alert in areas along the river Ganga.

–With Agencies Inputs–

Flash Flood Watch

JACKSON KY
CHARLESTON WV
ALBUQUERQUE NM

Flood Advisory

ALBUQUERQUE NM

04.08.2012

Flash Flood

India

State of Jammu and Kashmir, [Ujh and Tawi rivers region]

Flash Flood in India on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 09:08 (09:08 AM) UTC.

Description

As many as 22 people were on Friday trapped in flash floods in Jammu region, prompting the authorities to sound an alert in the region. “A flash flood alert has been sounded in Jammu. Due to heavy overnight rains, various rivers in Jammu region are flooded…22 people and large number of cattle are trapped in the flash floods in Ujh and Tawi rivers,” an official said. Of the 22 people, 15 are trapped in Ujh river at Khadwal area in Kathua district and two each in Mayachak, Nagri, Sujanal (Satwari) and Muthi areas, he said. A rescue operation has been launched for those trapped in the flash floods, triggered by intermittent overnight rains in Jammu, Kathua and Udhampur districts, the official said. The water level in Chenab, Tawi, Ujh and Basantar rivers are nearing the danger mark, officials said, adding that people living in low-lying areas have been alerted and warned of flash floods. They have also been asked to keep away from banks of the flooded rivers.

04.08.2012

Flash Flood

USA

State of New Mexico, Santa Fe

Flash Flood in USA on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 06:36 (06:36 AM) UTC.

Description

Public Service Company of New Mexico said nearly 3,000 customers on Santa Fe’s south side were without electric power for more than two hours Friday evening after lightning struck the local power grid. Spokesman Frederick Bermudez said he couldn’t pinpoint where the lightning hit but said it knocked out power from 5:35 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. to 2,916 homes, businesses and institutions in an area bounded by St. Michael’s Drive on the north, Old Galisteo Road on the south, Old Pecos Trail on the east and Entrada de Santiago on the west. Much of Santa Fe was pounded by heavy rain with lightning and sudden high winds late Friday afternoon, suddenly swelling the Santa Fe River and other areas with swift flows of storm water. A driver on St. Michael’s Drive reported seeing thin funnel cloud on the horizon at about 5:45 p.m. “It was probably a dust devil, but we’ve been seeing that a lot this year,” said Brian Guyer, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Albuquerque. “We’ve had some strong winds in Santa Fe today.” Guyer said the peak wind speed recorded at Santa Fe on Friday was 41 mph. Between two-tenths and four-tenths of an inch of rain fell — not a lot by most standards but what Guyer said was the heaviest rain the city has seen so far this summer. “You had a ton of lightning, some around the Plaza and a lot of lighting strikes up in the foothills,” he said. “It’s still dry, so it wouldn’t surprise me if we might see some fires by tomorrow.”

04.08.2012

Flash Flood

India

State of Himachal Pradesh, Kullu

Flash Flood in India on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 04:06 (04:06 AM) UTC.

Description

Hundreds of people residing near Beas river have been evacuated to safe places after flash flood caused by torrential rain over Dhundi peaks at south portal of Rohtang tunnel flooded the Seri rivulet, a tributary to Beas river, on Friday at 8pm. People living close to river between Palchan and Kullu are being evacuated and traffic on national highway has been stopped. Till last report received from Palchan (near Dhundi) at 10.30pm, level of the river was rising continuously and police were evacuating the people from Bahang village, 6km from Manali. According to police, there is no report of any casualty. Sandeep Kumar, a resident of Bahang village, said people are trying to save the household accessories amid chaotic atmosphere and conditions have become even worse after power failure. “Everything was normal till late evening but the situation changed suddenly after 8pm when river water, mixed with sludge, started engulfing its banks. People are risking their lives to remove the household stuffs,” he said. An engineer working with a hydel project near Palchan said over phone that roaring sound of river is shaking the foundation of the houses. “Nobody is going to sleep tonight. Villagers have gathered at many places and are guarding the river banks with floodlights,” he said. According to villagers it is a cloudburst which might have caused devastation at its source on mountains. Kullu deputy commissioner Amitabh Awasthi said , police are patrolling the river banks and have directed people to move to safe places. “We have closed the traffic on national highway. We shall keep an eye on the situation throughout the night,” he said.

…………………………………………………………………..

N Korea floods kill 169, 400 missing

• From: AAP

FLOODS which hit parts of North Korea in the past few weeks have killed 169 people and left 400 missing, the state news agency announced on Saturday, sharply updating earlier casualty figures.

The floods and torrential rain between late June and the end of July also made 212,200 people homeless and washed away or inundated 65,280 hectares of cropland, the agency said.

United Nations agencies have visited the worst-hit areas to assess aid needs and the World Food Program (WFP) is sending an initial shipment of emergency food aid.

North Korea suffered a famine in the 1990s that killed hundreds of thousands and still struggles to feed its people even in normal times.

It had been estimated by UN agencies, even before the current deluge, that three million people would need food aid this year.

More than 8600 houses were destroyed and another 43,770 swamped, and more than 1400 schools, hospitals and factories collapsed, the news agency said.

Official media had previously reported 119 deaths, with 84,000 people made homeless and 45,370ha of farmland damaged.

The WFP said its initial assistance would provide victims with an initial ration of 400 grams of maize a day for 14 days, after the UN assessment mission found considerable damage to maize, soybean and rice fields.

The mission has said immediate food aid is needed for residents of the worst-hit counties such as Anju and Songchon in South Pyongan province and Chonnae in Kangwon province.

It also stressed that tens of thousands of families urgently need clean drinking water to prevent disease.

Wells had been contaminated by overflowing latrines, creating a high risk of a diarrhoea outbreak, while floods had damaged water sources and pumping stations.

Citing North Korean government figures, the UN mission said about 50,000 families would need purification tablets or other help to secure clean water.

The UN children’s fund UNICEF has ordered 10 million tablets along with other materials. Drugs and IV fluids were also badly needed.

The assessment mission said on Thursday a hospital in Chonnae county had already seen a fourfold rise in diarrhoea cases.

“In general, unless … needs are addressed, rapid increase in diarrhoea, skin infection and respiratory infections could occur,” it said in a report.

Outdated and inefficient agricultural practices, along with a shortage of fertiliser and diversion of food to the military, have contributed to the annual food shortages.

Mountainous North Korea is also short of arable land. Widespread deforestation, partly to clear land for crops, has made the impoverished nation increasingly prone to serious flooding which ends up washing away the harvest.

In February, the US reached a deal to offer North Korea 240,000 tonnes of food in return for a freeze on nuclear and missile tests.

But the plan was scrapped after Pyongyang’s failed rocket launch in April, seen by the US and its allies as an attempted ballistic missile test.

AF

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Epidemic Hazards / Diseases

04.08.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Nepal

Capital City, Kathmandu

Epidemic Hazard in Nepal on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 04:51 (04:51 AM) UTC.

Description
At least 10 people admitted to the Sukraraj Tropical and Disease Control Hospital in Nepali capital Kathmandu have tested positive for cholera. The hospital laboratory said Vibrio Cholera belonging to 01 Ogawa stereotype was detected in all the patients. Doctors at hospital attributed the spread of cholera and diarrhea infection in Kathmandu to contaminated water, according to Saturday’s Republica daily. “Most of the patients who came to the hospital said that they had drunk water supplied by Kathmandu Upatyaka Kahanepani Limited without boiling or treatment,” Tulsha Adhikari, a nursing staff said. She said whole families had been infected and some were brought to the hospital by their neighbors as all family members were sick.
Biohazard name:	Cholera
Biohazard level:	2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

04.08.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Pakistan

Federally Administered Tribal Areas, [South Waziristan]

Epidemic Hazard in Pakistan on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 04:04 (04:04 AM) UTC.

Description
Five children in South Waziristan have died from measles during the past week, an official said. “Non-availability of measles vaccines has become a big problem and if the desired vaccines were not made available, the situation could slip out of hand,” Dr. Azmat Hayat Khan, agency surgeon, told Central Asia Online August 3. Measles has affected about 400 children, of whom about 100 were hospitalised, he said. He warned of an outbreak throughout the agency if medics failed to immunise children immediately. Letters regarding the unavailability of measles vaccine have gone to the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) directorate of health, he said, expressing hope the vaccine would become available in a few days. The Taliban have refused to allow polio vaccination in areas of South Waziristan they control, endangering more than 157,000 children below age 5, he said. The directorate has received the agency surgeon’s letter and is sending vaccines to South Waziristan, FATA Health Director Dr. Fawad Khan said. “We have also started vaccination in Mohmand, Bajaur and Khyber agencies, where measles had killed several children besides sending hundreds to hospitals,” he said.
Biohazard name:	Measles (fatal)
Biohazard level:	3/4 Hight
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that can cause severe to fatal disease in humans, but for which vaccines or other treatments exist, such as anthrax, West Nile virus, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, SARS virus, variola virus (smallpox), tuberculosis, typhus, Rift Valley fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, yellow fever, and malaria. Among parasites Plasmodium falciparum, which causes Malaria, and Trypanosoma cruzi, which causes trypanosomiasis, also come under this level.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

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Solar Activity

2MIN News August 4, 2012: Weather, Plasma Filaments

Published on Aug 4, 2012 by Suspicious0bservers

TODAY’S LINKS
Valence Issue: http://phys.org/news/2012-08-exposing-valence-bond-inadequacies.html
2012 Heat: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2012/03aug_summer2012/

REPEAT LINKS
Spaceweather: http://spaceweather.com/ [Look on the left at the X-ray Flux and Solar Wind Speed/Density]

HAARP: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/haarp/data.html [Click online data, and have a little fun]

SDO: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/ [Place to find Solar Images and Videos – as seen from earth]

SOHO: http://sohodata.nascom.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/soho_movie_theater [SOHO; Lasco and EIT – as seen from earth]

Stereo: http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/images [Stereo; Cor, EUVI, HI – as seen from the side]

SunAEON:http://www.sunaeon.com/#/solarsystem/ [Just click it… trust me]

SOLARIMG: http://solarimg.org/artis/ [All purpose data viewing site]

iSWA: http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov/iswa/iSWA.html [Free Application; for advanced sun watchers]

NOAA ENLIL SPIRAL: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/wsa-enlil/cme-based/ [CME Evolution]

NOAA Bouys: http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/

RSOE: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php [That cool alert map I use]

JAPAN Radiation Map: http://jciv.iidj.net/map/

LISS: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/heliplots_gsn.php

Gamma Ray Bursts: http://grb.sonoma.edu/ [Really? You can’t figure out what this one is for?]

BARTOL Cosmic Rays: http://neutronm.bartol.udel.edu//spaceweather/welcome.html [Top left box, look for BIG blue circles]

TORCON: http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-torcon-index [Tornado Forecast for the day]

GOES Weather: http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/goes/ [Clouds over America]

EL DORADO WORLD WEATHER MAP: http://www.eldoradocountyweather.com/satellite/ssec/world/world-composite-ir-…

PRESSURE MAP: http://www.woweather.com/cgi-bin/expertcharts?LANG=us&MENU=0000000000&…

HURRICANE TRACKER: http://www.weather.com/weather/hurricanecentral/tracker

INTELLICAST: http://www.intellicast.com/ [Weather site used by many youtubers]

NASA News: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/

PHYSORG: http://phys.org/ [GREAT News Site!]

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Space

Earth approaching objects (objects that are known in the next 30 days)
Object Name	Apporach Date	Left	AU Distance	LD Distance	Estimated Diameter*	Relative Velocity
(2006 EC)	06th August 2012	1 day(s)	0.0932	36.3	13 m – 28 m	6.13 km/s	22068 km/h
(2006 MV1)	07th August 2012	2 day(s)	0.0612	23.8	12 m – 28 m	4.79 km/s	17244 km/h
(2005 RK3)	08th August 2012	3 day(s)	0.1843	71.7	52 m – 120 m	8.27 km/s	29772 km/h
(2009 BW2)	09th August 2012	4 day(s)	0.0337	13.1	25 m – 56 m	5.27 km/s	18972 km/h
277475 (2005 WK4)	09th August 2012	4 day(s)	0.1283	49.9	260 m – 580 m	6.18 km/s	22248 km/h
(2004 SC56)	09th August 2012	4 day(s)	0.0811	31.6	74 m – 170 m	10.57 km/s	38052 km/h
(2008 AF4)	10th August 2012	5 day(s)	0.1936	75.3	310 m – 690 m	16.05 km/s	57780 km/h
37655 Illapa	12th August 2012	7 day(s)	0.0951	37.0	770 m – 1.7 km	28.73 km/s	103428 km/h
(2012 HS15)	14th August 2012	9 day(s)	0.1803	70.2	220 m – 490 m	11.54 km/s	41544 km/h
4581 Asclepius	16th August 2012	11 day(s)	0.1079	42.0	220 m – 490 m	13.48 km/s	48528 km/h
(2008 TC4)	18th August 2012	13 day(s)	0.1937	75.4	140 m – 300 m	17.34 km/s	62424 km/h
(2006 CV)	20th August 2012	15 day(s)	0.1744	67.9	290 m – 640 m	13.24 km/s	47664 km/h
(2012 EC)	20th August 2012	15 day(s)	0.0815	31.7	56 m – 130 m	5.57 km/s	20052 km/h
162421 (2000 ET70)	21st August 2012	16 day(s)	0.1503	58.5	640 m – 1.4 km	12.92 km/s	46512 km/h
(2007 WU3)	21st August 2012	16 day(s)	0.1954	76.0	56 m – 120 m	5.25 km/s	18900 km/h
(2012 BB14)	24th August 2012	19 day(s)	0.1234	48.0	27 m – 60 m	2.58 km/s	9288 km/h
1 AU = ~150 million kilometers,1 LD = Lunar Distance = ~384,000 kilometers Source: NASA-NEO

Two Veteran Voyager Spacecraft Will Cross Into Interstellar Space –
“It’s Just A Question Of When”  

MessageToEagle.com – Two of three key signs of changes expected to occur at the boundary of interstellar space have changed faster than at any other time in the last seven years, according to new data from NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft.

For the last seven years, Voyager 1 has been exploring the outer layer of the bubble of charged particles the sun blows around itself.

In one day, on July 28, data from Voyager 1’s cosmic ray instrument showed the level of high-energy cosmic rays originating from outside our solar system jumped by five percent.

During the last half of that same day, the level of lower-energy particles originating from inside our solar system dropped by half. However, in three days, the levels had recovered to near their previous levels. A third key sign is the direction of the magnetic field, and scientists are eagerly analyzing the data to see whether that has, indeed, changed direction. Scientists expect that all three of these signs will have changed when Voyager 1 has crossed into interstellar space. A preliminary analysis of the latest magnetic field data is expected to be available in the next month.

“These are thrilling times for the Voyager team as we try to understand the quickening pace of changes as Voyager 1 approaches the edge of interstellar space,” said Edward Stone, the Voyager project scientist based at the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, Calif.

“We are certainly in a new region at the edge of the solar system where things are changing rapidly. But we are not yet able to say that Voyager 1 has entered interstellar space.”

Click on image to enlargeVoyagers in the HeliosheathThis artist’s concept shows NASA’s two Voyager spacecraft exploring a turbulent region of space known as the heliosheath, the outer shell of the bubble of charged particles around our sun. After more than 33 years of travel, the two Voyager spacecraft will soon reach interstellar space, which is the space between stars.
Our sun gives off a stream of charged particles that form a bubble around our solar system known as the heliosphere. The solar wind travels at supersonic speeds until it crosses a shockwave called the termination shock. That part of our solar system is shown in dark blue. Voyager 1 crossed the termination shock in December 2004 and Voyager 2 did so in August 2007.
Beyond the termination shock is the heliosheath, shown in gray, where the solar wind dramatically slows down and heats up. Outside those two areas is territory dominated by the interstellar wind, which is blowing from the left in this image. As the interstellar wind approaches the heliosphere, a bow shock forms, indicated by the bright arc.
The Voyagers were built by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., which continues to operate both spacecraft. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. The Voyager missions are a part of the NASA Heliophysics System Observatory, sponsored by the Heliophysics Division of the Science Mission Directorate. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Click on image to enlargeBubbles and Cosmic Rays at the Edge of the Solar SystemThe latest data from the Voyager spacecraft indicate the edge of our solar system is much different from what was previously imagined. This resulted in a new computer model that shows the edge of our solar system is not smooth, but filled with a turbulent sea of magnetic bubbles.
The heliospheric boundaries are very important in shielding the inner solar system from the galactic cosmic ray flux. The heliopause, the last region that separates us from the rest of the galaxy, acts more like a membrane that is permeable to galactic cosmic rays than a shield that deflects those energetic particles.
The galactic cosmic rays slowly wander into the heliosphere and can get trapped in the sea of magnetic bubbles. Eventually they access the solar magnetic field lines that connect back to the sun, and can move quickly towards the sun and Earth. Credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/CI Lab
The levels of high-energy cosmic ray particles have been increasing for years, but more slowly than they are now.
The last jump — of five percent — took one week in May. The levels of lower-energy particles from inside our solar system have been slowly decreasing for the last two years. Scientists expect that the lower-energy particles will drop close to zero when Voyager 1 finally crosses into interstellar space.

“The increase and the decrease are sharper than we’ve seen before, but that’s also what we said about the May data,” Stone said.

“The data are changing in ways that we didn’t expect, but Voyager has always surprised us with new discoveries.”

Voyager 1, which launched on Sept. 5, 1977, is 11 billion miles (18 billion kilometers) from the sun.

Voyager 2, which launched on Aug. 20, 1977, is close behind, at 9.3 billion miles (15 billion kilometers) from the sun.

“Our two veteran Voyager spacecraft are hale and healthy as they near the 35th anniversary of their launch,” said Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager based at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena.

“We know they will cross into interstellar space. It’s just a question of when.”
MessageToEagle.com

See also:
Historical Moment: Voyager 1 Is Approaching The Solar System’s Frontier

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Biological Hazards / Wildlife

04.08.2012

Biological Hazard

Nigeria

State of Katsina, Katsina [Government Girls College]

Biological Hazard in Nigeria on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 17:43 (05:43 PM) UTC.

Description
TEN secondary school teachers at the weekend died of food poisoning, and several others hospitalised in Katsina. Investigations by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) showed that the incident occurred at a workshop organised by the state Ministry of Education for some 650 teachers at Government Day Secondary School (GDSS), Kofar Yan’daka, Katsina. It was gathered that soon after taking their lunch, supplied by a popular corporate caterer on the fateful day, some of the teachers were vomiting and afflicted by diarrhoea, as a result of which they were rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Katsina and the Police Clinic for medication. Ten of the affected teachers were said to have died as a result of the infection. When contacted, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, Alhaji Khalil Musa, said: “I cannot comment on the issue now, because it is yet to be reported to the state government. I don’t want to pre-empt the government on the issue.” The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Abubakar Ibrahim, who confirmed the incident, said that only one teacher died, while 19 others were hospitalised. He said that 12 of the affected teachers had already been discharged from the hospitals, while seven others were still on admission at the Federal Medical Centre and Katsina Police Clinic. He said the police had already collected sample of the food supplied by the caterer for clinical analysis. All the victims are receiving treatment at various medical centres, while officials declined to comment on the number of casualties that were brought to the centres.
Biohazard name:	Mass. Food Poisoning
Biohazard level:	2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

04.08.2012

Biological Hazard

Kenya

Rift Valley Province, [Turkana Region]

Biological Hazard in Kenya on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 15:23 (03:23 PM) UTC.

Description
Agro-pastoralists farmers in Loima District in Turkana County have suffered huge losses on their farms from massive locust invasion in the region. The farmers at Kang’ilita Irrigation Schemes in Loima district have decried the invasion as a major setback to their economic sustainability despite their recent devoted engagements into farming. They said raised fear of low crop yields in the coming harvesting season as a result of the unprecedented invasion. Ms Pauline Nakali, a farmer, said that her farm has been extensively damaged by the locust pest and could hardly think of ways to regain the loss. “We are experiencing big loss of crops to locust invasion and that we expect low yield this season since our farms have been destroyed by the pest,” Ms Nakali said. She appealed to the government and donor partners to intervene and salvage the situation before it goes out of hand. But the Rift Valley Director of Agriculture Leonard Nyambuya told farmers that the Ministry of Agriculture and the development partner Food Agriculture Organizations (FAO) would send experts to tackle the pest. Mr Nyambuya said the ministry and the donor partner will provide insecticide to fight the pest. He said experts from the directorate of crop and pest in the ministry will supply appropriate chemicals and insecticides to get rid of the pests. “We are immediately sending the experts to assess the damage caused by the pest before we swing to action to eradicate it,” Nyambuya said. The director who addressed farmers’ field schools in Kangilita irrigation scheme directed the Field extension officers to assess the damage caused by the pest. The FAO officials Dr Paul Omanga said his organisation would assist the farmers to fight the prevailing pest problems in the area so that farmers achieve good yields.
Biohazard name:	Locust Invasion
Biohazard level:	0/4 —
Biohazard desc.:	This does not included biological hazard category.
Symptoms:
Status:

04.08.2012

Biological Hazard

Japan

Multiple areas, [Ise Bay (Ise-wan)]

Biological Hazard in Japan on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 04:02 (04:02 AM) UTC.

Description
Large numbers of jellyfish have been swarming near nine thermal power plants on Ise Bay. Chubu Electric Power Co. estimates that there are close to 24,000 tons of the sea creatures swimming around the area, twice the usual level and the second-most recorded in the past decade. Measures are being taken to ensure the jellyfish don’t clog the power plants’ water intakes and disrupt their operations. Chubu Electric launched a research project in 1999 to predict the number of jellyfish in Ise Bay. They discovered that most jellyfish larvae transform into polyps in three major areas: near the port of Nagoya; along the coast of the Chita Peninsula from Tokoname to Morozaki, Minamichita, in Aichi Prefecture; and along the coast of the Shima Peninsula from Matsusaka to Toba in Mie Prefecture. Every winter, the research group collects samples of polyps and compares them with past results to predict how many larvae will develop into adult jellyfish in the following year. Last winter’s findings indicated the number this year would be 1.5 to 1.8 times higher than usual. “We don’t know the reason why the number is so high this year, but we need to monitor the situation closely,” said Minoru Hamada, 46, an assistant project manager in Chubu Electric’s technology development department. If jellyfish block the water intake, a power plant can’t draw enough water from the sea to cool the steam used to turn the turbine, and the plant has to reduce its electricity output. Each plant has adopted various measures, including putting up nets, to stop the jellyfish from swimming too close, but this is only effective when dealing with small numbers. It is not enough to prevent large amounts of jellyfish from swimming in all at once. The number of jellyfish near the thermal power plants usually peaks in July, August and September. However, this year they started gathering around the plants in May, resulting in reduced electricity output at three of the plants for a total of nine days. They were the Hekinan plant in Hekinan, Aichi Prefecture, the Shin-Nagoya plant in Nagoya and the Kawagoe plant in Kawagoe, Mie Prefecture. It’s a pressing problem for Chubu Electric because it has become increasingly dependent on thermal energy since its Hamaoka nuclear plant has been shut down over quake and tsunami fears. “The effect of the jellyfish isn’t fully known yet, but it can have a serious impact on electricity output if they keep increasing, especially during this season when there is high electricity demand,” a Chubu Electric official said. “We need to monitor the jellyfish further and take actions swiftly if necessary.”
Biohazard name:	Jellyfish invasion
Biohazard level:	0/4 —
Biohazard desc.:	This does not included biological hazard category.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

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[In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit, for research and/or educational purposes. This constitutes ‘FAIR USE’ of any such copyrighted material.]

Earth Watch Report – Saturday August 4th, 2012

Earthquakes

RSOE EDIS

Date/Time (UTC)	Magnitude	Area	Country	State/Prov./Gov.	Location	Risk			Source	Details
04.08.2012 09:35:26	4.3	Caribbean Sea	Dominican Republic	Monseńor Nouel	Piedra Blanca				EMSC
04.08.2012 09:10:35	4.3	Caribbean	Dominican Republic	Monseñor Nouel	Piedra Blanca				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 08:51:00	4.5	Caribbean	Dominican Republic	Monseñor Nouel	Bonao				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 08:20:30	2.2	North America	United States	Alaska	Pedro Bay				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 08:35:19	2.4	Asia	Turkey	Kütahya	Pazarlar				EMSC
04.08.2012 07:35:56	2.1	North America	United States	Alaska	Chenega				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 07:35:24	3.0	Europe	Greece	West Greece	Kamarai				EMSC
04.08.2012 05:35:18	2.3	Asia	Turkey	Kütahya	Simav				EMSC
04.08.2012 05:35:41	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Ad?yaman	Gerger				EMSC
04.08.2012 05:36:03	2.7	Asia	Turkey	Tokat	Yesilyurt				EMSC
04.08.2012 05:36:23	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Ula				EMSC
04.08.2012 05:36:48	2.3	Asia	Turkey	Kütahya	Simav				EMSC
04.08.2012 05:37:06	2.8	Asia	Turkey	Manisa	Golmarmara				EMSC
04.08.2012 05:37:26	3.1	Asia	Turkey	Manisa	Golmarmara				EMSC
04.08.2012 05:37:45	3.6	Asia	Turkey	Manisa	Golmarmara				EMSC
04.08.2012 04:45:28	4.1	Asia	Turkey	Manisa	Golmarmara				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 04:35:19	4.2	Asia	Turkey	Manisa	Golmarmara				EMSC
04.08.2012 04:35:41	2.5	Europe	Greece	North Aegean	Myrina				EMSC
04.08.2012 04:15:25	2.3	North America	United States	Alaska	Akhiok				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 04:15:48	2.2	North America	United States	Alaska	McKinley Park				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 04:36:01	5.2	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	Jambi	Sungaipenuh				EMSC
04.08.2012 04:25:28	5.1	Indonesian archipelago	Indonesia	Jambi	Sungaipenuh				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 04:05:26	2.6	North America	United States	California	Coronado				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 04:36:30	3.2	Europe	Croatia	Splitsko-Dalmatinska	Sinj				EMSC
04.08.2012 03:30:21	2.3	Asia	Turkey	Van	Toyga				EMSC
04.08.2012 03:30:46	2.7	Asia	Turkey	Van	Toyga				EMSC
04.08.2012 03:31:07	4.5	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	Maluku	Amahai				EMSC
04.08.2012 03:25:28	4.5	Indonesian archipelago	Indonesia	Maluku	Amahai				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 03:31:27	2.0	Europe	Italy	Abruzzo	Fagnano Alto				EMSC
04.08.2012 03:20:48	3.0	Pacific Ocean	New Zealand	Canterbury	Tai Tapu				GEONET
04.08.2012 02:25:20	4.6	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	West Java	Paseh				EMSC
04.08.2012 02:00:29	4.6	Indonesian archipelago	Indonesia	West Java	Paseh				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 02:25:42	4.7	Pacific Ocean – Middle	Solomon Islands		Lata				EMSC
04.08.2012 01:55:32	4.7		Solomon Islands		Lata				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 03:21:10	4.0	Pacific Ocean	New Zealand	Canterbury	Tai Tapu				GEONET
04.08.2012 01:25:23	4.1	Asia	Taiwan		Taitung City				EMSC
04.08.2012 01:25:44	2.7	Europe	Spain	Canary Islands	La Restinga				EMSC
04.08.2012 01:26:03	3.7	Europe	Bosnia and Herzegovina	Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina	Glamoc				EMSC
04.08.2012 01:26:25	4.3	Europe	Russia	Sakhalin	Severo-Kuril’sk				EMSC
04.08.2012 00:35:52	4.3	Asia	Russia	Sakhalin	Severo-Kuril’sk				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 01:26:46	4.5	Pacific Ocean – West	Philippines	Soccsksargen	Bantogon				EMSC
04.08.2012 00:40:31	4.5	Pacific Ocean – West	Philippines	Soccsksargen	Bantogon				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 00:00:32	2.1	North America	United States	Alaska	Lake Minchumina				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 00:25:20	2.4	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	San Prospero				EMSC
04.08.2012 00:00:53	5.0	Atlantic Ocean	South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands		Grytviken				USGS-RSOE
04.08.2012 00:25:51	5.0	Atlantic Ocean – North	South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands		Grytviken				EMSC
03.08.2012 23:30:26	3.1	North America	United States	Alaska	Pedro Bay				USGS-RSOE
03.08.2012 23:25:24	3.0	Europe	Greece	Ionian Islands	Mavrata				EMSC
03.08.2012 23:25:50	2.2	Europe	France	Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur	Fontan				EMSC
03.08.2012 23:26:12	4.6	South-America	Chile	Atacama	Diego de Almagro				EMSC

…………………………………….

4.2 ‘earthquake’ wakes Kuwait Salmiya rocks

KUWAIT CITY, Aug 2: An earthquake of 4.2 magnitude on the Richter scale that struck Kuwait 40 km NW of Salmiya at around 7.30 am Thursday was felt by residents in Salmiya.

Though no casualties were reported, some residents complained the quake mildly upset some of their household arrangements. There were a few broken cutlery. Some residents living near the Salmiya garden said they felt the tremor in two short spells in a span of a few seconds.

Most of the residents were asleep and came to know about it from neighbors who experienced the tremor. Melissa, a resident, said she first noticed tea rippling in the cup in her hand before she realized that the whole house was shaking a bit. “It was a little scary.”

Mujib said it was his first experience of a tremor and initially thought that he was feeling woozy. “It occurred as I was getting up after bending down to pick something up from the floor. I thought I was losing balance as it happens sometimes when you suddenly change positions.”

Thambi felt the quake on the street when he was returning after a short walk. “This is my second experience of earthquake, both were in Kuwait. This one was very mild. Last time, I felt the quake like a strong vibration lasting more than 30 seconds.”

Thambi faltered in his step when the quake occurred, but that was just for a second or two. “Soon after that, I saw a dog running wildly to and fro, barking intensely.”

Khalil Rasul was woken up by a book that fell on his head. But he went back to sleep only to learn about the quake from blogs later.

An online journal had earlier quoted earthquake expert and Assist. Manager of Kuwait University for Scientific Affairs Dr. Ferial Bu Rabee as saying that Kuwait may be vulnerable to a powerful earthquake that can reach up to 8 degrees on Richter scale.

The expert said that such an earthquake can strike southern part of Iran and thus impact bordering GCC countries. She further added that an 8.1 tremor on Richter scale hit the same area of southern Iran back in 1945 and caused huge tsunami waves that reached Karachi and Bombay which are approx. 1,100 kms away from Iran.

She warned that Bushehr nuclear reactor in Iran may be vulnerable if an earthquake strikes, such seen recently in Japan. She advised GCC countries to give up their ambitions concerning the construction of nuclear power stations, arguing that “they are time bombs that will destroy the region when the anticipated earthquake strikes.”

---

By: Valiya S. Sajjad

Are Earthquakes “Communicating” Across Large Distances
Triggering Each Other?  

 

MessageToEagle.com – A while back scientists expressed that something unknown has triggered a “terrible and global domino”.

Some researchers suggest that there may be a link between large earthquakes world-wide. Other point out that there is no connection and the earthquakes do not trigger each other. The cluster could just as well be the result of random chance, scientist say.

The past decade has been plagued with what seems to be a cluster of large earthquakes, with massive quakes striking Sumatra, Chile, Haiti and Japan since 2004.

Each of the devastating quakes in the 2000s drew huge media coverage and required extensive rebuilding and economic restoration.

The intense interest in the earthquakes has led some to wonder if we are living in the middle of an “age of great quakes,” similar to a global cluster of quakes in the 1960s.It’s important to know whether these clusters occur because big earthquakes trigger others across the world, Parsons and Geist of the US Geological Survey say, in order to predict whether more severely destructive quakes might be on the way. To determine if the quake clusters in the 1960s and 2000s could be attributed to random chance, the researchers looked at the timing between the world’s largest earthquakes–magnitude 8.3 and above–at one-year intervals during the past 100 years.

They compared simulated lists of large quakes and the list of real quakes during this time with the between-quake intervals expected from a random process.

The intervals between the real-life large quakes are similar to what would be expected from a random process, they found. In other words, the global hazard of large earthquakes is constant in time. Except in the case of local aftershocks, the probability of a new large quake occurring isn’t related to past global quakes.

Aerial photo of the San Andreas Fault in the Carrizo Plain, northwest of Los Angeles Image credit: Leohotens

This could be disappointing news for researchers who thought global communication between quakes might offer a way to predict the most severe seismic activity. But there also may be some good news after a decade of destruction.

If global great earthquakes are occurring at random, the authors say, then a specific number of quakes that cluster together within a short time is unlikely to be repeated in a similar way over a 100-year span.

In addition, if quakes were communicating at global distances, after a big quake, the entire planet would essentially be an aftershock zone. MessageToEagle.com based on information provided by Seismological Society of America

See also:
Do Gateways To The Underworld Open? Next Dangerous And Unexpected Opening In The Ground!

Follow MessageToEagle.com for the latest news on Facebook and Twitter !

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Volcanic Activity

Are Earthquakes “Communicating” Across Large Distances
Triggering Each Other? 

By Antonio Denti

POZZUOLI, Italy | Fri Aug 3, 2012 12:39pm EDT

(Reuters) – Across the bay of Naples from Pompeii, where thousands were incinerated by Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, lies a hidden “super volcano” that could kill millions in a catastrophe many times worse, scientists say.

The boiling mud and sulphurous steam holes of the area west of Naples known as the Campi Flegrei or Phlegraean Fields, from the Greek word for burning, are a major tourist attraction.

But the zone of intense seismic activity, which the ancients thought was the entrance to hell, also could pose a danger of global proportions with millions of people literally living on top of a potential future volcanic eruption.

“These areas can give rise to the only eruptions that can have global catastrophic effects comparable to major meteorite impacts,” said Giuseppe De Natale, head of a project to drill deep under the earth to monitor the molten “caldera”.

One such meteorite impact is thought to have caused the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago when debris thrown into the atmosphere from the huge explosion plunged the earth into darkness.

Scientists plan to drill 3.5 km (2.2 miles) below the surface to monitor the huge chamber of molten rock near Pompeii and give early warning of any eruption from a 13-km-wide collapsed volcanic caldera.

The Campi Flegrei are similar to the Yellowstone caldera in the U.S. state of Wyoming but of more concern because they are in an area populated by around 3 million people in the Naples hinterland.

“Fortunately, it is extremely rare for these areas to erupt at their full capacity, as it is extremely rare for large meteorites to hit the earth,” De Natale told Reuters.

“But some of these areas, in particular the Campi Flegrei, are densely populated and therefore even small eruptions, which are the most probable, fortunately, can pose risks for the population,” said De Natale, from the Vesuvius observatory at Italy’s National Institute for Geophysics and Volcanology.

“That is why the Campi Flegrei absolutely must be studied and monitored. I wouldn’t say like others, but much more than the others exactly because of the danger given that millions of people live in the volcano.”

However, the project, funded by the multi-national International Continental Scientific Drilling Programme, has run into major opposition from some local scientists who say the drilling itself could cause a dangerous eruption or earthquake.

EXPLOSION?

Benedetto De Vivo, a geochemist at Naples University, has said the drilling could cause an explosion.

The Naples city council blocked the project in 2010 but it resumed on the site of an abandoned steel mill at Bagnoli, west of Naples, late last month after the recently elected new mayor, Luigi De Magistris, gave the go-ahead.

De Natale scoffed at the objections, saying that the drilling was perfectly safe and that similar probes had been sent down by mining projects looking for sources of thermal energy in the 1980s and earlier.

“There were dozens of drillings in the past, with much less secure instruments for industrial motives and nobody said anything,” he said.

He added that those raising objections were not experts on drilling and that their suggestions of potential earthquakes or escapes of magma or liquid molten rock, had been exaggerated by the local press.

“Some of the things they suggested are laughable,” he said, adding that the project’s priority will be scientific knowledge and safety of the local population rather than industrial exploitation as in the past.

“We believe the security of millions of people deserves the most powerful methods of inquiry without thinking too much about the economic aspect,” he said.

He added that drilling is the only way to discover the geological history of the area because successive eruptions buried previous evidence. The probe has already found volcanic rock from a major eruption 15,000 years ago.

De Natale’s team has begun drilling a pilot hole at the Bagnoli site, where a long jetty built to load steel is used by joggers and courting couples enjoying the spectacular Neapolitan sunsets.

The pilot hole is aimed not only at studying the stratification of the area but to establish a deep geological observatory with new instruments which De Natale says are many times more sensitive than those in the past.

“This will increase by a thousand or 10,000 times our ability to detect small episodes that are precursors of future eruptions,” he said.

MOVEMENT OF EARTH’S SURFACE

The project also aims to study the cause of a phenomenon known as bradyseism which is a gradual raising and lowering of the earth’s surface because of deep volcanic activity. This is episodic but in the latest phase the ground has risen by 3.5 m (yards) in 15 years, the most since medieval times.

This movement forced the evacuation of 30,000 people temporarily from Pozzuoli in the 1980s and a fishing harbor in the old part of the town was completely abandoned.

Once work is complete on the pilot hole, scientists plan to drill much deeper, to around 3.5 km where temperatures are at around 500 degrees C (930 F). But De Natale said this could take another 18 months and the area for the second phase has not yet been decided.

His team has developed new fiber optic sensors able to withstand the extreme heat that would have destroyed earlier electronic equipment.

“We will be able to identify the smallest signs of a future eruption…this is an enormous mitigation of the volcanic risk,” he said.

De Natale says there will be no risk of an escape of magma because the molten chamber is at 7-km depth or lower and sensors will give ample warning of temperatures that reach 1,000 degrees C at the molten core.

“We will stop everything if we detect temperatures at 500 degrees…we can close the top of the drilling hole hermetically in a fraction of a second,” he said.

Local people are divided on whether the drilling could be dangerous.

“There is a risk that the drilling can lead to a shift of the earth’s surface and if that happened, rather than helping to predict future problems, they will be creating them,” Pozzuoli student Marco Laporta said.

Many are more sanguine. “Back in the 1980s they said we would all be blown up and we weren’t,” pensioner Luigi Bruni said.

(Writing by Barry Moody; Editing by Michael Roddy)

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Extreme Temperatures/ Weather / Drought

04.08.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

Russia [Asia]

Siberia, [Krasnoyarsk Krai, Tomsk Region, Tuva, Khakassia and Irkutsk Region]

Forest / Wild Fire in Russia [Asia] on Saturday, 28 July, 2012 at 12:07 (12:07 PM) UTC.

Description

Firefighters in Russia’s Siberia had extinguished 45 forest fires covering 522 hectares of forest in the past 24 hours, but 131 wildfires were still burning on the area of almost 15,000 hectares, the regional forestry department said Friday. A total of 29 wildfires covering an area of more than 5,000 hectares were localized, and 14,948 hectares of forest continued to burn in the Krasnoyarsk Krai, Tomsk Region, Tuva, Khakassia and Irkutsk Region. Some 3,000 people, 412 units of fire-fighting equipment and 24 aircrafts have been mobilized to fight the blazes, which are believed to be caused by hot and dry weather in the region where the temperature reaches 35 degrees. Reports said the wildfires posed no threat to populated areas or industry.

Today

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Oklahoma, [East of Norman]

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 03:59 (03:59 AM) UTC.

Description

A wildfire whipped by gusty, southerly winds swept through rural woodlands north and south of Oklahoma City on Friday, burning several homes as firefighters struggled to contain it in 113-degree heat. Oklahoma’s emergency management officials said 25 structures had burned east of Noble, including a handful of homes, and several homes near Luther, north of Oklahoma City, were threatened. Hundreds of residents were told to leave their homes as flames spread through treetops. The state Highway Patrol closed part of the main highway between Oklahoma City and Tulsa because of the Luther-area fire, which may have been deliberately set. Local deputies were looking into reports about passengers in a pickup truck who were seen throwing out newspapers that had been set on fire. “I loaded the kids up, grabbed my dogs, and it didn’t even look like I had time to load the livestock, so I just got out of there,” said Bo Ireland, who lives a few miles from where the Noble-area fire started. “It looked to me that, if the wind shifted even a little bit, I would be in the path of that fire. It was just too close.” There were no immediate reports of injuries or livestock losses. Dayle Bishop stood in a convenience store parking lot about 2 miles away from his house, saying he was pessimistic about his home’s chances. “I know it’s gone,” said Bishop, who works nights as a nurse. “Didn’t even have time to get anything out.” But he noted “it’s just stuff,” and said he may not have made it out of his home had a woman not knocked on his door and woken him up.Charles Wright was with his daughter, Christina, along with their cat, at a makeshift evacuation center doubling as a staging area for fire engines, ambulances and other emergency equipment. He said law enforcement ordered them to leave their home in Norman. “Praying for miracles. Praying for the best, that’s all we can do,” said Wright, who managed to pack some clothes, jewelry and legal papers before fleeing. Ruth Hood splashed water onto two Chihuahua puppies that she grabbed along with several other animals and her children, and left as flames burned in her neighbor’s yard. She said she couldn’t be sure her home would survive. “No guarantee,” Hood said. With the ongoing drought, high temperatures and gusty winds, it took little for fires to begin and spread — and there was little crews could do to fight them. “It’s difficult for the firefighters to get into the area because it’s heavily wooded on either side of the smaller roads. When the winds are blowing 25 mph it just blows the embers and fireballs across the roads as if they weren’t even there,” said Jerry Lojka with the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management. At mid-afternoon Friday, the temperature at nearby Norman was 113. Winds were from the south and southwest at 14 mph, gusting to 24 mph. “I can tell you the temperatures and the wind are not helping the situation at all. Some homes have been lost in the fire unfortunately, but we don’t know how many,” said Meghan McCormick, a spokeswoman for the Cleveland County Sheriff’s office.Russell Moore, 53, who lives in the Noble area, said he was outside in his yard when a sheriff’s deputy drove down the road and told people to leave. He and his son went to a shelter set up at Noble City Hall, but planned to go to his daughter’s home in Norman. “About all we saw was smoke and a little bit of ash raining down from the sky,” Moore said. “Everybody was piling into their vehicles and leaving as we were.” Lojka said an Oklahoma National Guard helicopter has been dispatched to a fast-moving blaze in Luther, northeast of Oklahoma City. He also said helicopters were helping ground crews with a fire near Mannford and Drumright in Creek County. Helicopters from the National Guard and the Bureau of Indian Affairs were fighting a fire in Creek County. The Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office said it was investigating reports that someone in a black pickup truck near Luther was tossing out newspapers that had been set on fire. The blaze and smoke led the Oklahoma Highway Patrol to shut down part of the Turner Turnpike, which carries Interstate 44 between Oklahoma City and Tulsa. Traffic was rerouted onto old U.S. Route 66, the famed two-lane highway that crisscrosses Oklahoma. The state was monitoring 11 fires in all Friday afternoon. Gov. Mary Fallin announced a statewide burn ban as the fire danger heightened. She previously had announced a state of emergency for all 77 counties due to the extreme drought.

Today

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Montana, Lame Deer

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 03:46 (03:46 AM) UTC.

Description

As a wildfire’s flames raced to the edge of Lame Deer’s town limits, police drove the streets with loudspeakers blaring orders for residents of the Northern Cheyenne Reservation community to grab their most important belongings and get out. Buses were waiting to carry people from danger area, which on Thursday night suddenly meant the entire town of 2,000. Desi Small-Rodriguez, a volunteer with the tribe’s disaster and emergency services department, recalled the chaotic scene as the Chalky Fire threatened to burn down the seat of the southeastern Montana reservation. “A lot of people were walking with their belongings, getting on buses, trying to find rides, getting out as told,” Small-Rodriguez said Friday. About 250 people stayed at a Red Cross shelter 25 miles away at the St. Labre Mission. Others took shelter with friends and relatives on other parts of the reservation. Those with no place to go camped out on lawns in nearby communities, or they just refused to leave. The fire had already burned two homes earlier in the day, then wind from a cold front whipped up the flames and drove the fire straight toward town. Things looked grim to Carol Raymond, Rosebud County’s head of disaster and emergency services, who had driven from Forsyth to see firsthand what was happening. “I figured the whole town of Lame Deer would go up in flames,” Raymond said. Firefighters worked overnight trying to keep the flames back. At one point early Friday, the fire jumped Highway 212, but firefighters contained it with a back burn of the surrounding area, and the wildfire skirted around town without destroying any buildings or causing any injuries, Small-Rodriguez said. On Friday, the smoke was choking the town, but rain was assisting firefighters. A red-flag warning was to be in effect until evening, and firefighters prepared for gusty winds and possible thunderstorms. The mandatory evacuation remained in effect.

Today

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Washington, [Near Pateros and Brewster]

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 03:45 (03:45 AM) UTC.

Description

The state is sending firefighters and managers to help battle a 1,000-acre wildfire in the southeast corner of Washington. Other firefighters also are trying to contain a 10,000-acre wildfire in central Washington. The new fire broke out Thursday afternoon five miles south of Asotin and is burning grass, brush and wheat. The state Emergency Operations Center at Camp Murray has been activated to coordinate state assistance. Overnight winds forced firefighters to retreat at the central Washington fire as it grew to 10,000 acres – more than 15 square miles. Spokesman Dan Garner at the incident management center at Brewster High School says no structures are threatened. The fire broke out Wednesday near Pateros and Brewster. It’s burning grass, brush, scattered timber and some wheat land.

