Earth Changes

Alaska: Earthquake Magnitude 6.4 - Andreanof Islands, Aleutian Islands

USGS
Wed, 04 Aug 2010 14:51 UTC

Date-Time:
Wednesday, August 04, 2010 at 12:58:24 UTC

Wednesday, August 04, 2010 at 03:58:24 AM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location:
51.426°N, 178.607°W

Depth:
27 km (16.8 miles) set by location program

Region:
ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA

Distances:
40 km (25 miles) ENE of Amatignak Island, Alaska

60 km (40 miles) SSW of Tanaga Volcano, Alaska

2055 km (1280 miles) WSW of Anchorage, Alaska

2880 km (1790 miles) W of JUNEAU, Alaska

Fiji: Earthquake Magnitude 6.0 - South of The Fiji Islands

USGS
Wed, 04 Aug 2010 14:45 UTC

Date-Time:
Wednesday, August 04, 2010 at 04:46:21 UTC

Wednesday, August 04, 2010 at 04:46:21 PM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location:
26.953°S, 177.148°W

Depth:
23.7 km (14.7 miles)

Region:
SOUTH OF THE FIJI ISLANDS

Distances:
270 km (165 miles) NNE of Raoul Island, Kermadec Islands

525 km (325 miles) NNE of L'Esperance Rock, Kermadec Islands

1335 km (830 miles) NE of Auckland, New Zealand

1755 km (1090 miles) NNE of WELLINGTON, New Zealand

Northern Lights: Coronal mass ejection hits Earth's magnetic field, sparks geomagnetic storm

Spaceweather.com
Wed, 04 Aug 2010 07:31 UTC

A coronal mass ejection (CME) hit Earth's magnetic field on August 3rd at 1740 UT. The impact sparked a G2-class geomagnetic storm that lasted nearly 12 hours--time enough for auroras to spread all the way from Europe to North America. Shawn Malone of Marquette, Michigan, photographed this display over Lake Superior:

Peru Declares State of Emergency Amid Plunging Temperatures

Annie Kelly
The Guardian
Sun, 01 Aug 2010 10:00 UTC

© Enrique Castro-Mendivil/Reuters
A doctor checks a child in Lima, where temperatures have also plunged and a vaccination project is now under way.

Hundreds die from extreme cold in remote mountain villages also struggling with severe poverty

Peru has declared a state of emergency after hundreds of children died from freezing conditions that have seen temperatures across much of the South American country plummet to a 50-year low. In 16 of Peru's 25 regions, temperatures have fallen below -24C.

Reports from the country say 409 people, most of them children, have already died from the cold, with temperatures predicted to fall further in coming weeks.

Worst hit are Peru's poorest and most isolated communities, which are already living on the edge of survival in remote Andean mountain villages more than 3,000 metres above sea level.

Although those living at such high-altitude would expect temperatures to drop below zero at this time of year, NGOs and government officials say many are unable to withstand the extreme cold which they are now experiencing.

Garbage Islands Threaten China's Three Gorges Dam

Huang Yan and Ben Blanchard
Reuters
Mon, 02 Aug 2010 10:00 UTC

© Reuters/Stringer
A worker clears floating garbage washed down by recent torrential rain on the Yangtze River in Wuhu, Anhui province, August 2, 2010.

Thousands of tons of garbage washed down by recent torrential rain are threatening to jam the locks of China's massive Three Gorges Dam, and is in places so thick people can stand on it, state media said on Monday.

Chen Lei, a senior official at the China Three Gorges Corporation, told the China Daily that 3,000 tons of rubbish was being collected at the dam every day, but there was still not enough manpower to clean it all up.

"The large amount of waste in the dam area could jam the miter gate of the Three Gorges Dam," Chen said, referring to the gates of the locks which allow shipping to pass through the Yangtze River.

The river is a crucial commercial artery for the upstream city of Chongqing and other areas in China's less-developed western interior provinces.

