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Cosmetic and cleaning products contain huge quantities of plastic particles posing serious risk to marine life

microplastic
© Thompson/Bakir/Plymouth UniversityThis image captured by an electron microscope shows polyethylene microbeads widely used in shower gel.
Everyday cosmetic and cleaning products contain huge quantities of plastic particles, which are released to the environment and could be harmful to marine life, according to a new study.

Research at Plymouth University has shown almost 100,000 tiny 'microbeads' -- each a fraction of a millimetre in diameter -- could be released in every single application of certain products, such as facial scrubs.

The particles are incorporated as bulking agents and abrasives, and because of their small size it is expected many will not be intercepted by conventional sewage treatment, and are so released into rivers and oceans.

Researchers, writing in Marine Pollution Bulletin, estimate this could result in up to 80 tonnes of unnecessary microplastic waste entering the sea every year from use of these cosmetics in the UK alone.

Comment: Microbeads are highly potent concentrators of toxins. Tiny marine creatures often mistake these particles for food, and these plankton are eaten in large numbers by other fish. These chemicals then biomagnify up the food chain, meaning that top predators such as tuna and swordfish, which are consumed by humans, have high concentrations.


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Large bolide seen over eastern Norway

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© Norwegian meteor network / sun observatoryMeteor seen from Harestua.
The activity of meteor swarm Perseids is at its greatest these days and several in Eastern Norway who were up in the night to see meteors, got a great experience.

A large bolide appeared 1:50:39 and lit up the night. It shone like the brightest full moon, was yellow-green in color, some also described it as blue and white, and was visible for 8-9 seconds. However, this was not one Perseid. Over parts of eastern Norway found the admittedly coming from Perseus, but it is a random perspective effect. It was slower and lasted much longer than any Perseid, and seen from elsewhere, it went in a different direction from Perseus.


Cloud Lightning

Best of the Web: Signs of Change: Extreme weather and environmental upheaval in August 2015 (VIDEO)

hawkkey davis
© HawkkeyDavisChannel/YouTubeFloods and infernos: August has seen flooding and fires in areas all over the world.
Hawkkey Davis' latest video compilation of extreme weather events (and general environmental chaos) from the past month or so.

The Solomon Islands, Alaska's Aleutian Islands, the Bay Area, Indonesia, Queensland and Maryland are rocked by earthquakes; Reunion Island (the site of the alleged MH370 'wreckage' found earlier this month) and Mexico by volcanoes. The Queensland quake was the biggest in a century. Flash floods in Arizona, northwest China, Iran, Pakistan, Florida, India, Myanmar, Colorado, and Argentina. Wildfires in France, Spain, Montana and California. The Dead Sea tourism industry is threatened by unprecedented sinkholes. All this, plus storms, tornadoes, sand, fireballs, record-breaking heat and more!


Comment: See also: SOTT Earth Changes Summary - July 2015: Extreme Weather and Planetary Upheaval


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Meteorite impacts in ancient oceans may have formed DNA building blocks

nucleobases, meteorite impacts
© Dr. Yoshihiro FurukawaThese are chematics of nucleobases formation by meteorite impact on earth.
A new study shown that meteorite impacts on ancient oceans may have created nucleobases and amino acids. Researchers from Tohoku University, National Institute for Materials Science and Hiroshima University discovered this after conducting impact experiments simulating a meteorite hitting an ancient ocean.

With precise analysis of the products recovered after impacts, the team found the formation of nucleobases and amino acids from inorganic compounds. The research is reported this week in the journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters.

Comment: With the increased frequency of meteors entering our atmosphere in recent years, one might wonder what they might be bringing with them, and the effects on earth of their overhead airbursts and impacts.


Question

Could a meteorite have started the fire in Portland, Oregon man's front yard?

Oregon meteor
Patrick Story says the burned patch in the front yard of his Southeast Portland home lines up with a singed portion of a nearby bush.
A Southeast Portland man thinks a meteor might have caused a mystery fire in his front yard.

Patrick Story says he heard a loud boom outside his house on Wednesday night, coupled with a flash of light.

When he went outside, he found part of his front yard on fire in the shape of a circle.

