Earth ChangesS


Cloud Precipitation

NASA sees Tropical Cyclone Nilofar being affected by wind shear

Rob Gutro
Phys.org
Wed, 29 Oct 2014 22:00 UTC
Image
© NASA Goddard MODIS Rapid Response TeamNASA's Aqua satellite captured this image on Oct. 29 at 09:00 UTC (5 a.m. EDT) as Tropical Cyclone Nilofar moved through the Arabian Sea toward a landfall in northwestern India.
Wind shear has kicked in and has been pushing clouds and showers away from Tropical Cyclone Nilofar's center. NASA's Aqua satellite captured an image that showed the effects of the shear on Oct. 29.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer aboard NASA's Aqua satellite captured an image of Tropical Cyclone Nilofar on Oct. 29 at 09:00 UTC (5 a.m. EDT). Tropical Cyclone Nilofar is moving through the Arabian Sea. The image shows that clouds were being pushed to the northeast of the center of the storm, from strong southwesterly wind shear.

On Oct. 29 at 1500 UTC (11 a.m. EDT), Nilofar had maximum sustained winds near 90 knots (103.6 mph/166.7 kph) and slow weakening is expected over the next couple of days. Nilofar was centered near 19.5 north latitude and 62.5 east longitude, about 205 nautical miles (236 miles/380 km) east-southeast of Masirah Island. Nilofar was moving to the north-northeast at 6 knots (6.9 mph/11.1 kph).
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Cloud Precipitation

Cyclone Nilofar targeting India's Gujarat State, Southern Pakistan

Jon Erdman
Weather Channel
Wed, 29 Oct 2014 21:45 UTC
Image
After becoming impressively strong on Tuesday, Cyclone Nilofar has begun to weaken. Nilofar is expected to head towards southeastern Pakistan and northwestern India, with landfall likely on Saturday.

On Tuesday afternoon, Nilofar intensified to the equivalent of a hurricane with estimated wind speeds of 130 mph, according to the U.S. Joint Typhoon Warning Center, about 650 miles south-southwest of Karachi, Pakistan. Nilofar underwent rapid intensification, and became the third strongest tropical cyclone of record in the Arabian Sea.

Only Gonu in 2007 (Cat. 5; 165 mph winds) and Phet in 2010 (Cat. 4; 145 mph winds) were stronger Arabian Sea tropical cyclones in the historical record, according to Masters.
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Arrow Down

More than 100 believed dead in Sri Lanka landslide after heavy monsoon rain

Shihar Aneez and Ranga Sirilal
Reuters
Wed, 29 Oct 2014 21:22 UTC
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© REUTERS/StringerRescue teams from the Sri Lankan military engage in rescue operation work at the site of a landslide at the Koslanda tea plantation in Badulla October 29, 2014.
A landslide in hilly south-central Sri Lanka is believed to have killed more than 100 people on Wednesday as it buried scores of houses, a government minister said, and the toll is likely to rise.

The landslide hit a village in the tea-growing area of Sri Lanka after days of heavy monsoon rain, with more than 300 people listed as missing.

"More than 100 people are believed to have died," Disaster Management Minister Mahinda Amaraweera told Reuters from the disaster site in the village of Haldummulla, 190 km (120 miles) inland from the capital, Colombo.

"We have suspended the rescue operations because of darkness and inclement weather. There is also a threat of further landslides."

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Attention

Dead humpback whale found on Kapiti Coast, New Zealand

Brendan Manning
The New Zealand Herald
Wed, 29 Oct 2014 21:05 UTC
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© David HaxtonIwi perform a karakia by the dead humpback whale on Waikanae Beach.
A 10 metre-long humpback whale has washed up dead on Waikanae Beach early this morning.

Department of Conservation spokeswoman Jane Dobson said they received reports of the stranding, south of Waikanae Boat Club, around 6.30am.

"It's been confirmed that it's a humpback whale, approximately 10 metres long and estimated to be about 25 to 30 tonne.

"Senior ranger Brent Tandy has said that its smaller size suggests it's not fully mature."

Ms Dobson said it was unknown how the whale had died, but it appeared to have been dead for some time.
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Cloud Precipitation

Hundreds evacuated after major floods hit western Norway

Richard Davies
floodlist.com
Wed, 29 Oct 2014 20:18 UTC
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© Arne Sandvold / twitterFlam, Norway, October 2014.
After 2 days of heavy rainfall, parts of western Norway suffered major flooding after rivers overflowed in the counties of Sogn og Fjordane and Hordaland late on Tuesday 28 October 2014. Heavy rain has also continued to affect parts of Rogaland county.

Initial reports suggest that Odda and Voss in Hordaland and Flåm, Laerdal, Årdal and Stryn in Sogn og Fjordane have been the worst affected.

The heavy rainfall has also led to avalanches in some areas of western Norway.


