Earth ChangesS


Question

'Not a nuke': Loud boom heard and felt it Great Falls, Montana

David Sherman
KRTV
Mon, 02 Apr 2018 12:36 UTC
Loud boom in Great Falls, MT
© KRTV
Although the source of the loud boom that was felt and heard in and around Great Falls on Saturday afternoon has not yet been determined, we do know that is was not the result of an accidental detonation of a nuclear missile from Malmstrom Air Force Base.

Hundreds of people reported hearing the loud boom in all areas of Great Falls and even beyond; there has been speculation that it may have been a military jet breaking the sound barrier, a small earthquake, a meth lab explosion, or possibly even a "frost quake" (see below).

While those are all possible, we are confident in stating that the boom was not caused by a nuclear missile.

Someone used a website that lets people create their own "news articles" for humorous purposes in order to make a bogus article claiming that the boom was caused by an accidental detonation. The article is riddled with typos, poor grammar, and false statements, such as that Air Force personnel "...can be seen walking 56th St, 38th St, and 24th St with Geiger Counters, checking for radiation levels."
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Snowflake Cold

Snowstorm during Easter dumps up to 11 inches on Nebraska

Kevin Cole and Nancy Gaarder
Omaha World-Herald
Mon, 02 Apr 2018 19:23 UTC
snow
Wintry weather contributed to crashes in Nebraska this weekend that claimed one life and critically injured a second person.

Snow on Easter — in some areas up to 11 inches — caused about two dozen crashes on Nebraska highways, including one that killed a Grand Island woman.

Ramona Senkbile, 84, died in a crash on U.S. Highway 30 in Grand Island on Sunday, the Nebraska State Patrol said.

Cody Thomas, a patrol spokesman, said Senkbile lost control on the snow and her vehicle was struck by an oncoming pickup.

Comment: See also: Omaha breaks 1899 record for low temperature with more snow back in the forecast

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Snowflake Cold

Omaha breaks 1899 record for low temperature with more snow back in the forecast

Jay Withrow
Omaha World-Herald
Wed, 04 Apr 2018 19:12 UTC
The stretch of 84th Street between Giles Road and Harrison Street
The stretch of 84th Street between Giles Road and Harrison Street
A record low temperature was set in Omaha early Wednesday.

Eppley Airfield's overnight low at 4:16 a.m. was 13 degrees, breaking the 1899 record of 18 degrees for April 4.

Grand Island also set a record low of 14, breaking the previous record of 16, set in 1920.

Thursday's high should reach the mid-50s. The Omaha area will have another shot for accumulating snow Friday. And another record low may be set early Saturday.

Comment: See also: Snowstorm during Easter dumps up to 11 inches on Nebraska

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Fish

Thousands of dead fish found at Land O' Lakes, Florida

Dan Matics
FOX 13 News
Wed, 04 Apr 2018 18:31 UTC
dead fish
A subdivision which surrounds Black Lake in Land O' Lakes has seen thousands of dead fish on the banks and floating in the water. Neighbors are sick of the smell and have no idea what is causing the fish kill.

Steve Barrow, who lives near the water, says it started about the middle of last week. The worst of it is over, but a lot of dead fish were still floating Monday.

"A couple of homeowners had family gatherings scheduled for Easter and they canceled them because of the smell," Barrow said.

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Attention

Dozens of dead birds found near monastery in Bulgaria


novinite.com
Tue, 03 Apr 2018 18:21 UTC
Basarbovo monastery
© peika.bgBasarbovo monastery
Dozens of dead song thrush birds were found in the area of ​​Basarbovo monastery near Rousse. The Regional Food Safety Directorate investigates the dead birds for bird flu.

This is the second such case within just two weeks in the Rousse region. Walking past the Basarbovo Monastery, Maria Zlatanova's family was struck by dozens of dead birds. The woman admits that she has never seen such a mass death of birds.

I walked yesterday around Basarbovo and on both sides of the road there were countless birds that died, within 200-300 meters there were 40 to 50 dead birds, stunningly bleak thing to see, "Maria Zlatanova told BNT.
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Question

Numerous fish throw themselves out of the ocean in Northland, New Zealand


New Zealand Herald
Tue, 03 Apr 2018 13:52 UTC
Numerous fish leap out of the water on Karikari Peninsula.
© Ursula HutchinsonNumerous fish leap out of the water on Karikari Peninsula.
When walking on the beach you might expect to see a seal basking in the sun or some rubbish, but not hundreds of live fish jumping out of the water on to land.

