Earth ChangesS


Igloo

US: Massive Flight Cancellations Thanks to 'Weather Bomb'

Thousands of fliers along the East Coast bunkered down today and waited as airlines canceled nearly 2,000 more flights and planned for more cancellations tomorrow due to a strong winter snowstorm -- called a "weather bomb" -- moving its way up the Atlantic.

Atlanta remained the epicenter of the disruptions this week after a nasty snow and ice storm, but airlines with major operations in New York's three airports are now preparing for the worst. Parts of North Carolina got up to 15 inches of snow, and New York is forecast to get 8 to 14 inches of snow with winds up to 25 mph.

Airlines in New York are worried about tomorrow's flights thanks to the "weather bomb" -- a fast moving, severe winter storm in which air pressure drops quickly and an unusually far south jet stream brings in moisture causing heavy snows and winds. In anticipation of the storm, which is forecast to hit late tonight, airlines are preemptively canceling New York flights.

Bizarro Earth

Japan: Earthquake Magnitude 6.5 - Bonin Islands Region

Japan Quake_120111
© USGSEarthquake Location
Date-Time:
Wednesday, January 12, 2011 at 21:32:55 UTC

Thursday, January 13, 2011 at 07:32:55 AM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location:
26.944°N, 140.006°E

Depth:
520.4 km (323.4 miles)

Region:
BONIN ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION

Distances:
220 km (135 miles) W of Chichi-shima, Bonin Islands, Japan

275 km (170 miles) NNW of Iwo Jima, Volcano Islands, Japan

975 km (600 miles) S of TOKYO, Japan

Cloud Lightning

Heavy Rains May Affect South Africa Crops

Image
© ReutersZimbabwean Agnes Brovera holds an open ear of ripe maize, which is the country's staple food, on the outskirts of the capital Harare February 21,2006.
Johannesburg - South Africa's 2009/10 maize surplus is likely to prevent any supply shortage of the grain this year after heavy December and January rains have affected planting, an industry official said on Tuesday.

But the extremely wet conditions may have a significant impact on the soy bean and sunflower harvest, Kobus Laubscher, chief executive of farmers' group Grain SA, told Reuters in an interview.

"Some of the late plantings are suffering because of the heavy rains. But as far as maize is concerned, there is no reason to suspect that we will run into a shortage. We have huge carryovers from last year," he said.

South Africa, the continent's largest maize producer, harvested 12.815 million tonnes of the grain in the 2009/10 season, the biggest crop in three decades.

The country's annual maize consumption is between 8-9 million tonnes, leaving it with a surplus of about 4 million.

Black Cat

Alabama: Hundreds of Dead Blackbirds Found Along I-65 In Athens

dead birds, alabama
© Carson Clark, WHNT NEWS 19About 300 dead blackbirds were found along I-65 in Athens on Wednesday morning.

Wednesday morning, we got a handful of emails and phone calls from viewers who said there appeared to be a massive bird kill on the side of Interstate 65 in Limestone County. That's exactly what we found when we got there.

Just south of Athens, near mile marker 347, there were around 300 dead blackbirds just off the side of the northbound lanes.

The viewers who called us said the birds seemed to just fall from the sky, but we spoke to a wildlife biologist at the scene who says there is an explanation for what happened.

"What it appears to us right now is that the birds were feeding alongside the road," said Mitchell Marks. "The flock flushed, flew out into a vehicle and we've got this kill here along the road."

All of the dead birds had clear signs of trauma, but Marks collected a few to examine them.

Cloud Precipitation

Torrential rain, mudslides in Brazil kill 140

Image
© Paulo Cezar / AP People stand by the bodies of mudslide victims after heavy rain in the neighborhood of Caleme in Teresopolis, Brazil on Wednesday
Torrential summer rains tore through Rio de Janeiro state's mountains, killing at least 140 people in 24 hours, Brazilian officials said Wednesday. Rescuers using heavy machinery, shovels and bare hands struggled to dig through tons of mud and debris in a search for survivors.

In Teresopolis, a town 40 miles (65 kilometers) north of Rio, flash floods tossed cars into trees and mudslides poured tons of red earth over houses below. At least 114 died, according to a local Civil Defense official who spoke on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to release the information. She added that 10 inches (26 centimeters) of rain fell on the town during 24 hours.

Survivors waded through waist-high water, carrying what belongings they could, trying to reach higher ground. Flood water continued to flow down the mountains, though rains had stopped.

