The Burren marks Earth Science Week

 

The Burren and Cliffs of Moher Geopark has announced a number of events marking Earth Science Week 2014, including a fieldtrip for university students examining climate change in the rocks of the Burren.

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VIDEO Hiker films ash cloud from erupting volcano in Japan

A hiker videos the volcanic cloud from Mount Ontake in Japan roll towards him and his colleagues.

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Orange Alert issued regarding Bárðarbunga volcano in Iceland

The Bárðarbunga volcano in Iceland shows heightened or escalating unrest with increased potential of eruption, according to Icelandic authorities.

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Magnitude 2.6 earthquake recorded off Cork coast

The Irish National Seismic Network (INSN) has confirmed that an earthquake measuring 2.6 magnitude occurred off the coast of County Cork, Ireland, at 7.57 AM today (Wednesday, 04 December 2013).

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Two earthquakes recorded in the Irish Sea

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Sea Ice Max Continues Downward Trend

In September 2012, the ice cap over the Arctic Ocean shrank to its lowest extent on record, about half the size of the average summertime extent from 1979 to 2000. That sea ice minimum continued a long-term trend of diminishing ice cover over the past few decades.

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VIDEO 6.1 Magnitude earthquake strikes Taiwan

A strong earthquake struck rural central Taiwan on Wednesday, swaying buildings, sending school children to seek cover. The quake killed one person and injured at least 20 people. The magnitude-6.1 earthquake was felt throughout the island. (March 27)

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Unusual seismic activity detected at Iceland's Hekla volcano

Hekla, pictured today.

The National Commissioner, and the chief of the police at Hvolsvollur town, in South Iceland, have declared a Civil Protection State of Uncertainty because of seismic activity in the volcano Hekla. 

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Florida Man Missing After Sinkhole Opens Under Bedroom

A giant sinkhole caused by the rains of tropical storm Agatha is seen in Guatemala City in June 2010.

A 36-year-old man disappeared last night when a sinkhole opened up under his bedroom in the U.S. State of Florida, swallowing him as his brother tried to rescue him.

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VIDEO - Mount Etna (Sicily, Italy) Erupts

After maintaining a low simmer for 10 months, Italy’s Etna Volcano boiled over on February 19 and 20, 2013, with three outbursts in 36 hours. Each outburst, or paroxysm, featured “emission of lava flows, pyroclastic flows, lahars, and an ash cloud,” according to the Italian Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV).

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WORLD FROM SPACE - Sea Ice In Canada’s Gulf of St. Lawrence

Every year, Arctic sea ice shrinks and grows, reaching its minimum in September and its maximum in February or March. As sea ice nears its maximum, it often begins to form in Canada’s Gulf of St. Lawrence. That's likely what was happening when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired this natural-color image on February 11, 2013.

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The Burren Region and plate tectonics, volcanic activity and earthquakes

An introductory course examining how plate tectonics, volcanic activity and earthquakes have shaped the landscape of the Burren Region will take place during March and April.

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Explosive Eruption at Paluweh Volcano, Indonesia

Although the summit of Paluweh (also known as Rokatenda) is shrouded by clouds, evidence of a recent eruption is visible in this satellite image of the Indonesian volcanic island. After rumbling for months, Paluweh released an explosive eruption on February 2 and 3, 2013.

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Irish Seismometers Record North Korea Nuclear Test

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The energy from today's (Tuesday, 12 February 2013) underground nuclear test in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) was felt as far away as Ireland and recorded on seismometers in Dublin and Donegal, according to the Irish National Seismic Network (INSN).

The seismometers picked up the "explosion-like" event approximately 11 minutes after North Korea detonated what it called a “miniaturised” nuclear device.

Tom Blake, INSN Director explained that the explosion from the nuclear test propagated through the ground measuring 4.9 magnitude on the Richter Scale.

Mr. Blake, who is also Head of the National Data Centre, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organisation at the School of Cosmic Physics in the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS), explained: “The energy wave generated by North Korea’s nuclear test was clearly picked up by seismometers in north Donegal and the Dublin Mountains approximately 11 minutes after it occurred at 2:58 AM (GMT) on Tuesday.  It was located roughly in the region of the previous North Korean nuclear tests of 2006 and 2009. The South Korean defence ministry has provided preliminary yield estimates for the test of between 6 to 7 kilotons. Our data suggests the test was a more powerful blast than North Korea's two previous tests.”

People watch a television broadcast reporting North Korea's nuclear test at a Seoul train station

Mr. Blake said that seismometers are so sensitive that they can easily pick up strong seismic activity on the other side of the world.

 “The Earth is a dynamic planet and susceptible to behaving in a more elastic fashion that one might think. An earthquake has the same effect on the Earth as a pebble does when dropped into a pool. The ripple effect of last week’s earthquakes in The Solomon Islands were also felt in Ireland, for example,” added Mr. Blake

The DIAS began modern seismic recordings in 1978. The Irish National Seismic Network (INSN) now features six permanent stations in Dublin, Kerry, Galway, Donegal and Wexford. 2013 marks 20 years since the beginning of digital seismic recording of the INSN. For more see www.dias.ie.

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2.3 Magnitude Earthquake Recorded In Irish Sea

A 2.3 magnitude earth tremor was recorded in the Irish sea off North Wales last night.

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Magnitude 8 Earthquake Hits The Solomon Islands

Today's M 8.0 earthquake in the Solomon Islands occurred as a result of shallow thrust faulting on or near the plate boundary interface between the Australia and Pacific plates. In the region of this earthquake, the Australia plate converges with and subducts beneath the Pacific plate, moving towards the east-northeast at a rate of approximately 94 mm/yr.

