3 Nuclear events in 24h

ISON still alive

COMET ISON LIVES (UPDATED): Cancel the funeral. Comet ISON is back from the dead. Yesterday, Nov. 28th, Comet ISON flew through the sun's atmosphere and appeared to disintegrate before the cameras of several NASA and ESA spacecraft. This prompted reports of the comet's demise. Today, the comet has revived and is rapidly brightening. Click to view a SOHO coronagraph movie of the solar flyby (updated Nov. 29 @ 1800 UT):

Before the flyby, experts had made many predictions about what might happen to the comet, ranging from utter disintegration to glorious survival. No one predicted both.

Karl Battams of NASA's Comet ISON Observing Campaign says, "[colleague] Matthew Knight and I are ripping our hair out right now as we know that so many people in the public, the media and in science teams want to know what's happened. We'd love to know that too! Right now, here's our working hypothesis:

"As comet ISON plunged towards to the Sun, it began to fall apart, losing not giant fragments but at least a lot of reasonably sized chunks. There's evidence of very large dust in the long thin tail we saw in the [SOHO coronagraph] images. Then, as ISON plunged through the corona, it continued to fall apart and vaporize, losing its coma and tail completely just like sungrazing Comet Lovejoy did in 2011. What emerged from the Sun was a small but perhaps somewhat coherent nucleus that has resumed emitting dust and gas for at least the time being."
Battams emphasizes that it is too soon to tell how big the remnant nucleus is or how bright the resurgent comet will ultimately become. "We have a whole new set of unknowns, and this ridiculous, crazy, dynamic and unpredictable object continues to amaze, astound and confuse us to no end. We ask that you please be patient with us for a couple of days as we analyze the data and try to work out what is happening."
Astrophotographer Babak Tafreshi has edited an HD video that compares views of ISON from both of SOHO's coronagraphs. "It seems the comet could become a naked eye object with several degrees of scattered tail by Dec 2nd or 3rd," he predicts. "It's not the comet of the century for sure, and fainter than the Lovejoy sungrazer in Dec. 2011, but an interesting imaging target is just a few nights away!" Solar flare alerts: text, voice

Source:
http://www.spaceweather.com/ 

Small meteor fragment falls into the Ionian Sea

28/ 11/ 2013

ANA-MPA -- A small meteor fragment hit the earth's atmosphere over the Ionian Sea in northwest Greece on Wednesday night, blazing across the sky as it burned up and alarming the people on the islands of Cephalonia and Zakynthos where the phenomenon was most visible, as well as in the western cities of Ioannina and Patras. No injuries or damage were reported.

 People who witnessed the meteor fall into the sea reported a bright light across the sky and a loud thundering sound at approximately 21:30 on Wednesday night. 

Academy of Athens Astronomy Research Center Director Panos Patsis told ANA-MPA that “rocks fall from the sky all the time”, noting that such phenomena are not unusual and most likely it was a small meteor or a fragment of a comet with a diameter of less than a meter. He said that most of the time they go unnoticed because they end up in the sea or in remote unpopulated areas on the Earth. 

Eugenides Foundation Planetarium Director Dionissis Simopoulos noted that more than 100 tons of meteors fall on the earth's surface everyday. He said that the meteor piece that fell last night couldn't be larger than a human head in size and probably weighed approximately two-and-a-half kilos. 

Both ruled out the likelihood that it was a fragment of ISON, the so-called comet of the century, which is expected to graze the surface of the Sun on Thursday night. They also said that there is a small likelihood it was a leftover from the Leonid Meteor Shower, as the phenomenon had culminated earlier in the month.



(file photo)

Μore on subscrider' s page | application

 

 

Source:

http://www.amna.gr/english/articleview.php?id=4367

ISON News

CANCEL THE EULOGY ... FOR NOW: Comet ISON flew through the sun's atmosphere on Nov. 28th and the encounter did not go well for the icy comet. Just before perihelion (closest approach to the sun) the comet rapidly faded and appeared to disintegrate. This prompted reports of ISON's demise. However, a fraction of the comet might have survived. Click on the image below to see what emerged from Comet ISON's brush with solar fire:

In the movie, Comet ISON seems to be falling apart as it approaches the sun. Indeed, researchers working with NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory said they saw nothing along the track that ISON was expected to follow through the sun's atmosphere. Nevertheless, something has emerged. Whether this is a small scorched fragment of Comet ISON's nucleus or perhaps a "headless comet"--a stream of debris marking the remains of the comet's disintegrated core--remains to be seen.

An earlier movie from SOHO shows more of the comet's approach:

The movie spans a day and a half period from Nov. 27th (01:41 UT) to 28th (15:22 UT). We see that Comet ISON brightened dramatically on Nov. 27th before fading on Nov. 28th. That brightening might have been a disintegration event, in which the comet cracked open and spilled its vaporizing contents into space.

In summary, we still don't know for sure what has happened to Comet ISON. Stay tuned for updates as more data arrive from NASA's fleet of solar observatories. Solar flare alerts: text, voice

Source:

http://www.spaceweather.com/ 

Mystérieux bruit d'explosion à l'ouest de Montréal : la thèse du bolide avancée

Plusieurs résidents du Grand Montréal, d'ailleurs au Québec, de l'Ontario et de certains États américains limitrophes rapportent avoir entendu un bruit puissant accompagné de lumières multicolores vers 20 h, mardi soir.

Les témoignages recueillis laissent croire à une météorite, mais pour l'instant, pas de confirmation officielle ni de photos.
« À première vue, on pourrait penser que c'est un bolide - donc une grosse étoile filante - qui serait entré dans l'atmosphère terrestre au-dessus de Montréal, qui se serait vaporisé au-dessus de la ville et qui aurait provoqué un bang supersonique », estime l'astronome de l'Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) Pierre Chastenay en entrevue à ICI Radio-Canada Première.

L'astronome de l'UQAM, Pierre Chastenay, avance l'hypothèse du bolide

L'astronome souligne qu'une situation similaire s'était produite à Saint-Robert-de-Sorel en 1994.
L'astronome responsable du Club des astronomes amateurs de Laval, Jean-Marc Richard, abonde dans le sens de son collègue Pierre Chastenay. Il compare toutefois le phénomène qui se serait produit à Montréal à celui survenu en Russie le 15 février dernier. « C'est un super-bolide qui a traversé l'atmosphère en Russie alors que ce que nous avons eu, c'est peut-être un bolide, un peu plus petit si vous voulez », explique M. Richard.
« Le problème, c'est que puisque le ciel était couvert à Montréal personne n'a vu la grosse boule de feu ou l'étoile filante qui aurait été associée à ce phénomène-là, ce qui fait qu'on ne peut pas exclure que ce soit un transformateur qui ait explosé », poursuit M. Chastenay.

« Pour l'instant, la meilleure hypothèse c'est celle du gros météore - du bolide - mais faute de témoins visuels on ne peut pas aller plus loin. » — Pierre Chastenay

En astronomie, un bolide est un corps qui entre dans l'atmosphère terrestre en laissant une traînée lumineuse. C'est un gros météore. Une étoile filante, un météore et un bolide sont des phénomènes similaires qui se différencient par la grosseur du corps pénétrant dans l'atmosphère. Une étoile filante se mesure en grammes, un météore en kilogrammes et un bolide en tonnes.

