Earthquakes
USGS
MAG | UTC DATE-TIME y/m/d h:m:s |
LAT deg |
LON deg |
DEPTH km |
Region | |
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MAP | 4.6 | 2012/10/11 23:54:30 | 34.153 | 73.755 | 24.3 | PAKISTAN |
MAP | 4.6 | 2012/10/11 22:58:58 | -19.550 | -64.018 | 596.0 | CHUQUISACA, BOLIVIA |
MAP | 5.1 | 2012/10/11 22:03:46 | -56.304 | -25.733 | 34.9 | SOUTH SANDWICH ISLANDS REGION |
MAP | 2.7 | 2012/10/11 19:19:36 | 60.495 | -147.249 | 4.3 | SOUTHERN ALASKA |
MAP | 5.5 | 2012/10/11 17:22:10 | -32.867 | -70.401 | 81.9 | VALPARAISO, CHILE |
MAP | 5.3 | 2012/10/11 17:07:54 | 1.488 | 92.526 | 28.6 | OFF THE WEST COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA |
MAP | 2.8 | 2012/10/11 16:38:23 | 18.063 | -68.530 | 119.0 | DOMINICAN REPUBLIC REGION |
MAP | 4.4 | 2012/10/11 15:13:18 | 24.674 | -110.132 | 11.5 | GULF OF CALIFORNIA |
MAP | 3.1 | 2012/10/11 12:57:58 | 19.077 | -65.371 | 46.0 | PUERTO RICO REGION |
MAP | 2.5 | 2012/10/11 11:39:51 | 37.234 | -114.705 | 8.1 | NEVADA |
MAP | 3.2 | 2012/10/11 11:18:46 | 19.642 | -66.952 | 81.0 | PUERTO RICO REGION |
MAP | 3.0 | 2012/10/11 11:12:14 | 19.106 | -64.125 | 51.0 | VIRGIN ISLANDS REGION |
MAP | 2.6 | 2012/10/11 10:44:07 | 19.381 | -155.280 | 3.2 | ISLAND OF HAWAII, HAWAII |
MAP | 3.2 | 2012/10/11 09:17:37 | 19.188 | -65.425 | 30.0 | PUERTO RICO REGION |
MAP | 3.4 | 2012/10/11 08:06:01 | 19.707 | -64.269 | 35.0 | VIRGIN ISLANDS REGION |
MAP | 2.7 | 2012/10/11 07:28:43 | 60.223 | -151.831 | 35.3 | KENAI PENINSULA, ALASKA |
MAP | 3.1 | 2012/10/11 06:45:01 | 18.863 | -65.291 | 6.0 | PUERTO RICO REGION |
MAP | 2.7 | 2012/10/11 06:19:19 | 18.213 | -67.457 | 24.0 | MONA PASSAGE, PUERTO RICO |
MAP | 4.9 | 2012/10/11 05:47:11 | 4.542 | 125.646 | 158.9 | KEPULAUAN SANGIHE, INDONESIA |
MAP | 4.8 | 2012/10/11 04:38:25 | -34.023 | -72.223 | 19.3 | OFFSHORE LIBERTADOR O’HIGGINS, CHILE |
MAP | 3.2 | 2012/10/11 04:26:46 | 51.440 | -178.104 | 5.4 | ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA |
MAP | 2.9 | 2012/10/11 04:03:27 | 35.200 | -119.538 | 14.4 | CENTRAL CALIFORNIA |
MAP | 4.8 | 2012/10/11 03:05:03 | -10.016 | 160.837 | 27.2 | SOLOMON ISLANDS |
MAP | 4.7 | 2012/10/11 02:38:28 | -34.077 | -72.268 | 1.0 | OFFSHORE LIBERTADOR O’HIGGINS, CHILE |
MAP | 2.5 | 2012/10/11 02:22:50 | 36.587 | -121.183 | 3.3 | CENTRAL CALIFORNIA |
MAP | 2.8 | 2012/10/11 01:29:06 | 17.797 | -66.186 | 2.0 | PUERTO RICO REGION |
MAP | 2.5 | 2012/10/11 01:06:11 | 39.552 | -121.992 | 24.6 | NORTHERN CALIFORNIA |
MAP | 2.6 | 2012/10/11 00:24:43 | 17.856 | -64.909 | 30.0 | VIRGIN ISLANDS REGION |
MAP | 4.2 | 2012/10/11 00:17:38 | -15.634 | -75.059 | 49.0 | NEAR THE COAST OF CENTRAL PERU |
MAP | 2.5 | 2012/10/11 00:00:41 | 35.206 | -119.521 | 15.4 | CENTRAL CALIFORNIA |
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6.9-magnitude quake strikes off Indonesia
According to the US Geological Survey (USGS), the quake struck at 9:31 am local time (0131 GMT) on Friday and was centered 247 kilometers southwest of the city of Nabire in the eastern province of West Paupa and 108 kilometers north of Dobo in the Aru Islands.