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USDA Designates More Drought Disaster Areas, Announces New Assistance Efforts

 By Carla Gillespie

Two measures announced today by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack are meant to bring relief to farmers and ranchers nationwide as drought conditions have now caused more than half of all counties to be declared disaster areas.

After adding  218 counties in 12 states to the list of designated disaster areas, Vilsack announced two new ways that farmers and ranchers could seek relief. The first is a 3.8 million-acre expansion of emergency haying and grazing areas on conservation land. The second is a 30-day grace period that crop insurance companies have agreed to to extend to farmers on their premiums.

“The assistance announced today will help U.S. livestock producers dealing with climbing feed prices, critical shortages of hay and deteriorating pasturelands. Responding to my request, crop insurance companies indicated that producers can forgo interest penalties to help our nation’s farm families struggling with cash flow challenges. The Obama Administration intends to continue helping those who farm or ranch and live and work in rural America through this period of hardship,” Vilsack said in a statement.

About 66 percent of the nation’s hay acreage and 73 percent of the nation’s cattle acreage is experiencing drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. The 3.8 million acres of conservation land made available for emergency haying and grazing must be used in accordance with rules that will minimize any impact to these areas, the USDA said. The agency said it will conduct follow-up monitoring and evaluation.

The counties designated today are in the following states: Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Wyoming.

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Storms, Flooding

Active tropical storm system(s)
Name of storm system	Location	Formed	Last update	Last category	Course	Wind Speed	Gust	Wave	Source	Details
Ernesto (AL05)	Atlantic Ocean	02.08.2012	04.08.2012	Tropical Depression	275 °	83 km/h	102 km/h	4.88 m	NOAA NHC

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 2 Storm name: Ernesto (AL05) Area: Atlantic Ocean Start up location: N 12° 36.000, W 50° 36.000 Start up: 02nd August 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 1,012.54 km Top category.: Report by: NHC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 02nd Aug 2012 04:08:45 N 12° 36.000, W 50° 36.000 30 56 74 Tropical Depression 285 16 1008 MB NHC 03rd Aug 2012 04:49:11 N 13° 24.000, W 58° 18.000 35 83 102 Tropical Storm 275 20 1005 MB NHC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 04th Aug 2012 05:16:42 N 13° 54.000, W 65° 36.000 30 83 102 Tropical Depression 275 ° 16 1003 MB NHC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 05th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 15° 24.000, W 74° 48.000 Hurricane I 102 120 NHC 05th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 14° 42.000, W 71° 18.000 Hurricane I 102 120 NHC 06th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 16° 6.000, W 77° 54.000 Hurricane I 111 139 NHC 07th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 17° 30.000, W 82° 0.000 Hurricane I 120 148 NHC 08th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 19° 30.000, W 85° 30.000 Hurricane II 139 167 NHC 09th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 22° 0.000, W 88° 54.000 Hurricane I 120 148 NHC

Haikui (12W)

Pacific Ocean

03.08.2012

04.08.2012

Tropical Depression

275 °

65 km/h

83 km/h

6.10 m

JTWC

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 1 Storm name: Haikui (12W) Area: Pacific Ocean Start up location: N 24° 24.000, E 139° 48.000 Start up: 03rd August 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 353.28 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 03rd Aug 2012 09:08:44 N 24° 24.000, E 139° 48.000 24 56 74 Tropical Depression 295 20 JTWC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 04th Aug 2012 05:17:37 N 24° 54.000, E 134° 12.000 35 65 83 Tropical Depression 275 ° 20 JTWC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 05th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 27° 0.000, E 126° 48.000 Typhoon I 93 120 JTWC 05th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 26° 36.000, E 128° 24.000 Tropical Depression 83 102 JTWC 06th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 27° 18.000, E 125° 36.000 Typhoon I 102 130 JTWC 07th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 27° 42.000, E 124° 18.000 Typhoon II 130 157 JTWC 08th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 28° 0.000, E 123° 6.000 Typhoon III 148 185 JTWC 09th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 28° 36.000, E 121° 36.000 Typhoon III 157 194 JTWC

AL06

Atlantic Ocean

04.08.2012

04.08.2012

Tropical Depression

290 °

56 km/h

74 km/h

6.10 m

NOAA NHC

 Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 0 Storm name: AL06 Area: Atlantic Ocean Start up location: N 13° 48.000, W 27° 48.000 Start up: 04th August 2012 Status: Active Track long: 0.00 km Top category.: Report by: NOAA NHC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 04th Aug 2012 05:23:26 N 13° 48.000, W 27° 48.000 26 56 74 Tropical Depression 290 ° 20 1009 MB NOAA NHC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 05th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 15° 6.000, W 31° 48.000 Tropical Depression 74 93 NOAA NHC 05th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 15° 24.000, W 34° 0.000 Tropical Depression 74 93 NOAA NHC 06th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 15° 36.000, W 36° 0.000 Tropical Depression 65 83 NOAA NHC 07th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 16° 12.000, W 41° 6.000 Tropical Depression 56 74 NOAA NHC 08th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 16° 30.000, W 47° 0.000 Tropical Depression 46 65 NOAA NHC 09th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 16° 30.000, W 53° 0.000 Tropical Depression 37 56 NOAA NHC

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Today

Flash Flood

USA

State of New Mexico, Santa Fe

Flash Flood in USA on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 06:36 (06:36 AM) UTC.

Description

Public Service Company of New Mexico said nearly 3,000 customers on Santa Fe’s south side were without electric power for more than two hours Friday evening after lightning struck the local power grid. Spokesman Frederick Bermudez said he couldn’t pinpoint where the lightning hit but said it knocked out power from 5:35 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. to 2,916 homes, businesses and institutions in an area bounded by St. Michael’s Drive on the north, Old Galisteo Road on the south, Old Pecos Trail on the east and Entrada de Santiago on the west. Much of Santa Fe was pounded by heavy rain with lightning and sudden high winds late Friday afternoon, suddenly swelling the Santa Fe River and other areas with swift flows of storm water. A driver on St. Michael’s Drive reported seeing thin funnel cloud on the horizon at about 5:45 p.m. “It was probably a dust devil, but we’ve been seeing that a lot this year,” said Brian Guyer, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Albuquerque. “We’ve had some strong winds in Santa Fe today.” Guyer said the peak wind speed recorded at Santa Fe on Friday was 41 mph. Between two-tenths and four-tenths of an inch of rain fell — not a lot by most standards but what Guyer said was the heaviest rain the city has seen so far this summer. “You had a ton of lightning, some around the Plaza and a lot of lighting strikes up in the foothills,” he said. “It’s still dry, so it wouldn’t surprise me if we might see some fires by tomorrow.”

Today

Flash Flood

India

State of Himachal Pradesh, Kullu

Flash Flood in India on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 04:06 (04:06 AM) UTC.

Description

Hundreds of people residing near Beas river have been evacuated to safe places after flash flood caused by torrential rain over Dhundi peaks at south portal of Rohtang tunnel flooded the Seri rivulet, a tributary to Beas river, on Friday at 8pm. People living close to river between Palchan and Kullu are being evacuated and traffic on national highway has been stopped. Till last report received from Palchan (near Dhundi) at 10.30pm, level of the river was rising continuously and police were evacuating the people from Bahang village, 6km from Manali. According to police, there is no report of any casualty. Sandeep Kumar, a resident of Bahang village, said people are trying to save the household accessories amid chaotic atmosphere and conditions have become even worse after power failure. “Everything was normal till late evening but the situation changed suddenly after 8pm when river water, mixed with sludge, started engulfing its banks. People are risking their lives to remove the household stuffs,” he said. An engineer working with a hydel project near Palchan said over phone that roaring sound of river is shaking the foundation of the houses. “Nobody is going to sleep tonight. Villagers have gathered at many places and are guarding the river banks with floodlights,” he said. According to villagers it is a cloudburst which might have caused devastation at its source on mountains. Kullu deputy commissioner Amitabh Awasthi said , police are patrolling the river banks and have directed people to move to safe places. “We have closed the traffic on national highway. We shall keep an eye on the situation throughout the night,” he said.

 

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Epidemic Hazards / Diseases

03.08.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Uganda

Western Uganda, [Kibaale District, Mbarara and the Capital City (Kampala)]

Epidemic Hazard in Uganda on Thursday, 26 July, 2012 at 15:57 (03:57 PM) UTC.

Back

Updated:	Friday, 03 August, 2012 at 17:19 UTC
Description
Doctors were slow to respond to an outbreak of Ebola in Uganda because symptoms weren’t always typical, but a World Health Organization official said Friday that authorities are halting the spread of the deadly disease. Joaquim Saweka, the WHO representative in Uganda, told reporters in the capital Kampala that everyone known to have had contact with Ebola victims has been isolated. Ugandan health officials have created an “Ebola contact list” with names of people who had even the slightest contact with those who contracted Ebola. The list now bears 176 names. “The structure put in place is more than adequate,” Saweka said. “We are isolating the suspected or confirmed cases.” Ebola was confirmed in Uganda on July 28, several days after villagers were dying in a remote corner of western Uganda. Ugandan officials were slow to investigate possible Ebola because the victims did not show the usual symptoms, such as coughing blood. At least 16 Ugandans have died of the disease. Delays in confirming Ebola allowed the disease to spread to more villages deep in the western district of Kibaale, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni said.”The doctors in Kibaale say the symptoms were a bit atypical of Ebola,” Museveni said in a national address Monday. “They were not clearly like Ebola symptoms. Because of that delay, the sickness spread to another village.” Saweka said that organizations such as Doctors Without Borders and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are helping Ugandan officials to control the spread of Ebola. This is the fourth outbreak of Ebola in Uganda since 2000, when the disease killed 224 people and left hundreds more traumatized in northern Uganda. Ebola is highly infectious and kills quickly. The disease was first reported in 1976 in Congo and is named for the river where it was recognized, according to the CDC. The aid group Doctors Without Borders said in a statement on Wednesday that the first victim of the Ebola outbreak was a 3-month-old girl and that of the 65 people who attended her funeral, 15 later contracted the deadly disease. Funerals in Uganda are typically elaborate affairs that draw huge crowds. Health officials have now taken on the task of safely burying the bodies of Ebola victims, Saweka said.

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Suspected Ebola cases growing in Uganda

KAMPALA, Uganda — Six more patients suspected to have Ebola have been admitted to the hospital days after investigators confirmed an outbreak of the highly infectious disease in a remote corner of western Uganda, a health official said on Monday.

Stephen Byaruhanga, health secretary of the affected Kibaale district, said possible cases of Ebola, at first concentrated in a single village, are now being reported in more villages.

“It’s no longer just one village. There are many villages affected,” Byaruhanga said.

In a national address, Uganda’s president advised against unnecessary contact among people, saying suspected cases of Ebola should be reported immediately to health officials.

Officials from Uganda’s Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization announced on Saturday that the deadly Ebola virus killed 14 Ugandans this month, ending weeks of speculation about the cause of a strange illness that had some people fleeing their homes in the absence of reliable answers.

If the six new cases are confirmed as Ebola, it would bring to 26 the number of Ugandans infected with Ebola.

This is the fourth occurrence of Ebola in Uganda since 2000, when the disease killed 224 people and left hundreds more traumatized in northern Uganda. At least 42 people were killed in another outbreak in 2007, and there was a lone Ebola case in 2011.

Investigators took nearly a month to confirm Ebola’s presence in Uganda this year. In Kibaale, a district with 600,000 residents, some villagers started abandoning their homes to escape what they thought was an illness caused by bad luck. One family lost nine members, and a clinical officer and her 4-month-old baby died from Ebola, Byaruhanga said.

The confirmation of Ebola’s presence in the area has spread anxiety among sick villagers, who are refusing to go to the hospital for fear they don’t have Ebola and will contract it there. All suspected Ebola patients have been isolated at one hospital where patients admitted with other illnesses fled after Ebola was announced. Only the hospital’s maternity ward still has patients, officials said, highlighting the deadly reputation of Ebola.

Today

Epidemic Hazard

Nepal

Capital City, Kathmandu

Epidemic Hazard in Nepal on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 04:51 (04:51 AM) UTC.

Description
At least 10 people admitted to the Sukraraj Tropical and Disease Control Hospital in Nepali capital Kathmandu have tested positive for cholera. The hospital laboratory said Vibrio Cholera belonging to 01 Ogawa stereotype was detected in all the patients. Doctors at hospital attributed the spread of cholera and diarrhea infection in Kathmandu to contaminated water, according to Saturday’s Republica daily. “Most of the patients who came to the hospital said that they had drunk water supplied by Kathmandu Upatyaka Kahanepani Limited without boiling or treatment,” Tulsha Adhikari, a nursing staff said. She said whole families had been infected and some were brought to the hospital by their neighbors as all family members were sick.
Biohazard name:	Cholera
Biohazard level:	2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

Today

Epidemic Hazard

Pakistan

Federally Administered Tribal Areas, [South Waziristan]

Epidemic Hazard in Pakistan on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 04:04 (04:04 AM) UTC.

Description
Five children in South Waziristan have died from measles during the past week, an official said. “Non-availability of measles vaccines has become a big problem and if the desired vaccines were not made available, the situation could slip out of hand,” Dr. Azmat Hayat Khan, agency surgeon, told Central Asia Online August 3. Measles has affected about 400 children, of whom about 100 were hospitalised, he said. He warned of an outbreak throughout the agency if medics failed to immunise children immediately. Letters regarding the unavailability of measles vaccine have gone to the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) directorate of health, he said, expressing hope the vaccine would become available in a few days. The Taliban have refused to allow polio vaccination in areas of South Waziristan they control, endangering more than 157,000 children below age 5, he said. The directorate has received the agency surgeon’s letter and is sending vaccines to South Waziristan, FATA Health Director Dr. Fawad Khan said. “We have also started vaccination in Mohmand, Bajaur and Khyber agencies, where measles had killed several children besides sending hundreds to hospitals,” he said.
Biohazard name:	Measles (fatal)
Biohazard level:	3/4 Hight
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that can cause severe to fatal disease in humans, but for which vaccines or other treatments exist, such as anthrax, West Nile virus, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, SARS virus, variola virus (smallpox), tuberculosis, typhus, Rift Valley fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, yellow fever, and malaria. Among parasites Plasmodium falciparum, which causes Malaria, and Trypanosoma cruzi, which causes trypanosomiasis, also come under this level.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

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New Swine Flu Outbreak Worries CDC

12 Infected by Pigs in Last Week; No Ongoing Human Spread So Far

By Daniel J. DeNoon
WebMD Health News

Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

Aug. 3, 2012 — With 16 new human cases in the last three weeks — 12 in the last week alone — an outbreak of a variant strain of swine flu is giving CDC officials the jitters.

What worries officials is that the new flu, officially called variant type A H3N2 or H3N2v, carries the M gene from the human H1N1 pandemic flu bug. This gene makes it easier for flu bugs to infect humans and spread among them.

The first human case was detected in July 2011. Since then there have been 29 reported cases, although more cases likely have gone unreported.

“Since the fall of 2011 there has been a big increase in these types of infections,” Joseph Bresee, MD, of the CDC’s Influenza Division, said at a news conference held to announce the new cases. “All 29 cases have had H3N2v with the M gene of pandemic H1N1. This may confer increased transmissibility to and among humans.”

Last year, three people caught the bug from another person. As far as the CDC can tell, that hasn’t happened this year. And there’s been no sustained spread of the new swine flu bug among people.

All the cases so far had contact with pigs. Most cases have been children who came into contact with infected pigs at state fairs. Ten of this week’s new cases were in Ohio. One was in Indiana and another was in Hawaii.

According to Lisa Ferguson of the USDA, the virus has been detected in pigs in 11 states.

Flu is common among pigs, and every year a few people catch a swine flu bug. But this new swine flu looks different.

“We have detected cases of this virus with increasing frequency,” Bresee said. “We expect further cases of human infection, either with contact with swine or from limited human-to-human spread. We expect some of the cases will be severe.”

H3N2v Swine Flu Symptoms

Fortunately, the new flu hasn’t been more serious than seasonal flu. The symptoms are the same: fever, cough, sore throat, muscle aches, and headaches. Everyone infected so far this year got better without having to be hospitalized. Last year there were three hospitalizations, all in people with underlying conditions known to increase risk of severe flu. There have been no deaths.

Current flu drugs should be just as effective against the new swine flu as against seasonal flu. However, current flu vaccines do not protect against the new swine flu. A vaccine has been produced, and Bresee says it soon will be tested in clinical trials.

Is this the beginning of a new flu pandemic? Maybe. Maybe not. Flu is among the most unpredictable of viruses. H3N2v could become a pandemic virus this year, in 20 years, or never.

Flu spreads through disability centers

Photo: A fatal influenza outbreak continues to spread at two Hunter region disability centres. (7pm TV News SA)

Map: Stockton 2295

A fatal influenza outbreak at two Hunter disability centers is continuing to spread, with more people contracting the illness.

Already three deaths have been reported at Newcastle’s Stockton Center and the Kanangra Center at Morisset over the past week.

Another five people were diagnosed with a respiratory illness yesterday and tests are expected to confirm they have succumbed to H3N2 strain which would make a total of 56 cases at the two centers.

Both centers remain in lockdown with strict infection controls now in place for the 450 residents.

Hunter New England Health is urging people with flu like symptoms not to visit hospitals or aged care facilities.

The Health network says a daily assessment is being made of the residents.

 

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Solar Activity

2MIN News August 3, 2012: Quakes, Weather, Sun, Planets

Published on Aug 3, 2012 by Suspicious0bservers

TODAY’S LINKS
Aerosols: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=78742
Syria: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/03/us-syria-crisis-idUSBRE8610SH20120803

REPEAT LINKS
Spaceweather: http://spaceweather.com/ [Look on the left at the X-ray Flux and Solar Wind Speed/Density]

HAARP: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/haarp/data.html [Click online data, and have a little fun]

SDO: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/ [Place to find Solar Images and Videos – as seen from earth]

SOHO: http://sohodata.nascom.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/soho_movie_theater [SOHO; Lasco and EIT – as seen from earth]

Stereo: http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/images [Stereo; Cor, EUVI, HI – as seen from the side]

SunAEON:http://www.sunaeon.com/#/solarsystem/ [Just click it… trust me]

SOLARIMG: http://solarimg.org/artis/ [All purpose data viewing site]

iSWA: http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov/iswa/iSWA.html [Free Application; for advanced sun watchers]

NOAA ENLIL SPIRAL: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/wsa-enlil/cme-based/ [CME Evolution]

NOAA Bouys: http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/

RSOE: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php [That cool alert map I use]

JAPAN Radiation Map: http://jciv.iidj.net/map/

LISS: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/heliplots_gsn.php

Gamma Ray Bursts: http://grb.sonoma.edu/ [Really? You can’t figure out what this one is for?]

BARTOL Cosmic Rays: http://neutronm.bartol.udel.edu//spaceweather/welcome.html [Top left box, look for BIG blue circles]

TORCON: http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-torcon-index [Tornado Forecast for the day]

GOES Weather: http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/goes/ [Clouds over America]

EL DORADO WORLD WEATHER MAP: http://www.eldoradocountyweather.com/satellite/ssec/world/world-composite-ir-…

PRESSURE MAP: http://www.woweather.com/cgi-bin/expertcharts?LANG=us&MENU=0000000000&…

HURRICANE TRACKER: http://www.weather.com/weather/hurricanecentral/tracker

INTELLICAST: http://www.intellicast.com/ [Weather site used by many youtubers]

NASA News: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/

PHYSORG: http://phys.org/ [GREAT News Site!]

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Space

Earth approaching objects (objects that are known in the next 30 days)
Object Name	Apporach Date	Left	AU Distance	LD Distance	Estimated Diameter*	Relative Velocity
(2004 SB56)	04th August 2012	0 day(s)	0.1393	54.2	380 m – 840 m	13.72 km/s	49392 km/h
(2000 SD8)	04th August 2012	0 day(s)	0.1675	65.2	180 m – 400 m	5.82 km/s	20952 km/h
(2006 EC)	06th August 2012	2 day(s)	0.0932	36.3	13 m – 28 m	6.13 km/s	22068 km/h
(2006 MV1)	07th August 2012	3 day(s)	0.0612	23.8	12 m – 28 m	4.79 km/s	17244 km/h
(2005 RK3)	08th August 2012	4 day(s)	0.1843	71.7	52 m – 120 m	8.27 km/s	29772 km/h
(2009 BW2)	09th August 2012	5 day(s)	0.0337	13.1	25 m – 56 m	5.27 km/s	18972 km/h
277475 (2005 WK4)	09th August 2012	5 day(s)	0.1283	49.9	260 m – 580 m	6.18 km/s	22248 km/h
(2004 SC56)	09th August 2012	5 day(s)	0.0811	31.6	74 m – 170 m	10.57 km/s	38052 km/h
(2008 AF4)	10th August 2012	6 day(s)	0.1936	75.3	310 m – 690 m	16.05 km/s	57780 km/h
37655 Illapa	12th August 2012	8 day(s)	0.0951	37.0	770 m – 1.7 km	28.73 km/s	103428 km/h
(2012 HS15)	14th August 2012	10 day(s)	0.1803	70.2	220 m – 490 m	11.54 km/s	41544 km/h
4581 Asclepius	16th August 2012	12 day(s)	0.1079	42.0	220 m – 490 m	13.48 km/s	48528 km/h
(2008 TC4)	18th August 2012	14 day(s)	0.1937	75.4	140 m – 300 m	17.34 km/s	62424 km/h
(2006 CV)	20th August 2012	16 day(s)	0.1744	67.9	290 m – 640 m	13.24 km/s	47664 km/h
(2012 EC)	20th August 2012	16 day(s)	0.0815	31.7	56 m – 130 m	5.57 km/s	20052 km/h
162421 (2000 ET70)	21st August 2012	17 day(s)	0.1503	58.5	640 m – 1.4 km	12.92 km/s	46512 km/h
(2007 WU3)	21st August 2012	17 day(s)	0.1954	76.0	56 m – 120 m	5.25 km/s	18900 km/h
(2012 BB14)	24th August 2012	20 day(s)	0.1234	48.0	27 m – 60 m	2.58 km/s	9288 km/h
1 AU = ~150 million kilometers,1 LD = Lunar Distance = ~384,000 kilometers Source: NASA-NEO

…………………………………….

Astronomers detect cries of a dying star

By Stuart Gary for Science Online

Photo: A NASA graphic shows a star being torn apart by a black hole known as SW J1644+57. (NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Centre)

Map: United States

For the first time astronomers have detected the last gasps of a star being torn apart by a previously dormant giant black hole.

The signals, which came from a galaxy 3.9 billion light years away, were x-rays generated by matter heated to millions of degrees and torn apart as material from the star crosses the black hole’s event horizon.

Known as quasi-periodic oscillations, they are a characteristic feature of stellar black holes, which have about 10 times the mass of the Sun.

Dr Rubens Reis from the University of Michigan is the lead author of the paper published today in the journal Science.

Dr Reis says the findings confirm the constancy of black hole physics.

“This is telling us that the same physical phenomenon we observe in stellar mass black holes is also happening in black holes a million times the mass of the Sun, and in black holes that were previously asleep,” he said.

Dr Reis and colleagues first detected the event with NASA’s Swift Gamma Ray Burst Telescope last year, but did not pick up the oscillations at that time.

The blips in the signals were detected in follow-up observations using the joint Japanese-NASA Suzaku and the European Space Agency ZMM-Newton orbiting X-ray observatories.

“You can think of it as hearing the star scream as it gets devoured,” said University of Michigan astronomy professor Jon Miller, who co-authored the paper.

The oscillating signal repeats at a characteristic frequency, which would sound like an ultra-low D sharp.

On the edge

The oscillations were occurring once every 200 seconds, meaning the stellar material was orbiting less than 9.3 million kilometres from the centre of the black hole.

“Our discovery opens the possibility of studying orbits close to black holes that are very distant,” Professor Miller said.

Professor Joss Bland-Hawthorne from the University of Sydney says it is the closest we have ever seen material to the event horizon of a distant super-massive black hole.

“If this material was any closer, it would pass beyond the event horizon and you presumably wouldn’t see it,” Professor Bland-Hawthorne said.

“This is where the effects of general relativity become extreme.”

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Earth

Scientists probe link between magnetic polarity reversal and mantle processes

by Staff Writers
Liverpool UK (SPX)

File image.

Scientists at the University of Liverpool have discovered that variations in the long-term reversal rate of the Earth’s magnetic field may be caused by changes in heat flow from the Earth’s core into the base of the overlying mantle.

The Earth is made up of a solid inner core, surrounded by a liquid outer core, in turn covered by a thicker or more viscous mantle, and ultimately by the solid crust beneath our feet.

The magnetic field is generated by the motions of the liquid iron alloy in the outer core, approximately 3,000 km beneath the Earth’s crust. These motions occur because the core is losing heat to the overlying solid mantle that extends up to the crust on which we live.

The mantle itself is also in motion but at much slower speeds of millimetres per year as opposed to millimetres per second in the core. This mantle motion is responsible for the drifting of the continents at the surface as well as earthquakes, volcanoes, and changes in the climate over millions of years.

At intervals of hundreds of thousands of years, the North and South magnetic poles reverse and scientists can tell from rock formations precisely at what periods in the past this took place. The most recent reversal happened 780,000 years ago.

Magnetic field variations happen on timescales of months to millions of years. Much of the magnetic field’s variation is thought to be sporadic but new research, led by Liverpool scientists, has found that over long timescales, this variability may be related to the changing pattern of heat loss across the core-mantle boundary occurring over millions of years.

The team performed a detailed synthesis based on latest findings from a number of different areas including the ancient geomagnetic field and its record in rocks, motions in the mantle caused by motions of the continents and the process responsible for generating the magnetic field in the core.

Dr Andrew Biggin, from the University’s School of Environmental Sciences, said: “The magnetic field has undergone big changes in its behaviour that might be due to the mantle’s controlling influence on the core.

In particular, we focused on the time interval between around 200 and 80 million years ago – when dinosaurs were still around – when the magnetic field initially started reversing its polarity very frequently. During this period the polarity was reversing up to 10 times every million years; however 50 million years later, it stopped reversing altogether for nearly 40 million years.

“When these changes in the magnetic field were taking place, the whole of the Earth’s crust and mantle, including all of the continents, were undergoing a big rotation with respect to the geographic and time-averaged geomagnetic poles – the points defining the Earth’s axis of rotation.

“We suspect that this process, called True Polar Wander and caused by the changing density distribution in the mantle, will have changed the pattern of heat flowing out of the core in such a manner as to cause the magnetic field to first become less stable, with lots of reversals, and then become much more stable – and stop reversing.”

The team believes this may not be the only explanation and conjecture that this big drop in the frequency of reversals may also be related to a similar decrease in the number of ‘large igneous provinces’ (LIPs) or concentrated outpourings of magma from the Earth’s core, 50 million years later.

The last LIP happened around 16 million years ago and produced the Columbia Plateau in the North West US. LIPs are thought to be produced by hot plumes of material rising from thermal instabilities near the bottom boundary of the mantle.

The team believes the 50 million year time lag between the magnetic field changing and the occurrence of the LIPs could represent the time it takes for the plumes to travel 2,890 km through the mantle.

If this link were correct it would mean that the rather unstable magnetic field observed in the last 50 million years predicts that a considerable number of LIPs will erupt over the next 50 million years. This in turn could have major implications for the surface conditions – for climate and for life itself.

The research, published in Nature Geoscience, is a collaboration between the University of Liverpool, GFZ Potsdam, IPGP Paris, the University of Oslo and Utrecht University. Future research at Liverpool, is planned and already underway to develop a new tool for understanding the Earth’s system.

Related Links
University of Liverpool
Tectonic Science and News

Today

Biological Hazard

Japan

Multiple areas, [Ise Bay (Ise-wan)]

Biological Hazard in Japan on Saturday, 04 August, 2012 at 04:02 (04:02 AM) UTC.

Description
Large numbers of jellyfish have been swarming near nine thermal power plants on Ise Bay. Chubu Electric Power Co. estimates that there are close to 24,000 tons of the sea creatures swimming around the area, twice the usual level and the second-most recorded in the past decade. Measures are being taken to ensure the jellyfish don’t clog the power plants’ water intakes and disrupt their operations. Chubu Electric launched a research project in 1999 to predict the number of jellyfish in Ise Bay. They discovered that most jellyfish larvae transform into polyps in three major areas: near the port of Nagoya; along the coast of the Chita Peninsula from Tokoname to Morozaki, Minamichita, in Aichi Prefecture; and along the coast of the Shima Peninsula from Matsusaka to Toba in Mie Prefecture. Every winter, the research group collects samples of polyps and compares them with past results to predict how many larvae will develop into adult jellyfish in the following year. Last winter’s findings indicated the number this year would be 1.5 to 1.8 times higher than usual. “We don’t know the reason why the number is so high this year, but we need to monitor the situation closely,” said Minoru Hamada, 46, an assistant project manager in Chubu Electric’s technology development department.If jellyfish block the water intake, a power plant can’t draw enough water from the sea to cool the steam used to turn the turbine, and the plant has to reduce its electricity output. Each plant has adopted various measures, including putting up nets, to stop the jellyfish from swimming too close, but this is only effective when dealing with small numbers. It is not enough to prevent large amounts of jellyfish from swimming in all at once. The number of jellyfish near the thermal power plants usually peaks in July, August and September. However, this year they started gathering around the plants in May, resulting in reduced electricity output at three of the plants for a total of nine days. They were the Hekinan plant in Hekinan, Aichi Prefecture, the Shin-Nagoya plant in Nagoya and the Kawagoe plant in Kawagoe, Mie Prefecture. It’s a pressing problem for Chubu Electric because it has become increasingly dependent on thermal energy since its Hamaoka nuclear plant has been shut down over quake and tsunami fears. “The effect of the jellyfish isn’t fully known yet, but it can have a serious impact on electricity output if they keep increasing, especially during this season when there is high electricity demand,” a Chubu Electric official said. “We need to monitor the jellyfish further and take actions swiftly if necessary.”
Biohazard name:	Jellyfish invasion
Biohazard level:	0/4 —
Biohazard desc.:	This does not included biological hazard category.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

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Biological Hazards / Wildlife

New bat virus related to deadly Hendra discovered

By Horsetalk.co.nz

Australian researchers have discovered a new bat virus they describe as a close relative to the hendra virus.

Cells infected with Hendra virus. Cells infected with Cedar virus. © CSIRO

They say the new virus could help shed light on how Hendra and related Nipah viruses cause disease and death in animals and humans. Hendra is able to infect horses and, in seven known cases, people have caught the infection from horses. Four of them died as a result.

The new virus is named Cedar after the Queensland location where it was discovered.

Initial studies by scientists with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) have discovered one surprising key difference – the Cedar virus does not cause illness in several animal species normally susceptible to Hendra and Nipah.

However, they say it is still too early to rule out the possibility that Cedar virus may cause illness and death in horses or other animals.

The new discovery had significant potential implications for protecting animals and humans from the Hendra and Nipah viruses. This tantalising difference may help scientists understand how to better manage and control its deadly cousins.

The findings have been announced today in the journal, PLoS Pathogens, published by the Public Library of Science.

Gary Crameri, a research scientist with the bat virus team at CSIRO’s Australian Animal Health Laboratory in Geelong, Victoria, said the new discovery had significant potential implications for protecting animals and humans from the Hendra and Nipah viruses.

“The significance of discovering a new henipavirus that doesn’t cause disease is that it may help us narrow down what it is about the genetic makeup of viruses like Hendra and Nipah that does cause disease and death,” Crameri said.

 

CSIRO’s Dr Glenn Marsh, research scientist on the Cedar virus discovery team, collecting samples from underneath a bat colony. © CSIRO

“The more that we can learn about bat-borne viruses, the better chance we have of developing anti-virals and vaccines to help protect human health, Australia’s livestock industry and our export trade from the threat of current and emerging animal diseases.

“Over 70 per cent of people and animals infected with Hendra and Nipah viruses die. This ranks henipaviruses amongst the deadliest viruses in existence, yet little is known about just how such viruses actually cause disease or death.”

The discovery was a result of a close partnership with Biosecurity Queensland which played an important role by collecting and screening samples from bat colonies across Queensland.

Dr Hume Field, of Biosecurity Queensland, said field work with bats was an essential part of research into identifying new viruses.

“Bats are being implicated as the natural host of a growing number of viruses in Australia and overseas, yet they appear to tolerate infection themselves, making bat research increasingly important.”

Bats have been identified as playing a role in the spread of viruses including Ebola, Marburg, SARS and Melaka, yet they are an essential part of a diverse ecosystem through their role as pollinators, seed dispersers and insect regulators.

The discovery is part of ongoing research by CSIRO to target diseases that threaten animals, people and the environment and is part of CSIRO’s wider biosecurity effort. It follows CSIRO’s development towards a horse vaccine against Hendra virus.

» More on Hendra virus

 

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[In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit, for research and/or educational purposes. This constitutes ‘FAIR USE’ of any such copyrighted material.]

Earth Watch Report – Friday August 3rd, 2012

Earthquakes

 

 

RSOE EDIS

 

 

Date/Time (UTC)	Magnitude	Area	Country	State/Prov./Gov.	Location	Risk			Source	Details
03.08.2012 03:45:26	4.9	South-America	Argentina	Jujuy	Abra Pampa				EMSC
03.08.2012 02:40:25	2.2	Middle-East	Syria	Tartus					EMSC
03.08.2012 02:40:43	4.1	Asia	Afghanistan	Badakhshan	Ashkasham				EMSC
03.08.2012 02:25:24	4.3	Asia	Pakistan	North-West Frontier Province	Uzhnu				USGS-RSOE
03.08.2012 02:41:02	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Kütahya	Pazarlar				EMSC
03.08.2012 02:41:19	3.3	South-America	Chile	Valparaíso	Hacienda La Calera				EMSC
03.08.2012 01:55:29	4.5	Pacific Ocean – West	Wallis and Futuna		Vele				USGS-RSOE
03.08.2012 02:41:37	4.5	Pacific Ocean – West	Wallis and Futuna		Vele				EMSC
03.08.2012 01:41:07	2.7	North America	United States	Alaska	Petersville				USGS-RSOE
03.08.2012 01:41:27	2.9	North America	United States	California	Bodfish				USGS-RSOE
03.08.2012 03:10:26	2.9	North America	United States	Alaska	Nelson Lagoon				USGS-RSOE
03.08.2012 01:40:20	3.4	Europe	Greece	Attica	Ydra				EMSC
03.08.2012 01:40:45	2.6	Asia	Turkey	Van	Yuvacik				EMSC
03.08.2012 00:50:30	2.1	North America	United States	Washington	Vashon				USGS-RSOE
03.08.2012 00:35:25	5.0	Middle-America	Mexico	Sinaloa	San Miguel Zapotitlan				EMSC
03.08.2012 00:36:55	4.8	Middle America	Mexico	Sinaloa	Topolobampo				USGS-RSOE
03.08.2012 00:35:45	3.0	Europe	Greece	Peloponnese	Nea Tirins				EMSC
03.08.2012 00:36:07	3.0	Europe	Greece	Peloponnese	Messini				EMSC
03.08.2012 00:36:31	3.1	Europe	Greece	West Greece	Sardinia				EMSC
02.08.2012 23:50:24	3.4	North America	United States	Alaska	Valdez				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 22:50:38	2.5	North America	United States	Hawaii	Pa’auilo				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 22:00:57	2.1	North America	United States	California	Bodfish				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 22:30:22	2.8	Asia	Turkey	?zmir	Foca				EMSC
02.08.2012 21:35:35	3.0	Middle America	Mexico	Baja California	Alberto Oviedo Mota				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 21:30:20	5.1	Asia	India	Arun?chal Pradesh	Khonsa				EMSC
02.08.2012 21:31:07	5.0	Asia	India	Arun?chal Pradesh	Khonsa				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 22:01:25	5.1	Asia	India	Arun?chal Pradesh	Khonsa				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 20:55:27	2.5	North America	United States	California	Bodfish				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 21:30:39	2.0	Asia	Turkey	Bal?kesir	Sindirgi				EMSC
02.08.2012 22:30:51	4.7	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	Aceh	Meulaboh				EMSC
02.08.2012 20:30:20	2.7	Asia	Turkey	Yalova	Kocadere				EMSC
02.08.2012 19:50:27	4.2	Caribbean	British Virgin Islands		Road Town				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 20:00:27	4.0	Caribbean	British Virgin Islands		Road Town				USGS-RSOE
03.08.2012 02:25:51	2.3	North America	Canada	British Columbia	Princeton				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 19:25:25	3.0	Europe	Greece	Peloponnese	Koroni				EMSC
02.08.2012 19:10:26	2.0	North America	United States	Alaska	Petersville				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 19:25:46	3.9	Middle-East	Iraq	Al Ba?rah	Umm Qasr				EMSC
02.08.2012 19:26:07	2.0	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Ula				EMSC
02.08.2012 18:05:27	2.1	North America	United States	California	Phelan				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 18:45:36	4.6	Middle America	Honduras	Copán	El Corpus				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 19:26:30	4.6	Middle-America	Honduras	Copán	El Corpus				EMSC
02.08.2012 17:35:37	2.3	North America	United States	Alaska	McCarthy				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 19:26:51	4.8	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	Aceh	Sinabang				EMSC
02.08.2012 18:50:37	4.8	Indonesian archipelago	Indonesia	Aceh	Sinabang				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 17:25:21	4.4	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	Maluku	Amahai				EMSC
02.08.2012 17:25:58	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Van	Toyga				EMSC
02.08.2012 20:30:41	4.8	Asia	India	Andaman and Nicobar Islands	Bamboo Flat				EMSC
02.08.2012 17:26:23	4.9	South-America	Falkland Islands		Goose Green Settlement				EMSC
02.08.2012 17:15:31	4.9	South America	Falkland Islands		Goose Green Settlement				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 17:26:47	2.6	Asia	Turkey	Siirt	Erenkaya				EMSC

 

 

 

……………………………………………

High chance of major Oregon quake: study

AFP

The western US state of Oregon has a 40 percent chance in the next half-century of suffering a massive earthquake on the scale of Japan’s 2011 disaster, a study said Wednesday.

The Pacific Northwest — from the Oregon-California border to Vancouver Island in Canada — has endured 19 huge earthquakes of around 8.7-9.2 magnitude over the past 10,000 years, Oregon State University researchers said.

An additional 22 major earthquakes have impacted only the southern part of the so-called Cascadia fault that runs from the Oregon areas of Coos Bay to Newport, the study said.

“The southern margin of Cascadia has a much higher recurrence level for major earthquakes than the northern end and, frankly, it is overdue for a rupture,” the study’s lead author Chris Goldfinger said in a statement.

The study, published online by the US Geological Survey, estimated a 40 percent chance of a major earthquake around Coos Bay, Oregon, over the next 50 years.

It said that the earthquake could be on the scale of the 9.0-magnitude earthquake that struck in the Pacific Ocean near Japan on March 11, 2011. Some 19,000 people died as the tremor set off a devastating tsunami.

But Oregon has far fewer preparations in place than Japan, which is one of the world’s most earthquake-prone nations.

The Oregon State University study billed itself as the most comprehensive yet, which is based on 13 years of research including assessments of sediment to determine past seismic events.

Oregon already had an oral history of earthquakes, with Native Americans speaking of a giant tremor in around 1700.

Earthquake preparedness has triggered a major political debate in Oregon, with advocates warning that many schools and other buildings would be woefully inadequate in the event of a giant disaster.

Critics say that the massive cost of upgrading Oregon’s infrastructure could be devoted to more pressing priorities for residents such as building roads.

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Volcanic Activity

 

 

02.08.2012

Volcano Activity

New Zealand

North Island, [Volcano Whakaari, White Island]

 

 

Volcano Activity in New Zealand on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 10:35 (10:35 AM) UTC.

Description

GNS Science has issued a volcanic alert for White Island because of increased activity in the crater lake and numerous earthquakes. GNS Science duty volcanologist Michael Rosenberg says the risk of eruption has increased. “Eruptions can occur at any time with little or no warning. The recent changes in activity suggest that the hydrothermal system has become unstable, and as a result the risk has increased.” The aviation colour code has been changed from green to yellow, meaning the volcano “is experiencing signs of elevated unrest above known background levels”. The volcanic alert level remains at 1 – “departure from typical background surface activity”. There have been a number of earthquakes in the vicinity of the island since the beginning of July. Mr Rosenberg says until very recently the crater lake was almost empty, but between Friday July 27 and Saturday July 28 the level rose by about 3m to 5m. A recent ground survey has also showed the main crater floor may be slowly rising. “These phenomena are typical for White Island’s activity, but are the first substantial changes to occur in the last few years,” Mr Rosenberg says. The amount of sulphur gas being emitted from the volcano has also increased. But Mr Rosenberg says the crater lake has not been accessible for some months and GNS Science has been unable to measure temperature or chemistry changes. Mr Rosenberg warns people that White Island is an active volcano and people visiting the island need to take extra care. He says the activity at the island has no connection to the recent earthquakes and changes in gas flux at Mt Tongariro. GNS Science isVol monitoring the situation and will release more information as it becomes available. White Island is located 48km off the east coast of the North Island in the Bay of Plenty.

 

…………………………………..

 

New Zealand – White Island New Zealand – White Island: main crater and crater lake. For more info about New Zealand see: members.virtualtourist.com/m/7c27b/1cb3bb/ Taken with a Rollei Prego 90 > scan http://www.flickr.com/photos/vtveen/493555983/

White Island showing signs of unrest

MICHELLE COOKE

 

White Island volcano is showing signs of increased activity, GNS Science says.

The volcano, about 49 kilometres off the coast of Whakatane, is a popular tourist spot, but GNS volcanologist Michael Rosenberg says those visiting it should be cautious even though the alert level for the island had not changed.

“Eruptions can occur at any time with little or no warning. The recent changes in activity suggest that the hydrothermal system has become unstable, and as a result the risk has increased,” Rosenberg said.

GNS Science has changed the volcano’s code from a “normal, non eruptive state” to “experiencing signs of elevated unrest above known background levels”.

The volcano’s lake level quickly rose by about three to five metres sometime between Friday and Saturday last week, exposing a “vigorous” flow of gas and steam into the air, Rosenberg said.

It has risen in the past, but took much longer than the 24 hours it took to rise three to five metres on Friday and Saturday, he said.

During the past few weeks there had also been some minor volcanic tremor, including several hours on Saturday, Monday and Tuesday.

Last year and earlier this year the lake started to evaporate and exposed steam vents and two large muddy pools.

“These phenomena are typical for White Island’s activity, but are the first substantial changes to occur in the last few years,” Rosenberg said.

No-one lives on the privately-owned island but flights and boat-trips to the island are common.

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Extreme Temperatures/ Weather

Excessive Heat Warning

 

SPRINGFIELD MO
TULSA OK
WICHITA KS

Excessive Heat Watch

 

PORTLAND OR

Heat Advisory

 

KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO
SAN ANGELO TX
SPRINGFIELD MO
TULSA OK
ST LOUIS MO
NORMAN OK
LUBBOCK TX
FORT WORTH TX
MOUNT HOLLY NJ

8/2/2012 — Severe weather across North America = Hail, Damaging winds, Possible Tornadoes

Published on Aug 2, 2012 by dutchsinse

Use the links here to monitor severe weather nationally, and internationally:

http://sincedutch.wordpress.com/2012/02/12/2122012-weather-monitoring-links-s…

We are seeing two areas currently under tornado warnings issued by the NWS …. just west of North Platte Nebraska.. a tornado warning .. storm is heading east / southeast currently (600pm cdt 8/2/2012)…

Also north, a series of strong cells breaking out throughout the day… extending far north into Canada near Saskatoon.. and even tornado warnings issued by the Canadian weather service just northwest of Regina.. heading ENE currently.

Strong cell thunderstorms, hail, and damaging winds are in several states across the lower 48… Montana, Idaho, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, North Dakota, South Dakota, Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, California, Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Illinois, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Wisconsin, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, and New Brunswick.

Red Flag Warning

FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE

 

GREAT FALLS MT
GLASGOW MT
BILLINGS MT
SALT LAKE CITY UT
POCATELLO ID
RIVERTON WY

Fire Weather Watch

 

SACRAMENTO CA
RENO NV
ELKO NV
MEDFORD OR
NORMAN OK

01.08.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

Russia [Asia]

Siberia, [Krasnoyarsk Krai, Tomsk Region, Tuva, Khakassia and Irkutsk Region]

Forest / Wild Fire in Russia [Asia] on Saturday, 28 July, 2012 at 12:07 (12:07 PM) UTC.

Description

Firefighters in Russia’s Siberia had extinguished 45 forest fires covering 522 hectares of forest in the past 24 hours, but 131 wildfires were still burning on the area of almost 15,000 hectares, the regional forestry department said Friday. A total of 29 wildfires covering an area of more than 5,000 hectares were localized, and 14,948 hectares of forest continued to burn in the Krasnoyarsk Krai, Tomsk Region, Tuva, Khakassia and Irkutsk Region. Some 3,000 people, 412 units of fire-fighting equipment and 24 aircrafts have been mobilized to fight the blazes, which are believed to be caused by hot and dry weather in the region where the temperature reaches 35 degrees. Reports said the wildfires posed no threat to populated areas or industry.

