Earth ChangesS


Question

Mysterious water level drop on North Fork of Shenandoah River


The Republic
Sat, 18 Aug 2012 09:00 UTC
Harrisonburg, Virginia, U.S. - Officials are trying to figure out what caused water levels to drop twice in a four-day span this summer along the Shenandoah River's North Fork.

The Daily News-Record (http://bit.ly/NNqPAK) reports the Shenandoah Riverkeeper advocacy group has sent letters asking about 800 landowners to report unusual observations about the river.

Data taken from a U.S. Geological Survey gauge near Strasburg shows the water level dropped more than 3 inches on June 29, the day a severe windstorm struck the region. The levels dropped again on July 3.

The river's level hit 1.7 feet on June 29 after being at about 2.4 feet around June 20. In the span of a few hours on June 29, the water flow went from 175 to 65 cubic feet per second.
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Bizarro Earth

Wildfires hit Greek holiday island


The Telegraph
Sat, 18 Aug 2012 06:18 UTC
Greek fire-fighters battled fierce blazes on the island of Chios on Saturday as billowing smoke forced the evacuations of three villages.
Image
© EPA
Citizens of the village of Lithi find refuge at the beach as a wildfire burns in the mountains on the island of Chios, Greece
Ten water bombers and five helicopters were deployed as 50 fire-fighters and almost 80 army troops worked to contain the wildfire on the eastern island. They also used 17 fire engines and were backed by 40 volunteers.

Fanned by strong winds of up 40 miles per hour, the wildfire started in the early hours of Saturday in the island's south. The evacuation was carried out on the initiative of the villagers because of the heavy smoke that covered the area.

"The fire is close to inhabited areas but for the time being has not posed an immediate threat," a fire department spokesman told the AFP news agency.

Greece is hit by wildfires, many started by arsonists, every summer, the flames fanned by high temperatures and strong winds.

Earlier this month, a wildfire blazing for five days threatened Mount Athos, the world's oldest surviving monastic community and a United Nations World Heritage Site, in northern Greece.

The worst major blazes of recent years hit in 2007 in the Peloponnese region of southern Greece and on the island of Evia, leaving 77 people dead and ravaging 250,000 hectares.
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Cloud Lightning

Tropical Storm Helene threatens Mexico


The Extinction Protocol
Sat, 18 Aug 2012 12:48 UTC
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After forming close to shore, Tropical Storm Helene headed north along Mexico's Gulf coast early Saturday posing a threat to areas where thousands of people were still recovering from flooding spawned last week by Hurricane Ernesto. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Helene sprang up Friday then weakened to barely tropical storm strength by nighttime, but its forecast said the storm could strengthen again before making an expected landfall Saturday. Meanwhile, Portugal posted warnings for the central and eastern Azores islands as Tropical Storm Gordon moved eastward across the Atlantic and later turned into a hurricane.

The National Hurricane Center said Gordon had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph and was headed east at 18 mph. Helene had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph and was moving northwest at 7 mph late Friday. It was centered about 65 miles east of Tuxpan. Landfall was predicted for the northern part of Veracruz, a lush coastal state with hundreds of towns and villages sitting along streams and rivers that can swell dangerously in heavy rain. Many were evacuated as Ernesto approached last week, and flood damage made some 10,000 people homeless. Mexico's government declared a state of emergency in more than 100 population centers in Veracruz and was providing them with emergency aid. The country's national weather service warned of intense rains and winds along the Veracruz and Tamaulipas coasts, with heavy rain, hail and lightning possible. Helene was predicted to bring 5 inches to 10 inches of rain, with as many as 15 inches across northeastern portions of Mexico.
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Bizarro Earth

Strong 6.3 earthquake hits northern Indonesian island


Mercury News / Associated Press
Sat, 18 Aug 2012 12:40 UTC
Image
© USGS
An earthquake registering magnitude 6.3 rocked a northern Indonesian island on Saturday as residents were ending their fast on the final day of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, officials said. There were reports of at least two injuries but no tsunami warning was issued.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the late-afternoon quake struck 56 kilometers (35 miles) southeast of Palu city on Sulawesi Island at a depth of 19.9 kilometers (12.4 miles).

Sudirman, an officer at the Disaster Management Agency who uses one name, said there were reports from the province that at least two people were injured by falling debris and of damage to houses in Parigi Mountong, the district closest to the epicenter.

He said the full extent of the injuries and damage was not yet known.

