Earth Changes

Same old Groundhog Day; Phil predicts more winter

Elizabeth Daley
Reuters
Sun, 02 Feb 2014 13:46 UTC

Punxsutawney Phil, a famed U.S. groundhog with an even more famous shadow, emerged from his burrow on Sunday and predicted six more weeks of winter, much to the chagrin of those hoping for an early spring.

The rotund rodent exited his subterranean residence at Gobblers Knob in the western Pennsylvania town of Punxsutawney around 7:30 a.m. on Groundhog Day.

The fuzzy forecaster made his appearance to the shouts of "groundhog," as eager spectators waited to see whether the groundhog - as the legend goes - would see his shadow and predict six more weeks of snow and freezing temperatures. If not, North Americans can expect an early spring.

This year, Phil predicted that winter will stretch on.

The annual Groundhog Day event, made more popular by the 1993 film comedy "Groundhog Day" starring Bill Murray, draws thousands of faithful followers from as far away as Australia and Russia.

Phil's forecast of six more weeks of winter was bittersweet for some in attendance.

"I happen to be a positive person, so I do embrace the here and now and I will enjoy the next six weeks of winter with the best attitude and be happy to be alive and healthy with my good friends," said Lori Weber, 54, a real estate broker from Sewickley, Pennsylvania.

Others came out early, braving drizzle and low-light, just to experience the event.

Carrie Juvan, 37, of Cleveland, Ohio came with her father.

"We are here having a blast because dad put it on his bucket list. I like snow but I am ready for the spring. He asked me about it months ago and I instantly said yes," she said.

California hits worst drought in 500 years

Kathleen Miles
Huffington Post
Fri, 31 Jan 2014 12:23 UTC

California is dry as a bone, and the effects are like something out of an apocalyptic film.

Cities are running out of water. Communities are fighting over what little water there is. Local governments are imposing rationing coupled with steep fines. Fires are ravaging the state. Entire species and industries are threatened.

For California, 2013 was the driest year since the state started measuring rainfall in 1849. Paleoclimatologist B. Lynn Ingram says that, according to the width of old tree rings, California hasn't been this dry for about 500 years.

Gov. Jerry Brown has declared an emergency, President Barack Obama has pledged his support, and state and federal officials are stepping in to protect the state's most vulnerable groups. Californians of various faiths have taken to holding prayer sessions, looking to the heavens for rain. Here are some of the drought's effects so far.

Running Out Of Drinking Water

Seventeen rural communities in California are in danger of running out of water within 60 to 120 days, according to a list compiled by state officials. As the drought goes on, more communities are likely to be added to the list.

With only about seven inches of rain in California in 2013 -- far below the average of 22 inches -- wells are running dry and many reservoirs are about 30 percent full (including Folsom Lake, shown above).

The Sierra snowpack, where California gets about a third of its water, was 88 percent below average as of Jan. 30. Some are concerned that the diminished snowmelt is causing more pumping of contaminated groundwater, particularly in disadvantaged areas such as California's San Joaquin Valley.

In January 2013 there were zero wildfires in California - In January 2014 there were over 400 wildfires

Carmen George
The Fresno Bee
Sat, 01 Feb 2014 11:29 UTC

© Dan Steinberg - AP
A firefighter walks along side burning brush as a fire fanned by Santa Ana winds burns out of control in Fontana, Calif. on Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2008. At least 100 acres have burned in a wildfire that broke out Wednesday morning amid hot and gusty weather in San Bernardino County, east of Los Angeles.

Firefighters are bracing for a hot year as California's drought has forests primed for early wildfires.

Cal Fire spokesman Daniel Berlant said firefighters already have responded to over 400 wildfires statewide this year. By comparison, there were no wildfires in the first 3 1/2 weeks of last year, he said.

"The conditions we are experiencing right now are similar to what we would be seeing in August -- that's how dry it is," Berlant said. "Even though the calendar says it's February and it's winter, conditions are primed for wildfires."

In response to the drought, Cal Fire staffing increased statewide last week. In the Central Valley and its flanking Sierra Nevada, more than 100 permanent firefighters are being shifted from common winter activities, like maintenance and training, back to staffing stations and engines, Berlant said.

In Northern California, Cal Fire hired an additional 125 seasonal firefighters. In Southern California, the employment of seasonal forces was extended.

USGS: Earthquake Magnitude 6.5 - 192km SSE of L'Esperance Rock, New Zealand

US Geological Survey
Sun, 02 Feb 2014 11:12 UTC

Event Time
2014-02-02 09:26:37 UTC
2014-02-01 21:26:37 UTC-12:00 at epicenter

Location
32.908°S 177.822°W depth=40.4km (25.1mi)

Nearby Cities
192km (119mi) SSE of L'Esperance Rock, New Zealand
732km (455mi) NE of Whakatane, New Zealand
740km (460mi) NNE of Gisborne, New Zealand
761km (473mi) NE of Tauranga, New Zealand
1138km (707mi) NE of Wellington, New Zealand

Technical Details

Gray Whale washes up dead near Salmon Creek Beach, California

Jackie Sones
bodegahead.blogspot.co.uk
Sat, 01 Feb 2014 10:41 UTC

This is a dorsal view (the upper surface) of the whale. It was ~18 feet long.

