Earth Changes

Heavy snow continues in mountainous areas of Japan - up to 2 meters

NHK WORLD-JAPAN
Fri, 01 Jan 2021 13:20 UTC

Snow caused by a powerful frigid air mass is intensifying mainly in mountainous areas along the Sea of Japan coast on New Year's Day.

The Meteorological Agency says heavy snow is falling along the Japan Sea side of the Hokuriku and Tohoku regions.

Snow has accumulated in mountainous areas and on lower ground. At 6 a.m. on Friday, there were two meters of snow in Okura Village in Yamagata Prefecture, and 141 centimeters in Uonuma City in Niigata Prefecture.

The snow is expected to continue through Sunday. More snow will likely accumulate on the plains as well.

Mysterious explosive sound and massive flash rattles Elk Grove, California

Renée Santos
Sacramento.cbslocal.com
Wed, 30 Dec 2020 13:05 UTC

An explosion and massive flash rocked an Elk Grove neighborhood in the middle of the night.

The flash was captured in home surveillance video from Feickert Drive.

The Elk Grove Police Department said the incident is just one example of loud booms people have been reporting for weeks.

"We both jumped out of bed because one of the pictures fell from the wall," said Amy Mantanane.

Elephant disembowels man, tramples him to death in Kenya

Samantha Lock
Newsweek
Thu, 31 Dec 2020 12:03 UTC

File photo: An elephant is pictured at the Tsavo East National Park in Kenya, nearby to where a man was disemboweled and trampled to death on December 30.

© TONY KARUMBA/GETTY
File photo: An elephant is pictured at the Tsavo East National Park in Kenya, nearby to where a man was disemboweled and trampled to death on December 30.

A man was disemboweled and trampled to death by an elephant in a vicious attack in Makueni, Kenya.

Charles Mutisya, 73, was killed on Wednesday morning while tending to his farm in the Nthunguni area of Kibwezi East sub-county.

The wild animal had strayed from the nearby Tsavo East National Park when it attacked the elderly man around 7 a.m.

"Police from Mtito Andei police station and Kenya Wildlife Services rangers visited the scene of the incident and found the body having visible injuries with intestines hanging outside the stomach," Makueni County Police Commander Joseph Ole Naipeyan told Kenya News Agency on Wednesday.

Comment: Elephants have also killed during the past week in Nepal and in the Indian states of Orissa (2 deaths), Karnataka, Tamil Nadu (2) and Assam.

Сars washed away by floodwater in Sao Paulo, Brazil

When The Earth Is Angry
YouTube
Wed, 30 Dec 2020 11:32 UTC

In the Brazilian state of São Paulo, in the Capao Redondo region, a heavy downpour caused flooding. The water washed away the parked cars. Eyewitnesses of this event filmed the flood and shared it on social networks.

Hundreds of dead birds found in Rome after New Year fireworks

Wanted in Rome
Fri, 01 Jan 2021 11:19 UTC

Hundreds of dead birds covered a central Rome street in the aftermath of last night's fireworks for New Year.

The birds, believed to be starlings, were found at the Termini train station end of Via Cavour by a motorist who posted footage of the disturbing scene on YouTube.

The disorientated birds, startled by the explosions, are thought to have died after flying into windows and high voltage electricity cables just after midnight.

The incident occurred amid a New Year firework ban which was completely ignored, as in previous years, leading to numerous cases of dogs running away from their homes in fear.

Provisional world record for high air pressure set in Mongolia as majority of Asia hit by historic cold

Cap Allon
Electroverse
Thu, 31 Dec 2020 09:14 UTC

A new world record for high air pressure has provisionally been set in a high mountain valley in Mongolia.

An automatic weather station in Tsetsen-Uul, western Zavkhan province, recorded a mean sea-level pressure of 1,094.3 millibars along with bitter temperatures of -45.5C (50F).

If verified, it will top the previous world record of 1089.4 millibars also set in Mongolia exactly 16 years ago on Dec. 30.

Stephen Burt, a research fellow in meteorology at the University of Reading, told The Independent: "This looks as if it's a genuine record, it's from an official synoptic reporting station.

