Earth Frenzy Radio Show: Planet X-2012

Today on the Earth Frenzy Radio Show
More than half of Americans are convinced UFOs exist. And 75 percent of us believe the government knows more about them than it is letting on. Get ready for a story so shocking/revealing that it will make The X-Files look like a kid’s bedtime story.

Dr.Rand, a respected Ufologist and Researcher will reveal why an explosion in paranormal activity is set to occur between now and the year 2012, and why life on Earth will be fundamentally changed by what we experience.

Live Broadcast

July 31, 10am CST

The Return of Planet-X: Wormwood

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7-square-mile ice sheet breaks loose in Canada

EDMONTON, Alberta - A chunk of ice spreading across seven square miles has broken off a Canadian ice shelf in the Arctic, scientists said Tuesday.

Source: earthfrenzyradio.com via steve468

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Hundreds stranded by New Mexico flood

New Mexico, USA
Image: This photo provided by Ruidoso News shows flood waters turning a dirt road into a raging river at the River Ranch RV Park along Highway 70 between Glencoe and Ruidoso Downs, N.M. on July 27, 2007. About 300 people _ both residents and tourists _ were evacuated from homes, campgrounds and a recreational vehicle park as flooding hit around the resort town of Ruidoso after the remnants of Hurricane Dolly dumped an estimated 6 inches on the mountainous area. (Marty Racine/Ruidoso News/AP Photo)

RUIDOSO, New Mexico, July 28, 2008 (Reuters) — One man was killed and hundreds of people were stranded in the New Mexico mountain town of Ruidoso by flash floods triggered by the remnants of Hurricane Dolly.

400 people fled from homes, camps and recreational vehicles, as the water rose. Another 200 people who had been camping in the forests near the town were cut off by the floods.

The deluge also destroyed 12 bridges in the area. About 60 homes were flooded, according to the office of Gov. Bill Richardson

Mysterious Noises Heard During Sunset

Yesterday afternoon around sunset there were a series of loud explosive sounds heard from one end of Magnetic Island to the other and nobody seems to know what it was.

One reader, Natalie Tonking, emailed us with the following: "I was wondering if there was any explanation for the rumbling we heard yesterday afternoon. It could very clearly be heard in Horseshoe and Nelly bays (different people I spoke to) and at first sounded like distant thunder. But it continued at fairly regular intervals for at least an hour - just before sunset - if not longer."

Source: earthfrenzyradio.com via steve468

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Increased seismic activity at Montserrat

Montserrat, Caribbean
OLVESTON, Montserrat (AP) - Montserrat's volcano spewed columns of ash thousands of feet (meters) into the sky as scientists reported an increase in seismic activity a week after it vented gases and steam.

A series of blasts late Saturday and early Sunday released ash and blistering gases from inside a hardened lava dome topping the tiny Caribbean island's Soufriere Hills volcano, according to a statement from the Montserrat Volcano Observatory.

Related News
ECUADOR - A volcano in eastern Ecuador has begun spewing lava and has shot a column of ash high into the air. The Reventador volcano's activity on Monday does not pose a threat to surrounding villages or oil pipelines in the area. The volcano last erupted in November 2002, showering the capital, Quito, with volcanic ash. A second volcano in eastern Ecuador, Tungurahua, has also registered "a small increase" in seismic activity. Tungurahua has been spitting out ash and gases intermittently since late last year.

Extroardinary Storm Hits New Zealand

New Zealand

Wellington - What weather forecasters warned would be 'no ordinarystorm' blasted New Zealand on Saturday, bringing down power lines, toppling trees and ripping roofs from houses with gale force winds and torrential rains.

Winds gusting to 165 kilometres an hour were recorded at Cape Brett in the Bay of Islands and news reports said that power supplies to at least 65,000 homes had been cut and it was too dangerous for linemen to fix them.

