Earth ChangesS


Beaker

Springfield, Ohio, US: Fire crews investigate a mysterious
 blue-green discoloration in Buck Creek


Springfield News-Sun
Fri, 11 Mar 2011 11:49 UTC
The Haz-Mat unit of the Springfield Fire-Rescue Division worked Thursday afternoon under the Buck Creek bridge on North Limestone Street, hoping to stop some kind of leak in the water.

"We're trying to get ahead of it right now," Battalion Chief Kevin Sprinkle said.

A blue-green discoloration in the water initially was reported before noon Thursday on Springfield's east side, Sprinkle said.
Read More...
Newspaper

Tsunami swamps Hawaii beaches, brushes West Coast

Jaymes Song & Mark Niesse
Associated Press
Fri, 11 Mar 2011 11:25 UTC
Honolulu - Tsunami waves swamped Hawaii beaches and brushed the U.S. western coast Friday but didn't immediately cause major damage after devastating Japan and sparking evacuations throughout the Pacific.

Kauai was the first of the Hawaiian islands struck by the tsunami, which was caused by an earthquake in Japan. Water rushed ashore at least 11 feet high near Kealakekua Bay, on the west side of the Big Island, and reached the lobby of a hotel. Flooding was reported on Maui, and water washed up on roadways on the Big Island.

Scientists and officials warned that the first tsunami waves are not always the strongest and said residents along the coast should watch for strong currents and heed calls for evacuation.

"The tsunami warning is not over," said Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie. "We are seeing significant adverse activity, particularly on Maui and the Big Island. By no means are we clear in the rest of the state as well."

High waters reached the U.S. western coast by 11:30 a.m. EST Friday, after evacuations were ordered and beaches closed all along the coast.
Read More...
Telescope

Auroras Invade the US as Solar Storm Engulfs Earth


Space Weather
Fri, 11 Mar 2011 11:07 UTC
Earth's magnetic field is still reverberating from a CME strike on March 10th. During the past 24 hours, Northern Lights have descended as far south as Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan in the United States. "It was nice to see the aurora borealis again after so many years of low activity," says Jerry Zhu, who sends this picture from Madison, WI:

Image
© Jerry Zhu
Image
© Travis Novitsky
Read More...
Meteor

SOTT Focus: Comet Elenin Update!

Laura Knight-Jadczyk
Sott.net
Thu, 10 Mar 2011 05:55 UTC
Comment:
In close proximity to the upcoming March 15 alignment of Comet Elenin, which is just a few days away, there has been an earthquake in China, a big one in Japan (8.9), a new late winter storm in Turkey and Greece and yet another volcanic eruption in Indonesia. We noted an X-class solar flare a day or so ago, too. All of these things may be related to the approach of Comet Elenin. The following was posted to Laura Knight-Jadczyk's blog on 10 March 2011.


Planet-X Comets and Earth Changes Cover
© jmccanneyscience.com press

Today we have an update on Comet Elenin from our astronomer friend. Before I get to that, let me just reassure folks that there is NOT going to be a pole shift in the next week or so as certain raving nutzoids have been spamming all over the net. Also, Comet Elenin is NOT going to hit Earth (which is not to say that other things won't at some point in space and time). However, there are a few things about this comet that are extremely interesting in view of the plasma comet theory of James McCanney. Again, I suggest that readers get a copy of this book and get up to speed on this theory and how comets can affect our entire solar system electromagnetically, and how that can dramatically affect our sun and therefore planet Earth. There is an increasing body of evidence that electromagnetic disturbance of our Sun is directly related to earthquakes, volcanism, and weather on our planet.

So, with that in mind, let's have a look at some new predictions for what relationships the planets of our solar system might form with the incoming body. Our astronomer friend - who wishes to remain anonymous for the present, but I can tell you that he works at a large observatory - has run the algorithm with the latest orbital elements available on Elenin. Here is the animation:
Read More...
Info

Tsunami Waves Hit Hawaii, Sweep Islands

Jaymes Song
Associated Press
Fri, 11 Mar 2011 09:00 UTC
Image
© APMitsuko Kawashima, center, of Waikiki and her son Andrew, left, found high ground on Tantalus Drive Thursday.
Honolulu -- Tsunami waves hit Hawaii in the early morning hours Friday and were sweeping through the island chain after an earthquake in Japan sparked evacuations throughout the Pacific and as far as the U.S. western coast.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said Kauai was the first of the Hawaiian islands hit by the tsunami. Water rushed ashore in Honolulu, swamping the beach in Waikiki and surging over the break wall in the world-famous resort but stopping short of the area's high-rise hotels
Read More...
Bizarro Earth

Heavy storm continues, three Syrians missing after river floods on border


Beirut-Online
Fri, 11 Mar 2011 04:10 UTC
Image
© Unknown
Bad weather that dumped rain, hail and snow across the country Thursday claimed three victims, as three Syrian farmers went missing when they were swept away by a overflowing river along Lebanon's northern border with Syria.

