5.9 magnitude earthquake

2017-09-10 21:40:21 UTC

USGS page: M 5.9 - Reykjanes Ridge
USGS status: Reviewed by a seismologist
Reports from the public: 0 people

10 km depth

A welcome dose of common sense from Booker:

Terrible though the deaths and damage caused by Hurricane Irma may be, the way it has been reported makes one wonder whether, after more than 10 years that have seen Atlantic hurricane activity at its lowest level for decades, everyone has forgotten what these monster tropical storms are like.

The media have gone way over the top, with headlines such as "the most powerful Atlantic hurricane on record", even "the deadliest storm in history".

But two minutes on the internet could show that, of the 10 "deadliest" such storms ever, Hurricane Mitch (1998) killed 11,000 people in Central America, the death toll there from Fifi-Orlene (1974) was 8,000, and 7,000 died in the Caribbean from Flora (1963).

As for the "most powerful" storms, measured by wind speed, Irma's 185mph stands alongside Wilma in 2005, Gilbert in 1988 and the US Labor Day hurricane of 1935; Allen (1980), which killed 269, topped them all at 190mph.

So Irma hardly matches up to all its hysterical billing and was almost certainly outperformed by numerous hurricanes in history which happened before their intensity could be measured - the "Great Barbados Hurricane" of 1780 killed 20,000 or more in the Windward Islands.

But at least one person who got what he wanted from Irma was Justin Webb, of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4. Last week I wrote about how he tried in vain to persuade various interviewees to blame Storm Harvey on climate change. Finally, on Thursday, he got the prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda to trot out all the required mantras, in a manner that not even Al Gore could have faulted.

"The science is very clear." "Climate change is real." This "unprecedented" disaster has been one of the consequences.

By Friday, Today had even found two "experts" to discuss whether the world's top "CO2 polluting" fossil-fuel companies could be made to pay for the clean-up after Irma.

What a good thing the Today programme wasn't around at the time of the Great Barbados Hurricane of 1780.

It is of course ironic that it was the Telegraph itself that was at the forefront of fake claims about "most powerful" and "most deadly". Indeed, it is still at it this morning, to the disgust of many commenters:

As for the BBC, nothing should surprise us any more about their biased handling of climate change.

I am sure he has many other abilities, but I am also pretty sure that Barbuda's Prime Minister is not a meteorologist. So what is the purpose of Justin Webb asking him whether climate change was to blame for Hurricane Irma?

While we're on the topic of the Telegraph, they currently have this video running on their website.
It is produced by one of the Telegraph "journalists" Laurence Dodds, who looks as if he has just left 6th Form.

It makes the usual naive claims about how weather is getting more extreme, but concludes that we are all going to be saved by the Paris Agreement.

It is probably too much to expect young Master Dodds to actually check the facts!

With Hurricane Irma bearing down on the west coast of Florida with 140 mph winds, and last week Hurricane Harvey drowning Texas, there is much talk of CO2 causing the weather intensity changes. Why is it that longer term cycles, cosmic rays and the grand solar minimum are not discussed as causes in intensification for the changes globally we are seeing. I present my findings that cosmic rays are causing the extreme weather we are seeing and a timeline for more intensification based on feedback loops of more cloud cover due to a weakened magnetosphere allowing cosmic rays to form more clouds between 15,000-18,500 ft in the Earth's atmosphere.

When a hurricane approaches, there is storm surge that piles up water, but when it is out at sea, especially in shallow waters, the vacuum effect of the low pressure of the storm can suck water away from the shores. Offshore winds also play a big role. Such is the case here. This photo, taken by Dana Young and posted on Twitter, shows the effect.

She writes:

Hours before Irma hits, the water is literally being sucked out of Tampa Bay. I took this photo at the end of my street. This was at Albany and Bayshore 15 min ago.

Part of the Swiss alpine glacier Trift in the country's south collapsed on Sunday (Sept 10), but caused no damage or casualties and residents evacuated from the area can return home, police in Valais canton said.

More than 220 people living in the ski resort of Saas-Fee had to leave their homes on Saturday as authorities feared a collapse of the glacier could trigger an ice avalanche which could reach the village.

The lower part of the glacier collapsed early on Sunday but did not reach the houses, allowing residents to return and for a local road to reopen, though hiking trails remain closed, police said in a statement.

Geologists had recently noticed significant movement along the "tongue" of the Trift glacier, up to 130cm in a single day, local authorities said.

Satellite images have revealed a spooky, face-like formation in the eye of Hurricane Irma as the deadly storm is poised to make landfall in the US.

After roaring its way along the Caribbean leaving a trail of carnage in its wake, the Category 4 hurricane is now set to crash into the coast of Florida, with Governor Rick Scott warning that the state is facing the "most catastrophic" storm it has ever seen.

NASA has been sharing satellite images and timelapse videos as the hurricane hurtled through the Bahamas and Cuba, leaving at least 22 people dead and destroying countless homes, businesses, and even hospitals.

The images convey the immense ferocity of the storm as it barrels along its way, though several social media users have noticed an even more chilling feature in some of the pictures - the appearance of a face.

This week on Behind the Headlines we're taking in some of the wild weather currently rocking the planet. Not two weeks after Harvey pummeled the Texas coast, the Caribbean is recovering from an extremely powerful hurricane, and Florida's next in its sights.

Also this week, Mexico's strongest-ever earthquake coincided with the strongest solar flare in over a decade, as well as the impact of yet another hurricane. In the north of the continent, another record-breaking wildfire season - coming after record-breaking snowfalls last winter - just won't end.‌

In the meantime, this week's geopolitical earthquakes in and around northeast Asia saw BRICS nations strengthen economic ties and their positions on North Korea's nukes. Leading the way is another 'force of nature', Vladimir Putin, whose patience is paying off in Syria, where the last major ISIS stronghold of Deir ez Zor collapsed last week.‌

Join us this Sunday 3 September 2017 from 12-2pm EST (4-6pm UTC / 6-8pm CET) for the end of the world as we know it!

Running Time: 01:46:06

Download: MP3

THIS eerie footage captured by a Scottish driver shows MORE spooky black rings floating in the sky near a motorway as the mystery concerning what they are deepens.

The sinister spectacle reappeared near the M9 in Linlithgow, Scotland, following similar sightings in West Yorkshire, the US and Russia.

Stunned driver Michael Georgeson said that he's 'never seen anything like this before' . Sinister unexplained black smoke rings have been spotted in the US, Russia and now Scotland

Dubbed "smoke vortexes", they have been appearing in remote spots in Siberia and the American Midwest - with another recent one being spotted in the UK.

While this won't be of much comfort for those that are squarely in it's path right now, it is a small bit of good news. Dr. Philip Klotzbach has compiled rankings of both hurricane Irma and Harvey when they made landfall. Compared to the 1935 Labor Day storm, Irma is a distant 7th, tied with the 1928 Lake Okeechobee storm.

A man livestreamed Hurricane Irma from his boat in Key West, as the Category 4 storm prepared to make landfall over the lower Keys.

The footage was broadcast from the sailing vessel Andromeda on the boat's dedicated Facebook page.

Footage was interrupted on a number of occasions, finally cutting out as the eye of Hurricane Irma was just 20 miles east-southeast of Key West.

Rough seas were seen and strong winds could be heard as the sailor, Ryan Stone, pointed out debris in the water from his docked vessel.