Earth ChangesS


Seismograph

5.2 magnitude earthquake strikes off Philippines

Philippine Coast Guard and Police Maritime unit
© AP Photo/ Bullit MarquezPhilippine Coast Guard and Police Maritime unit
The earthquake occurred at 01:23 GMT on Monday at a depth of 10 kilometers (approximately 6 miles), 61 kilometers (about 38 miles) north of Namuac, a city located in the Philipinne Cagayan Valley region, according to the USGS.

​No information on casualties or damage from the quake has been provided to date.

Camera

Intense pink Aurora Borealis captured over Alaska

Pink aurora over Alaska
© James Helmericks
Intense pink auroras are dancing around the Arctic Circle on Christmas Day 2016. James Helmericks sends this picture from the Colville River Delta in northern Alaska.

"This was the brightest pink display I have ever seen, at one time even giving the snow a pink tinge," he says.

The pink color is probably a sign of nitrogen. Most auroras are green--a verdant glow caused by energetic particles from space hitting oxygen atoms 100 km to 300 km above Earth's surface. Seldom-seen pink appears when the energetic particles descend lower than usual, striking nitrogen molecules at the 100 km level and below. Such deep-penetrating particles are being produced by the solar wind stream now blowing around Earth.

On the days and nights around Christmas 2016, the pinks became so intense, they appeared white, not only to cameras, "but also to the naked eye," says Sarah Skinner, who witnessed the strange colors several nights in a row from Abisko, Sweden. "It looked like someone had photoshopped the sky!" she says

Comment: See also: Veteran northern lights guide surprised to see rare pink and white auroras


Attention

7.7 magnitude earthquake hits off coast of Chile, tsunami threat issued

Chile earthquake
© USGS
An earthquake of 7.7 magnitude was registered in southern Chile on Sunday, prompting a tsunami threat message for areas as far as 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from the epicenter.

The quake's epicenter was 225km (140 miles) southwest of Puerto Montt in southern Chile, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), with a depth of about 15km (nine miles).

The National Emergency Office of the Chilean Interior Ministry and Public Security (ONEMI) has warned people in the coastal regions to leave the areas due to the tsunami threat.

People in the Biobio, Araucania, Los Rios, and Aysen regions have been advised to evacuate, ONEMI said on its official Twitter account.

Based on the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center's threat messages, "hazardous tsunami waves are forecast for some coasts." An earlier message said tsunami waves were "possible" within a 1,000km radius from the epicenter. Tsunami waves of up to three meters above the tide level might reach some coasts of Chile, it said.

Seismograph

Series of shallow earthquakes hits Siargao Island, Philippines

Graph
A series of earthquakes struck Siargao Island, Surigao del Norte province yesterday, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said.

In its bulletin, Phivolcs said the first earthquake was measured at magnitude 4.5 and registered at 12:09 a.m. The epicenter was plotted 24 kilometers (km) northeast of San Isidro town, Siargao Island, Surigao del Norte, with a depth of 10 kms.

An intensity 3 quake was also recorded in Surigao City, Phivolcs said.

At 1:35 a.m., a 4.3-magnitude tremor was registered in the same area, with its epicenter traced 40 km northeast, with a depth of only six kms.

Another 4.3 magnitude earthquake was recorded at 2:16 a.m. with the epicenter located 42 kms northeast of that same town, with a depth of nine kms., Phivolcs said.

Snowflake Cold

Christmas storm forecast to dump heavy snow, blizzards in U.S. West, Plains

A woman stands in high snow in Tieton Dam, Wash. on Saturday, Dec. 24, 2016.
© @ciaraschultz / instagramA woman stands in high snow in Tieton Dam, Wash. on Saturday, Dec. 24, 2016.
A major holiday winter storm packing heavy snow and the threat of blizzard conditions is bearing down on the northern-tier states from the Rockies to the upper Midwest and is likely to shut down major highways in parts of the northern Plains as it rolls eastward Christmas Day and Monday.

The stretch of northern states can expect blowing snow and drifts from strong winds, possibly in excess of 60 mph, making travel hazardous, the National Weather Service warns.