M. Chastenay ne peut toutefois exclure qu'il s'agisse de l'explosion d'un transformateur. Une telle explosion produit également une bonne quantité de lumière et de bruit. L'hypothèse selon laquelle un transformateur de Châteauguay avait explosé a ainsi été avancée, mais Hydro-Québec confirme n'avoir rien à signaler sur l'ensemble de son réseau.
De son côté, la Sûreté du Québec confirme avoir reçu de nombreux appels, sans toutefois pouvoir avancer une explication. Même son de cloche au Service de police de la Ville de Montréal.
Si certains citoyens de Cornwall, en Ontario, et d'Ogdensburg, dans l'État de New York, rapportaient sur les réseaux sociaux avoir entendu un bruit d'explosion, en aucun temps les services d'urgence des deux régions n'ont été interpellés à ce sujet, ont confirmé des porte-parole.
Un tremblement de terre?
Séisme Canada indique n'avoir enregistré aucune vibration. Une porte-parole de l'organisme a cependant précisé qu'un impact de météorite peut ne pas avoir été détecté par les sismographes car, contrairement aux séismes, l'énergie « ne se propage pas dans la terre ».
Selon Environnement Canada, il ne s'agirait pas non plus d'un coup de tonnerre.
Les internautes se perdent donc en conjectures sur les réseaux sociaux, dont Twitter et Facebook.

Source:
http://www.radio-canada.ca/regions/Montreal/2013/11/26/008-bruit-lumiere-explosion.shtml

Pond swallowed by sinkhole fuels legends in Bosnian village

Just outside the village, children fished in a tranquil pond bobbing with green algae and lined with willow trees, as cattle grazed nearby.


Now, Rezak Motanic gazes in disbelief down a gigantic crater where the pond used to be. It's like something from a science fiction movie: a sinkhole swallowed the water, the fish and even nearby trees.
"I sat here only a day before it happened, sipping plum brandy," Cemal Hasan said. "And then, there was panic. Fish were jumping out, and a big plum tree was pulled down like someone yanked it with a hook."
Residents of this remote north-western Bosnian village have been in shock since the pond vanished two weeks ago.
The pond was about 20 metres in diameter and about eight metres deep. Now, the "abyss", as the villagers have dubbed the crater, is some 50 metres wide and 30 metres deep – and growing.
Scientists say it is not uncommon that ponds and small lakes suddenly disappear. They say it could be caused by drying underground water currents, or changes in soil drainage due to irrigation.
Sanica villagers, however, are having none of the scientific explanations.
"It could have been a giant cave that opened its doors," offered Milanko Skrbic. "Or a volcano."
Another popular theory – one that experts dismiss along with the others proposed by townsfolk – is that fish could have triggered the explosion of one of several world war two German bombs believed to have been thrown into the pond by an old woman after the war.
"She herself died when one of the bombs exploded in her arms," Cemal Hasan said as he stood on the edge of the "abyss."
Another spooky explanation: the owner of the pond took it with him when he died about a month ago.
"Only days before Hasan passed away he said: 'I'll take everything with me when I die.' And that's what he did," Motanic said. "His daughter saw him walk on the lake the night he died."
Husein Nanic said it could be a sign that the end is nigh. "All sort of miracles happen before the doomsday," he said.

Source:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/26/sinkhole-swallows-pond-in-bosnian-village 

ISON 27 NOV.

COMET ISON, SO FAR SO GOOD: Comet ISON is hurtling toward the sun today at 240,000 mph and, despite the rising heat, the comet appears to be intact. Yesterday, reports of fading spectral lines from the comet's core raised concerns that the icy nucleus might be disintegrating. Current images from NASA and ESA spacecraft, however, show the comet still going strong. Comet ISON has just entered the field of view of the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO):

 

The comet's entrance coincides with a bright CME racing away from the sun's southwestern limb. Astronomers have been wondering what might happen if a CME strikes Comet ISON. This CME, however, will probably miss. The source of the cloud is a farside active region, which is not directly facing the comet.

NASA's STEREO-A spacecraft is also monitoring the comet. Click to view a high-resolution movie (32 MB), which compresses 96 hours into less than 1 minute:

Credits: This movie was made by reader Rob Matson using data from STEREO-A.

The movie spans a 3+ day interval from Nov. 21 to Nov. 24 roughly centered on the period when astronomers at the IRAM telescope in Spain recorded fading emission lines from the comet's core. Zoom your movie-player to full screen: Although "puffs" of material can be seen billowing down the comet's tail, the comet itself does not appear to be disintegrating. So what caused the fade...?

"I will admit that I was pretty worried yesterday morning when reports of lower production rates came in," says Matthew Knight of the Lowell Observatory and NASA's Comet ISON Observation Campaign. "However, the STEREO-A brightness has increased steadily over the subsequent 36 hr, and I'm more optimistic again. My off-the-cuff thought is that there was an [outburst of dust, which dampened the emission lines] from roughly Nov 20-22, and it has returned to brightening again."

Astronomer Karl Battams of NASA's Comet ISON Observing Campaign urges readers to remember the following: "Comet ISON is a dynamically new sungrazing comet, fresh in from the Oort Cloud, and the last time we saw an object like this was never! Furthermore, a sungrazing comet just days from perihelion has never been studied in this kind of detail - we're breaking new ground! When we factor in your standard 'comets are unpredictable' disclaimer, what we have is a huge recipe for the unknown."

Stay tuned for updates.

Source:
http://www.spaceweather.com/

COMET MOVIE--UPDATED

Comet ISON is getting all the press, but there is a second comet near the sun as well: Comet Encke. NASA's STEREO-A spacecraft is monitoring both. Click to view an updated movie of the solar wind buffeting two comets:

In the movie, which spans a three+ day period from Nov. 20 to Nov. 23, the sun is to the right, off-screen. At first glance, Earth and Mercury appear to be labeled backwards. The strange arrangement is actually correct. This is how the two planets appear from STEREO-A's vantage point over the farside of the sun.

"The dark 'clouds' moving from left to right are density enhancements in the solar wind, and these are what are causing the ripples you see in the comet tails," explains Karl Battams of NASA's Comet ISON Observing Campaign.

The ripples could become even more dramatic if a CME hits the comets. This is Comet ISON's first visit to the sun, but Comet Encke has been here before. In 2007 a CME hit Encke and ripped its tail completely off. Battams and other researchers hope something similar is about to happen now. "I'd love to see a big CME hit Comet ISON," he says in a story from Science@NASA. Watching the impact could teach researchers new things about CMEs and comets.

Stay tuned for updated movies from NASA's solar fleet.

Source:
http://www.spaceweather.com/

L'absence de soleil pique la curiosité des scientifiques

Jean-Louis SANTINI
Agence France-Presse

La somnolence inhabituelle du Soleil, qui connaît sa période la moins active depuis plus d'un siècle, aiguise la curiosité des scientifiques qui se demandent combien de temps pourrait encore durer ce calme plat solaire.

