Earth ChangesS


Better Earth

Earth's hot core, not global warming, responsible for Greenland's melting ice sheet

Isabelle Z.
Natural News
Thu, 25 Jan 2018 22:10 UTC
greenland ice sheet
The ice sheet in Greenland is melting, but it turns out that the culprit is not global warming, as some people would like to have you believe. Instead, researchers have now found proof that a hidden heat source deep inside the planet is behind this melting that is pushing glaciers into the ocean.

Researchers from Aarhus University in Denmark used a decade-long survey of the Young Sound fjord in Greenland to reach their conclusions. Throughout the course of the survey, measurements were taken of the salinity levels and temperatures in the fjord, where the water at depths of between 650 and 1,100 feet has been gradually warming.

They found that a significant amount of this heat comes from the interior of the Earth. According to their estimates, 100 megawatts of energy per square meter were transferred from the interior of the Earth to the fjord, and it's believed that similar heat amounts were transferred to the undersides of surrounding glaciers. This is roughly equivalent to a wind turbine of 2 megawatts sending electricity to a gigantic heater in the bottom of the fjord throughout the year. Their findings were published in the journal Scientific Reports.
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Blue Planet

Lake Michigan's blue waters come at a high cost

Tony Briscoe
Chicago Tribune
Sat, 27 Jan 2018 20:53 UTC
gang of mussels
Decades ago, Lake Michigan teemed with nutrients and green algae, casting a brownish-green hue that resembled the mouth of an inland river rather than a vast, open-water lake.

Back then, the lake's swampy complexion was less than inviting to swimmers and kayakers, but it supported a robust fishing industry as several commercial companies trawled for perch, and sport fishermen cast their lines for trout. But in the past 20 years, Lake Michigan has undergone a dramatic transformation.

In analyzing satellite images between 1998 and 2012, researchers at the Michigan Tech Research Institute were surprised to find that lakes Michigan and Huron are now clearer than Lake Superior. In a study published late last year, the researchers say limiting the amount of agricultural and sewage runoff in the lake has had an immense impact. However, the emergence of invasive mussels, which number in the trillions and have the ability to filter the entire volume of Lake Michigan in four to six days, has had an even greater effect.

"When you look at the scientific terms, we are approaching some oceanic values," said Michael Sayers, a research engineer at Michigan Tech and co-author of the study. "We have some ways to go, but we are getting a lot closer to Lake Tahoe. A lot of times, you'll hear from people that the water is so blue it compares to something in tropical areas."
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Snowflake

Heavy snowfall shuts schools and airports in Tehran, Iran


Iran Front Page
Sat, 27 Jan 2018 21:02 UTC
snow
Heavy snowfall in Iran's capital has shut the two main airports of the city while the authorities have announced that all schools across Tehran will also be closed on Sunday.

Imam Khomeini Airport's runway has been closed due to heavy snowfall and attempts are made to clear the runway at Mehrabad Airport in central Tehran.

Since mid-January until now, some Iranian cities have witnessed rainfall and snowfall despite the fact that the country as a whole is facing lack of rainfall and precipitation since the start of the raining season compared to last year.

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Snowflake

Winter storm delivers snow to Saudi Arabia and Lebanon (PHOTOS, VIDEOS)


The National
Sat, 27 Jan 2018 15:30 UTC
snow
Residents in Saudi shared photos of the rare covering of snow

It isn't all sunshine and sand in the Middle East, especially in northern Saudi Arabia which has been on the receiving end of a wintry blast this weekend.

The wintry weather arrived in the kingdom on Friday, bringing a covering of snow to the Tabuk region.

Residents were quick to share their pictures of the wintry scenes on social media.

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Cloud Lightning

Woman killed by lightning in South Africa


eNCA
Sat, 27 Jan 2018 15:24 UTC
lightning
A 49-year-old South African woman died on Friday, after she was struck by lightning on a farm in Ladybrand in Free State, paramedics said.

"When ER24 paramedics arrived on the scene at 4.35pm, they found the woman lying on the ground covered with a blanket. The police were already in attendance," ER24 spokesperson Ineke van Huyssteen said.

"Upon further assessment, paramedics found that the woman had sustained extensive burn wounds to the front part of her body. Unfortunately, the woman showed no signs of life and she was declared dead on the scene by ER24."

Source: African News Agency
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Arrow Down

Sinkhole opens up in Belgium near infamous WWI battlefield


Live Leak
Thu, 25 Jan 2018 11:59 UTC
Sinkhole opens up in Belgium
Sinkhole opens up in Belgium
A large sinkhole opened up in a field in Belgium at the weekend, possibly the result underground tunnels dug more than 100 years ago during WWI.

The sinkhole, which measures five metres across, was found in a muddy field in Ypres, where three of the bloodiest battles of WWI were fought in 1914,1915 and 1917.

According to the filmer, networks of hidden tunnels and trenches still exist in this area and may have caused the ground to give way here, creating the sinkhole.