Indonesia is vulnerable to earthquakes being located on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a region known for its seismic and volcanic activity caused by friction between shifting tectonic plates.
Last month, a 6.4-magnitude quake rocked the west coast of Sumatra Island, killing at least one person.
MAM/HN
6.7 Mwp – NEAR S COAST OF PAPUA, INDONESIA
Magnitude | 6.7 Mwp |
Date-Time |
|
Location | 4.842S 134.085E |
Depth | 24 km |
Distances |
|
Location Uncertainty | Horizontal: 12.8 km; Vertical 7.3 km |
Parameters | Nph = 145; Dmin = 295.0 km; Rmss = 1.08 seconds; Gp = 28° M-type = Mwp; Version = 7 |
Event ID | us b000d4u2 |
For updates, maps, and technical information, see:
Event Page
or
USGS Earthquake Hazards Program
National Earthquake Information Center
U.S. Geological Survey
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/regional/neic/
LISS – Live Internet Seismic Server
GSN Stations
These data update automatically every 30 minutes. Last update: October 12, 2012 08:49:19 UTC
Seismograms may take several moments to load. Click on a plot to see larger image.
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Extreme Temperatures/ Weather
12.10.2012 | Extreme Weather | Bangladesh | Southern region (Bay of Bengal), [Bhola, Hatiya and Sandwip Islands and half a dozen coastal districts] |
Extreme Weather in Bangladesh on Thursday, 11 October, 2012 at 14:12 (02:12 PM) UTC.
Description | |
At least 14 people were killed and an estimated 1500 fishermen are missing after tropical storms smashed into Bangladesh’s southern coastal islands and districts early Thursday, police said. Police said at least 1500 mud, tin and straw-built houses were also levelled in the storms that swept Bhola, Hatiya and Sandwip Islands and half a dozen coastal districts after midnight local time. At the worst-hit island of Hatiya, at least five people were killed after they were buried under their houses or hit by fallen trees, said local police chief Moktar Hossain. More than 1000 houses were flattened. “More than 100 fishing trawlers, each carrying at least 10 fishermen, have been missing since the storm,” he told said, calling it one of the most powerful in decades. Many fishermen are expected to have taken shelter in other remote islands in the Bay of Bengal or in the neighbouring Sundarbans, the world’s largest mangrove forest. In the past, many fishermen thought to be missing from storms returned home to coastal villages a week or two later. Four people were killed in Bhola, three in Sandwip and two at Char Jabbar, police said. The police chief of Bhola district Bashir Ahmed said more than 500 fishermen were missing from the country’s largest island and at least 500 mud and straw-built houses were levelled by the sudden storm. Bangladesh’s weather office forecast heavy rain in the coastal region and advised fishermen to approach the shore and take care. But there was no major storm warning. “We only got the warning signal number three. But the storm was so powerful, the weather office should have hoisted the signal number seven or eight,” said Mr Ahmed, referring to the intensity of the storm in a scale of ten. “It caught the fishermen and coastal people by surprise. Till now we haven’t had any reports from the missing fishermen,” he said. |
Indian Ocean Region | ||||||
Date/Time (UTC) | Message | Location | Magnitude | Depth | Status | Details |
12.10.2012 00:37 AM | Tsunami Information Bulletin | Aru Islands Region Indonesia | 6.7 | 0 km |
Original Bulletin |
Tsunami Information Bulletin in Aru Islands Region Indonesia, Indian Ocean | |
|
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11.10.2012 | Forest / Wild Fire | USA | State of Michigan, [Heisterman Island, Saginaw Bay] |
Forest / Wild Fire in USA on Thursday, 11 October, 2012 at 14:26 (02:26 PM) UTC.