That's just what Ursula Hutchinson saw when she was on a walk with her father and her daughter on the Karikari Peninsula in Northland.

"Never in my life have I seen anything like it."

She caught the action on her smartphone on Tuesday which showed the fish, about the length of her size 8 shoe, flopping on the sand.
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Attention

Atypical animal aggression: Otters attack, kill dog in backyard of property in St. Petersburg, Florida


wafb.com
Wed, 04 Apr 2018 13:10 UTC
otter
The peace and serenity of the lapping waters drew Marilyn and Jack Frieman to their Florida home 40 years ago.

But all that came to a crashing halt.

"My grandson came screaming. I mean, it affected him so terribly," Marilyn Frieman explained. "He was just crying and screaming and he was yelling about Bucky."

Otters had crept up into their backyard and attacked Bucky, the couple's 13-year-old Papillon.

The Friemans ran to catch a glimpse of the offending creatures.


Comment: See also this report about the other attack mentioned above: Kayaker attacked by otter in Bradenton, Florida

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Wolf

Mother and son found dead at home in Hanover, Germany after mauling by dog


The Local (Germany)
Wed, 04 Apr 2018 13:00 UTC
A Staffordshire terrier.
© DPAA Staffordshire terrier.
A 52-year-old woman and her 27-year-old son have been found dead at their home in northern Germany after apparently being mauled by their Staffordshire terrier, police said Wednesday.

The pair were discovered at their flat in Hanover, capital of Lower Saxony, on Tuesday evening, after a relative saw the bloodied body of one of the victims through a window and rang the emergency services.

Firefighters were called in to capture the dog who was still inside the residence, Hanover police said in a statement.

Fire personnel broke down the door and caught the dog by using a sling.
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Cloud Precipitation

Hailstorm damages 135,000 acres of crops across Telangana, India

Srinivasa Rao Apparasu
Hindustan Times
Wed, 04 Apr 2018 12:30 UTC
Hailstorms, unseasonal rains batter crops across Telangana
Hailstorms, unseasonal rains batter crops across Telangana
Unseasonal heavy rains coupled with high-speed wind and hailstorm that lashed different parts of Telangana in the last two days caused extensive damage to standing crops in nearly 1.35 lakh acres, agriculture department officials said on Tuesday after preliminary estimates.

Although the heavy rain brought a lot of respite to the people from scorching temperatures which had soared 40 degrees Celsius in several parts of the state, they also caused a lot of misery to the farmers by damaging crops which were almost for harvest.

Senior officials of the agriculture and horticultural departments, who reviewed the situation on Tuesday, estimated that paddy crop suffered the most due to thunderstorms and hailstorms in mostly Nalgonda, Suryapet, Siddipet, Khammam and Warangal districts, besides parts of Ranga Reddy.

Comment: See also: A taste of the future? Hailstorms damage crops in several districts of Bihar, India

Similar events in Asia have also occurred recently in Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh.

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Arrow Up

Volcano erupts on French island of Réunion forming one mile crack

Joey Millar
The Express
Tue, 03 Apr 2018 17:49 UTC
Piton de la Fournaise volcano on Reunion Island has erupted
© Institut de Physique du Globe de ParisPiton de la Fournaise volcano on Reunion Island has erupted
The Piton de la Fournaise volcano on Reunion Island, one of the most active in the world, began erupting this morning for the first time since July 2017.

One scientist warned of a "seismic crisis" after the eruption caused a crack in the crater stretching one mile across the French island, which is located in the Indian Ocean

The eruption was so strong its effected could be seen by satellite, which experts warning it is continuing to "intensity".

And the eruption also caused landslides and fumaroles - openings through which toxic gas escapes.

The Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris (IPGP), a French governmental research institution, said: "The volcanic tremor continues to intensify."

And IPGP seismologist Lucile Bruhat said on Twitter: "Volcanic eruption in progress in Reunion Island at Piton de la Fournaise. Seismic crisis this morning leading to dike (~1km long) opening."

IPGP flew a helicopter over the volcano and said they're local OVPF team had seen "lava fountains" erupting through the crust of the crater.

They said: "Following a reconnaissance made by a team of the OVPF at the ramparts of the Enclos, the eruptive activity could be confirmed.
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