Earth ChangesS


Bizarro Earth

First North Pole Ozone Hole Forming?

Arctic Ozone
© Picture Press / AlamyStratospheric clouds in the Arctic (file picture) worsen ozone loss, experts say.

Spawned by strangely cold temperatures, "beautiful" clouds helped strip the Arctic atmosphere of most of its protective ozone this winter, new research shows.

The resulting zone of low-ozone air could drift as far south as New York, according to experts who warn of increased skin-cancer risk.

The stratosphere's global blanket of ozone - about 12 miles (20 kilometers) above Earth - blocks most of the sun's high-frequency ultraviolet (UV) rays from hitting Earth's surface, largely preventing sunburn and skin cancer.

But a continuing high-altitude freeze over the Arctic may have already reduced ozone to half its normal concentrations - and "an end is not in sight," said research leader Markus Rex, a physicist for the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research in Bremerhaven, Germany.

Preliminary data from 30 ozone-monitoring stations throughout the Arctic show the degree of ozone loss was larger this winter than ever before, Rex said.

Before spring is out, "we may even get the first Arctic ozone hole ... which would be a dramatic development - one which would make it into coming history books," he said.

"It's too early to call, but stay tuned."

Bizarro Earth

UK: Hundreds of Dead Starfish Wash Up on Talybont Beach

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© Erfyl LLoyd Davies PhotographyThe common starfish is found around the coast of the British Isles.
Several hundred dead starfish have been found washed up on a north Wales beach.

It comes following the discovery at Talybont, between Harlech and Barmouth in Gwynedd.

Council maritime officer Barry Davies said it is common for starfish to be washed ashore during spring tides but it was not clear why they had migrated so far up the shoreline.

Barmouth harbour committee chairman said an inquiry is needed.

Councillor Trefor Roberts said: "What I would like is a full scientist report on what caused the deaths of these starfish."

Mr Davies said he did not think anything suspicious has led to the deaths of the starfish.

Bizarro Earth

US: Tornadoes Rip Through Western Pennsylvania

Tornadoes Rip Through Western Pennsylvania


Bizarro Earth

Myanmar: Earthquake Magnitude 6.8

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© USGS
Date-Time:
Thursday, March 24, 2011 at 13:55:12 UTC

Thursday, March 24, 2011 at 08:25:12 PM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location:
20.705°N, 99.949°E

Depth:
10 km (6.2 miles)

Region:
MYANMAR

Distances:
89 km (55 miles) N of Chiang Rai, Thailand

168 km (104 miles) SSW of Yunjinghong, Yunnan, China

589 km (365 miles) NE of Rangoon, Myanmar

772 km (479 miles) N of BANGKOK, Thailand

Snowman

Colder than normal spring predicted by Environment Canada

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© CP
Even though spring has officially arrived and Canadians may occasionally get a small taste of warmth, it's going to be a while before you can put away the parkas.

"Forget what the calendar says, this is Canada," says Environment Canada climatologist David Phillips. "Ten per cent of snowfall happens in spring."

Canada is the snowiest country in the world, the second coldest country and winter is the longest season.

"Last year we had the earliest and warmest spring on record," says Phillips. "It was a gift."

By the end of a nice spring, Canadians believe it's the norm and only remember the last year. However, not only does it usually snow in April, but a third of the time it snows in May. That's more of what we can expect for this spring, he says.

Phillips predicts a colder than normal April for everywhere west of the Ottawa Valley. That will include more snow and April showers. East of the Ottawa Valley he's predicting normal conditions. He says it's much of the same for May and June with it to be colder than normal in the West and normal in the East.

Igloo

US: Storm brings mix of snow, sleet, ice to Michigan

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A storm packing a mix of snow, sleet and ice has created near-blizzard conditions and hazardous roadways in parts of Michigan.

The National Weather Service says that as of Wednesday morning 4-7 inches of snow fell in Saginaw and Tuscola counties, while the Flint area got more than 4 inches of sleet and snow. A glaze of ice also was seen in some areas. In the northern Lower Peninsula, the Houghton Lake area got up to 6 inches.

Rain fell in the Detroit area, with temperatures at or above freezing. Forecasters warned that could change later in the day.

By Wednesday afternoon, forecasters say an area from Ludington to Mount Pleasant could get 5-10 inches of snow and sleet by the time the storm passes.

Cloud Lightning

US: Officials surveying Iowa tornado, storm damage

iowa,tornado
© James SkiversJames Skivers captures a tornado touchdown near Cromwell, Iowa on Tuesday, March 22, 2011.
The National Weather Service will send teams to Madison, Cass and Adair counties today to survey tornado and storm damage. The results will be available late this afternoon.

"We don't have any reports of injuries," Kenny Podrazik, a meteorologist with the Weather Service, said Wednesday morning.

Reports of property damage are coming in from areas all along the path of the storms. "We will know a lot more about the extent of the damage this afternoon," Podrazik said.

Snowman

US: Defying spring, snow hits Northeast, Midwest

Albany, New York - Spring can't seem to upstage winter in the Northeast and parts of the nation's midsection, as a far-reaching storm on Wednesday brought up to a foot of snow to areas from the Dakotas to upstate New York.


Scores of schools closed or delayed opening in Wisconsin, northeastern Pennsylvania, upstate New York and northwest New Jersey because of the weather. Authorities in Wisconsin blamed icy conditions for the death of a woman whose car skidded off the road.

Communities in Pennsylvania's Pocono Mountains were expecting more than 11 inches by the time the storm moved out late Wednesday, The National Weather Service reported.

Cloud Lightning

US: 'A big one': Davenport, Iowa, braces for record flood

iowa,flood
© APThis frame grab provided by WLBT-TV during a news television station helicopter flight over the Mississippi River bridge at Interstate-20 in Vicksburg, Miss., shows one of the runaway barges that hit the bridge Wednesday afternoon, March 23, 2011. The bridge was shut down for several hours Wednesday after an estimated 8 loaded barges broke loose from a southbound tow on the flood-swollen Mississippi River. Some of the barges are believed to have hit the old Interstate-20 bridge pillars but none sank officials reported. The barges are expected to be secured by early evening.
Davenport, Iowa - Volunteers in Davenport are filling thousands of sandbags, workers are rushing to protect the city's signature minor league baseball park, and the mayor is warning residents of one neighborhood to be ready to evacuate if necessary as the city braces for a potentially historic flood.

Officials in Davenport, an eastern Iowa city of 100,000 residents that hugs the Mississippi River, say the water level in coming days and weeks could surpass the 22.63-foot record crest in 1993, which closed downtown businesses and streets for weeks and forced the evacuation of hundreds of residents. Davenport is the largest metropolitan area along the upper Mississippi without a flood wall, partly because officials and residents concerned about the cost and protecting their connection to the river have rejected the idea of building one.

The city's flood-fighting strategy plans for a maximum crest of 24 feet. But a National Weather Service forecast that indicates a 50% chance of a record flood has left city officials scrambling to prepare for waters of up to 26 feet.

Bizarro Earth

US: Sinkhole At Hillsborough Landfill Expands as Walls Collapse

Sinkhole_1
© Tampa Bay OnlineThe sinkhole is in an older part of the 3,300-acre tract at 1596 County Road 672, which opened as a landfill in 1984.
The sides of the sinkhole that swallowed up part of the Southeast County Landfill in Lithia four months ago collapsed last night. The avalanche of dirt did not widen the gaping 129-foot crater, but did deepen it by about 10 feet, officials said.

No one was injured and it is believed the dirt collapse was caused by the process that is aimed at filling the hole that is now estimated to be about 60 feet deep.

"We anticipated some movement, some additional sloughing of sidewall as a result of the pressure grouting," said Richard Siemering with HDR Engineering, which works with the Hillsborough County Solid Waste Department. He said the collapse delayed the process only a couple of hours until assessments could be made.

The grout is forced into the ground to shore up the bottom of the hole, he said, and it exerts pressure in all directions, including up. That can cause the bottom of the hole to shift and that's what caused the sides to fall in.