Firefighters told him the fire was "naturally-caused," however they couldn't find any fragments. Story thinks it was a fallen meteorite.

"Because the bush was set on fire, you can kind of think there was a trajectory of something flying through the air," said Story. "Since it was the night of the Perseid Meteor Shower... you got to wonder."

Comment: This is a sad display of what a scientist thinks about meteors. Hopefully this is not representative of the profession in general. Yes, space is cold, yet how can a scientist given the recent well publicized meteor over Chelyabinsk, Russia and the many examples of meteors entering the atmosphere, burning up and exploding come to the conclusion that "they're simply too cold" in all instances? From an expert in the field, mind-boggling!

Pray tell, how did this meteor, which was obviously larger than a bb, light up the sky on Wednesday night during the Perseid shower?


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Fireball lights up the sky over London, Ontario

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© Western UniversityThis photo shows a fireball shooting over London, Ont. on Aug 12.
Video released by Western University shows a bright fireball that quickly lit up the sky over London, Ont., on Wednesday night during a Perseid event.

According to Peter Brown, a professor with the department of physics and astronomy at Western University, the fireball was travelling at around 60 km per second.

Brown says the object was only about the size of a loonie but because of its immense speed, it was visible with the naked eye from Earth for about 1.5 seconds.

"At this speed, the fireball has the same amount of energy as 400 times its weight in dynamite," Brown said.

"The fireball was bright, much brighter than Venus and any other object in the sky. It was comparable to a half moon," Brown added.

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Nasa video of Perseid fireball over New Mexico

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Perseid fireball over the skies of New Mexico
Video observed by the Nasa All Sky Fireball Network shows the Perseid fireball over the skies of New Mexico on the morning of August 12.

August 12 and 13 were the two days when the Perseid shower was set to peak, with a huge array of meteors visible. The meteor shower was not just visible in the US but across the world, including the UK, with stargzers in the Midlands and the North having the best view of the meteors as cloud cover meant visibility was limited across southern England and Scotland.

The Perseids this year coincided with a new moon - for the first time since 2007 - creating the ideal dark sky conditions.

The meteors reached their peak on Wednesday and Thursday night when over 100 per hour were produced.


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Meteor fireball blazes through Chilean sky (VIDEOS)

This fireball was filmed in Antofagasta's sky, in Chile, yesterday, Tuesday 21th, 2015.


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Loud explosion and large glowing object in the sky reported from Tamworth, Australia

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City of Tamworth NSW, Australia
This morning, local Tamworth police took a number of phone calls reporting an explosion, houses shuddering and they posted the following on the Oxley Local Area Command Facebook Page:

"About 1.30 am on Tuesday 11th August 2015 Police received numerous calls from Tamworth residents in relation to a loud explosion heard in many different parts of Tamworth. Residents reported their houses seemed to shake with the noise. No-one was able to accurately describe a location for the explosion. No reports of fire were received. Police patrolled several areas of Tamworth in response to these calls however no damage was located.
The mystery appeared solved about 30 minutes later when a local taxi driver contacted Police and reported sighting a large glowing object in the sky trailing a green tail fall to earth somewhere to the south of Tamworth City. At this time, it is believed the explosion can be attributed to the unknown falling object, possibly a meteorite."

Intrigued, I sent this to our resident astronomer Astro Dave Reneke. He knew exactly what this was, a sonic boom, the result of a fireball from a meteor shower... quite rare, listen to the explanation here: Astro Dave with Anna Moulder on ABC NENW Breakfast

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Bright flashes seen in the sky and loud bangs heard in Bundaberg, Australia

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© Wikimedia Commons Bundaberg
Police don't know what it was, and neither do Bundaberg's firies.

But Elizabeth Ottoway says something caused her house to shake at about 8.30 Tuesday night.

Ms Ottoway said she was waiting for a friend to come over when she heard a bang.

"It sounded like it could have been something big," she said.

"It shook my house.

"It was like a dull thump."

The West Bundaberg mum said she then saw what looked like a "huge fire"
that looked like it was coming from town.

"I'm not sure if it goes hand-in-hand or if it was sugar cane burning or smoke from the sugar mill," she said.