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WORLD FROM SPACE Moving Rock at Puyehue-Cordón Caulle, Chile

Obsidian—sharp-edged, translucent, and lustrous—is one of the most distinctive volcanic rocks. Its unique glassy properties result from a disordered structure: the atoms are irregular, like a liquid. 

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Snow Cover Extent Declines in the Arctic

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In the high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, snow typically covers the land surface for nine months each year. The snow serves as a reservoir of water, and a reflector of the Sun’s energy, but recent decades have witnessed significant changes in snow cover extent. 

Studies of snow cover published in Geophysical Research Letters and the Arctic Report Card: Update for 2012 found that, between 1979 and 2012, June snow cover extent decreased by 17.6 percent per decade compared to the 1979–2000 average.

The maps on this page show June snow cover extent anomalies for every third year from 1967 through 2012. Each June’s snow cover is compared to the 1971–2000 mean. Above-average extent appears in shades of blue, and below-average extent appears in shades of orange. Toward the beginning of the series, above-average extents predominate. Toward the end of the series, below-average extents predominate.

The graph shows June snow cover in millions of square kilometers from 1967 through 2012, and the overall decline in snow cover is consistent with the changes shown in the maps. The graph and maps are based on data from the Rutgers University Global Snow Lab.

The snow-cover study authors, Chris Derksen and Ross Brown, found an overall decline in snow cover from 1967 through 2012, and also detected an acceleration of snow loss after the year 2003. Between June 2008 and June 2012, North America experienced three record-low snow cover extents. In Eurasia, each successive June from 2008 to 2012 set a new record for the lowest snow cover extent yet recorded for that month. 

Previous research identified a link between rising air temperatures and shrinking snow cover, so Derksen and Brown were not surprised to see an overall loss of snow, “But we were surprised at the continued broken records of June Arctic snow cover extent over the past five years,” says Brown. “Arctic spring snow cover typically fluctuates over cycles of about three to four years so you don’t expect to see sequences of decreasing snow cover persisting through these natural cycles.” 

As with sea ice, declining snow cover extent means decreasing albedo. The overall “whiteness” of an object determines how much sunlight it reflects back into space. Snow has very high albedo, reflecting up to 90 percent of the sunlight it receives. As snow cover declines, dark soils and vegetation absorb more of the Sun’s energy. The Geophysical Research Letters study pointed out that declining snow cover raises ground temperatures and increases the thickness of the active layer—the uppermost layer of permafrost that thaws each summer. When organic material in thawing permafrost decomposes, it can release methane, a potent greenhouse gas when released to the atmosphere.

Anticipating future changes in Arctic snow cover poses challenges for researchers. “Changes in fall snow cover are complicated because the longer open-water season provides additional moisture for increasing snowfall,” Brown says. “As for future snow cover, climate is strongly influenced by interannual variability over periods of five to ten years, so that time range is hard to predict. But global climate models show the rate of Arctic snow cover decline speeding up over the long term.”

 

Image by Robert Simmon, using data from the Rutgers University Global Snow Lab. Caption by Michon Scott. Instrument: NOAA-17 POES

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2.7 Magnitude Earthquake Recorded Off Irish Coast

A magnitude 2.7 earthquake was recorded off the northwest coast of Ireland this morning.

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Peter O'Donnell's Winter 2012-13 Forecast Summary

 

Based on my usual methodology and a consideration of the unusual ice-free anomaly expected to start the season, the following is my expected temperature and precipitation trend for DEC-JAN-FEB (following a November with expected mild temperatures 1-2 C deg above average, and near normal in precipitation ... October expected to be near normal for temperature and somewhat on the wet side of normal).

DECEMBER looks fairly close to normal (on the whole) with a roughly equal mixture of mild and cold days. There may be one relatively severe cold spell of 2-4 days around the middle of the month towards the 20th. This might not produce much snow as it could be a shallow incursion but some snow would be likely given the temperature anomalies indicating below zero temperatures briefly. Before that, the period 7th to 13th is expected to be quite mild (highs could reach 11-13 C), and the run up to Christmas increasingly mild with rain replacing any earlier sleet or snow in most areas but there would be a better chance for snow in north-central parts of Britain around Christmas. A stormy interval may develop just around or after Christmas Day. Numerical index values suggest a windy day on the 26th so there's one specific daily forecast to test out. 

 

JANUARY looks relatively mild but with severe cold forming gradually off to the north and east of Ireland and the U.K., some intervals of modified cold could intrude, perhaps less forcefully in south and west regions of Ireland. The month may also become rather stormy at times especially in periods around the 10th and 25th. Some damaging winds would not surprise me given the developing thermal gradient across the Atlantic and a likely very strong zonal jet stream at times. A trend to much colder weather getting closer to Britain at least is likely near the end of the month although mild weather could hold on in Ireland and the southwest parts of England.

FEBRUARY is expected to be much colder than average by 1.5 to 3.5 degrees with considerable snow or sleet and frequent easterly winds. This will develop because of massive blocking to the north of Ireland and the U.K. extending from Iceland to Scandinavia. There is some indication of a very severe period of wintry weather. This severe cold may last some time beyond the end of the month.

I may update this seasonal forecast if I have any further results from ongoing research, but this is the output of the current research model with some consideration given to the ice anomaly. I suspect it will intensify the pattern that would have existed otherwise, so I have tended to amplify the numerical output on either side of normal. Once severe cold is established over snow cover it is hard to dislodge during the depth of winter, but would also warn that February is the least reliable of the three monthly forecasts not only because it's further out but also because it is more anomalous.

Peter O'Donnell is a Vancouver-based climatologist who specialises in providing long-range forecasts for Ireland and Britain.

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