On Friday we heard that a young Gray Whale (Eschrichtius robustus) had washed up dead just north of Salmon Creek Beach. I decided to drive up during my lunch break to take a quick look. I learned that this whale had been around for a while (further north), so its condition had been deteriorating for at least 10 or more days. But it still seemed like a record worth documenting.

I learned that the average length of Gray Whale calves is ~4.6-5 meters (15-16.5 feet) and that they weigh ~1/2 ton. [Compare that with adults which reach 12-15 meters (39-49 feet) and 15-35 tons.]

The next picture shows a head-on view where you can see the arched mouth (upper jaw on left, lower jaw on right):

UK floods: Bus carrying 14 passengers swept onto seafront and left stranded at Newgale

Metro
Sun, 02 Feb 2014 10:05 UTC

A bus has been left marooned on a seafront following a giant wave that shrouded the vehicle with water and forced the rescue of 14 people on board.

The bus was hit by a massive wall of water as it travelled along the coast near Newgale in west Wales at roughly 7pm last night.

Milford Haven Coastguard received a call advising them the vehicle was stuck and surrounded by water, following high tides and wind speeds of up to 50mph.

Emergency teams including fire, police and ambulance crews also attended the scene and there have been no reported injuries.

Steve Matthews from Swansea Coastguard said: 'There are tricky conditions on the sea and along the coast, with gale force winds, high tides and heavy rain.

'Our advice is simple, please don't take risks. But if you do get into difficulty, or spot someone who might be in trouble, call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.'

Severe snowstorms in the province of Vojvodina, Serbia

International Radio Serbia
Sat, 01 Feb 2014 07:14 UTC

Severe weather has continued in Vojvodina on Saturday. Roads in the vicinity of Subotica have been snowed in, and members of the Serbian Army and Gendarmerie have been engaged to evacuate citizens cut off by snowdrifts.

Drama that commenced on Friday with evacuation of frostbitten people snowed in in the north of Vojvodina has continued through the night into Saturday.

The rescue operation went on through the night during which the Serbian Army, gendarmerie, Emergency Situation Sector, and the Department of Roads of Serbia struggled to evacuate 200 people from stranded vehicles, while strong wind trapped two international trains on the railway line between Zmajevo and Vrbas.

Meanwhile, some 1,000 people have been blocked in their vehicles forming a line near Feketic. Additional problems have arisen due to freezing rain.

Some 100 passengers from the two international trains have been evacuated in the morning and placed in a shelter in Vrbas, the Serbian Railways communicated to the Tanjug news agency.

The border crossing Horgos has been closed for freight transportation due to the stormy winds and snow drifts over 3.5 meters tall, and authorities appeal to citizens not to travel without a pressing need.

The Serbian government provided telephone lines [(011)2282910, or (011)2289208] for snow emergency calls.

Gruesome epidemic is ravaging starfish populations in the Pacific

Robert Gonzalez
io9
Sat, 01 Feb 2014 12:30 UTC

A mysterious illness has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of starfish on North America's west coast, and its symptoms are horrifying. Dubbed "sea star wasting syndrome," the arms of an infected individual will twist into knots, develop lesions, and finally crawl away in opposite directions until they tear away from its body, allowing its insides to spill out.

Researchers still aren't sure how the disease spreads, let alone where it comes from. What they do know is that sea stars occupy a pivotal niche in ocean ecosystems, and large-scale die outs are almost certainly a very bad sign. In a fascinating piece that's as sad as it is disturbing, PBS special correspondent Katie Campbell reports on how researchers and citizen scientists are teaming up to investigate the spread of the mysterious syndrome:

Kavachi undersea volcano (Solomon Islands) erupts

Volcano Discovery
Sat, 01 Feb 2014 10:02 UTC

A submarine eruption is likely occurring at the submerged volcano. A NASA satellite image from 29 Jan shows a plume of discolored sea water swirling and drifting from the location of the volcano. The discoloration is likely from suspended volcanic sediments (the fragmented lava) and gasses.

Kavachi is an undersea volcano on the southern edge of the Solomon Islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It erupted dozens of times in the 20th century, often breaking the water surface, only to be eroded back below the water line within a few months.

Man swept to death by freak wave

9News MSN
Wed, 29 Jan 2014 00:00 UTC

A man swept to his death in Spain saw the wave that killed him for only a split-second before he was washed away, chilling video of his final moments reveals.

An unnamed 43-year-old Senegalese man was walking on the pier in the port of Ondarroa when he was caught out by a freak wave in stormy weather just before 11am local time on Tuesday, El Pais reports.

The man appears to be unaware of his danger as a wall of whitewater explodes over the top of the concrete pier, the video shows.

He then turns to run as tonnes of water come crashing down but it is too late.

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Earth Changes

Same old Groundhog Day; Phil predicts more winter

California hits worst drought in 500 years

In January 2013 there were zero wildfires in California - In January 2014 there were over 400 wildfires

USGS: Earthquake Magnitude 6.5 - 192km SSE of L'Esperance Rock, New Zealand

Gray Whale washes up dead near Salmon Creek Beach, California

UK floods: Bus carrying 14 passengers swept onto seafront and left stranded at Newgale

Severe snowstorms in the province of Vojvodina, Serbia

Gruesome epidemic is ravaging starfish populations in the Pacific

Kavachi undersea volcano (Solomon Islands) erupts

Man swept to death by freak wave

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