South Texas gets first look at Dolly's damage

Texas, USA
Image: Dulce Martinez, left, and her boyfriend Adrian Palomares walk through a flooded street to their house after Hurricane Dolly, Thursday, July 24, 2008, in San Benito, Texas. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Residents and recovery teams began fanning out across south Texas Thursday and cars crept along roads with darkened stoplights as the region got its first look at the destruction left by Hurricane Dolly. Traffic picked up on local roads littered with debris as people emerged for the first time in more than 24 hours after Dolly's soaking rains and punishing winds. After crashing ashore on South Padre Island, the storm ripped roofs from homes, flooded roads and downed power lines, but the Rio Grande levees officials had feared could breach held strong. Hurricane Dolly slammed ashore as a Category 2 hurricane midday Wednesday and then loitered over deep south Texas as a tropical storm, dumping as much as a foot of rain in places and bringing 100 mph winds. Those winds had dropped by half Thursday morning. While THE RAIN SET RECORDS in Brownsville's Cameron County — ranging from six to 12 inches with another three to seven expected overnight — they did not appear to pose the threat to the Rio Grande's levees that had been feared. The river rose steadily through the day in Brownsville, but did not reach flood stage. The torrential rains and fierce winds that lasted much of the day in south Texas still caught some by surprise. By Wednesday afternoon, the community of Laureles north of Los Fresnos had been reduced to a chain of sunken islands, separated from the main roads by floodwaters of two feet or more in places. No deaths were immediately reported in Mexico, but in Tamaulipas 50 neighborhoods were still in danger from flooding. The last hurricane to hit the U.S. was the fast-forming Humberto, which came ashore in southeast Texas last September. The busiest part of the Atlantic hurricane season is usually in August and September. So far this year, there have been four named storms, two of which became hurricanes. Federal forecasters predict a total of 12 to 16 named storms and six to nine hurricanes this season.

Rare ‘derecho’ leaves swath of damage across Iowa

Midwest, USA
A power-punching, blustery storm that pummeled the Quad-City region Monday was a RARE severe weather event called a “derecho,” according to the National Weather Service. Derechos — from the Spanish word for “direct” or “straight ahead” — are most common in the late spring and summer, especially in the Corn Belt running from the upper Mississippi River valley to the Ohio River valley. The storms, which are rarer than tornadoes, are known for their longevity, incredibly high-sustained wind speeds and fast-moving nature. “We had a 60-mile-wide path of damage from Omaha through the Quad-Cities and on toward Chicago. Storms don’t usually stay that strong, that long. It’s like a 60-mile-wide train barreling across the state.” This is the first derecho to hit Iowa in two years. This one packed winds ranging from 65 to 95 mph. “We had one in the late 1990s that took a whole train off the tracks.” Conditions have to be very precise to create a derecho. There must be certain amounts of dry air aloft and moisture below. When conditions are right, the storm gears up and takes off at a high rate of speed in a “bow” shape. The front edge of the bow packs the heaviest winds, with less damaging winds on the outer edges. The storms are particularly dangerous because they appear quickly, often before sufficient warning can be given.

Destructive storm to hit New Zealand

Breaking Earth News
New Zealand
Image: Massive waves, like this one between Pukerua Bay and Paekakariki, hurled debris over roads and almost dragged a man to his death while slips and flooding derailed a train.

Story: Wild weather - Massive waves, like one between Pukerua Bay and Paekakariki, hurled debris over roads and almost dragged a man to his death, while slips and flooding derailed a train in the lower North Island. High winds prevented planes from taking off or landing. Huge waves pounding the foreshore along Centennial Highway earlier were scary for drivers, and roading contractors continuously swept the highway to clear rocks and debris. A Paekakariki resident said he had never seen so much debris cluttering the highway. A long-time Paekakariki resident said storm surges were THE MOST DESTRUCTIVE HE HAD SEEN IN THE AREA SINCE 1976.

