Earth Changes

Floating garbage island moves closer to Thailand's major tourism spots

Sputnik
Fri, 10 Feb 2017 17:17 UTC

Instead of swimming in clear turquoise water and walking on soft velvet sand, Thai tourists may soon be surrounded by piles of rubbish. A "garbage island" about 10 kilometers in length is located just four miles away from Koh Talu Island and the resort areas of the Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, which are popular with divers.

The "garbage island" was first discovered a week ago by the captain of a fishing trawler. He captured it on his smartphone off the coast of Chumphon Province, further south of its current location, and published its photos on social networks.

National media spread news about the floating junk piles approaching to the Koh Talu Island and resorts of Hua Hin and Cha-Am on Friday, after the naval forces conducted aerial reconnaissance of the object.

According to fishermen and the military, plastic bags and other household plastic products make up the main mass of the floating debris, as reported by the Bangkok Post newspaper.

USGS: Earthquake measuring 6.7 hits south Philippines, no tsunami warning

RT
Fri, 10 Feb 2017 15:03 UTC

An earthquake measuring magnitude 6.7 has struck near Mindanao Island in southern Philippines, the United States Geological Survey has reported. No tsunami warning has been issued, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The epicenter of the earthquake occurred at a depth of 10km (6 miles) and about 13km (8 miles) east of the city of Surigao, located on the northeast of the island, which is the second biggest in the Philippines, according to Reuters.

Tremors were also reportedly felt in a number of nearby areas, including the Philippines' second city, Cebu City, and Talisay City.

USGS data

Heavy snowfall cuts power, disrupts transport along Sea of Japan coast

The Japan Times
Fri, 10 Feb 2017 14:27 UTC

Heavy snow plastered much of the Sea of Japan coast on Friday as a cold wave hit the archipelago, disrupting transportation and causing power outages.

The Meteorological Agency warned the snowfall could continue through Sunday and spread to the Pacific coast.

In Kurayoshi, Tottori Prefecture, around 1,300 households lost power after a snow-laden tree fell onto a power line, Chugoku Electric Power Co. said.

Snow also prompted West Japan Railway Co. (JR West) to suspend part of the Inbi Line in Tottori and Okayama prefectures and part of the Geibi Line in Hiroshima Prefecture. Delays were also reported on the Sanin Line.

A glitch apparently caused by snow also left around 40 passengers in a cable car to Mount Koya trapped for about 90 minutes in the town of Koya, Wakayama Prefecture, Nankai Electric Railway Co. said.

Locust swarms cause state of emergency in Bolivia

Euro News
Wed, 08 Feb 2017 13:59 UTC

Locusts

Bolivia is under a state of emergency after a vast agricultural area of around 1000 hectares has been laid to ruin by a plague of locusts.

Locusts Destroy 2,700 Acres of Farmland in Bolivia https://t.co/JaKesjtHOC pic.twitter.com/Kso9p8eq3l

— Datatech Software (@DatatechAg) February 8, 2017

The locusts first appeared about one week ago in an area near Santa Cruz where most of the country's food and meat is produced.

President Evo Morales has announced a contingency plan that includes 655,000 euros in extra funding for fumigation.

Bolivia's Agriculture Secretary, Mauricio Ordonez said: "We will create a 500-metre-wide ring around the area affected and fumigate inside, working alongside the local authorities."

Sydney hit by record temperatures during heatwave

Lisa Herbertson
The Daily Telegraph
Fri, 10 Feb 2017 08:04 UTC

The beaches are expected to be packed as people seek relief from the heat.

With temperatures over 40C in parts of Sydney, it is now officially the hottest summer in the city's 158 year recorded history — with 10 summer days over 35C.

At Sydney Airport, temperatures reached 42.9C at 2.30pm today, and broke the previous record for the area set in 1980.

And the worst heat could be still to come.

Tomorrow, for the first time in the history of Sydney grade cricket, all matches have been called off due to the extreme heatwave.

Cricket Australia and NSW doctor John Orchard pushed strongly for the unprecedented step to be taken, and NSW Cricket has advised all associations to follow suit and cancel junior and senior matches.

Similarly at Royal Randwick, tomorrow's much-anticipated racing has been postponed until Monday.

While residents have yet to be hit by power outages, locals in the inner west were given a short preview of what could occur if power shedding is necessary.

Storm shuts down Jackson Hole resort in Wyoming, knocks out power across area

Robert Pursell
GrindTV
Wed, 08 Feb 2017 15:59 UTC

© Courtesy of Jackson Hole Resort
While Jackson Hole’s iconic tram looks beautiful cloaked in snow, all of the recent storms have caused major troubles for the resort.

Jackson Hole Mountain Resort in Wyoming has been beset by heavy snow and extreme winds which knocked down multiple power lines Tuesday night, left all of Teton Village without power and forced the resort to announce on Wednesday that it was closed down for the day with no immediate timetable listed for its reopening.

The Jackson Hole News and Guide reports that between 3,500-4,000 people in the area were left without power after strong winds knocked down multiple utility poles in the areas surrounding Teton Village and Jackson Hole.

