Earth ChangesS


Cloud Lightning

NOAA Forecasts Even Stronger Atlantic Hurricane Season For 2008 Than Earlier Prediction

In the August update to the Atlantic hurricane season outlook, NOAA's Climate Prediction Center has increased the likelihood of an above-normal hurricane season and has raised the total number of named storms and hurricanes that may form. Forecasters attribute this adjustment to atmospheric and oceanic conditions across the Atlantic Basin that favor storm development - combined with the strong early season activity.

Hurricane Dolly
©NOAA
Hurricane Dolly on July 23, 2008.

NOAA now projects an 85 percent probability of an above-normal season - up from 65 percent in May. The updated outlook includes a 67 percent chance of 14 to 18 named storms, of which seven to 10 are expected to become hurricanes, including three to six major hurricanes of Category 3 strength or higher on the Saffir-Simpson Scale. These ranges encompass the entire season, which ends November 30, and include the five storms that have formed thus far.

Attention

Alaska: Third Aleutian Volcano Erupts Explosively

Kasatochi Volcano in Alaska's Aleutian Islands erupted explosively Aug. 7, sending an ash plume more than 35,000 feet into the air and forcing two biologists from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to evacuate the island.

"Kasatochi went from a quiet volcano to an explosive eruption within 24 hours and with very little warning," said USGS volcano scientist Marianne Guffanti. "We are thankful our colleagues were able to get out before the eruption began. They were rescued just in time by a local fishing boat."

Cloud Lightning

Sudan floods displace more than 40,000: UN

Juba, Sudan - The United Nations is scrambling emergency aid to more than 40,000 people displaced by floods in southern Sudan, a top regional official said on Thursday.

Seasonal heavy rains in Northern Bahr el-Ghazal state caused the Kuom river to overflow in the town of Aweil, making 39,000 people homeless in the region, officials said.

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Some 100 homes in west Ukraine still flooded after July rains



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©Unknown

Around 100 homes in western parts of Ukraine remain underwater following heavy rains that struck the region at the end of July, the country's Emergencies Ministry said on Saturday.

According to the Health Ministry, 38 people are either dead or missing since July 27 in the worst storms to hit the region in a century. Over 40,000 homes were flooded and thousands of people evacuated as bridges, roads and infrastructure were swept away.

"The situation on August 9 is that six regions in western Ukraine along with six settlements and 92 homes remain flooded," the Emergencies Ministry said in a statement.

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At least 60 dead as heavy rains hit north Vietnam

At least 60 people have died and many are still missing in northern Vietnam as tropical storm Kammuri caused landslides and floods across the region, Vietnamese officials said on Saturday.

A Vietnamese flood and storm official said that the worst-hit area was the mountainous Lao Cai province, where 25 people have died and 35 are still missing.

Meteor

Flashback Ice Age Diamonds May have been Transported South by Comet

A recently conducted study on diamonds and precious metals found in the eastern U.S. proposes that the minerals might have been transported through the air by a 3-mile wide comet that hit Canada during the last Ice Age.

It is clear to the researchers that diamonds, silver and gold found in Ohio and Indiana were transported there from Canada about 12,900 years ago, according to Live Science, but the question is how.

Star

Flashback Diamonds tell tale of comet that killed off the cavemen

Fireballs set half the planet ablaze, wiping out the mammoth and America's Stone Age hunters

Scientists will outline dramatic evidence this week that suggests a comet exploded over the Earth nearly 13,000 years ago, creating a hail of fireballs that set fire to most of the northern hemisphere.

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Russia: Power plant causes mass sturgeon, carp deaths in Urals lake

Large numbers of sturgeon and carp weighing several metric tons died after a power station spilled boiling water into Iset Lake in Russia's Urals, the head of the affected fish farm said on Friday.

"The fish were boiled in the lake due to the release of hot water from the Mid-Urals Power Plant," Vyacheslav Karimov said.

Better Earth

Strong undersea earthquake rattles eastern Indonesia

Jakarta - A powerful undersea earthquake measuring 6.6 on the Richter scale shook parts of eastern Indonesia Thursday morning, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.

The quake struck at about 5.41 am local time with its epicentre about 51 km northeast of Sumbawa Island, according to an official report from the Jakarta meteorology and geophysics agency.

Attention

Dome collapses at Montserrat volcano; ash blasts into stratosphere

San Juan, Puerto Rico - Volcano monitors say the Caribbean's Montserrat volcano has blasted a column of ash some 12 kilometres high into the sky.

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©Greg Scott

The director of the Montserrat Volcano Observatory says last night's collapse of a dome at the crater sent bursts of volcanic material sweeping down into the island's abandoned former capital of Plymouth and the sea.