Earth ChangesS


Snowflake Cold

All-time record cold sweeps Alberta, Canada

skiing
Alberta has suffered YET MORE record-breaking low temperatures of late, as brutal Arctic air continues to descend anomalously-far south for the time of year.

The southwest of the Canadian province appears to have fared the worst this week.

According to data from Environment Canada, the mercury in Banff plunged to -23.3C (-9.9F) on Monday morning, which set a new daily low for October 29, eclipsing the previous mark of -22.6C (-8.7F) set back in 1991.

The Bow Valley area saw temperatures sink to -23.2C (-9.8F), low enough to pip the previous all-time record for the date — the -23C (-9.4F) from 2002.

Binoculars

King Penguin turns up thousands of kilometers from home at Cape Point Beach, South Africa

penguin
© SANParksLost King Penguin
I'm a birder - there I said it - and this is pretty damn exciting.

Yesterday, an email popped into my inbox from the SA Rare Bird News group, or SARBN for short.

The subject line read 'MEGA ALERT', so you knew it was something juicy, but this really is a massive sighting for all the twitchers out there.


Proof of said email, before we carry on:

Doberman

4-year-old boy fatally mauled by pit bull, mother hospitalized in Hazel Park, Michigan

PIT BULL ATTACK
A 4 year-old Hazel Park boy died Tuesday evening after a vicious attack by a 60-pound, male pit bull that the family was temporarily looking after, police said.

The child's mother had tried to fight the dog off with a knife.

"A preliminary finding appears that this case was a tragic incident," police said in a statement emailed Wednesday to the Free Press. "The Hazel Park Police Department extends its sympathy to the family and friends of the deceased."

It's unclear, Hazel Park Police said, what led to Tuesday's attack, but at about 6:45 p.m., a 14-year-old girl called 911 to frantically alert police that the dog pounced on her brother, and their mom was attempting to stop the animal.


Attention

First ever dead sperm whale found on Welsh beach - only 2nd record for UK in a century

A sperm whale calf (pictured) has washed up on a North Wales beach. The marine mammal is believed to have become stranded at Hell's Mouth in Gwynedd yesterday
A sperm whale calf (pictured) has washed up on a North Wales beach. The marine mammal is believed to have become stranded at Hell's Mouth in Gwynedd yesterday
A sperm whale calf has washed up dead on a Welsh beach, only the second to do so in a century.

The marine mammal is believed to have become stranded at Hell's Mouth in Gwynedd yesterday.

It is the first time a sperm whale has ever washed up on a Welsh beach, and only the second time it has happened anywhere in the UK in over 100 years.

A team from Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme (CSIP) and the Zoological society of London (ZSL) are heading to North Wales to examine the calf, where they will be working with the Marine Environmental Monitoring.

The team have stressed that this is an unusual stranding and will be investigating the calf's cause of death.

Attention

Two eruptions at Sakurajima volcano in Japan

Eruption from Sakurajima on 29 October
© JMAEruption from Sakurajima on 29 October
Eruptions with continuous pyroclastic flow may continue to occur.

The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) recorded two eruptions at the Minamidake summit crater and few volcanic earthquakes.

JMA in cooperation with the JMSDF Air Group confirmed a slight increase of white fumarole from the Showa crater.

Sakurajima has a large amount of volcanic gas (sulfur dioxide) released per day.


Bizarro Earth

Strong earthquake hits the Philippines again

Philippines Earthquake
© ReutersSocial media video grab shows a man looking at a damaged hotel building after an earthquake in Kidapawan City.
A magnitude 6.5 earthquake rocked southern Philippines still reeling from two strong tremors this month, killing at least five people and causing previously damaged buildings and homes to collapse.

The integrity of several buildings and homes on Mindanao have already been weakened by a 6.3 earthquake that struck on Oct. 16 and another 6.6 quake on Oct. 29.

A social welfare officer said five people in North Cotabato province died due to the quake, including a village chief when the office wall collapsed on him. This brought the number of killed to 20 in the series of tremors since Oct. 16.

The latest quake occurred 33 km (20 miles) northeast of Tulunan town in Cotabato province, which lies west of Davao City, where President Rodrigo Duterte was when it happened. His spokesman, Salvador Panelo said the Philippine leader is safe.


Snowflake

Harvest lags in Iowa, and this week's snow won't help

A soybean field near Anamosa is covered in snow Tuesday morning
© Dean BorgA soybean field near Anamosa is covered in snow Tuesday morning
Prime harvesting weather is fading in Iowa, but three-fourths of the state's corn acreage isn't yet harvested.

The latest update from the U-S Department of Agriculture Monday said Iowa's corn harvesting lags 11 days behind the five-year average at this stage of the season.

As of this past weekend, one-third of the state's soybean crop was still in the field. That's about a week behind average.

Cloud Precipitation

People feared dead after boat capsizes as flooding in Somalia forces 182,000 people from their homes

flood
Two children believed to be among those who drowned in city of Beledweyne, UN humanitarian arm says

Numerous people are feared dead after flooding caused a boat to capsize and thousands to flee their homes in Somalia.

Up to 20 people were thrown into the water during the accident in the central city of Beledweyne, near the Ethiopia border, on Monday, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said.

Two children are believed to have been among those who drowned when the vessel overturned in a river flowing through the city in Hiiraan province.

The number of casualties is not yet known, however mixed reports claim between 10 and 15 people are feared dead.



Snowflake

October snow falling on Mauna Kea summit in Hawaii

Mauna Kea
© CFHT Telescope webcam
Building instability and moisture are resulting in extensive fog, ice and high humidity at the summit, forecasters say. Ice and snow can already be seen on observatory webcams.

Ice is starting to cover the summit of Mauna Kea on Tuesday afternoon.

Observatory webcams show snow and fog surrounding the telescopes at the 13,000 ft level of the mountain.


Eye 2

Signs and Portents: Chinese farmer finds two headed snake

two headed snake
Recently, a Chinese farmer was astound after he found a two headed snake in his yard. As per the local reports, the farmer stated that he came across the two headed snake in his home on Monday. The event happened in a village in Hebei province.

The farmer, identified only by his last name Shenzhou stated that he managed to catch the snake and put in on display for others to see it. The two headed snake soon attracted a lot of visitors from in and around the village, all of them waiting with bated breath to catch a glimpse of the rare snake. However, the two headed snake escaped when a kid knocked the pot in which it was captured over.

A clip, posted by People's Daily China, exhibited the two headed reptile moving across the floor.

The clip has cumulated over 21,000 views since it was posted on social media. It has also gathered several reactions, some amazed and others intrigued.