International boffins are meeting in Blighty today with the aim of setting up a European solar radiation-storm warning service. With the Sun expected to belch forth increasing amounts of bad "space weather" in coming years, the scientists warn that billions of pounds' worth of damage could be done to satellites in orbit.

The new warning setup is to be called SPACECAST.

"Space weather is a serious natural hazard and better forecasting is a priority for Europe," says Professor Richard Horne of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), leading on the project for the UK.

"This is especially important as we approach maximum levels of solar activity and increased numbers of magnetic storms. SPACECAST will provide forecasts of disruptive space weather events and issue warnings and alerts for periods of high risk."

According to Horne and his colleagues, the solar sunspot cycle is to peak over the next few years: however, the actual storms which affect electronic equipment in the vicinity of Earth don't quite match this cycle and the storm peak is expected to lag about two years behind the sunspot maximum. The years 2013 to 2015 are expected to be especially stormy in space - with perhaps as many as 60 events per year that could cause serious problems.

London - Mount Nyiragongo, one of the world's deadliest volcanos, is waiting to explode and turn Goma, a city of a million people in the Democratic Republic of Congo, into a modern day Pompeii, a Roman town completely destroyed by volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.

But scientists do not know when, since it is in the war-torn eastern edge of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The two-mile high cauldron of lava is also one of the least understood.

At the base of Nyiragongo sprawls Goma with its numbers swelling by the day as villagers from the countryside seek refuge from rebel and government forces, the magazine National Geographic reports.

Twice in recent years Nyiragongo's eruptions have hit the city, destroying homes and sending residents fleeing. But now, seismologists believe, the risk is not just near the city, but directly beneath it, according to the Daily Mail.

A drought that loomed over some of California's most fertile farmland officially ended Wednesday after a winter of relentless mountain storms that piled snow up to three stories high and could keep some ski resorts open until the Fourth of July.

More than 61 feet of snow has fallen in the Sierra Nevada high country so far this season, second only to 1950-51, when 65 feet fell, according to records kept by the California Department of Transportation. And more snow is possible in April, raising the prospect of an all-time record.

When it melts, the snow will bring relief to hundreds of communities and many farms that provide fruits and vegetables to the nation.

Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday repealed a statewide drought declaration made in 2008 by then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who called for a state of emergency in February 2009 after three years of low water levels.

Brown acted after state officials reported the water content in the Sierra snowpack at 165 percent of normal for this time of year. That is one of the wettest winters since 1970, according to the state Department of Water Resources.

It trails only 1983, when the water content in the snowpack was 227 percent of normal, and 1995, which was 182 percent of the average for the end of March.

The wet winter means state and federal water agencies will be able to provide more water to urban and agricultural areas as the snowmelt fills reservoirs this summer.

The number of flood victims in Terengganu rose to 1,013 people as of 8pm Tuesday night as the floods in several districts worsened.

They are currently housed in 14 evacuation centres, a spokesperson of the Terengganu National Security Council said.

The floods also forced the closure of over 23 schools, of which 12 were in Setiu involving 1,500 students, nine in Hulu Terengganu with 1,400 students and two in Besut with with 700 students.

I have been doing business in Japan for 20 years, consulting for big and small companies, speaking at conferences, writing for Japanese publications, and helping both American and Japanese companies do business with each other. For years I flew to Tokyo once a month, generally in my role as giver of bad news, which I could get away with as an American. Throughout those 20 years I have been astounded by the energy and discipline of Japanese industry, and by its turgid impenetrability. For a country known for advanced technology, Japan is astoundingly resistant to outside ideas, as the current earthquake and nuclear crisis show yet again.

Date-Time:
Thursday, March 31, 2011 at 00:11:59 UTC

Thursday, March 31, 2011 at 12:11:59 PM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location:
16.566°S, 177.493°W

Depth:
23.7 km (14.7 miles)

Region:
FIJI REGION

Distances:
438 km (272 miles) WNW (301°) from Neiafu, Tonga

562 km (350 miles) NNW (335°) from NUKU'ALOFA, Tonga

2968 km (1844 miles) W (268°) from PAPEETE, Tahiti, French Polynesia

After two years of improved baggage handling, airlines slipped last year in getting passengers' checked luggage to arrive on time.

European airlines led the decline, while U.S. carriers actually saw a slight improvement.

Worldwide, 29.4 million bags last year didn't arrive on the same flight as their owners, according to SITA, an aviation communications and technology provider. That's 12.07 mishandled bags for every 1,000 passengers, a six per cent increase over 2009.

A winter storm watch has been issued for eastern New York, parts of northern New Jersey and most of New England, where much as 12 inches of snow may fall by week's end, according to the National Weather Service.

The system will be the second to move through the area this week, said Lauren Nash, a weather service meteorologist in Upton, New York. The first will arrive tonight and may bring light snow to areas north of New York City, she said.

A powerful spring storm packing hail, heavy rain and strong winds caused extensive damage just south of New Orleans, Tuesday evening, authorities said.

Maj. John Marie with the Plaquemines Parish Sheriff's department said the heaviest damage was reported between Harvey and Belle Chasse. The Belle Chasse Ferry recorded 100-mph winds around 7:30 p.m. (8:30 p.m. ET), he said.

Lava has newly erupted inside a volcanic crater that collapsed several weeks ago - and hours before a nearby spectacular fissure eruption - on Mount Kilauea.

The new lava lake is inside the Pu'u 'Ō 'ō crater on the Hawaiian volcano. The fresh lava arrived almost 20 days after the crater floor collapsed on March 5 and almost 16 days after the Kamoamoa fissure eruption to the west on March 9. [In Images: Hawaii's Mount Kilauea Erupts.]