Earth ChangesS


Red Flag

Huge reservoir of melting carbon discovered under western US


RT
Tue, 14 Feb 2017 17:29 UTC
molten lava
© Reuters
A reservoir of melting carbon covering an area almost the size of Mexico has been discovered beneath the western US, casting doubt over previous estimates of carbon levels inside the Earth.

The discovery was made by a team from the University of Royal Holloway London using the world's largest array of seismic sensors that identified the carbon from vibrations generated in Earth's upper mantle.

The reservoir is believed to have been formed when a Pacific tectonic plate was forced underneath the western US, according to the research published in Earth and Planetary Science Letters.

"It is a result of one of the tectonic plates of the Pacific Ocean forced underneath the western US, undergoing partial melting, thanks to gasses like CO2 and H2O contained in the minerals dissolved in it," study author Dr Sash Hier-Majumder of Royal Holloway said in a statement.
Read More...
Attention

Chef is attacked by a wild beaver near Kirriemuir, Scotland

Katherine Sutherland
Mail on Sunday
Sun, 12 Feb 2017 18:58 UTC
beaver attack
Wildlife experts yesterday issued a safety warning - after a chef was attacked by a wild beaver.

Ross Smith was driving along a country road with his friends when they spotted a mysterious brown creature on the grass verge.

When the 20-year-old got out of the car and went to investigate, the animal turned nasty and, snarling, leapt at him.

The 3ft long beaver is believed to be one of a colony of the animals living wild in Lintrathen Loch, near Kirriemuir in Angus.

Extraordinary mobile phone camera footage of Mr Smith's encounter now been posted on the internet, prompting a leading academic to warn the public not to approach the furry rodents.

Although it is not clear what provoked the beaver to attack, one of his friends can be heard asking: 'Is that a platypus?'

Mr Smith, who works in a cafe in Edzell, captured the encounter on his mobile phone and shared it online.

Fortunately he was not hurt by the animal, which he estimated to be about a 3ft (1 metre) long and to weigh about 25-30kg (55-66lbs).
Read More...
Wolf

Woman, 75, dies after mauling by family mastiff in Queens, New York

Byron Smith
New York Daily News
Tue, 14 Feb 2017 12:46 UTC
Dog attack
A 75-year-old Queens woman died Monday after she was mauled by her dog, a hulking mixed-breed mastiff she'd planned to put to death because he was too aggressive, police sources and neighbors said.

Victim Louise Hermida's autistic 39-year-old son, Daniel Ferraro, was also bitten by the bloodthirsty pet, named Boss, and suffered minor leg injuries.

The horrifying attack by the powerful mastiff-Great Dane mix happened just past midnight in the family's Long Island City home on 27th St., neighbors said.

Hermida was bitten in her upper torso and found at the bottom of the basement steps in her two-story townhouse, sources said.

Read More...
Cloud Precipitation

1 dead, 1 missing, crops destroyed following floods in Western Australia

Richard Davies
Floodlist
Mon, 13 Feb 2017 11:50 UTC
Flood damage in Ravensthorpe, Western Australia.
© Ravensthorpe PoliceFlood damage in Ravensthorpe, Western Australia.
Record breaking rain and floods have destroyed crops and damaged infrastructure across areas of Western Australia (WA) over the last week. At least person has died and one is still missing.

Earlier today, WA Premier Colin Barnett said that the heavy rain has affected huge areas of the state, including Swan Valley, where it has had a dramatic impact on grape growers, as well as parts of the Kimberley, the Pilbara, the Gascoyne, Mid-West areas and the south coastal areas.

One man drowned while trying to drive his car onto a flooded road near Esperance in the south of the state on Saturday 11 February. WA Police said that "the body of a man, believed to be a missing 68 year old man of Esperance, was sadly located by Police and SES searchers in the Coramup Creek near Esperance this morning. The man was reported missing around 11.15pm on Saturday 11 February after he drove his vehicle onto Bluman Road, which at the time was flooded. Both he and his vehicle were tragically swept from the road."



Read More...
Cloud Lightning

Severe storms with more than 170,000 lightning strikes hit south-east Queensland


ABC Local
Mon, 13 Feb 2017 22:17 UTC
Toogoolwah storm damage
© Thomas HinterdorferSevere storms snapped trees and damaged at least one house at Toogoolwah.
More than 170,000 lightning strikes were recorded during Monday's storms around south-east Queensland, as the clean-up gets into full swing this morning.

After a weekend of record temperatures, the rain set in on Monday afternoon.

Temperatures dropped 14 degrees Celsius in two hours at Gatton, west of Brisbane, as the storm rolled in.