"I've lived here 25 years and I've never seen anything like it," Teresopolis citizen Manoel Rocha Sobrinho told the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper. "I live on high ground and when I looked below, I only saw a sea of mud. Most people saved themselves by climbing trees."

Document

New Clues to Prehistoric Extinction

trilobite
© Wikipedia / CBSA trilobite found in the Burgess Shale region of the Canadian Rockies
Scientists Say Cambrian Extinction Resulted from Too Much Sulfur, Too Little Oxygen

About 540 million years ago, things were looking pretty rosy for complex life on Earth. Conditions were favorable, and the diversity of multicellular organisms took off during the so-called Cambrian Explosion. Trilobites frolicked. Brachiopods abounded. And then, things went south.

Between 490 million and 520 million years ago, a swift extinction event wiped out many of the Cambrian lifeforms. Geologists Benjamin Gill and Graham Shields-Zhou thinks they have found the trigger right in the midst of that era. According to their study in this week's Nature, the ocean's oxygen level plunged and the sulfur levels rose sharply 499 million years ago, killing off species that could not quickly adapt. That included some, but not all, of the trilobites that ruled the seas of the time.

According to Science News, Gill's team decided to look at a specific subset of Cambrian extinctions that began 499 million years ago and lasted for 2 million to 4 million years. Other researchers had proposed that low oxygen levels - a condition known as anoxia - could be involved. But no one had marshaled enough evidence to prove that.

Blackbox

UK: Beach closed after discovery of strange substance

A beach has been closed after the discovery of a mysterious substance.

An "unidentified foam-like substance" has been found along part of the southern coastline, causing Chichester District Council to close East Wittering beach until further notice.

Beaches controlled by West Wittering Estate and Cakeham Manor have also been closed.

A council spokesperson said: "We are closing the beach as a precaution. The unidentified foam-like substance was discovered earlier today. The Environment Agency has taken samples to test. We should know the outcome of these tests within the next 48 hours.

"Following this time, we will decide on what action to take."

Cloud Precipitation

Non-Stop Rains Damage 2,929 Hectares of Rice Fields in Albay

Image
© AllVocies
Manila, Philippines - Some 2,929 hectares of rice farmlands were damaged by the continuous rains in Albay, the Department of Agriculture said in a report on Tuesday.

The damaged rice areas are 12 municipalities in the province of Albay that have been flooded due to the heavy rains that have been battering the region, according to Marilyn V. Sta Calataina, the DA Bicol regional technical director who has placed production loss at about P13.37 million.

Majority of the affected rice crops were either newly planted or in their vegetative stage as the cropping season has just started, Catalina said.

Of the 2,929 affected areas, 85.8 percent or 2,516 hectares were considered to "have a chance of recovery" and only 413 hectares were destroyed, with no chance of recovery.

The areas greatly affected by the flooding are: Tabaco City with over 932 hectares; Legaspi City with over 592 hectares and Malinao with over 420 hectares.

Cloud Lightning

Flash Floods Alert - Tasmania

flipped care
© Ross MarsdenA car flipped on the Midland Hwy at Perth in slippery conditions.
The weather bureau yesterday renewed warnings about heavy rain and flash flooding in the north and northeast today and tomorrow.

Bureau of Meteorology Media and Community Relations manager Malcolm Riley said computer models were suggesting that several hundred millimetres of rain could fall between Tuesday midnight and Friday midnight.

"Heavy falls are expected about the north and northeast where there is the possibility of flash flooding ," Mr Riley said.

"Northern rivers could reach at least moderate flood level.

The warnings come as police warned motorists to drive with caution in the extreme weather.

A car flipped on its roof in slippery conditions on the Midland Hwy near Perth yesterday and the driver was lucky to escape without serious injuries.

Cloud Lightning

US: Heavy Rains, Strong Winds Could Hit Kauai and Oahu Wednesday

Honolulu -- The National Weather Service placed Kauai and Oahu under a flash flood warning Wednesday morning as an anticipated storm system arrived.

The storm is also forecast to bring strong southwest winds. A wind advisory for much of the state begins at noon Wednesday.

Kauai and Oahu could see the worst of the storm on Wednesday, forecasters said.

Forecasters said conditions could bring heavy showers or thunderstorms and stall over the central islands on Thursday.

Forecasters say the heaviest rainfall amounts will most likely affect the western half of the state, but that there could be a threat of flash flooding on all islands. There is also a chance of thunderstorms that may cause rainfall totals to increase even more.

Monitor the latest forecasts and stay with KITV.com and KITV4 News.