Description | |
A wildfire has burned roughly one-third of an uninhabited island in Saginaw Bay. The Huron Daily Tribune of Bad Axe reports the fire burned Tuesday and Wednesday at Heisterman Island, located a few miles off Huron County’s Fairhaven Township. Members of the Fairhaven Township Fire Department couldn’t get to the scene, so they monitored the blaze from shore and kept in touch with the state Department of Natural Resources. Rain mostly put out the fire, and the DNR estimates that about 130 acres of the 400-acre island burned. The cause of the blaze wasn’t known. The island located about 100 miles north of Detroit is used by hunters, anglers and campers. |
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Storms / Flooding
Tropical Storm data
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Patty (AL16) | Atlantic Ocean | 11.10.2012 | 12.10.2012 | Tropical Depression | 0 ° | 74 km/h | 93 km/h | 3.66 m | NOAA NHC |
Tropical Storm data
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20 Killed, 1500 missing in Bangladesh storms
Thousands of houses were also destroyed in the storms that started hitting Bhola, Hatiya, and Sandwip Islands and several coastal districts on Wednesday midnight for some hours.
Sixteen people died in Noakhali district, said Sirajul Islam, the district’s administration chief.
Four bodies were also found while over 500 fishermen remained missing in Bhola, the country’s largest island, according to Bashir Ahmed, the island’s police chief.
“More than 100 fishing trawlers, each carrying at least 10 fishermen, have been missing” in the worst-hit island of Hatiya, local police chief Moktar Hossain said.
Bangladesh’s weather forecast office had not issued a major storm warning although it had advised fishermen of heavy rain in the region.
“We only got the warning signal number three. But the storm was so powerful, the weather office should have hoisted the signal number seven or eight…It caught the fishermen and coastal people by surprise. Till now we haven’t had any reports from the missing fishermen,” Ahmed noted.
Authorities have issued evacuation orders in disaster-prone areas.
Torrential storms and landslides are common in Bangladesh. In June 2007, at least 130 people were killed in landslides in Chittagong, a port city in the southeast of the country.
MAM/MHB/AZ
Floods kill 7 in Russian Caucasus: official
Moscow (AFP)
Seven people were killed when overnight torrential rain unleashed heavy flooding in Russia’s North Caucasus region of Dagestan, officials said Wednesday.
The flooding in the ancient Caspian Sea city of Derbent affected hundreds of homes with 1,120 people in the affected area, the regional branch of the Emergencies Ministry said in a statement.
“Seven people have been killed,” it said.
Devastating floods in July in the town of Krymsk at the other end of the Caucasus mountains to the west killed 172 people and raised questions about the authorities’ handling of disasters.
Related Links
Bringing Order To A World Of Disasters
When the Earth Quakes
A world of storm and tempest
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Epidemic Hazards / Diseases
Moving forward with controversial H5N1 research
by Staff Writers
New York NY (SPX)
illustration only |
Last winter, scientists at the University of Wisconsin and Erasmus University (Netherlands) shocked the world by announcing they had developed strains of H5N1 influenza that could easily pass between mammals (ferrets). In nature, H5N1 is extremely lethal (kills nearly 60% of its human cases), but it does not easily spread from person-to-person. Thus, biosafety concerns were raised over the possible release, accidental or intentional, of these new viruses.
In January 2012, an international panel of 39 influenza researchers agreed on a 6-month moratorium on all gain-of-function H5N1 research-classified as “dual-use research of concern” or DURC. This was followed over the summer by an indefinite continuation of the ban by the U.S. government until consensus emerges on how to proceed.
To advance this discussion, the American Society of Microbiology (ASM) journal mBio will publish a special issue of commentaries on the pros and cons of DURC from global experts in virology and public health (full list below).
