Earth ChangesS


Attention

4.5-magnitude earthquake hits near Haast in New Zealand


BNO News
Wed, 11 Nov 2015 19:07 UTC
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© Google
An earthquake described as "strong" shook parts of New Zealand's South Island on early Thursday, seismologists say.

The preliminary 4.5-magnitude earthquake, which struck at 9:03 a.m., was centered about 45 kilometers east of Haast in the Westland District, or just outside the Mount Aspiring National Park, according to GeoNet. It struck about 15 kilometers below the surface, making it a shallow earthquake.

The early morning tremor was felt across different parts of the island, with some reports saying very light shaking was noticed as far away as Dunedin.

GeoNet described the felt intensity of the tremor as "strong", but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties, and none are expected.

Other details about Thursday's earthquake were not immediately available.
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Attention

Magnitude 5.6 earthquake rocks Darwin, Australia


9news.com.au
Thu, 12 Nov 2015 19:01 UTC
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An earthquake north of Darwin has given buildings in the city a "good shake", the Bureau of Meteorology says.

The 5.6 magnitude earthquake, located in the Banda Sea at a depth of 100km, hit at 9.06am on Thursday.

A number of people in Darwin took to Twitter to say they felt the quake, including some who said it shook their building.

"Wonder where the epicentre of that earthquake just felt in Darwin was? Must have been a strong one!" Jacqui Murdoch wrote.

There are also reports it was felt at the Darwin Central Hotel.

The bureau says there is no tsunami risk and police say there are no reports of damage.

Source: AAP
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Bizarro Earth

5.1 magnitude earthquake strikes Aleutian Islands off Alaska coast


RT
Thu, 12 Nov 2015 18:20 UTC
Alaska earthquake
© earthquake.usgs.gov
A medium-power earthquake with a magnitude of 5.1 struck the Aleutian Islands off the coast of Alaska. This comes only two days after the archipelago was hit by a 6.2 magnitude quake.

The earthquake occurred at 2:28 p.m GMT (5:28 a.m. local time) on Thursday, about 68 miles (109 km) of the small town of Atka, putting it squarely between the United States and Russia, according to the US Geological Survey.

The Thursday tremblor is only the latest in the series of similar geological events that have hit Alaska. On Monday, the sparsely-populated island chain was hit by a 6.2 magnitude earthquake around 7 a.m. local time, this time 58 miles southeast of Atka.
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Tornado2

Snow, tornadoes, thunderstorms across the U.S. threaten millions

Alastair Jamieson, Jon Schuppe & M. Alex Johnson
NBC
Wed, 11 Nov 2015 17:14 UTC
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© NBC
A powerful system of storms churned across the Rocky Mountains and into the Midwest on Wednesday, dumping snow, driving high winds and leaving tens of millions of people in its projected path.

Blizzard conditions hit the Denver area on Wednesday morning — less than 24 hours after it hit a high temperature of 70. Strong winds reduced visibility, and ice closed roads in the Eastern Plains.
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Snowflake

Nearly 60 percent of Sierra Nevada covered with snow; 100 times greater for the same date in 2014

Guy Kovner
The Press Democrat
Wed, 11 Nov 2015 15:25 UTC
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© National Weather ServiceLeft, snow depth on Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2015 and right, snow depth on the same in 2014. More snow is expected on Sunday.
Snow may have returned to vast portions of the Sierra Nevada, but a Bay Area meteorologist says it's far too soon for drought-weary Californians to start celebrating.

Cheers erupted on social media Wednesday when the National Weather Service posted a colorful map that showed 58.7 percent of the Sierra is now covered by snow, compared to 0.6 percent on the same day a year ago. A month ago, there was no measurable snow coverage in the Sierra.

The current snow coverage, however, is more of a thin sheet than a fluffy blanket. The average snow depth along the Golden State's mountain spine was just over 4 inches, noted Jan Null, a former National Weather Service forecaster. Maximum snow depth was almost 25 inches.
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Cloud Precipitation

Landslide kills child as torrential rain hits northeastern Turkey


Anadolu Agency
Thu, 12 Nov 2015 09:34 UTC
Anadola Agency pic
A three-year-old girl died Wednesday in Artvin province, northeastern Turkey, when a landslide caused a collapse in the first floor of an apartment building, local authorities have said.