Le nombre de taches décomptées depuis le début du cycle actuel, amorcé en décembre 2008, est très faible par rapport à la moyenne quotidienne observée ces 250 dernières années: moins de la moitié.
«Ce cycle, qui devrait très bientôt atteindre son maximum, est intéressant scientifiquement parlant. C'est de loin le moins actif de l'ère de la découverte spatiale, vieille de 50 ans», dit à l'AFP Doug Biesecker, un physicien de l'Agence américaine océanique et atmosphérique (NOAA), précisant qu'un cycle dure en moyenne onze ans.

Observées il y des millénaires par des astronomes chinois et pour la première fois à l'aide d'une lunette par Galilée en 1610, les taches solaires sont importantes, car l'activité électromagnétique intense qui les accompagne produit de fortes modifications des rayonnements ultraviolets et des rayons X ainsi que des tempêtes solaires. Ces dernières peuvent perturber les télécommunications et le réseau électrique sur Terre, souligne Andrés Muñoz Jaramillo, physicien à l'Université du Montana.
Le précédent cycle, le 23e, avait connu son maximum en avril 2000 avec un nombre moyen de 120taches solaires par jour. Ce pic a été suivi par une période très peu active du Soleil qui s'est achevée en décembre 2008, marquant le début du cycle actuel.
En 2009, première année du cycle 24, l'activité du Soleil aurait dû s'accroître, mais les astronomes ont compté 266 jours sans aucune tache solaire.
Compte tenu de la faible activité à la fin du cycle 23, les physiciens avaient prédit un cycle 24 plutôt calme.
«La projection était de 90 taches par jour au moment de l'apogée du cycle prévue d'ici la fin 2013 et il est clair que nous en sommes loin», note Doug Biesecker, même si l'activité solaire s'est un peu accrue depuis un an.
«En 2012, le nombre de taches a plafonné à 67, soit près de la moitié de la moyenne», précise- t-il.
Il faut remonter à l'apogée du cycle 14 en février 1906 pour trouver une activité plus faible, avec un maximum de 64 taches.
«Tout le monde a été surpris par la durée du minimum du cycle actuel qui s'est prolongé trois ans, soit trois fois plus que durant les trois cycles précédents de l'ère spatiale», ajoute Andrés Muñoz Jaramillo, interrogé par l'AFP.
Polarité des champs magnétiques
Outre la faiblesse de son activité, le Soleil connaît des anomalies dans le changement de polarité de ses champs magnétiques.
Normalement, le pôle Sud et le pôle Nord inversent simultanément leur polarité tous les onze ans en moyenne, ce qui correspond à la durée d'un cycle solaire.
Pendant ce processus, les champs magnétiques polaires s'affaiblissent pour tomber à près de zéro et réapparaissent de nouveau quand la polarité est inversée, expliquent les scientifiques.
Mais dans le cycle actuel, les pôles sont désynchronisés. Le pôle Nord a inversé sa polarité il y a plusieurs mois et a donc la même que celle du pôle Sud.
Selon les dernières mesures des satellites, «le pôle Sud devrait inverser à son tour sa polarité très prochainement», indique Todd Hoeksema, directeur de l'Observatoire solaire Wilcox à l'Université de Stanford qui ne paraît pas inquiet de ce phénomène.
Les scientifiques se demandent combien de temps va durer cette accalmie solaire. «Il faudra attendre au moins trois ou quatre ans pour se faire une idée de l'intensité du prochain cycle», estime Doug Biesecker.
Certains chercheurs se demandent si on n'assiste pas au début d'une période prolongée de faible activité solaire comparable à celle du minimum dit de «Maunder» entre 1650 et 1715 durant lequel quasiment aucune tache solaire n'a été observée.
Cette période a coïncidé avec une période de net refroidissement appelé «petit âge glaciaire» en Europe et en Amérique du Nord.
«Il y a eu une forte corrélation entre la faible activité solaire et le petit âge glaciaire (...) le Soleil contribuant à la variabilité du climat», note Doug Biesecker.
Mais ajoute-t-il, «si la faiblesse de l'activité solaire observée dernièrement atténue quelque peu le réchauffement climatique, elle ne l'arrête pas pour autant, la température n'augmentant que plus lentement».

Source:
http://www.lapresse.ca/sciences/astronomie-et-espace/201311/24/01-4714052-labsence-de-soleil-pique-la-curiosite-des-scientifiques.php

Black ‘hail’ rains down on Italian town after eruption

November 25, 2013 – ITALY – An Italian photographer has filmed a town being blanketed in stone and ash as it fell from the sky like hail stones after Mt Etna erupted again on Saturday. Footage shows the town covered in inches of black ash spewed out by the volcano and pushed hundreds of kilometers across the Strait of Messina from Sicily to the mainland. It rained down from dark cloud above and spread over the town’s streets and cars. Some residents used umbrellas to shield them from the chunks of ash that were almost 2cm in size. Mt Etna has erupted several times this year, one as recently as Saturday 16 November, but its last major eruption was in 1992. There were no evacuations from yesterday’s eruption, but a highway was closed for half-an-hour and four air corridors that service Sicily’s Catania Airport, south of the volcano, were closed for some time. – Nine MSN

Source:

http://theextinctionprotocol.wordpress.com/

New Era of Neutrino Astronomy Begins at the South Pole

The era of neutrino astronomy has officially begun. Astrophysicists have managed to detect and record the mysterious phenomena known as cosmic neutrinos, which are nearly massless particles that stream to Earth at the speed of light from outside our solar system, striking the surface in a burst of energy that can be as powerful as a baseball pitcher's fastball.

"The era of neutrino astronomy has begun," said Gregory Sullivan, one of the researchers, in a news release.
In this particular study, the researchers observed 28 very high-energy particle events with the use of the IceCube Neutrino Observatory in Antarctica. These events constitute the first solid evidence for astrophysical neutrinos from cosmic sources.  By studying the neutrinos that IceCube detects, the researchers can learn more about the nature of astrophysical phenomena occurring millions, or even billions of light years from Earth.
"The sources of neutrinos, and the question of what could accelerate these particles, has been a mystery for more than 100 years," said Sullivan in a news release. "Now we have an instrument that can detect astrophysical neutrinos. It's working beautifully, and we expect it to run for another 20 years."
In all, IceCube is made up of 5,160 digital optical modules suspended along 86 strings embedded in ice beneath the South Pole. It detects neutrinos through the tiny flashes of blue light, called Cherenkov light, produced when neutrinos interact in the ice. Computers then collect near-real-time data from the optical sensors and send information about interesting events north via satellite.
Since astrophysical neutrinos move in straight lines unimpeded by outside forces, they can act as pointers to the place in the galaxy where they originated. This, in turn, can tell astronomers quite a bit out our universe. The 28 events recorded so far are too few to point to any particular location, but the future looks bright for the study of neutrinos.
The findings are published in the journal Science.

