Earth ChangesS

Snowflake

Over 6 feet of fresh snow hits Blackcomb ski resort in British Columbia

Mikey Rencz riding on Rat Fink the day before opening day
Mikey Rencz riding on Rat Fink the day before opening day
Whistler Blackcomb kicked off the 2017/2018 winter season yesterday Friday November 17th having received 198 centimetres (78 inches/6.5 feet) of snow falling in the previous seven days.

A resort spokesperson described the result as, "incredible mid-winter like conditions."

Although Whistler's reported snow accumulation is the biggest so far, other ski areas in Western North America have reported several feet of snow. Mammoth in California has come closest with 1.8m/6 feet of new snow at the top of it slopes.

Ski areas in Colorado have also been reporting fresh snow with resorts including Breckenridge reporting 30cm of snow, the first significant snowfall of the autumn there.

Comment: See also: Two ski areas in Wyoming hit 100โ€ณ of snow before opening day

Early season snow pounds Pacific Northwest and Northern Rockies, ski areas open weeks ahead of schedule


Attention

Body of whale shark found washed ashore in Tamil Nadu, India; third in the region since May

Whale shark
Whale shark
The carcass of a young female whale shark was found washed ashore on Mookaiyur seashore near Sayalkodi on Thursday.

On being alerted by the local people, a team of forest personnel, led by Sikkandar Basha, Forest Range Officer, Kilakarai, who is in charge of Thoothukudi range, inspected the carcass on Friday and buried it on the shore after postmortem by a veterinary surgeon.

The postmortem revealed an internal haemorrhage and the whale shark could have died after hitting against a rock or fishing vessel, he said. The two-year-old young whale weighed about 1.5 tonnes and measured 375 cm in length and 280 cm in circumference.

The length of the dorsal fin measured 47 cm and the caudal fin measured 76 cm, he said.

Comment: There seems to have been a high number of such incidents involving this species over the last 2 years, see also: Another whale shark found dead, the latest in Gujarat, India

Three dead beached whale sharks found in Indonesia

Whale shark found washed ashore in Tamil Nadu, India

Dead whale shark washes ashore on beach in Puri, India

Dead whale shark found in Tanza Bay, Philippines

Dead whale shark found in Tamil Nadu, India

Dead whale shark found on beach in Odisha, India

Whale shark discovered dead in coastal waters of Shandong, China

Whale shark found dead at Palghar, India

Dead whale shark discovered on coast of Bukas Grande Island, Philippines


Seismograph

Shallow 6.4 magnitude earthquake strikes near New Caledonia

An earthquake of magnitude 6.4 struck in the Pacific Ocean, 74 kilometers (46 miles) east of the Loyalty Islands, New Caledonia on Sunday.
An earthquake of magnitude 6.4 struck in the Pacific Ocean, 74 kilometers (46 miles) east of the Loyalty Islands, New Caledonia on Sunday
The quake struck this morning about 45 miles east of the Tadine, in the Loyalty Islands.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported the tremor at 8:25 pm in the evening, or 9.25am 25 GMT, at a shallow depth of 13km (8 miles).

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said in a statement that a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami was not expected and there was no tsunami threat to Hawaii.

The quake was initially recorded as 6.6 magnitude, but is now being reported as 6.4.

Cloud Precipitation

Freak hailstorm injures dozens and destroys 50 homes in Zimbabwe

Freak hailstorm destroys 50 homes and injures dozens in Zimbabwe By Strange Sounds - Nov 17, 2017
© ChronicleDesolation after an freak hailstorm hits and destroys a city in Zimbabdwe
Apocalyptic hailstorm destroys 50 houses and injures dozens in Zimbabwe on November 15, 2017. Sometimes mother nature is passive aggressive, throwing a horrifying curve ball out of the clear blue sky. Something that you could never see coming. Something that you probably didn't even know was possible. On Nov. 15th, more than 10 people were injured and rushed to Mpilo Central Hospital after their homes collapsed following an apocalyptic night hailstorm that left 50 families homeless in Emthunzini suburb on the outskirts of Bulawayo in Zimbabwe. The 1-hour-long hailstorm also destroyed properties in Pumula South and Nkulumane suburbs, with the roofs of some houses being blown away. A real disaster!

The hailstorm started just after 9PM and lasted approximately one hour. First came the strong winds, then loud noises from the outside. Before residents started to understand what was going on, the doors and roofs were blown away and the walls started shaking and bricks started falling. 50 houses were completely annilihated, had crumbled down, leaving 50 families homeless. The apocalyptic situation was worsened by power outages.

