The winter landscape appeared was particularly astonishing given that the rest of Europe continues to suffocate in a record-breaking heatwave.
Earth Changes
The winter landscape appeared was particularly astonishing given that the rest of Europe continues to suffocate in a record-breaking heatwave.
The mercury in Rotenburg, Lower Saxony plunged to 2.9C (37.2F) on Thursday morning — low enough to break the town's all-time record cold temperature for the month of July which had stood since 1946, according to wetter.com.
The new record low temperature comes just days after Germany logged an all-time record high — serving as further evidence of the swings-between-extremes brought on by low solar activity and the associated weakening of the jet stream.
© Mario Tama/Getty Images
A local resident inspects a crack in the earth after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck the area on July 4, 2019 near Ridgecrest, California.
A local resident inspects a crack in the earth after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck the area on July 4, 2019 near Ridgecrest, California.
Caltech seismologist Lucy Jones says the area should expect aftershocks to continue for some time. "There is about a 1 in 20 chance that this location will be having an even bigger earthquake within the next few days," Jones said.
The manifestation of back-to-back extremes, in both space and time, is the defining characteristic of this 'age of transition' we have entered. The first half of June brought wet and wild with weather to Europe, with violent storms inundating the region with rain, cold and hail... but in the second half of the month an extreme heatwave struck, causing all-time record high temperatures in France and raging wildfires in Spain.
Strong earthquakes in China, Japan and Indonesia were accompanied by major volcanic eruptions along the Ring of Fire. The massive quantities of ash and dust they pump into the atmosphere, likely significant factors driving climate change, along with the 'meteor smoke' from trails of meteor fireballs, were 'reflected' last month by the major outbreak of 'night-shining' clouds at unprecedentedly low latitudes.
All that, and more, in this month's SOTT Earth Changes Summary...
'Save the Society and Thunderstorm Awareness Forum' said it gathered the data from at least 10 local and national newspapers, some online portals and televisions.
The victims include 21 women, seven children and 98 men, the organisation said in a media statement on Saturday.
Most of them were killed while fishing or bringing cattle back home from the field. Some of the victims died while sleeping in houses made of corrugated tin-sheet, and standing under trees.
© Prince William County
Prince William County police tweeted out this photo Friday evening of the car being removed from the sinkhole.
Prince William County police tweeted out this photo Friday evening of the car being removed from the sinkhole.
The first reports of a gaping hole in the ground came around 6:15 p.m. Thursday, forcing Prince William County officers to close Princedale Drive between Roundtree Drive and Saddler Lane.
Video and photos from the scene showed the sinkhole in the shoulder of Princedale Drive, extending across the entire roadway.
© Rob Dalling
The multi-coloured arc left residents across the city confused as it appeared in the shape of a 'U' rather than, well a rainbow shape!
People reported seeing it from Birchgrove, Fforestfach, Sketty, Clydach and even Rotherslade.
How did it occur?
According to the Met Office , the upside down rainbow is actually a circumzenithal arc.
The upside down rainbows appear when the sunlight refracts through ice crystals in cirrus clouds.
This type of rainbow is quite common but we usually can't see them because of the clouds underneath.
Whilst we normally think of Alaska as largely freezing and snow-covered, the US's northernmost state is forecast to bake in temperatures reaching 30.5 degrees Celsius (87 degrees Fahrenheit) or higher over the next five days, stretching from July 4 through July 8, according to the National Weather Service.
Its largest city, Anchorage, broke its all-time temperature record on Friday, reaching 31 degrees Celsius (89 degrees Fahrenheit) at the city's airport.
The previous record was also set in the airport on June 14, 1969, and reached a temperature of 29.4 degrees Celsius (84.9 degrees Fahrenheit).
© Angela Antunes / CC by 2.0
Just before noon on July 4, the Highlands County Sheriff's Office responded to reports of a body that appeared to be deceased in a wooded area behind a residence in the southeastern section of Highway Park.
The body was later identified as 45-year-old Melvin Olds Jr. by the department.
During the investigation it was determined that Olds died from injuries indicative of an animal attack, believed to be from a pack of dogs. The medical examiner said they could not find any other injuries to the 45-year-old, but an autopsy will still be carried out in order to determine a cause of death.
The quake was centered in the Searles Valley, a remote area of San Bernardino about 100 miles from Los Angeles.
Comment: This is located in the Mojave Desert, aka Death Valley.
It was unclear of the temblor caused major damage or injuries.
The quake was the largest in Southern California since the 1994 6.6 Northridge quake, which killed dozens and caused billions in damage. But Northridge hit in the center of a populated area, while Thursday's quake was located far from the metropolitan Los Angeles area.
Comment: Actually, the earthquake was the strongest since a 7.1 quake struck in the region on October 16, 1999.
Comment: The Santa Monica Observer reports:
An earthquake at 10:33 pm PST on July 4 was felt from Santa Barbara to San Diego, and as far East as Las Vegas.
The temblor went on for over a minute. It was felt throughout the Westside of Los Angeles County as a powerful rolling motion. The quake was centered 12 KM southwest of Searles Valley California. It registered a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 on the Richter scale makes it probably the biggest southland shock in 25 years, since the 1994 Northridge Earthquake.
Searles Valley is near Death Valley, in Eastern Southern California's Mojave Desert, San Bernardino County. The earthquake was at 8.7 KM depth.
The earthquake occurred during Santa Monica's annual 4th of July parade. Stilt walkers wondered why they suddenly felt off balance, and cars in the parade shook from side to side.
If we could offer our readers a word of advice, don't drive right now, especially on area freeways. Firefighters and Police must check the roads and bridges for potential collapse. After the Northridge quake, bridges fell down and a handful of people were injured or killed driving off of them. This earthquake seems to have had similar intensity.
See also: M5.6 earthquake hits California - Follows seismic swarm of 400 quakes this month
UPDATE 5/7/19: NBC News report from Ridgecrest
Comment: More record-breaking heat and wildfire smoke forecast for Alaska