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Ice Cube

North Pole becomes covered in ice in 8 days - video

Robert Felix
iceagenow.info
Wed, 29 Oct 2014 20:06 UTC
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North Pole
South Pole still at record levels

........................................................................................................................

8 days ago, dutchsinse put out a video showing that the North Pole Ice pack was growing rather rapidly.


After doing some mileage computations on the spread of the ice, dutchsinse made the statement that the North Pole would be covered in a couple weeks (or less).

Thanks to Marcus Adrian for this video
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Nuke

Mass die offs of Sitka sea stars recorded, Alaska

Anne Brice
ktoo.org
Tue, 28 Oct 2014 19:19 UTC
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© Anne Brice/KCAWTaylor White pulls up a rock on Sage Beach to see three leptasterias, which are small, 6 legged sea stars that are common at this site. She points to the one with three legs and lesions, symptoms of sea star wasting disease.
A trip to the coast usually means you're going to see sea stars, but a mysterious disease is killing them along the West Coast. There had been a few reports of sick sea stars in Alaska, but recently in Sitka, the first mass die offs in the state were detected. Scientists in Sitka are tracking the progress.

Patty Dick lives on a boat in Thompson Harbor in Sitka. In the morning, when it's low tide and she has an extra moment, she goes out and checks on the sea stars living in the area.

"I just sit there in awe of the beauty of that animal," she said. "Everybody loves sea stars."

Dick teaches 6th grade biology at Blatchley Middle School. She often takes her students on field trips to learn about marine animals, and they usually find dozens of sea stars.

But one morning last month, Dick noticed something was wrong with the sea stars. "I just looked over and I just stopped. There were these big, huge, white spots all over them and they were just wasting away. My heart just sank."
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Bizarro Earth

Idiocracy: Japan reacts to Fukishima disaster by re-opening nuclear plant right next to active volcano


WashingtonsBlog
Wed, 29 Oct 2014 18:52 UTC
D'oh!

Scientists warned that an earthquake could take out Fukushima. The Japanese ignored the warning ... and even tore down the natural seawall which protected Fukushima from tidal waves.

Fukushima is getting worse. And see this and this.

Have the Japanese learned their lesson? Are they decommissioning nuclear plants which are built in dangerous environments?

Of course not!

Instead, they're re-starting a nuclear plant near a volcano which is about to blow ...

A month ago, there was an eruption at Mt. Ontake:
Mt. Ontake
Screenshot from Youtube Video shot on September 29th of Mount Ontake erupting. 57 hikers were killed by the explosion
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Arrow Down

10 dead, over 250 missing in Sri Lanka mudslide

Eranga Jayawardena
The Associated Press
Wed, 29 Oct 2014 16:07 UTC
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© AP Photo/Eranga JayawardenaSri Lankan men stand by a damaged house caused by mudslide at the Koslanda tea plantation in Badulla district, about 220 kilometers (140 miles) east of Colombo, Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2014. The mudslide triggered by monsoon rains buried scores of workers' houses at the tea plantation, killing at least 10 people and leaving more than 250 missing, an official said.
A mudslide triggered by monsoon rains buried scores of workers' houses at a tea plantation in central Sri Lanka on Wednesday, killing at least 10 people and leaving more than 250 missing, an official said.

The military mobilized troops to help with the rescue operation as rain continued to fall in the island nation's central hills. Mud covered some of the destroyed homes to their roofs, and water gushing down hillsides indicated more slides were possible.

P. Arumugam, who works as a driver on the plantation, said he rushed there when he heard about the mudslide.

"Everything that I saw yesterday I could not see today - buildings, the temple and shops had all disappeared. I could only see mud everywhere," he said.

The mudslide struck at around 7:30 a.m. and wiped out 120 workers' homes at the Koslanda tea plantation, said Lal Sarath Kumara, an official from the Disaster Management Center. The plantation is in the town of Koslanda in Badulla district about 220 kilometers (140 miles) east of Colombo.
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Blue Planet

Britain to build a $156 million supercomputer for better weather forecasts

Blathnaid Healy
Mashable
Tue, 28 Oct 2014 21:21 UTC
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© Alastair Grant/Associated PressLow cloud envelops office blocks in the City of London as pedestrians walk across Waterloo Bridge over the River Thames in London, Monday, Oct. 13, 2014.
Britons are known for talking at great length about the weather - sometimes even obsessing about it - and soon they'll have a lot more to chat about with the advent of more detailed weather forecasts courtesy of a computer equipped with more processing power than 100,000 Playstations combined.

Britain's Met Office has been given the green light to build a £97 million ($156 million) supercomputer that is 13 times more powerful than the current system used, which will help the weather service to provide better hourly forecast updates.

Comment: If the British Met Office is currently predicting the "warmest year on record", no doubt it needs a better predicting device! By the looks of it, Eurasia is already starting to freeze as early as October this year!

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