Here is a brief summary.
ASM officials Arturo Casadevall and Thomas Shenk set the stage by discussing the major events that led to the moratorium.
Anthony Fauci, head of NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, reviews how the U.S. government plans to proceed.
Concerns over laboratory biocontainment are addressed by Professor W. Ian Lipkin, director of the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health.
The authors of the controversial research, Ron A. M. Fouchier and Yoshihiro Kawaoka, along with Adolfo Garcia-Sastre, highlight the importance of DURC and why the moratorium should be lifted.
Public health experts Marc Lipsitch and Barry Bloom assess the probability of an accidental release from laboratories with advanced security.
Finally, Stanley Falkow, who attended the infamous 1975 Asilomar conference, provides historical context by comparing the current H5N1 moratorium to lessons learned from the moratorium on recombinant DNA technology.
Related Links
Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health
Epidemics on Earth – Bird Flu, HIV/AIDS, Ebola
11.10.2012 | Epidemic Hazard | Angola | Province of Cuando Cubango, Menongue City |
Epidemic Hazard in Angola on Thursday, 11 October, 2012 at 13:12 (01:12 PM) UTC.
Description | |
Ten people died of a measles outbreak from 17 September to the present date, in Menongue City, capital of the south-eastern Kuando Kubango Province, a fact that is worrying the local health authorities. ANGOP has learnt that most of the deceased are children below the age of two, but there is also the record of a 35-year old adult. According to the head of the Menongue Municipality health department, Carlos Jonas, who gave this information to ANGOP on Thursday, in view of this worrying reality, which includes the fact that this disease is highly contagious, the authorities have reinforced routine vaccination acts. From 17 September up to the present date the authorities recorded 320 cases of measles were recorded in Menongue City, a number that is considered very high considering the period of the outbreak. According to official sources ten people are currently in-patients in the central hospital for medical assistance, while others are getting ambulatory treatment. | |
Biohazard name: | Measles |
Biohazard level: | 2/4 Medium |
Biohazard desc.: | Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents. |
Symptoms: | |
Status: | confirmed |
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Climate Change
Arctic Sea Ice Extent. 1979-2012: From NSIDC
Published on Oct 2, 2012 by NSIDC1
From the National Snow and Ice Data Center: Animated map of 2012 sea ice extent shown side-by-side with 1979–2009 climatology.
Antarctic Sea Ice Extent. 1979-2012: From NSIDC
Published on Oct 2, 2012 by NSIDC1
From the National Snow and Ice Data Center: Animated map of 2012 sea ice extent shown side-by-side with 1979–2009 climatology.
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Solar Activity
3MIN News October 11. 2012
Published on Oct 11, 2012 by Suspicious0bservers
Pole Shift Video: http://youtu.be/uI10tKuLtFU
STARWATER: http://youtu.be/LiC-92YgZvQ
TODAY’S LINKS
Magnetic Pole Flip: http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/10/03/earths-magnetic-field-overdue-for-a-c…
Arctic Ice Blog: http://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/
Antarctic Ice Max: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=79369
Spain Credit Rating: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/11/us-spain-standardandpoors-downgrade…
Nigerian Farmers sue Shell: http://phys.org/news/2012-10-nigerian-farmers-sue-shell-dutch.html
REPEAT LINKS
Spaceweather: http://spaceweather.com/ [Look on the left at the X-ray Flux and Solar Wind Speed/Density]
HAARP: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/haarp/data.html [Click online data, and have a little fun]
CERES JPL: http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=ceres;orb=1;cov=0;log=0;cad=0#orb
SDO: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/ [Place to find Solar Images and Videos - as seen from earth]
Helioviewer: http://www.helioviewer.org/
SOHO: http://sohodata.nascom.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/soho_movie_theater [SOHO; Lasco and EIT - as seen from earth]
Stereo: http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/images [Stereo; Cor, EUVI, HI - as seen from the side]
SunAEON:http://www.sunaeon.com/#/solarsystem/ [Just click it... trust me]
SOLARIMG: http://solarimg.org/artis/ [All purpose data viewing site]
iSWA: http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov/iswa/iSWA.html [Free Application; for advanced sun watchers]
NASA ENLIL SPIRAL: http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov:8080/IswaSystemWebApp/iSWACygnetStreamer?timestamp=…
NOAA ENLIL SPIRAL: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/wsa-enlil/
US Wind Map: http://hint.fm/wind/
NOAA Bouys: http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/
NOAA Environmental Visualization Laboratory: http://www.nnvl.noaa.gov/Default.php
RSOE: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php [That cool alert map I use]
GOES Xray: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/sxi/goes15/index.html
JAPAN Radiation Map: http://jciv.iidj.net/map/
LISS: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/heliplots_gsn.php
Gamma Ray Bursts: http://grb.sonoma.edu/ [Really? You can't figure out what this one is for?]