Source:
http://www.scienceworldreport.com/articles/11104/20131122/new-era-neutrino-astronomy-begins-south-pole.htm

SOLAR FLEET PICKS UP COMET ISON

Because NASA's twin STEREO probes are designed to observe the sun, they can see sundiving comets even when the glare becomes intense. Yesterday, Comet ISON joined Earth, Mercury, and Comet Encke in the field of view of STEREO-A's Heliospheric Imager. Click on the image to view ISON's grand entrance:

"The dark 'clouds' of stuff you see coming from the right are density enhancements in the solar wind, and these are what are causing all the ripples you see in comet Encke's tail," explains Karl Battams of NASA's Comet ISON Observing Campaign. "I can pretty much promise you that we're going to see ISON's tail doing that in a couple of day's time, but on a much larger scale!"

Battams points out another exciting development: Comet Encke and Comet ISON are converging for a photogenic close encounter. "No they're not going to hit each other - in reality they are millions of miles apart - but as seen from the STEREO-A spacecraft, they are going to get very close!" he says. "We are probably a couple of days away from seeing two comets almost side-by-side in that camera, with long tails flowing behind them in the solar wind. To say that such an image will be unprecedented is rather an understatement." Stay tuned for that.

Source:

http://www.spaceweather.com/

Huge Meteor fall in Ukraine (Multiple views)

Autre Vidéo:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIq7qyuAP3s

Éruption volcanique sous-marine au Japon

http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/nishino-shima/news/38948/Nishima-Shima-volcano-Japan-submarine-volcanic-eruption-gives-birth-to-new-island.html

Activité volcanique en hausse

Mexico’s Colima volcano goes ballistic after weeks of relative calm

http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/estados/2013/colima-volcan-fuego-ceniza-lava-966717.html
http://theextinctionprotocol.wordpress.com/

Etna volcano shoots ash into sky in spectacular nightime show

http://voiceofrussia.com/news/2013_11_19/photo-Etna-volcano-shoots-ash-into-sky-in-spectacular-nightime-show-0497/

Tower of ash overshadows life beneath erupting volcano

 

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn24602#.UoxI_TrnbIU

Meteorite Caught on Dashcam in CQ County, Kansas 16 novembre 2013

Le Soleil émet un X-Flare ce matin

X-CLASS SOLAR FLARE: Sprawling suunspot AR1897 erupted on Nov. 19th (10:26 UT), producing an X1-class solar flare. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded the explosion's extreme ultraviolet flash:

Although the sunspot is not directly facing Earth, the flare did affect our planet. Mainly, the UV flash produced a wave of ionization in the upper atmosphere over Europe, Africa and parts of Asia. A brief blackout of HF radio transmissions around the poles might have also occurred. First-look coronagraph data from NASA's STEREO-Ahead probe show a CME emerging from the blast site, but it is probably not heading for Earth. Stay tuned for updates

Source:
http://www.spaceweather.com/

Volcano discovered smoldering under a kilometer of ice in West Antarctica

November 17, 2013

By Diana Lutz

It wasn’t what they were looking for — but that only made the discovery all the more exciting.
In January 2010, a team of scientists had set up two crossing lines of seismographs across Marie Byrd Land in West Antarctica. It was the first time the scientists had deployed many instruments in the interior of the continent that could operate year-round even in the coldest parts of Antarctica.

Mount Sidley, at the leading edge of the Executive Committee Range in Marie Byrd Land, is the last volcano in the chain that rises above the surface of the ice. But a group of seismologists has detected new volcanic activity under the ice about 30 miles ahead of Mount Sidley in the direction of the range’s migration. The new finding suggests that the source of magma is moving beyond the chain beneath the crust and the Antarctic Ice Sheet.  

Like a giant CT machine, the seismograph array used disturbances created by distant earthquakes to make images of the ice and rock deep within West Antarctica.
There were big questions to be asked and answered. The goal, said Doug Wiens, PhD, was essentially to weigh the ice sheet to help reconstruct Antarctica’s climate history. (Wiens is a professor of earth and planetary sciences in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis and one of the project’s principal investigators.) But to do this accurately, the scientists had to know how the earth’s mantle would respond to an ice burden, and that depended on whether it was hot and fluid or cool and viscous. The seismic data would allow them to map the mantle’s properties.
In the meantime, automated-event-detection software was put to work to comb the data for anything unusual.
When it found two bursts of seismic events between January 2010 and March 2011, Wiens’ PhD student Amanda Lough looked more closely to see what was rattling the continent’s bones.
Was it rock grinding on rock, ice groaning over ice, or, perhaps, hot gases and liquid rock forcing their way through cracks in a volcanic complex?
Uncertain at first, the more Lough and her colleagues looked, the more convinced they became that a new volcano was forming a kilometer beneath the ice.
The discovery of the new as-yet-unnamed volcano is announced in the Nov. 17 advance online issue of Nature Geoscience.
Following the trail of clues
The teams that install seismographs in Antarctica are given first crack at the data. Lough had done her bit as part of the WUSTL team, traveling to East Antarctica three times to install or remove stations.
In 2010, many of the instruments were moved to West Antarctica, and Wiens asked Lough to look at the seismic data coming in, the first large-scale dataset from this part of the continent.
“I started seeing events that kept occurring at the same location, which was odd,” Lough said. “Then I realized they were close to some mountains, but not right on top of them.”

doug Wiens

Washington University in St. Louis PhD student Amanda Lough bundles up on a particularly cold day during one of her trips to tend seismographs in East Antarctica.

“My first thought was, ‘OK, maybe it’s just coincidence.’ But then I looked more closely and realized that the mountains were actually volcanoes and there was an age progression to the range. The volcanoes closest to the seismic events were the youngest ones.”

The events were weak and very low frequency, which strongly suggested they weren’t tectonic in origin. While low-magnitude seismic events of tectonic origin typically have frequencies of 10 to 20 cycles per second, this shaking was dominated by frequencies of 2 to 4 cycles per second.
Ruling out ice
But glacial processes can generate low-frequency events. If the events weren’t tectonic, could they be glacial?
To probe further, Lough used a global computer model of seismic velocities to “relocate” the hypocenters of the events to account for the known seismic velocities along different paths through the Earth. This procedure collapsed the swarm clusters to a third their original size.
It also showed that almost all of the events had occurred at depths of 25 to 40 kilometers (15 to 25 miles below the surface). This is extraordinarily deep — deep enough to be near the boundary between the earth’s crust and mantle, called the Moho, and more or less rules out a glacial origin.
It also casts doubt on a tectonic one. “A tectonic event might have a hypocenter 10 to 15 kilometers (6 to 9 miles) deep, but at 25 to 40 kilometers, these were way too deep,” Lough said.
A colleague suggested that the event waveforms looked like Deep Long Period earthquakes, or DPLs, which occur in volcanic areas, have the same frequency characteristics and are as deep. “Everything matches up,” Lough said.
An ash layer encased in ice
The seismologists also talked to scientists Duncan Young, PhD, and Don Blankenship, PhD, of the University of Texas, who fly airborne radar over Antarctica to produce topographic maps of the bedrock. “In these maps, you can see that there’s elevation in the bed topography at the same location as the seismic events,” Lough said.
The radar images also showed a layer of ash buried under the ice. “They see this layer all around our group of earthquakes and only in this area,” Lough said.
“Their best guess is that it came from Mount Waesche, an existing volcano near Mount Sidley. But that is also interesting because scientists had no idea when Mount Waesche was last active, and the ash layer sets the age of the eruption at 8,000 years ago.”
What’s up down there?
The case for volcanic origin has been made. But what exactly is causing the seismic activity?
“Most mountains in Antarctica are not volcanic,” Wiens said, “but most in this area are. Is it because East and West Antarctica are slowly rifting apart? We don’t know exactly. But we think there is probably a hot spot in the mantle here producing magma far beneath the surface.”
“People aren’t really sure what causes DPLs,” Lough said. “It seems to vary by volcanic complex, but most people think it’s the movement of magma and other fluids that leads to pressure-induced vibrations in cracks within volcanic and hydrothermal systems.”
Will the new volcano erupt?
“Definitely,” Lough said. “In fact, because the radar shows a mountain beneath the ice, I think it has erupted in the past, before the rumblings we recorded.”
 Will the eruptions punch through a kilometer or more of ice above it?
The scientists calculated that an enormous eruption, one that released 1,000 times more energy than the typical eruption, would be necessary to breach the ice above the volcano.

