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Tsunami that hit Greenland last month was triggered by a landslide say researchers

Cheyenne Macdonald
Daily Mail
Mon, 31 Jul 2017 14:08 UTC
According to the researchers, the scarring stretches a full kilometer up the slopes of the fjord. This can be seen on the right side of the image above
According to the researchers, the scarring stretches a full kilometer up the slopes of the fjord. This can be seen on the right side of the image above
Last month, a devastating mega-tsunami tore through a remote area of Greenland, decimating homes as huge waves carrying the shattered chunks of a glacier swept through.

Now, data from a reconnaissance mission at the site has revealed the terrifying waves reached more than 300 feet tall - and, scientists say it was all caused by a massive landslide.

The landslide that gave rise to the disaster plunged into the ocean from roughly 3,300 feet up the Karrat Fjord, spurring a small earthquake and tsunami waves that traveled about the length of a football field each second.

Scientists from the Georgia Institute of Technology say this is a 'particularly unique situation,' as another landslide nearby is active, but has yet to fall.

During the June tsunami, houses were destroyed and four people were washed away.

Comment: See also: Unusual M4 earthquake sparks tsunami in Greenland, four missing (VIDEO)

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Snakes in Suits

Australian scientists at Bureau of Meteorology again caught tampering with weather data

Chris White
The Daily Caller
Mon, 31 Jul 2017 13:45 UTC
climate change
Australian scientists at the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) ordered a review of temperature recording instruments after the government agency was caught tampering with temperature logs in several locations.

Agency officials admit that the problem with instruments recording low temperatures likely happened in several locations throughout Australia, but they refuse to admit to manipulating temperature readings. The BOM located missing logs in Goulburn and the Snow Mountains, both of which are in New South Wales.

Meteorologist Lance Pidgeon watched the 13 degrees Fahrenheit Goulburn recording from July 2 disappear from the bureau's website. The temperature readings fluctuated briefly and then disappeared from the government's website.

"The temperature dropped to minus 10 (13 degrees Fahrenheit), stayed there for some time and then it changed to minus 10.4 (14 degrees Fahrenheit) and then it disappeared," Pidgeon said, adding that he notified scientist Jennifer Marohasy about the problem, who then brought the readings to the attention of the bureau.

Comment: See also: Australia's BOM backs down on warming at Antarctic bases

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Attention

Grounded Fin whale dies at Salvage, Newfoundland

Adam Randell
Gander Beacon
Mon, 31 Jul 2017 13:14 UTC
A Fin whale that grounded itself in Salvage, and later perished on July 30, has brought a number of spectators to the area.
© Adam Randell/The BeaconA Fin whale that grounded itself in Salvage, and later perished on July 30, has brought a number of spectators to the area.
Gathered along the shore in Salvage, a group of people look on as the remains of a Fin whale, estimated to be 40 feet long, lists in the shallows.

The whale grounded itself on Sunday and later perished.

Gander resident John King made the approximately 100-kilometre trip to the Eastport Peninsula community after hearing about the beaching from a friend.

An avid sea kayaker, King has encountered whales during his travels and he holds a lot of respect for the massive mammals.
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Attention

Two whales die after beaching themselves off Fraser Island, Australia

Annie Perets
Fraser Coast Chronicle
Mon, 31 Jul 2017 12:59 UTC
First responders on the scene commencing bucketing and setting up pumps to keep the whales cool and wet
© NPSRFirst responders on the scene commencing bucketing and setting up pumps to keep the whales cool and wet
It was a case of misadventure for the two humpback whales who tragically died after beaching themselves off Fraser Island, said a whale tour operator.

Blue Dolphin owner Peter Lynch said it was rare for whales to venture into that part of the Great Sandy Strait.

"It's a shallow, narrow area that's difficult for vessels to navigate," Mr Lynch said.

"There's a few whales that go down that way each season."

With the rapid increase in whale numbers, Mr Lynch said it was only expected that there would also be more whale deaths from accidents.

There is estimated to be 27,000 whales migrating this season, which is double what the number was just years ago.

"As the population increases, more and more will die naturally and more will die from fatality events like being hit by ships," he said.

"And more will die from human effect like being trapped in fishing gear."
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Attention

Dead baby whale found on Gold Coast beach, Australia

Amanda Robbemond
News Mail
Tue, 01 Aug 2017 12:50 UTC
A baby whale carcass being eaten buy a tiger shark 4km off the Gold Coast Seaway last week.
A baby whale carcass being eaten buy a tiger shark 4km off the Gold Coast Seaway last week.
A dead baby whale has washed up on shore between Nobbys and Main Beach this morning.

The news comes just one day after two humpback whales tragically beached themselves off Fraser Island.

The carcass was found just before 11am this morning and it is believed council animal management will remove the whale.