Pictures showed a huge swathe of the waters by the dam crammed full of debris, with cranes brought in to fish out a tangled mess, including shoes, bottles, branches and Styrofoam.

Papua New Guinea: Earthquake Magnitude 6.4 - Eastern New Guinea Reg

USGS
Wed, 04 Aug 2010 04:24 UTC

Date-Time:
Wednesday, August 04, 2010 at 07:15:33 UTC

Wednesday, August 04, 2010 at 05:15:33 PM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location:
5.521°S, 146.793°E

Depth:
213.6 km (132.7 miles) set by location program

Region:
EASTERN NEW GUINEA REG, PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Distances:
115 km (70 miles) ESE of Madang, New Guinea, PNG

135 km (85 miles) N of Lae, New Guinea, PNG

440 km (270 miles) N of PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea

2520 km (1560 miles) NNW of BRISBANE, Queensland, Australia

Ireland: Bucketing trend with wettest July in 60 years

Breda Heffernan
Irish Independent
Wed, 04 Aug 2010 03:05 UTC

It all seemed promising enough when we got a bit of sunshine in May and June. But the recent glut of rain has ensured it was the wettest July in 60 years in some parts of the country. In a depressingly familiar trend, the sun proved elusive, the rain rolled in with abandon and continental heatwaves stubbornly refused to head our way.

According to Met Eireann's monthly weather summary for July, the only saving grace was that it was preceded by a run of dry months, thereby sparing us the devastating floods seen in previous years.

Soggiest

Rainfall totals for July were above normal everywhere and were more than twice the average at some weather stations. Meterologists said it was the fourth successive July when rainfall totals were far in excess of normal over most of Ireland.

Marine Pied Piper Leads Nemo astray

PhysOrg
Tue, 03 Aug 2010 20:22 UTC

The growing amount of human noise pollution in the ocean could lead fish away from good habitat and off to their death, according to new research from a UK-led team working on the Great Barrier Reef.

After developing for weeks at sea, baby tropical fish rely on natural noises to find the coral reefs where they can survive and thrive. However, the researchers found that short exposure to artificial noise makes fish become attracted to inappropriate sounds.

In earlier research, Dr Steve Simpson, Senior Researcher in the University of Bristol's School of Biological Sciences discovered that baby reef fish use sounds made by fish, shrimps and sea urchins as a cue to find coral reefs. With human noise pollution from ships, wind farms and oil prospecting on the increase, he is now concerned that this crucial behaviour is coming under threat.

He said: "When only a few weeks old, baby reef fish face a monumental challenge in locating and choosing suitable habitat. Reef noise gives them vital information, but if they can learn, remember and become attracted towards the wrong sounds, we might be leading them in all the wrong directions."

Indonesia: Earthquake Magnitude 6.3 - Molucca Sea

USGS
Tue, 03 Aug 2010 20:42 UTC

Date-Time:
Tuesday, August 03, 2010 at 12:08:26 UTC

Tuesday, August 03, 2010 at 08:08:26 PM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location:
1.243°N, 126.277°E

Depth:
42.8 km (26.6 miles)

Region:
MOLUCCA SEA

Distances:
135 km (85 miles) WNW of Ternate, Moluccas, Indonesia

160 km (100 miles) E of Manado, Sulawesi, Indonesia

1590 km (990 miles) SSE of MANILA, Philippines

2310 km (1430 miles) ENE of JAKARTA, Java, Indonesia

Russia on Fire: No air to breath, no home to return to

Russia Today
Tue, 03 Aug 2010 18:22 UTC

Intense temperatures and the worst dry spell for generations continue to pound parts of Russia, with at least forty lives now claimed by wildfires. Hundreds have been injured. Seven of the hardest-hit regions are now in a state of emergency. One of them is the greater Moscow area. RT's Natalya Novikova gives us a picture from the center of the capital, which has been gripped by smog. While outside the city, Peter Oliver says the situation remains severe.