The National News Agency reported that Abdullah Rayya, Hassan Shmaisi and Walid Rayya, from the Syrian village of Maajir, were carried off by the al-Nahr al-Kabir river while riding their tractor on the Syrian side of the border in the Wadi Khaled region in Akkar.

Syrian and Lebanese authorities, along with locals, are carrying out intensive search efforts for them, the NNA added.

The heavy rainfall inflicted considerable damage to agricultural areas and closed roads and schools in mountainous areas, while residents of coastal regions experienced rare hail storms.

Also in the north, heavy rainfall accompanied by hail struck Tripoli overnight, flooding the streets of the northern city and prompting traffic jams during rush hour Thursday.
Read More...
Bizarro Earth

Indonesia: Mount Karangetang erupts, spews lava and gas


Associated Press
Fri, 11 Mar 2011 07:33 UTC
Image
© AFP/Getty ImagesMount Karangetang spews out smoke during its last eruption in July 2006.
Manado - One of Indonesia's most active volcanos has erupted, sending lava and searing gas clouds tumbling down its slopes.

Volcanology official Agus Budianto said Friday that authorities were still trying to evacuate residents living along the slopes of Mount Karangetang.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or serious damage.

The 5,853-foot (1,784-meter) mountain is located on Siau, part of the Sulawesi island chain. It last erupted in August, killing four people.

Indonesia, the world's largest archipelago, is located on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanos and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

The eruption happened hours after a massive earthquake in Japan that triggered a Pacific-wide tsunami.
Read More...
Igloo

Winter Storm Hits Greece, Turkey with Snow, High Wind

Jim Andrews
AccuWeather
Wed, 09 Mar 2011 05:32 UTC
Image
© Associated PressPlowing snow on Penteli Mountain, northern Athens, Greece, on March 9, 2011
A severe winter storm has swept over much of Greece and Turkey, disrupting travel, closing schools and knocking out power.

The storm, which began on Monday, continued unleashing high winds and snow into Wednesday.

High winds raking southward over the Aegean Sea made for a serious marine hazard for shipping. Ferries linking the many islands and mainland ports were subjected to cuts in service.

Ships were not allowed to sail from Piraeus and a number of other ports, reports said.
Read More...
Life Preserver

Massive 8.9 magnitude quake hits northeast Japan, triggering ten-metre tsunami sweeping away everything in its path


RTE.ie
Fri, 11 Mar 2011 05:24 UTC

A massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake has hit the northeast coast of Japan and triggered a tsunami warning across the Pacific Ocean.

There have been several strong aftershocks and a ten-metre tsunami following the quake, which also caused buildings to shake violently in the capital Tokyo.

Japanese media have reported at least 32 deaths and many injuries, with fires breaking out from Sendai city in northern Japan to Tokyo.

Two people have reportedly been killed by a collapsing ceiling at a Honda factory in Tochigi.

There are major fires at an oil refinery and steel plant in Chiba, east of Tokyo. Dozens of storage tanks are under threat at the refinery.

Comment: The Guardian has released this footage of Japanese MPs in session when the earthquake struck:



Read More...
Bell

Best of the Web: Powerful earthquakes hit Japan - tsunami warnings issued across Pacific region

Justin McCurry & Tania Branigan
The Guardian
Fri, 11 Mar 2011 03:46 UTC
Strongest quake, measuring magnitude 8.9, triggers 10 metre-high tsunami that sweeps away homes, vehicles and crops


A series of massive earthquakes have struck north-east Japan, unleashing a 10-metre tsunami that swept buildings, vehicles, crops and debris across swaths of farmland.

The first 8.9 magnitude shock is said to be the biggest to have hit Japan in 140 years, rocking buildings 235 miles (380km) away in Tokyo and sparking fires.

At least five people are known to have died, but amid widespread reports of landslides, floods, collapsed buildings and fires the death toll is expected to rise.

The quake hit at 2.46pm (5.45am GMT), about 6 miles below sea level and 78 miles off the east coast. It was swiftly followed by five powerful aftershocks of up to 7.1 magnitude.
Read More...