RELATED NEWS
AUSTRALIA - The low pressure system that has caused bleak weather in parts of Queensland is still whipping up large seas on the Gold Coast. Three-metre waves are breaking on some Gold and Sunshine Coast beaches. There are gale force winds offshore from central Queensland to the far north.

Okmok Volcano Eruption Continues

Alaska, USA

Okmok Volcano, which initially erupted on July 12, 2008, remained active as the month progressed. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite took this picture on July 23, 2008, as the volcano released a plume of ash and steam. In this image, the plume can easily be spotted, despite local cloud cover. In contrast to the clouds, the plume appears beige in color, and blows toward the east-southeast. A close look at the summit reveals opaque white puffs of vapor casting dark shadows to the north.

According to the Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO), Okmok’s activity on June 23 consisted of continuous, mid-level volcanic tremors. The AVO warned that strong explosive eruptions, which had occurred days earlier, could resume at any time.

Texas, Mexico Prepare for Tropical Storm Dolly

Texas, USA

Residents along the Texas-Mexico border kept a watchful eye on Tropical Storm Dolly on Monday, stocking up on plywood, generators and flashlights as forecasters predicted the storm would strengthen into a hurricane later this week and make landfall.

The storm was expected to bring high winds and dump 10 to 20 inches of rain in coastal areas near the U.S.-Mexican border. Emergency officials feared major flooding problems and urged coastal residents to prepare.

Huge tidal waves hit Kanyakumari

Kanyakumari (Tamil Nadu), July 20 (IANS) Huge tidal waves, nearly 20 feet in height, hit this coastal town of Tamil Nadu for the second consecutive day triggering tsunami fears among the residents.

Heavy seasonal rains affected tourist trade of the town on the confluence of the Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal, witnesses said Sunday.

Following sudden movement of water away from the shore, waves slammed ashore damaging at least six canoes and a motorised fishing craft, fishermen said.

California Wildfires Set a Record

California, USA
Three weeks after lightning storms ignited an early start to California’s wildfire season, a state official said history had been made this time around. “That has definitely surpassed any of our large fire events." As many as 1,781 fires were burning at one point earlier in the battle; nearly 300 of them remain unquenched. In all, 861,385 acres were scorched by them, mostly in the northern part of the state. Because this year’s fires were mainly in sparsely populated rural areas, the biggest fire season has by no means been the most destructive, at least so far. The wildfire season still has months left to run. “Historically, we see the most devastating fires in September and October

Gulf of Mexico "dead zone" to hit record size: NOAA

Houston
The Gulf of Mexico's "dead zone" - a swath of algae-laden water with oxygen levels low enough to choke out marine life - WILL LIKELY REACH RECORD SIZE this year, and the main culprits are rising ethanol use and massive Midwest flooding. The dead zone, which recurs each year off the Texas and Louisiana coasts, could stretch to more than 8,800 square miles his year - about the size of New Jersey - compared with 6,662 square miles in 2006 and nearly double the annual average since 1990 of 4,800 square miles. "Excess nutrients from the Mississippi River watershed during the spring are the primary human-influenced factor behind the expansion of the dead zone." To reverse the pattern, U.S. farmers must plant more perennial crops that trap rainwater and keep it from running into the Gulf of Mexico. And eventually, scientists need to invent new breeds of perennial corn plants that can remain in the soil from one planting season to the next, avoiding the need to strip fields bare and leave them susceptible to flooding.

Alaska volcano spews huge ash plume for 3rd day

Alaska, USA
Image: This image released by Alaska Volcano Observatory on Sunday July 13, 2008 shows the Okmok Caldera in Alaska as viewed from an Alaska Airlines jet in early June, 2007. The 3,500-foot Okmok Caldera, which consists of a 6-mile-wide circular crater about 1,600 feet deep, erupted with little warning Saturday morning July 12, 2008, just hours after seismologists at the Alaska Volcano Center began detecting a series of small tremors. (AP Photo/ Alaska Volcano Observatory)

Story: Volcano spewed huge ash plume for 3rd day - The Okmok Caldera on Umnak Island about 60 miles west of the fishing port of Dutch Harbor erupted Saturday and was still in a near state of continuous eruption on Monday. It's ash plume reached more than 6 1/2 miles high and was moving southeastward over the North Pacific. When the volcano last erupted in 1997, it remained active for eight months, producing a significant amount of lava and ash. This time, the volcano's seismic activity peaked a few hours after the initial explosion Saturday and has been slowly declining since.

Okmok Volcano RAMPED UP FROM NOTHING TO AN EXPLOSIVE ERUPTION IN RECORD TIME and it is still pulsing with activity. The explosive eruption Saturday and subsequent shock wave jostled the surrounding cloud-cover. Thermal infrared tracking over the first two days showed the ash plume moving southeast. But a wind shift Tuesday pushed the plume northeast, prompting an ash fall advisory for Cold Bay, which ended early Tuesday. The Volcano Observatory suspects more than one vent in the caldera is active. "There appears to be two vents in the caldera, one of which is producing a more steam-rich cloud. The other is more ash-rich. That activity is sort of pulsing, we have tens of minutes where activity is occurring." A code red warning is still in effect for Okmok Volcano.

Arctic Tundra is Turning Green

People frequently say “green” to mean “environmentally friendly.” But encroaching conifer forests — really big greens — threaten to further spike the far North’s already low-grade fever.

Source: earthfrenzyradio.com via steve468

Throughout the past century, however, leading edges of conifer forests began creeping some 20 to 60 meters up the mountains, and in some places these forests are now overrunning tundra, scientists report in the July Global Change Biology.

Zaproot Video: Trees Invade the Arctic

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Freak Antarctic Rain Storms Killing Infant Penguins

Antarctica
Tens of thousands of newly-born penguins are freezing to death as Antarctica is lashed by freak rain storms.

Scientists believe the numbers of Adelie penguins may have fallen by as much as 80 per cent – and, if the downpours continue, the species will be extinct within ten years.

Full Story Available at Skywatch-Media Entertainment

New wave develops as Bertha batters Bermuda

Tropical Storm Bertha will continue to pummel the island nation of Bermuda through today, while another tropical wave is likely to develop over the next couple of days. The island will receive several inches of rain, while large swells and high surf batter the shores.
A tropical wave is located about 1,000 miles east of the southern Windward islands. Satellite imagery shows a counter-clockwise spin near the center of the area of low pressure. The low is likely to develop into a tropical depression in the next couple of days and there is a very good chance the low will eventually develop hurricane strength.

Antarctic Ice Shelf in Big Trouble

PARIS (AFP) - New evidence has emerged that a large plate of floating ice shelf attached to Antarctica is breaking up, in a troubling sign of global warming, the European Space Agency (ESA) said on Thursday.

Images taken by its Envisat remote-sensing satellite show that Wilkins Ice Shelf is "hanging by its last thread" to Charcot Island, one of the plate's key anchors to the Antarctic peninsula, ESA said in a press release.

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Volcano Eruption in Alaska

Alaska, USA
A volcano erupted Saturday with little warning on a remote island in Alaska, sending residents of a nearby ranch fleeing from falling ash and volcanic rock. The Okmok Caldera erupted late Saturday morning, just hours after seismologists at the Alaska Volcano Center began detecting a series of small tremors. The explosion flung an ash cloud at least 50,000 feet high. Ten people, including three children, were at Fort Glenn, a private cattle ranch six miles south of the volcano on Umnak Island, located in the western Aleutians about 860 miles southwest of Anchorage. They were later picked up by a fishing boat which responded to a Coast Guard request for emergency assistance. The ranch residents had managed to call military police on Kodiak Island on a satellite phone before losing their connection. A rescue helicopter responded but had to land in Dutch Harbor after flying through some volcanic ash, causing some damage to the aircraft. Those at the ranch reported rock and ash falling around them. Okmok is 60 miles west of the busy fishing port of Dutch Harbor on Unalaska Island. Ash was reported falling in the region. The volcano last erupted in 1997. The volcano has shown signs of increased activity during the last few months. Previous eruptions have typically produced lava flows, but the volcano center could not immediately determine if that had occurred in Saturday's explosion.

RELATED NEWS
MANAGUA, July 11 (Reuters) - Nicaragua's San Cristobal volcano rumbled with a series of small explosions on Friday and spewed gases and ash that reached a small town in the northwest of the country, but authorities said no one was hurt. San Cristobal, which stands 5,725 feet (1,745 meters) above sea level, is Nicaragua's highest volcano and one of eight active volcanoes in the small Central American nation, according to the U.S. Geological Survey Web site.

Millions still homeless months after China quake

China

Two months after a devastating earthquake rocked China's Sichuan province, 46 million people are homeless and in dire need of help rebuilding their lives, says the Canadian leader of the International Red Cross relief effort.

Millions of displaced people have been living in donated tents since the 8.0-magnitude quake rocked the southern part of the country on May 12. Now victims need help rebuilding their homes so they can begin returning to normalcy, said Yunhong Zhang, the agency's Asia Program Manager.

Power Consumption Hits Record As Heat Wave Sweeps Nation

Korea
Image: A Korea Power Exchange official points at a graph of power consumption Wednesday as electricity consumption hit a record high of 62.48 million kilowatts Wednesday due to the heat wave that swept the nation. / Korea Times

Story: Electricity consumption hit a record high Wednesday as a heat wave continued to scorch the nation.

The heat has also killed people. Three elderly farmers working in fields in South Gyeongsang Province were found dead from heatstroke Monday, while a 22-year-old college student died during a cross-country hike.

The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) issued warnings for Seoul and Gyeonggi Province for the first time this year _ about 20 days earlier than previous years _ as the heat wave is expected to continue for the rest of the week. Seoul's midday high was almost 33 degrees Celsius.

Heatwaves Becoming Intense

Computer model shows that by the end of the century, high temperatures for once-in-a-generation heat waves will rise twice as fast as everyday average temperatures. Chicago, for example, would reach 115 degrees in such an event by 2100. Paris heat waves could near 109 with Lyon coming closer to 114.


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Hurricane Bertha's Burst of Strength Stumps Experts

National Geographic News

As powerful Hurricane Bertha churns far out in the Atlantic Ocean, meteorologists are wondering why the storm suddenly gathered strength and escalated from a minimal hurricane to a major one in only a few hours.

By around 3 a.m. EDT Monday, Bertha had barely reached hurricane status with winds of about 75 miles (120 kilometers) an hour.

Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami, Florida, predicted that the storm would not intensify much beyond that.

But 12 hours later Bertha's strongest winds had ramped up to 115 miles (185 kilometers) an hour, making it a Category Three storm and the first major hurricane of the 2008 season.

Thousands Displaced by Floods

India
Image: People try to transport a car to the banks of the Hingora River in Lakhimpur district, about 400 km (249 miles) east of the northeastern Indian city of Guwahati, June 16, 2008. REUTERS/Stringer

GUWAHATI, India (AFP) — Flash floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains have washed away thousands of homes and displaced more than 50,000 people in India's northeastern state of Assam, officials said Sunday.

Freak Weather Hits the UK

Monday, forecasters warned Merseyside to expect some “extreme” weather after high-altitude twisters whipped across the region. Stormy conditions over the weekend created a “funnel cloud” in the sky above Burscough and Ormskirk. The meteorological phenomenon – a tornado that does not touch the ground – was sighted by residents at around 2.30pm on Sunday. Funnel clouds are formed when powerful storms and thunderstorms meet, causing wind to blow in different directions. In the UK they tend to be masked by heavy rain – which makes them difficult to detect.

The European Monsoon! To read more subscribe to Skywatch Media Entertainment

Hurricane Bertha now a Category 3 storm

Atlantic
Image: Hurricane Bertha churns towards a group of Caribbean islands as seen in this NOAA satellite image on Monday, July 7, 2008.

Bertha, the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, has strengthened to a Category 3 storm. The U.S. National Hurricane Center says the hurricane has now reached maximum sustained winds of 185 kilometres an hour. However, it is not yet near land. The hurricane is located about 1,175 kilometres east-northeast of the Northern Leeward Islands, which include St. Martin and St. Kitts, and about 1,855 kilometres southeast of Bermuda. The hurricane, which grew from a tropical storm early Monday, is travelling at about 19 kilometres per hour and is moving west-northwest. Bertha is expected to make a gradual turn toward the northwest and decrease in forward speed over the next two days, the Hurricane Center said. However, it's still too early to tell if Bertha will hit Bermuda but residents are being urged to monitor the situation.
Image: This graphic, provided by the National Hurricane Center, shows the expected five-day track forecast for hurricane Bertha on Monday, July 7, 2008. (National Hurricane Center)

No let-up as California wildfires rage south

Breaking Earth News
California, USA
Image: Tanker drops fire redardant

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) — California's wildfires blazed across the state on Friday, with an army of firefighters desperately trying to staunch the flames as they edged towards populated regions.

State officials said 19,925 personnel were battling 60 active fires, which were among 1,800 blazes which have scorched nearly 521,000 acres (210,800 hectares) since being triggered by lightning a fortnight ago.

The focal point of containment efforts is a wind-driven blaze besieging the picturesque village of Big Sur, a normally bustling tourist haven around 120 miles (193 kilometers) south of San Francisco.

The blaze threatening the town has swept through 65,393 acres of the Los Padres National Forest and was only five percent contained according to latest figures on Friday.

With a combination high temperatures, low humidity and offshore gusts fanning the fires, officials have said they are battling against a "perfect storm" of weather conditions.

War, drought and inflation threaten Horn with disaster

NAIROBI (AFP) - A deadly cocktail of calamities -- including war, drought and rising prices -- is engulfing the Horn of Africa, threatening its children with suffering of disastrous proportions, the UN's Children Fund warned Wednesday.

"A lethal mix of drought, expanding conflict, rising food and energy prices, disease, and high poverty is pushing children and their families in the Greater Horn of Africa to the brink of disaster," UNICEF said in a statement.

"Ethiopia and Somalia are the worst affected, but parts of Eritrea, Djibouti, Kenya and Uganda show ominously similar signs," it added.

"The time to act is now, to save children's lives," Per Engebak, UNICEF's regional director for East and Southern Africa, said in the statement.

Core and Magnetic Field Changing Fast

Rapid changes in the churning movement of Earth's liquid outer core are weakening the magnetic field in some regions of the planet's surface, a new study says.

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Exxon to cut funding to climate change denial groups

The Giant is Waking Up?
The oil giant ExxonMobil has admitted that its support for lobby groups that question the science of climate change may have hindered action to tackle global warming. In its corporate citizenship report ExxonMobil says it intends to cut funds to several groups that "divert attention" from the need to find new sources of clean energy. Green campaigners accuse the company of funding a "climate denial industry" over the last decade, with $23m (£11.5m) handed over to groups that play down the risks of burning fossil fuels.

Chaos as torrential rain hits country

China
TORRENTIAL rain which has hit about half of China since Tuesday has left one dead, four injured and nearly 400,000 affected.

The rain also caused blocked traffic in cities, delayed flights, destroyed homes, flooded farmland and threatened flooding in river areas, mainly south of the Yangtze River.

In Shanghai, a two-story building collapsed yesterday, killing one of the five construction workers buried in debris.

Shanghai's neighbors, Zhejiang and Anhui, issued heavy rain warnings yesterday, telling local authorities to prepare for possible flooding.

Seven counties and cities in Hubei Province reported more than 395,900 people affected and 35,580 hectares of crops damaged.

Downtown areas in Kunming, capital of Yunnan Province, were flooded with up to a meter of water in places after a six-hour rainstorm over Tuesday night.




RELATED NEWS
INDIA - Flooding and house collapses caused by heavy rains have killed at least 11 people in northern India over the past two days. The eastern parts of Uttar Pradesh state, where all the deaths took place, have been lashed by heavy rains since Monday and all major rivers in the region have flooded over.

Tropical Storm Bertha spins in Atlantic

MIAMI, July 4 (UPI) -- The second named Atlantic tropical storm of the 2008 season, Bertha, was slowly gathering strength Friday west of the Cape Verde Islands.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said at 4 a.m., Bertha was 315 miles west-southwest of the Cape Verde Islands moving toward the west-northwest near 14 mph.

The storm had sustained winds of about 45 mph with higher gusts, and forecasters said an increase in both wind speed and forward motion was likely in the next two days.

To become a Category 1 hurricane, sustained wind speeds must exceed 74 mph.

Meteorologist Dr. Jeff Masters said Thursday's formation of Bertha at 25 degrees west longitude is the farthest east a tropical storm has ever formed in the Atlantic Ocean so early in the season since satellite tracking was established in 1967.

The first named storm this year, Arthur, formed near Belize the day before the season officially started June 1 and drenched the Yucatan Peninsula with rain.

Flood warning issued for Chicago beaches, lakefront

Chicago, USA
Warning issued for Chicago beaches - potential for flash flooding along the Lake Michigan Shore. The city Office of Emergency Management and Communications has been in contact with the National Weather Services regarding a special marine seiche warning and the possibility of a rapid two-foot rise in lake levels. Residents are asked to stay away from beaches, the lakefront and marina areas, and residents of those areas are warned to stay away from the edge of the water. Evacuation of docks, piers and breakwalls is also advised. According to the Weather Service, a drop of two feet in water levels has been reported at St. Joseph, Michigan, indicating that a seiche is in progress across southern Lake Michigan. A seiche is described as a "standing wave" in an enclosed body of water such as lakes, reservoirs and bays. "A rapid 2-foot drop of Lake Michigan water levels on the east side of Lake Michigan is evidence that a 2-foot rise or better is possible at the Chicago beaches. A fluctuation of water levels at these beaches will continue through the evening [Wednesday]." The warning said this is a "very dangerous event for waders" as water levels may fluctuate rapidly, "taking unsuspecting waders out to more open waters."

Monsoon roars back to life, W. coast pounded

India
The west coast, especially the Konkan-Mumbai-South Gujarat belt, has come in for a battering for the second time this monsoon in a pattern best attributed to a recurrent sea-based phenomenon – a positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD). The west coast and parts of central India are witnessing what looks like a third successive surplus monsoon phase instigated by a RARE third-in-a-row positive IOD event. India Meteorological Department has now put the IOD on the same keel as the Pacific-generated El Nino/La Nina with regard to comparable influence on the monsoon. The IOD event might just help the monsoon deliver more rain than what long-range forecasts appeared to credit it with. A positive IOD occurs when the seesawing sea surface temperatures leaves a warming anomaly in the West Indian Ocean aiding convection and precipitation. In this manner, the monsoon gets an induced southwesterly ‘push’ that is reflected in the overall output over the landmass. It is EXTREMELY UNUSUAL that a third consecutive positive IOD has evolved this year following those in 2006 and 2007. “As far as we know, THERE IS NO SUCH OCCASION IN THE PAST 100 YEARS when we had three consecutive positive IODs.”

Chile's Llaima Volcano Erupts

Breaking Earth News
Chile. S.A.
Image: A plume of smoke and ashes rises from the Llaima volcano in Chile's southern Conguillio National Park (File photo - 7 Feb 2008)

The Llaima volcano in southern Chile has erupted for the first time in months, forcing the evacuation of about a dozen people from nearby areas. Authorities, however, say populated areas are not immediately threatened.

The volcano, which is one of Chile's most active, began erupting Tuesday. The eruption sent a stream of lava creeping down the flanks of the 3,120-meter-high mountain.

Llaima is located about 700 kilometers south of the capital, Santiago. It last erupted in January, spewing ash and molten lava.

Two months ago, another volcano, the Chaiten, erupted after being dormant for thousands of years. The eruption forced the evacuation of more than four thousand people from the nearby town of the same name.

Mother Nature Playing Tricks on Australians

NEARLY SUMMER ... Emily Alcock, of Sandy Bay, left, and Genevieve Elliott, of Taroona, enjoyed a bit of a splash at Sandy Bay Beach yesterday at temperatures hit 18C.

Source: news.com.au via steve468

Last week it snowed, Sunday people wore shorts and by the end of the week it will snow again. A series of "vigorous" cold fronts will create a similar weather pattern by Wednesday. Hobart enjoyed a beautiful day of sunshine, with the temperature creeping up to a summer-like 18.1C. Out of all the capital cities in Australia, only Darwin, Sydney and Brisbane were warmer than Hobart. Sunday's warmth was an aberration. "It is REALLY UNUSUAL weather - the average for June is 11.1C and we are way above that." Last week, an icy blast closed roads, contributed to crashes, caused power blackouts and brought mountain snow.

Source: earthfrenzyradio.blogspot.com via steve468

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Crews battle California wildfires

California, USA

Fire-fighters in Northern California are struggling to contain more than 1,000 wildfires that have been burning for more than a week.

The flames have burnt more than 500 sq miles (1,400 sq km) of land and are threatening the coastal town of Big Sur, California officials said.

President George W Bush declared a state of emergency for the entire state on Saturday and ordered federal aid.

Most of the fires were sparked by lightning in dry wilderness areas.

The lightning storms, on 21 June, were unusually intense, and the flames quickly spread through forests and scrubland that have been left parched by lower than average winter rainfall.

The US Forest Service said it expects a long fire season for Northern California, with more summer storms in the coming months.

June rainfall a new record in 125 years in Hong Kong

Hong Kong, China
The total rainfall recorded at the Hong Kong Observatory in June had reached 1,346.1 millimeters, which has become the wettest month since records began in 1884.

The new record broke the one previous monthly rainfall record of 1,241.1 millimeters set in May, 1889.

The heavy rain in Hong Kong in June was associated with the active southwesterlies over the south China coastal areas and Typhoon Fengshen.

Israeli authorities warn hospitals to prepare for earthquake

Israel
Israeli authorities warn hospitals to prepare for earthquake - A strong earthquake could soon rock Lebanon and parts of Israel, authorities said on Monday, urging health officials in northern Israel to make preparations for such an event. "The probability of an earthquake of a magnitude of up to six on the Richter scale, originating in Lebanon and being felt in Israel has increased." Since February, ABNORMAL seismic activity has been noted in southern Lebanon, which suffered some 500 minor earthquakes in a three-month period. "In May, the tremors have become more intense and were felt in northern Israel. Should an earthquake of such magnitude hit northern Israel it may cause substantial infrastructural damage in the area." Some seismological experts point out quakes historically have rocked the region every eight decades, and the last one was just about 81 years ago. About 300 people were killed in Jerusalem and nearby Jericho by the July 11, 1927 temblor. A similar quake measuring seven on the Richter scale and with an epicentre in the Hula Valley, in what today is northern Israel, devastated the town of Safed and killed some 4,000 people in 1837.