According to the Provincial Prime Ministry Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) the landslide was triggered by heavy rains, causing the collapse in the first floor of a six-story apartment block in Artvin's Borcka district.

The girl, identified as Zuhre Naz Durmus, was trapped but later recovered by AFAD teams and rushed to the Borcka State hospital where she died of her injuries.

Three apartments were completely evacuated by AFAD.

Comment: The same region was also badly affected a few months ago: 7 dead, 3 missing as floods and mudslides hit northeastern Turkey

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Cloud Precipitation

Floods and landslides leave 5 more dead in Kenya

Richard Davies
Floodlist
Thu, 12 Nov 2015 14:26 UTC
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© KRCSFlood damage in Tharaka North sub County.
Parts of Kenya have been experiencing heavy rain over the last few days, resulting in at least 5 more deaths and leaving thousands displaced.

Kenya Red Cross (KRCS) reported on 10 November 2015 that heavy rain had been seen across much of the country, in particular in the counties of Busia, Homa Bay, Nandi, Kisumu, Nakuru, Bomet, Nyandarua, Turkana, Kericho, Nairobi and Narok.

Lighter rainfall was reported over the last few days in Malindi, Nyeri, Baringo, Mombasa, Samburu, Wajir and Garissa Counties. However, severe flooding has been reported in Garissa after the River Tana overflowed.

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Attention

5.3 magnitude earthquake recorded in northern Pakistan


Pakistan Tribe
Wed, 11 Nov 2015 19:43 UTC
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According to the latest news on television news media, northern parts of Pakistan hit with tremors of 5.3 magnitude earthquake on Wednesday morning.

According to the seismological center, the jolts were felt in Swat, Ghazar including Malakand and Baltistan Division.

The epicenter of the quake measuring 5.3 on Richter scale was the bordering area of Afghanistan and Tajikistan at a depth of 112 kilometer.

Fortunately, until now there were no reports of loss of property or life from earthquake hit areas.
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Camera

Elusive 'green flash' of the sun photographed in Aberdeenshire, UK

Amanda Williams
Daily Mail, UK
Wed, 11 Nov 2015 19:22 UTC
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© Derek RyanA green flash is a phenomenon in which part of the sun can be observed suddenly and briefly changing colour.
It is a moment so fleeting that it is rarely caught by the human eye - let alone on camera.

But an amateur photographer has managed to record the elusive 'green flash' of the sun, an optical phenomenon that makes the sun appear to turn green as it rises above the horizon.

Derek Ryan, 50, spotted the unusual sight during an early morning walk at the beach at Tarves, Aberdeenshire, before work.

Image
© Derek Ryan
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© Derek RyanAn amateur photographer has managed to record the elusive 'green flash' of the sun, an optical phenomenon that makes the sun appear to turn green as it rises above the horizon.
A green flash is a phenomenon in which part of the sun can be observed suddenly and briefly changing colour.
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Cloud Grey

Lenticular clouds 'invade' Cape Town, South Africa


RT
Tue, 10 Nov 2015 16:22 UTC
lenticular clouds
© beanibop / Instagram
They're not space invaders bent on conquering earth, but a weird phenomenon whipped up by Mother Nature - probably to keep us alert. Lenticular clouds over South Africa provided the kind of show that could easily be mistaken for an alien invasion.

Looking like a scene from 'Independence Day', this beautiful invasion is sure to take the breath away, as it did for Cape Town residents on Sunday. Few knew those were actually lenticular clouds - wonders of nature who owe their name to their shape - a lens-like protrusion.

Comment: Increasingly unstable weather patterns have been producing bizarre cloud patterns around the world recently. Factors which may contribute to these 'strange skies' are possible comet dust loading and changes in the layers of the atmosphere.

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