Earth Observatory/NASA

Melt water from the new volcano will drain into the MacAyeal Ice Stream, labeled above as ice stream E, its original designation. This radar image of West Antarctica (see box on the inset at bottom right for location) has been color-coded to indicate the speed at which the ice is moving. Red marks the fast-moving centers of the ice streams and black lines outline each stream’s catchment area. By greasing the skids with water, the new volcano might increase the rate of ice loss from the MacAyeal Ice Stream.

On the other hand, a subglacial eruption and the accompanying heat flow will melt a lot of ice. “The volcano will create millions of gallons of water beneath the ice — many lakes full,” Wiens said.
This water will rush beneath the ice toward the sea and feed into the hydrological catchment of the MacAyeal Ice Stream, one of several major ice streams draining ice from Marie Byrd Land into the Ross Ice Shelf.
By lubricating the bedrock, it will speed the flow of the overlying ice, perhaps increasing the rate of ice-mass loss in West Antarctica.
“We weren’t expecting to find anything like this,” Wiens said.

---

The research was funded by the National Science Foundation, Division of Polar Programs.

Source:
http://news.wustl.edu/news/Pages/25611.aspx

Plus de 50 tornades frappent le midwest des États-Unis

Dimanche 17 novembre 2013 à 19 h 04 - Un nombre impressionnant de tornades ont balayé les États-Unis, dimanche, causant d’importants dégâts.

Plus de cinquante tornades auraient touché terre en seulement une seule journée, ce qui est un phénomène rare à cette période de l’année. Habituellement, la saison des tornades prend fin au début de la saison froide, soit en novembre.
Ces tornades ont été principalement localisées dans la région des Grands Lacs, où une puissante tempête automnale faisait rage. Parmi les états affectés, on compte notamment l’Illinois, l’Indiana, l’Iowa et le Wisconsin.
Les dégâts sont lourds dans les municipalités les plus touchées, tandis que des quartiers ont été complètement détruits. En plus des résidences broyées, des voitures ont été renversées et des arbres déracinés.
Selon les premiers bilans, au moins trois personnes auraient perdu la vie et une quarantaine d’autres auraient été blessées.
Le système à l’origine de ce mauvais temps se déplace actuellement vers le Québec, où il pourrait générer des vents allant jusqu’à 100 kilomètres à l’heure.



Source:
http://www.meteomedia.com/nouvelles/articles/une-cinquantaine-de-tornades-balayaient-les-etats-unis---/16413/






Source:
http://www.kiiitv.com/story/23993076/severe-weather-sweeps-through-midwest-nearly-50-tornadoes-reported

Un nouveau sinkhole en Floride

Dunedin, Florida (CNN) -- Michael Dupre, his wife and his daughter made it out of their Dunedin, Florida, house after noticing its screened-in room plunging into a pit in the ground.

His wedding ring did not.

As the family stood outside early Thursday, a firefighter buckled herself up, smashed a window, then snatched the ring from a desk in Dupre's office.

"And a few minutes later, the whole thing collapsed back down there," he said.

Sinkholes like this one in Dunedin, a city of about 35,000 people just north of Clearwater, are hardly rarities in Florida. Hundreds pop up in the Sunshine State each year, like the one in August that gobbled a condo building in the town of Clermont.

Dupre not only knew of the dangers, but he also was doing something about them. After spotting "a few little hairline cracks," he contacted his insurance company and, after a lot of back-and-forth about what to do, had workers come to his western Florida house over the last few days to start stabilizing the ground.

Sinkholes: Common, costly and sometimes deadly

"We were actually planning ..., when the whole repair was done, to put a pool in the backyard," he said, noting he'd already gotten estimates. "That (hope) is over.

2 homes in Florida sinkhole

  Photos: When the ground gives way

"We thought it was going to get fixed. And unfortunately, it's not."

All those plans changed after his daughter came into his bedroom before dawn Thursday, saying, "Daddy, somebody is trying to get our house!"

Dupre said he first dismissed the thought, thinking it was the wind, but then he heard a loud crack.

"I said, 'There's something wrong.'"

After seeing what had happened to their screened-in room, Dupre told the rest of his family to grab some clothes and get out of the house, then called 911.

They haven't been back inside, with Dupre saying he expects only firefighters -- like the one who rescued his wedding ring -- will go in, if it's even safe enough for them.

As of Thursday afternoon, the sinkhole that enveloped Dupre's home and badly damaged another was 70 to 75 feet wide, 50 feet deep and growing, according to Dunedin Fire Chief Jeff Parks. Seven homes in total were evacuated.

But the hole shouldn't be like that for long.

"The plan now (is) to fill the hole tomorrow," Parks said, "before some rain is expected this weekend (that may) make it a lot worse."

The Dupres won't be able to go back into their home at that point, however. They will be staying at a Holiday Inn Express that graciously put them up for two nights, then asking friends to let them stay over until they figure out what to do next.

"It's all new for us," Dupre said. "... We're trying to do our best."

Opinion: Florida, fix sinkhole policy

Source:
http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/14/us/florida-sinkhole/

Image spectaculaire... Volcan en éruption Indonésie

By David R Arnott, NBC News

Ulet Ifansasti / Getty Images

A farmer examines his tomato crop.

Indonesian farmers continued to harvest their crops Thursday even as a volcano erupted less than two and a half miles away, coating their fields in ash.
Up to 4,300 residents have been evacuated from five villages in North Sumatra due to the eruptions of Mount Sinabung, according to Getty Images. The volcano has been spewing ash and lava 2.5 miles into the sky.
The Jakarta Globe reported that tens of thousands of hectares of farmland had been affected, with losses to farmers expected to amount to millions of dollars.

Source:
http://photoblog.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/11/15/21475021-bitter-harvest-indonesia-volcano-damages-crops-forces-thousands-to-flee

Sun's Magnetic Field Expected to Flip Soon, Rare Solar Event That Occurs Every 11 Years

It is time for the once-in-11-year- solar event in which the Sun's magnetic polarity reverses itself. The event is closely monitored by physicists at the Stanford University.