BARTOL Cosmic Rays: http://neutronm.bartol.udel.edu//spaceweather/welcome.html [Top left box, look for BIG blue circles]
TORCON: http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-torcon-index [Tornado Forecast for the day]
GOES Weather: http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/goes/ [Clouds over America]
RAIN RECORDS: http://www.cocorahs.org/ViewData/ListIntensePrecipReports.aspx
EL DORADO WORLD WEATHER MAP: http://www.eldoradocountyweather.com/satellite/ssec/world/world-composite-ir-…
PRESSURE MAP: http://www.woweather.com/cgi-bin/expertcharts?LANG=us&MENU=0000000000&…
HURRICANE TRACKER: http://www.weather.com/weather/hurricanecentral/tracker
INTELLICAST: http://www.intellicast.com/ [Weather site used by many youtubers]
NASA News: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/
PHYSORG: http://phys.org/ [GREAT News Site!]
QUAKES LIST FULL: http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/seismologist.php
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Space
Earth approaching objects (objects that are known in the next 30 days) |
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Object Name | Apporach Date | Left | AU Distance | LD Distance | Estimated Diameter* | Relative Velocity | |||
(1994 EK) | 14th October 2012 | 2 day(s) | 0.1356 | 52.8 | 230 m – 520 m | 12.22 km/s | 43992 km/h | ||
(2012 PA20) | 15th October 2012 | 3 day(s) | 0.1502 | 58.5 | 100 m – 230 m | 10.36 km/s | 37296 km/h | ||
(2012 RV16) | 18th October 2012 | 6 day(s) | 0.1270 | 49.4 | 310 m – 700 m | 16.14 km/s | 58104 km/h | ||
214869 (2007 PA8) | 05th November 2012 | 24 day(s) | 0.0433 | 16.8 | 1.5 km – 3.3 km | 10.79 km/s | 38844 km/h | ||
(2011 UG21) | 06th November 2012 | 25 day(s) | 0.1784 | 69.4 | 340 m – 760 m | 19.73 km/s | 71028 km/h | ||
(2010 WT) | 07th November 2012 | 26 day(s) | 0.1251 | 48.7 | 53 m – 120 m | 6.53 km/s | 23508 km/h | ||
333358 (2001 WN1) | 09th November 2012 | 28 day(s) | 0.1285 | 50.0 | 370 m – 830 m | 8.73 km/s | 31428 km/h | ||
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Biological Hazards / Wildlife
11.10.2012 | Biological Hazard | Nigeria | Delta State, [Forcados River in Oboro Community] |
Biological Hazard in Nigeria on Thursday, 11 October, 2012 at 16:42 (04:42 PM) UTC.
Description | |
A 38-year-old woman, identified as Mrs. Torugbene-Ere Aboh, escaped death by the whiskers, following a violent attack on her by a shark at Forcados River in Oboro Community, Burutu Local Government Area of Delta State. Vanguard gathered that the woman, a mother of five, who was taking her bath in the overflowing river, had gone for a three-day fasting programme in a church in the community, when she was attacked by the shark in the river. Narrating her ordeal, Mrs Aboh, said: “Shortly after I started bathing, I felt a sharp cut on my right leg and I screamed for help. The screaming drew the attention of my brethren who were also in the river and they came to my rescue. “I was immediately taken to a nearby patent medicine shop, where I was given 12 stitches before I was later taken by my husband, to a private clinic at Bomadi, for proper medical treatment.” | |
Biohazard name: | Shark attack (fatal) |
Biohazard level: | 0/4 — |
Biohazard desc.: | This does not included biological hazard category. |
Symptoms: | |
Status: |
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Articles of Interest
Earth’s magnetic field overdue for a chaos-causing (possibly life-altering) flip
LONDON — The discovery by NASA rover Curiosity of evidence that water once flowed on Mars – the most Earth-like planet in the solar system – should intensify interest in what the future could hold for mankind.