Sea World marine sciences director Trevor Long said about 20 per cent of baby whales were lost each year "for a range of reasons."
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Attention

Dead whale washes ashore at Pebble Beach, California


U.S. News
Mon, 31 Jul 2017 12:14 UTC
dead whale
A dead whale, believed by marine biologists to be a humpback, has washed ashore in Northern California.

KSBW-TV reports (http://bit.ly/2uNlua8 ) the whale appeared Saturday at Pebble Beach near Bird Rock Point.

Marine biologist Katlyn Taylor called in the sighting.

A necropsy will help marine biologists determine the cause of death.

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Cloud Lightning

Lightning strikes kill at least 35 people in 2 days across Odisha, India


The New Indian Express
Tue, 01 Aug 2017 11:55 UTC
lightning
At least 17 persons were killed by lightning strikes across the State on Monday taking the toll to 35 in the last 48 hours. Six of the deaths came in from Sambalpur and Cuttack districts. At least three persons were killed while working in the farm fields in Cuttack's Athagarh sub-division. The victims were identified as Ashok Biswal (30), Santosh Rout (45) and Hadibandhu Sahoo. They were declared dead by doctors at Sub-Divisional Hospital in Athagarh.

Eight students of the sub-division headquarters were also struck by lightning and had to be hospitalised. They were released after treatment. All of them belonged to Rasrasikpur UGME UP School. President of the school was also hurt while taking the students to the hospital.In Sambalpur, three persons were struck by lightning whereas Bargarh recorded two more deaths. In neighbouring Deogarh district, another lightning casualty was reported.
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Windsock

After explosive strengthening, Super Typhoon Noru is 2017's strongest storm so far

Jason Samenow
Washington Post
Mon, 31 Jul 2017 13:36 UTC
super typhoon Noru
© JMA via CIRA/RAMMB
On Saturday, it was just an ordinary tropical storm in the western tropical Pacific Ocean. But in a day's time, the storm named Noru exploded - becoming a super typhoon and the planet's most intense storm of the year so far.

In a mere 18 hours, Noru's peak winds increased by 90 mph, the Weather Channel reported.

"What a change," commented David Ornauer of the Star and Stripes Pacific Storm Tracker blog. "What a major, major change."

The imagery of Noru's transformation is remarkable. Here is a satellite animation showing it morph from tropical storm to Super Typhoon status (to become a Super Typhoon, a storm's peak winds must reach at least 150 mph):


Comment: Eight tropical cyclones spinning simultaneously in the north Pacific Ocean for first time since 1974

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Seismograph

Shallow 5.3 magnitude earthquake strikes off Crete

Tasos Kokkinidis
Greek Reporter
Tue, 01 Aug 2017 05:50 UTC
Crete earthquake
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake jolted the Greek island of Gavdos, south of Crete, in the early hours of Tuesday, according to the United States Geological Survey.

The USGS said the quake struck at 00.29 a.m. (UTC) and was at a depth of 16.6 km.

Experts said they do not expect any serious damage from the earthquake as the epicenter is too far from the southern coast of Crete.

Crete is a popular island resort usually packed with tourists.

In July, a magnitude 6.7 quake shook beach resorts in Greece and Turkey, killing two tourists who were crushed when a building collapsed on a bar on the Greek island of Kos and injuring nearly 500 others across the Aegean Sea region
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Info

New avian virus discovered in bird that migrates to Brazil


Outbreak News Today
Mon, 31 Jul 2017 21:23 UTC
white-rumped sandpiper
© Isaac Simão NetoResearchers have discovered a new virus in a white-rumped sandpiper (Calidris fuscicollis), a migratory bird species.
Researchers at the University of São Paulo's Biomedical Science Institute (ICB-USP) in Brazil have discovered a new virus in a migratory bird species. This is such a rare find that it can be considered a stroke of luck, especially because the virus in question is avian paramyxovirus 15, which belongs to the same family as avian paramyxovirus 1, the pathogen that causes Newcastle disease. This disease is not a health hazard for humans but can be lethal to wildfowl and domestic poultry.

"We perform active monitoring of viruses in migratory birds. I was looking for Newcastle disease virus, a type 1 avian paramyxovirus, and my colleague Jansen de Araújo aimed to detect avian influenza virus for his research project. Finally, we found a co-infection by two viruses, one of which was totally unknown until then," said Luciano Matsumiya Thomazelli, a researcher at ICB-USP's Clinical & Molecular Virology Laboratory.

Since 2005, the lab team has been going into the field to perform epidemiological surveillance in different parts of Brazil as part of the Viral Genetic Diversity Network (VGDN), funded by FAPESP and headed by Professor Edison Luiz Durigon.

Their goal is to detect the presence of avian influenza virus and Newcastle disease virus, among others, in birds and other wild animals. In addition to monitoring, they aim to assess the risk of new strains arriving in Brazil. The samples collected by the team are stored in freezers at -80 °C and used in scientific research.
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