In addition, snow and a wintry mix is possible from the Great Lakes to the Northeast, with rain and a few thunderstorms likely from the lower/mid-Mississippi Valley to the Mid-Atlantic on Saturday, the weather service says.

map storm

Ice Cube

Flagstaff, Arizona expects foot of snow by Christmas morning

Flagstaff Winter storm warning
© NOAA
The National Weather Service says Flagstaff can expect the heaviest snowfall between 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday.

The winter storm warning includes nearly a foot of snow for Flagstaff starting around 11 a.m. and winds blowing 20 to 25 mph, with gusts up to 36 mph. To the east of Flagstaff along Interstate 40 to the New Mexico border, winds will blow 45 to 55 mph. Travel will be extremely hazardous in the afternoon and evening and should be avoided if possible.

Snow could fall down to 3,000 feet as temperatures plummet by evening before tapering off Christmas morning. Doney Park can expect 5 to 9 inches of snow, Williams 7 to 11.

The high temperature Sunday will be just 28 degrees in Flagstaff and the overnight low 8 degrees.

Areas above 8,000 feet could see up to 20 inches of snow, prompting the Coconino National Forest to close most forest roads for the winter. Check its website for full details.

Friday 5 p.m. update: Hazardous travel warning issued for Saturday in Flagstaff region

The National Weather Service is warning of hazardous travel conditions amid blowing, heavy snow across much of northern Arizona Saturday afternoon and evening.

Snowflake

Heaviest December snowfall for 50 years causes transport chaos in Hokkaido, Japan

Snow at airport
Nearly 100 airline flights, hundreds of trains cancelled

The heaviest December snowfall in Hokkaido in 50 years forced the cancellation on Saturday of nearly 100 airline flights and hundreds of trains, according to transport companies and authorities.

New Chitose Airport, a main gateway to the northernmost main island of Japan, struggled to bring business back to normal after around 6,000 people spent Friday night there due to the cancellation of more than 280 flights.

The number of people stranded overnight at the airport's passenger terminal was the most since its opening in 1992, airport operator Hokkaido Airport Terminal Co. said.
snow airport

Seismograph

Several earthquakes, 1 of magnitude 3.5, strike north Oklahoma

Graph
The U.S. Geological Survey says several earthquakes have struck northern Oklahoma, including one with a preliminary magnitude of 3.5.

No injuries or damage are reported from the quakes that occurred Friday afternoon near Mooreland, about 108 miles northwest of Oklahoma City.

The 3.5 magnitude quake was recorded about 2:45 p.m. Friday, followed aftershocks with preliminary magnitudes ranging from 2.5 to 3.3.

Geologists say damage is unlikely in earthquakes below magnitude 4.0.

Thousands of earthquakes have been recorded across Oklahoma in recent years, and many have been linked to the underground disposal of wastewater from oil and natural gas operations. Regulators have asked oil and natural gas producers to close injection wells in certain areas or reduce the volume of fluids they inject.

Source: AP

Seismograph

Shallow earthquake of magnitude 4.4 felt in Dubrovnik, Croatia

earthquake map
More earthquake activity near the Adriatic coast in the early hours of December 24, 2016.

A strong earthquake with a magnitude of 4.4 has been felt in Dubrovnik and the surrounding areas. It's epicentre is in Montenegro, at a depth of 13 kilometres. The earthquake struck at 00:39 on Christmas Eve, and follows the recent tremor near Split which registered 4.8 on the Richter scale.

As things currently stand, there is no report of any material damage.

Seismograph

Shallow earthquake of magnitude 3.1 strikes near Santa Barbara, California

A map showing the location of the epicenter of Saturday morning's quake near Santa Barbara, Calif.
© Bing MapsA map showing the location of the epicenter of Saturday morning's quake near Santa Barbara, Calif.
A shallow magnitude 3.1 earthquake was reported Saturday morning three miles from Santa Barbara, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The temblor occurred at 6:15 a.m. at a depth of 6.2 miles.

According to the USGS, the epicenter was five miles from Goleta, six miles from Isla Vista and 13 miles from Carpinteria.

In the last 10 days, there have been no earthquakes of magnitude 3.0 or greater centered nearby.

This information comes from the USGS Earthquake Notification Service and this post was created by an algorithm written by the author.