Earth ChangesS

Question

India: Contradictory reports over mysterious death of gharials

The findings of the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) in relation to the "mysterious" death of around 100 "gharials", a member of the crocodile family, from November 2007 to February 2008 in the National Chambal Sanctuary in Etawah district has added another twist in the tale.

In its report submitted to the State Forest and Wildlife Department, dated March 19, 2008, the agency has concluded that lead and cadmium were not found in the waters of the river Yamuna. The sanctuary is situated at the confluence of the Yamuna and the river Chambal, which flows from the neighbouring Madhya Pradesh, in Etawah district. The Pollution Control Board findings indicate that the death of the gharials could not have been due to toxicity.

Stop

China's Yellow River floods town: report

Yellow River floodwaters inundated an entire town in northern China on Friday amid frantic efforts to repair breaches to embankments caused by unexpected high water levels, state media reported.

At least 10,000 residents of Duguitala in the Inner Mongolia region have been evacuated to a nearby desert area since water began pouring into the town on Wednesday, Xinhua news agency quoted a local official as saying.

Embankments began to crumble on Wednesday after soaking in high water, which state television blamed on rapid glacial melt in the Himalayas, the source of the river.

Image
©Unknown

Question

US, Massachusetts: Mysterious ailment hits county bats

An ailment that has stumped scientists and has killed thousands of bats in New York and Vermont is now afflicting bats in Berkshire County and other parts of Massachusetts.

The mysterious sickness has been dubbed "white-nose syndrome" due to one of the symptoms that can be spotted with the eye - white, powdery fungus coating a bat's nose.

Butterfly

The Monarch butterfly's mysterious migration to Mexico

Each autumn, millions of Monarch butterflies embark on a treacherous journey across North America to the same forest in central Mexico -- a migration that baffles scientists as much as it enthralls nature lovers.

Taking wing in an unrelenting stream from Canada, the orange and black "flying flowers" return like clockwork to an ancestral homeland they have never seen 4,500 kilometers (2,800 miles) away, where they will lay their eggs to carry on the species.

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©Unknown
A Monarch butterfly

Cloud Lightning

Florida: Huge Waves Create Dangerous Beach Conditions

Big waves pounded the shoreline at Daytona Beach on Wednesday, creating dangerous conditions for swimmers.

Gusting winds have built up the big surf during the heart of spring break, and with the approaching holiday, lots of locals down were at the beach as well.

Authorities said gusty winds are changing the course of the waves at the beach and helping them grow to between 4 and 6 feet, which is dangerous for swimmers.

Cloud Lightning

Missouri: Heavy Rain, Record Flooding Hit the Ozarks

These are absolutely incredible rainfall totals. The rainfall total of nearly 4 inches at Springfield-Branson National Airport is a record daily amount for the month of March.

Ozarks floods
©KSPR Weather

Good morning. Some of us, for the first time in nearly 36 hours are finally not seeing any rain this morning. Radar shows the eastern Ozarks stil experience heavy rain.

Question

Mirrored glass to blame for bird deaths in Moscow

Mirrored glass could be behind the deaths of some 50 migrant birds reported in Moscow within a week, Moscow's environmental department said on Friday.

A total of 46 dead waxwings were found dead on 15-18 March, with head injuries, broken bones, ruptured internal organs and crushed chests in southeast and northwest Moscow.

Bizarro Earth

Residents moved to safety after Xinjiang earthquake

AN earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale has forced the Xinjiang government to move 144 families in a village of Yutian County to safe places, Xinhua news agency reported today.

Question

Bee colony collapse dilemma still a mystery

For those studying the colony collapse dilemma that continues to affect bee populations around the country, it seems, at least for now, "enigma" remains the buzz-word.

Researchers in the Colony Collapse Disorder field have indicated that various factors - including foreign pathogens, genetics, stress levels, nutrition and pesticides - could be to blame for the problem. But there's still no smoking gun to explain what's become an ongoing scientific mystery.

Snowman

Great Splitting Icebergs

The radar image indicated the berg was unstable and likely to split. Just days afterwards on 4 March, Envisat's Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) sensor captured the break. Both bergs are estimated to measure around 30 km in length. As a reference, South Georgia Island is approximately 180-km long.

The radar image indicated the berg was unstable and likely to split. Just days afterwards on 4 March, Envisat's Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) sensor captured the break. Both bergs are estimated to measure around 30 km in length. As a reference, South Georgia Island is approximately 180-km long.

Image
©ESA
Envisat's Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) sensor captures the break up of the massive A53A iceberg located just east of the South Georgia Island (visible at image bottom) in the southern Atlantic Ocean. Both bergs are estimated to measure around 30 km in length. As a reference, South Georgia Island is approximately 180-km long.