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Rare Waterspout Outbreak Hits Lake Michigan; More Possible Today

Julie Hoogland
MLive.com
Sun, 25 Sep 2011 09:02 UTC
Watersprout
© National Weather Service and James Hall
A Lake Michigan waterspout seen from Lakeshore State Park in Milwaukee Saturday.
The westside of Lake Michigan put on an impressive waterspout show on Saturday for residents of the Chicago and Milwaukee areas, who saw dozens of the funnel clouds and captured the outbreaks on photo and video. (Videos below.)

Lake Michigan could churn up isolated waterspouts again today, the Grand Rapids National Weather Service office said in its hazardous weather and nearshore marine forecasts.

Cold unstable air and warm water, creating a 25 degree temperature difference, were the two important ingredients that came together Saturday, the National Weather Service said.

The conditions produced "a rare outbreak of waterspouts stretching from off shore of Milwaukee, south to the Chicagoland area," the NWS Milwaukee office said. Its full explanation and more photos are available here.

The NWS office in Chicago explains how meteorologists forecast waterspouts here.
      Read More...
Hardhat

Brazilian Beach's (Small) Jaws Horror


Associated Press
Sun, 25 Sep 2011 20:06 UTC
Piranha
© Thinkstock
At least 100 bathers needed to be treated at hospital after being bitten by piranhas.

Authorities in a state in Brazil's northeast are scrambling to take the fright and the bite off the beach after piranhas sunk their teeth into about 100 beachgoers, UOL Noticias reported.

The problem - rather fearsome given piranhas' horror-movie teeth and ability to sink them into human flesh - has been the biggest at the main beach area in Piaui state; authorities said they need to act fast to reduce a piranha overpopulation situation.

Last weekend, at least 100 bathers were treated at the hospital in Jose de Freitas not far from Terezina, Piaui's capital, after being bitten on the heels or toes at the local beach.

"Since they have no predators, piranhas have started attacking people on the beach," said Romildo Mafra, a local environment official.

Environmental officials so far have added tilapia to the piranhas' local food chain hoping to quell some of the predators' hunger.
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Bizarro Earth

Plymouth Pennsylvania, US: A pickup truck gets lost in a sinkhole


YouTube
Wed, 21 Sep 2011 16:13 UTC
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Bizarro Earth

Malaysia: Sinkhole closes road in Puchong

Hariz Mohd
The New Straits Times
Sun, 25 Sep 2011 15:00 UTC
skinhole Puchong
© Farizul Hafiz Awang
Policemen standing guard beside the sinkhole in Jalan TK 5/1, Taman Kinrara, Puchong, last night.
SUBANG JAYA: A portion of the road leading to houses and shoplots in Section 5, Taman Kinrara, off Batu 9, Jalan Puchong, collapsed yesterday, leaving a six-metre deep and 4.5-metre wide sinkhole.

The incident happened at 2pm. The earth in the middle of the road suddenly caved in, leaving a hole deep enough to fit four cars.

Luckily, no road users fell into the hole, located near several apartments,

Serdang police chief Superintendent Abdul Razak Elias said police were notified about the sinkhole at Jalan TK 5/1 by residents, before several officers cordoned off the area.

"We decided to close the road pending investigations and repair works by the Subang Jaya Municipal Council."
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Cloud Lightning

Hilary weakens some, drops to Category 3 hurricane


Kansas City Star
Sat, 24 Sep 2011 11:12 UTC
hurricane, hillary

This NOAA satellite image taken Friday, September 23, 2011 at 1:45 PM EDT shows Tropical Storm Ophelia located about 635 miles east-southeast of the Leeward Islands. The system remains at tropical storm strength with maximum sustained winds up to 40 mph. The forecast storm track takes the system northward through the Atlantic Ocean, and is not a threat to the Gulf of Mexico or the East Coast of the U.S.
Forecasters say Hilary has weakened overnight from a Category 4 hurricane to a still-dangerous Category 3 storm as it churns up heavy surf along Mexico's Pacific coast.

Hilary was a Category 4 storm late Saturday evening, with maximum sustained winds near 135 mph (217 kph). But the National Hurricane Center reported at 5 a.m. EDT (0900 GMT) Sunday that the winds had decreased to near 125 mph (205 kph).

The center says Hilary is a small hurricane centered about 420 miles (675 kilometers) south-southeast of the southern tip of Baja California. Forecasters say the storm was moving west at 9 mph (15 kph).