The earthquake struck as people in the province were ending their fast on the last day of Ramadan, causing many to rush out into the streets in panic, local news reports said.

The USGS initially measured the quake at magnitude 6.6 but later adjusted it to 6.3.
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Fish

Great white shark videoed by fisherman off Cape Cod weeks after first human attack in 76-years

James Nye
Daily Mail
Fri, 17 Aug 2012 10:48 UTC
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While it is not unusual to spot great white sharks off the coast of Chatham Beach, this summer season a man was attacked by a great white off the cost of Truro Beach and this week 12-foot shark was seen off the coast of Sandy Neck Beach
Just when the residents of Cape Cod thought it was safe to get back into the water, a large great white shark was spotted swimming inside the famous tourist destination's bay.Videoed four miles off the popular Sandy Neck beach by tuna fisherman Jeff Richardson, the 12-foot long, 1,000 pound shark was aggressive - raising fears of another attack on holiday-makers and residents.

Made famous by Steven Spielberg's 1975 blockbuster Jaws, Cape Cod has had a spate of great white shark sightings this summer season, including the first attack on a human since 1936. 'It was unreal,' said Richardson, who was looking for tuna on his friends harpoon boat Cynthia C on Tuesday when they spotted the shark. 'It got very aggressive. It turned on the boat, turned away from the boat and kept swimming. We followed it for about 10-15 minutes.'

Link to video
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Igloo

Australia's Coldest August Night on Record

Robert
IceAgeNow.info
Fri, 17 Aug 2012 09:36 UTC
A blast of polar air from a cold-front in southern Australia last week managed to push all the way up to the tropics. Darwin shivered through it's coldest August night on record Monday after the temperature dropped to just 13.1C Monday, more than seven degrees below the August average minimum of 20.4C.

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Phoenix

Officials keep eye on weather as wildfires burn

Shannon Dininny
Associated Press
Fri, 17 Aug 2012 03:06 UTC
fire washington
© AP Photo/Elaine ThompsonIn this photo taken Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012, flames surround a house on a hillside above Bettas Road near Cle Elum, Wash.
Yakima, Washington - Crews in central Washington, rural Idaho and Southern California made gains on several wildfires, allowing some evacuees to return home and protecting two vacation towns from a massive encroaching blaze.

Firefighters stopped a fire about 75 miles east of Seattle from destroying more buildings in the past two days, fire spokesman Mark Grassel said Thursday. The blaze near the town of Cle Elum burned at least 70 homes, more than 200 outbuildings and about 35 square miles of wildland since it started Monday.

Crews focused on strengthening lines on the fire's stubborn north flank, where flames whipped through thick pine and fir forests in a steep, rugged area.

"They're really trying to button up that line so they feel more secure about it holding," Grassel said.

Firefighters' work allowed officials to lift some evacuation orders, although homeowners said they didn't feel out of danger yet. Unusually hot, dry, unstable weather was expected Friday and Saturday, with thunderstorms possible, Grassel said.
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Bizarro Earth

Japan's Sakurajima volcano releasing largest amount of ash in 20 years: ground swollen around volcano

Radhika Seth
Japan Daily Press
Fri, 17 Aug 2012 08:57 UTC
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Sakurajima Volcano has been steadily erupting for some time now. So much so that residents were asked to cover up and wear masks as a health and safety measure. According to researchers, this active volcano in Kagoshima Prefecture could release its largest amount of ash in two decades this year alone.

Going by the current stats available, the mountain has already spewed enough ash from January to July, amounting to twice the amount emitted in all of last year. Masato Iguchi, a professor at the Sakurajima Volcano Research Center said that last year saw a record number of eruptions as well. The ground around Sakurajima indicates the buildup of magma and appears swollen.

And if Sakurajima keeps being as active it is right now, we can expect the amount of ash expelled to be a new record. In the past two decades this year's activity of explosions and ash fall have both risen dramatically.
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Cloud Lightning

Multiple waterspouts touch down in Black Sea, near Foros, Ukraine

loveforos
YouTube
Tue, 14 Aug 2012 06:12 UTC
Multiple waterspouts were filmed just offshore from the city of Foros on the Black Sea coast in early August 2012.


Comment: Meanwhile, further north...

Multiple waterspouts touch down off Polish coast

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Cloud Lightning

Multiple waterspouts touch down off Polish coast

Irydius
YouTube
Sat, 11 Aug 2012 06:05 UTC
Multiple waterspouts were filmed just offshore from the city of Darłowo on the Polish Baltic Sea coast in early August 2012.

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