02.08.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of California, Murrieta

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 10:32 (10:32 AM) UTC.

Description

A large home was destroyed and three firefighters were injured battling a brush fire today in a rural area just west of Murrieta caused by mowing equipment operated by a Riverside County agency. “Riverside County has been notified by fire officials that it appears the … fire was accidentally caused by a county Transportation Department worker mowing alongside Tenaja Road,” county Executive Office Public Information Officer Ray Smith said. “The county is providing its full cooperation as fire department officials continue their investigation,” Smith said. “Each year, the county works to reduce the chance of fire by clearing brush and weeds along roadsides. The fire is a tragedy for the residents whose homes are threatened and whose lives and families are being disrupted. County officials will do everything in their power to assist them.” The fire, which started around 11:30 a.m. at Tenaja and Via Volcano roads in the unincorporated community of Deluz, has scorched more than 400 acres. Voluntary, or “soft,” evacuations were in place throughout the afternoon for residents who did not feel safe, but no mandatory evacuations were ordered. By 7 p.m., the fire was 50 percent contained. A two-story house was destroyed by the flames, which threatened numerous other residences that firefighters were able to protect. Most of the side roads in the area are dirt, with homes built along hillsides. One firefighter suffered a broken ankle and was taken to a hospital. Two other crew members suffered unspecified minor injuries. An emergency staging area was set up at Avenida La Cresta and Valle Vista, from which more than 300 personnel from multiple agencies, including the Riverside County, Murrieta and Los Angeles County fire departments and the Pechanga tribal fire unit deployed. By 6 p.m., a few units were being deactivated and going home, according to reports from the scene, though full containment was not expected until Thursday morning. Thirty-nine engine crews, six water tender companies and 11 hand crews battled the flames, which had the potential to spread to 1,500 acres, officials said. At mid-afternoon, seven water-dropping helicopters and six air tankers were called into action to help contain the blaze, according to the fire department.

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More of Indiana in extreme drought

Published on Aug 2, 2012 by wish

New data released Thursday says that more of the state is now classified as an exceptional drought. Chopper 8 tours the conditions in Monroe County over Lake Monroe.

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Storms, Flooding

 

 

Severe Thunderstorm Warning

 

GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 
RAPID CITY SD

Severe Thunderstorm Watch

 

RAPID CITY SD

 

Active tropical storm system(s)
Name of sto rm system	Location	Formed	Last update	Last category	Course	Wind Speed	Gust	Wave	Source	Details
Saola (10W)	Pacific Ocean	28.07.2012	02.08.2012	Tropical Depression	330 °	83 km/h	102 km/h	4.88 m	JTWC

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 4 Storm name: Saola (10W) Area: Pacific Ocean Start up location: N 14° 24.000, E 127° 6.000 Start up: 28th July 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 865.71 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 30th Jul 2012 04:07:32 N 20° 0.000, E 124° 48.000 13 102 130 Tropical Storm 345 14 JTWC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 02nd Aug 2012 15:47:44 N 25° 42.000, E 121° 18.000 11 83 102 Tropical Depression 330 ° 16 JTWC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 04th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 28° 54.000, E 114° 42.000 Tropical Depression 37 56 JTWC

 

 

Damrey (11W)

Pacific Ocean

29.07.2012

02.08.2012

Typhoon I

295 °

120 km/h

148 km/h

5.49 m

JTWC

 

 

 

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 0 Storm name: Damrey (11W) Area: Pacific Ocean Start up location: N 26° 0.000, E 145° 18.000 Start up: 29th July 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 1,605.37 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 30th Jul 2012 04:07:12 N 25° 30.000, E 145° 6.000 7 74 93 Tropical Storm 255 8 JTWC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 02nd Aug 2012 16:42:36 N 34° 36.000, E 120° 12.000 33 120 148 Typhoon I 295 ° 18 JTWC

 

 

AL05

Atlantic Ocean

02.08.2012

02.08.2012

Tropical Depression

280 °

56 km/h

74 km/h

4.57 m

NOAA NHC

 

 

 

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 1 Storm name: AL05 Area: Atlantic Ocean Start up location: N 12° 36.000, W 50° 36.000 Start up: 02nd August 2012 Status: Active Track long: 0.00 km Top category.: Report by: NHC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 02nd Aug 2012 04:08:45 N 12° 36.000, W 50° 36.000 30 56 74 Tropical Depression 285 16 1008 MB NHC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 02nd Aug 2012 16:39:16 N 13° 0.000, W 54° 18.000 31 56 74 Tropical Depression 280 ° 15 1008 MB NHC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 04th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 14° 6.000, W 63° 36.000 Tropical Depression 65 83 NHC 04th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 14° 42.000, W 66° 48.000 Tropical Depression 74 93 NHC 05th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 15° 42.000, W 73° 0.000 Tropical Depression 83 102 NHC 06th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 17° 0.000, W 78° 0.000 Tropical Depression 93 111 NHC 07th Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 18° 30.000, W 82° 0.000 Hurricane I 111 139 NHC

 

 

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02.08.2012

Tropical Storm

Taiwan

Multiple Regions, [Northern areas]

 

 

Tropical Storm in Taiwan on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 05:14 (05:14 AM) UTC.

Description

A slow-moving typhoon spawning torrential rains slammed into eastern Taiwan early Thursday, flooding farmlands, disrupting transportation and turning the normally bustling capital of Taipei into a ghost town. The storm made landfall near the eastern coastal city of Hualien just before daybreak, before veering northward and hugging the coast. It was expected to pass near the northern port city of Keelung and skirt the Taipei suburbs by midday. Packing sustained winds of 118 km/h and gusts of 155 km/h, Saola’s slow speed — only 12 km/h — made it a virtual certainty that the heavy rains inundating northern Taiwan for the past 48 hours would continue through the weekend. That raised the prospect of potentially devastating flooding in areas that have already absorbed more than 1,000 millimeters of rain since Tuesday. Authorities ordered offices and businesses closed throughout northern Taiwan, including in Taipei. Normally busy streets in the capital were deserted during the morning rush hour, as cleanup crews laboured to clear them of hundreds of trees and branches felled during the night by Saola’s ferocious approach. Television footage showed hectare upon hectare of flooded farmland in low-lying coastal areas, punctuated by scenes of raging rivers and roads blocked by mudslides in the island’s mountainous centre. The Defence Ministry mobilized 48,000 soldiers to help mitigate the storm’s impact, dispatching many to help hard-pressed farmers try to save threatened fruit and vegetable harvests. Dozens of flights were cancelled at Taipei’s main international airport, and rail transport throughout the island was disrupted.

 

 

 

 

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24 dead in Philippines as ‘Gener’ moves to Taiwan

By Alexis Romero The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines – Typhoon “Gener” (international name: Saola) left at least 24 persons dead and almost 180,000 displaced as of Thursday afternoon, disaster management officials said.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said new fatalities were recorded in Ilocos Sur, Quezon, Bulacan, Negros Occidental, Iloilo, Negros Oriental and Misamis Oriental.

The latest fatality was identified as Venice Sinopen, a grade three pupil from San Ramon Sigay, Ilocos Sur, who died of drowning.

In Bataan, a certain Angelito Bicoy, 59, drowned and was recovered along the shoreline of barangay Sisiman in Mariveles last Tuesday.

Two new fatalities were also recorded in Bulacan namely Efren Salvacion, 41, of Obando and Patrick dela Rosa, 12, of Marilao. Both died of drowning.

Five persons from Visayas and Mindanao died after they were hit by fallen trees during the height of the typhoon.

They were Mary Jane Lima, 24, of Silay City, Negros Occidental; Madeline Caminade, 48, of Iloilo City; Emelia Pasugiron and Andrei Pasugiron, both from Bayawan City, Negros Oriental and Augusto Campo of Kinoguitan, Misamis Oriental.

The NDRRMC said 21 persons sustained injuries because of the typhoon. The injured persons are from Mimaropa, Cordillera and Western Visayas regions.

A total of 331,588 persons or 69,292 families in Ilocos, Cagayan, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Western Visayas, Central Visayas, Northern Mindanao, SOCCSKSARGEN and Metro Manila have been affected by the typhoon.

Of this, 37,225 families or 179,990 persons were displaced. While “Gener” has left the Philippine area of responsibility, 12,000 persons or 2,664 families are still inside 61 evacuation centers.

The amount of property damage caused by Gener remained at P2.13 million. The NDRRMC is still gathering reports from its field personnel on the extent of damage caused by the typhoon.

The number of houses damaged by the bad weather has risen to 2,785.

The NDRRMC said that as of Thursday afternoon, 802 passengers are still stranded in 25 vessels due to heavy rains.

The ferry boat Operations in Lallo, Cagayan, which has been disrupted by the bad weather, resumed on Wednesday afternoon.

As of Wednesday, 29 roads and three bridges in Ilocos, Cordillera, Cagayan, Central Luzon, Mimaropa, Western Visayas, Northern Mindanao and Metro Manila have been affected by the typhoon.

Classes from pre-school to high school levels were suspended Thursday in barangays Damapalit and Panghulo in Malabon City, and 15 schools in Valenzuela City.

In Bulacan, classes in all levels were suspended in Obando and San Ildefonso towns. On the other hand, pre-school and elementary classes were also suspended in Hagonoy West, Meycauayan, Hagonoy East and Paombong also in Bulacan and in Imus, Cavite.

 

02.08.2012

Hailstorm

USA

State of Indiana, Oakland City

 

 

Hailstorm in USA on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 03:12 (03:12 AM) UTC.

Description

Residents of a southwestern Indiana county began cleaning up Wednesday following a severe storm that brought much-needed rain but also damaged homes, caused power outages and pummeled one community with hail during a parade. Gibson County Sheriff George Ballard said four people were slightly injured Tuesday in Oakland City when large hail swept through, sending attendees running for cover during the parade kicking off the community’s annual Sweet Corn Festival. Ballard said three of those were minor injuries treated on the scene while the fourth person, a woman, was taken to a hospital with a foot injury. Ballard told the Evansville Courier & Press the first storm warning came at 5:50 p.m., 10 minutes before the parade was scheduled to begin. He said the storm hit the town about 25 miles northeast of Evansville at around 6:20 p.m. with high winds and hail that National Weather Service observers reported in some cases were as large as baseballs. However, Oakland City Fire Chief Jim Deffendall said in a telephone interview that no storm warnings were in effect when the decision was made to let the parade start. Weather experts told parade organizers the storm would pass east of the community, but then it changed direction and hit the parade route, he said. The parade was halted less than halfway through the route, with participants running to nearby homes, Deffendall said. “By the time the sirens went off, it was on us,” Deffendall said. “We stopped it and made everyone get off the floats.” Deffendall said he and Oakland City Police Chief Alec Hinsley had the authority to cancel the parade.

 

 

 

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02.08.2012

Tornado

Vietnam

Bac Lieu Province, [The area was not defined.]

 

 

Tornado in Vietnam on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 03:29 (03:29 AM) UTC.

Description

Freak tornadoes swept through three southern provinces early yesterday killing two people, injuring about 75 others and destroying nearly 700 homes. Thousands of people are reported to have been left homeless by the high-speed storms, which lasted for less than half an hour each. In Bac Lieu Province, a tornado took one life and injured another 12. Bac Lieu province have sent rescue forces to help the victims. Head of the Bac Lieu flood and storm control steering committee Lai Thanh An said that in two districts, Phuoc Long and Hong Dan, more than 200 houses were severely damaged by the wind. Earlier reports said that 50 homes in the province had also been totally destroyed. He said that in Phu Dong commune, 60 houses were damaged. The exact damage to farming in the province is still being assessed.

 

 

02.08.2012

Tornado

Vietnam

Soc Trang Province, [The area was not defined.]

 

Tornado in Vietnam on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 03:27 (03:27 AM) UTC.

Description

Freak tornadoes swept through three southern provinces early yesterday killing two people, injuring about 75 others and destroying nearly 700 homes. Thousands of people are reported to have been left homeless by the high-speed storms, which lasted for less than half an hour each. In Soc Trang Province, residents reported that two tornadoes struck in one hour, killing one resident and injuring about 59 others. According to preliminary reports, Soc Trang suffered the worst damage. A total of 110 houses were completely destroyed and another 226 damaged, said a spokesman for the Soc Trang People’s Committee. One family in Soc Trang who lost a family member will receive VND4.5 million (US$210) from the Government, while those injured will receive VND3 million ($140).

…………………………………………………..

02.08.2012

Flash Flood

USA

State of Connecticut, Naugatuck

 

 

Flash Flood in USA on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 03:24 (03:24 AM) UTC.

Description

A state of emergency was declared in Naugatuck Wednesday after flash flooding caused damage, street closures and evacuations. The flooding, which occurred after several inches of rain fell in a short period of time, prompted officials to open Naugatuck’s Emergency Operations Center at 4 p.m., according to Lt. Robert Harrison, Police Department spokesman. Hartford was notified, he said. Gov. Dannel P. Malloy toured flood damage Wednesday night, along with Naugatuck Mayor Robert Mezzo and other officials. Malloy offered Naugatuck some assistance in the form of state Department of Transportation vehicles and dump trucks to help with cleanup, Harrison said. Two apartment buildings, one on Prospect Street and the other on Trowbridge Place, were evacuated. He said flood waters “compromised the buildings,” in particular after water seeped into electrical systems. He said residents were not immediately allowed back into their apartments. A shelter was initially set up at the Naugatuck Senior Center with only one resident taking advantage of the shelter. That person was later relocated by the Red Cross to a local hotel, Harrison said. Other residents were able to find places to spend the night, he added. He didn’t have a count of how many people were displaced. Flood waters caused several roads to buckle as well as the collapse of a retaining wall on Rubber Avenue, he said. Mezzo, in his blog, said that as of 8 p.m. Wednesday several roads were “compromised.” He said Scott Street at Andrew Avenue was closed, as was Arch Street by the former Risdon property. Brook Street was partially closed, he said. Barricades were set up along Nettleton and Moore avenues and also along Wooster Street near Fairview Lane, restricting access to certain portions of the roads. “All other roads are open for travel,” Mezzo said. Exits 26, 27 and 28 off Route 8 were closed temporarily, but by 8 p.m. had been reopened, Harrison said. No injuries were reported.

 

 

02.08.2012

Flash Flood

USA

State of Arizona, [Phoenix – north]

 

 

Flash Flood in USA on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 03:21 (03:21 AM) UTC.

Description

Flood waters in the Phoenix area were receding Wednesday, a day after firefighters rescued a baby and several other people who were trapped in their vehicles. A dust and monsoon storm late Tuesday carried pea-sized hail and forced the closure of a well-traveled highway, flooded homes, knocked out power to area residents and collapsed a backyard fence. Firefighters rescued nine people from four vehicles on a highway west of Interstate 17 near Phoenix. Drivers on that part of State Route 74 were rerouted Wednesday during morning rush-hour traffic onto an alternate east-west route that is used for trips to and from Las Vegas. The five-mile stretch of highway reopened Wednesday afternoon when storm runoff subsided. Phoenix Fire Capt. Scott McDonald said it took an hour to rescue the people from their vehicles Tuesday amid the fast-moving water that rose to 4 feet at one point, the Arizona Republic reported. Nearby, homes in Anthem quickly filled with water. Residents were cleaning up Wednesday from the storm that turned their streets into a muddy river, destroyed one home and felled trees. Vides’ neighbor was standing by a fence when it collapsed and the water knocked her over, sending her swimming. A slight chance of thunderstorms is forecast for the Phoenix area Friday and through the weekend. The National Weather Service says any storms that develop could produce lightning, gusty winds and heavy rainfall.

 

 

Flash Flood Warning

 

PEACHTREE CITY GA

Flood Advisory

 

INDIANAPOLIS IN
COLUMBIA SC
ALBUQUERQUE NM
MORRISTOWN TN

Coastal Flood Advisory

 

WILMINGTON NC

……………………………………………………

State of Emergency in Naugatuck

Some roads in Naugatuck are flooded.

Jake Lounsbury

Water covers Main Street in Naugatuck.

advertisement

The mayor of Naugatuck has declared a state of emergency after a freak rain storm caused flash floods Wednesday afternoon.

Emergency officials have been taking call after call for flooding in Naugatuck as a storm dumped more than five inches of rain.

The Naugatuck River went from 1.6 feet as of 2:30 p.m. to 6.6 feet as of 4 p.m. because of rain coming downstream from Naugautuck, according to NBC meteorologist Ryan Hanrahan.

There is a 6-foot deep sinkhole at Trowbridge Place in Naugatuck caused by the storm.

Mayor Bob Mezzo declared a state of emergency as of 4 p.m. and said many areas of the Borough were impassible.  Mezzo was updating damage reports on his blog.

A three-story apartment building at 83 Prospect Street was evacuated due to flooding, according to police.  The Senior Center at 300 Meadow Street was being used as a shelter.

Gov. Dannel Malloy traveled to Naugatuck to see the damage first hand.

Several people have tweeted photos of flooded roads.

Photos and Videos

PHOTOS
Flooding
in Naugatuck

More Photos and Videos

One of the most dramatic is of Hoadley Avenue, where rushing water is carrying chunks of roadway down the street.

The state Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection warns against driving in areas where the water covers the roadway.

The depth of water is not always obvious. The road bed may be washed out under the water, and you could be stranded or trapped, according to a flood information sheet from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

 

 

Taiwan flooded with almost 5 feet of typhoon rain

Associated Press

TAIPEI, Taiwan –  A tropical storm inched across northern Taiwan on Thursday after already dumping up to five feet of rain that has flooded farmland, swollen rivers and paralyzed life on much of the densely populated island of 23 million people.

Saola weakened from a typhoon to a tropical storm by late afternoon, but its slow movement and continuing heavy rains raised the prospect of devastating flooding in areas that have absorbed more than 58 inches of rain since Tuesday.

It has caused five deaths and left two people missing in Taiwan after killing 26 people in the Philippines.

In the day in the northeastern county of Ilan, rescuers used rubber boats and amphibious vehicles to help hundreds escape flooded homes.

Dozens of flights were canceled at Taipei’s main international airport, where heavy winds destroyed two jetways, and rail transport throughout the island was disrupted. All seven major reservoirs in Taiwan released large quantities of water to prevent flooding.

By nighttime, Saola was centered just off northern Taiwan, moving northwest toward China at 10 mph. It had sustained winds of 54 mph, gusting to 71 mph.

Offices and businesses were closed throughout northern Taiwan. In Taipei, normally busy streets were deserted except for cleanup crews clearing off fallen trees and branches. The Defense Ministry mobilized 48,000 soldiers to help mitigate the storm’s impact.

Television footage showed acre upon acre of flooded farmland in low-lying coastal areas, punctuated by scenes of raging rivers and roads blocked by mudslides in the island’s mountainous center.

The typhoon left at least 26 people dead in the Philippines and forced 180,000 to flee their homes. Coast guard and other disaster-response groups rescued 125 people from stricken sea vessels and flooded villages, according to Benito Ramos, who heads the government’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

China’s east coast was bracing for dual landfalls, Saola and Typhoon Damrey to its north. Coastal provinces were moving residents to safety in anticipation of flooding, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

 

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Epidemic Hazards / Diseases

 

02.08.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Uganda

Western Uganda, [Kibaale District, Mbarara and the Capital City (Kampala)]

 

Epidemic Hazard in Uganda on Thursday, 26 July, 2012 at 15:57 (03:57 PM) UTC.

Back

Updated:	Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 16:14 UTC
Description
The hospital at the center of an Ebola outbreak in Uganda is now dealing with 30 suspected cases, including five from Kibaale prison, Dr. Dan Kyamanywa said Thursday. Three patients at Kagadi hospital have been confirmed as having the virus, said Kyamanywa, a district health officer. Doctors are now testing the suspected cases urgently so they can separate confirmed cases from those who do not have the disease, Doctors Without Borders said. Suspected cases are still trickling into the hospital, Kyamanywa said. At least 16 people have died in the current outbreak. The five prisoners have been showing Ebola-like symptoms of vomiting, diarrhea and fever, the doctor said. “We do expect the number of suspected cases to increase,” he said. “It’s important to break transmission and reduce the number of contacts that suspected cases have.” There is a fear that the outbreak will spread to the capital, but it is unlikely, he said. Many patients fled Kagadi hospital when Ebola was confirmed, he said, and the hospital is struggling to respond to all the call-outs to suspected cases. “Right now there is no treatment for Ebola, so the most effective measure we can take is to contain the spread of the disease,” said Olimpia de la Rosa, the Doctors Without Borders emergency coordinator for Uganda Ebola intervention. “That is why we need to start working immediately. Other cases need to be rapidly identified because containment is what can stop it,” said the expert from the aid group, which is also known as Medecins Sans Frontieres. The Ugandan government has asked people in western Uganda to travel by public transport only if it is necessary. The outbreak began in the Kibaale district in western Uganda. The deaths have stoked heightened fear about the spread of the virus, a highly infectious, often fatal agent spread through direct contact with bodily fluids. Symptoms can include fever, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, headache, a measles-like rash, red eyes and, at times, bleeding from body openings. Market day was canceled Wednesday after Uganda’s president warned people not to gather in large groups. Health officials urged the public to report any suspected cases, to avoid contact with anyone infected and to wear gloves and masks while disinfecting bedding and clothing of infected people. Officials also advised avoiding public gatherings in the affected district. Teams in Uganda are taking an aggressive approach, including trying to track down anyone who came into contact with patients infected with the virus and health workers have been gearing up for better protection of health workers and an influx of cases. The workers include people from Uganda’s ministry of health, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization. The outbreak initially went undetected because patients did not show typical symptoms, Ugandan Health Minister Dr. Christine Ondoa told CNN on Sunday. Patients had fevers and were vomiting, but did not show other typical symptoms, such as hemorrhaging. Diagnosis in an individual who has only recently been infected can be difficult since early symptoms, such as red eyes and skin rash, are seen more frequently in patients who have more common diseases, the CDC said. Uganda’s Ministry of Health declared the outbreak in Kibaale district Saturday after the Uganda Virus Research Institute identified the disease as the Sudan strain of Ebola hemorrhagic fever.

 

 

02.08.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Kenya

Province of Nyanza, Siaya

 

 

Epidemic Hazard in Kenya on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 18:35 (06:35 PM) UTC.

Description
Anxiety has gripped Siaya residents after a 27-year-old man was admitted to hospital with symptoms of the deadly Ebola virus. The man, who was immediately put in a solitary ward in Siaya District Hospital, was admitted Wednesday [1 Aug 2012] morning with excessive blood oozing from his gums. “He is also passing bloody urine,” said Siaya Medical Superintendent Jacktone Omoto, who said that was a symptom associated with the haemorrhagic fever. Omoto said the patient’s blood sample was sent to the Kenya Medical Research Institute in Siaya for testing, and the results are expected on Friday [3 Aug 2012] at the earliest. Director of Public Health Shahnaaz Sharif has, in the meantime, called for calm as the country awaits the results of the tests. On Monday [30 Jul 2012], the government put on high alert Provincial Directors of Health and District Medical Officers in Western, Nyanza and the Rift valley, which border Uganda, over the outbreak of the deadly Ebola disease. Public Health Minister Beth Mugo is expected to give a ministerial statement on the specific measures the government has taken since the outbreak was reported in neighbouring Uganda about 3 weeks ago.
Biohazard name:	Ebola (susp.)
Biohazard level:	4/4 Hazardous
Biohazard desc.:	Viruses and bacteria that cause severe to fatal disease in humans, and for which vaccines or other treatments are not available, such as Bolivian and Argentine hemorrhagic fevers, H5N1(bird flu), Dengue hemorrhagic fever, Marburg virus, Ebola virus, hantaviruses, Lassa fever, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, and other hemorrhagic or unidentified diseases. When dealing with biological hazards at this level the use of a Hazmat suit and a self-contained oxygen supply is mandatory. The entrance and exit of a Level Four biolab will contain multiple showers, a vacuum room, an ultraviolet light room, autonomous detection system, and other safety precautions designed to destroy all traces of the biohazard. Multiple airlocks are employed and are electronically secured to prevent both doors opening at the same time. All air and water service going to and coming from a Biosafety Level 4 (P4) lab will undergo similar decontamination procedures to eliminate the possibility of an accidental release.
Symptoms:
Status:	suspected

 

 

 

 

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Solar Activity

2MIN News August 2, 2012: Hurricane/Cyclone Season, Quakes, Space weather

Published on Aug 2, 2012 by Suspicious0bservers

TODAY’S LINKS
Fish Skin Cancer: http://phys.org/news/2012-08-skin-cancer-wild-fish-populations.html
US Quake Prediction: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/08/120801132717.htm

REPEAT LINKS
Spaceweather: http://spaceweather.com/ [Look on the left at the X-ray Flux and Solar Wind Speed/Density]

HAARP: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/haarp/data.html [Click online data, and have a little fun]

SDO: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/ [Place to find Solar Images and Videos – as seen from earth]

SOHO: http://sohodata.nascom.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/soho_movie_theater [SOHO; Lasco and EIT – as seen from earth]

Stereo: http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/images [Stereo; Cor, EUVI, HI – as seen from the side]

SunAEON:http://www.sunaeon.com/#/solarsystem/ [Just click it… trust me]

SOLARIMG: http://solarimg.org/artis/ [All purpose data viewing site]

iSWA: http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov/iswa/iSWA.html [Free Application; for advanced sun watchers]

NOAA ENLIL SPIRAL: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/wsa-enlil/cme-based/ [CME Evolution]

NOAA Bouys: http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/

RSOE: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php [That cool alert map I use]

JAPAN Radiation Map: http://jciv.iidj.net/map/

LISS: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/heliplots_gsn.php

Gamma Ray Bursts: http://grb.sonoma.edu/ [Really? You can’t figure out what this one is for?]

BARTOL Cosmic Rays: http://neutronm.bartol.udel.edu//spaceweather/welcome.html [Top left box, look for BIG blue circles]

TORCON: http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-torcon-index [Tornado Forecast for the day]

GOES Weather: http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/goes/ [Clouds over America]

EL DORADO WORLD WEATHER MAP: http://www.eldoradocountyweather.com/satellite/ssec/world/world-composite-ir-…

PRESSURE MAP: http://www.woweather.com/cgi-bin/expertcharts?LANG=us&MENU=0000000000&…

HURRICANE TRACKER: http://www.weather.com/weather/hurricanecentral/tracker

INTELLICAST: http://www.intellicast.com/ [Weather site used by many youtubers]

NASA News: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/

PHYSORG: http://phys.org/ [GREAT News Site!]

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Space

 

 

Earth approaching objects (objects that are known in the next 30 days)
Object Name	Apporach Date	Left	AU Distance	LD Distance	Estimated Diameter*	Relative Velocity
(2000 RN77)	03rd August 2012	0 day(s)	0.1955	76.1	410 m – 920 m	9.87 km/s	35532 km/h
(2004 SB56)	04th August 2012	1 day(s)	0.1393	54.2	380 m – 840 m	13.72 km/s	49392 km/h
(2000 SD8)	04th August 2012	1 day(s)	0.1675	65.2	180 m – 400 m	5.82 km/s	20952 km/h
(2006 EC)	06th August 2012	3 day(s)	0.0932	36.3	13 m – 28 m	6.13 km/s	22068 km/h
(2006 MV1)	07th August 2012	4 day(s)	0.0612	23.8	12 m – 28 m	4.79 km/s	17244 km/h
(2005 RK3)	08th August 2012	5 day(s)	0.1843	71.7	52 m – 120 m	8.27 km/s	29772 km/h
(2009 BW2)	09th August 2012	6 day(s)	0.0337	13.1	25 m – 56 m	5.27 km/s	18972 km/h
277475 (2005 WK4)	09th August 2012	6 day(s)	0.1283	49.9	260 m – 580 m	6.18 km/s	22248 km/h
(2004 SC56)	09th August 2012	6 day(s)	0.0811	31.6	74 m – 170 m	10.57 km/s	38052 km/h
(2008 AF4)	10th August 2012	7 day(s)	0.1936	75.3	310 m – 690 m	16.05 km/s	57780 km/h
37655 Illapa	12th August 2012	9 day(s)	0.0951	37.0	770 m – 1.7 km	28.73 km/s	103428 km/h
(2012 HS15)	14th August 2012	11 day(s)	0.1803	70.2	220 m – 490 m	11.54 km/s	41544 km/h
4581 Asclepius	16th August 2012	13 day(s)	0.1079	42.0	220 m – 490 m	13.48 km/s	48528 km/h
(2008 TC4)	18th August 2012	15 day(s)	0.1937	75.4	140 m – 300 m	17.34 km/s	62424 km/h
(2006 CV)	20th August 2012	17 day(s)	0.1744	67.9	290 m – 640 m	13.24 km/s	47664 km/h
(2012 EC)	20th August 2012	17 day(s)	0.0815	31.7	56 m – 130 m	5.57 km/s	20052 km/h
162421 (2000 ET70)	21st August 2012	18 day(s)	0.1503	58.5	640 m – 1.4 km	12.92 km/s	46512 km/h
(2007 WU3)	21st August 2012	18 day(s)	0.1954	76.0	56 m – 120 m	5.25 km/s	18900 km/h
(2012 BB14)	24th August 2012	21 day(s)	0.1234	48.0	27 m – 60 m	2.58 km/s	9288 km/h
1 AU = ~150 million kilometers,1 LD = Lunar Distance = ~384,000 kilometers Source: NASA-NEO

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Sinkholes

Road gives way as Deadly Sinkhole opens up & swallows man in Taiwan (Aug 2, 2012)

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Biological Hazards / Wildlife / Hazmat

 

 

Thousands of Fish found dead in Lake Canyada, Iowa (Aug 2, 2012)

Fish Kill in Lake Canyada

Posted on: 10:07 pm, July 31, 2012, by Pauli Mayfield, updated on: 08:22am, August 1, 2012

 http://wqad.com/2012/07/31/fish-kill-in-lake-canyada/

Lakes all over the state of Iowa are dealing with dead fish floating to the surface thanks the excessive heat and lack of rain we have seen.  The most recent fish kill in our area is Lake Canyada in Davenport.  Residents woke up Monday morning to the rancid smell of rotten fish.

Approximately 2000 fish were killed in the lake due to high heat and lack of rain fall.  The weather conditions depleted the amount of oxygen in the lake, killing mainly blue gills, some catfish and grass carp.

An Iowa DNR officer has checked the water and confirmed that it was nature and not pollution that killed the thousands of fish.

“If it was a fish kill related to chemicals or some other foreign substance in the lake, it would be in the 10’s of thousands in that 11 acre lake,” DNR officer Jeff Harrison tells us.  “So, it’s a natural occurring event.”

Lake Canyada is not alone.  Harrison says there have been 3 fish kills at Lake Odessa this year.  DNR has also stated that similar fish kills are being reported across the state of Iowa.

Read more about how the heat is affecting fishing – click here.

 

 

02.08.2012

Biological Hazard

USA

State of Texas, [Irion County]

 

 

Biological Hazard in USA on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 10:42 (10:42 AM) UTC.

Description
A yearling female sheep in West Texas has been diagnosed with anthrax. This is the second confirmed case of anthrax in a Texas animal for 2012 and the first in livestock this year. The infected sheep was located near Mertzon, TX (Irion County,) which is approximately 26 miles southwest of San Angelo. The Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) has quarantined the premises. TAHC regulations require vaccinations of exposed livestock and proper disposal of carcasses before a quarantine can be released. Anthrax is a bacterial disease caused by Bacillus anthracis, whichis a naturally occurring organism with worldwide distribution, including Texas. It is not uncommon for anthrax to be diagnosed in livestock or wildlife in the southwestern part of the state. Basic sanitation precautions such as hand washing, wearing long sleeves and gloves can prevent accidental spread of the bacteria to people if handling affected livestock or carcasses. Acute fever followed by rapid death with bleeding from body openings are all common signs of anthrax in livestock. Carcasses may also appear bloated and appear to decompose quickly. Livestock or animals displaying symptoms consistent with anthrax should be reported to a private practitioner or TAHC official. “The TAHC will continue to closely monitor the situation for possible new cases across the state. Producers are encouraged to consult with their veterinary practitioner or local TAHC office about the disease and about preventative measures such as vaccination of livestock,” Dr. Dee Ellis, State Veterinarian, said.
Biohazard name:	Anthrax
Biohazard level:	4/4 Hazardous
Biohazard desc.:	Viruses and bacteria that cause severe to fatal disease in humans, and for which vaccines or other treatments are not available, such as Bolivian and Argentine hemorrhagic fevers, H5N1(bird flu), Dengue hemorrhagic fever, Marburg virus, Ebola virus, hantaviruses, Lassa fever, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, and other hemorrhagic or unidentified diseases. When dealing with biological hazards at this level the use of a Hazmat suit and a self-contained oxygen supply is mandatory. The entrance and exit of a Level Four biolab will contain multiple showers, a vacuum room, an ultraviolet light room, autonomous detection system, and other safety precautions designed to destroy all traces of the biohazard. Multiple airlocks are employed and are electronically secured to prevent both doors opening at the same time. All air and water service going to and coming from a Biosafety Level 4 (P4) lab will undergo similar decontamination procedures to eliminate the possibility of an accidental release.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

 

 

 

02.08.2012

HAZMAT

China

Hong Kong Special Administrative Regions, Hong Kong

 

HAZMAT in China on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 10:23 (10:23 AM) UTC.

Description

Low-level radioactivity was discovered in a packaged oats product from Japan on sale at a retail outlet in Hong Kong, a spokesman for the Center for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department said Wednesday. After testing a sample from the package, the Hong Kong-based CFS said radioactivity levels were low enough that there is no health concern for anyone consuming the oatmeal. “The oats sample was collected from a local supermarket for radiation testing under the regular food surveillance program, the CFS spokesman said. “The test result showed that a low level of the radioactive substance, Caesium-137 (Cs-137), was detected at 7 Bq/kg.” The CFS spokesman said the radioactivity level is far below the 1,000 Bq/kg safety guideline established by the international Codex Alimentarius Commission. CFS did not order a recall of the product because the dietary exposure shows the internal dose of Cs-137 even at high consumption, figured at 90 grams per day, would not be enough to result in adverse health effects. Hong Kong, one of two special administrative regions of the People’s Republic of China (the other being Macau), has been conducting daily tests for radioactivity of food from Japan since March 12, 2011. One day before that, a powerful 9.0 earthquake struck Japan, causing a devastating tidal wave and leading to the melt down of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. With the farmland environment around the Daiichi plant poisoned with radioactivity, Hong Kong CFS has conducted nearly 91,000 tests of food imported from Japan to weed out any that are radioactive. Just 171 Japanese food samples have been found to be radioactive by the Hong Kong testing program. With the packaged oats, high consumption would result in a radiation dose lower than one might receive during a chest X-ray. Hong Kong tests for Iodine-131, Caesium-134 and Caesium-137. It has detected these elements in fruits and vegetables, meat and aquatic products, and various beverages and cereals. In most cases, the findings do not exceed Codex levels or the importer for disposal surrendered the product. CFS said it will “review and adjust” the monitoring of food from Japan based on “recommendations from international authorities to safeguard food safety.”

 

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Articles of Interest

Strange “Fire Rainbow” Cloud Appears Over South Florida – July 31, 2012

Published on Aug 1, 2012 by Sheilaaliens

“So-called “fire rainbows” are neither on fire nor are they rainbows, but they sure are stunning.

They are technically known as iridescent clouds, a relatively rare phenomenon caused by clouds of water droplets of nearly uniform size, according to a release by NASA. These clouds diffract, or bend, light in a similar manner, which separates out light into different wavelengths, or colors.

That makes them similar to rainbow-colored glories, which are also formed by diffraction, and also produce an oscillating pattern of colors ranging from blue to green to red to purple and back to blue again.” read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/48451773/ns/technology_and_science-science/#.UBnS…

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[In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit, for research and/or educational purposes. This constitutes ‘FAIR USE’ of any such copyrighted material.]

Earth Watch Report – Thursday August 2nd, 2012

Earthquakes

 

RSOE EDIS

 

 

Date/Time (UTC)	Magnitude	Area	Country	State/Prov./Gov.	Location	Risk			Source	Details
02.08.2012 10:50:36	2.0	North America	United States	California	Oceanside				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 10:10:27	2.4	Asia	Turkey	Van	Toyga				EMSC
02.08.2012 11:15:51	2.5	Europe	Greece	Peloponnese	Areopolis				EMSC
02.08.2012 10:10:47	2.0	Europe	Italy	The Marches	Gualdo				EMSC
02.08.2012 10:11:09	5.4	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	Maluku	Tual				EMSC
02.08.2012 09:55:33	5.4	Indonesian archipelago	Indonesia	Maluku	Tual				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 10:30:32	2.5	Caribbean	Puerto Rico	Vieques	Esperanza				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 10:11:28	2.0	Asia	Turkey	?zmir	Cumaovasi				EMSC
02.08.2012 10:11:49	3.8	Middle-East	Iran	F?rs	Nurabad				EMSC
02.08.2012 09:10:21	3.1	Europe	Greece	Peloponnese	Marathopolis				EMSC
02.08.2012 09:10:50	4.0	Europe	Poland	Lower Silesian Voivodeship	Michalow				EMSC
02.08.2012 09:11:11	2.5	Europe	Greece	Peloponnese	Vytina				EMSC
02.08.2012 09:11:33	2.0	Asia	Turkey	Van	Yuvacik				EMSC
02.08.2012 09:11:55	2.2	Asia	Turkey	Van	Yuvacik				EMSC
02.08.2012 08:20:27	3.1	North America	United States	Alaska	Nikiski				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 08:15:58	2.9	North America	United States	California	Wofford Heights				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 08:35:46	3.4	Caribbean	British Virgin Islands		Road Town				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 08:36:06	4.8	North America	United States	Alaska	Atka				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 09:12:16	4.9	North-America	United States	Alaska	Atka				EMSC
02.08.2012 08:05:21	2.7	Europe	Czech Republic		Chotebuz				EMSC
02.08.2012 08:16:20	4.5	Pacific Ocean	New Zealand	Gisborne	Ruatoria				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 09:12:38	4.5	Australia & New-Zealand	New Zealand	Gisborne	Ruatoria				EMSC
02.08.2012 08:10:40	5.2	Pacific Ocean	New Zealand	Gisborne	Ruatoria				GEONET
02.08.2012 08:05:45	4.8	Australia & New-Zealand	New Zealand	Gisborne	Ruatoria				EMSC
02.08.2012 07:40:34	4.8	Pacific Ocean	New Zealand	Gisborne	Ruatoria				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 08:06:03	4.5	Australia & New-Zealand	New Zealand	Gisborne	Ruatoria				EMSC
02.08.2012 07:35:33	4.5	Pacific Ocean	New Zealand	Gisborne	Ruatoria				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 08:06:23	4.2	Middle-East	Kuwait	Al ‘??imah	Kuwait				EMSC
02.08.2012 09:13:00	4.9	Middle-East	Yemen	?a?ramawt	Kilmia				EMSC
02.08.2012 06:05:21	5.5	Indonesian Archipelago	Papua New Guinea	Bougainville	Panguna				EMSC
02.08.2012 05:35:30	5.5	Indonesian archipelago	Papua New Guinea	Bougainville	Panguna				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 07:00:31	3.0	Caribbean	British Virgin Islands		Road Town				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 06:05:41	2.4	Asia	Turkey	Van	Toyga				EMSC
02.08.2012 05:01:01	3.0	Europe	Bosnia and Herzegovina	Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina	Glamoc				EMSCitaly
02.08.2012 03:10:28	2.1	North America	United States	California	Yucca Valley				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 02:55:20	2.3	Europe	Italy	Sicily	Saponara Villafranca				EMSC
02.08.2012 02:55:42	3.2	Asia	Turkey	Manisa	Akhisar				EMSC
02.08.2012 02:56:05	2.2	Europe	Italy	Calabria	Bovalino Superiore				EMSC
02.08.2012 02:56:26	4.7	South-America	Argentina	Salta	San Antonio de los Cobres				EMSC
02.08.2012 02:56:46	2.3	Europe	France	Centre	Le Louroux				EMSC
02.08.2012 01:55:19	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Datca				EMSC
02.08.2012 01:55:45	2.0	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	San Prospero				EMSC
02.08.2012 01:56:04	2.0	Europe	Italy	Sicily	Panarea				EMSC
02.08.2012 01:56:23	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Van	Toyga				EMSC
02.08.2012 01:56:41	3.2	South-America	Chile	Región Metropolitana	Melipilla				EMSC
02.08.2012 00:30:27	2.0	North America	United States	California	Anza				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 00:20:50	4.7	Asia	India	Arun?chal Pradesh	Khonsa				USGS-RSOE
02.08.2012 00:50:25	4.8	Asia	India	Arun?chal Pradesh	Khonsa				EMSC
02.08.2012 00:50:47	2.3	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	San Prospero				EMSC
02.08.2012 00:51:04	2.4	Asia	Turkey	?zmir	Foca				EMSC

 

 

 

……………………………………..

6 quakes in last week off southern Oregon coast

By KCBY News  

GOLD BEACH, Ore. – Six earthquakes between magnitude 1.6 and 2.1 rumbled under the ocean less than 20 miles off the Oregon Coast in the last week, according to U.S. Geologic Survey records.

The most recent – and most powerful – hit early Tuesday morning.

And two quakes over 4.0 shook last week about 240 miles off Bandon.

Small quakes hit Oregon on a regular basis, both on and off coast.

Last Thursday, for example, a magnitude 1.4 shook 8 miles northeast of Springfield, and a 1.5 magnitude earthquake rumbled 11 miles east of Woodburn just before 9:30 a.m. Tuesday morning.

But for residents of the Oregon Coast, earthquakes – and the tsunamis they can trigger – have taken on renewed importance since March 2011.

The earthquake and tsunami that devastated parts of Japan last year caused damage on the Oregon Coast and continue to deliver debris to Northwest beaches.

The USGS told KCBY News that the recent swarm of quakes pose little tsunami risk. The plates involved move sideways instead of up and down, and earthquakes under magnitude 6 are not likely to generate tsunamis.

 

 

 

 

Alpine faults show new evidence for regular magnitude 8 earthquakes

by Staff Writers
Reno NV (SPX)

University of Nevada – Reno seismologist Glenn Biasi spent eight days in the dense forests on the western side of the Southern Alps on the South Island of New Zealand to study the Alpine Fault, among the world’s longest, straightest and fastest moving plate boundary faults. Photo courtesy University of Nevada, Reno. Credit: Photo courtesy University of Nevada, Reno.

A new study published in the prestigious journal Science, co-authored by University of Nevada, Reno’s Glenn Biasi and colleagues at GNS Science in New Zealand, finds that very large earthquakes have been occurring relatively regularly on the Alpine Fault along the southwest coastline of New Zealand for at least 8,000 years.

The Alpine Fault is the most hazardous fault on the South Island of New Zealand, and about 80 miles northwest of the South Island’s main city of Christchurch.

The team developed evidence for 22 earthquakes at the Hokuri Creek site, which, with two additional from nearby, led to the longest continuous earthquake record in the world for a major plate boundary fault.

The team established that the Alpine Fault causes, on average, earthquakes of around a magnitude 8 every 330 years. Previous data put the intervals at about 485 years.

Relative motion of Australian and Pacific plates across the Alpine Fault averages almost an inch per year. This motion builds up, and then is released suddenly in large earthquakes.

The 530-mile-long fault is among the longest, straightest and fastest moving plate boundary faults in the world. More than 23 feet of potential slip has accumulated in the 295 years since the most recent event in A.D. 1717.

Biasi, working with the GNS Science team led by Kelvin Berryman, used paleoseismology to extend the known seismic record from 1000 years ago to 8,000 years ago. They estimated earthquake dates by combining radiocarbon dating leaves, small twigs and marsh plants with geologic and other field techniques.

“Our study sheds new light on the frequency and size of earthquakes on the Alpine Fault. Earthquakes have been relatively periodic, suggesting that this may be a more general property of simple plate boundary faults worldwide,” Biasi, of the Nevada Seismological Laboratory said.

“By comparison, large earthquakes on California’s San Andreas Fault have been less regular in size and timing.”

“Knowing the average rate of earthquakes is useful, but is only part of the seismic hazard equation,” he said.

“If they are random in time, then the hazard does not depend on how long it has been since the most recent event.

“Alpine Fault earthquakes are more regular in their timing, allowing us to use the time since the last earthquake to adjust the hazard estimate. We estimate the 50-year probability of a large Alpine fault earthquake to be about 27 percent.”

A magnitude 7.1 earthquake centered near Christchurch, the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, caused extensive damage to buildings on Sept. 2, 2010, and no deaths.

On Feb. 22, 2011, a triggered aftershock measuring magnitude 6.3, with one of the strongest ground motions ever recorded worldwide in an urban area, struck the city killing 185 people.

Among other seismic work, Biasi has conducted research on earthquake recurrence on the San Andreas Fault and is a contributor to the Uniform California Earthquake Rupture Forecast-3 project, which is developing earthquake probabilities for the California Earthquake Authority. He is a research associate professor in the College of Science’s Mackay School of Earth Sciences and Engineering.

Related Links
University of Nevada, Reno
Tectonic Science and News

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Volcanic Activity

Santa Rosa Plateau ‘Volcano’ fire grows to 400 acres

By Kerri S. Mabee,

The Santa Rosa Plateau ‘Volcano’ fire (Daniel Lane)

Updated @ 4 p.m.: The fire has grown to 400 acres and is reported to be 20 percent contained, according to a Riverside County Fire Department report.

Updated @ 3:02 p.m.: According to a Riverside County Fire Department report, the fire has progressed to 225 acres.

No evacuations have been reported, according to Riverside County Sheriff’s Sgt. Geoff Green.

Sgt. Green, who said Sheriff’s Department officials were at the scene in the event that evacuations were ordered, said, “Cal Fire has done a great job of knocking this down as much as possible.”

No injuries have been reported at this time.

Updated @ 2:41 p.m.: Reports on scene are that some homes in the area are threatened and that evacuations are underway.

Updated @ 1:36 p.m.: Riverside County Fire Department officials report that the fire has spread to 200 acres and is less than 5 percent contained.

Check out more video here: Dramatic video shows Volcano fire devastation

Updated @ 1:19 p.m.: Tenaja residents Janet and Warren Franks report that they are experiencing black smoke and can see flames in the distance.

According to the Franks, no evacuation orders have yet been imposed but roads in the area have been blocked off.

The residents do not believe their home is in jeopardy at this time.

Video of Volcano fire in Santa Rosa Plateau courtesy of Daniel Lane:

Updated @ 12:56p.m.: Riverside County Fire Department officials have reported that the fire has scorched 100 acres in the city of La Cresta and is now being managed along with United States Forest Service (Cleveland).

Original: Cal Fire and Riverside County Fire Department first responders are on the scene of a vegetation fire burning at Tenaja Road and Via Volcano in De Luz, it was reported today.

The Santa Rosa Plateau ‘Volcano’ fire (Daniel Lane)

As of noon, the blaze had consumed 15 acres at a moderate rate of spread, according to a Riverside County Fire Department report.

No injuries or evacuations have been reported at this time.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

This is a developing story. Check back with SWRNN for more details as they come available.

*Stephanie D. Schulte contributed to this report.

Volcano Fire

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Extreme Temperatures/ Weather

 

 

Excessive Heat Warning

 

TULSA OK
WICHITA KS

Heat Advisory

 

TULSA OK

AMARILLO TX
LITTLE ROCK AR
NORMAN OK
SHREVEPORT LA
SAN ANGELO TX
HUNTSVILLE AL
SPRINGFIELD MO
MEMPHIS TN
FORT WORTH TX
LUBBOCK TX

 

 

31.07.2012

Heat Wave

Japan

[Statewide]

 

 

Heat Wave in Japan on Wednesday, 25 July, 2012 at 03:36 (03:36 AM) UTC.

Back

Updated:	Tuesday, 31 July, 2012 at 08:36 UTC
Description
The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said Tuesday that 16 people died and 8,670 were taken to hospital due to heatstroke in the week of July 23-29. Temperatures have remained high across the nation for 10 days in a row as a high pressure system lingers over Japan. The mercury has topped 35 degrees in more than 110 locations across Japan each day, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. Of the number of people taken to hospital, 3,717 were aged 65 or older, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency said. By prefecture, Aichi had the most number of heatstroke victims at 668. The Meteorological Agency said the heatwave is expected to continue at least until next Saturday.

……………………………

01.08.2012

Heat Wave

South Korea

Capital City, Seoul

 

 

Heat Wave in South Korea on Wednesday, 01 August, 2012 at 13:47 (01:47 PM) UTC.

Description

The first heat wave warning was issued in Seoul Wednesday since the heat wave alarm system was adopted in 2008, according to the state’s weather agency. A heat wave advisory had been in effect in Seoul since last month but weather officials said it was replaced with the heat wave warning because the temperature had soared. The warning is issued if the temperature is expected to remain above 35 degrees Celsius for two or more consecutive days. From July 22 through 30, temperatures remained above 30 degrees Celsius across the nation. The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) also issued a warning in some other cities in Gyeonggi, Chungcheong, and Jeolla provinces. The western part of the country is hotter because the wind that flows into the region gets heated while crossing Taebaek Mountains, according to the agency. Meanwhile, the number of people who have died from heat stroke or heat exhaustion has increased over the past few days. Police said six people between the ages of 50 to 70 died in July – five of them between July 24 and 30 when the country was sizzling in the heat wave. All died while working or staying outside. The number of people who have been hospitalized due to heat-related illnesses came to 366 as of Monday. During the past week patients increased exponentially as 211 out of the total 366 visited hospitals between Wednesday and Monday, according to the weather agency.

 

 

 

…………………………….

Record Tulsa temperatures may continue

Map courtesy of Oklhoma Forestry Services

By Staff Reports

Tulsa’s temperatures are rising and are showing no signs of letting up yet.

The National Weather Service forecasts highs near 113 degrees this afternoon; 109 on Thursday; 107 on Friday; and 102 on Saturday for Tulsa.

Highs are expected to finally sink to the 90s again by Sunday, when a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms is forecast for Tulsa.

Tulsa reached its hottest temperature of the calendar year on Tuesday, 112 degrees. Tulsa finished the month of July with 1.38 inches of rain, almost 2 inches below normal for the month.

Excessive heat warning

The weather service extended its heat warning for northeast Oklahoma until 7 p.m. Friday.

Counties under the warning are: Adair, Cherokee, Craig, Creek, Delaware, Haskell, Mayes, McIntosh, Muskogee, Nowata, Okfuskgee, Okmulgee, Osage, Ottawa, Pawnee, Pittsburg, Rogers, Sequoyah, Tulsa, Wagoner and Washington.

According to the weather service, these areas are expected to have high temperatures in the 105- to 115-degree range each afternoon, with overnight lows in the mid- to upper 70s. More urbanized areas in Tulsa County are expected to have overnight lows in the mid- to upper 80s.

Burn bans still in effect

County commissioners extended Tulsa County’s burn ban through next week.

For more information, visit tulsaworld.com/burnban.

 

 

 

Red Flag Warning

FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE

 

POCATELLO ID
GLASGOW MT
GREAT FALLS MT
RIVERTON WY
BILLINGS MT
CHEYENNE WY
MISSOULA MT

 

Extreme Fire Danger

 

RAPID CITY SD

July 2012: Exceptional Drought and Tornado Drought

By Samantha Kramer, AccuWeather.com Staff Writer

From a historically low number of tornadoes to exceptional drought and heat across much of the nation, July was a month of extremes.

(Photo courtesy of Photos.com)

The Tornado Drought

In the United States, July 2012 saw one of the lowest numbers of tornadoes on record since 1951.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported 12 “preliminary” tornadoes in the month of July, a number which usually drops after the administration investigates the actual counts. Last July, however, a total of 103 tornadoes were counted, which is even lower than the three-year average between 2009-2011 of 122 tornadoes.

RELATED: Record Low July Tornadoes, but Not Winds

The jet stream responsible for tornado-producing wind shear moved farther north into Canada. The result was a burst in tornado activity in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, which borders Montana and North Dakota.

Canada’s official weather office Environment Canada reported between 26 and 31 tornadoes in Saskatchewan, more than double the province is used to seeing in July. On July 24, five tornadoes hit Saskatchewan in one day.

The Haboob Hubbub

A haboob is defined as a dust storm with strong winds created by a thunderstorm downburst.

Phoenix, Ariz., has been hit by seven of these dirt storms in the 2012 summer, with five of them occurring in July. According to NOAA, the city experiences an average of three haboobs per year from June to September.

The most recent haboob occurring just yesterday in Sun Lakes, Ariz., these storms can reduce visibility to near-zero.

Because this summer is transiting into an El Nino, AccuWeather.com Expert Senior Meteorologist Ken Clark said the United States should experience a particularly “robust” monsoon season.

More thunderstorm activity from an active monsoon season could be the fuel behind the fire of Phoenix’s haboobs.

The Heat

This July, 171 all-time high-temperature records were broken or tied throughout the country, according to NOAA.

Additionally, a total of 4,313 daily highs and 299 monthly highs were matched or broken in July. Adding to June’s total of 4,100 records (daily, monthly and all-time combined) this summer is in the running to be the hottest ever recorded.

RELATED: July is Over: Horrid Heat Numbers are In

Along with the heat, much of the Great Plains struggled with drought conditions. In the “High Plains,” which the U.S. Drought Monitor denotes as Wyoming, Colorado, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska and Kansas, 76 percent of the region was experiencing severe drought.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, 56 percent of the contiguous United States are experiencing drought conditions, the most widely spread drought in the Monitor’s 12-year history.

The Northwest was an exception: Alaska actually broke 43 daily-high precipitation records in July. Nome, Alaska, received almost triple the amount of normal rainfall for July and was 0.73 inches away from getting a month’s worth of rain in just one day. The state of Washington also broke or matched 73 daily-high precipitation records and 2 all-time high records.

 

 

 

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Chronic 2000-04 drought, worst in 800 years, may be the ‘new normal’

by Staff Writers
Corvallis OR (SPX)

Pinyon pine forests near Los Alamos, N.M., had already begun to turn brown from drought stress in the image at left, in 2002, and another photo taken in 2004 from the same vantage point, at right, show them largely grey and dead. (Photo by Craig Allen, U.S. Geological Survey)

The chronic drought that hit western North America from 2000 to 2004 left dying forests and depleted river basins in its wake and was the strongest in 800 years, scientists have concluded, but they say those conditions will become the “new normal” for most of the coming century. Such climatic extremes have increased as a result of global warming, a group of 10 researchers reported in Nature Geoscience. And as bad as conditions were during the 2000-04 drought, they may eventually be seen as the good old days.

Climate models and precipitation projections indicate this period will actually be closer to the “wet end” of a drier hydroclimate during the last half of the 21st century, scientists said.

Aside from its impact on forests, crops, rivers and water tables, the drought also cut carbon sequestration by an average of 51 percent in a massive region of the western United States, Canada and Mexico, although some areas were hit much harder than others. As vegetation withered, this released more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, with the effect of amplifying global warming.

“Climatic extremes such as this will cause more large-scale droughts and forest mortality, and the ability of vegetation to sequester carbon is going to decline,” said Beverly Law, a co-author of the study, professor of global change biology and terrestrial systems science at Oregon State University, and former science director of AmeriFlux, an ecosystem observation network.

“During this drought, carbon sequestration from this region was reduced by half,” Law said. “That’s a huge drop. And if global carbon emissions don’t come down, the future will be even worse.”

This research was supported by the National Science Foundation, NASA, U.S. Department of Energy, and other agencies. The lead author was Christopher Schwalm at Northern Arizona University. Other collaborators were from the University of Colorado, University of California at Berkeley, University of British Columbia, San Diego State University, and other institutions.

It’s not clear whether or not the current drought in the Midwest, now being called one of the worst since the Dust Bowl, is related to these same forces, Law said. This study did not address that, and there are some climate mechanisms in western North America that affect that region more than other parts of the country.

But in the West, this multi-year drought was unlike anything seen in many centuries, based on tree ring data. The last two periods with drought events of similar severity were in the Middle Ages, from 977-981 and 1146-1151. The 2000-04 drought affected precipitation, soil moisture, river levels, crops, forests and grasslands.

Ordinarily, Law said, the land sink in North America is able to sequester the equivalent of about 30 percent of the carbon emitted into the atmosphere by the use of fossil fuels in the same region. However, based on projected changes in precipitation and drought severity, scientists said that this carbon sink, at least in western North America, could disappear by the end of the century.

“Areas that are already dry in the West are expected to get drier,” Law said. “We expect more extremes. And it’s these extreme periods that can really cause ecosystem damage, lead to climate-induced mortality of forests, and may cause some areas to convert from forest into shrublands or grassland.”

During the 2000-04 drought, runoff in the upper Colorado River basin was cut in half. Crop productivity in much of the West fell 5 percent. The productivity of forests and grasslands declined, along with snowpacks. Evapotranspiration decreased the most in evergreen needleleaf forests, about 33 percent.

The effects are driven by human-caused increases in temperature, with associated lower soil moisture and decreased runoff in all major water basins of the western U.S., researchers said in the study.

Although regional precipitations patterns are difficult to forecast, researchers in this report said that climate models are underestimating the extent and severity of drought, compared to actual observations. They say the situation will continue to worsen, and that 80 of the 95 years from 2006 to 2100 will have precipitation levels as low as, or lower than, this “turn of the century” drought from 2000-04.

“Towards the latter half of the 21st century the precipitation regime associated with the turn of the century drought will represent an outlier of extreme wetness,” the scientists wrote in this study.

These long-term trends are consistent with a 21st century “megadrought,” they said.

Related Links
Oregon State University
Climate Science News – Modeling, Mitigation Adaptation

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Storms, Flooding

 

 

Active tropical storm system(s)
Name of storm system	Location	Formed	Last update	Last category	Course	Wind Speed	Gust	Wave	Source	Details
Saola (10W)	Pacific Ocean	28.07.2012	02.08.2012	Typhoon I.	0 °	139 km/h	167 km/h	4.88 m	JTWC

 

 

 

 

 

 Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 4 Storm name: Saola (10W) Area: Pacific Ocean Start up location: N 14° 24.000, E 127° 6.000 Start up: 28th July 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 1,374.13 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 28th Jul 2012 05:07:30 N 14° 24.000, E 127° 6.000 17 46 65 Tropical Depression 325 14 JTWC 29th Jul 2012 05:07:02 N 17° 48.000, E 125° 48.000 15 74 93 Tropical Storm 340 16 JTWC 29th Jul 2012 10:07:25 N 18° 24.000, E 125° 48.000 11 83 102 Tropical Storm 340 8 JTWC 30th Jul 2012 04:07:32 N 20° 0.000, E 124° 48.000 13 102 130 Tropical Storm 345 14 JTWC 30th Jul 2012 10:07:58 N 20° 0.000, E 125° 0.000 2 120 148 Typhoon I. 45 9 JTWC 31st Jul 2012 05:07:36 N 20° 54.000, E 124° 6.000 4 102 130 Tropical Storm 300 8 JTWC 31st Jul 2012 11:07:41 N 21° 6.000, E 124° 24.000 9 120 148 Typhoon I. 10 10 JTWC 01st Aug 2012 05:08:57 N 22° 48.000, E 123° 36.000 7 157 194 Typhoon II. 345 17 JTWC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 02nd Aug 2012 10:32:34 N 33° 48.000, E 122° 12.000 39 139 167 Typhoon I. 300 ° 16 JTWC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 03rd Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 28° 0.000, E 117° 0.000 Tropical Storm 65 83 JTWC 03rd Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 26° 42.000, E 119° 0.000 Tropical Storm 102 130 JTWC 04th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 28° 54.000, E 114° 42.000 Tropical Depression 37 56 JTWC

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Damrey (11W)

Pacific Ocean

29.07.2012

02.08.2012

Typhoon I.

295 °

120 km/h

167 km/h

5.49 m

JTWC

 

 

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 0 Storm name: Damrey (11W) Area: Pacific Ocean Start up location: N 26° 0.000, E 145° 18.000 Start up: 29th July 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 1,338.21 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 29th Jul 2012 05:07:50 N 26° 0.000, E 145° 18.000 6 56 74 Tropical Depression 270 6 JTWC 29th Jul 2012 10:07:12 N 26° 0.000, E 145° 24.000 13 56 74 Tropical Depression 260 14 JTWC 30th Jul 2012 04:07:12 N 25° 30.000, E 145° 6.000 7 74 93 Tropical Storm 255 8 JTWC 30th Jul 2012 10:07:26 N 25° 54.000, E 144° 42.000 7 83 102 Tropical Storm 300 8 JTWC 31st Jul 2012 05:07:01 N 28° 6.000, E 140° 36.000 37 65 83 Tropical Storm 280 18 JTWC 31st Jul 2012 11:07:12 N 28° 42.000, E 138° 48.000 30 83 102 Tropical Storm 295 16 JTWC 01st Aug 2012 05:08:54 N 30° 6.000, E 132° 42.000 37 111 139 Tropical Storm 285 20 JTWC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 02nd Aug 2012 05:08:41 N 32° 42.000, E 124° 24.000 39 120 167 Typhoon I. 295 ° 18 JTWC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 03rd Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 34° 12.000, E 115° 12.000 Tropical Depression 37 56 JTWC 03rd Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 34° 12.000, E 118° 6.000 Tropical Storm 65 83 JTWC

 

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AL05

Atlantic Ocean

02.08.2012

02.08.2012

Tropical Depression

285 °

56 km/h

74 km/h

4.88 m

NHC

 

 

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 0 Storm name: AL05 Area: Atlantic Ocean Start up location: N 12° 36.000, W 50° 36.000 Start up: 02nd August 2012 Status: Active Track long: 0.00 km Top category.: Report by: NHC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 02nd Aug 2012 12:00:28 N 12° 48.000, W 52° 36.000 33 56 74 Tropical Depression 280 ° 20 1008 MB NHC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 03rd Aug 2012 12:00:00 N 14° 12.000, W 59° 18.000 Tropical Storm 83 102 NHC 03rd Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 13° 36.000, W 56° 6.000 Tropical Storm 74 93 NHC 04th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 14° 42.000, W 62° 30.000 Tropical Storm 93 111 NHC 05th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 15° 48.000, W 68° 30.000 Tropical Storm 102 120 NHC 06th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 16° 48.000, W 74° 18.000 Tropical Storm 111 139 NHC 07th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 17° 48.000, W 78° 42.000 Hurricane I. 120 148 NHC

 

 

 

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Today

Tropical Storm

Taiwan

Multiple Regions, [Northern areas]

 

 

Tropical Storm in Taiwan on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 05:14 (05:14 AM) UTC.

Description

A slow-moving typhoon spawning torrential rains slammed into eastern Taiwan early Thursday, flooding farmlands, disrupting transportation and turning the normally bustling capital of Taipei into a ghost town. The storm made landfall near the eastern coastal city of Hualien just before daybreak, before veering northward and hugging the coast. It was expected to pass near the northern port city of Keelung and skirt the Taipei suburbs by midday. Packing sustained winds of 118 km/h and gusts of 155 km/h, Saola’s slow speed — only 12 km/h — made it a virtual certainty that the heavy rains inundating northern Taiwan for the past 48 hours would continue through the weekend. That raised the prospect of potentially devastating flooding in areas that have already absorbed more than 1,000 millimeters of rain since Tuesday. Authorities ordered offices and businesses closed throughout northern Taiwan, including in Taipei. Normally busy streets in the capital were deserted during the morning rush hour, as cleanup crews laboured to clear them of hundreds of trees and branches felled during the night by Saola’s ferocious approach. Television footage showed hectare upon hectare of flooded farmland in low-lying coastal areas, punctuated by scenes of raging rivers and roads blocked by mudslides in the island’s mountainous centre. The Defence Ministry mobilized 48,000 soldiers to help mitigate the storm’s impact, dispatching many to help hard-pressed farmers try to save threatened fruit and vegetable harvests. Dozens of flights were cancelled at Taipei’s main international airport, and rail transport throughout the island was disrupted.

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01.08.2012

Storm Surge

Philippines

Province of Agusan del Norte, [Butuan Bay ]

 

 

Storm Surge in Philippines on Wednesday, 01 August, 2012 at 12:58 (12:58 PM) UTC.

Description

At least 63 fishermen either survived or were rescued from a smashing big wave at dawn on Wednesday in Butuan Bay in Agusan del Norte, many of them who were alerted tying themselves at their boats as lifelines. Rescue workers said, however, that the number could still rise as survivors told them of other fishermen floating at the distance. They also said they could not identify who the other fishermen were and where they came from. Ryan Osores, 33, said all six fishermen from his group of six small fishing boats reached ashore Barangay 10 of Buenavista town, at 8 a.m., four hours after a rogue big wave smashed through the fishing boats that scattered off Butuan Bay. He said they spread their nets shortly after the moon disappeared from the horizon at 4 a.m. Moments later, all were surprised by a big wave that rammed through their boats. Though pitched dark, he was able to spot another fisherman, Julius Montebon, from Purok 3, also of Barangay 10, already standing atop a capsized boat and waving for help. “I told him not to mind his net anymore and save himself,” he said. All of them steered through the waves to reach shore. Marife N. Rosales, training officer at the Butuan City Search and Rescue Team (Busart), said many sustained only minor bruises and three complained of elevated blood pressure, with one of them, Norman Tirona, 35, rushed to the Buenavista clinic nearby. The Busart rescuers said 29 fishermen came from Barangay 10, seven from Barangay Tinago and 26 from Manapa. Other fishermen from these villages rushed to the mid sea to rescue them, many of whom did not leave the scene until they have secured their fishing nets. Osores and five others were the first ashore at 8 a.m. but the others were able to come back at 10 a.m. The seven others who were earlier declared missing were located alive by midafternoon of the same day. A Swedish national, who resided at the coast of Barangay 10, said he pitied the fishermen in the place for going to sea without life vests. “It’s disheartening to see them leave for the deep sea with vests, when it could definitely save them,” he said, but requesting not to be named. He said he was a fisherman also but used big fishing boats that would sometimes take them to the waters off Norway.  “I’ve seen friends and known fishermen who were lost to sea. With a vest, they could survive at least another hour in the frigid waters, but here, locals could survive for days with a life vest,” he said. “It’s crazy, but there must [be] a law that should require fishermen to put on a life vest,” he said.

 

 

 

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Today

Tornado

Vietnam

Bac Lieu Province, [The area was not defined.]

 

 

Tornado in Vietnam on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 03:29 (03:29 AM) UTC.

Description

Freak tornadoes swept through three southern provinces early yesterday killing two people, injuring about 75 others and destroying nearly 700 homes. Thousands of people are reported to have been left homeless by the high-speed storms, which lasted for less than half an hour each. In Bac Lieu Province, a tornado took one life and injured another 12. Bac Lieu province have sent rescue forces to help the victims. Head of the Bac Lieu flood and storm control steering committee Lai Thanh An said that in two districts, Phuoc Long and Hong Dan, more than 200 houses were severely damaged by the wind. Earlier reports said that 50 homes in the province had also been totally destroyed. He said that in Phu Dong commune, 60 houses were damaged. The exact damage to farming in the province is still being assessed.

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Today

Tornado

Vietnam

Soc Trang Province, [The area was not defined.]

 

 

Tornado in Vietnam on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 03:27 (03:27 AM) UTC.

Description

Freak tornadoes swept through three southern provinces early yesterday killing two people, injuring about 75 others and destroying nearly 700 homes. Thousands of people are reported to have been left homeless by the high-speed storms, which lasted for less than half an hour each. In Soc Trang Province, residents reported that two tornadoes struck in one hour, killing one resident and injuring about 59 others. According to preliminary reports, Soc Trang suffered the worst damage. A total of 110 houses were completely destroyed and another 226 damaged, said a spokesman for the Soc Trang People’s Committee. One family in Soc Trang who lost a family member will receive VND4.5 million (US$210) from the Government, while those injured will receive VND3 million ($140).

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01.08.2012

Tornado

USA

State of Virginia, [Accomack County]

 

 

Tornado in USA on Wednesday, 01 August, 2012 at 18:31 (06:31 PM) UTC.

Description

While several residents in the Accomack County area reported a tornado formed Wednesday morning, the National Weather Service has yet to declare a tornado actually formed. A tornado warning is issued if a tornado has been spotted or conditions are favorable for one to form. The NWS issued a tornado warning for Accomack County after residents captured a funnel cloud on camera. A marine warning was also issued for the Eastern Shore area, after a strong line of thunderstorms continued to move through. Those storms produced winds of 34 knots. “Thunderstorms can produce sudden waterspouts,” the NWS said. “Waterspouts can easily overturn boats and create locally hazardous seas. Seek safe harbor immediately.” In the event of a tornado warning, residents are urged to take cover immediately and stay away from windows. Get into the lowest point of your home. Those in mobile homes and vehicles should seek other shelter.

 

 

 

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Tornado in Colorado mountains is 2nd highest on record

Courtesy Josh Deere

The tornado that touched down on Colorado’s Mount Evans last weekend is the second-highest ever recorded by the National Weather Service.

By Vignesh Ramachandran

A twister that touched down in Colorado’s high-country on Saturday is estimated to be the second-highest tornado ever recorded in the U.S. by the National Weather Service.

There were four different reported sightings of the high-altitude hit the northeast side of Mount Evans — a prominent mountain located about 60 miles west of Denver. The National Weather Service estimates the tornado’s touched down at about  11,900 feet in elevation.

Bob Glancy, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Boulder, Colo., told NBC News that this tornado above the treeline is “not unheard of,” but “just unusual.” Most tornadoes in high terrain are weak, he said.

For the last two decades, Colorado has averaged 50 tornadoes a year. But Glancy said the “vast majority” occur on the plains east of Interstate 25.

Colorado Springs resident Josh Deere told The Denver Post he saw the funnel as he was driving with his family to the top of Mount Evans.

“As we drove past it, we were able to look back and had some spectacular views of it as it spun and then eventually broke up as it entered the mountain cove,” Deere told the Post.

The highest recorded tornado occurred in 2004, according to Glancy, over Rockwell Pass in California’s Sequoia National Park. That twister was estimated to be at 12,000 to 12,500 feet.

« A dust storm rolls into an Arizona town on July 21.
(marksontak)

Goliath Dust Storms Slam Arizona

 From theTrumpet.com

By Dennis Leap

Once considered to be once-in-100-year events, giant dust storms are pounding the U.S. state of Arizona. In a summer of excessive heat and extreme drought, this is not good news.

Since June, five dust storms have plagued Arizona’s famous valley area. On July 29, Phoenix looked more like Saharan Africa than the well-manicured American Southwest. A massive dust cloud, referred to as a haboob—an Arabic word meaning strong wind—blanketed the metropolitan area. The cloud was 2,000 feet tall and nearly 60 miles wide.

Although not the largest dust storm to hit the area, tree limbs and power poles were snapped, causing 9,000 homes to lose power. The Sky Harbor Airport was shut down for 20 minutes.

These huge dust storms form during the monsoon season that runs from June until the end of September. They are so destructive because of the fine dust particles that manage to permeate everywhere during the storm.

According to experts, these storms are becoming more frequent. It is not just the big storms that pose problems. Phoenix experienced three dust storms in a row the last week of July—which is considered very rare. USA Today stated: “This means more deadly accidents, more harmful pollution and more health problems for people breathing in the irritating dust particles.”

The potential health threats from the storms are far more serious than just breathing in irritating dust particles. The fine dust can carry a poisonous mix of fungi, heavy metals from pollution, fertilizers, stockyard fecal matter, chemicals and bacteria, which can cause cardiovascular disease, eye diseases and other illnesses such as valley fever.

Valley fever, caused by the Coccidioides fungus present in desert soil, can be fatal. Valley fever is contracted when desert soil is thrown into the air and breathed in. Arizona has 70 percent of the valley fever cases reported nationally. The cases of valley fever in Arizona were up by 36 percent in Arizona between 2010 and 2011.

It was in July 2011 that the largest dust storm ever observed hit the Phoenix area. Medical experts believe that the advance of the huge dust storms in 2011 could be one of the causes for the increase in cases of valley fever.

Other dangers associated with these dust storms are the traffic accidents that result from the blinding conditions of the blowing dust. Between the period of 2001 through 2005, dust storms caused 44 deaths in 2,323 traffic accidents in New Mexico and 15 deaths in 614 accidents in Arizona.

Experts say that because of excessive heat and dry conditions, residents in Arizona’s valley area can expect more dust storms.

For more information on other problems Americans are facing because of the drought of 2012, be sure to read columnist Brad Macdonald’s article “The Global Consequences of America’s Drought.” •

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Today

Hailstorm

USA

State of Indiana, Oakland City

 

 

Hailstorm in USA on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 03:12 (03:12 AM) UTC.

Description

Residents of a southwestern Indiana county began cleaning up Wednesday following a severe storm that brought much-needed rain but also damaged homes, caused power outages and pummeled one community with hail during a parade. Gibson County Sheriff George Ballard said four people were slightly injured Tuesday in Oakland City when large hail swept through, sending attendees running for cover during the parade kicking off the community’s annual Sweet Corn Festival. Ballard said three of those were minor injuries treated on the scene while the fourth person, a woman, was taken to a hospital with a foot injury. Ballard told the Evansville Courier & Press the first storm warning came at 5:50 p.m., 10 minutes before the parade was scheduled to begin. He said the storm hit the town about 25 miles northeast of Evansville at around 6:20 p.m. with high winds and hail that National Weather Service observers reported in some cases were as large as baseballs. However, Oakland City Fire Chief Jim Deffendall said in a telephone interview that no storm warnings were in effect when the decision was made to let the parade start. Weather experts told parade organizers the storm would pass east of the community, but then it changed direction and hit the parade route, he said. The parade was halted less than halfway through the route, with participants running to nearby homes, Deffendall said. “By the time the sirens went off, it was on us,” Deffendall said. “We stopped it and made everyone get off the floats.” Deffendall said he and Oakland City Police Chief Alec Hinsley had the authority to cancel the parade.

 

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Today

Flash Flood

USA

State of Connecticut, Naugatuck

 

 

Flash Flood in USA on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 03:24 (03:24 AM) UTC.

Description

A state of emergency was declared in Naugatuck Wednesday after flash flooding caused damage, street closures and evacuations. The flooding, which occurred after several inches of rain fell in a short period of time, prompted officials to open Naugatuck’s Emergency Operations Center at 4 p.m., according to Lt. Robert Harrison, Police Department spokesman. Hartford was notified, he said. Gov. Dannel P. Malloy toured flood damage Wednesday night, along with Naugatuck Mayor Robert Mezzo and other officials. Malloy offered Naugatuck some assistance in the form of state Department of Transportation vehicles and dump trucks to help with cleanup, Harrison said. Two apartment buildings, one on Prospect Street and the other on Trowbridge Place, were evacuated. He said flood waters “compromised the buildings,” in particular after water seeped into electrical systems. He said residents were not immediately allowed back into their apartments. A shelter was initially set up at the Naugatuck Senior Center with only one resident taking advantage of the shelter. That person was later relocated by the Red Cross to a local hotel, Harrison said. Other residents were able to find places to spend the night, he added. He didn’t have a count of how many people were displaced. Flood waters caused several roads to buckle as well as the collapse of a retaining wall on Rubber Avenue, he said. Mezzo, in his blog, said that as of 8 p.m. Wednesday several roads were “compromised.” He said Scott Street at Andrew Avenue was closed, as was Arch Street by the former Risdon property. Brook Street was partially closed, he said. Barricades were set up along Nettleton and Moore avenues and also along Wooster Street near Fairview Lane, restricting access to certain portions of the roads. “All other roads are open for travel,” Mezzo said. Exits 26, 27 and 28 off Route 8 were closed temporarily, but by 8 p.m. had been reopened, Harrison said. No injuries were reported.

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Today

Flash Flood

USA

State of Arizona, [Phoenix – north]

 

 

Flash Flood in USA on Thursday, 02 August, 2012 at 03:21 (03:21 AM) UTC.

Description

Flood waters in the Phoenix area were receding Wednesday, a day after firefighters rescued a baby and several other people who were trapped in their vehicles. A dust and monsoon storm late Tuesday carried pea-sized hail and forced the closure of a well-traveled highway, flooded homes, knocked out power to area residents and collapsed a backyard fence. Firefighters rescued nine people from four vehicles on a highway west of Interstate 17 near Phoenix. Drivers on that part of State Route 74 were rerouted Wednesday during morning rush-hour traffic onto an alternate east-west route that is used for trips to and from Las Vegas. The five-mile stretch of highway reopened Wednesday afternoon when storm runoff subsided. Phoenix Fire Capt. Scott McDonald said it took an hour to rescue the people from their vehicles Tuesday amid the fast-moving water that rose to 4 feet at one point, the Arizona Republic reported. Nearby, homes in Anthem quickly filled with water. Residents were cleaning up Wednesday from the storm that turned their streets into a muddy river, destroyed one home and felled trees. Vides’ neighbor was standing by a fence when it collapsed and the water knocked her over, sending her swimming. A slight chance of thunderstorms is forecast for the Phoenix area Friday and through the weekend. The National Weather Service says any storms that develop could produce lightning, gusty winds and heavy rainfall.

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01.08.2012

Flash Flood

USA

State of New York, New York City [Queens ]

 

 

Flash Flood in USA on Wednesday, 01 August, 2012 at 19:07 (07:07 PM) UTC.

Description

Torrential downpours flooded basements and stranded several vehicles in parts of Queens on Wednesday. The National Weather Service said more than 2 inches of rain had fallen between about 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. A flash flood warning for Queens, Brooklyn and Staten Island expired at 2 p.m.

 

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Krymsk: The Flood (RT documentary)

Published on Jul 28, 2012 by RussiaToday

It happened suddenly at night. There was no electricity; no help was coming. Streets became rivers and houses were drowned by meters of water. A deluge of mud and water swept through the city. People tried to survive by any means. Some sought refuge on their roofs; others scrambled up trees. Rescue services and volunteers flocked in the next day, but it was too late – 171 lives had been claimed by the onslaught. All the people of the city of Krymsk hope for now that such a disastrous flood will never happen again.

Watch more on RT’s documentary channel http://rtd.rt.com

RT LIVE http://rt.com/on-air

 

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Epidemic Hazards / Diseases

 

 

 

01.08.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Uganda

Western Uganda, [Kibaale District, Mbarara and the Capital City (Kampala)]

 

Epidemic Hazard in Uganda on Thursday, 26 July, 2012 at 15:57 (03:57 PM) UTC.

Back

Updated:	Wednesday, 01 August, 2012 at 18:29 UTC
Description
The number of Ebola cases in Uganda has increased during the past few days, a spokesman from the World Health Organization tells SHOTS. But the outbreak is still limited to a small region. “Accumulatively to date, there are 36 suspected or confirmed cases,” WHO’s Gregory Hartl says. “All cases are in the Kibaale district,” a rural region west of Uganda’s capital, Kampala. Laboratory tests, conducted by the Uganda Virus Research Institute and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have confirmed Ebola infection in 5 people. The specific strain of the virus is Ebola Sudan, which has caused 5 outbreaks in Africa since 1976, including one in Uganda that killed 224 people in 2000. Ebola Sudan typically kills about 50 percent of people infected. A team, led by the CDC, WHO and Uganda’s Ministry of Health, are now at the scene to determine the scope of the outbreak and then control it. This involves a strategy known as contact tracing. “You take every patient who is infected or suspected of infection and ask who they’ve been in contact with,” Hartl explains. “Then you go find those people and do the same.” All people in contact with the virus must be isolated and watched for 21 days, CDC spokesman Tom Skinner says. “Only once you’ve [i.e. all suspects] gone through 2 21-day periods can you be sure that the outbreak is over.” This is a massive undertaking, but it’s one of the only options for stopping a deadly virus that has no cure or vaccine. The current Ebola outbreak 1st appeared at Ugandan clinics in early July 2012, but it was initially confused with cholera. Doctors didn’t suspect Ebola until tests for cholera came back negative and a clinician got sick. “In Ebola outbreaks, health care workers often get infected because you touch somebody and can get the virus,” Hartl says. Despite this ease of transmission, he says, Ebola rarely spreads outside a small geographic region. One infected person traveled to a hospital in Kampala, triggering reports that the Ebola outbreak had spread to the capital city. But Hartl says there are no signs that people in Kampala have been infected.

 

 

 

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Solar Activity

2MIN News August 1, 2012

Published on Aug 1, 2012 by Suspicious0bservers

TODAY’S LINKS
India Power: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20120801/as-india-power-outage/

REPEAT LINKS
Spaceweather: http://spaceweather.com/ [Look on the left at the X-ray Flux and Solar Wind Speed/Density]

HAARP: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/haarp/data.html [Click online data, and have a little fun]

SDO: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/ [Place to find Solar Images and Videos – as seen from earth]

SOHO: http://sohodata.nascom.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/soho_movie_theater [SOHO; Lasco and EIT – as seen from earth]

Stereo: http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/images [Stereo; Cor, EUVI, HI – as seen from the side]

SunAEON:http://www.sunaeon.com/#/solarsystem/ [Just click it… trust me]

SOLARIMG: http://solarimg.org/artis/ [All purpose data viewing site]

iSWA: http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov/iswa/iSWA.html [Free Application; for advanced sun watchers]

NOAA ENLIL SPIRAL: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/wsa-enlil/cme-based/ [CME Evolution]

NOAA Bouys: http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/

RSOE: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php [That cool alert map I use]

JAPAN Radiation Map: http://jciv.iidj.net/map/

LISS: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/heliplots_gsn.php

Gamma Ray Bursts: http://grb.sonoma.edu/ [Really? You can’t figure out what this one is for?]

BARTOL Cosmic Rays: http://neutronm.bartol.udel.edu//spaceweather/welcome.html [Top left box, look for BIG blue circles]

TORCON: http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-torcon-index [Tornado Forecast for the day]

GOES Weather: http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/goes/ [Clouds over America]

INTELLICAST: http://www.intellicast.com/ [Weather site used by many youtubers]

NASA News: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/

PHYSORG: http://phys.org/ [GREAT News Site!]

Incredible Solar Anomalies 2012 HD

Published on Jul 18, 2012 by StephenHannardADGUK

Some incredible unexplained objects seen in greater detail using various filtering techniques. I will be creating another video analysing some of these strange objects in greater detail shortly, including some I did not include in this video. The stills and raw footage i have, contain much more detail, mainly because as with any conversion to video some slight distortion and loss of definition is unavoidable.

Apart from running these clips through various filtering programs I have developed, and some editing, no other manipulation has been done, so believe, or don’t believe what your seeing, I don’t care either way.

Thanks to Mike (Blackwards1) for helping me find the missing frames to the heat signature object, thanks also to Anon (you know who you are) for sending me the full unedited UFO/Fibre clip, your help was much appreciated.

As with all my videos, no re-uploads, copying in full or in part etc is allowed without permission, anyone violating my copyright in any way without asking, will suffer the penalty.

Sun Ejects Mystery Object 2012 HD http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQn22yISBnI

UFO Creates Massive Sun Flash 2012 HD http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYGa8p-rwz8

UFO: The Sun, Tether and Baltic Connection 2012 HD http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aUNh6FQWRA

Planet-Sized Tornado Whirls On Sun’s Surface 2012 HD http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PE8FIduAu6k

ADG Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Alien-Disclosure-Group/189249627773146

Follow ADG on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ADG_UK

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Space

SuperWave Theory 2012 Earth Changes 1 of 3

Uploaded by zerosum2012 on Nov 20, 2007

You can listen to the whole interview here..radiorbit dot com/archives.htm
Dr. LaViolette can be found here…
http://www.etheric dot com/LaViolette/LaViolette.html

Dr. LaViolette is credited with the discovery of the planetary-stellar mass-luminosity relation which demonstrates that the Sun, planets, stars, and supernova explosions are powered by spontaneous energy creation through photon blueshifting. With this relation, he successfully predicted the mass-luminosity ratio of the first brown dwarf to be discovered. In addition, Paul LaViolette has developed a new theory of gravity that replaces the deeply flawed theory of general relativity. Predicted from subquantum kinetics, it accounts for the electrogravitic coupling phenomenon discovered by Townsend Brown and may explain the advanced aerospace propulsion technology utilized in the B-2 bomber. He is the first to discover that certain ancient creation myths and esoteric lores metaphorically encode an advanced science of cosmogenesis. His contributions to the field of Egyptology and mythology may be compared to the breaking of the Rosetta Stone hieroglyphic code.

SuperWave Theory 2012 Earth Changes 2 of 3

SuperWave Theory 2012 Earth Changes 3 of 3

Related articles

• The Most Interesting Article Of The Day, PAUL A. LaViolette, A Scientist On The Scale Of Tesla Living Today. (investigatorsillinoismissouri.com)

 

 

 

 

Earth approaching objects (objects that are known in the next 30 days)
Object Name	Apporach Date	Left	AU Distance	LD Distance	Estimated Diameter*	Relative Velocity
(2012 DS30)	02nd August 2012	0 day(s)	0.1224	47.6	18 m – 39 m	5.39 km/s	19404 km/h
(2000 RN77)	03rd August 2012	1 day(s)	0.1955	76.1	410 m – 920 m	9.87 km/s	35532 km/h
(2004 SB56)	04th August 2012	2 day(s)	0.1393	54.2	380 m – 840 m	13.72 km/s	49392 km/h
(2000 SD8)	04th August 2012	2 day(s)	0.1675	65.2	180 m – 400 m	5.82 km/s	20952 km/h
(2006 EC)	06th August 2012	4 day(s)	0.0932	36.3	13 m – 28 m	6.13 km/s	22068 km/h
(2006 MV1)	07th August 2012	5 day(s)	0.0612	23.8	12 m – 28 m	4.79 km/s	17244 km/h
(2005 RK3)	08th August 2012	6 day(s)	0.1843	71.7	52 m – 120 m	8.27 km/s	29772 km/h
(2009 BW2)	09th August 2012	7 day(s)	0.0337	13.1	25 m – 56 m	5.27 km/s	18972 km/h
277475 (2005 WK4)	09th August 2012	7 day(s)	0.1283	49.9	260 m – 580 m	6.18 km/s	22248 km/h
(2004 SC56)	09th August 2012	7 day(s)	0.0811	31.6	74 m – 170 m	10.57 km/s	38052 km/h
(2008 AF4)	10th August 2012	8 day(s)	0.1936	75.3	310 m – 690 m	16.05 km/s	57780 km/h
37655 Illapa	12th August 2012	10 day(s)	0.0951	37.0	770 m – 1.7 km	28.73 km/s	103428 km/h
(2012 HS15)	14th August 2012	12 day(s)	0.1803	70.2	220 m – 490 m	11.54 km/s	41544 km/h
4581 Asclepius	16th August 2012	14 day(s)	0.1079	42.0	220 m – 490 m	13.48 km/s	48528 km/h
(2008 TC4)	18th August 2012	16 day(s)	0.1937	75.4	140 m – 300 m	17.34 km/s	62424 km/h
(2006 CV)	20th August 2012	18 day(s)	0.1744	67.9	290 m – 640 m	13.24 km/s	47664 km/h
(2012 EC)	20th August 2012	18 day(s)	0.0815	31.7	56 m – 130 m	5.57 km/s	20052 km/h
162421 (2000 ET70)	21st August 2012	19 day(s)	0.1503	58.5	640 m – 1.4 km	12.92 km/s	46512 km/h
(2007 WU3)	21st August 2012	19 day(s)	0.1954	76.0	56 m – 120 m	5.25 km/s	18900 km/h
(2012 BB14)	24th August 2012	22 day(s)	0.1234	48.0	27 m – 60 m	2.58 km/s	9288 km/h
1 AU = ~150 million kilometers,1 LD = Lunar Distance = ~384,000 kilometers Source: NASA-NEO

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The Ocean

Boffins nail oceanic carbon capture process

It’s official: the Southern Ocean sucks

By Richard Chirgwin •

The world’s oceans are known to be carbon sinks, but the process that draws CO₂ from the air down into the deep ocean hasn’t been documented.

Until now.

A team of British and Australian scientists have identified huge plunging currents – as much as 1,000 kilometers wide – that appear to be key to the process of storing CO₂ in the deep ocean. Those currents, the researchers say, are the result of local eddies (resulting from a combination of wind, currents, and massive whirlpools) that create localized pathways down from the surface.

Published in Nature Geoscience, the research used Argo robotic floats to help explore ocean dynamics up to 2 Km down, along with analysis of temperature, salinity, and pressure data.

The Argo floats – 80 in total – were deployed in 2002 and collected data for ten years as the basis of this research. CTD (conductivity, density and temperature) profilers were also used to collect data at depths of up to 7 Km, the researchers say.

The Southern Ocean is an important carbon sink (at least for those who believe that anthropogenic carbon emissions are driving climate change – a list which now includes formerly skeptical scientist Richard Muller). It’s calculated to take up as much as 40 percent of the CO₂ absorbed by oceans (which in turn soak up a quarter of total annual emissions).

The British Antarctic Survey’s Dr Jean-Baptiste Sallée says the study means scientists are “better placed to understand the effects of changing climate and future carbon absorption by the ocean.”

Collaborator Dr Richard Matear of Australia’s CSIRO noted that while observations had measured the CO₂ found in the deep ocean, it’s important to identify the pathways used to get there – particularly since significant climate change could change the behavior of those processes.

Southern Ocean currents are also affected by other atmospheric changes like ozone depletion, which could also change its effectiveness as a carbon sink.

He told The Conversation that the processes the team is researching “sets how much carbon the ocean can take up”.

As well as mapping the processes for incorporation in future modeling, the scientists believe the research could also help assess the effectiveness of methods proposed to increase the ocean’s carbon capture. ®

 

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Articles of Interest

Most power restored after India hit by second, even larger outage

By Harmeet Shah Singh, CNN

New Delhi (CNN) — India suffered its second massive power failure in two consecutive days Tuesday, depriving as many as 600 million people — half the country’s population — of electricity and disrupting transportation networks for hours.