Magic Hat

A famous waterfall mysteriously disappears overnight in Chiapas, Mexico - local residents manage to 'fix' it (videos)

Cascadas de Agua Azul Chiapas Mexico waterfall
© Radio FormulaBefore and after pictures: The Cascadas de Agua Azul waterfall in Chiapas, Mexico has completely disappeared overnight.
One of the most famous tourist attractions of Chiapas has almost completely disappeared as the flow of the river has decreased unexpectedly. Residents living around Cascadas de Agua Azul and from tourists visiting the area, woke up in distress as they noted that the waterfall had almost completely disappeared on November 10, 2017. The baffled inhabitants directly alerted authorities about the unusual phenomenon. Officials are investigating but have found nothing yet. Baffling is the fact that Chiapas is coming out from an intense wet season and that it has rained last week as well. So no drought, no needs of irrigation of agriculture. So what's the heck?

Comment: The first video speculates that the cause could be geological, as a result of the strong earthquake of September 7th, but does not offer a conclusive explanation. The second video claims that a natural dam of rocks was broken and this caused the flow of the river to change its course.

The authorities said they would come up with a diagnostic within 20 days, but apparently the local residents - not willing to wait, probably because the waterfalls guarantee the inflow of tourists - took matters in their own hands and in 24 hours had removed debris from an area where the water used to flow, and managed to restore them back to their former glory:




Cloud Precipitation

Has something changed in Earth's atmosphere?

South Africa winter storm
© YouTube/Adapt 2030 (screen capture)
Something has just changed in Earth's atmosphere. This week alone atmospheric compression events deluge Greece and Italy with once in a multi-century floods, feet of snow, winter storms a few weeks before summer in South Africa, November typhoon out of season far far south near Cambodia, UK colder than Moscow and 14 locations have been chosen for geoengineering programs to begin in our atmosphere.


Arrow Up

Scientists predict upsurge in major earthquakes for 2018 due to slowdown in Earth's rotation

Iran earthquake
© Anadolu Agency/Getty ImagesA child on a collapsed building at Darbandikhan, Sulaymaniyah, Iraq on Monday after the north of the country and northern Iran were hit by a 7.3 magnitude earthquake.
Scientists say number of severe quakes is likely to rise strongly next year because of a periodic slowing of the Earth's rotation

Scientists have warned there could be a big increase in numbers of devastating earthquakes around the world next year. They believe variations in the speed of Earth's rotation could trigger intense seismic activity, particularly in heavily populated tropical regions.

Although such fluctuations in rotation are small - changing the length of the day by a millisecond - they could still be implicated in the release of vast amounts of underground energy, it is argued.

The link between Earth's rotation and seismic activity was highlighted last month in a paper by Roger Bilham of the University of Colorado in Boulder and Rebecca Bendick of the University of Montana in Missoula presented at the annual meeting of the Geological Society of America.

Comment: This is what we've been saying for years, though in a different form: our idea was that the current slowdown in rotation is more 'unique' than a multi-decade event - more like a multi-millennium event.

See also:


Seismograph

Monterey County in California struck with a series of 3 earthquakes after more than a dozen quakes last week

earthquake location
© USGSThe first quake hit near Soledad, Calif., at 5:17 p.m. with a magnitude of 2.9 and a depth of 5 kilometers. About two hours later, a second quake, with a 3.2 magnitude and a depth of 5 kilometers, shook Soledad once more. At 8:09 p.m., a 3.8 quake of the same depth followed.
Three small earthquakes struck Monterey County on Thursday evening, officials said.

The first quake hit near Soledad, Calif., at 5:17 p.m. with a magnitude of 2.9 and a depth of 5 kilometers. About two hours later, a second quake, with a 3.2 magnitude and a depth of 5 kilometers, shook Soledad once more. At 8:09 p.m., a 3.8 quake of the same depth followed.

No injuries or damages were reported.

Black Cat

Leopard kills man and attacks several others in Assam, India

LEOPARD
A 23-year-old person, who was injured in a leopard attack here on Sunday, died today.

The man, identified as Anowar Ali was seriously injured as he fought with a leopard at Dhirenpara and saved at least six persons.

Ali succumbed to his injuries on Thursday morning.

A leopard that came down from a neighbouring hill went berserk on Sunday morning injuring several residents in the city's Dhirenpara area. The incident sent shock waves among residents and children who ran for cover. Police had awarded Ali with Rs. 3000 on Sunday for helping save lives.

Boat

Sea waters turn red in Italian port city (PHOTOS)

steel plant Taranto
© Alfonso Di Vincenzo / AFPA general view shows the Ilva steel plant in Taranto
Bay water has turned red in an Italian port city, due to alarming rates of industrial pollution. Local activists are desperately appealing to the Italian government for help.

"Look at these pictures, gentlemen of the government of 'this' Italy, and be ashamed," a group of activist from the southern Italian port of Taranto wrote in an open letter to Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, as well as Minister of Economic Development Carlo Calenda and Minister of Environment Gian Luca Galletti. The photos attached to the letter, published by the group Genitori Tarantini (Parents of Taranto) on its Facebook page, show the most vivid examples of pollution the city is facing.

Comment: It's possible that this is man-made pollution, but having rivers and lakes turn red is not a localized phenomena and can't always be explained away as the result of pollution: