At this writing, the National Emergency Management Agency of New Zealand is still warning people to stay away from harbors, rivers and estuaries. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/earthquake-new-zealand-march-4-5-2021-tsunami-warning…
Tag: USGS
What’s the coldest Earth has ever been?
Our planet’s history includes episodes of cold so extreme that glaciers reached sea level in equatorial regions. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/whats-coldest-earth-has-ever-been…
‘Earth wind’ may generate water on the moon
Particles carried from Earth’s poles via our planet’s magnetosphere could be interacting with lunar rocks to create small quantities of water on the moon. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/earth-wind-may-generate-water-on-moon…
Saturday’s strong earthquake in Japan called ‘aftershock’ of deadly 2011 quake
No fatalities have been reported in the February 13, 2021 strong earthquake in Japan, which occurred off Japan’s east coast, near the epicenter of the 2011 9.0-magnitude Tohoku earthquake. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/feb-13-2021-7-magnitude-quake-japan-aftershock-2011…
A robot submarine could explore Titan’s deepest sea
A new study of data from NASA’s bountiful Cassini mission shows that Titan’s largest methane sea, Kraken Mare, is at least 1,000 feet – 300 meters – deep near its center. That’s plenty of room for a future robotic submarine to explore. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/titans-largest-sea-kraken-mare-is-1000-feet-deep…
Will iceberg twice the size of NYC break off Antarctica this year?
A crack on the Antarctic ice shelf grew dramatically in late 2020 into 2021. Scientists are watching to see if the rapidly accelerating crack will cause the shelf to rip apart before Antarctica’s sunlit summer season – going on now – comes to an end. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/iceberg-brunt-ice-shelf-antarctica-break-off…
Mass Die-Off of Birds in Southwest US ‘Probably Linked to Climate Crisis’
The Guardian reports: The mass die-off of thousands of songbirds in south-western U.S. was caused by long-term starvation, made worse by unseasonably cold weather probably linked to the climate crisis, scientists have said. Flycatchers, swallows and warblers were among the migratory birds “falling out of the sky” in September, with carcasses found in New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, Arizona and Nebraska. A…
Dramatic images of erupting Kilauea volcano in Hawaii
Overnight on Sunday, USGS reported lava fountains that shot nearly 165 feet into the sky from a fissure on the eastern side of Kilauea volcano in Hawaii. Lava has replaced the water that was in the basin of the crater, and a new lava lake was formed. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/dramatic-images-kilauea-volcano-hawaii-eruption-dec-2020…
Does Jupiter’s moon Europa have geysers? If so, what’s their source?
If watery plumes do burst from Europa’s surface, they might originate not in the moon’s underground ocean, but instead in pockets of brine trapped in the moon’s crust. If that’s so, it could be a source of frustration for those who want to probe Europa’s ocean for possible life. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/jupiter-moon-europa-plumes-salty-water-in-crust…
How Jupiter’s moon Io gets its hellish atmosphere
Hot, active volcanoes produce almost half of Jupiter’s moon Io’s sulfur atmosphere, according to new observations using the ALMA telescope. The rest comes from cold sulfur deposits that freeze on the surface, then sublimate in sunlight. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/io-sulfur-volcanoes-hot-so2-cold-so2…