 

The solar flip occurs once every 11 years and affects the entire solar system. In the past few months, Sun's activity increased as it produced mid-level and significant solar flares. One of the large flares classified as X1.0 flare peaked on Oct.27. Also, the solar activity was combined with the several coronal mass ejections (CMEs). This is a clear indication that the Sun is heading toward solar maximum condition.
Though the mechanism that causes a reversal in the Sun's polarity remains a mystery, the sun's magnetic field has been on a constant watch by researchers at Stanford's Wilcox Solar Observatory. They have been monitoring the Sun on a daily basis since 1975. Due to the large data, the researchers can predict the occurrence of a flip by noticing the changes occurring on the surface of the Sun. This latest shift will be the fourth such event observed by Stanford's observatory.
The new polarity builds-up throughout the cycle as sunspots get darker and near the equator of the Sun's surface. Over a month, these dark blotches split up and the magnetic field slowly drifts from the equator to one of the poles. The magnetic field at the poles weakens and goes to zero and then again rises with opposite polarity. As the event of reversal approaches, the two hemisphere of the Sun go out of sync.
Todd Hoeksema, a solar physicist at Stanford and director of the Wilcox Solar Observatory, compares this event to an ocean tide.
The Sun's North Pole has already changed its polarity from negative to positive and researchers are now focusing on the South Pole, which is expected to change its sign in the months to come. This flip in magnetic field would highlight the midpoint of the Solar Cycle 24.
Due to the effects of this event, the heliosphere spread beyond Pluto and also causes an increase in solar flares and CMEs.
"The sun's changing magnetic field and the bursts of charged particles can interact with Earth's own magnetic field, one manifestation of which is a noticeable uptick in the occurrence and range of auroras. Earth's magnetic field can also affect major electronic systems, such as power distribution grids and GPS satellites, so scientists are keen to monitor the heliosphere," Hoeksema said. "We also see the effects of this on other planets. Jupiter has storms, Saturn has auroras, and this is all driven by activity of the sun."
Hoeksema's team has also noticed that the force of the magnetic field at the poles calculated two or three years ago was just half of what it  generally is during the solar minimum. This is a sign that the solar cycle that is expected to take place in a month's time will be weak.

Source:
http://www.scienceworldreport.com/articles/10862/20131113/suns-magnetic-field-expected-to-flip-soon-rare-solar-event-that-occurs-every-11-years-video.htm

Les 4 comets de l'heure !!

http://spaceweathergallery.com/indiv_upload.php?upload_id=89311 

Two Comets to Fly By Mercury

Nov. 15, 2013:  What are the odds? On Nov. 18th and 19th not one but two comets will fly by the planet Mercury.

"This is a unique coincidence," says Ron Vervack an astronomer at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab and a member of the science team for NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft, "and a golden opportunity to study two comets passing close to the sun.” 

suite/source:

http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2013/15nov_twocomets/

'Old Faithful' Comet Encke Makes Appearance in November Night Sky

by Joe Rao, SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist   |   November 12, 2013 07:44am ET 

http://www.space.com/23561-comet-encke-november-night-sky.html

À voir:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8mKTtGNI0F4VVFPcHlya3JXMzg/edit?usp=sharing

Image prit par le Télescope Hubble d'une supernova

New 2013 Supernova as Seen by Hubble Telescope

Supernovae are intensely bright objects. They are formed when a star reaches the end of its life with a dramatic explosion, expelling most of its material out into space.
The subject of this new Hubble image, spiral galaxy NGC 6984, played host to one of these explosions back in 2012, known as SN 2012im. Now, another star has exploded, forming supernova SN 2013ek -- visible in this image as the prominent, star-like bright object just slightly above and to the right of the galaxy's center.
SN 2012im is known as a Type Ic supernova, while the more recent SN 2013ek is a Type Ib. Both of these types are caused by the core collapse of massive stars that have shed -- or lost -- their outer layers of hydrogen. Type Ic supernovae are thought to have lost more of their outer envelope than Type Ib, including a layer of helium.
The observations that make up this new image were taken on August 19,  2013, and aimed to pinpoint the location of this new explosion more precisely. It is so close to where SN 2012im was spotted that the two events are thought to be linked; the chance of two completely independent supernovae so close together and of the same class exploding within one year of one another is a very unlikely event. It was initially suggested that SN 2013ek may in fact be SN 2012im flaring up again, but further observations support the idea that they are separate supernovae -- although they may be closely related in some as-yet-unknown way. -- NASA

Source:
http://www.scienceworldreport.com/articles/10890/20131113/new-2013-supernova-as-seen-by-hubble-telescope.htm

Typhon aux Phillippines: les surivants affamés attendent de l'aide....

Les survivants affamés du typhon Haiyan qui aurait fait plus de 10.000 morts attendent anxieusement de l’aide mardi, au moment où des navires américains et britanniques sont annoncés dans le centre des Philippines ravagé et battu par la pluie, où l’ONU craint le «pire.

Quatre jours après le passage d’un des typhons les plus puissants à avoir jamais touché terre, accompagné de vents à plus de 300 km/h et de vagues de cinq mètres évoquant un tsunami, l’ampleur du cataclysme qui a rasé les maisons et déraciné les arbres principalement sur les îles de Leyte et Samar ne cesse de s’étendre.

«Nous nous attendons au pire. Au fur et à mesure que l’accès à certains sites se débloque, nous découvrons toujours plus de cadavres», a commenté John Ging, directeur des opérations du bureau de coordination des Affaires humanitaires de l’ONU.

Les Nations unies ont évoqué la possible mort de 10.000 personnes dans la seule ville de Tacloban, capitale de la province de Leyte, l’une les plus dévastées. Le dernier bilan officiel était mardi à la mi-journée (heure locale) de 1.774 morts, pour l’ensemble de la région.

Près de dix millions d’habitants, soit 10% de la population du pays, ont été au total touchés par cette catastrophe, dont 660.000 ont perdu leur maison.

«S’il vous plaît, s’il vous plaît»

Des conséquences auxquelles ont du mal à faire face les autorités, incapables pour l’instant de fournir eau, nourriture, médicaments ou abris aux nombreux survivants désespérés, dont certains cherchent désormais à prendre la fuite.

«Il n’y a plus rien pour nous ici. Nous n’avons plus de maison, plus d’argent, plus de papiers», s’est désolée mardi Carol Mampas, 48 ans, en tenant son fils de trois ans fiévreux.

«S’il vous plaît, s’il vous plaît, dites aux autorités de nous aider. Où est la nourriture ? Où est l’eau ? Où sont les soldats pour rassembler les cadavres ?», a-t-elle lancé à un journaliste de l’AFP en attendant de pouvoir prendre un vol pour quitter la ville, comme des centaines de survivants ayant passé la nuit dans l’aéroport endommagé de Tacloban.

Des cadavres en décomposition continuent de joncher les ruines de Tacloban, où des survivants ont pris les armes pour piller les bâtiments qui sont encore debout.