Storm chaser Thomas Hinterdorfer was at Toogoolawah, west of Brisbane, when the storm hit.

"Complete whiteout, absolute carnage," he said.

The State Emergency Service (SES) was called out to nearly 50 jobs around the south-east.

The SES dealt with a number of tree falls and damaged roofs, while 22,000 properties lost power at the height of the storm.

Read More...
Tornado2

Waterspout caught on camera off Nambucca Heads, Australia

Christian Knight
Guardian News
Thu, 09 Feb 2017 21:05 UTC
File photo - Shane Chalker photographed water spouts off Forster in April 2015.
File photo - Shane Chalker photographed water spouts off Forster in April 2015.
A Nambucca Heads man wasn't quite sure what he was seeing when a rare water spout formed off Main Beach this morning.

Rodney Thurtell, 50, was munching on a piece of barbecued chicken for breakfast and gazing out to sea from an elevated position near the surf life saving club when he noted a dark, thin line in the clouds, which stretched all the way to the surface of the ocean.

"I could see the water moving in the sea where it touched down," Rodney told the Guardian.

"I saw another bloke and he said 'what's that', and I said 'that's a water spout' and he agreed that's exactly what it was."

Read More...
Red Flag

Emergency accommodation, food, evacuation routes and rain forecast for 72 hours in California

Adapt 2030
You Tube
Mon, 13 Feb 2017 20:23 UTC
Oroville Dam
Oroville Dam
With evacuations ordered from the Oroville Dam days late hundreds of thousands flee into the night. if you are on the move and need assistance with food or shelter, the Sikh community and all of its temples are open to help, even with medical care. Animal shelter areas and RV camping ground areas for others are listed in the video. Head north if possible to Chico and get out of low lying flood plain areas.

GOES WEST rainfall forecast mapsas well. Once you leave your homes you will not be allowed to return for weeks if at all until spring. Good Luck.


Sources
Read More...
Seismograph

At least 749 earthquakes have hit the Dardanelles, Turkey since February 6


Hurriyet Daily News
Mon, 13 Feb 2017 19:40 UTC
Earthquake
© AA
At least 749 earthquakes have hit the Marmara province of Çanakkale since Feb. 6, the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) has stated.

The first wave of the earthquakes was recorded on Feb. 6 at 6:51 a.m. in the province's Ayvacık district with a 5.3-magnitude temblor. That was followed by another one with the same magnitude at 13.58 p.m. on the same day, and the latest major quake occurred in Ayvacık on Feb. 12 with the same magnitude, according to AFAD.

A number of buildings in the region were damaged and many locals settled in tent cities set up near the village of Yukarıköy, which was severely damaged by the quakes.

AFAD and the Turkish Red Crescent are currently setting up a container city for victims in the area.
Read More...
Attention

Signs and portents: Rare two-headed calf born in Kyrgyzstan


AKIpress.
Fri, 10 Feb 2017 19:23 UTC
Two-headed calf
Two-headed calf
A rare two-headed calf was born in Batken region, local veterinarian Astanakul Muratov told Turmush regional news service.

The calf was born on February 9 in the village of Ak-Tilek, Kadamjay district.

Owner of the cow that gave birth to a rare two-headed calf is local villager Muhammad Karabayev.

"The owner of the calf and I after the birth checked the health of the animal, it was OK first minutes of its life despite the rare condition. But because it could not suck milk, the animal died after 20 minutes," said Muratov.

Veterinarians that arrived in the place are studying the died animal, he added.

According to experts, this condition is very rare. It happens only once in 400 million births. Experts term the condition of having two or more heads polycephaly. A polycephalic animal with two heads is described as bicephalic.

Two-headed calf
Read More...
Attention

3rd dead whale found within 8 days in Virginia Beach

Stacy Parker and Amir Vera
The Virginian-Pilot
Mon, 13 Feb 2017 19:03 UTC
Necropsy performed on third dead whale to wash ashore
Third dead whale to wash ashore
A male juvenile humpback whale was found washed ashore Sunday morning near 80th Street in Virginia Beach. The whale had suffered propeller wounds.

Matt Klepeisz, a spokesman for the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center, said the whale had been reported off the Cape Henry area on Saturday morning and came ashore either Saturday night or Sunday morning at 80th Street.

According to Alex Costidis, an aquarium stranding team coordinator, the whale, after being spotted at Cape Henry, was seen at Rudee Inlet. The stranding team stayed with it Saturday, taking samples from the water until sunset. The whale was reported ashore Sunday morning at 80th Street by a passerby.

Costidis said the black and white whale had "three large propeller wounds." He estimated the whale was 2 to 4 years old and weighed 13,000 to 16,000 pounds. It measured more than 30 feet long.

Read More...