Magnitude 5+ Earthquakes – Global
5.7 Earthquake hits Vanuatu.
5.6 Earthquake hits Antigua and Barbuda.
5.1 Earthquake hits Vanuatu.
5.0 Earthquake hits south off Fiji.
5.0 Earthquake hits Antigua and Barbuda.
Storms and Floods
Tropical Storms – Roundup of Tropical Storms:
In the north Indian Ocean: Tropical cyclone 01b (Maarutha) has dissipated.
NewsBytes:
Quebec, Canada – Hydro-Meteo teams are on high alert throughout Quebec as flood risks remain alongside multiple waterways. Very high levels of water were observed in the St. Lawrence River, as well as on the Outaouais, Mille Iles and Prairies rivers and the Deux Montagnes Lake. There were other areas of concern in the Eastern Townships, Lanaudiere, Beauce and Quebec City regions due to rain and milder temperatures than usual, which has melted more snow than expected.
Global Warming
Mysterious crack appears in one of Greenland’s largest glaciers
The first photographs of a new and ominous crack in Greenland’s enormous Petermann Glacier were captured by a NASA airborne mission Friday.
The NASA pictures make clear that a significant new rift has opened near the center of the glacier’s floating ice shelf — an unusual location that raises questions about how it formed. Moreover, this crack is not so distant from another much wider and longer crack that has been slowly extending toward the shelf’s center from its eastern side wall. The two cracks are clearly visible in this image taken from the aircraft: Oblique photo of a portion of the new rift, near bottom center, on Petermann Glacier’s floating ice shelf and an older curved rift from the flank of the shelf, near top center.
If the two cracks were to intersect, then a single break would run across more than half of the ice shelf. That might, in turn, cause the piece to begin to break away.
Space Events
Large Asteroid to Pass Close By Earth April 19
An asteroid as big as the Rock of Gibraltar will streak past Earth on April 19 at a safe but uncomfortably close distance, according to astronomers. “Although there is no possibility for the asteroid to collide with our planet, this will be a very close approach for an asteroid this size,” NASA said in a statement.
Dubbed 2014-JO25 and roughly 650 metres (2,000 feet) across, the asteroid will come within 1.8 million kilometres (1.1 million miles) of Earth, less than five times the distance to the Moon. It will pass closest to our planet after having looped around the Sun. 2014-J25’s will then continue on past Jupiter before heading back toward the centre of our Solar System.
Disease
Syphilis in Brazil
Government officials in the Federal District in Brazil say the syphilis situation has reached epidemic status and the exact reason for the rise is still unknown. In 2016 alone, 1,288 cases were reported in the federal capital.
Foot and Mouth Disease in Algeria
Following the outbreak of the disease in Algeria, Morocco immediately took preventive measures to protect the national herd, the office pointed out in a statement, adding that these measures include the strengthening of health surveillance of the national livestock population, in particular in border areas. A monitoring unit was set up to ensure the daily monitoring of the disease and its evolution in neighboring countries, the source said, adding that no case of FMD has been detected in Morocco.