The first power grid collapse, on Monday, was the country’s worst blackout in a decade. It affected seven states in northern India that are home to more than 350 million people.

Tuesday’s failure was even larger, hitting eastern and northeastern areas as well. Both blackouts cut power in the capital, New Delhi, where residents sweltered.

Several hours later, by 9:30 p.m., power had been largely restored, the Power Grid Corporation of India reported on its website

Power in New Delhi and in the northeastern region was fully restored; electricity was 86% restored to the northern region, and 79% restored in the eastern region, it said.

The two days of disruption in the third-largest Asian economy has raised questions about its investment in infrastructure.

With about 1.2 billion people, India has the world’s second-largest population, behind China.

At least 300 trains were held up in the affected regions, said Anil Kumar Saxena, a spokesman for Indian Railways.

New Delhi’s metro system also suffered delays before power was restored, causing chaos for many travelers. Traffic signals also were out, resulting in major jams.

Train fire in India kills 32; death toll may rise

During the blackout, one traveler in New Delhi told CNN-IBN that her journey home had taken almost three hours, rather than the usual 40 minutes. “Long night ahead, with no lights — I’ve got my trusty solar lamp ready for the night,” she said.

An elderly woman said she would rely on candles and flashlights to get through the outage, which she blamed on poor governance.

Other travelers told CNN-IBN of ruined plans to visit relatives and long waits at stifling stations.

Miners in the Burdwan District of West Bengal state were hit by the blackout too.

The district’s top administrator, O.S. Meena, told CNN that 150 coal miners were working underground when the outage struck, stopping lifts.

Authorities switched to emergency supplies to run the elevators, he said. “All are safe,” Meena said about the miners.

Monday’s grid failure struck early Tuesday. By dawn, many backup power systems had run out of fuel; power was partially restored after about six hours, authorities said.

Airports and hospitals, running on backup power, remained operational, but many businesses closed, said Jyoti Kamal, senior editor for CNN-IBN.

The cause of the problem was the failure to generate sufficient power to keep pace with surging demand, he said.

Power is considered a luxury in much of India, where a third of households don’t have enough to power even one light bulb, according to last year’s census.

They tend to be more common during the summer, when demand rises.

Some of this summer’s increased demand has been caused by farmers using more energy for irrigation and other tasks, in part because rains during this year’s monsoon season, which began June 1, are down by more than a fifth. People are also using air conditioning units more to cope with high humidity.

The monsoon rains,which last through September but would normally be at their heaviest in July and early August, not only provide rain for agriculture and hydroelectric power, but serve as a natural coolant, said CNN meteorologist Brandon Miller.

Humidity exceeding 80% makes the mid-90s Fahrenheit temperatures feel like more than 100 Fahrenheit. This makes it harder for buildings to cool at night, and harder for people to cool themselves through evaporation of perspiration, all of which lead to higher energy demands, Miller said.

Power Minister Sushilkumar Shinde, who has ordered an investigation into Monday’s outage, said it had been a decade since an entire grid last failed in north India.

He said that the cause of this week’s blackouts is not known but that some states, particularly agricultural areas, may have been using more than their share of energy.

Prakash Javadekar, a member of India’s main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, criticized the government for what he said was “a huge failure of management in the power sector.”

India — the world’s fourth-largest consumer of electricity — relies on coal for much of its energy but also uses hydroelectric power, which has been affected by the diminished monsoon rains.

Observers say the crisis has exposed the need for India to update its infrastructure to meet its growing power needs.

“Economic growth is constrained by inadequate infrastructure,” among other factors, the U.S. State Department’s country report on India says.

“Foreign investment is particularly sought after in power generation,” it adds, as well as areas including telecommunications, roads and mining.

Vulnerability of U.S. electrical grid a concern

Four ways the Internet could go down

Australia’s Melbourne Airport goes black

CNN’s Jethro Mullen, Mallika Kapur and Jennifer Delgado contributed to this report.

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[In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit, for research and/or educational purposes. This constitutes ‘FAIR USE’ of any such copyrighted material.]

Earth Watch Report – Tuesday July 31st , 2012

Earthquakes

RSOE EDIS

Date/Time (UTC)	Magnitude	Area	Country	State/Prov./Gov.	Location	Risk			Source	Details
31.07.2012 01:40:27	3.0	South-America	Chile	Valparaíso	La Ligua				EMSC
31.07.2012 01:40:51	3.6	South-America	Chile	Maule	Constitucion				EMSC
31.07.2012 01:41:09	2.2	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	San Prospero				EMSC
31.07.2012 00:45:33	5.0	Asia	Russia	Altay	Ust’-Ulagan				USGS-RSOE
31.07.2012 01:41:29	5.0	Europe	Russia	Altay	Ust’-Ulagan				EMSC
31.07.2012 01:41:48	2.1	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	San Prospero				EMSC
31.07.2012 00:20:29	2.5	North America	United States	California	Olancha				USGS-RSOE
31.07.2012 00:45:51	4.7	Indonesian archipelago	Papua New Guinea	Sandaun	Aitape				USGS-RSOE
31.07.2012 01:42:08	4.7	Indonesian Archipelago	Papua New Guinea	Sandaun	Aitape				EMSC
31.07.2012 00:40:21	3.9	South-America	Bolivia	Potosí	Villa Alota				EMSC
30.07.2012 23:20:37	2.2	North America	United States	Alaska	Healy				USGS-RSOE
31.07.2012 00:40:49	2.0	Asia	Turkey	Van	Yuvacik				EMSC
31.07.2012 00:41:08	2.7	Europe	Greece	North Aegean	Agios Dimitrios				EMSC
31.07.2012 00:15:33	2.8	Caribbean	Puerto Rico	Vieques	Esperanza				USGS-RSOE
30.07.2012 23:05:28	2.9	North America	United States	Washington	Winthrop				USGS-RSOE
31.07.2012 00:41:28	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Malatya	Arguvan				EMSC
30.07.2012 23:40:20	2.8	Europe	Spain	Canary Islands	La Restinga				EMSC
30.07.2012 23:40:51	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Van	Yuvacik				EMSC
30.07.2012 22:40:21	3.0	Asia	Turkey	Van	Yuvacik				EMSC
31.07.2012 00:41:49	2.4	Asia	Turkey	Kütahya	Saphane				EMSC
30.07.2012 22:40:40	3.0	Europe	Bosnia and Herzegovina	Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina	Kakanj				EMSC
30.07.2012 21:41:49	2.0	North America	United States	Hawaii	Volcano				USGS-RSOE
30.07.2012 22:50:31	3.1	North America	United States	Oklahoma	Meeker				USGS-RSOE
31.07.2012 01:42:29	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Adana	Kadirli				EMSC
30.07.2012 21:40:27	4.2	South-America	Chile	Bío-Bío	Talcahuano				EMSC
30.07.2012 20:40:30	2.8	North America	United States	Alaska	Adak				USGS-RSOE
30.07.2012 19:50:35	2.0	North America	United States	Alaska	Point MacKenzie				USGS-RSOE
30.07.2012 19:51:03	2.2	North America	United States	Alaska	Salamatof				USGS-RSOE
30.07.2012 20:35:26	3.7	South-America	Chile	Coquimbo	Coquimbo				EMSC
30.07.2012 20:35:52	3.7	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	San Pedro de Atacama				EMSC
30.07.2012 21:41:21	4.6	Asia	Japan	Miyagi	Ishinomaki				EMSC
30.07.2012 19:35:21	2.9	Asia	Turkey	Van	Yuvacik				EMSC
30.07.2012 19:35:51	2.0	Asia	Turkey	Ardahan	Merdinik				EMSC
30.07.2012 18:50:49	2.9	North America	United States	Alaska	Anderson				USGS-RSOE
30.07.2012 18:45:48	2.0	North America	United States	California	Newport Beach				USGS-RSOE
30.07.2012 19:36:11	2.9	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	Tocopilla				EMSC
30.07.2012 19:36:31	2.3	Europe	Greece	North Aegean	Agios Dimitrios				EMSC
30.07.2012 18:10:36	2.7	North America	United States	Hawaii	Volcano				USGS-RSOE
30.07.2012 19:25:42	4.4	Pacific Ocean – West	Philippines	Cordillera Administrative Region	Calaba				USGS-RSOE
30.07.2012 19:36:50	4.6	Pacific Ocean – West	Philippines	Ilocos	Padong				EMSC
30.07.2012 17:45:22	2.3	North America	United States	California	Pearsonville				USGS-RSOE
30.07.2012 16:56:01	2.3	North America	United States	Alaska	False Pass				USGS-RSOE
30.07.2012 17:30:21	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Gaziantep	Kayakent				EMSC
30.07.2012 16:25:26	3.6	South-America	Bolivia	Potosí	Villa Alota				EMSC
30.07.2012 16:25:54	2.4	Europe	Greece	North Aegean	Agios Dimitrios				EMSC
30.07.2012 16:26:18	3.5	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	San Pedro de Atacama				EMSC
30.07.2012 15:20:33	3.2	Europe	Greece	North Aegean	Agios Dimitrios				EMSC
30.07.2012 23:41:44	3.6	Pacific Ocean	New Zealand	Manawatu-Wanganui	Wanganui				GEONET
30.07.2012 17:05:37	3.0	Caribbean	Puerto Rico	Corozal	Corozal				USGS-RSOE
30.07.2012 15:20:57	2.4	Europe	Italy	Lombardy	Ospitaletto				EMSC

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Volcanic Activity

Kirishima volcano in Kyushu, Japan on high alert level

BY: T

As our colleague Marc Szlegat reported on Vulkane.Net, the alert level of the Japanese Kirishima volcano (Kirishimayama) was raised last month”orange”. This is the third out of 4 warning levels and means that an eruption could occur any time.
Last year in March, the Shinmoedake crater of the complex volcano Kirishima had a violent eruption that make the headlines. The volcano is located close to the other volcano currently on orange alert in Kyushu, Sakura-jima, which last week had a stronger explosion that caused ashfall in the nearby city of Kagoshima.

• All news about: Kirishima volcano
• Information about: Kirishima volcano

—
Links / Sources:

• Japan Meteorological Agency

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Extreme Temperatures/ Weather / Drought

Excessive Heat Warning

TULSA OK
JACKSON MS
SHREVEPORT LA
JACKSON MS
NORMAN OK
MEMPHIS TN
SHREVEPORT LA
SPRINGFIELD MO
WICHITA KS
AMARILLO TX
ST LOUIS MO
FORT WORTH TX
LITTLE ROCK AR

Record high of 111 degrees for Little Rock

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Triple-digit heat intensified across Arkansas on Monday, setting records in at least two cities and increasing the danger for wildfires.

Temperatures exceeded 100 in some areas, and are expected to stick around for much of the week. Low humidity also is settling in, increasing the threat for wildfires.

The daytime high reached 111 degrees in Little Rock, which not only broke the date’s record but marked the third-highest temperature ever recorded in the state’s capital city. The previous record for July 30 was 108 degrees in 1986.

Little Rock reached 114 degrees last year on Aug. 3, the city’s hottest day in 132 years of records. The city’s second-highest temperature on record occurred July 31, 1986, when it hit 112 degrees.

Also Monday, a record was set in Jonesboro, where the mercury peaked at 104, a degree higher than the record set in 1986.

National Weather Service senior forecaster Joe Goudsward warned that little relief from the high temperatures is expected soon.

“There will be some scattered thunderstorms pop up in the heat of the day but as far as anything organized or widespread, it’s not expected,” Goudsward said.

An upper-level ridge of high pressure is parked over the region. It’s expected to shift a bit to the west, but it may only shave five or six degrees off daytime highs, Goudsward said. After a brief cool-down, the ridge is forecast to rebuild, he said.

Arkansas’ all-time high is 120 degrees, set in Ozark on Aug. 10, 1936.

(Story distributed by The Associated Press)

 

Heat record broken Monday

 

The mercury rose to over 30 degrees Celsius for the first time this summer in eastern Finland as meteorologists warned of severe thunderstorms later in the day.

 

Calm before the storm. Image: Eelis Pulkkinen

The temperature exceeded the 30-degree mark in Tohmajärvi, Lieksa and Juuka in North Karelia, close to the Russian border.  But the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI) says that a cooler weather front has already arrived in western Finland and will start moving eastwards soon, making the current heatwave quite short-lived. More storms thunder in Severe thunderstorms are expected to whip up very strong wind gusts on Monday, warns the FMI. Winds may reach speeds of 25 metres per second in North Ostrobothnia and western Finland, and elsewhere in the country gusts of some 15 m/s are expected. Additionally, heavy rainfall is forecast for various parts of Finland on Monday. Thunderstorms left thousands without electricity in different parts of Finland on Sunday. Most of them had been fixed by Monday afternoon. At 1pm, some 200 Fortum customers were still without power. Elenia (formerly known as Vattenfall) had about 1,200 customers without service at that time.

Sources    Yle

Related items

  Record lightning strikes on Sunday 30.7.


 The summer’s worst thunderstorm hits Finland  29.7. 








Italy’s Cows Produce Less Milk Even With Cooling Fans, Showers



 By Rudy Ruitenberg



Italian dairy cattle are producing 10 percent less milk because of a heat wave, even as 

farmers take steps to cool the animals including showers and fans, Coldiretti said.

Corn, tomato, beet and sunflower crops have been damaged across the country and some areas 

have received no rain for months, the Rome-based agricultural union said in an e-mailed statement today.

To contact the reporter on this story: Rudy Ruitenberg in Paris at rruitenberg@bloomberg.ne





Heat wave keeps on in Bucharest, 19 counties in South, East on Monday




The National Weather Forecaster has extended a Code Yellow warning of heat till Monday for southern and 
eastern Romania, Bucharest included, while downpours and thunderstorms are expected in the country's 
West, Center and North starting Sunday night.According to a weather warning issued by the Forecaster 
on Sunday, the high temperatures at between 35 and 37 degrees Celsius will keep on in southern and 
eastern Romania and will even hit 38 C in some cities.

Drought and wild fires destroy Russian harvest

Eugene Nikitenko

Photo: RIA Novosti

Russia is currently in the grips of an extremely strong heat wave. City and town residents are suffocating from the sweltering heat. For example, it is about 30 degrees in Moscow with prospects of the thermometer going up in the next few days. The heat wave situation is aggravated by wild fires producing clods of poisonous smoke. The wood rich Siberian taiga near Krasnoyarsk is fighting 83 fires on the territory of 12.130 hectares. As for rural Russia, that only last year was the world’s third-biggest grain producer, it suffers colossal damages. It threats to destroy a significant part of the crops. If last year’s harvest amounted to 94 million tons, this year it is a predicted at 80 to 85 million. Given the situation, earlier in July the Agriculture Ministry had to revise its harvest predictions.

As Rossiyskaya Gazeta writes, the hardest hit are the important grain-producing areas including Kuban, Stavropol, Volgograd, Volga, Rostov-on-Don, Lipetsk, Penza, Ulyanovsk, Kurgan and Altai. Nevertheless, Arkady Zlochevsky, president of the Russian Grain Union thinks that “The risks are there, but then there is a chance to avoid them.” Zlochevksy added that there will be 85 million tons of crops and the size of the harvest would depend on the weather. With the leftover stocks from previous harvests, the export potential will then be about 18-20 million tons. Although this is less than last year, when the country exported more than 26 million tons, it is still better than 2010, when the droughts and wild fires in Russia ruined about a third of all the grain harvested and the country had to impose an embargo on grain exports. The area of Russia’s irrigated fields is about 2.5 million hectares, and Russia has 44 million hectares of land under spring crops this year. “The biggest losses are not caused by the weather, it is rather the failure to comply with production rules in bad weather,” said Zlochevsky.

On the other hand Oleg Sukhanov, head of the market analysis unit at the Institute for Agricultural Market Studies, thinks that Russia may gather in only 77 million tons of grain. And, Sukhanov said, “that is not the worst-case scenario.”

His forecast is worrisome as Russia’s annual domestic consumption amounts to 67 million to 72 million tons. As is expected this year Russia may consume up to 68.5 million tons of grain and so, considering the remaining stocks from previous years, Sukhanov’s institute colleagues are putting the Russian grain export potential this year at a mere 13.5 million tons.

If so, that would be all we will be able to sell to our traditional buyers of grain in the Middle East and North Africa, and some Southeast Asian countries that joined them last year. “But this is not a long-term trend. Next season, Russia might have a good crop and again become a leader among world grain exporters,” Sukhanov said.

Despite the poor forecast for this year, Russia has ambitious plans for increasing its grain exports. The new edition of the national program for development of agriculture for 2013-2020, adopted in early July, set a target of a 115-million-ton grain harvest by 2020, which should bring Russia within reach of the United States, the traditional leader on the global grain market.

The current Russian predicament begins to tell on the world prices. Although there is no acute grain shortage in the world, other major grain producers, including the United States, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and China, are experiencing some problems. Forecasts in these countries account for the current high grain prices, about $330 per ton of food wheat. Sukhanov believes global grain prices could rise by another 10 percent before the year is out.

However, our experts do not believe that this will make a big difference in the prices of bread, meat and other staples because the share of grain in the end product is small. For example, in Russia, grain accounts for only 23 percent of a loaf of white bread.

So, as the saying in Russia went some 20 years ago, “the fight for the harvest is going on.”

30.07.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Idaho, [Salmon/Challis Forest]

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 18:42 (06:42 PM) UTC.

Description

A fire north of Stanley in the Salmon/Challis Forest on the border of the Frank Church Wilderness of No Return continues to grow after it sparked Friday. U.S. Forest Service officials say the Halstead Fire is now threatening several campgrounds, as well as a local boy scout camp. The exact location of the fire is about 15 miles north of Stanley, between Beaver Creek and Marsh Creek near Seafoam Lake. Officials say lightning started the fire on Friday, and it has now grown to at least 60 acres. Several nearby campgrounds have been evacuated. The Bradley Boy Scout Camp is also in the area. Two-hundred scouts have been evacuated and the camp has been shut down for around 200 more scouts who were set to go to the camp this week. Officials from the U.S. Forest Service Regional Office in Salmon, Idaho, say one heavy-attack firefighting helicopter is currently battling the flames. Several fire crews, including two USFS hotshot crews, two USFS hand crews, and several smoke jumpers are standing-by to protect nearby camp-grounds and homes.

30.07.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

Canada

Province of British Columbia, [Wilson’s Landing]

Forest / Wild Fire in Canada on Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 16:53 (04:53 PM) UTC.

Description

An evacuation alert has been issued for approximately 50 properties in the Wilson’s Landing area of West Kelowna, B.C., after a wildfire jumped a fireguard late Sunday night. The fire was sparked by lightning on Friday and was declared contained by noon on Sunday. However, on Sunday night winds in the area picked up and fanned the flames and on Monday morning officials said what was a fire of 4.4 hectares had grown to 30 hectares, and was only 20 per cent contained. “Crews have been on site overnight working hard to re-establish containment lines where it was safe to do so. The fire spread is southward and towards Westside Road. At this time Westside Road is closed for the safety of the public,” said a statement issued by the Forest Service. Early Monday morning, officials with the Regional District of Central Okanagan issued an evacuation alert for 40 to 50 homes in the Jenny Creek subdivision — and those along Blue Grouse Road, Browse Road and parts of Westside Road, all in the Wilson’s Landing area of West Kelowna. Residents are being urged to be ready to leave their homes on short notice. The fire has also closed a 14-kilometre section of Westside Road from Bear Creek Road to Browse Road, as fire crews carry out a controlled burn. “It’s right adjacent the road right now. Our crews are currently actively burning the fuels between the road and that fire, and they’re using Westside Road as a natural fire guard,” said fire information officer Michaela Swan. There’s no word when Westside Road will re-open. Residents are being asked to detour north through Vernon to get to Kelowna. About 25 firefighters, two helicopters and two air tankers are fighting the flames.

30.07.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Oklahoma, [Pottawatomie County]

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 04:58 (04:58 AM) UTC.

Description

Wildfires burned across the state Sunday, with one blaze threatening about100 homes in Pottawatomie County. The fire, which started Sunday afternoon about two miles northwest of Earlsboro, was encroaching upon structures, and a mandatory evacuation order was put into effect, state emergency management spokeswoman Keli Cain said. The Pottawatomie County sheriff’s office said about 30 homes were evacuated in the town about 50 miles east of Oklahoma City. By 9:30 p.m., people were allowed to return to their homes and some firefighters were being allowed to leave the scene, Pottawatomie County Sheriff Mike Booth said. “The fire is contained, but not out,” Booth said. There were no reports of injuries or homes lost to the fire on Sunday. The fire had scorched across about 1,300 acres before being contained, Cain said. Firefighting resources were brought in from Cleveland County, and an Oklahoma National Guard helicopter made water drops, she said.

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Worsening Illinois drought points to increasingly ominous signs for crops

Dry spell, which could becomes state’s worst on record, may lead to higher food prices

View Video Here

• Related
• Drought statistics

 

By Michelle Manchir, Chicago Tribune reporterJuly 27, 2012

More than 95 percent of Illinois is in a severe drought or worse, according to a national report Thursday that increased concerns about how the hot, dry summer is affecting farming.Most of Cook County is in a moderate drought, and other parts of the Chicago area are suffering through severe drought. But the central and southern portions of Illinois are experiencing even worse conditions that are classified as extreme or exceptional, according to the National Drought Mitigation Center.Surrounding states, especially Missouri and Indiana, have also been hit hard, with 55.5 percent of the Midwest experiencing at least a severe drought, compared with 45.6 percent of the country.The drought center’s new report doesn’t take into account the bit of rain the Chicago area received this week — about 0.55 inch fell at O’Hare International Airport on Tuesday and Wednesday — but it would take 3 inches or more to have made any significant improvement, said drought center climatologist Brian Fuchs.”In a lot of places in Illinois, this is the worst they remember,” said Emerson Nafziger, a professor of crop sciences at the University of Illinois.

About 66 percent of the state’s corn crop is in poor to very poor condition, according to a report his week from the Illinois Department of Agriculture. In states that are major producers of corn nationwide, about 45 percent of the corn is poor or worse, though the total produced this year won’t be known until after September, when harvesting begins, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. During the same time last year, only 14 percent of corn crops nationwide were considered poor.

“We’re sitting here, watching the sky; it looks like it could rain,” Nafziger said in by telephone from near Vandalia. “People are kind of pessimistic.”

Nationally, almost 40 percent of agricultural land is experiencing at least a severe drought, which makes the 2012 drought more extensive than any other since the 1950s, according to the USDA.

Illinois Climatologist Jim Angel said July’s heat and lack of rain could make this drought its worst on record, especially because all across the state, farmers’ soil is showing signs of having very little moisture, something essential for plant health.

“In a normal season we rely on soil moisture to get you through August, but we don’t have that,” Angel said.

Less corn production usually means higher food prices, according to the USDA, though the full effect of a sparse corn harvest wouldn’t move through to grocery stores until at least 10 months from now. But grocery shoppers could see the price of chicken or eggs and other meats increase sooner than that, since farmers often scale back on their livestock when the cost of corn feed is high, which can happen when corn production is low, Nafziger said.

Still, some say there’s room for optimism. Angel said long-term forecasts show an increased chance of above-normal precipitation and more normal temperatures over the next two weeks. The heat and dry weather looks to be shifting to the west, maybe making the Midwest a little wetter and milder, Angel said.

“That’s good news if it pans out,” Angel said.

mmanchir@tribune.com

Western North America Faces 2st Century ‘Mega-drought’

CORVALLIS, Oregon, July 30, 2012 (ENS) – The climate’s “new normal” for most of the coming century will parallel the long-term drought that hit western North America from 2000 to 2004 – the most severe drought in 800 years – scientists report in a study published Sunday.

“The severity and incidence of climatic extremes, including drought, have increased as a result of climate warming,” the researchers said, adding that these long-term trends are consistent with a 21st century “megadrought.”

Crops and forests died and river basins dried, but as bad as conditions were during the 2000-04 drought, in the future they may be seen as the good old days, a group of 10 researchers warned Sunday in the journal “Nature Geoscience.”

Pinyon pine forests near Los Alamos, New Mexico, had begun to turn brown from drought stress in 2002, left. Another photo taken in 2004 from the same vantage point, right, show them grey and dead. (Photo by Craig Allen, U.S. Geological Survey)

Climate models and precipitation projections indicate this period will be closer to the “wet end” of a drier hydroclimate during the last half of the 21st century, the scientists said.

“Climatic extremes such as this will cause more large-scale droughts and forest mortality, and the ability of vegetation to sequester carbon is going to decline,” said Beverly Law, a co-author of the study, professor of global change biology and terrestrial systems science at Oregon State University, and former science director of AmeriFlux, an ecosystem observation network.

The 2000-04 drought had the effect of amplifying climate change as vegetation withered and could no longer take up the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

This drought cut carbon sequestration by an average of 51 percent in the western United States, Canada and Mexico, the scientists calculate, although some areas were hit much harder than others. As the plants died, they released more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, with the effect of amplifying global warming.

“During this drought, carbon sequestration from this region was reduced by half,” Law said. “That’s a huge drop. And if global carbon emissions don’t come down, the future will be even worse.”

The effects are driven by human-caused increases in temperature, with associated lower soil moisture and decreased runoff in all major water basins of the western United States, researchers said in the study.

Drought has affected Colorado farm lands near Strasburg, Colorado, July 21, 2012. (Photo by Lance Cheung, USDA)

It is not clear whether or not the current drought in the West and Midwest, now being called one of the worst since the Dust Bowl, is related to these same forces, Law said. This study did not address that, and there are some climate mechanisms in western North America that affect that region more than other parts of the country.

But in the West, this multi-year drought was unlike anything seen in many centuries, based on tree ring data. The last two periods with drought events of similar severity were in the Middle Ages, from 977-981 and 1146-1151. The 2000-04 drought affected precipitation, soil moisture, river levels, crops, forests and grasslands.

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Storms, Flooding

Severe Thunderstorm Warning

JACKSONVILLE FL
PUEBLO CO
GREEN BAY WI
GOODLAND KS
MEMPHIS TN
FLAGSTAFF AZ
MOBILE AL
LAS VEGAS NV

Severe Thunderstorm Watch

NORMAN OK

Flash Flood Warning

PUEBLO CO
PHOENIX AZ
BIRMINGHAM AL

Flash Flood Watch

SAN JUAN PR
PHOENIX AZ
SAN DIEGO CA
SALT LAKE CITY UT
LAS VEGAS NV

Flood Advisory

GRAND JUNCTION CO
PHOENIX AZ
TALLAHASSEE FL
MOUNT HOLLY NJ
BIRMINGHAM AL
JUNEAU AK
NORTH PLATTE NE

Coastal Flood Advisory

BALTIMORE MD/WASHINGTON DC

Active tropical storm system(s)
Name of storm system	Location	Formed	Last update	Last category	Course	Wind Speed	Gust	Wave	Source	Details
Saola (10W)	Pacific Ocean	28.07.2012	30.07.2012	Typhoon I.	340 °	120 km/h	148 km/h	3.35 m	JTWC

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 3 Storm name: Saola (10W) Area: Pacific Ocean Start up location: N 14° 24.000, E 127° 6.000 Start up: 28th July 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 415.49 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 30th Jul 2012 15:07:32 N 20° 36.000, E 124° 36.000 9 120 148 Typhoon I. 340 ° 11 JTWC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 01st Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 23° 18.000, E 123° 42.000 Typhoon II. 167 204 JTWC 02nd Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 25° 30.000, E 122° 42.000 Typhoon III. 185 232 JTWC 03rd Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 27° 54.000, E 120° 36.000 Typhoon II. 157 194 JTWC 04th Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 29° 36.000, E 117° 18.000 Tropical Storm 83 102 JTWC

Damrey (11W)

Pacific Ocean

29.07.2012

30.07.2012

Tropical Storm

295 °

83 km/h

102 km/h

3.05 m

JTWC

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 0 Storm name: Damrey (11W) Area: Pacific Ocean Start up location: N 26° 0.000, E 145° 18.000 Start up: 29th July 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 36.71 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 30th Jul 2012 15:07:05 N 26° 6.000, E 144° 12.000 9 83 102 Tropical Storm 295 ° 10 JTWC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 01st Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 29° 6.000, E 134° 18.000 Tropical Storm 102 130 JTWC 02nd Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 31° 24.000, E 126° 12.000 Tropical Storm 74 93 JTWC 03rd Aug 2012 00:00:00 N 31° 54.000, E 117° 48.000 Tropical Depression 37 56 JTWC

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30.07.2012

Tropical Storm

Philippines

Multiple Regions, [Northern and central provinces]

Tropical Storm in Philippines on Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 04:57 (04:57 AM) UTC.

Description

One person has died in flooding caused by tropical storm Saola in the central Philippines. Torrential rain brought on by the storm and the south-west monsoon have caused more flooding and landslides in the central and northern Philippines. Landslides have been reported in the mountainous Cordillera region while flood waters have swamped communities in the capital Manila and several nearby provinces. Hundreds of families have been evacuated, with rain on Sunday night causing three major dams to spill over. In the country’s northern and central provinces, five ships have run aground with rescue operations ongoing to bring passengers ashore. Over the weekend, rain blanketed most of the Philippines, forcing the cancellation of at least 13 domestic flights. Tropical storm Saola is now moving northwest towards China.

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Haboob in Phoenix, Arizona July 2012 at Mission Community Church

Phoenix covered in blanket of dust for second time in a week as massive cloud rolls in from desert

By James Nye and Snejana Farberov

A second cloud of yellow in less than a week overwhelmed suburban Phoenix on Sunday, mixing with torrential rains and gusty winds that wreaked havoc on midday traffic in the area.

The thick wall of dust, known as a haboob, which is Arabic for ‘strong wind,’ was seen making its way through the town of Laveen about eight miles southwest of downtown Phoenix.

The greater Phoenix area and northwest and north central Pinal County were under a dust storm warning that expired at 7pm on Sunday.

Second coming: A large dust cloud was seen making its way through the Phoenix suburb of Laveen on Sunday

This comes just days after an enormous dust cloud measuring around 2,000 feet tall and almost 100km wide swept over the city, traveling at 35mph. The dust cut power to some 9,000 homes and caused disruptions at the local airport.

Caused by Arizona’s monsoon season which begins in early June and runs through till the end of September, haboob’s only occur in Africa, the Middle East, Australia and Phoenix, Arizona.

Known as the granddaddy of dust storms, the haboob is a rare event and is caused by loose dust being blown upwards in the absence of rain and collecting skywards where it is then propelled by another more distant thunderstorm brewing behind it.

Despite some of the 1.5 million residents of Phoenix objecting to the term haboob being used, meteorologists in the city confirmed that they have been using the Arabic word to describe the massive dust storms for over 30 years.

‘I think what’s going on is that we’ve had a higher frequency of stronger dust storms over the last couple of years and the term has been in play much more because of that,’ said Ken Waters of the Phoenix National Weather Service office to KPHO.

Blowing gusts of up to 50 mph at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, the haboob is destructive because of the fine dust particles that manage to permeate everywhere during the storm.

The 2,000 foot tall haboob cloud covers the city of Phoenix, Arizona cutting power to 9,000 homes

The haboob phenomenon affects Phoenix during the months of June through September which is Arizona’s monsoon season

Read  Full Article Here

30.07.2012

Flash Flood

USA

State of Arizona, Fountain Hills

Flash Flood in USA on Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 10:45 (10:45 AM) UTC.

Description

The monsoon is here as the weather caused damage and traffic delays due to flooding all over the Valley. Washes in Queen Creek were raging Sunday while deputies tried to manage all the road closures. Part of Hunt Highway was shut down between Gary and Ellsworth roads as the water washed out debris from an abandoned storehouse. Crews cleaned up layers of mud off of Elliot near Ellsworth Sunday night. That road opened up just before 10 p.m. Even the little kids had it all figured out in Fountain Hills, as one 4-year-old told us, “They are cutting the tree so cars can move.” Near Calaveras and Yerba Buena roads, crews worked to clean up a tree that just barely missed hitting cars or houses. “All of a sudden we looked out the front and the tree just went crashing,” said Katherine Gratz. “It is kind of sad. It’s probably been here 70 years, the neighbors say,” said another neighbor, Hayden Bronte. We’re told four other households had to evacuate just around the corner from where the tree fell after the winds toppled some power poles. “It was as if the storm moved over the top of like this street and sat and it was like almost tornado force winds. It was insane,” said Ruth Woody, who evacuated her home Sunday afternoon. Another pine tree in the same area completely uprooted. Two palm trees were holding up the top of the pine while its roots stood more than five feet out of the ground.

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30.07.2012

Flood

Costa Rica

Multiple areas, [Central and eastern regions]

Flood in Costa Rica on Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 03:00 (03:00 AM) UTC.

Description

Heavy rains in central and eastern Costa Rica have triggered floods that have forced evacuations and may be responsible for at least one death, relief workers said Sunday. Four people are missing, down from eight earlier, according to Freddy Roman, a spokesman for the local Red Cross. The government has declared a “yellow alert” in various parts of Cartago, a central province where one person was reported dead, said Roman. The person was rescued after a landslide, but died on the way to the hospital from injuries and heart failure, he said. A yellow alert is also in effect for parts of Limon, an eastern province. More than 1,500 people have taken refuge at shelters and others are waiting to be rescued, according to the Red Cross. “We have reports of people trapped in their houses that have been flooded by overflow from the Chirripo River, also of several communities that are isolated in other parts of Limon,” said Guillermo Arroyo, director of operations of the Costa Rican Red Cross. Heavy rain is typical this time of year in Costa Rica, where the rainy season runs roughly from May-November.

Floods force evacuations in Costa Rica

From Djenane Villanueva, for CNN

(CNN) — Heavy rains in central and eastern Costa Rica have triggered floods that have forced evacuations and may be responsible for at least one death, relief workers said Sunday.

Four people are missing, down from eight earlier, according to Freddy Roman, a spokesman for the local Red Cross.

The government has declared a “yellow alert” in various parts of Cartago, a central province where one person was reported dead, said Roman. The person was rescued after a landslide, but died on the way to the hospital from injuries and heart failure, he said.

A yellow alert is also in effect for parts of Limon, an eastern province.

More than 1,500 people have taken refuge at shelters and others are waiting to be rescued, according to the Red Cross.

“We have reports of people trapped in their houses that have been flooded by overflow from the Chirripo River, also of several communities that are isolated in other parts of Limon,” said Guillermo Arroyo, director of operations of the Costa Rican Red Cross.

Heavy rain is typical this time of year in Costa Rica, where the rainy season runs roughly from May-November.

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Radiation /  Nuclear

30.07.2012

Nuclear Event

South Korea

Province of Jeollanam-do, [Yeonggwang Nuclear Power Plant]

Nuclear Event in South Korea on Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 13:14 (01:14 PM) UTC.

Description

A South Korean nuclear reactor went into automatic shutdown on Monday apparently after a malfunction, plant operators said, while ruling out a possible radiation leak. The 1,000-megawatt reactor at Yeonggwang some 260 kilometres (156 miles) south of Seoul halted operations after warning signals around 3:00 pm (0600 GMT), the state-run Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power said. An investigation was under way to determine the cause of the shutdown, it said, adding there was no danger of a radiation leak. A warning signal and automatic shutdown can be triggered by a number of factors including malfunctions in the cooling pump, Yonhap news agency said. South Korea operates 22 reactors, which meet about 35 percent of its electricity needs. In February the country’s oldest nuclear plant at Gori, built in 1978 near the southern city of Busan, briefly lost mains power and the emergency generator failed to kick in. The incident resulted in no radioactive leaks but sparked an extensive probe amid concerns over nuclear safety following last year’s atomic crisis in Japan. In May, five engineers at Gori were charged with trying to cover up the potentially dangerous power failure and in July 32 people were charged with corruption involving the state nuclear power agency and its contracts with suppliers. A nuclear safety agency approved the restart of the Gori plant this month, but it has yet to resume operations due to protests by civic groups.

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Epidemic / Diseases

Patients flee hospital over Ebola outbreak

CLAR Ní CHONGHAILE in Nairobi

TERRIFIED PATIENTS fled from a hospital in western Uganda as soon as news broke that a mysterious illness that killed at least 14 people in the region was Ebola, one of the world’s most virulent diseases.

Ignatius Besisira, a member of parliament for Buyaga East County in the Kibaale district, said people had at first believed the unexplained deaths were related to witchcraft.

“Immediately, when there was confirmation that it was Ebola . . . patients ran out of Kagadi hospital [where some of the victims had died],” he said. “Even the medical officers are very, very frightened.”

Government officials and a World Health Organisation representative confirmed the Ebola outbreak at a news conference in Kampala on Saturday.

“Laboratory investigations done at the Uganda Virus Research Institute . . . have confirmed that the strange disease reported in Kibaale is indeed Ebola haemorrhagic fever,” they said in a joint statement.

Health officials said at least 20 people had been infected and of those 14 had died.

There is no treatment or vaccine against Ebola, which is transmitted by close personal contact and, depending on the strain, can kill up to 90 per cent of those who contract the virus.

It has a devastating history in Uganda, where in 2000 at least 425 people were infected, of whom more than half died. Ebola was previously reported in the country in May last year, when it killed a 12-year-old girl.

During an outbreak in 2007, which claimed at least 37 lives, Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni advised people not to shake hands and public gatherings were also discouraged.

One of those who succumbed to the outbreak in Kibaale was a clinical officer, Mr Besisira said. The other fatalities came from a single household in Nyamarunda subdistrict, he added.

Joaquim Saweka, WHO’s representative in Uganda, said the suspected infections emerged in the region in early July but the confirmation came only on Friday.

The Ugandan government said a national emergency taskforce had been set up and urged the population to remain calm. The government, WHO and the US Centres for Disease Control have sent experts to Kibaale to tackle the outbreak.

Mr Besisira had not heard of people moving out of the region, but the Daily Nation newspaper in neighbouring Kenya said yesterday that people were leaving the area around Kagadi town, where the disease first appeared. – (Guardian service)

30.07.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Uganda

Western Uganda, [Kibaale District]

Epidemic Hazard in Uganda on Thursday, 26 July, 2012 at 15:57 (03:57 PM) UTC.

Back

Updated:	Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 18:37 UTC
Description
Ebola, one of the world’s deadliest viruses, has been confirmed in Uganda, where 14 people have already died from what health officials were calling a mysterious illness. The illness was not immediately described as Ebola because patients were not showing the typical signs of the lethal disease, the nation’s health minister told CNN on Sunday. After news of the virus broke, a team of health experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ugandan government were deployed to the area to begin emergency response measures, according to a government statement. The experts discovered the strain was Ebola Sudan, one of the most common strains of the virus. This particular strain has been associated with a 70 percent mortality rate in recent years. The virus manifests as a hemorrhagic fever. The last severe outbreak occurred in 2000, killing 224 people in Uganda. It was first reported in 1976 in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to the CDC. The strange disease was first reported in the area several weeks ago, according to a government statement.Ignatius Besisira, an MP for Buyaga East County in the Kibaale district, said people first believed the unexplained deaths were from witchcraft. “Immediately, when there was confirmation that it was Ebola … patients ran out of Kagadi hospital (where some of the victims had died),” Besisira told the Guardian. “Even the medical officers are very, very frightened.” Lab tests confirmed the illness was Ebola hemorrhagic fever. A baby from the village of Nyanswiga was the first confirmed death and so far 14 of some 20 that are known to have been infected have died. A clinical officer who treated the original case also fell ill and died soon afterward. Her four-month-old baby, admitted for treatment last Monday, died four days later. The clinical officer’s sister, who took care of the baby when she became ill, has been admitted for treatment with similar symptoms, but is currently in stable condition, the government statement said. There is no treatment or vaccine against Ebola, which is transmitted through close contact and, depending on the strain, can kill up to 90 percent of those who contract the virus. While Ebola outbreaks occur every few years, the virus’s delicate composition has so far impeded a significant, long-duration attack. But much about the disease remains a mystery.The CDC has a team of scientists stationed at a Ugandan laboratory who study Ebola and other deadly viruses that are often found in equatorial Africa. Ebola is among a list of viruses highlighted by the US as a potential biological-weapons threat. Officials are currently trying to determine the extent of the outbreak, CDC spokesman Tom Skinner told CNN.com on Sunday. “These outbreaks have a tendency to stamp themselves out, if you will, if we can get in and … stop the chain of transmission,” he explained. Health officials are urging area residents to report any suspected cases and avoid contact with anyone who has contracted the virus and to disinfect bedding and clothing of an infected person by using protective gloves and masks. They also advise against eating dead animals, especially monkeys, and to avoid public gatherings if at all possible. Despite the ongoing threat, the WHO said in its statement that it does not recommend travel restrictions to Uganda because of the outbreak. Besisira said officials in Kibaale had released radio broadcasts outlining the precautionary measures on Saturday. “We have assured (the people) that we have a very strong team … who are making sure the disease is controlled … I am very confident we can contain it,” he added. While there are no reports of people moving out of the region, the Daily Nation newspaper in Kenya said on Sunday that people were leaving the area around Kagadi town, where the disease first appeared. “We have to move to safer places because we can easily get infected by this disease here,” the paper quoted a resident, Omuhereza Kugonza, as saying. Ebola is transmitted by direct contact with the body fluids and tissues of infected persons. It can also be transmitted by handling sick or dead infected wild animals, such as chimpanzees, gorillas, monkeys, forest antelope and fruit bats. Symptoms include sudden fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat, followed by vomiting, diarrhea, rashes, impaired kidney and liver function and bleeding.

30.07.2012

Epidemic Hazard

India

State of Punjab, Dasuya

Epidemic Hazard in India on Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 02:56 (02:56 AM) UTC.

Description
The number of gastro entritis cases has gone up to 132 at Dasuya in Punjab where spread of cholera and gastro enteritis cases was reported in some districts. Out of these, 86 have been discharged after treatment, a senior medical officer said today. Yesterday, the number of gastro patients admitted to the civil hospital at Dasuya was 117. Meanwhile, three serious patients were referred to Punjab Institute of Medical Sciences, Jalandhar, Dr Naresh Kansra, senior medical officer (SMO) of the Dasuya Civil Hospital said today. An increase in the number of gastro patients has been witnessed at Dasuya in the past few days. Director family welfare Punjab Karnjit Singh and state surveillance officer Deepak Bhatia inspected the areas of Dasuya town affected by gastroenteritis and also went to the hospital to meet the patients. Over 4000 chlorine tablets were distributed among the people of the area.
Biohazard name:	Cholera and gastroenteritis diseases
Biohazard level:	2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

 

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Solar Activity

2MIN News July 31, 2012: Data Error? Maybe not.

Published on Jul 31, 2012 by Suspicious0bservers

EARTHQUAKE WATCH: http://youtu.be/SMiHsOYwdCs

TODAY’S LINKS
North Korea Flood: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/photo/2012-07/31/c_131749361.htm
Euro Crisis: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/31/us-eurozone-crisis-idUSBRE86S05J201…
Corn Prices: http://buzz.money.cnn.com/2012/07/30/corn-soybean-prices/
Climate Chnge: http://www.weather.com/news/noaa-state-of-climate-2011-report-20120710

REPEAT LINKS
Spaceweather: http://spaceweather.com/ [Look on the left at the X-ray Flux and Solar Wind Speed/Density]

HAARP: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/haarp/data.html [Click online data, and have a little fun]

SDO: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/ [Place to find Solar Images and Videos – as seen from earth]

SOHO: http://sohodata.nascom.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/soho_movie_theater [SOHO; Lasco and EIT – as seen from earth]

Stereo: http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/images [Stereo; Cor, EUVI, HI – as seen from the side]

SunAEON:http://www.sunaeon.com/#/solarsystem/ [Just click it… trust me]

SOLARIMG: http://solarimg.org/artis/ [All purpose data viewing site]

iSWA: http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov/iswa/iSWA.html [Free Application; for advanced sun watchers]

NOAA ENLIL SPIRAL: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/wsa-enlil/cme-based/ [CME Evolution]

NOAA Bouys: http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/

RSOE: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php [That cool alert map I use]

JAPAN Radiation Map: http://jciv.iidj.net/map/

LISS: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/heliplots_gsn.php

Gamma Ray Bursts: http://grb.sonoma.edu/ [Really? You can’t figure out what this one is for?]

BARTOL Cosmic Rays: http://neutronm.bartol.udel.edu//spaceweather/welcome.html [Top left box, look for BIG blue circles]

TORCON: http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-torcon-index [Tornado Forecast for the day]

GOES Weather: http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/goes/ [Clouds over America]

INTELLICAST: http://www.intellicast.com/ [Weather site used by many youtubers]

NASA News: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/

PHYSORG: http://phys.org/ [GREAT News Site!]

