Earth Report – Global Disaster Watch
Magnitude 5+ Earthquakes – Global
5.5 earthquake hits eastern Turkey.
5.5 earthquake hits the Santa Cruz Islands.
5.3 earthquake its near the coast of Nicaragua.
5.0 earthquake hits Tajikistan.
5.0 earthquake hits near the east coast of Honshu, Japan.
Tropical Storms – Roundup of Tropical Storms:
In the Southern Hemisphere: Tropical cyclone 14s (Enala), located approximately 739 nm southeast of Port Louis, Mauritius, is tracking northward at 05 knots.
Tropical cyclone 15p (Judy), located approximately 186 nm north of Port Vila, Vanuatu, is tracking south-southwestward at 07 knots.
Wildfires – Texas, USA
Several crews are working a fire in Fort Davis Monday. As of 6 p.m. Monday, the fire is at 2,800 acres and is at 10% containment. There was no immediate threat to lives or property.
Wildfires – Costa Rica
The National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC) reported an increase in wildfires in the country during February. 4 Savannah and 13 forest fires were reported. Although the total area burned is not large, the fires remain a concern for conservation authorities who have asked the population not to light any fires.
Covid-19
The countries with the 10 greatest number of Covid-19 cases:
Cholera – Mozambique
Mozambique today kicked off a cholera vaccination campaign targeting around 720,000 people in eight districts as the country steps up control measures against an outbreak in which 5260 cases and 37 deaths have been recorded to date since September 2022. People aged one year and older will be vaccinated in the five-day campaign.
Zika virus – Hungary
Two imported Zika virus infections were confirmed by the National Center for Public Health in Budapest. The two infected persons had previously been to Thailand, and they survived the infection with mild symptoms.-
Dengue, chikungunya and Zika – Minas Gerais, Brazil
Through February 27, health authorities in Minas Gerais state report 50,101 probable cases (notified cases except discarded cases) of dengue. Of this total, 13,802 cases were confirmed for the disease. There are four confirmed deaths from dengue in Minas Gerais and 21 deaths under investigation.
With regard to Chikungunya fever, 18,371 probable cases of the disease were registered, of which 4,536 were confirmed. So far, there is no confirmed death from Chikungunya in Minas Gerais and one is under investigation.
As for the Zika virus, 72 probable cases have been registered so far. There is one confirmed case of the disease and there are no deaths from Zika in Minas Gerais, so far.
Magnitude 5+ Earthquakes – Global
5.5 earthquake hits Fiji.
5.3 earthquake hits the Pagan region, North Mariana Islands.
5.2 earthquake hits Sulawesi, Indonesia.
5.1 earthquake hits central Turkey.
5.1 earthquake hits south of the Kermedec Islands.
5.1 earthquake hits the Flores region, Indonesia.
5.0 earthquake hits the Andreanof Islands in the Aleutian Islands.
5.0 earthquake hits the Kermedec Islands.
Two 5.0 earthquakes hit southern Xinjiang, China.
Tropical Storms – Roundup of Tropical Storms:
In the Southern Hemisphere: Tropical cyclone 14s (Enala), located approximately 740 nm southeast of Port Louis, Mauritius, is tracking south-southwestward at 03 knots.
Tropical cyclone 15p (Judy), located approximately 346 nm north-northeast of Port Vila, Vanuatu, is tracking west-southwestward at 08 knots.
Lassa fever – Ghana
The Ghana Health Service (GHS) reported today of two confirmed Lassa fever cases from the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research on Friday. Both cases reside in Accra. One of the cases died while to date, 56 contacts have been identified and are being followed-up.
Chikungunya – Paraguay
The latest report from the General Directorate of Health Surveillance indicates that, in the last three weeks, 12,189 cases of chikungunya have been reported.
Magnitude 5+ Earthquakes – Global
6.2 earthquake hits New Britain, Papua New Guinea.
6.1 earthquake hits Hokkaido, Japan.