Pour décourager les pillards, les autorités ont annoncé mardi le déploiement de véhicules blindés et l’imposition d’un couvre-feu à Tacloban.

«La présence de policiers, de soldats (...) va sans aucun doute améliorer les choses (mais) cela ne se fera pas en une nuit», a déclaré le ministre de l’Intérieur, Mar Roxas.

La pluie tombée dans la nuit de lundi à mardi a encore ajouté au drame des sinistrés, à l’approche d’une nouvelle dépression sur le sud de l’archipel qui menace d’autres îles où le typhon a déjà fait des centaines de morts.

Changement climatique ?

Face à cette tragédie, le président philippin Benigno Aquino avait déclaré lundi l’état de catastrophe nationale. «Dans les jours qui viennent, soyez-en certains, l’aide va vous arriver de plus en plus vite», a-t-il promis.

Les Etats-Unis, qui avaient déjà envoyé des dizaines de Marines, ont annoncé un renforcement de leur aide. Le Pentagone a ordonné au porte-avions George Washington, qui était à Hong Kong avec ses 5.000 marins et plus de 80 aéronefs, et à plusieurs autres navires de guerre, de faire route vers l’archipel pour aider au ravitaillement et aux soins médicaux. Londres a également annoncé l’envoi d’un avion de transport et d’un navire militaires.

Mais il faudra plusieurs jours à certains éléments de cette armada pour atteindre les régions dévastées privées d’eau, de nourriture, d’électricité et de moyens de communication.

De nombreux autres pays, agences et ONG ont promis aide matérielle ou financière. Un avion de l’Unicef avec 60 tonnes d’aide, dont des tentes et des médicaments, doit arriver mardi aux Philippines, suivi d’équipements de purification d’eau.

Le pays est frappé chaque année par une vingtaine de typhons ou tempêtes tropicales et la violence de Haiyan a renforcé les questions liées au changement climatique.

Le délégué philippin à la conférence internationale sur le climat à Varsovie a annoncé qu’il s’abstiendrait de manger pendant la réunion jusqu’au 22 novembre. «Par solidarité avec mes compatriotes, qui luttent pour trouver de la nourriture» et «pour le climat», a expliqué Naderev Sano.

Après les Philippines, le typhon largement affaibli a frappé le Vietnam, où plus de 800.000 personnes avaient été évacuées, et la Chine, où au moins sept personnes auraient été tuées.

Les Chinois ont annoncé une aide de 100.000 dollars aux Philippines et le quotidien officiel Global Times a appelé Pékin à mettre de côté ses différends territoriaux avec Manille en mer de Chine méridionale. «C’est un devoir que de venir en aide aux victimes aux Philippines, en dépit (...) des tensions bilatérales».

Source © AFP


L'entraide internationale se mobilise dans une situation très difficile

Un convoi de la Croix-Rouge a été attaqué. Il faut donc sécuriser d’urgence les secours : un avion de l’Unicef avec 60 tonnes d’aide, dont des tentes et des médicaments, est attendu aujourd’hui, suivi d‘équipements de purification d’eau.

L’ONU craint désormais 10.000 morts dans la seule ville portuaire de Tacloban (centre). Et les survivants affamés attendent désespérément l’aide internationale.

Mobilisation américaine

Aux Etats-Unis, après avoir mobilisé 90 militaires et deux avions KC-130J Hercules stationnés au Japon, le Pentagone a décidé d'envoyer sur zone le porte-avions George-Washington, qui était à Hong Kong avec ses 5.000 marins et plus de 80 aéronefs et devrait arriver d'ici jeudi ou vendredi. Des croiseurs et destroyers ont aussi reçu l'ordre de partir.

L'agence humanitaire USAID du département d'Etat américain a débloqué au total 20 millions de dollars d'aide d'urgence.

Le Canada a quant à lui annoncé lundi l'envoi d'une équipe de 35 à 50 sauveteurs militaires à bord d'un appareil C-17 et promis 5 millions de dollars aux ONG qui porteront secours aux survivants.

Soutien international

A Bruxelles, la Commission européenne a débloqué 3 millions d'euros pour les opérations de secours. Le Royaume-Uni va envoyer le destroyer HMS Daring depuis Singapour ainsi qu'un C-17 de transport militaire. Londres va aussi apporter de 6 à 10 millions de livres (7-12 millions d'euros). L'Allemagne a annoncé l'envoi de 23 tonnes d'équipement.

Le Japon a mobilisé une équipe de 25 secouristes et médecins. L'Australie a promis 10 millions de dollars australiens (7 millions d'euros). La Nouvelle-Zélande a anoncé une aide de 2,15 millions de dollars NZ (1,3 million d'euros).

Le Vietnam, lui-même touché par le typhon qui n'y a toutefois fait que des dégâts mineurs, a offert 100.000 dollars.

Aux côtés de l’ONU, d’autres organisations internationales sont mobilisées.Le Programme alimentaire mondial (PAM) a envoyé une équipe d'évaluation des besoins à Tacloban. Elle organisait également le transfert de 40 tonnes d'aide alimentaire sous forme de biscuits protéinés.

Un avion cargo de l'UNICEF, avec à son bord 60 tonnes de produits dont des tentes et des médicaments, devait arriver aux Philippines ce mardi. Le Fonds de l'ONU pour l'enfance enverra aussi des équipements sanitaires et des purificateurs d'eau. Le HCR doit envoyer des kits d'urgence contenant notamment du savon, des couvertures et des sous-vêtements.

Médecins sans Frontières a envoyé 200 tonnes de médicaments, tentes, et produits d'hygiène qui devraient arriver en milieu de semaine. Un cargo devait partir de Dubaï lundi et un autre de Belgique mardi.

L'ONG britannique Oxfam a annoncé l'envoi d'une équipe de secouristes.

Le gouvernement des Philippines a annoncé mardi le déploiement de véhicules blindés et l'imposition d'un couvre-feu pour tenter d'empêcher les pillages dans l'une des villes les plus touchées par le typhon Haiyan dans le centre du pays.

La ville de Tacloban de 220.000 habitants sur l'île de Leyte est ravagée, elle a vu certains de ses survivants affamés et épuisés attaquer des convois d'aide et piller les commerces encore debout, en quête d'eau ou de nourriture, alors que des résidents décrivaient des groupes armés à la recherche de biens de toutes sortes à voler.

Quatre véhicules blindés ont donc été déployés, a indiqué mardi le ministre de l'Intérieur Mar Roxas sur la radio DZMM. Des centaines de soldats et de policiers ont déjà été envoyés sur place.

"Nous les faisons circuler dans la ville pour montrer aux gens, en particulier ceux avec de mauvaises intentions, que les autorités sont de retour", a-t-il déclaré, précisant que des check points avaient également été mis en place pour décourager les pilleurs.

Une ONG locale a notamment raconté comment un homme armé d'une machette avait tenté de dévaliser des travailleurs humanitaires en train de réceptionner une livraison de médicaments.