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Space

Earth approaching objects (objects that are known in the next 30 days)
Object Name	Apporach Date	Left	AU Distance	LD Distance	Estimated Diameter*	Relative Velocity
217013 (2001 AA50)	31st July 2012	0 day(s)	0.1355	52.7	580 m – 1.3 km	22.15 km/s	79740 km/h
(2012 DS30)	02nd August 2012	2 day(s)	0.1224	47.6	18 m – 39 m	5.39 km/s	19404 km/h
(2000 RN77)	03rd August 2012	3 day(s)	0.1955	76.1	410 m – 920 m	9.87 km/s	35532 km/h
(2004 SB56)	04th August 2012	4 day(s)	0.1393	54.2	380 m – 840 m	13.72 km/s	49392 km/h
(2000 SD8)	04th August 2012	4 day(s)	0.1675	65.2	180 m – 400 m	5.82 km/s	20952 km/h
(2006 EC)	06th August 2012	6 day(s)	0.0932	36.3	13 m – 28 m	6.13 km/s	22068 km/h
(2006 MV1)	07th August 2012	7 day(s)	0.0612	23.8	12 m – 28 m	4.79 km/s	17244 km/h
(2005 RK3)	08th August 2012	8 day(s)	0.1843	71.7	52 m – 120 m	8.27 km/s	29772 km/h
(2009 BW2)	09th August 2012	9 day(s)	0.0337	13.1	25 m – 56 m	5.27 km/s	18972 km/h
277475 (2005 WK4)	09th August 2012	9 day(s)	0.1283	49.9	260 m – 580 m	6.18 km/s	22248 km/h
(2004 SC56)	09th August 2012	9 day(s)	0.0811	31.6	74 m – 170 m	10.57 km/s	38052 km/h
(2008 AF4)	10th August 2012	10 day(s)	0.1936	75.3	310 m – 690 m	16.05 km/s	57780 km/h
37655 Illapa	12th August 2012	12 day(s)	0.0951	37.0	770 m – 1.7 km	28.73 km/s	103428 km/h
(2012 HS15)	14th August 2012	14 day(s)	0.1803	70.2	220 m – 490 m	11.54 km/s	41544 km/h
4581 Asclepius	16th August 2012	16 day(s)	0.1079	42.0	220 m – 490 m	13.48 km/s	48528 km/h
(2008 TC4)	18th August 2012	18 day(s)	0.1937	75.4	140 m – 300 m	17.34 km/s	62424 km/h
(2006 CV)	20th August 2012	20 day(s)	0.1744	67.9	290 m – 640 m	13.24 km/s	47664 km/h
(2012 EC)	20th August 2012	20 day(s)	0.0815	31.7	56 m – 130 m	5.57 km/s	20052 km/h
162421 (2000 ET70)	21st August 2012	21 day(s)	0.1503	58.5	640 m – 1.4 km	12.92 km/s	46512 km/h
(2007 WU3)	21st August 2012	21 day(s)	0.1954	76.0	56 m – 120 m	5.25 km/s	18900 km/h
(2012 BB14)	24th August 2012	24 day(s)	0.1234	48.0	27 m – 60 m	2.58 km/s	9288 km/h
1 AU = ~150 million kilometers,1 LD = Lunar Distance = ~384,000 kilometers Source: NASA-NEO

 

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Biological / Wildlife / Environmental Pollution

30.07.2012

Biological Hazard

Philippines

Davao Region (Region XI), Davao City [Ateneo de Davao University]

Biological Hazard in Philippines on Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 04:51 (04:51 AM) UTC.

Description
Lunchtime Sunday at the Ateneo de Davao University (ADDU) turned bad after at least 100 students had to be rushed to area hospitals after suffering a nasty bout of food poisoning. According to an Ateneo de Davao University press statement Sunday: “A number of students, staff and administrators were rushed to the hospital a few hours after lunch after they complained of upset stomach with bouts of vomiting. Administrators and staff were dispatched to assist students in the hospitals. Some of the students were confined, majority were sent home after they were checked by doctors and administered the appropriate medications.” The Philippine news source, Interaksyon reports Sunday, the students were attending the student leaders gathering – called Sui Generis – with ADDU President Fr. Joel Tabora. The gathering of students ate lunch at the school around 12:30 pm. The menu included chicken adobo, pancit, fish , rice and buco salad. A couple of hours later, students starting getting sick, showing food poisoning symptoms such as nausea and vomiting. Chair of the student council Samahan, Mureene Ann Villamor told Interaksyon reporters that the chicken adobo “smelled terrible.” On the Facebook page of the student paper, Atenews, there are several posts about the outbreak including a photo of the implicated food, chicken adobo (or adobong manok ) by photographer Caycee Coronel. Students were taken to Davao Doctors Hospital and San Pedro Hospital or treatment. The etiologic agent of the outbreak has yet to be determined.
Biohazard name:	Mass. Food Poisoning
Biohazard level:	2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

30.07.2012

Biological Hazard

Pakistan

[Thar Desert]

Biological Hazard in Pakistan on Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 18:40 (06:40 PM) UTC.

Description
Wildlife experts are shocked at the recent mass-death of wild peacocks fearing it may be an outbreak of the highly contagious Newcastle disease. At least 60 peacocks were found perished in the Thar desert in southern Pakistan, officials have confirmed, but local media reports say hundreds of the exotic birds have died. Newcastle disease, which has nothing to do with Cheryl Cole or Brown Ale, is the deadliest of all viruses spread among birds. The Pakistani wildlife ministry said tests were being done to determine cause of death, but experts are suspecting they may have been afflicted with Newcastle disease, known locally as ‘ranikhet’. A spokesperson said the wild peacocks had been weakened by starvation, deforestation and a lack of safe drinking water blamed on delays to the annual monsoon rains. Lajpat Sharma, an official in the provincial wildlife ministry said: ‘Wild peacocks have become susceptible to bacterial and fungal attack, which further suppressed the immunity of the birds that paved the room for viral attack.
Biohazard name:	Newcastle disease
Biohazard level:	2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

30.07.2012

Environment Pollution

USA

State of Wisconsin, [Wisconsin Dells, Adams County]

Environment Pollution in USA on Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 16:14 (04:14 PM) UTC.

Description

Crews will begin Monday, July 30, to replace part of a crude oil pipeline that leaked 1,200 barrels of oil in a field north of Wisconsin Dells in Adams County. Enbridge Energy could not say what caused the spill or when the line from Superior to Chicago will start operating again. The leak happened on Friday in the town of Grand Marsh. Enbridge officials said it was discovered very quickly. They said most of it was contained to the company’s right of way. The pipeline sends about 318,000 gallons per day of light crude oil from Superior to refineries in the Chicago area. Two similar pipelines along that route resumed operations on Saturday, once it was learned that they were not affected by the spill. A third line was expected to re-open right after that. Meanwhile, repairs began Saturday on the broken pipeline. Enbridge said two Grand Marsh landowners were affected, and one family was relocated for its safety. Oil was found on two small farm ponds, but drinking water wells were not affected. Federal officials said all of the pooled oil had been cleaned up. Reuters said the impact on Chicago’s oil refiners would depend on how long the pipeline’s out and how much oil the refineries have in reserve. The spill came at a poor time for Enbridge, which had another pipeline leak in Alberta, Canada, last month. The firm was the subject of a critical government report on its handling of a ruptured pipeline in Michigan in 2010 that was not noticed for 17 hours.

Dozens of wild peacocks die in Pakistan desert

by Staff Writers
Karachi (AFP)

Dozens of wild peacocks have died suddenly in Pakistan, prompting experts to fear an outbreak of the highly contagious Newcastle disease.

Officials on Monday confirmed the deaths of at least 60 peacocks in Thar desert, part of southern Sindh province, over the last week. Local media reports say more than 100 of the exotic birds have died.

The wildlife ministry said tests were being done to diagnose the cause of death, but said the wild peacocks had been weakened by starvation, deforestation and a lack of safe drinking water blamed on delays to the annual monsoon rains.

“Wild peacocks have become susceptible to bacterial and fungal attack, which further suppressed the immunity of the birds that paved the room for viral attack,” it said.

Experts are alarmed by the number of deaths, suspecting they may have been afflicted with Newcastle disease, known locally as ranikhet.

“We are vaccinating wild peacocks protectively for suspected viral disease, as in 2003 when a few peacocks died from the same symptoms that later proved to be ranikhet,” said Lajpat Sharma, an official in the provincial wildlife ministry.

Tahir Qureshi of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) also told AFP that he suspected ranikhet was to blame.

Newcastle disease is a worldwide problem among birds and sporadic outbreaks can occur frequently. Affected birds suffer from loss of appetite, coughing, sneezing, diarrhoea, and in severe outbreaks a high proportion die.

The wildlife ministry said it was supplying fresh water to peacocks in affected areas.

Sharma said there are at least 30,000 wild peacocks in the Thar desert, but Qureshi said the numbers were declining, because of poaching and lack of effective conservation.

Related Links
Weather News at TerraDaily.com

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Articles of Interest

30.07.2012

Power Outage

India

Multiple areas, [Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir]

Power Outage in India on Monday, 30 July, 2012 at 03:26 (03:26 AM) UTC.

Description

Seven states in North India have been facing a long power cut since late Sunday night. Due to a massive breakdown in the northern grid, the main power source for the affected states, there has been a massive power outage. The affected states are Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir. There is no power in Delhi and its neighbouring states since 2 am reports IBN-Live. According to the report, Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde said that it’ll take another one and a half hour’s time to restore power. “My officers are on the spot. The fault is found near Agra. It will be corrected in one and a half hour time,” he said. Thousands of commuters in the Delhi Metro will face a harrowing time on Monday morning as services of all the lines of the Metro have been disrupted due to tripping of power supply. Train services on the 190-km Metro network connecting length and breath of the national capital were affected due to The Northern Grid failure also caused power cuts in large parts of Delhi. “Metro service will not be available today (Monday) till the supply is restored as it is a major Northern Grid power failure,” a Delhi Metro official said. The Delhi Metro normally operates over 2,700 trips a day, covering about 70,000 km and carrying around 1.8 million passengers on week days.

……………………………..

Power cut causes major disruption in northern India

Trains were stranded after the power failure

 

A massive power cut has caused disruption across northern India, including in the capital, Delhi.

It hit a swathe of the country affecting more than 300 million people in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan states.

Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde said most of the supply had been restored and the rest would be reinstated soon.

It is unclear why the supply collapsed but reports say some states may have been using more power than authorised.

Mr Shinde said he had appointed a committee to inquire into the causes of the blackout, one of the worst to hit the country in more than a decade. The committee will submit its report within 15 days, he said.

The power cut happened at 02:30 local time on Monday (2100 GMT Sunday) after India’s Northern Grid network collapsed.

Mr Shinde told the BBC that he had been informed about the problem at 05:30.

Monday’s massive power cut is reportedly the first of its kind in more than a decade, affecting nearly 30% of India’s population in nine northern states. At the root of this is the severe energy crisis facing India today.

The country is facing a huge supply shortfall this summer. A shortage of coal (most of India’s energy is thermal), loss-making state electricity boards, the theft of power, a lack of transparency in fixing electricity charges and underperforming private distribution agencies mean that vast swathes of India live without electricity for several hours a day.

PM Manmohan Singh pushed through the civilian nuclear deal with the US to help meet India’s soaring energy but plans to set up new reactors have been embroiled in controversies about safety and the acquisition of land.

“Within two hours we tried to restore the railways, airport and Delhi Metro services and power supply to essential services, including the railways and hospitals, was restored by 08:00.”

The minister said the exact reason for the collapse had not yet been pinpointed but, in the summer, “states try to take more power from the grid” and at the time of the collapse, the grid frequency was “above normal”.

“That is one of the reasons why the grid failed,” he said.

By early afternoon, 80% of the supply had been restored, Mr Shinde said.

‘Worried’

Monday morning saw travel chaos engulf the region, with thousands of passengers stranded when train services were disrupted in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh.

The Rajdhani train from Jammu to Delhi was more than five hours late.

“The train stopped near Panipat station [in Haryana] at about 02:30. For a long time we had no idea what was holding us up,” passenger DK Rajdan said.

“Rajdhani is air-conditioned so it was not uncomfortable. But for six or seven hours we couldn’t get anything to eat or drink and people were beginning to get worried,” he said.

Delhi Metro railway services were stalled for three hours, although the network later resumed when it received back-up power from Bhutan, one official said.

Traffic lights on the streets of the capital were not functioning as early morning commuters made their way into work, leading to gridlock.

Water treatment plants in the city also had to be shut for a few hours.

Officials said restoring services to hospitals and transport systems were a priority.

Power cuts are a common occurrence in Indian cities because of a fundamental shortage of power and an ageing grid. The chaos caused by such cuts has led to protests and unrest on the streets.

Earlier in July, crowds in the Delhi suburb of Gurgaon blocked traffic and clashed with police after blackouts there.

Correspondents say that India urgently needs a huge increase in power production, as hundreds of millions of its people are not even connected to the national grid.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has long said that India must look to nuclear energy to supply power to the people.

Estimates say that nuclear energy contributes only 3% to the country’s current power supply. But the construction of some proposed nuclear power stations have been stalled by intense local opposition.

Related Stories

• In pictures: Blackout in northern India
• India’s power sector in crisis Watch
• Indian workers protest power cuts Watch

AP News

 

 

Indian power failure puts 370M in dark for hours

By Ravi Nessman

NEW DELHI (AP) — A power grid failure blacked out northern India for hours Monday, halting trains, forcing hospitals and airports onto backup power and providing a dark, sweltering reminder of the nation’s inability to meet its energy needs as it strives to be an economic power.

While the midsummer outage was unique in its reach — it hit 370 million people, more than the population of the United States and Canada combined — its impact was softened by Indians’ familiarity with almost daily blackouts of varying duration. Hospitals and major businesses have backup generators that seamlessly kick in during power cuts, and upscale homes are hooked to backup systems powered by truck batteries.

Nonetheless, some small businesses were forced to shut for the day. Buildings were without water because the pumps weren’t working, and the vaunted New Delhi Metro, with 1.8 million daily riders, was paralyzed during the morning commute.

“This will obviously get worse,” said Subhash Chawla, a 65-year-old retiree who took the Metro once power was restored. “Unless the Metro has a separate power supply, it will be chaos in the future.”

The grid that failed feeds the nation’s breadbasket in Punjab, the war-wracked region of Kashmir, the burgeoning capital of New Delhi, the Dalai Lama’s Himalayan headquarters in Dharmsala, and the world’s most populous state, poverty-stricken Uttar Pradesh.

Most affected areas had power back by late morning, less than nine hours after the outage started. By evening, 15 hours after the outage began, officials said full power had been restored.

Many chafed at the inconvenience.

Amit Naik, a toy maker in New Delhi, was forced to close his workshop for the day.

“There was no water, so my machine couldn’t run. Other people had the same difficulties,” he said.

The Confederation of Indian Industry said the outage was a reminder of the urgent need for the government to fix the power sector, ensure a steady supply of coal for power plants and reform the electricity utilities.

Transmission and distribution losses in some states are as much as 50 percent because of theft and corruption by employees in the power industry. India’s Central Electricity Authority reported power deficits of about 8 percent in recent months.

Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde deflected criticism, pointing out that the United States and Brazil also had huge power failures in recent years.

“I ask you to look at the power situation in other countries as well,” he said.

The blackout, the worst to hit India in a decade, began about 2:30 a.m. when the grid covering eight northern states crashed. Officials in Uttar Pradesh, where the problem was believed to have begun, said the grid could not keep up with the huge demand for power in the hot summer.

But Shinde said he was not sure exactly what caused the collapse and had formed a committee to investigate.

The outage left millions sweltering in the summer heat. Muslim families were forced to eat their pre-dawn meals by candlelight before beginning their daytime Ramadan fast. “It was really difficult,” said farmer Mohammed Zaman.

As officials struggled to get the grid back on line, they drew power from the neighboring eastern and western grids as well as hydroelectric power from the small neighboring mountain kingdom of Bhutan.

New Delhi residents were roused from sleep when their fans and air conditioners stopped, and came out of their homes in the heat as the entire city turned dark. Temperatures in the city were in the mid-30s C (90s F) with 89 percent humidity.

Some trains across the northern region were stranded when their electric engines failed. Others were delayed by hours as they were hooked to diesel engines.

The failure was the first time since 2001 that the northern grid had collapsed. But India’s demand for electricity has soared since then as its population and economy have grown sharply.

But any connection to the grid remains a luxury for many. One-third of India’s households do not even have electricity to power a light bulb, according to last year’s census.

The power deficit was worsened by a weak monsoon that lowered hydroelectric generation and kept temperatures higher, further increasing electricity usage as people seek to cool off. Shivpal Singh Yadav, the power minister in Uttar Pradesh, home to 200 million people, said that while demand during peak hours hits 11,000 megawatts, the state can only provide 9,000 megawatts.

Uttar Pradesh Power Corp. chief Avnish Awasthi blamed the grid collapse on states drawing more than their allotted power to meet the summer demand.

____

Associated Press writer Biswajeet Banerjee in Lucknow and Aijaz Hussain in Srinagar contributed to this report.

 

 

 

Storms knock out power to tens of thousands from Plains to Northeast

By Khara Lewin, CNN

Lightning flashes across the sky Thursday, July 26, in Nyack, New York, in this dramatic photo from CNN iReporter Eric Girard. Storms ripped through the Northeast on Thursday night, unleashing strong winds and knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of customers.

(CNN) — Hundreds of thousands lost power due to a potent storm system that extended eastward from the Plains toward the Northeast on Thursday, bringing with it high winds and destructive lightning.

Severe thunderstorm watches were in effect at one point Thursday evening for a continuous stretch from Oklahoma through New Jersey. The danger could lurk for several hours longer, with the National Weather Service issuing such warnings in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Kentucky, Virginia, Arkansas and other points in between.

Well before then, the system had already packed a punch.

In Pennsylvania, a tree crushed a woman in her car as she sought shelter at a campsite, killing her, said Glenn Dunn, the emergency management coordinator for Potter County.

A 61-year-old man in Brooklyn, New York, died after lightning struck a church sending a scaffold crashing down on him, authorities said.

Share your images of the storm with iReport.

Witnesses reported trees in the region buckling under the impact.

“The trees were bending sideways, (and) the sky just went really dark and green,” said Mark Ventrini, a photographer, of the scene around 7:30 p.m. as he headed toward Belmar, New Jersey. “Some of the storms were pretty intense.”

The weather service had received reports of possible tornadoes touching down in Elmira, New York, and Brookville, Pennsylvania.

Emergency managers in Broome County, New York, reported people trapped inside a home because of downed trees in the town of Vestal.

Strong storms also caused damage in Binghamton, New York, but the weather service said no injuries or fatalities have been reported.

Stunning pictures arise from New York storm

The residual and more widespread damage came in the form of extensive power outages. More than 100,000 First Energy customers in Pennsylvania, for instance, didn’t have electricity as of 10 p.m. ET, with other utilities like PECO and PPL reporting tens of thousands of others similarly in the dark.

An hour earlier, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued a press release stating there were nearly 95,000 customers without power in that state, mostly NYSEG and Central Hudson customers.

Cuomo also declared a state of emergency for hard-hit Chemung County in the southwestern part of the state.

Many more people took in the impressive lightning storms, with daunting bolts preceding booming claps of thunder in small towns and big cities.

“The brunt of the storm itself was intense but short — there was very strong rain and wind for about 15 minutes, at which point the rain cleared and the lightning show began,” said Matthew Burke, a CNN iReporter who photographed lightning sprawling across the New York City skyline.

Several states away, tens of thousands also were in the dark, though power was being restored at a fairly fast rate. AEP Ohio, for instance, reported just over 51,000 customers lacking electricity at 6:15 p.m., yet more than 20,000 of those had the lights back on by 10 p.m.

CNN’s Greg Botelho, Lila King, Julie Cannold and Dominique Dodley contributed to this report.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• NEW: Storms kill one in New York and one in Pennsylvania
• More than 200,000 in Ohio, New Jersey and other states lose power
• “Trees were bending sideways,” a man in New Jersey says
• National Weather Service reports possible tornado touchdowns in the Northeast

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[In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit, for research and/or educational purposes. This constitutes ‘FAIR USE’ of any such copyrighted material.]

Earth Watch Report – Sunday July 22, 2012

Earthquakes

 

 

RSOE EDIS

 

 

 

Date/Time (UTC)	Magnitude	Area	Country	State/Prov./Gov.	Location	Risk			Source	Details
22.07.2012 04:30:35	3.4	North America	United States	Alaska	Clam Gulch				USGS-RSOE
22.07.2012 03:20:21	3.9	South-America	Argentina	Salta	San Antonio de los Cobres				EMSC
22.07.2012 03:20:45	4.7	Pacific Ocean – East	Tonga	Tongatapu	Havelu				EMSC
22.07.2012 02:25:27	4.7	Pacific Ocean	Tonga	Tongatapu	Havelu				USGS-RSOE
22.07.2012 01:30:40	2.0	North America	United States	Nevada	Topaz Lake				USGS-RSOE
22.07.2012 01:16:31	2.7	North America	United States	Alaska	Salcha				USGS-RSOE
22.07.2012 01:31:05	3.1	Caribbean	British Virgin Islands		Road Town				USGS-RSOE
22.07.2012 01:15:20	4.2	Europe	Russia		Kuril’sk				EMSC
22.07.2012 00:56:05	4.2	Asia	Russia		Kuril’sk				USGS-RSOE
22.07.2012 01:15:46	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Denizli	Kale				EMSC
22.07.2012 01:16:07	2.9	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	Calama				EMSC
21.07.2012 23:30:29	2.7	North America	United States	Alaska	Susitna				USGS-RSOE
22.07.2012 01:20:39	3.2	Pacific Ocean	New Zealand	Canterbury	Tai Tapu				GEONET
22.07.2012 00:10:22	2.0	Europe	Italy	Umbria	Monte Grimano				EMSC
22.07.2012 00:10:43	4.8	Pacific Ocean – East	Tonga	Vava`u	Hihifo				EMSC
21.07.2012 23:20:22	4.9	Pacific Ocean	Tonga	Vava`u	Hihifo				USGS-RSOE
21.07.2012 23:10:23	4.2	Europe	Greece	South Aegean	Kamarion				EMSC
21.07.2012 23:10:54	2.8	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	San Prospero				EMSC
21.07.2012 23:11:18	3.1	Europe	Poland	Lower Silesian Voivodeship	Sieroszowice				EMSC
21.07.2012 21:45:39	3.0	North America	United States	Alaska	Old Harbor				USGS-RSOE
21.07.2012 22:05:26	3.5	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	Tocopilla				EMSC
22.07.2012 02:20:27	3.0	Middle-East	Lebanon	Nabatîyé	Habbouch				EMSC
22.07.2012 00:11:14	3.1	Caribbean	Dominican Republic	La Altagracia	Boca de Yuma				USGS-RSOE
21.07.2012 22:05:47	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Amasya	Dedekoy				EMSC
21.07.2012 22:06:07	2.9	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	OEluedeniz				EMSC
21.07.2012 20:15:57	2.3	North America	United States	Alaska	Ruby				USGS-RSOE
21.07.2012 22:06:30	4.6	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	East Nusa Tenggara	Kisba Dua				EMSC
21.07.2012 20:00:22	2.6	Europe	Greece	Peloponnese	Areopolis				EMSC
21.07.2012 20:00:58	2.3	Asia	Turkey	Konya	Kuyulusebil				EMSC
21.07.2012 19:45:30	2.4	North America	United States	Alaska	Seward				USGS-RSOE
21.07.2012 19:30:35	2.0	North America	United States	California	Coalinga				USGS-RSOE
21.07.2012 20:01:23	3.2	Middle-East	Lebanon	Nabatîyé	Habbouch				EMSC
21.07.2012 20:01:48	2.7	Europe	Greece	Epirus	Samonida				EMSC
21.07.2012 22:06:52	4.5	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	East Nusa Tenggara	Kisba Dua				EMSC
21.07.2012 19:30:59	3.4	Caribbean	Puerto Rico	Hatillo	Hatillo				USGS-RSOE
21.07.2012 22:07:15	4.6	Indian Ocean	Maldives		Kudahuvadhoo				EMSC
21.07.2012 20:02:17	2.9	South-America	Chile	Valparaíso	La Ligua				EMSC
21.07.2012 18:30:37	2.1	North America	United States	California	Descanso				USGS-RSOE
21.07.2012 18:56:11	4.6	Indonesian Archipelago	Indonesia	East Nusa Tenggara	Kisba Dua				EMSC
21.07.2012 18:21:04	4.6	Indonesian archipelago	Indonesia	East Nusa Tenggara	Kisba Dua				USGS-RSOE
21.07.2012 18:56:43	3.4	Middle-East	Iraq	Arb?l	Rawanduz				EMSC
21.07.2012 18:57:07	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Antalya	Buyukbelkis				EMSC
21.07.2012 17:50:50	2.4	North America	United States	California	Markleeville				USGS-RSOE
21.07.2012 17:55:19	2.8	Europe	Greece	Attica	Agia Pelagia				EMSC
21.07.2012 17:55:43	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Kargi				EMSC
21.07.2012 17:56:11	2.3	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	OEluedeniz				EMSC
21.07.2012 17:56:35	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Yatagan				EMSC
21.07.2012 16:55:19	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	OEluedeniz				EMSC
21.07.2012 16:00:30	3.2	Middle America	Mexico	Baja California	Alberto Oviedo Mota				USGS-RSOE
21.07.2012 15:50:27	3.7	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	Tocopilla				EMSC

**********************************************************************************************************

Volcanic Activity

New Zealand : Tongariro volcano alert at new high

By Matthew Backhouse and Kieran Campbell

Tongariro volcano alert at new high

Expand

An aerial view over the Tongariro National Park. Photo / Greg Bowker

A “sudden rise” in volcanic activity at Mt Tongariro has prompted scientists to lift its volcanic alert status for the first time.

But local businesses and conservation authorities remain unconcerned as they seek to reassure visitors it is “business as usual” at National Park.

GNS Science this afternoon lifted Mt Tongariro’s volcanic alert status from level zero to level one, and increased the aviation status from green to yellow.

It said a series of more than 20 “small” volcanic earthquakes had been recorded at Tongariro since July 13 – more than the average of two per year according to historic seismic data.

The quakes, below a magnitude of 2.5 and between 2-7km deep, were recorded in a cluster zone between Emerald Crater and Te Maari craters.

The sequence of earthquakes soon declined but restarted on Wednesday and increased in number yesterday and today.

GNS volcanologist Brad Scott said it was the first time the alert level had been lifted at Tongariro since the alert system was introduced.

“It’s displaying some form of unrest. We don’t know exactly what’s driving it, if we did we’d be saying.”

To get a clearer picture, GNS would deploy portable seismic recorders around the epicentres of the earthquakes and conduct sampling of selected hot springs, crater lakes and fumaroles in the area.

“We’ve got our permanent networks out giving us data in real time… (and) we want to compliment that with some more data, just to add to our knowledge.”

Mt Tongariro is a volcanic complex that lies to the north of Ngauruhoe and consists of numerous craters and vents.

There are six alert levels of volcanic action, increasing in seriousness from zero to five. Alert level one indicates “signs of volcano unrest”.

For the alert level to be lifted to two – “minor eruptive activity” – there would need to be an eruption and there was no indication that would happen.

The aviation status yellow also acts as a warning of increased unrest.

Department of Conservation local conservation analyst Harry Keys said GNS Science was dealing with the matter and the department did not need to take any action at this stage.

The popular Tongariro Alpine Crossing passed close to Te Maari craters, where the most recent ash eruptions took place from 1855 to 1897.

But there was no hazard at the moment and the crossing would remain open to the public.

“There are public safety matters if the volcano starts getting active, but at the moment the volcano is not getting active and it may not ever get active,” he said.

“We’ve got everything ready if we have to do anything. We will then go to the next stage, but at the moment we’re not doing anything.”

Dr Keys said he would not expect more or fewer visitors at the moment.

“It’s definitely business as usual. People might make their own decisions, but there’s no reason at the moment they should make any decisions about what they’ve planned.”

National Park Business Association chairman Murray Wilson said the only problem with volcanic activity was when it interrupted visitor flows.

He had been at a regional tourism meeting today but the issue was not even raised.

“It’s just a fact of life around here and I don’t think anyone around the place will be to excited about that – it’s probably more of a technical response than a physical response.”

Mr Wilson said “media hype” had been the biggest issue the last time neighbouring Ruapehu had erupted in the 1990s.

“The people around here depend on uninterrupted visitor flows. Last year we had interrupted visitor flows because of the Rugby World Cup – as soon as the rugby started, people tended to stay at home and go to the rugby matches.”

He did not think there would be much impact unless it was “over-reported and people get worried”.

– APNZ

By Matthew Backhouse and Kieran Campbell | Email Matthew

Strong quake hits off east coast of New Zealand

 

---

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — A strong earthquake has struck off the east coast of New Zealand, but there were no immediate reports of any injuries or damage.

The U.S. Geological Survey says the magnitude-5.8 temblor struck Saturday off the east coast of the North Island at a depth of 20 kilometers (12 miles).

New Zealand is prone to earthquakes. In February 2011, a strong quake in Christchurch killed 185 people and destroyed much of the city’s downtown area.

X-rays illuminate the origin of volcanic hotspots

by Staff Writers
Paris, France (SPX)

This is an illustration showing how the mantle plumes can be emitted from the core-mantle boundary region to reach the Earth’s crust. Due to the lateral displacement of the tectonic plates at the surface, the mantle plumes can create a series of aligned hot spot volcanoes. A mid ocean ridge and a subducted plate are also shown. Credit: ESRF/Denis Andrault/Henri Samuel. For a larger version of this image please go here.

Scientists have recreated the extreme conditions at the boundary between Earth’s core and its mantle, 2,900 km beneath the surface. Using the world’s most brilliant beam of X-rays, they probed speck-sized samples of rock at very high temperature and pressure to show for the first time that partially molten rock under these conditions is buoyant and should segregate towards the Earth’s surface.

This observation is a strong evidence for the theory that volcanic hotspots like the Hawaiian Islands originate from mantle plumes generated at the Earth’s core-mantle boundary. The results are published in Nature dated 19 July 2012.

The group of scientists was led by Denis Andrault from the Laboratoire Magmas et Volcans of University Blaise Pascal in Clermont, and included scientists from the CNRS in Clermont and the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) in Grenoble, France.

Most volcanoes are situated where continental plates are pushed or pulled against each other. Here, the continental crust is weakened, and the magma can break through to the surface. The Pacific “Ring of Fire”, for example, exhibits such plate movements, resulting in powerful Earthquakes and numerous active volcanoes.

Volcanic hotspots are of a completely different nature because most of them are far away from plate boundaries. The Hawaiian Islands, for example, are a chain of volcanoes thought to have their origin in a mysterious hot spot beneath the Pacific ocean floor. Every island in the chain starts as an active volcano fed by the hot spot that eventually rises above the ocean surface. As plate tectonics move the volcano away from the hotspot, it becomes extinct.

The hot spot will in the meantime create another volcano: the next island in the chain. The Hawaiian Islands are one of many examples of this process, like the Canary Islands, La Reunion or the Azores.

The nature of the hot-spot source and its location in the mantle have remained elusive to the present day. One explanation is narrow streams of magma conveyed to the Earth’s surface from the boundary between the Earth’s core of liquid iron and the solid mantle of silicate rock. Whether the lowermost mantle expels such streams of magma called mantle plumes is one of today’s major controversies among geologists.

What material can be stored at the core-mantle boundary and become sufficiently light to rise through 2900 km of thick solid mantle? This was the question Denis Andrault and his colleagues addressed when they set out to recreate in a laboratory the conditions found at the core-mantle boundary.

They compressed tiny pieces of rock, the size of a speck of dust and ten times thinner than a human hair, between the tips of two conical diamonds to a pressure of more than one million bar. A laser beam then heated these samples to temperatures between 3000 and 4000 degrees Celsius, which scientists believe is representative of the 200km-thick core-mantle boundary. The samples are extremely small compared to the natural processes occurring in the Earth.

However, the melting processes are very well reproduced experimentally. Therefore, the observations can be confidently transferred from micron scale in the experiments to kilometre scale in the deep mantle.

Beams of X-rays at the ESRF, focused to a diameter of one 1000th of a millimetre, were used to map these samples and identify where the solid rock had melted. “Obviously, these tiny samples produce weak interaction signals, and this is why it is important to have the most brilliant X-ray beams for this type of experiments, says Mohammed Mezouar, the scientist responsible for the high-pressure beamline ID27 at the ESRF.

Once regions with molten rock had been identified, another X-ray technique was used at the ESRF to compare the chemical compositions of previously molten and solid parts. “It is the iron content which is decisive for the density of molten rock at the core-mantle boundary. Its accurate knowledge allowed us to determine that molten rock under these conditions is actually lighter than solid,” says Denis Andrault.

Gravity makes the light liquid rock from a hotspot move slowly upwards like a bubble in water until it reaches the surface where the magma plume will form a volcano. The hotspots of liquid occur in the relatively thin boundary region between the solid lower mantle and the liquid outer core of the Earth where the temperature rises over a distance of just 200 kilometres from 3000 to 4000 degrees. This steep rise is caused by the vicinity of the much hotter core and induces a partial melting of the rocks.

The results of the experiment are also of great significance for the understanding of the early history of the Earth, as they provide an explanation why many chemical elements playing a key role in our daily life gradually accumulated from the Earth’s inside to its thin crust, close to the surface.

“We know less about the Earth’s mantle than about the surface of Mars. It is impossible to drill a hole of even 100 kilometres into the Earth, so we have to recreate it in the laboratory. This is important knowledge, because active hot spot volcanoes like those in Iceland can be dangerous and disruptive for the daily lives of people far away”, concludes Denis Andrault.

Related Links
European Synchrotron Radiation Facility
Bringing Order To A World Of Disasters
When the Earth Quakes
A world of storm and tempest

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Extreme Temperatures/ Weather / Drought

 

Excessive Heat Warning

 

KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO
OMAHA/VALLEY NE
DES MOINES IA
HASTINGS NE
TOPEKA KS
ST LOUIS MO
PADUCAH KY

Heat Advisory

 

FORT WORTH TX
OMAHA/VALLEY NE
HASTINGS NE
MEMPHIS TN
SPRINGFIELD MO
NORMAN OK
TULSA OK
GOODLAND KS
SIOUX FALLS SD
NORTH PLATTE NE
WICHITA KS
ST LOUIS MO

Red Flag Warning

FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE

 

MEDFORD OR
BOISE ID
POCATELLO ID

Fire Weather Watch

 

BOISE ID

 

 

 

21.07.2012

Extreme Weather

China

Capital City, Beijing

 

 

Extreme Weather in China on Saturday, 21 July, 2012 at 17:59 (05:59 PM) UTC.

Description

At least 12 people died during torrential rainstorms which battered much of northern and southwestern China from Friday night to Saturday, state media reported. In Beijing, strong winds blew off rooftops killing two people and injuring six others, the Beijing Emergency Medical Center reported. Heavy rain flooded roads and caused 223 flights to be cancelled in the capital, as the Beijing Meteorological Bureau issued its second-highest rainstorm alert for the first time since 2005. The report said Beijing received 95 mm of precipitation on average as of 7:00 pm (1100 GMT), and heavy rainfall is expected to last until Sunday morning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

20.07.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

Portugal

Atlantic Ocean – North, [Island of Madeira ]

 

 

Forest / Wild Fire in Portugal on Thursday, 19 July, 2012 at 19:09 (07:09 PM) UTC.

Back

Updated:	Friday, 20 July, 2012 at 02:51 UTC
Description
The Interior Ministry sent a military transport plane with 83 firefighters to Madeira, where the flames briefly threatened the outskirts of the region’s capital and popular tourist destination Funchal on Wednesday night. Interior Minister Miguel Macedo also flew to Madeira to coordinate the efforts.

 

 

21.07.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Missouri, [Near to Ash Grove]

 

 

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Friday, 20 July, 2012 at 18:11 (06:11 PM) UTC.

Description

Firefighters from several departments started fighting a fast-spreading brush fire east of Ash Grove near U.S. 160 at Farm Road 43. Firefighters were dispatched at about 9 a.m. to fight a brush fire that was originally reported to be two acres in size. Crews from Everton, Bois D’Arc, Willard, Ash Grove and Walnut Grove worked to prevent the fire from spreading to a field with a machine shed in it. The fire spread to the outer edge of U.S. 160 close to at least one home. It wasn’t the peace and quiet for sleeping Stan Pyle planned on. “I work night shift at French’s, and I actually got home and got to bed. My wife just woke me up and said there’s a fire across the street, and my son and I hook up all the garden hoses we had,” Pyle says. Ash Grove and Walnut Grove firefighters were the first on the scene. “We had approximately two acres when we first got here, but the winds pushed it pretty fast on us,” says Ash Grove Fire Chief Anthony Monnig.

 

21.07.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Washington, [Near to Horseshoe Bend]

 

 

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Friday, 20 July, 2012 at 11:03 (11:03 AM) UTC.

Description

Firefighters contained a brush fire that threatened homes south of Horseshoe Bend Thursday afternoon. Officials tell us that about 10 to 20 homes on Horseshoe Bend Hill were evacuated. A spokesperson for the Bureau of Land Management said a lot of resources were put on the Summit Fire to keep it from spreading and destroying homes. Fire departments from Horseshoe Bend, Eagle and the BLM responded. Six fire engines, five structure protection units, two water tenders, one bulldozer, two helicopters and one plane were called to the scene. Windy conditions and dry brush fueled the fire, which burned around 100 acres. One outbuilding was lost in the fire. The fire was reported around 2:20 p.m. “When you do get a grass fire that burns hot and fast, those homes are usually in the direct path of that,” said Nevil Humphreys of the Eagle Fire Department. The fire burned to within about a quarter-mile of Highway 55, but the road remained open to traffic. Boise County Sheriff’s deputies went door-to-door urging residents near the fire to evacuate their homes. The Kreitzer family lives in one of the homes that was evacuated. They were all out of the house when the fire started. Ingrid Kreitzer said their neighbor alerted them to the fire. “He called and he said, ‘You know, I think you probably should come up. It looks like it might be coming closer. You might just want to come down and hose anything in case it jumps over,'” Kreitzer said. She said with all the recent fires, her family had been creating a fire plan in case of the wildfire. Crews on the scene told us homes they saw had good defensible space, helping to keep them safe. “We were able to get in there, limb up some brush and what not,” said Paul Story, a firefighter who came in with his crew from Salt Lake to help with recent fires. “It was very minimal effort on our part, and so the homeowner did a good job in that regard.” Humphreys said the fire is human-caused and remains under investigation. No homes were destroyed in the fire.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Worst drought in five decades ravages US

by Staff Writers
Washington (AFP)

Weather forecasters see no end in sight to the worst US drought in five decades, a blistering heatwave that has wilted crops across America’s crucial breadbasket and sent grain prices soaring.

Farmers are mulling cutting down crops and thinning livestock herds as meteorologists said the country’s central breadbasket, the world’s largest source of both soybeans and corn, faces another month of stifling, rainless heat.

Top US agriculture official Tom Vilsack announced Wednesday he was designating 39 more counties in eight states as “natural disaster areas,” making farmers there eligible for low-cost emergency loans. Nearly 1,300 counties across 29 states have been designated natural disaster areas this year.

Vilsack also met with President Barack Obama Wednesday to review options to deal with the drought.

Meanwhile, a World Bank official said they were watching to see how the drought could impact global food supplies, after sharp surges in food prices in 2008 and 2010 dealt harsh blows to poor, food-importing nations.

“While it’s too early to be overly concerned, the Bank is monitoring the situation closely for potential impacts on our clients,” said Marc Sadler, team leader for the World Bank’s Agricultural Finance and Risk Management Unit.

“Global stocks in most of the tradable grains are lower now than they have been historically… we don’t have as much in the larder as we used to.”

More than 60 percent of the continental United States has been under drought and extreme heat conditions since June, according to Mark Svoboda of the National Drought Mitigation Center in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Temperatures have topped 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) for days in a row in many places, with the central plains running three to four degrees Fahrenheit above normal this month.

Svoboda said the drought was as tough as the worst in the 1930s and 1950s, although those benchmarks were multi-season, multi-year disasters while the current situation only dates to May.

But, he pointed out, the timing of the lack of rain and the heat has been particularly devastating, coming just at the peak of the growing season with the epicenter the central US farm belt east of the Rocky Mountains all the way to the Atlantic coast.

It has hit corn, soybeans, and crops like hay needed to feed cattle especially hard.

Farmers are now looking at cutting their losses — chopping down fields of half-mature, ear-less corn to feed the stalks to cattle.

“The jury is still a little bit out on it. We are in that process right now, making that decision,” said Steve Foglesong, who raises cattle and farms corn in Astoria, Illinois.

“From the road the corn looks green, but there are no ears on it.”

Foglesong said the next two weeks will be crucial, but weather forecasters were not encouraging.

“The worst of the drought is right in the middle of the nation, the corn belt. It’s just been bone dry,” said Carl Erickson, a meteorologist at Accuweather.

“Unfortunately across the central plains, the Mississippi valley, it looks like the overall pattern will remain in place for the rest of the month and into August,” he said.

“Once you get into a pattern like this, it almost feeds on itself.”

Joseph Glauber, chief economist for the Department of Agriculture, said their surveys show that 38 percent of the corn crop, and 30 percent of the soybean crop, are considered in “poor” or “extremely poor” condition.

That compares to 9 percent and 8 percent respectively this time last year.

In the last big drought, in 1988, corn yields fell by more than 20 percent, Glauber noted. Although the department will wait until early August before reaching a conclusion about the crops, he said: “It’s evolving as we speak. Every week these crop conditions have gotten worse.”

Corn prices have soared by 50 percent since May, while the rate for soybeans, which develop later than corn and might be able to bear up under another few weeks of rainless conditions, has surged 26 percent.

Ironically, in a way, beef and other meat prices have fallen. Glauber said some ranchers facing higher feed prices appear to be reducing their herds, pushing livestock into the market.

Foglesong said that in addition, from what he can tell the heat wave has been so intense around so much of the country that consumers have curtailed their summer barbecues, also hitting demand for steaks, ribs and other products.

Over the longer term, Glauber said, the herd reductions will mean tighter supplies and higher prices for meat on top of the grains.

Svoboda said that the crops aren’t the only problem. The drought has already fed devastating wildfires in the west, and if it keeps on, he predicts cities will start running into limits on their water supplies, which could lead to water use controls.

Related Links
Climate Science News – Modeling, Mitigation Adaptation

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Storms / Flooding / Landslides

 

Active tropical storm system(s)
Name of storm system	Location	Formed	Last update	Last category	Course	Wind Speed	Gust	Wave	Source	Details
09W	Pacific Ocean	21.07.2012	21.07.2012	Tropical Depression	265 °	56 km/h	74 km/h	4.57 m	JTWC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 1 Storm name: Vicente (09W) Area: Pacific Ocean Start up location: N 19° 30.000, E 116° 36.000 Start up: 21st July 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 71.98 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 22nd Jul 2012 05:07:48 N 19° 24.000, E 115° 30.000 19 83 102 Tropical Storm 290 ° 10 JTWC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 23rd Jul 2012 12:00:00 N 20° 42.000, E 110° 30.000 Tropical Storm 93 120 JTWC 23rd Jul 2012 00:00:00 N 20° 30.000, E 112° 0.000 Tropical Storm 83 102 JTWC 24th Jul 2012 12:00:00 N 20° 54.000, E 108° 6.000 Tropical Storm 93 120 JTWC 25th Jul 2012 12:00:00 N 21° 24.000, E 106° 6.000 Tropical Storm 65 83 JTWC 26th Jul 2012 12:00:00 N 22° 6.000, E 104° 12.000 Tropical Depression 37 56 JTWC

 

 

21.07.2012

Tropical Storm

North Korea

MultiProvinces, [Provinces of Kangwon, North Gyeongsang and South Hwanghae]

 

 

Tropical Storm in North Korea on Saturday, 21 July, 2012 at 03:31 (03:31 AM) UTC.

Description

Tropical storm Khanun destroyed scores of houses, buildings and transportation infrastructure in southern parts of North Korea this week, killing at least seven people in the reclusive state, state-run media reported on Friday. It weakened quickly over North Korea before Khanun’s remnants dissipated over China. The state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Friday that flooding triggered by Khanun caused significant damage and casualties in the southern regions of North Korea. It said at least seven people were killed in Kangwon Province, but few other details about casualties were released. “Many hectares of farmland were inundated in Kangwon province and some dwelling houses, public buildings, railways, roads, bridges, breakwaters, electric supply and communication networks were destroyed,” KCNA said in its report, adding that some areas saw up to 200 millimeters (7.8 inches) of rain. “The water supply system was paralyzed in Wonsan and Munchon cities, suspending the provision of drinking water to citizens.” In South Hwanghae province, several houses were destroyed in Haeju City and Jaeryong County while large areas of cropland were submerged in Unchon County. The report did not say whether there were casualties in South Hwanghae province, or in any other regions of North Korea. In South Korea, Khanun also caused flooding, power outages, and affected major transportation systems. One fatality was reported in North Gyeongsang province when the wall of a home collapsed, officials said.

 

21.07.2012

Flash Flood

USA

State of North Carolina, Charlotte

 

 

 

Flash Flood in USA on Saturday, 21 July, 2012 at 03:20 (03:20 AM) UTC.