The only thing stopping Earth having a lifeless environment like Mars is the magnetic field that shields us from deadly solar radiation and helps some animals migrate, and it may be a lot more fragile and febrile than one might think.
Scientists say earth’s magnetic field is weakening and could all but disappear in as little as 500 years as a precursor to flipping upside down.
It has happened before – the geological record suggests the magnetic field has reversed every 250,000 years, meaning that, with the last event 800,000 years ago, another would seem to be overdue.
“Magnetic north has migrated more than 1,500 kilometres over the past century,” said Conall Mac Niocaill, an earth scientist at Oxford University. “In the past 150 years, the strength of the magnetic field has lessened by 10 percent, which could indicate a reversal is on the cards.”
While the effects are hard to predict, the consequences may be enormous. The loss of the magnetic field on Mars billions of years ago put paid to life on the planet if there ever was any, scientists say.
Mac Niocaill said Mars probably lost its magnetic field 3.5-4.0 billion years ago, based on observations that rocks in the planet’s southern hemisphere have magnetisation.
The northern half of Mars looks younger because it has fewer impact craters, and has no magnetic structure to speak of, so the field must have shut down before the rocks there were formed, which would have been about 3.8 billion years ago.
“With the field dying away, the solar wind was then able to strip the atmosphere away, and you would also have an increase in the cosmic radiation making it to the surface,” he said.
“Both of these things would be bad news for any life that might have formed on the surface – either wiping it out, or forcing it to migrate into the interior of the planet.”
RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW
Earth’s magnetic field has always restored itself but, as it continues to shift and weaken, it will present challenges – satellites could be more exposed to solar wind and the oil industry uses readings from the field to guide drills.
In nature, animals which use the field could be mightily confused – birds, bees, and some fish all use the field for navigation. So do sea turtles whose long lives, which can easily exceed a hundred years, means a single generation could feel the effects.
Birds may be able to cope because studies have shown they have back-up systems that rely on stars and landmarks, including roads and power lines, to find their way around.
The European Space Agency is taking the issue seriously. In November, it plans to launch three satellites to improve our fairly blurry understanding of the magnetosphere.
The project – Swarm – will send two satellites into a 450 kilometre high polar orbit to measure changes in the magnetic field, while a third satellite 530 kilometres high will look at the influence of the sun.
DESCENT INTO CHAOS
Scientists, who have known for some time the magnetic field has a tendency to flip, have made advances in recent years in understanding why and how it happens.
The field is generated by convection currents that churn in the molten iron of the planet’s outer core. Other factors, such as ocean currents and magnetic rocks in the earth’s crust also contribute.
The Swarm mission will pull all these elements together to improve computer models used to predict how the magnetic field will move and how fast it could weaken.
Ciaran Beggan, a geomagnetic specialist at the British Geological Survey in Edinburgh, said studies have also refined our understanding of how the field reverses.
They have focused on lava flows. When these cool and form crystals the atoms in iron-rich molten rock align under the influence of the magnetic field, providing a geological memory of the earth’s field.
But that memory looks different in various locations around the world, suggesting the reversal could be a chaotic and fairly random process.
“Rather than having strong north and south poles, you get lots of poles around the planet. So, a compass would not do you much good,” said Beggan.
While the whole process takes 3,000-5,000 years, latest research suggests the descent into a chaotic state could take as little as 500 years, although there are significant holes in scientific understanding.
“Although electricity grids and GPS systems would be more vulnerable, we are not really sure how all the complex things that are linked together would react,” Beggan said.
Related
Waiting for doomsday: Our apocalypse obsession likely to last long past 21/12/12
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