The hurricane is not forecast to make landfall as it slowly weakens, but Mexico's southwestern coast continues to be affected by heavy surf from Hilary.
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Attention

Vietnam: Dangerous fractures discovered on area for nuclear power plant


Vietnam.net
Sat, 24 Sep 2011 11:44 UTC
VietNamNet Bridge - Scientists think that there might exist, a dangerous fracture in the area reserved for the Ninh Thuan nuclear power plant, urging to conduct thorough survey on the issue to avoid possible risks.

Image
© Unknown
Dr Professor Nguyen Dinh Xuyen, former Head of the Geophysics Institute, a member of the Ninh Thuan nuclear power plant project appraisal council, said that in the project pre-feasibility study, he can read about the Suoi Mia fracture in Phuoc Dinh commune of Ninh Phuoc district of Ninh Thuan province. However, he believes that there is another fracture which is even more dangerous than the Suoi Mia fracture.

The other fracture runs in the direction of sub-longitude, crossing the Suoi Mia fracture (northwest-southeast direction)

At the cross-section of the two fractures, a waterfall with the height of four meters was generated. It is likely that the fracture runs to the place where Vietnam plans to set up the Ninh Thuan nuclear power plant.
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Evil Rays

Tennessee, US: Neighborhood terrified by mysterious shaking

John Treanor
Volunteer TV
Thu, 22 Sep 2011 16:31 UTC
Image
© Unknown
Adrienne Hooker doesn't feel safe at home. Her Blount County neighborhood has a problem - it shakes.

For 2 days, the house rocks every few hours. It can sound like an explosion.

She describes it like this: "Tiny earthquakes, makes the whole house shake it makes everyone wake up if they're sleeping."

They've called the U.S. Geological Survey, but no earthquakes have been reported.

They thought it might be construction at a nearby house, but the Blount County Sheriff's Office checked. Another dead end.

The "what" isn't all that important, they just want it to stop.
      Read More...
Better Earth

Happy Equinox!

Fraser Cain
Universe Today
Fri, 23 Sep 2011 13:30 UTC
We're now in Autumn (in the Northern Hemisphere), the time when the length of day and night are roughly the same. And from here on out, the nights will be getting longer and the days shorter. It's often difficult to explain to people how the Earth's tilt defines how much sunlight we get every day, and how it causes the changing seasons. Here's the easy thing to do. Show this amazing video to anyone, and they'll totally get it. It's a full year's snapshots of Earth taken by NASA's Meteosat satellite.


The Bad Astronomer, Phil Plait, has a great explainer on the Equinox, and details what you're seeing in this video. Check it out.
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Better Earth

Autumnal Equinox Pictures: Rituals of Fire and Light


National Geographic News
Wed, 22 Sep 2010 12:51 UTC
Fiery First Day Of Fall

Featuring roughly four-story-tall representations of beasts from local legends and mythology, the roaring celebration, which began in 1991, commemorates Grand Duke Gediminas, who ruled Lithuania in the 14th century and is traditionally seen as a defender of the country's pagan heritage.

Image
© Petras Malukas, AFP/Getty Images
A large wood-and-straw artwork burns on the Northern Hemisphere's autumnal equinox during the 2006 International Festival of Fire Sculptures in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius—one of countless cultural events marking the first day of fall each year.
Pagan Procession on Autumnal Equinox

Modern-day Druids - who, like their ancient forebears put great store in solar milestones - mark autumnal equinox 2009 on Primrose Hill in London. For the vernal equinox, the pagan parade reconvenes on Tower Hill, site of the Tower of London. At summer solstice Druids decamp to Stonehenge.

Image
© Peter Macdiarmid, Getty Images
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Better Earth

Autumnal Equinox 2011: Sky Show Caps First Day of Fall

John Roach
National Geographic News
Fri, 23 Sep 2011 12:30 UTC
Jupiter, Big Dipper add to Northern Hemisphere's cosmic display

Stars and planets are lining up for the change of seasons during the Northern Hemisphere's autumnal equinox - the first day of fall - which will happen in 2011 at 5:05 a.m. ET Friday.

Image
© Luis Romero
Indigenous women participate in a Maya ceremony on Sunday marking the autumnal equinox.
As if to mark the first full night of fall, the bright star Arcturus will hang high above the point where the sun sets on September 23, said Alan MacRobert, senior editor of Sky & Telescope magazine in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Off to Arcturus' right will be the Big Dipper, positioned so that its ladle-like shape appears upright to ground-based observers, with its bowl to the right and handle to the left.
      Read More...
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