Description

A North Carolina mall was evacuated Friday when a thunderstorm that produced heavy rain caused the ceiling to collapse, officials said. The ceiling at SouthPark collapsed around 5 p.m., said Charlotte Fire Department Capt. Rob Brisley. He said by the time firefighters were dispatched to the mall, an evacuation was already under way. Brisley said firefighters also pulled the alarm systems in the mall to help with the evacuation, which he described as orderly. No injuries were reported. Brisley said firefighters were focusing on making sure the building was safe, and that the water damage could be addressed by mall workers. Mall personnel couldn’t be reached for additional comment Friday afternoon. It’s estimated that up to 3 inches of rain fell on south Charlotte in approximately 45 minutes, said Rodney Hinson, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service office in Greer, S.C. Hinson said additional rain was likely to pass over Charlotte Friday night.

 

 

Flood Warning

 

LAKE CHARLES LA
TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL

 

 

 

21.07.2012

Landslide

Austria

Province of Styria, Thoerl

 

 

Landslide in Austria on Saturday, 21 July, 2012 at 16:54 (04:54 PM) UTC.

Description

Mudslides unleashed by torrential rains killed one man, wrecked houses and cut off villages in the Austrian province of Styria, authorities said on Saturday. Police in the southeastern province said they had found the body of a 47-year-old local man swept away by a mudslide on Friday night in the town of Thoerl. Several small communities near Liezen were stranded by blocked roads. Austrian broadcaster ORF said helicopters evacuated around 20 people from the area after mudslides up to 10 meters (30 feet) high made travel by road impossible. A further 360 people had to leave their homes in the town of Sankt Lorenzen for fear of more slides given unrelenting rainfall, authorities said.

 

 

 

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Epidemic Hazards / Diseases

 

 

20.07.2012

Epidemic

Sierra Leone

Eastern Province, [Kenema District]

 

Epidemic in Sierra Leone on Friday, 20 July, 2012 at 18:17 (06:17 PM) UTC.

Description
Director of Disease Prevention and Control at the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Dr. Amara Jambai, has yesterday disclosed that the outbreak of Lassa fever in Kenema district. Lassa fever is a viral disease which is carried by rats. It is spread from infected rodents to humans through direct contact with urine and droppings of an infected rat. Speaking to journalists at the weekly press briefing at the Ministry of Information and Communications, Dr. Jambai said the outbreak, which started in three districts but has extended to other parts of the country, should be a serious concern to the government and people of Sierra Leone.
Biohazard name:	Lassa Fever Outbreak
Biohazard level:	4/4 Hazardous
Biohazard desc.:	Viruses and bacteria that cause severe to fatal disease in humans, and for which vaccines or other treatments are not available, such as Bolivian and Argentine hemorrhagic fevers, H5N1(bird flu), Dengue hemorrhagic fever, Marburg virus, Ebola virus, hantaviruses, Lassa fever, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, and other hemorrhagic or unidentified diseases. When dealing with biological hazards at this level the use of a Hazmat suit and a self-contained oxygen supply is mandatory. The entrance and exit of a Level Four biolab will contain multiple showers, a vacuum room, an ultraviolet light room, autonomous detection system, and other safety precautions designed to destroy all traces of the biohazard. Multiple airlocks are employed and are electronically secured to prevent both doors opening at the same time. All air and water service going to and coming from a Biosafety Level 4 (P4) lab will undergo similar decontamination procedures to eliminate the possibility of an accidental release.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

 

21.07.2012

Epidemic

Sierra Leone

Northern Province, [Port Loko, Kambia, Pujehun and Kailahun districts]

 

 

Epidemic in Sierra Leone on Friday, 20 July, 2012 at 18:20 (06:20 PM) UTC.

Description
Director of Disease Prevention and Control at the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Dr. Amara Jambai, has yesterday disclosed that the outbreak of cholera in Port Loko, Kambia, Pujehun and Kailahun districts and the Western Area has claimed 62 lives so far. Speaking to journalists at the weekly press briefing at the Ministry of Information and Communications, Dr. Jambai said the outbreak, which started in three districts but has extended to other parts of the country, should be a serious concern to the government and people of Sierra Leone. Dr. Jambai explained adding that 26 cholera deaths have been reported in Kambia, 22 in Port Loko, nine in Pujehun and another nine in the Western Area which sum up to 62 cholera cases reported since January to date. “We have set up cholera treatment units at Macaulay Street and Connaught hospital with three more to follow. Also, we have provided technical assistance, drugs and rapid diagnostic test kits at various locations across the country,” he added to highlight measures his department has put in place to curtail the situation. He however warned that despite efforts by the health ministry to cub the outburst, people should be more careful about their food and water sources and should endeavour to always keep their environment clean.
Biohazard name:	Cholera Outbreak
Biohazard level:	2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

 

 

21.07.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Philippines

Davao Region (Region XI), Davao City

 

 

Epidemic Hazard in Philippines on Friday, 20 July, 2012 at 08:22 (08:22 AM) UTC.

Description
A one-year-old boy from Davao City has been found positive for the Enterovirus-71 (EV-71), the mysterious illness that killed dozens of children in Cambodia. Health Secretary Enrique Ona said the screening and confirmatory tests done at the Research Institute of Tropical Medicine (RITM) revealed that of the eight suspected Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease (HFMD) patients, one was tested positive of the virus similar to the ones in Cambodia. Ona clarified, however, that the boy has no history of travel outside the country. “The virus is similar to Cambodia but this case is the mild one,” Ona told reporters in a press conference Friday. EV-71 causes diarrhea; rashes; and hand, foot and mouth disease; and is sometimes associated with severe central neurological disease. The virus, which was earlier tagged as a “mystery disease” in Cambodia, caused the deaths of 52 children there. Based on the details of the case, the official said the boy had developed fever and rashes on his hands, soles of feet, mouth and buttocks last July 6. He was brought for consultation at a local health facility but was subsequently sent home and has since recovered very well, Ona said. Although the victim’s family members have no sickness, they are still being closely monitored for possible manifestation of symptoms such as high fever, chest and muscle pain, sore throat and headache, Ona said. Meantime, two HFMD patients were found negative of human Enterovirus while the five others will be further tested for Coxsackie A16, which is also associated with HFMD, the health official said. The health official said there is no vaccine on EV-71 yet, so the “approach is to monitor the cases.” Ona, however, reiterated that the incident should not come as a surprise to the public since EV-71 is not new to the Philippines. “This virus could have been here all along… Maybe, this specific strain has not been examined before, therefore, it has not been identified in the past,” Ona said. The DOH had already related in the past that there have been cases of human Enterovirus in the country but that they are not the fatal ones like those found in Cambodia. Meanwhile, the health department strongly urged the public to always maintain personal hygiene and cleanliness as this would be the best way against the virus. “Prevention relies on individual personal hygiene and hand washing; shared toys or teaching tools in daycare should be cleaned, washed and disinfected as they easily become contaminated,” said Ona.
Biohazard name:	Enterovirus-71 (EV-71)
Biohazard level:	3/4 Hight
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that can cause severe to fatal disease in humans, but for which vaccines or other treatments exist, such as anthrax, West Nile virus, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, SARS virus, variola virus (smallpox), tuberculosis, typhus, Rift Valley fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, yellow fever, and malaria. Among parasites Plasmodium falciparum, which causes Malaria, and Trypanosoma cruzi, which causes trypanosomiasis, also come under this level.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

 

 

 

 

 

 

Botanical compound could prove crucial to healing influenza

by Staff Writers
Blacksburg VA (SPX)

Illustration only.

Building on previous work with the botanical abscisic acida, researchers in the Nutritional Immunology and Molecular Medicine Laboratory (NIMML) have discovered that abscisic acid has anti-inflammatory effects in the lungs as well as in the gut. The results will be published in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry.

“While the immune effects of abscisic acid are well understood in the gut, less was known about its effects in the respiratory tract. We’ve shown definitively that not only does abscisic acid ameliorate disease activity and lung inflammatory pathology, it also aids recovery and survival in influenza-infected mice,” said Raquel Hontecillas, Ph.D., study leader, assistant professor of immunology at Virginia Bioinformatics Institute, and co-director of NIMML.

Influenza accounts for anywhere from 3,000 to 49,000 deaths per year in the United States alone, according to the Centers for Disease Control. It is difficult to treat if not caught immediately; antivirals usually become ineffective after the virus incubation period has passed and resistance to antiviral drugs poses a serious public health problem in the face of outbreaks.

Abscisic acid, however, has been shown to be most effective at about seven to ten days into the infection, targeting the immune response rather than the virus itself, which many researchers feel is a safer way to reduce flu-associated fatalities.

“Most drugs for respiratory infections target the virus itself, rather than the inflammatory responses caused by the virus. Abscisic acid activates peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma, a receptor that aids in reducing inflammation, through a newly identified pathwaya but it does so without the side effects of other agonists like thiazolidinediones, which are known to have strong adverse side effects.

The development of complementary and alternative Medicine approaches that modulate the host response has great promise in decreasing respiratory damage caused by influenza or other respiratory pathogens,” said Josep Bassaganya-Riera, Ph.D., director of NIMML and professor of nutritional immunology at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute.

From this and previous research, it’s clear that abscisic acid could yield a novel new way to combat inflammatory disease, both in the gut and the respiratory tract. By using host-targeted strategies to mediate disease, alternate pathways can be established to activate immune responses without the deadly side effects of many drugs currently on the market.

Related Links
Virginia Tech
Epidemics on Earth – Bird Flu, HIV/AIDS, Ebola

 

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Solar Activity

2MIN News July 21, 2012: Raining Fire, Ionic Earth, Quake Watch

Published on Jul 21, 2012 by Suspicious0bservers

TODAYS LINKS
Hot June: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/07/120720204929.htm
No French Fracking: http://phys.org/news/2012-07-france-shale-gas-environment-minister.html

REPEAT LINKS
Spaceweather: http://spaceweather.com/ [Look on the left at the X-ray Flux and Solar Wind Speed/Density]

HAARP: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/haarp/data.html [Click online data, and have a little fun]

SDO: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/ [Place to find Solar Images and Videos – as seen from earth]

SOHO: http://sohodata.nascom.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/soho_movie_theater [SOHO; Lasco and EIT – as seen from earth]

Stereo: http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/images [Stereo; Cor, EUVI, HI – as seen from the side]

SunAEON:http://www.sunaeon.com/#/solarsystem/ [Just click it… trust me]

SOLARIMG: http://solarimg.org/artis/ [All purpose data viewing site]

iSWA: http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov/iswa/iSWA.html [Free Application; for advanced sun watchers]

NOAA ENLIL SPIRAL: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/wsa-enlil/cme-based/ [CME Evolution]

NOAA Bouys: http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/

RSOE: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php [That cool alert map I use]

JAPAN Radiation Map: http://jciv.iidj.net/map/

LISS: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/heliplots_gsn.php

Gamma Ray Bursts: http://grb.sonoma.edu/ [Really? You can’t figure out what this one is for?]

BARTOL Cosmic Rays: http://neutronm.bartol.udel.edu//spaceweather/welcome.html [Top left box, look for BIG blue circles]

TORCON: http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-torcon-index [Tornado Forecast for the day]

GOES Weather: http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/goes/ [Clouds over America]

INTELLICAST: http://www.intellicast.com/ [Weather site used by many youtubers]

NASA News: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/

PHYSORG: http://phys.org/ [GREAT News Site!]

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Space

 

 

Earth approaching objects (objects that are known in the next 30 days)
Object Name	Apporach Date	Left	AU Distance	LD Distance	Estimated Diameter*	Relative Velocity
153958 (2002 AM31)	22nd July 2012	0 day(s)	0.0351	13.7	630 m – 1.4 km	9.55 km/s	34380 km/h
(2011 CA7)	23rd July 2012	1 day(s)	0.1492	58.1	2.3 m – 5.1 m	5.43 km/s	19548 km/h
(2012 BB124)	24th July 2012	2 day(s)	0.1610	62.7	170 m – 380 m	8.78 km/s	31608 km/h
(2009 PC)	28th July 2012	6 day(s)	0.1772	68.9	61 m – 140 m	7.34 km/s	26424 km/h
217013 (2001 AA50)	31st July 2012	9 day(s)	0.1355	52.7	580 m – 1.3 km	22.15 km/s	79740 km/h
(2012 DS30)	02nd August 2012	11 day(s)	0.1224	47.6	18 m – 39 m	5.39 km/s	19404 km/h
(2000 RN77)	03rd August 2012	12 day(s)	0.1955	76.1	410 m – 920 m	9.87 km/s	35532 km/h
(2004 SB56)	04th August 2012	13 day(s)	0.1393	54.2	380 m – 840 m	13.72 km/s	49392 km/h
(2000 SD8)	04th August 2012	13 day(s)	0.1675	65.2	180 m – 400 m	5.82 km/s	20952 km/h
(2006 EC)	06th August 2012	15 day(s)	0.0932	36.3	13 m – 28 m	6.13 km/s	22068 km/h
(2006 MV1)	07th August 2012	16 day(s)	0.0612	23.8	12 m – 28 m	4.79 km/s	17244 km/h
(2005 RK3)	08th August 2012	17 day(s)	0.1843	71.7	52 m – 120 m	8.27 km/s	29772 km/h
(2009 BW2)	09th August 2012	18 day(s)	0.0337	13.1	25 m – 56 m	5.27 km/s	18972 km/h
277475 (2005 WK4)	09th August 2012	18 day(s)	0.1283	49.9	260 m – 580 m	6.18 km/s	22248 km/h
(2004 SC56)	09th August 2012	18 day(s)	0.0811	31.6	74 m – 170 m	10.57 km/s	38052 km/h
(2008 AF4)	10th August 2012	19 day(s)	0.1936	75.3	310 m – 690 m	16.05 km/s	57780 km/h
37655 Illapa	12th August 2012	21 day(s)	0.0951	37.0	770 m – 1.7 km	28.73 km/s	103428 km/h
(2012 HS15)	14th August 2012	23 day(s)	0.1803	70.2	220 m – 490 m	11.54 km/s	41544 km/h
4581 Asclepius	16th August 2012	25 day(s)	0.1079	42.0	220 m – 490 m	13.48 km/s	48528 km/h
(2008 TC4)	18th August 2012	27 day(s)	0.1937	75.4	140 m – 300 m	17.34 km/s	62424 km/h
(2006 CV)	20th August 2012	29 day(s)	0.1744	67.9	290 m – 640 m	13.24 km/s	47664 km/h
(2012 EC)	20th August 2012	29 day(s)	0.0815	31.7	56 m – 130 m	5.57 km/s	20052 km/h
1 AU = ~150 million kilometers,1 LD = Lunar Distance = ~384,000 kilometers Source: NASA-NEO

 

 

 

 

 

Shockwaves Could Crinkle Space-Time Creating A New Kind Of Singularity 

7

MessageToEagle.com – Mathematicians have discovered a new way to crinkle up the fabric of space-time, at least in theory.

“We show that space-time cannot be locally flat at a point where two shock waves collide,” said Blake Temple, professor of mathematics at UC Davis.

“This is a new kind of singularity in general relativity.”

The results are reported in two papers by Temple with graduate students Moritz Reintjes and Zeke Vogler, respectively, both published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society A.

Einstein’s theory of general relativity explains gravity as a curvature in space-time. But the theory starts from the assumption that any local patch of space-time looks flat, Temple said.

A singularity is a patch of space-time that cannot be made to look flat in any coordinate system, Temple said. One example of a singularity is inside a black hole, where the curvature of space becomes extreme.

Temple and his collaborators study the mathematics of how shockwaves in a perfect fluid can affect the curvature of space-time in general relativity.

In earlier work, Temple and collaborator Joel Smoller, the Lamberto Cesari professor of mathematics at the University of Michigan, produced a model for the biggest shockwave of all, created from the Big Bang when the universe burst into existence.

A shockwave creates an abrupt change, or discontinuity, in the pressure and density of a fluid, and this creates a jump in the curvature.But it has been known since the 1960s that the jump in curvature created by a single shock wave is not enough to rule out the locally flat nature of space-time. Vogler’s doctoral work used mathematics to simulate two shockwaves colliding, while Reintjes followed up with an analysis of the equations that describe what happens when shockwaves cross. He found this created a new type of singularity, which he dubbed a “regularity singularity.”

What is surprising is that something as mild as interacting waves could create something as extreme as a space-time singularity, Temple said.

Illustration of twisted space-time around Earth. Image credit: NASA

Temple and his colleagues are investigating whether the steep gradients in the space-time fabric at a regularity singularity could create any effects that are measurable in the real world.

For example, they wonder whether they might produce gravity waves, Temple said. General relativity predicts that these are produced, for example, by the collision of massive objects like black holes, but they have not yet been observed in nature. Regularity singularities could also be formed within stars as shockwaves pass within them, the researchers theorize.

MessageToEagle.com via University of California

See also:
Supercomputer Solves The Space-Time Dimensionality Riddle

 

*************************************************************************************************************

Biological  Hazards / Wildlife

 

 

21.07.2012

Biological Hazard

Ireland

Multiple areas, [Between north Galway and north Donegal]

 

 

Biological Hazard in Ireland on Friday, 20 July, 2012 at 03:26 (03:26 AM) UTC.

Description
The algal bloom identified off the west coast is continuing to kill fish and shellfish in significant concentrations from north Galway to north Donegal. Up to 80 per cent of stock has been affected on some oyster farms in Donegal, and it is also having a negative impact on sea angling tourism, the Marine Institute has confirmed. The bloom is caused by Karenia mikimotoi, a phytoplankton of the dinoflagellate group which caused a red tide in 2005 that killed wild fish and shellfish. Samples of this new bloom, first detected in May, are being collected for Marine Institute monitoring by the Irish Coast Guard search and rescue helicopters. Marine Institute phytoplankton expert Joe Silke said the bloom was naturally occurring. It was not associated with pollution but contained a “toxic irritant” that damaged gills of shellfish, fish and invertebrates. Irish Farmers’ Association fish farm section chief executive Richie Flynn said if there was a “properly functioning” licensing system in place, farmers could take measures to move stock when such blooms occurred.
Biohazard name:	Red Tide
Biohazard level:	0/4 —
Biohazard desc.:	This does not included biological hazard category.
Symptoms:
Status:

 

 

 

 

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Articles of Interest

 

 

Odd Phenomenon Of The Red Rocks –
Why Did All The Stones Suddenly Change Color?

8

MessageToEagle.com – Some years ago, back in, 2005, over the slopes of Mount Gongga, China all rocks suddenly turned red.

In time, the entire region became known the “Red-Stone-Valley” and today it is a spectacular local tourist attraction.

For many years, scientists have wondered what caused the stones to unexpectedly change color?

Today, scientists can finally offer an explanation what is behind this strange phenomenon.

According to Guoxiang Liu of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Wuhan, Hubei, China, and his colleagues, the rocks became red as a result of a newly discovered variety of the algae Trentepohlia jolithus that suddenly expanded.

The stones suddenly changed color. Image credit: Guoxiang Liu

In their research paper, Liu and his colleagues write that ” Trentepohlia is a genus of subaerial green algae which is widespread in tropical, subtropical, and also temperate regions with humid climates”.The scientists state that the reason the algae Trentepohlia jolithus started to expand is due to global warming as well as various human activities. “This new variety only grows on the native rock, both global warming and human activity have provided massive areas of suitable substrata: the rocks surfaces of the Yajiageng river valley floodplain were re-exposed because of heavy debris flows in the summer of 2005; plus human activities such as tourism and road-building have also created a lot of exposed rock!” Liu and his team write.

Red-Stone-Valley and the stones covered with Trentepohlia-carpets.

2A-2B: Red-stone Valley and the Yajiageng River; 2C: Red Trentepohlia-carpet in a cold winter; 2D: Trentepohlia growing on stone walls near the road; 2E: Red-Stone-Valley and Yajiageng River; 2F-2G: Red-Stone-Valley in foggy conditions; 2H: Tibetan Ni-ma stack with Trentepohlia growing on it. 2I: Red-Stone-Valley in winter. Image credit: PLoS One

Microscopic view of Trentepohlia jolithus. Image credit: PLoS One

Today, most of the rocks are covered with deep red colored algal carpets in the Yajiageng river valley.

@ MessageToEagle.com

See also:
Amazing Alien Landscape On Earth – Dallol Volcano

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[In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit, for research and/or educational purposes. This constitutes ‘FAIR USE’ of any such copyrighted material.]

Earth Watch Report – Thursday July 19th, 2012

Earthquakes

RSOE EDIS

Date/Time (UTC)	Magnitude	Area	Country	State/Prov./Gov.	Location	Risk			Source	Details
19.07.2012 10:20:48	2.3	North America	United States	California	Rancho Tehama Reserve				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 10:05:46	3.6	North America	United States	California	Three Rocks				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 10:00:37	3.5	Europe	Greece	North Aegean	Atsiki				EMSC
19.07.2012 10:01:02	5.5	Asia	Afghanistan	Badakhshan	Ashkasham				EMSC
19.07.2012 09:56:19	5.5	Asia	Afghanistan	Badakhshan	Ashkasham				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 09:50:48	2.6	North America	United States	Alaska	Valdez				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 09:36:01	2.8	North America	United States	Alaska	McCarthy				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 10:01:28	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Yatagan				EMSC
19.07.2012 08:35:54	4.1	Caribbean	Puerto Rico	Culebra	Culebra				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 10:01:53	4.0	Caribbean Sea	Puerto Rico	Culebra	Culebra				EMSC
19.07.2012 08:50:29	4.0	Caribbean	Puerto Rico	Culebra	Culebra				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 08:55:39	2.8	South-America	Argentina	San Juan	Calingasta				EMSC
19.07.2012 08:36:18	4.9	Indonesian archipelago	Papua New Guinea	West New Britain	Kandrian				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 08:55:59	4.9	Indonesian Archipelago	Papua New Guinea	West New Britain	Kandrian				EMSC
19.07.2012 08:56:30	2.3	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Ula				EMSC
19.07.2012 08:57:10	2.2	Asia	Turkey	Bal?kesir	Sindirgi				EMSC
19.07.2012 08:57:30	2.9	South-America	Bolivia	Potosí	Villa Alota				EMSC
19.07.2012 07:25:37	2.0	North America	United States	California	Shandon				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 08:57:50	3.8	Europe	Greece	Crete	Chora Sfakion				EMSC
19.07.2012 08:58:10	2.8	Europe	Greece	South Aegean	Emporeio				EMSC
19.07.2012 07:40:33	5.4	Atlantic Ocean	South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands		Grytviken				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 07:55:24	5.6	Atlantic Ocean – North	South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands		Grytviken				EMSC
19.07.2012 07:55:45	2.0	Asia	Turkey	Kütahya	Saphane				EMSC
19.07.2012 07:56:03	4.6	Indonesian Archipelago	Papua New Guinea	East Sepik	Ambunti				EMSC
19.07.2012 07:30:38	4.6	Indonesian archipelago	Papua New Guinea	East Sepik	Ambunti				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 08:58:31	2.2	Europe	Greece	West Macedonia	Armenokhorion				EMSC
19.07.2012 06:55:18	2.8	Asia	Turkey	Bal?kesir	Sindirgi				EMSC
19.07.2012 05:50:50	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Kütahya	Simav				EMSC
19.07.2012 06:55:47	3.1	Europe	Russia	Chechnya	Avtury				EMSC
19.07.2012 05:51:17	2.5	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	Calama				EMSC
19.07.2012 05:52:01	2.7	Middle-East	Iraq	Dah?k	Zakhu				EMSC
19.07.2012 08:16:00	3.5	Caribbean	Puerto Rico	Cabo Rojo	Puerto Real				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 05:52:25	2.7	Asia	Turkey	Van	Yuvacik				EMSC
19.07.2012 05:06:56	2.4	North America	United States	California	Mountain Center				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 05:52:48	3.1	Middle-East	Iraq	Dah?k	Sinah				EMSC
19.07.2012 05:53:11	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Ula				EMSC
19.07.2012 04:45:24	2.3	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	San Prospero				EMSC
19.07.2012 04:45:41	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Bodrum				EMSC
19.07.2012 05:53:33	4.4	South-America	Chile	Atacama	Diego de Almagro				EMSC
19.07.2012 03:45:20	2.6	Europe	Greece	Central Macedonia	Ierissos				EMSC
19.07.2012 03:20:55	2.5	Caribbean	Puerto Rico	Guayama	Guayama				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 02:55:29	2.6	North America	United States	Alaska	Anchor Point				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 04:45:56	2.2	Asia	Turkey	Bitlis	Sagirkaya				EMSC
19.07.2012 04:46:16	2.2	Asia	Turkey	Hatay	Gozene				EMSC
19.07.2012 02:35:25	2.7	Europe	Greece	Ionian Islands	Limni Keriou				EMSC
19.07.2012 02:35:43	2.6	Europe	Poland	Lower Silesian Voivodeship	Rakow				EMSC
19.07.2012 01:30:26	4.5	South-America	Chile	Atacama	Diego de Almagro				EMSC
19.07.2012 00:35:33	4.5	South America	Chile	Atacama	Diego de Almagro				USGS-RSOE
19.07.2012 00:30:26	2.7	Europe	Greece	Attica	Agia Pelagia				EMSC
19.07.2012 00:30:52	3.3	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	Taltal				EMSC

**********************************************************************************************************

Volcanic Activity

Crater area access to Rincón de la Vieja Volcano closed to visitors

By Tico Times

Volcanic activity prompts officials to partially restrict access in the national park.

Authorities declared a green (preventive) alert on Rincón de la Vieja volcano in May. Courtesy of National Seismological Network

Following an increase in its volcanic activity, visits to the crater of Rincón de la Vieja Volcano, in the northwestern province of Guanacaste, are prohibited until further notice.

Volcanologist Raúl Mora, from the National Seismological Network, explained that the Rincón de la Vieja Volcano, “while not the most active in the country, is a volcano in full activity, which prompted authorities to take preventive measures.”

Mora said restricted access to the crater does not affect public access to the national park of the same name, one of northwestern Costa Rica’s main attractions.

Rincón de la Vieja and Turrialba are the country’s only two volcanoes with restricted access for tourists.

***********************************************************************************************************

Extreme Temperatures/ Weather

Excessive Heat Warning

TULSA OK
MEMPHIS TN
WILMINGTON OH
PADUCAH KY
KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO

Excessive Heat Watch

 
TULSA OK

Heat Advisory

ST LOUIS MO
BISMARCK ND
TULSA OK
NORTH PLATTE NE
SPRINGFIELD MO
LITTLE ROCK AR
TOPEKA KS
SIOUX FALLS SD
HASTINGS NE
WICHITA KS
MEMPHIS TN
LINCOLN IL
WILMINGTON OH
LOUISVILLE KY
INDIANAPOLIS IN
PADUCAH KY
RAPID CITY SD
ABERDEEN SD
KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO

18.07.2012

Heat Wave

USA

State of Iowa, Des Moines

Heat Wave in USA on Wednesday, 18 July, 2012 at 14:17 (02:17 PM) UTC.

Description

Temperatures in Des Moines reached triple digits Tuesday for the fifth time this summer, extending a month-long heat wave that will likely continue for at least another week. Des Moines peaked at 100 degrees. While temperatures will fall slightly toward the end of the week, according to the National Weather Service, highs will remain in the 90s and lows won’t drop below the low 70s. Large parts of eastern and southern Iowa, including Polk County, are under a heat advisory. Wednesday’s high should reach 98 degrees and Thursday may top out at 96. Friday likely will be the coolest day this week with a high of 92, meteorologists said. There is a small chance of thunderstorms Wednesday night and rain could continue overnight, but no other precipitation is expected this week. “Tomorrow evening and overnight is the best shot at any rain,” National Weather Service meteorologist Kevin Skow said. “And that’s less than a 30 percent chance.” The rest of the state may see some rain but, “as far as a good soaking, we’re not seeing it,” Skow said. The number of counties under a burn ban grew to 32 on Tuesday and firefighters, farmers and officials continued to voice concern about the dry conditions.

Red Flag Warning

FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
MEDFORD OR
BOISE ID

Fire Weather Watch

RENO NV

Extreme Fire Danger

RAPID CITY SD
HASTINGS NE

Town of 1,800 evacuated in Canaries wildfire

by Staff Writers
Vilaflor, Spain (AFP)

Canary Islands.

Spanish authorities evacuated a town of 1,800 residents on the Canary Islands on Tuesday, after three days of firefighting efforts failed to prevent a raging wildfire from reaching it.

Residents were evacuating from the town of Vilaflor, south of the Teide national park that spans the centre of the Spanish island of Tenerife, as flames reached parts of the town.

Emergency services “are evacuating residents from Vilaflor due to the advance of the fire from the east,” the regional government said in a statement Tuesday evening.

It said the 1,800 people of the village were leaving by road. Authorities provided buses for some 200 people who did not have their own vehicles.

Authorities had prepared a shelter for the evacuees in the nearby town of Granadilla, the statement added.

Authorities earlier said the fire had crept a few metres into the Teide park, a major tourist attraction on the archipelago off northwest Africa, as firefighters battled to keep the flames away from populated areas.

Some 800 firefighters were battling the blaze, which broke out Sunday and has spread with strong winds and high temperatures, regional authorities said.

More than 90 people were evacuated from other parts of the island on Monday, of whom 60 remained away from their homes before the latest evacuations.

The fire had affected an area of about 3,000 hectares, of which half had been burnt, a spokeswoman for the regional emergency services said.

Firefighters said they were using five helicopters and three water-bombing planes that arrived Tuesday from mainland Spain, but authorities later said the thick smoke at Vilaflor was hampering efforts.

Another four helicopters and 300 firefighters were working to put out a blaze on one of the neighbouring islands, La Palma, that has engulfed around 500 hectares and forced more than 150 evacuations.

The spokeswoman said this fire had been “stabilised” on Tuesday afternoon after 160 people were evacuated.

Spain has been hit particularly hard by forest fires this year after experiencing its driest winter in 70 years.

The worst fire ravaged 50,000 hectares in the eastern Spanish region of Valencia in July.

Related Links
Forest and Wild Fires – News, Science and Technology

19.07.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

Greece

West Greece, [Patras city area]

Forest / Wild Fire in Greece on Wednesday, 18 July, 2012 at 11:06 (11:06 AM) UTC.

Description

Authorities issued evacuation orders for villages in southwestern Greece on Wednesday where wildfires, aided by strong winds and soaring temperatures, have ravaged large areas. The blaze, burning mostly pine forest, sent smoke over the city of Patras, a port with some 220,000 inhabitants, where regional authorities have declared an emergency. Nine planes and one helicopter were involved in the firefighting effort at Argyra, some 15 kilometres (9 miles) east of Patras. Apostolos Katsifaras, regional governor for western Greece, said evacuation orders had been issued for villages in the rugged fire stricken area — likely to involve several hundred residents. “The conditions are very tough. We are using everything we have against the fire,” Katsifaras said. The state of emergency allows authorities to use additional resources, including Greece’s military.

Today

Forest / Wild Fire

Portugal

Municipality of Vila Franca de Xira, [Povoa de Santa Iria]

Forest / Wild Fire in Portugal on Thursday, 19 July, 2012 at 03:23 (03:23 AM) UTC.

Description

In Portugal, five major fires were reported. The three largest of them, which were raging in the north and in Povoa de Santa Iria near Lisbon, were largely under control, authorities said.

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 Flooding / Landslides

Flash Flood Watch

JACKSON KY
PENDLETON OR

Flood Warning

LAKE CHARLES LA
DULUTH MN
TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL

Today

Flash Flood

USA

State of Alabama, [Northern area]

Flash Flood in USA on Thursday, 19 July, 2012 at 03:17 (03:17 AM) UTC.

Description

Strong thunderstorms moved slowly across the Tennessee Valley and produced torrential rain and strong gusty winds. Rainfall totals exceeded three inches in some areas before 5 p.m. Flash Flood Warnings were issued for some counties in North Alabama. Some of the stronger storms produced significant lightning. In Athens, thousands of customers were without power and crews worked in the storms to restore it. Roads flooded in Limestone County and drivers were urged to stay off of them. Athens Bible School suffered roof damage during the storm, and firefighters were at a home on Pepper Road where the roof caught fire, possibly because of lightning.

Today

Complex Emergency

Japan

MultiPrefectures, [Kyushu Island-wide]

Complex Emergency in Japan on Thursday, 19 July, 2012 at 07:34 (07:34 AM) UTC.

Description

About 3,000 people in a city of southwestern Japanese island of Kyushu were forced to evacuate their homes again on Thursday due to threats of landslide and flood caused by heavy rain. According to Japan’s public broadcaster NHK, the residents in Aso City where landslides hit houses last week were ordered to evacuate their houses on Thursday morning as heavy rain continued to fall on the area covered with volcanic ash soil which is very fragile. In Aso City and its surrounding region of Kumamoto Prefecture, at least 23 people were found dead and two went missing after landslides hit houses last week in more than 60 places. Heavy rain caused by Tropical Storm Khanun poured in several areas of northern Kyushu which saw hourly rainfall between 40 and 50 mm in the morning hours. The Japan Meteorological agency warned as the tropical storm moves north, heavy rainfall may trigger further floods and landslides in Kyushu till Friday.

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Radiation / Nuclear

18.07.2012

Nuclear Event

USA

State of Pennsylvania, [Limerick Nuclear Power Plant]

Nuclear Event in USA on Wednesday, 18 July, 2012 at 19:44 (07:44 PM) UTC.

Description

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission said it is closely monitoring events at the Limerick Generating Station after a manual scram around 8:15 a.m. shut down the reactor at the nuclear power plant. According to NRC spokesman Neil Sheehan, an electrical fault was reported in a transformer in a turbine building that spurred the scram and that the transformer is not a main transformer. The event was listed as an “unusual event” around 8:39 a.m., the lowest of the event ratings, Sheehan said. No one was injured in the incident and no outside help was requested, Sheehan said. Sheehan said the transformers have been known to fail from time to time and that the reactor was safely shut down. Sheehan said there are no complications at the power plant at this time and there is no danger to the public from the incident.

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Epidemic Hazards / Diseases

18.07.2012

Epidemic

Uganda

Western Uganda, [Bundibugyo District]

Epidemic in Uganda on Wednesday, 18 July, 2012 at 12:34 (12:34 PM) UTC.

Description
An outbreak of the deadly cholera disease in Bundibugyo district has killed four people leaving over 150 others hospitalized. The epidemic spread to the district from the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo. The four persons died before being taken to hospitals for medication according to Isaac Bisunga – the district disease surveillance officer. Bisunga says the epidemic broke out last month but only to realize it was cholera last week. The most affected areas include Bundibugyo town council, Nyahuka town council, Kasithu sub-county, Bukukwanga sub-county, Kisuba sub-county and Bubandi sub-county. Isolation centers have been established at Bundibugyo hospital and Nyahuka health center IV according to the disease surveillance officer.
Biohazard name:	Cholera
Biohazard level:	3/4 Hight
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that can cause severe to fatal disease in humans, but for which vaccines or other treatments exist, such as anthrax, West Nile virus, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, SARS virus, variola virus (smallpox), tuberculosis, typhus, Rift Valley fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, yellow fever, and malaria. Among parasites Plasmodium falciparum, which causes Malaria, and Trypanosoma cruzi, which causes trypanosomiasis, also come under this level.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

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Solar Activity

2MIN News July 18, 2012: Disaster Report, Quakes, Spaceweather

Published on Jul 18, 2012 by Suspicious0bservers

TODAYS LINKS
Japan Flooding: http://www.weather.com/news/japan-flooding-20120717
Drought: http://www.weather.com/news/drought-disaster-photos-20120713?pageno=1
Melting Ice: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=78556
Sprites: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/07/120713-sprite-international-s…

REPEAT LINKS
Spaceweather: http://spaceweather.com/ [Look on the left at the X-ray Flux and Solar Wind Speed/Density]

HAARP: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/haarp/data.html [Click online data, and have a little fun]

SDO: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/ [Place to find Solar Images and Videos – as seen from earth]

SOHO: http://sohodata.nascom.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/soho_movie_theater [SOHO; Lasco and EIT – as seen from earth]

Stereo: http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/images [Stereo; Cor, EUVI, HI – as seen from the side]

SunAEON:http://www.sunaeon.com/#/solarsystem/ [Just click it… trust me]

SOLARIMG: http://solarimg.org/artis/ [All purpose data viewing site]

iSWA: http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov/iswa/iSWA.html [Free Application; for advanced sun watchers]

NOAA ENLIL SPIRAL: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/wsa-enlil/cme-based/ [CME Evolution]

NOAA Bouys: http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/

RSOE: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php [That cool alert map I use]

JAPAN Radiation Map: http://jciv.iidj.net/map/

LISS: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/heliplots_gsn.php

Gamma Ray Bursts: http://grb.sonoma.edu/ [Really? You can’t figure out what this one is for?]

BARTOL Cosmic Rays: http://neutronm.bartol.udel.edu//spaceweather/welcome.html [Top left box, look for BIG blue circles]

TORCON: http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-torcon-index [Tornado Forecast for the day]

GOES Weather: http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/goes/ [Clouds over America]

INTELLICAST: http://www.intellicast.com/ [Weather site used by many youtubers]

NASA News: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/

PHYSORG: http://phys.org/ [GREAT News Site!]

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Space

18.07.2012

Event into space

Finland

Province of Ostrobothnia, [Ostrobothnia-wide]

Event into space in Finland on Wednesday, 18 July, 2012 at 11:03 (11:03 AM) UTC.

Description

An exceptional bright light phenomenon was observed in many parts of Ostobothnia, western Finland, just after 5pm on Tuesday. According to the Ursa astronomical association, this was a meteorite which had passed through the Earth’s upper atmosphere before hitting the ground. According to Esko Lyytinen of Ursa, the object definitely made it to the ground. He speculated it could be as heavy as dozens of kilograms. The object’s final explosion occurred probably between the towns of Kalajoki and Ylivieska. Several observations of the object were made by Ursa at locations across Ostrobothnia. The subsonic blast was heard over a wide area. Amateur astronomers are now eager to find the heavenly body which lies somewhere in the area of Ylivieska and Kalajoki. Meteorites are a rare occurrence whereas meteors, objects that fail to reach the Earth’s surface, are more common. For example, during the course of the year, the Earth passes through dust clouds which give rise to a phenomenon known as a “meteor shower.” During such an event, streaks of light caused by small rocky particles are visible at regular intervals in the night sky.

Earth approaching objects (objects that are known in the next 30 days)
Object Name	Apporach Date	Left	AU Distance	LD Distance	Estimated Diameter*	Relative Velocity
(2010 OB101)	19th July 2012	0 day(s)	0.1196	46.6	200 m – 450 m	13.34 km/s	48024 km/h
(2008 OX1)	20th July 2012	1 day(s)	0.1873	72.9	130 m – 300 m	15.35 km/s	55260 km/h
(2010 GK65)	21st July 2012	2 day(s)	0.1696	66.0	34 m – 75 m	17.80 km/s	64080 km/h
(2011 OJ45)	21st July 2012	2 day(s)	0.1367	53.2	18 m – 39 m	3.79 km/s	13644 km/h
153958 (2002 AM31)	22nd July 2012	3 day(s)	0.0351	13.7	630 m – 1.4 km	9.55 km/s	34380 km/h
(2011 CA7)	23rd July 2012	4 day(s)	0.1492	58.1	2.3 m – 5.1 m	5.43 km/s	19548 km/h
(2012 BB124)	24th July 2012	5 day(s)	0.1610	62.7	170 m – 380 m	8.78 km/s	31608 km/h
(2009 PC)	28th July 2012	9 day(s)	0.1772	68.9	61 m – 140 m	7.34 km/s	26424 km/h
217013 (2001 AA50)	31st July 2012	12 day(s)	0.1355	52.7	580 m – 1.3 km	22.15 km/s	79740 km/h
(2012 DS30)	02nd August 2012	14 day(s)	0.1224	47.6	18 m – 39 m	5.39 km/s	19404 km/h
(2000 RN77)	03rd August 2012	15 day(s)	0.1955	76.1	410 m – 920 m	9.87 km/s	35532 km/h
(2004 SB56)	04th August 2012	16 day(s)	0.1393	54.2	380 m – 840 m	13.72 km/s	49392 km/h
(2000 SD8)	04th August 2012	16 day(s)	0.1675	65.2	180 m – 400 m	5.82 km/s	20952 km/h
(2006 EC)	06th August 2012	18 day(s)	0.0932	36.3	13 m – 28 m	6.13 km/s	22068 km/h
(2006 MV1)	07th August 2012	19 day(s)	0.0612	23.8	12 m – 28 m	4.79 km/s	17244 km/h
(2005 RK3)	08th August 2012	20 day(s)	0.1843	71.7	52 m – 120 m	8.27 km/s	29772 km/h
(2009 BW2)	09th August 2012	21 day(s)	0.0337	13.1	25 m – 56 m	5.27 km/s	18972 km/h
277475 (2005 WK4)	09th August 2012	21 day(s)	0.1283	49.9	260 m – 580 m	6.18 km/s	22248 km/h
(2004 SC56)	09th August 2012	21 day(s)	0.0811	31.6	74 m – 170 m	10.57 km/s	38052 km/h
(2008 AF4)	10th August 2012	22 day(s)	0.1936	75.3	310 m – 690 m	16.05 km/s	57780 km/h
37655 Illapa	12th August 2012	24 day(s)	0.0951	37.0	770 m – 1.7 km	28.73 km/s	103428 km/h
(2012 HS15)	14th August 2012	26 day(s)	0.1803	70.2	220 m – 490 m	11.54 km/s	41544 km/h
4581 Asclepius	16th August 2012	28 day(s)	0.1079	42.0	220 m – 490 m	13.48 km/s	48528 km/h
1 AU = ~150 million kilometers,1 LD = Lunar Distance = ~384,000 kilometers Source: NASA-NEO

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Mysterious Booms / Rumblings

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Biological Hazards / Wildlife

18.07.2012

Biological Hazard

Taiwan

County of Taoyuan , Taoyuan

Biological Hazard in Taiwan on Tuesday, 17 July, 2012 at 13:20 (01:20 PM) UTC.

Description
Dozens of pet birds smuggled from southern China into Taiwan tested positive for the deadly H5N1 avian flu virus and were destroyed, Taiwanese authorities said Tuesday. The smuggler bought the 38 birds in the Chinese city of Guangzhou and was caught at the Taoyuan international airport in northern Taiwan when he returned via Macau earlier this month, said the Centers for Disease Control. The birds later tested positive for the H5N1 virus and were killed, it said, adding that nine people who had contact with the birds had not shown any flu symptoms during a ten-day screening. Taiwan has no recorded cases of the deadly H5N1 strain, although in 2005 health authorities said eight pet birds smuggled from China tested positive for the strain and destroyed. The island has reported several outbreaks of the H5N2 bird flu, a less virulent strain of the virus, in recent years. China is considered one of the nations most at risk of bird flu epidemics because it has the world’s biggest poultry population and many chickens in rural areas are kept close to humans.
Biohazard name:	H5N1 – Highly pathogenic avian influenza virus
Biohazard level:	4/4 Hazardous
Biohazard desc.:	Viruses and bacteria that cause severe to fatal disease in humans, and for which vaccines or other treatments are not available, such as Bolivian and Argentine hemorrhagic fevers, H5N1(bird flu), Dengue hemorrhagic fever, Marburg virus, Ebola virus, hantaviruses, Lassa fever, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, and other hemorrhagic or unidentified diseases. When dealing with biological hazards at this level the use of a Hazmat suit and a self-contained oxygen supply is mandatory. The entrance and exit of a Level Four biolab will contain multiple showers, a vacuum room, an ultraviolet light room, autonomous detection system, and other safety precautions designed to destroy all traces of the biohazard. Multiple airlocks are employed and are electronically secured to prevent both doors opening at the same time. All air and water service going to and coming from a Biosafety Level 4 (P4) lab will undergo similar decontamination procedures to eliminate the possibility of an accidental release.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

Today

Biological Hazard

USA

State of New Mexico, Las Cruces

Biological Hazard in USA on Thursday, 19 July, 2012 at 03:13 (03:13 AM) UTC.

Description
A large swarm of bees stung an employee of a tree removal business multiple times as he and three others began cutting down a large cottonwood near downtown Las Cruces. The 52-year-old man was stung possibly hundreds of times and was found, unconscious, by Las Cruces firefighters who arrived shortly before noon today at The Alameda House at 526 S. Alameda Boulevard. Firefighters used foam and water to scatter the bees that were covering the man who was found lying on a driveway. The man was treated at the scene and then rushed to Mountain View Regional Medical Center where he is in serious but stable condition. Two other employees of the tree-removal business were also stung by bees. One of the men, age 30, was transported to Memorial Medical Center but has since been released. A third victim was treated at the scene. Fire and police officials learned that employees with a tree removal business, Las Cruces Heights, were beginning to cut limbs off an old cottonwood on the southwest corner of The Alameda House property. The 52-year-old man was scaling the tree and was suspended by a belay line when the bees started swarming. His coworkers lowered the man to the ground and called for help. Entomologists from the city and county are assessing how best to eradicate the bee colony that is believed to be living inside the large cottonwood. Police and firefighters strongly suggest that residents avoid foot traffic in the area of Alameda Boulevard and Miranda Street, between Lohman Avenue and El Molino Boulevard. Residents of that area also are encouraged to bring pets indoors until at least sunset when the bees are expected to return to their hive.
Biohazard name:	Bees attack
Biohazard level:	0/4 —
Biohazard desc.:	This does not included biological hazard category.
Symptoms:
Status:

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Articles of Interest

18.07.2012

Power Outage

USA

State of New Hampshire, [New Hampshire-wide]

Power Outage in USA on Wednesday, 18 July, 2012 at 11:04 (11:04 AM) UTC.