5.3 earthquake hits central Turkey.
5.1 earthquake hits northwest of the Ryukyu Islands, Japan.
Tropical Storms – Roundup of Tropical Storms:
In the Southern Hemisphere: Tropical cyclone 14s (Enala), located approximately 728 nm southeast of Port Louis, Mauritius, is tracking south-southwestward at 07 knots.
Newsbytes:
USA – Emergency crews carried out multiple high water rescues, including some by helicopter, after a winter storm dumped heavy rain in parts of Southern California. Storm winds also caused damage, downing trees and power lines. At one point 30,000 customers in the city of Los Angeles were without power. Heavy snow fell in higher elevations, where several roads were closed. Severe flooding was reported on several roads, including parts of Interstate 5 near Sun Valley in Los Angeles.
Towering Wildfire Clouds Impact the Stratosphere
Vast clouds of wildfire smoke towering into the sky have become all too familiar from recent active fire years across the western United States and Australia. Now, a team of atmospheric scientists led by NOAA has demonstrated these big vertical plumes of wildfire smoke have a major long term impact on the stratosphere – and climate.
Fire-triggered thunderstorms, called pyrocumulonimbus or pyroCbs, are generated when the intense heat of a wildfire triggers a huge thunderstorm that carries smoke into the stratosphere, five to seven miles above the surface. Measurements show that pyroCb events dominate contributions of black carbon and organic carbon to the lower stratosphere, the net effect of which cools the planet. Scientists believe the impact of pyroCb events, which are becoming more frequent, is significant.
Dengue Fever – Bolivia
Bolivian health officials reported 642 additional dengue fever cases Friday, bringing the country’s outbreak total to 10,255. La Paz has issued a red alert for dengue.
Magnitude 5+ Earthquakes – Global
5.1 earthquake hits the southern mid-Atlantic ridge.
5.0 earthquake hits near the east coast of Kamchatka.
5.0 earthquake hits the Rota region, North Mariana Islands.
Tropical Storms – Roundup of Tropical Storms:
In the Southern Hemisphere: Tropical cyclone 11s (Freddy), located approximately 289 nm west of Europa Island, is tracking westward at 14 knots.
Tropical cyclone 14s (Enala), located approximately 691 nm east-southeast of Port Louis, Mauritius, is tracking south-southwestward at 09 knots.
Earth’s Metallic Core
Analysis of increasingly detailed seismic data around the world have allowed scientists to confirm the existence of a huge metallic structure at the heart of Earth’s inner core.
The structure was measured by looking at seismic waves from 200 quakes with a magnitude greater than 6.0 as they bounced back and forth up to five times inside the Earth.
The transition from the outer regions of the inner core to the newly confirmed inner metallic structure is gradual rather than a sharp boundary, scientists say in the journal Nature. Temperatures at the heart of Earth’s core are similar to those on the sun’s surface, about 5,500 to 6,000 degrees Celsius.
Empty Canals in Venice
Gondolas and other boats in the Italian lagoon city of Venice have been lying on nearly dried-up canals this month due to a prolonged drought and a series of unusually low tides.
While the popular tourist destination has regularly been swamped by high astronomical tides made worse by rising sea levels, experts say ultra-low ebb tides this winter point to the need to clean and dredge some of Venice’s inner canal network. The low-water woes are being blamed on a drought fed by a strong high-pressure system, the lunar cycle and altered sea currents.
Engineered Trees
The first batch of trees genetically engineered to grow taller and capture more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere were planted on private land in southern Georgia in an attempt to sideline restrictions on such plantings. More will soon be planted on abandoned Pennsylvania coal mines.
The San Francisco-based Living Carbon startup added three genes to the poplars to make their photosynthesis more efficient, hoping they will turbocharge the rate the trees grow wood and suck carbon dioxide from the air. While yet unproven outside of scientific settings, the trees’ prospect of helping to remove the greenhouse gas has its supporters and critics.