"La présence de policiers, de soldats et de forces du gouvernement va sans aucun doute améliorer les choses (mais) cela ne se fera pas en une nuit", a-t-il ajouté, confirmant les informations selon lesquelles les autorités de Tacloban avaient imposé un couvre-feu de 22H00 à 06H00.

"C'est un outil que nous utilisons pour minimiser les pillages et les effractions. Nous savons que certaines personnes ne peuvent pas rentrer chez eux (pendant le couvre-feu) parce que leurs maisons ont été emportées, mais c'est plus efficace contre les bandes qui rodent et cherchent des cibles", a-t-il encore expliqué.

Il n'a pas précisé où les habitants sans abris étaient supposés trouver refuge pendant le couvre-feu.

Le ministre a d'autre part souligné que les trois priorités du gouvernement étaient de restaurer l'ordre, apporter de l'aide matérielle et commencer à collecter les corps en décomposition toujours entremêlés aux amas de ruines.

"Maintenant que nous avons accompli le numéro un et le numéro deux, la priorité est de récupérer les cadavres", a-t-il ajouté.

En chine  plus de 1.200 villages ont été affectés par le typhon, perte estimées à 23 millions de dollars

Le typhon Haiyan a provoqué des inondations dans plus de 1.200 villages de la ville de Qionghai, dans la province méridionale de Hainan, affectant environ 180.000 personnes, ont indiqué mardi les autorités locales. 

Dimanche soir, les pluies torrentielles provoquées par le typhon avaient entraîné une hausse du niveau d'eau du fleuve Wanquanhe à Qionghai, causant des inondations, selon le Département municipal de lutte contre les inondations, la sécheresse et les typhons.

Dans le district de Shibi, où le typhon a été le plus violent, près de 3.500 habitants de vingt villages ont été isolés après que Haiyan a coupé la circulation routière. Les pertes économiques sont estimées à près de 140 millions de yuans (22,98 millions de dollars). Le gouvernement local s'efforce d'envoyer des équipes et du matériel de secours aux villageois isolés. Il a fait au moins six morts dans la province chinoise de Hainan. 

Le moteur de recherche Google se mobilise 

Le moteur de recherche met à disposition un outil en ligne pour retrouver les disparus ou informer sur les personnes retrouvées.

L'initiative n'est pas nouvelle mais elle pourrait s'avérer utile. Après le séisme Haïti en 2010 et celui au Japon en mars dernier, Google a de nouveau mis en ligne un portail dédié aux victimes du typhon Haiyan (également appelé Yolanda), présenté comme le plus puissant jamais enregistré. Sur ce site, il est possible de signaler des personnes disparues, consulter une liste de liens d'urgence ou encore une carte interactive.

Google propose également une version mobile de cet outil de recherche et il est même possible d'intégrer directement ces deux champs de recherche sur n'importe quel site Web, comme suit :

Une carte interactive. Google affiche une carte de la région intégrant les centres d'évacuation et de commande, les hôpitaux ou encore les postes de police. Enfin, les zones les plus touchées par la catastrophe naturelle sont entourées en rouge.

Un outil né en Haïti. Ce n'est pas la première fois que le géant américain met à disposition un tel portail. En janvier 2010, Haïti avait été frappé par un séisme et Google avait ainsi expérimenté son outil de "réponse de crise". En mars dernier, alors qu'un séisme frappait cette fois le Japon, le moteur de recherche proposait également une page similaire, enregistrant pas moins de 5.000 requêtes lors des sept premières heures et un rythme de 200 personnes supplémentaires signalées toutes les cinq minutes.

Vraiment utile sur le terrain ? Comment est perçue une telle initiative du côté des ONG ? "Sur zone, il n'y a bien évidemment plus Internet, donc on ne peut pas se servir de tels outils. En revanche cela peut être pratique en périphérie des zones touchées, ça peut être utilisé par des proches des victimes", reconnaît Bruno David, Directeur des Ressources pour Action contre la faim joint par Europe1.fr. "Mais ça peut aussi être perturbant, stressant pour les proches qui le consultent, si aucun résultat n'apparaît", craint le responsable de l'organisation. "En revanche, dans un second temps, si ce portail de recherche est correctement géré, il peut s'avéré très utile. Mais dans l'immédiat, non, on ne s'en servira pas", confie Bruno David.

Les liens vers les pages des outils de google:

http://www.google.org/crisisresponse/2013-yolanda.html

plus d'infos ici

http://googleasiapacific.blogspot.in/2013/11/crisis-tools-for-typhoon-yolanda.html

http://google.org/personfinder/global/responders.html




Source:
http://naturealerte.blogspot.ca/

Nano-Scale Self-Assembling Nanotrain Controlled by DNA

Catherine Griffin

First Posted: Nov 11, 2013 11:22 AM EST

Nano-scale technology is developing by leaps and bounds. Now, scientists have created tiny self-assembling transport networks, powered by nano-scale motors and controlled by DNA. The new system can construct its own network of tracks spanning tens of micrometers in length, transport cargo across the network and even dismantle the tracks. Nanotrain network created by scientists at Oxford University: green dye-carrying shuttles after 'refuelling' with ATP travel towards the center of the network with their cargoes of green dye. (Photo : Adam Wollman/Oxford University) 

 

Nano-scale technology is developing by leaps and bounds. Now, scientists have created tiny self-assembling transport networks, powered by nano-scale motors and controlled by DNA. The new system can construct its own network of tracks spanning tens of micrometers in length, transport cargo across the network and even dismantle the tracks
While creating this new system, the researchers were inspired by melanophore, which is used by fish cells to control their color. Tracks in the network all come from a central point, like the spokes of a bicycle wheel. Motor proteins transport pigment around the network, either concentrating it in the center or spreading in throughout the network. Concentrating pigment in the center makes the cells lighter, as the surrounding space is left empty and transparent.
This new system works in a similar way. However, it's built from DNA and a motor protein called kinesin. Powered by ATP fuel, kinesins move long the micro-tracks carrying control modules made from short strands of DNA. The "assembler" nanobots are made with two kinesin proteins, which allow them to move tracks around to assemble the network, whereas the "shuttles" only need one kinesin protein to travel along the tracks.
"DNA is an excellent building block for constructing synthetic molecular systems, as we can program it to do whatever we need," said Adam Wollman, one of the researchers, in a news release. "We design the chemical structures of the DNA strands to control how they interact with each other. The shuttles can be used to either carry cargo or deliver signals to tell other shuttles what to do."
In this particular study, the researchers had the new "shuttle" system transport fluorescent green cargo which spread out across the track, covering it evenly. When they added more ATP, the shuttles all clustered in the center of the track where the spokes met. Then, the researchers sent signal shuttles along the tracks to tell the cargo-carrying shuttles to release the fluorescent cargo into the environment.
The study may have used fluorescent green dyes, but other compounds could be used as well. This new method could be used to speed up chemical reactions by bringing the necessary compounds together at the central hub. More broadly, using DNA to control motor proteins could enable the development of more sophisticated self-assembling systems for a wide variety of applications.
The findings are published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.

Source:
http://www.scienceworldreport.com/articles/10818/20131111/nano-scale-self-assembling-transport-networks-controlled-dna.htm