Description

Strong thunderstorms barreled across New Hampshire on Tuesday evening, knocking out power to more than 24,000 homes and businesses, including nearly 1,000 in Manchester. Manchester fire crews responded to “a bunch of trees around the city” that came down, especially in the Hackett Hill area, said District Fire Chief James Michael. “Some hit wires; some didn’t.” Hooksett firefighters responded to 15 Fieldstone Drive for a reported lightning strike. “It hit a tree out in the back yard and traveled into the house,” Deputy Fire Chief deputy Mike Hoisington said. An electrical outlet got scorched, and the homeowners were checking to see if any appliances were damaged, he said. Not everyone got the heavy storms. Bedford police reported wind but no rain. Londonderry police also had no rain outside their station. In Rochester, a live power line fell on the Spaulding Turnpike, closing a section of turnpike. Northbound traffic went through the toll booth and then was U-turned back through the tolls in the opposite direction safely because a different section of the southbound turnpike was shuttered, according to Rochester fire Lt. Eric Lenzi. The turnpike was closed for just over an hour. “We were just trying to empty the highway from a dangerous situation,” a state police dispatcher said. She doesn’t believe people were charged to go through the toll again. Otherwise, the dispatcher said, “they’d be calling here screaming at me.” James Brown, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Gray, Maine, said winds topped 60 mph in some places, including Alton. “We’re looking mostly for wind damage,” he said. “We’ve all kinds of trees down” Blame the storms on a clash of air masses. “We’ve got a very warm, humid air mass in place and a colder air mass coming down from Canada,” Brown said. “The two are clashing and creating these thunderstorms.” By late last night, utilities had cut the number of outages in half to more than 11,000. Farmington, Hopkinton and Rochester each had more than 1,000 customers without power. PSNH spokesman Matthew Chagnon said the outages were spread over a wide section of the state. “From what I understand, there’s a lot of wires down,” he said. “There’s some poles down in some cases and those can take longer because it requires different crews to come in and set the poles.”

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[In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit, for research and/or educational purposes. This constitutes ‘FAIR USE’ of any such copyrighted material.]

Earth Watch Report – Tuesay July 17th, 012

Earthquakes

 

 

RSOE EDIS

 

 

Date/Time (UTC)	Magnitude	Area	Country	State/Prov./Gov.	Location	Risk			Source	Details
17.07.2012 04:25:21	2.1	Europe	Italy	Calabria	Salerni				EMSC
17.07.2012 04:25:48	3.4	Asia	Taiwan	Taiwan	Buli				EMSC
17.07.2012 04:26:12	2.4	Europe	Italy	Latium	Terracino				EMSC
17.07.2012 04:26:34	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Kargi				EMSC
17.07.2012 04:20:57	5.6	Pacific Ocean	New Zealand	Bay of Plenty	Paengaroa				GEONET
17.07.2012 04:26:56	3.2	Europe	Portugal	Viseu	Nelas				EMSC
17.07.2012 04:27:17	2.5	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	Tocopilla				EMSC
17.07.2012 03:20:26	2.5	Europe	Greece	Central Greece	Mavrommata				EMSC
17.07.2012 02:15:26	2.4	Asia	Turkey	Tunceli	Pulumer				EMSC
17.07.2012 02:15:47	2.9	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	Calama				EMSC
17.07.2012 01:40:54	4.5	Asia	India	N?g?land	Tuensang				USGS-RSOE
17.07.2012 02:16:07	4.5	Asia	India	N?g?land	Tuensang				EMSC
17.07.2012 02:16:27	2.2	Asia	Turkey	Elaz??	Sivrice				EMSC
17.07.2012 01:10:25	3.0	Europe	Greece	Thessaly	Chrysavgi				EMSC
17.07.2012 01:10:44	2.6	Asia	Turkey	Adana	Kadirli				EMSC
17.07.2012 01:11:02	2.5	Europe	Greece	Thessaly	Taxiarchai				EMSC
17.07.2012 01:11:24	4.3	Middle-America	Honduras	Bay Islands	Savannah Bight				EMSC
17.07.2012 01:12:56	4.3	Middle America	Honduras	Bay Islands	Savannah Bight				USGS-RSOE
17.07.2012 01:11:44	2.9	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	San Prospero				EMSC
17.07.2012 00:40:42	2.0	North America	United States	California	Lake of the Woods				USGS-RSOE
17.07.2012 00:00:34	2.4	North America	United States	Alaska	Chase				USGS-RSOE
17.07.2012 00:05:25	2.2	Europe	Italy	Calabria	Salerni				EMSC
16.07.2012 23:45:36	2.4	North America	United States	California	Interlaken				USGS-RSOE
16.07.2012 23:30:38	2.0	North America	United States	Nevada	Black Rock City				USGS-RSOE
17.07.2012 00:05:46	4.6	South-America	Chile	Antofagasta	San Pedro de Atacama				EMSC
17.07.2012 00:07:40	4.6	South America	Chile	Antofagasta	San Pedro de Atacama				USGS-RSOE
17.07.2012 00:06:13	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Marmaris				EMSC
16.07.2012 23:15:47	2.7	North America	United States	Alaska	Pope-Vannoy Landing				USGS-RSOE
17.07.2012 00:06:38	4.6	Middle-America	Guatemala	Santa Rosa	Pueblo Nuevo Vinas				EMSC
16.07.2012 23:25:37	4.6	Middle America	Guatemala	Santa Rosa	Pueblo Nuevo Vinas				USGS-RSOE
16.07.2012 23:05:23	2.7	Europe	Macedonia		Bazernik				EMSC
16.07.2012 23:05:50	3.3	Europe	Greece	West Greece	Kamarai				EMSC
16.07.2012 23:06:16	2.3	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Ula				EMSC
17.07.2012 00:07:00	2.1	Asia	Turkey	Mu?la	Kargi				EMSC
16.07.2012 23:06:36	2.6	Asia	Turkey	Isparta	Egirdir				EMSC
16.07.2012 23:06:54	3.7	Middle-East	Iran	F?rs	Firuzabad				EMSC
16.07.2012 22:00:27	2.4	Asia	Turkey	Manisa	Saruhanli				EMSC
16.07.2012 22:00:49	2.9	Europe	Greece	Attica	Agia Pelagia				EMSC
16.07.2012 22:01:09	2.7	Asia	Turkey	Adana	Kadirli				EMSC
16.07.2012 21:10:44	2.4	North America	United States	California	Guadalupe				USGS-RSOE
16.07.2012 22:01:28	2.5	Asia	Turkey	Kütahya	Saphane				EMSC
16.07.2012 20:51:01	2.3	North America	United States	California	Cobb				USGS-RSOE
16.07.2012 20:41:02	2.0	North America	United States	California	Cobb				USGS-RSOE
16.07.2012 20:55:26	2.6	South-America	Chile	Valparaíso	La Ligua				EMSC
16.07.2012 20:55:46	2.0	Europe	Italy	Latium	Terracino				EMSC
16.07.2012 20:56:09	3.9	South-America	Argentina	Neuquén	Las Ovejas				EMSC
16.07.2012 20:56:33	3.1	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	San Prospero				EMSC
16.07.2012 20:56:55	2.0	Europe	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	San Prospero				EMSC
16.07.2012 19:15:39	2.1	North America	United States	California	Big Bend				USGS-RSOE
16.07.2012 20:57:18	2.0	Asia	Turkey	Ankara	Sazagasi				EMSC

 

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Extreme Temperatures/ Weather /Drought

 

 

Excessive Heat Warning

 

MOUNT HOLLY NJ

Heat Advisory

 

CHARLESTON WV
GAYLORD MI
ST LOUIS MO
PITTSBURGH PA
INDIANAPOLIS IN
NORTHERN INDIANA
LA CROSSE WI
LINCOLN IL
MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI
GREEN BAY WI
CHICAGO IL
NEW YORK NY
CLEVELAND OH
WILMINGTON OH
GRAND RAPIDS MI
QUAD CITIES IA IL
MOUNT HOLLY NJ
STATE COLLEGE PA

Excessive Heat Watch

 

DETROIT/PONTIAC MI

 

 

16.07.2012

Heat Wave

Greece

Capital City, Athene

 

 

Heat Wave in Greece on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 12:38 (12:38 PM) UTC.

Description

Monuments on the Acropolis Hill in Athens will close early due to a heat wave in Greece that saw temperatures reach 42 degrees Celsius (107.6 degrees Fahrenheit). The site will close to the public on Monday at 2:00 p.m. (1100GMT), and return to regular summer opening hours on Tuesday, from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (0500-1700GMT), the Culture Ministry’s association of employees at ancient sites said. Municipal authorities in Greek cities are on alert, providing air-conditioned halls for the public, while the government’s Civil Protection Agency advised elderly Greeks to remain indoors until evening hours.

 

Sizzling Heat to Expand From Midwest to Northeast

By Kristina Pydynowski, Senior Meteorologist

Images like this will be common on area thermometers the next few days. Image courtesy of Photos.com.

While temperatures have recently been warm across the Midwest and Northeast, intense heat has been absent–that will change in the upcoming few days.

Another sizzling stretch of weather awaits the Midwest and Northeast this week as the heat baking the Plains expands eastward.

After engulfing the mid-Mississippi Valley, the heat will then continue to build to the Northeast Monday into Tuesday, replacing the ongoing drenching thunderstorms that are being jeered by those with outdoor plans but welcomed by farmers and gardeners.

Triple-digit heat will return to Chicago and St. Louis on Tuesday, challenging record highs. On the same day, highs in the middle to upper 90s will bake nearly every community along the Northeast’s I-95 corridor.

Temperatures will be just as hot, if not hotter, throughout the mid-Atlantic on Wednesday.

High humidity will worsen the situation by creating even hotter AccuWeather.com RealFeel® temperatures.

Forecast High Temperatures

City	Mon.	Tues.	Wed.
Des Moines	97	103	90
Chicago	97	100	88
Detroit	92	97	89
Boston	90	95	87
New York City	92	95	92
Philadelphia	95	98	97
Washington, D.C.	95	98	98

The return of intense heat is the last thing many residents, including the Midwestern farmers facing a corn crop disaster, want to hear. The good news is that its presence will be short-lived.

Not long after the heat builds, a cold front will sweep it back out of the Midwest and Northeast in a northwest to southeast fashion to end the workweek on a comfortable note.

The only problem is that before the refreshing air arrives, severe thunderstorms will first ignite.

 

16.07.2012

Extreme Weather

Canada

Province of Ontario, Whitby [Ribfest Food Festival]

 

 

Extreme Weather in Canada on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 09:59 (09:59 AM) UTC.

Description

Hundreds of people at an Ontario food festival were crammed into a dining tent waiting out a sudden rainshower Sunday when a lightning bolt struck one of the structure’s steel poles, triggering an electrical discharge that sent 17 people to hospital amid a buzz of concern. “You see the flash and it sounded like a bomb (went off) exactly at the same time. It was so loud,” said Steve Peddle, who was with his wife inside the main tent of the inaugural Whitby Ribfest when the lightning hit around 2 p.m. “All of a sudden, like not even three seconds after that, you started hearing people screaming.” Officials said none of the 17 taken to hospital suffered life-threatening injuries, but many at the event were shaken by the incident. “It wasn’t just one person – there was a lot of people screaming. And so you knew somebody must have got hit,” said Peddle, who travelled from nearby Pickering with his wife Rose. “I looked over and where my wife had been sitting before we got our ribs… there was three people lying on the ground there.” Another festival-goer, Michael Thompson, said a huge crowd of people had flooded into the large white tent moments before the strike as rain pounded the festival grounds at Iroquois Park in Whitby, which sits some 55 kilometres east of Toronto. “It was pretty chaotic. We didn’t really know what was going on,” the 45-year-old said of the immediate aftermath of the strike. “Some first aid people were in there and they (were) pretty quick when they rushed in. They were throwing tables out of the way so they could reach the injured.” Durham police said those who were injured were quickly taken to local hospitals. Nine people were rushed via ambulance to Lakeridge Health in Durham, some suffering from minor burns, while others were uninjured but want to be checked up on, said a spokesman with the hospital. “Everyone who came, nobody had anything serious. Everybody has been discharged,” said Aaron Lazarus. Whitby Ribfest chairman Colin O’Regan said the festival didn’t see the lightning storm coming before the bolt hit the tent. “Basically a sudden storm came out of nowhere,” he said. The festival’s emergency plan – drawing on lessons learned from other rib festivals – ensured first aid workers were able to race inside the tent “within seconds,” while other staff and police already at the event kept the crowd orderly, O’Regan added. Additional police, fire and emergency officials arrived minutes later, he said. The Durham Region, which includes Whitby, was put under a severe thunderstorm watch hours before the strike. O’Regan said emergency officials who were already at the festival had been monitoring the thunderstorm watch. “We were aware but felt that there was no risk to the patrons attending,” he said. No heavy rain or any other indication the storm was coming was noticed until minutes before thunderclouds rolled in and lightning struck the tent, he said. There were several thousand people attending the festival when the strike took place and many more were expected to show up later in the afternoon, O’Regan said. “It occurred earlier in the day when we were not as populated as we would have been,” he said, noting that thousands had attended on each of the two previous festival days.

 

 

16.07.2012

Extreme Weather

China

MultiProvinces, [Provinces of Hubei,Guizhou, Anhui and Hunan ]

 

 

 

Extreme Weather in China on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 04:45 (04:45 AM) UTC.

Description

Heavy rain has swept across central and southern China, killing dozens and forcing thousands to evacuate. Rain-triggered floods have killed 10 people and affected over 2 million others in central China’s Hubei province. Recent rainstorms in Guizhou Province left at least 11 people dead and affected nearly a million others. And east China’s Anhui Province and central Hunan have also been badly affected by extremely heavy rain over the past few days. It‘s not easy to live a normal life here when your whole city has been mired in floods for days. Here in Anyang City in Anhui Province, hundreds of people are still trapped in their houses, waiting to be taken to safety. Meters-high water forced rescuers to try different ways of reaching to those trapped. Families’ belongings are also passed out, one thing at a time. Over the course of 3 hours, rescuers managed to take over 200 people to safe areas. They also brought in disaster relief goods such as blankets and rice, to help those left homeless. The local meteorological office is continuing to issue rain alerts. Meanwhile, emergency plans have been launched by the city government, to try to stop the flood spreading through the city.

 

16.07.2012

Extreme Weather

USA

State of Texas, Austin

 

 

Extreme Weather in USA on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 03:15 (03:15 AM) UTC.

Description

Heavy rain and lightning across the Travis and Williamson counties is causing an array of problems for the Austin area. All of Round Rock is under voluntary evacuation. A temporary shelter was established in the Clay Madsen Rec Center at 1600 Gattis School Road. It has since closed as the water is now receding. Many roads across the area are closed. There have been at least nine swift water rescues in the Austin area caused by quickly rising water. One person from a water rescue on South Pleasant Valley Road was transported to St. David’s Hospital in Downtown Austin by EMS. This was the only injury reported. The storm has knocked out power to thousands of Austin Energy customers. The utility has an up-to-date map of the outages on its website here. Ed Clark with Austin Energy said that as of 10 p.m., about 800 customers were still without power. At the storms peak, power outages affected about 5000 Austin Energy customers. High winds from the storm have flipped six boats on Lake Travis off of the Emerald Point Marina, according to the National Weather Service. It’s not known how large the boats are or if the weather has caused any injuries in that area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

16.07.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

USA

State of Wyoming, [Glendo State Park]

 

 

 

Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 18:58 (06:58 PM) UTC.

Description

A wildfire started on a Wyoming National Guard training area forced the partial evacuation of Glendo State Park, about 100 miles north of Cheyenne. Glendo is northwest of Guernsey State Park, which was evacuated and closed this summer because of another wildfire, which was human caused. An unknown number of campers and visitors on the east side of Glendo Park were evacuated Sunday night and moved to the west side of the park, according to Domenic Bravo, administrator of the state Parks, Historic Sites and Trails Division. “There wasn’t a lot of folks that we had to evacuate,” Bravo said Monday. “There was good handful though.” The park includes Glendo Reservoir, which is a popular destination for boaters and has more than 400 campsites. The Sawmill Canyon fire began Saturday on Camp Guernsey Joint Training Center land, which is operated by the Wyoming Guard. The fire had burned about 7 to 10 square miles of rough terrain with mixed trees and grass by Monday morning. About 180 firefighters aided by helicopters and heavy air tankers are battling the fire. There were some Guard units training in the area, which includes an artillery range, Guard spokeswoman Deidre Forster said. Forster said she didn’t know what type of training was occurring or what units were involved. The area is used for training by various agencies, including the U.S. military, police units, as well as by the Wyoming Guard. State Forester Bill Crapser said the cause of the fire was under investigation.

 

 

16.07.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

Canary-Islands (Esp.)

[Island of Tenerife ]

 

 

Forest / Wild Fire in Canary-Islands (Esp.) on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 18:57 (06:57 PM) UTC.

Description

The fire broke out on Sunday, prompting emergency services to evacuate 50 villagers from their homes overnight, and has spread over 1,100 hectares (2,700 acres), the regional government said on Monday. Fanned by wind, it reached the edge of the Teide National Park – a mountainous beauty spot centring on the Teide volcano, Spain’s highest peak and a Unesco world heritage site. Coaches and cars were moved from the grounds of the park as a precaution. It was not immediately clear whether the fire threatened to spread into the natural park. The regional government of the Canary Islands, the Atlantic archipelago of which Tenerife is part, said 70 firefighters and seven helicopters were busy battling the blaze. Spain is at higher risk of forest fires than ever this summer after suffering its driest winter in 70 years. One fire in eastern Spain this month ravaged 50,000 hectares.

 

 

16.07.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

Montenegro

Province of Zabljak, [Crna Poda forest]

 

 

Forest / Wild Fire in Montenegro on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 13:48 (01:48 PM) UTC.

Description

Firefighters in Montenegro are struggling to contain wildfires that are threatening an ancient pine forest in the northeast of the country. Fires have erupted amid extremely high temperatures in the Balkans, reaching around 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in Montenegro in the past weeks. Fires have destroyed hundreds of acres of forests and about a dozen houses and stables. Officials say the blaze has reached the outer rim of the Crna Poda forest, where some of the pine trees are 400 years old. Emergency official Radomir Scepanovic said Monday that “we will stay to protect (the forest) until the rain falls.” Firefighters have been using planes and choppers, but efforts are hampered by hilly terrain and occasional strong winds. The forest is located within the UNESCO-protected Tara river canyon.

 

16.07.2012

Forest / Wild Fire

Italy

Sardinia Island, [Near to San Teodoro]

 

 

Forest / Wild Fire in Italy on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 04:41 (04:41 AM) UTC.

Description

About 500 people, including tourists, were evacuated Sunday from the vicinity of the town of San Teodoro on the Italian island of Sardinia, due to raging fires in the area. The fire had already spread to residential houses. There is no information regarding the casualties as yet. Land and air resources have been mobilized to fight the blaze. Forest fires are raging across nearly half of Italy, including the region of Abruzzo, Apulia, Calabria and Sicily, due to record- high temperatures, which have been registered in the country for the third week running.

 

 

 

 

Amid unusually widespread drought, warnings on food prices

The drought has already raised the price of corn following lowered USDA crop projections that some experts say are still optimistic. Look for meats to lead the way as food prices rise.

By Gloria Goodale, Staff writer

• 

Leaves become dry and brittle on stalks of corn in a parched field outside Effingham, Ill., Monday, July 16. The drought gripping the United States is the widest since 1956, according to new data released Monday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Robert Ray/AP

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Storms, Flooding

 

Active tropical storm system(s)
Name of storm system	Location	Formed	Last update	Last category	Course	Wind Speed	Gust	Wave	Source	Details
Fabio (06E)	Pacific Ocean – East	12.07.2012	16.07.2012	Hurricane I.	320 °	120 km/h	148 km/h	4.27 m	NHC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 1 Storm name: Fabio (06E) Area: Pacific Ocean – East Start up location: N 13° 36.000, W 106° 24.000 Start up: 12th July 2012 Status: 16th July 2012 Track long: 1,032.89 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 13th Jul 2012 05:07:51 N 13° 54.000, W 109° 0.000 17 93 111 Tropical Storm 280 16 998 MB JTWC 14th Jul 2012 06:07:59 N 15° 42.000, W 112° 30.000 17 148 176 Hurricane I. 290 18 982 MB JTWC 15th Jul 2012 06:07:20 N 16° 24.000, W 115° 42.000 15 148 204 Hurricane I. 280 10 972 MB JTWC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 17th Jul 2012 05:07:54 N 20° 18.000, W 120° 24.000 13 102 120 Tropical Storm 350 ° 14 994 MB JTWC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 18th Jul 2012 12:00:00 N 24° 24.000, W 120° 36.000 Tropical Depression 46 65 JTWC 18th Jul 2012 00:00:00 N 23° 0.000, W 120° 48.000 Tropical Depression 46 65 JTWC 19th Jul 2012 12:00:00 N 26° 0.000, W 120° 0.000 Tropical Depression 37 56 JTWC

 

 

08W

Pacific Ocean

15.07.2012

16.07.2012

Tropical Storm

300 °

65 km/h

83 km/h

5.18 m

JTWC

 

 

 

 Tropical Storm data

Share: Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email Share on print More Sharing Services 2 Storm name: Khanun (08W) Area: Pacific Ocean Start up location: N 22° 24.000, E 140° 6.000 Start up: 15th July 2012 Status: 01st January 1970 Track long: 615.53 km Top category.: Report by: JTWC Useful links: Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale FEMA – How To Prepare for a Hurricane Effects of a Hurricane USA – National Hurricane Center

Past track Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave Pressure Source 16th Jul 2012 05:07:38 N 23° 6.000, E 137° 42.000 24 56 74 Tropical Depression 285 13 JTWC Current position Date Time Position Speed km/h Wind km/h Gust km/h Category Course Wave feet Pressure Source 17th Jul 2012 05:07:18 N 26° 18.000, E 131° 18.000 30 74 93 Tropical Storm 295 ° 16 JTWC Forecast track Date Time Position Category Wind km/h Gust km/h Source 18th Jul 2012 12:00:00 N 34° 42.000, E 126° 48.000 Tropical Depression 56 74 JTWC 18th Jul 2012 00:00:00 N 31° 36.000, E 127° 24.000 Tropical Storm 74 93 JTWC 19th Jul 2012 12:00:00 N 40° 48.000, E 127° 48.000 Tropical Depression 37 56 JTWC

 

 

Flash Flood Warning

 

TUCSON AZ
SALT LAKE CITY UT
ELKO NV

Flash Flood Watch

 

PENDLETON OR

Flood Warning

 

HOUSTON/GALVESTON, TX
LAKE CHARLES LA
DULUTH MN

Flood Advisory

 

PENDLETON OR

 

 

 

 

16.07.2012

Flash Flood

USA

State of Arizona, Phoenix

 

 

Flash Flood in USA on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 06:00 (06:00 AM) UTC.

Description

Sunday’s storms resulted in flash flooding in certain parts of the Valley. The area near ABC15 at 44th and Van Buren streets got hit especially hard with one impressive downpour. The area is prone to flooding so city officials put up a sign to warn drivers to not enter the area when flooded. Few drivers actually chose to heed that warning. Despite the fact that 48th Street looked more like a lake, people still chose to drive through the water. A few drivers actually did the right thing and found another route to get where they were going. But most people rolled the dice and drove right through the flood water. Arizona does have a stupid motorist law which states that you will be forced to pay for the cost of your rescue if you ignore warning signs and enter a flooded area. Nobody needed to be rescued from the area near 48th Street Sunday night.

 

 

16.07.2012

Flash Flood

Philippines

North Cotabato, Tulunan

 

 

Flash Flood in Philippines on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 05:58 (05:58 AM) UTC.

Description

At least 337 families were affected by flash floods that hit Tulunan town in North Cotabato Saturday afternoon, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said Sunday. In a report posted on its website Sunday night, the NDRRMC said the incident occurred at 4 p.m. due to continuous rain. The NDRRMC said the flood waters were knee- to waist-deep, although the flood waters had subsided by Sunday. It also said there was no initial report of missing or dead residents due to the floods. Among the villages affected by the floods were F. Cajelo; Minapan (Purok 1, 2, 3, 6, 7), La Esperanza, Poblacion Purok 8, and Galidan. The incident has prompted the Office of Civil Defense to coordinate with the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council to assist the affected residents.

 

 

16.07.2012

Flash Flood

USA

State of Utah, [St. George, Santa Clara, Snow Canyon State Park and Veyo]

 

 

Flash Flood in USA on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 03:16 (03:16 AM) UTC.

Description

Heavy rain and flash flooding shut down a portion of a road in St. George, and people are reporting water gushing down roadways. Washington County’s emergency services division said Sunset Boulevard east of Lava Flow Drive is closed because of flooding. Flash floods are also happening in Santa Clara. Severe rain, damaging winds and cloud-to-ground lightning prompted the National Weather Service in Salt Lake City to issue warnings Sunday afternoon for multiple areas throughout the state. The weather service says the thunderstorm is capable of producing quarter-sized hail in Washington County. Locations in warning area also include Snow Canyon State Park and Veyo. People should move indoors and stay clear of windows because of the storm’s damaging winds. The warning, which was supposed to lapse at 5:45 p.m., has been extended to 8:30 p.m., as was the danger for flooding. A similar warning was issued for east central Emery County or 15 miles southwest of Green River. I-70 is also listed in the warning, with winds that could top 60 mph. Like Washington County, quarter-sized hail is possible, and the weather service is warning people to seek shelter from the dangerous storm. The warning is in effect until 7:15 p.m. Elsewhere, heavy rain over the Wood Hollow Fire’s burn scar could result in debris flows and is asking residents to take precautions. A flash flood warning has been issued for east central Juab County, north central Sanpete County and south central Utah County. The burn scar is west of U.S. 89 between Birdseye and Mount Pleasant, where up to three quarters of inch of rain is predicted to fall. Particularly vulnerable areas include, but are not limited to Indianola and U.S. 89 from Birdseye through Fairview. The weather service warns that even if a debris flow has already happened, it could followed by additional flows of debris.

 

16.07.2012

Flash Flood

USA

State of Texas, Houston

 

 

Flash Flood in USA on Thursday, 12 July, 2012 at 16:34 (04:34 PM) UTC.

Back

Updated:	Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 03:23 UTC
Description
Houston police have reported two people dead and a third injured after lightning struck a soccer field in northwest Harris County during a thunderstorm on Sunday. A sheriff’s spokesman says a men’s league soccer club had been playing on a field today when it began to rain around noon. The men decided to seek shelter under nearby trees when lightning hit one of the trees. According to FOX26, lightning touched down on a field near West Hardy Street Sunday afternoon. One of the victims died at the field, another died after being rushed to the hospital. A third victim was injured during the incident and remains in stable condition at Ben Taub General hospital. The Houston area has been drenched by rain the past week, flooding between 50 and 100 homes.

 

 

 

 

16.07.2012

Flood Warning

Australia

State of Tasmania, [Huonville region]

Flood Warning in Australia on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 04:49 (04:49 AM) UTC.

Description

About 100 homes are being evacuated in Huonville, south of Hobart, as a dam threatens to burst. Police have confirmed one of the dam’s walls is leaking and could break, spilling up to 10 megalitres of water down Scenic Hill Road, on the town’s outskirts. The State Emergency Service and police have blocked roads in the area and have begun doorknocking residents, asking them to evacuate. The private dam is about one hectare in size and the damage is being assessed by the local council and the state water department. Residents have taken to social media networks saying they are nervously waiting and watching to see if the dam will hold. A recovery centre has been set up at the local youth club.

 

 

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Epidemic Hazards / Diseases

China on alert as disease outbreak kills 112 in June

(AFP)

BEIJING — The Chinese province of Hunan urged parents on Sunday to seek immediate treatment for children showing symptoms of hand, foot and mouth disease after official figures showed 112 people died from the illness last month.

The disease, which children are especially vulnerable to, also infected more than 381,000 people, the Ministry of Health reported last week.

“The disease incidence rate in June was much higher than that of last June, which has much to do with the high temperatures this summer,” said Liu Fuqiang with the provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The province urged parents and teachers to send children to hospital as soon as they showed symptoms of the disease, including mouth sores, skin rashes or fever.

In June, 34,768 cases were reported and 17 people died from the disease in Hunan, the statement said.

According to the Ministry of Health, over 460,000 people were infected by the disease in May, leading to 132 deaths.

In recent days, health departments in numerous Chinese provinces and regions, including Gansu, Fujian, Jiangsu and Xinjiang have issued warnings over the outbreak of the disease, state press reports said.

 

 

 

16.07.2012

Epidemic Hazard

Australia

State of Queensland, Brisbane [Westfield Chermside and Brisbane airport]

 

 

 

Epidemic Hazard in Australia on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 16:25 (04:25 PM) UTC.

Description
People who went to a busy Brisbane shopping centre and the city’s domestic airport last week have been warned to look out for measles symptoms. A person with a confirmed case of the illness visited Westfield Chermside on Thursday and Brisbane airport domestic terminal on Friday while they were infectious, Queensland Health says. Measles is one of the most infectious of all communicable diseases, and is spread by coughing and sneezing. The initial symptoms of fever, lethargy, runny nose, moist cough and sore and red eyes usually start around 10 days after infection. They are followed a few days later by a blotchy red rash on the face, which then becomes widespread. Queensland Health says anyone who develops the symptoms should phone their GP before visiting, so they can avoid the disease spreading to other patients. It says measles complications can include pneumonia or encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) and occasionally death. It can be a severe illness even in otherwise healthy adolescents and young adults.
Biohazard name:	Measles
Biohazard level:	2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:	Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

 

 

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Solar Activity

2MIN News July 16, 2012

Published on Jul 16, 2012 by Suspicious0bservers

TODAYS LINKS
Black Hole Burst: http://phys.org/news/2012-07-image-black-hole-outburst-spiral.html
DROUHGT: http://www.weather.com/news/drought-disaster-photos-20120713?pageno=1

REPEAT LINKS
Spaceweather: http://spaceweather.com/ [Look on the left at the X-ray Flux and Solar Wind Speed/Density]

HAARP: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/haarp/data.html [Click online data, and have a little fun]

SDO: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/ [Place to find Solar Images and Videos – as seen from earth]

SOHO: http://sohodata.nascom.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/soho_movie_theater [SOHO; Lasco and EIT – as seen from earth]

Stereo: http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/images [Stereo; Cor, EUVI, HI – as seen from the side]

SunAEON:http://www.sunaeon.com/#/solarsystem/ [Just click it… trust me]

SOLARIMG: http://solarimg.org/artis/ [All purpose data viewing site]

iSWA: http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov/iswa/iSWA.html [Free Application; for advanced sun watchers]

NOAA ENLIL SPIRAL: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/wsa-enlil/cme-based/ [CME Evolution]

NOAA Bouys: http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/

RSOE: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php [That cool alert map I use]

JAPAN Radiation Map: http://jciv.iidj.net/map/

LISS: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/heliplots_gsn.php

Gamma Ray Bursts: http://grb.sonoma.edu/ [Really? You can’t figure out what this one is for?]

BARTOL Cosmic Rays: http://neutronm.bartol.udel.edu//spaceweather/welcome.html [Top left box, look for BIG blue circles]

TORCON: http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-torcon-index [Tornado Forecast for the day]

GOES Weather: http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/goes/ [Clouds over America]

INTELLICAST: http://www.intellicast.com/ [Weather site used by many youtubers]

NASA News: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/

PHYSORG: http://phys.org/ [GREAT News Site!]

 

 

Solar storm sweeps over Earth

Skywatchers keep an eye out for northern lights; no negative effects reported

 

Space weather experts kept track of a solar storm that swept over our planet on Saturday, representing the fallout from a powerful solar flare earlier this week.

“The impact was not as strong as forecasters expected,” SpaceWeather.com’s Tony Phillips wrote. “Nevertheless, the blow compressed Earth’s magnetosphere and sparked a mild … geomagnetic storm.”

The solar storm originated from a massive solar flare on Thursday that included a powerful eruption on the sun, known as a coronal mass ejection, or CME. The eruption sent a wave of charged solar plasma toward Earth. The CME could amplify auroral displays, some space weather officials said

Initial forecasts predicted the CME would arrive at Earth between 5 a.m. and 9 a.m. ET, with an error margin of plus or minus seven hours. The actual timing was on the late side: SpaceWeather.com reported that the CME hit Earth’s magnetic field at about 2 p.m. ET.

This weekend’s solar storm originated from one of the most powerful sun flares to occur this year. The flare registered as an X1.4-class sun storm, one of the strongest flares the sun can unleash. It marked the sixth X-class solar flare of 2012.

The solar storm erupted from the giant sunspot AR1520, or Active Region 1520, which is actually a group of sunspots that at its peak may have stretched across 186,000 miles of the sun’s surface, NASA scientists have said. [ Photos of Huge Sunspot AR1520 ]

Auroral displays occur when charged solar particle interact with Earth’s upper atmosphere. Usuallly, they are confined to high-latitude regions around the polar regions by the planet’s magnetic field. Space weather forecasters said there was a chance that the auroral zone would be more extended on Saturday night.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center is tracking AR1520, as well as several other active spots on the sun, for signs of more activity. This weekend’s solar storm was not expected to pose a major risk to satellites and spacecraft in orbit, or to power systems on Earth.

The sun is currently in the middle of an active phase in its 11-year sunspot cycle. The current cycle is known as Solar Cycle 24 and expected to peak in 2013.

 

 

Watch Video Here

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Space

 

Earth approaching objects (objects that are known in the next 30 days)
Object Name	Apporach Date	Left	AU Distance	LD Distance	Estimated Diameter*	Relative Velocity
(2012 BV26)	18th July 2012	1 day(s)	0.1759	68.4	94 m – 210 m	10.88 km/s	39168 km/h
(2010 OB101)	19th July 2012	2 day(s)	0.1196	46.6	200 m – 450 m	13.34 km/s	48024 km/h
(2008 OX1)	20th July 2012	3 day(s)	0.1873	72.9	130 m – 300 m	15.35 km/s	55260 km/h
(2010 GK65)	21st July 2012	4 day(s)	0.1696	66.0	34 m – 75 m	17.80 km/s	64080 km/h
(2011 OJ45)	21st July 2012	4 day(s)	0.1367	53.2	18 m – 39 m	3.79 km/s	13644 km/h
153958 (2002 AM31)	22nd July 2012	5 day(s)	0.0351	13.7	630 m – 1.4 km	9.55 km/s	34380 km/h
(2011 CA7)	23rd July 2012	6 day(s)	0.1492	58.1	2.3 m – 5.1 m	5.43 km/s	19548 km/h
(2012 BB124)	24th July 2012	7 day(s)	0.1610	62.7	170 m – 380 m	8.78 km/s	31608 km/h
(2009 PC)	28th July 2012	11 day(s)	0.1772	68.9	61 m – 140 m	7.34 km/s	26424 km/h
217013 (2001 AA50)	31st July 2012	14 day(s)	0.1355	52.7	580 m – 1.3 km	22.15 km/s	79740 km/h
(2012 DS30)	02nd August 2012	16 day(s)	0.1224	47.6	18 m – 39 m	5.39 km/s	19404 km/h
(2000 RN77)	03rd August 2012	17 day(s)	0.1955	76.1	410 m – 920 m	9.87 km/s	35532 km/h
(2004 SB56)	04th August 2012	18 day(s)	0.1393	54.2	380 m – 840 m	13.72 km/s	49392 km/h
(2000 SD8)	04th August 2012	18 day(s)	0.1675	65.2	180 m – 400 m	5.82 km/s	20952 km/h
(2006 EC)	06th August 2012	20 day(s)	0.0932	36.3	13 m – 28 m	6.13 km/s	22068 km/h
(2006 MV1)	07th August 2012	21 day(s)	0.0612	23.8	12 m – 28 m	4.79 km/s	17244 km/h
(2005 RK3)	08th August 2012	22 day(s)	0.1843	71.7	52 m – 120 m	8.27 km/s	29772 km/h
(2009 BW2)	09th August 2012	23 day(s)	0.0337	13.1	25 m – 56 m	5.27 km/s	18972 km/h
277475 (2005 WK4)	09th August 2012	23 day(s)	0.1283	49.9	260 m – 580 m	6.18 km/s	22248 km/h
(2004 SC56)	09th August 2012	23 day(s)	0.0811	31.6	74 m – 170 m	10.57 km/s	38052 km/h
(2008 AF4)	10th August 2012	24 day(s)	0.1936	75.3	310 m – 690 m	16.05 km/s	57780 km/h
37655 Illapa	12th August 2012	26 day(s)	0.0951	37.0	770 m – 1.7 km	28.73 km/s	103428 km/h
(2012 HS15)	14th August 2012	28 day(s)	0.1803	70.2	220 m – 490 m	11.54 km/s	41544 km/h
1 AU = ~150 million kilometers,1 LD = Lunar Distance = ~384,000 kilometers Source: NASA-NEO

 

 

 

 

 

Large Number Of Space Debris Objects In Low-Earth Orbit Is Increasing 

 

MessageToEagle.com – There is a huge amount of space debris in orbit around the Earth and this is a problem.

About 70% of all catalogued objects are in low-Earth orbit (LEO), which extends to 2000 km above the Earth’s surface.

According to observations, the number of objects in Earth orbit has increased steadily – by two hundred per year on average.

Space debris comprise the ever-increasing amount of inactive space hardware in orbit around the Earth as well as fragments of spacecraft that have broken up, exploded or otherwise become abandoned.

Image credit: ESA

The launch of the first artificial satellite by the Soviet Union in 1957 marked the beginning of the utilization of space for science and commercial activity.

During the Cold War, space was a prime area of competition between the USSR and USA, reaching its climax with the race to the Moon in the 1960s.In 1964 the first TV satellite was launched into a geostationary orbit in order to transmit the Olympic games from Tokyo. Later, Russian launch activities declined while other nations set up their own space programs. Between the launch of Sputnik on 4 October 1957 and 1 January 2008, approximately 4600 launches have placed some 6000 satellites into orbit, of which about 400 are travelling beyond geostationary orbit or on interplanetary trajectories.

Today, it is estimated that only 800 satellites are operational – roughly 45 percent of these are both in LEO and GEO.

About 50 percent of all trackable objects are due to in-orbit explosion events (about 200) or collision events (less than 10).

Trackable objects in orbit around Earth. Image credit: ESA

Image credit: ESA

70% of all catalogued objects are in low-Earth orbit (LEO), which extends to 2000 km above the Earth’s surface. To observe the Earth, spacecraft must orbit at such a low altitude. The spatial density of objects increases at high latitudes.

Debris objects in low-Earth orbit (LEO) Image credit: ESA

Image credit: ESA

What happens after an explosion in space? A geostationary satellite has a velocity of about 3 kms/second (11,000 kms/hour). The fragments are ejected with a much lower velocity and thus stay close to the initial orbit. However, some will travel a bit faster and others a bit slower.

Within a few days the debris cloud will form a diffuse ring at 36,000 km altitude around the Earth.

Image credit: ESA

In any stable orbit, a satellite is in an equilibrium between the Earth’s gravity (indicated here with a blue arrow) and centrifugal force, due to its velocity (indicated in green). Additional perturbing forces, e. g. by Sun and Moon, also act on geostationary satellites.

The debris objects shown in the images are an artist’s impression based on actual density data. However, the debris objects are shown at an exaggerated size to make them visible at the scale shown.
MessageToEagle.com based on information provided by ESA

See also:
Dangerous Apophis Will Reach Our Planet In 2036: Will It Strike Earth?

 

 

Powerful Luminous Outburst
From A Black Hole In M83 Observed By Chandra 

 

MessageToEagle.com – The black hole in the galaxy M83 is now producing 3000 times more X-rays than it had been before it became mega-powerful!

This extraordinary outburst from a black hole has now been seen with NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory.

Astronomers observed what is called a ULX, or ultraluminous X-ray source.

The remarkable behavior of this ULX in M83 provides direct evidence for a population of older, volatile, stellar-mass black holes. The spiral galaxy M83, where this extraordinary event took place, is located about 15 million light years from Earth. Such powerful outbursts give off more X-rays than most normal binary systems in which a companion star is in orbit around a neutron star or black hole.

In recent years, astronomers have discovered fascinating regions around black holes that are giving off a crazy amount of X-rays – a lot more than what should be possible.

The galaxy M83, is one of such places, where astronomers have discovered such a weirdly powerful black hole.

Astronomers still don’t fully understand what is making these black holes mega-powerful, but it could be that they are much heavier than normal black holes.

Click on image to enlargeStarting on the left the image features an optical view of the full M83 galaxy, while the right images show a close up of the region where the ULX was found with data from Chandra (pink) and Hubble (blue and yellow) Credit: Optical: ESO/VLT; Close-up – X-ray: NASA/CXC/Curtin University/R.Soria et al., Optical: NASA/STScI/Middlebury College/F.Winkler et al.

A heavy black hole could pull in more material than a smaller black hole, which would make a lot more X-rays. Instead of being a few times heavier than the Sun, like normal black holes, the mega-powerful ones could be up to 100 times heavier!

Since the 1980s, astronomers have known about a mysterious class of objects that they call “ultraluminous X-ray sources,” or ULXs.

Click on image to enlargeBefore and After Images in X-ray and Optical Light

In Chandra observations that spanned several years, the ULX in M83 increased in X-ray brightness by at least 3,000 times. This sudden brightening is one of the largest changes in X-rays ever seen for this type of object, which do not usually show dormant periods. Credit: Optical: ESO/VLT; Close-up – X-ray: NASA/CXC/Curtin University/R.Soria et al., Optical: NASA/STScI/Middlebury College/F.Winkler et al)
They named them this because these objects give off more X-ray light than most other binary systems where black holes or neutron stars are in orbit around a normal companion star.

Recent astronomical observation of a ULX in the spiral galaxy M83 gives scientists new clues about what really happens in this region of space.

This ULX increased its output in X-rays by 3,000 times over the course of several years. Using clues found in the X-ray and optical data, researchers think this ULX may be a member of a population of black holes that up until now was suspected to exist but had not been confirmed.

These black holes, which are the smaller stellar-mass black holes, are older and more volatile than previously thought.

MessageToEagle.com

See also:
Spectacular Unknown Object Seen In The Skies Over New Zealand

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Lightning

Three soccer players in Houston struck by lightning

Harris County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Thomas Gilliland says rain halted a men’s league soccer club around noon on Sunday and the players all run for cover under some nearby trees.

By Associated Press

• 

Sheriff’s Deputy Joe Shriver points to where he saw the first victim that was killed by a lighting strike at a soccer field on Sunday, July 15, 2012, in Houston. Two men have been killed and a third injured after they were struck by lightning during a thunderstorm.

Mayra Beltran/Houston Chronicle/AP

Enlarge

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Biological Hazards / Wildlife

 

 

16.07.2012

Biological Hazard

USA

State of California, [Encinitas coastal region]

 

 

Biological Hazard in USA on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 19:00 (07:00 PM) UTC.

Description
Lifeguards report that 135 people were stung by jellyfish at Encinitas beaches Sunday. Encinitas lifeguards say the Black Sea Nettle Jellyfish, which is usually 4 to 6 feet long, and the Purple Stripe Jellyfish were caught up in the waves just off the coast. Lifeguards say the warmer waters of the current, coming up from the south, are bringing the jellies into the San Diego area. According to lifeguards, the jellies’ stinging cells on their tentacles cause victims to get a red rash when they remove the stinging cell. They suggest using a vinegar/water solution to take away the pain and letting it dry naturally.
Biohazard name:	Jellyfish invasion (Black Sea Nettle Jellyfish)
Biohazard level:	0/4 —
Biohazard desc.:	This does not included biological hazard category.
Symptoms:
Status:

 

16.07.2012

Environment Pollution

USA

State of Washington, Richland [Columbia River]

 

 

Environment Pollution in USA on Monday, 16 July, 2012 at 16:24 (04:24 PM) UTC.

Description

The U.S. Energy Department has begun moving highly radioactive sludge away from the Columbia River in Richland, Wash., the agency announced. At the Hanford Site, a former nuclear production facility, workers transferred the first large container of sludge from a basin next to a former plutonium production reactor to dry storage in the center of the site, the agency said. CH2M HILL Plateau Remediation Company is doing the work. The recent transfer of materials is the first of six shipments expected this summer to move the sludge away from the Columbia River. A separate system is being built to remove the rest of the sludge from the basin by the end of 2015, the agency said. “This sludge has been stored underwater in the basin for more than 30 years, and today marks a turning point in our cleanup,” said Matt McCormick, manager of the Richland Operations Office, in a statement. “This is a great step toward reducing risk to the Columbia River.”

 

 

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