"There are other stations that are reporting very high pressures as well. So this isn't just a reading error or a transmission error.

Comment: See also:

Heavy flash flood in Tucuman, Argentina - 4 inches of rain in an HOUR

YouTube
Thu, 31 Dec 2020 19:07 UTC

According to the provincial director of Civil Defense, Fernando Torres, quoted by La Gaceta de Tcumán, the storm, which began last night minutes before 8:00 p.m., was concentrated in the area of Greater San Miguel de Tucumán and more than 30 thousand residents suffered cuts of light following the rain.

In the western area of San Miguel de Tucumán, 105 millimeters fell between 20:05 and 21:08. The Hospital del Niño Jesús also suffered the ravages of the storm and water flooded its corridors.

Rare green flash above Jupiter captured by astrophotographer

SpaceWeather
Sat, 26 Dec 2020 12:00 UTC

You've heard of a green flash on the sun. But a green flash on Jupiter? "I've never come across one before," says atmospheric optics expert Les Cowley. Until now, that is. Spanish astrophotographer Juan Manuel Perez Rayego captured the rare phenomenon on Dec. 26th:

"I was taking one last photo of the Great Conjunction between Jupiter and Venus, just saying goodbye," says Rayego. "Suddenly, a green fragment of Jupiter split off and floated away from the planet. It was spectacular."

"I've analyzed Juan's image and conclude that it is very likely a mock mirage--the same type of mirage that can create green flashes on the sun," says Cowley.

Comment: There are significant signs that a shift is occurring in our atmosphere - and in those of other planets in our solar system:

Coldest December day in 42 years recorded in Beijing

Fan Anqi
Global Times
Wed, 30 Dec 2020 13:56 UTC

© Xinhua/Ju Huanzong
China's meteorological authority on Tuesday renewed an orange alert, the second highest in a four-tier warning system, for a cold wave as a strong cold front has been sweeping across most parts of central and east China from Monday.

Apart from the resurgence of the coronavirus that has confined many Beijingers at home, local residents now have another reason to stay indoors - the bitter wind and extreme cold as the city saw its coldest recorded December day in 42 years at -26 C, with residents astonished at the sudden temperature drop.

"The forecast for Beijing is even colder than the North Pole," a netizen on China's Twitter-like Sina Weibo said early on Wednesday, posting screenshots of weather-tracking apps which read -13 C in Beijing and -3 C at the North Pole.

As a cold air mass swept across northern China and Beijing since Tuesday, temperatures plunged from an average daily high of 2 C to maximum highs of -6 C and lows of -13 C, some of the coldest December days in a decade. As high winds accompanied the cold snap, with gusts of between 30-50 kilometers an hour, the wind chill has seen real feel temperatures of -22 C, with residents scurrying to get inside as they hold onto their hats.

Caribbean volcanoes rumble to life as scientists study activity not seen in years

The Guardian
Wed, 30 Dec 2020 19:14 UTC

© Jakob Fischer/Alamy Stock Photo/Alamy Stock Photo
View over Guadeloupe, from the summit of La Soufriere volcano in St Vincent and Grenadines.

Volcanoes that have been quiet for decades are rumbling to life in the eastern Caribbean, prompting officials to issue alerts in Martinique and St Vincent and the Grenadines as scientists rush in to study activity they say has not been observed in years.

The most recent warning was issued late on Tuesday for La Soufriere volcano in St Vincent and the Grenadines, a chain of islands home to more than 100,000 people. Officials reported tremors, strong gas emissions, formation of a new volcanic dome and changes to its crater lake.

The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency said that scientists observed an "effusive eruption within the crater, with visible gas and steam" on Tuesday.

The government warned those living near the volcano to prepare to evacuate if needed, declaring an orange alert that means eruptions could occur with less than 24 hours' notice.

La Soufriere, located near the northern tip of the main island of St Vincent, last erupted in 1979, and a previous eruption in 1902 killed some 1,600 people. That occurred shortly before Martinique's Mt Pelee erupted and destroyed the town of Saint-Pierre, killing more than 30,000 people.

Comment: See also: