Earth ChangesS


Cloud Precipitation

Aerial footage shows hundreds of solar panels smashed by hail in Texas on March 16

Images captured by Fox affiliate FOX26 Houston KRIV show extensive damage to Fighting Jays Solar in Fort Bend County, Texas.
© FOX26 Houston KRIVImages captured by Fox affiliate FOX26 Houston KRIV show extensive damage to Fighting Jays Solar in Fort Bend County, Texas.
A hailstorm damaged hundreds of solar panels in southeast Texas on Saturday, March 16, footage shows.

Aerial footage provided by Ryan Ashcraft of Ashcraft Aviation shows several damaged solar panels on a 4,000-acre farm near Damon. Ashcraft told Storyful that he was flying with his girlfriend and best friend to go check on their cattle in a neighboring county when they noticed the panels on the solar farm. "They all looked like shattered windshields from the hailstorm a few days before," Ashcraft said.

According to the National Weather Service (NWS), the area was hit by a severe thunderstorm with large hail and damaging winds on March 16. Other solar farms in southern Texas were also damaged during the storm.

According to South Texas Solar Systems, hail damage to solar panels "can lead to a decrease in efficiency as well as an increased risk of fire."


Snowflake

Snow falls on Malaga in southern Spain following a dramatic drop in temperatures overnight

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Parts of Malaga have woken up to a blanket of fresh snow following a dramatic drop in temperatures overnight.

Whilst low-lying coastal areas have experienced much-needed significant rainfall, Malaga's high altitude areas have been hit by snowfall.

This morning, many of the region's mountains were covered in snow after unseasonably low overnight temperatures.

Snow settled in the Sierra de las Nieves, Sierra Tejeda, Sierra Bermeja and the Torcal de Antequera National Park.

Snow was also visible from the cities of Ronda and Granada.


Comment: Related: Temperature extremes: From 30ºC to snow fall in Portugal


Snowflake

Temperature extremes: From 30ºC to snow fall in Portugal

From 30ºC to snow fall
From 30ºC to snow fall
Several areas woke up covered in snow this morning, including Gerês, Paredes de Coura and Arouca.

Snow fell again in several parts of the country, after several days with thermometers tipping the 30ºC mark.

Castro Laboreiro, in the municipality of Melgaço, woke up painted white after the snow fell during the afternoon and night of Monday.

In Cabana Maior, Arcos de Valdevez, right on the doorstep of the Peneda-Gerês National Park, it also snowed, with several online users sharing images.


Comment: Related: Snow falls on Malaga in southern Spain following a dramatic drop in temperatures overnight


Volcano

Marapi volcano (Western Sumatra): sudden powerful explosion showered summit area with lava bombs

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The explosive eruption at the volcano persists.

A spectacular eruption took place from the summit crater early last night. At aboout 00:13 local time, a towering pillar of grey-to-black ash and glowing ejecta released from the vent could be seen via surveillance cameras in Agam.

The intense explosion sent incandescent pyroclastic material up to a considerable height, consequently showering the upper edifice with lava bombs. The ash column reached 4,400 meters altitude and drifted west-southwest.

In order to mitigate the current risk, people are advised to avoid the area within a 4.5 km radius of the Verbeek Crater.

The alert level for the volcano remains at Level III (Siaga) since 11 January.


Arrow Down

Sinkhole swallows customer after floor collapses in shopping mall in China on March 23

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A shocking incident unfolded in Zhenjiang, China, after a massive sinkhole opened up on the second floor of a shopping mall and swallowed a customer on March 23.

Chilling security camera footage captured the woman disappearing as the floor suddenly collapsed beneath her.

A worker on the floor below was also trapped by debris. Both suffered only minor injuries.


Seismograph

Shallow 6.4 magnitude earthquake southwest of Fiji

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An earthquake of 6.4 magnitude struck the Suva in Fiji during the early hours of Wednesday (local time), the National Center for Seismology (NCS) reported.

The depth of the earthquake was measured at 10 km and the epicentre was 591 km South-West of Suva in Fiji.

"Earthquake of Magnitude: 6.4, Occurred on 27-03-2024, 06:58:17 IST, Lat: -21.21 & Long: 173.85, Depth: 10 Km, Location: 591km SW of Suva, Fiji," said the NCS in a post on X.

The National Center for Seismology (NCS) is the nodal agency of the Government of India for monitoring earthquake activity.

No casualties have been reported so far. Further details are awaited.

Cloud Precipitation

Global cooling: Record outback rains in Australia

So far this month hundreds of millimetres of rain has fallen across the NT as far south as Alice Springs.
© ABC NewsSo far this month hundreds of millimetres of rain has fallen across the NT as far south as Alice Springs.
An exceptional soaking across outback Australia has broken all-time rain records, caused dry Northern Territory rivers to flood, and will supply another boost to waters already flowing south into Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre.

The current rain event has triggered flood watches for more than 40 Queensland and NT rivers, prolonging a productive northern wet season which has brought frequent soakings deep into the country's interior.

And there's still more rain to come this week — the spell of showers and thunderstorms will continue across much of northern and central Australia this week, before possibly moving south this Easter, and potentially dampening the back half of the long weekend in parts of South Australia, New South Wales and Victoria.


Comment: A report from about a week prior: Heavy rain, and possible flooding for Northern Territory, Australia as ex-Tropical Cyclone Megan crosses


Cloud Precipitation

Iran hit by heavy rains, flooding disrupts communication routes

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Torrential downpours in several Iranian provinces have caused widespread disruption as floodwater blocked communication routes in dozens of villages.

Authorities have issued warnings about rising water levels at several dams, and flooding has already begun in some areas.

On Monday, the Iranian Meteorological Organization issued red warnings for Khuzestan, Lorestan, Kohgiluyeh, and Boyer Ahmad provinces, while 15 others received orange warnings.

Omid Mesadi, deputy head of the Crisis Management Organization, reported that roughly 110 roads, primarily rural routes, had been blocked by Monday evening.


Nebula

Northern lights shine over erupting volcano in Iceland

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Timelapse video has shown a volcano in the Icelandic town of Grindavik erupting against the backdrop of the Northern Lights.

The volcano there is continuing to erupt - but to a lesser extent than it did in January and February when it sent lava rushing towards Grindavik.

The Icelandic Met Office says it is possible that the deep magma supply and the lava outflow might have found a balance where it continues to erupt but with reduced power.

Grindavik's population of about 3,800 people were evacuated in November following a series of earthquakes that opened large cracks in the earth between the town and Sýlingarfell, a small mountain to the north and it was evacuated again in January the night before the latest eruption started.


Boat

Burundi floods submerge homes and farms

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Neither homes nor farmland have been spared by the relentless rise of Burundi's Lake Tanganyika.

Increased rains, linked to climate change, have upped the water level by 27 centimeters in recent months.

In the community of Kibenga, residents have erected sand bank defenses as they attempt, often in vain, to hold back the tide of floodwater.

Apolline Kankindi says she used to grow crops such as cassava and beans.

Now, she says, the lake has destroyed it all.