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Seismograph

Shallow magnitude 6.2 earthquake north of Papua New Guinea

Armand Vervaeck
Earthquake Report
Fri, 26 Jan 2018 11:10 UTC
Shaking MMI rings. The coastline got a max. light shaking.
Shaking MMI rings. The coastline got a max. light shaking.
Most important Earthquake Data:

Magnitude : 6.2

Local Time (conversion only below land) : Unknown

GMT/UTC Time : 2018-01-26 22:47:57

Depth (Hypocenter) : 10 km

Comment: Strong seismic activity across the planet in the first month of 2018 is showing a marked increase, listed below are all the earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater (a total of 9 with the report above):

Shallow 6.0 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar (Burma)

Shallow 7.1 magnitude earthquake strikes southern Peru, leaves 1 dead and 20 injured

Magnitude 6.3 earthquake strikes Mexico

Magnitude 6.3 earthquake jolts northern Chile

Powerful 6.0 magnitude earthquake hits off coast of Java, Indonesia

Tsunami warning for US and Canadian Pacific coast after 8.2 magnitude earthquake strikes in Gulf of Alaska - UPDATE

6.4 magnitude earthquake hits off of Japan

Shallow magnitude 6.4 earthquake strikes off Russia's east coast



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Cloud Precipitation

Lyon's twin rivers threaten floods as Rhone & Saone rise

Robert Hackwill
Euronews
Fri, 26 Jan 2018 18:48 UTC
The swollen river Rhone in Lyon, France
© The Local FranceThe swollen river Rhone in Lyon, France
The floods in the French capital Paris are getting all the headlines, but the rising waters in France's second city, Lyon, are also causing concern.

The Saone and Rhone rivers meet in the city, and have broken their banks in the past, most recently in 2003 when the road by the Saone was cut and homes flooded just north of the city.

"I spent all my childhood on the riverside and I rarely saw floods like this, it's pretty impressive," said one man.

"For the Saone, it's been years since we saw it in flood. In general, every winter it is in flood, but the situation is exceptional this year for the Rhône because it is not often that it is in flood. The meeting of the two rivers - confluence - is catastrophic," said one woman.

The lower levels of public car parks closest to the river banks were evacuated and closed, exacerbating the already difficult parking in the city.

Some private garages were preparing to pump out water if needed.

"The car parks are completely flooded and you feel the lack of spaces in the city center," said one frustrated motorist.


Comment: Meanwhile hundreds of people have been evacuated, tunnels and roads have been sealed off and the bottom floor of the Louvre has closed as Paris braces for more floods. The River Seine burst its banks on Tuesday and reached 5.6m (18ft) high on Friday morning at the Austerlitz bridge in eastern Paris following days of heavy rain.

Meteo France said the rainfall was double the average for this time of year. There are predictions of 6m (20ft) for the weekend - just below the 6.2m it reached two years ago, which led to two people dying and several being injured amid a state of emergency.

See also: Paris flooding to get worse as Seine expected to rise despite break from "double the normal rainfall" (VIDEO)



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Snowflake Cold

Heavy snow hits Shanghai for first time in a decade

Mandy Zuo
South China Morning Post
Fri, 26 Jan 2018 15:45 UTC
Shanghai snow

Extreme weather disrupts flights and train services, with several road accidents during rush hour

Shanghai residents are revelling in rare snow, but the extreme weather has disrupted flights and trains in the region and the city also saw a series of traffic accidents during rush hour on Friday.

Many people braved the cold to enjoy the novelty of snow blanketing downtown Shanghai, which has not seen significant snowfall for a decade. In the city's central area, the snow was 4cm deep, while in the suburbs it was 5cm to 10cm.

Zhao Fang, an office manager and mother of a preschooler, said she took the day off work and gave her son the day off school on Friday to fully enjoy the snow.

"We don't want to miss this rare opportunity to play in the snow," she said. "Who knows how many more years it will be before snow will fall again in Shanghai."

Photos shared online by thrilled residents showed people frolicking in the snow, leaving messages on snow-covered cars, making snow angels and building snowmen.

But dozens of parks were closed for safety reasons until the snow was cleared, local news website Xinmin.cn reported.

Comment: Blizzard wreaks havoc across Central, Eastern China

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Snowflake Cold

Thousands in need of emergency relief as extreme cold and heavy snow batter communities in central Atlas regions of Morocco

APO
CNBC Africa.
Fri, 26 Jan 2018 19:46 UTC
Oukaïmeden
Oukaïmeden, Morocco
Heavy snow and unusual, extreme cold weather in January has cut off thousands from major transport routes in Morocco's High and Middle Atlas regions, raising the risk of food shortages and dangerous living conditions for the affected communities.

The combination of heavy snow and temperatures dropping as low as -5° C has caused water supply shortages, power outages, lack of heating and damage to homes. As food supplies dwindle farmers have reported loss of livestock, prompting a surge in food prices.

More than 100 volunteers and staff from the Moroccan Red Crescent have been deployed to central mountainous provinces to provide emergency transport and medical assistance as well as to distribute food, blankets and supplies. The Moroccan Red Crescent assistance is part of the Government's response to support 700,000 people affected by the cold wave.


Comment: See also: Snow blocks 5,000 kilometers of roads in Morocco

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