According to Snow Brains, the winds were as strong as 90 miles per hour, and the Casper Star-Tribune reports that the storm downed 17 utility poles. The Jackson Hole News and Guide lists the number of destroyed utility poles at 10.

Mass stranding of whales on New Zealand coast

Nina Hindmarsh, Hannah Bartlett and Warren Gamble
Stuff/ Nelson Mail
Fri, 10 Feb 2017 00:34 UTC

As new aerial footage shows the overwhelming scale of NZ's third-largest whale stranding, rescuers warn the coming hours will be critical.

Experts and an army of volunteers spent Friday morning fighting to keep surviving whales alive after about 416 of them beached themselves at Farewell Spit in Golden Bay. Department of Conservation Golden Bay operations manager Andrew Lamason said latest reports were that an estimated 70 per cent of the whales had died overnight.

Rescuers managed to refloat the survivors on Friday morning, but now whales have begun re-stranding again.

Blizzard Warnings as Winter Storm Niko hammers US Northeast

Weather Channel
Thu, 09 Feb 2017 21:20 UTC

Winter Storm Niko continues to lash the Northeast with heavy snow, high winds and, in some areas, blizzard conditions, making travel treacherous, if not impossible in Boston and New York City.

A blizzard warning has been issued for Boston and all of eastern Massachusetts, including Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, as well as parts of Rhode Island, including Providence, much of Long Island in New York, and southeastern Connecticut.

Winter storm warnings stretch from Maine southward through New England, eastern New York and into northern/eastern New Jersey. This includes Hartford, Connecticut, Albany, New York, and New York City.

© Weather Channel
Areas shown in darkest teal have the best chance of snow. Areas in pink may see either snow, sleet or freezing rain. Areas in purple may see sleet or freezing rain. Areas shown in darkest green have the best chance of rain.

Symbolic? Bald eagle photographed with trap attached to its talons near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Tom Knapp
Lancaster Online
Mon, 06 Feb 2017 21:00 UTC

A mature eagle, shown in a photo provided to wildlife rehabilitator Wendy Ebersole Looker, is flying in the Gettysburg area with its talons caught in a small-game leg trap.

© Wendy Ebersole Looker
A mature eagle, shown in a photo provided to wildlife rehabilitator Wendy Ebersole Looker, is flying in the Gettysburg area with its talons caught in a small-game leg trap.

An Elizabethtown native is circulating photos of an eagle that's flying in the Gettysburg area with its talons caught in a trap.

"Horrors!!!" Wendy Ebersole Looker, who now lives in Hanover, wrote on her Facebook page Sunday.

Looker, a state-certified wildlife rehabilitator, said the photos were sent to her by a local photographer who hoped she could track down and save the eagle.

But, she noted Monday, "until he weakens or gets snagged we cannot catch him."

The eagle appears to be caught in a steel leg-hold trap designed for small game.

And...another round of heavy rain, snow pounding U.S. West

Linda Lam
Weather Channel
Thu, 09 Feb 2017 21:12 UTC

Another fairly warm and wet low-pressure system is bringing heavy rain and snow to the West and will continue to impact the region into Friday, renewing the threat for flooding and landslides in California.

An atmospheric river event brought a prolonged period of moderate to heavy rain to portions of northern California on Tuesday. That rain combined with snowmelt in some areas brought flooding and several mudslides to parts of California and Nevada.

The next system in the parade of storms is now pushing into the West and will impact the region with rain, snow, ice and gusty winds through Friday.

Precipitation rates will be lower with this late-week system and snow levels will be slightly lower. However, given the recent rainfall, it will not take much additional rain to aggravate the flooding risk in smaller creeks.

Flood watches and warnings have been posted from parts of Washington and Oregon southward into northern and central California. Any heavy rain on the saturated ground or in previous burn areas could lead to additional flooding.

This is a no brainer. New drug = patents = $$$$, old drug = expired patents (generic drugs) = $, conclusion marketing a new drug to inflate...

JTF Truth

It’s a sad state of affairs when animal abuse gets the attention, while human abuse is ignored. People are pissed about the dogs but will line...

InfoWithJo

"convince the military then of what had happened and who had done it" Whilst we are it, maybe we should also try to convince them that the USS...

HashAttack2

Oh for Christ's sake I'll say it. The days of trickery are coming to an end. You see my generation, forgotten in the 2nd degree, we watched one...

Buffalo_Ken

"The ad, which ethics and legal experts say is a clear violation of IRS rules" That's how the Democrats operate. To Hell with the rules; just do...

Lynne

Earth Changes

Floating garbage island moves closer to Thailand's major tourism spots

USGS: Earthquake measuring 6.7 hits south Philippines, no tsunami warning

Heavy snowfall cuts power, disrupts transport along Sea of Japan coast

Locust swarms cause state of emergency in Bolivia

Sydney hit by record temperatures during heatwave

Storm shuts down Jackson Hole resort in Wyoming, knocks out power across area

Mass stranding of whales on New Zealand coast

Blizzard Warnings as Winter Storm Niko hammers US Northeast

Symbolic? Bald eagle photographed with trap attached to its talons near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

And...another round of heavy rain, snow pounding U.S. West

Latest News

Picture of the Day

Quote of the Day

Recent Comments

Quantum Quirk

Contact Us