Category: Planet Earth

Crocodile Attack Database: CrocBITE

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date October 18, 2017
2 Comments on Crocodile Attack Database: CrocBITE

Saltwater crocodile — The saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus), also known as the estuarine crocodile, Indo-Pacific crocodile, marine crocodile, sea crocodile, or informally as saltie, is the largest of all living reptiles (and naturally all living crocodiles), as well as the largest riparian predator in the world. Males of this species can reach sizes up to 6.17 meters (20 feet 3 in). But males reaching or exceeding 6 meters (19.7 feet) are really rare. Females are much smaller and often do not surpass 3 m (9.8 ft). Due to their size, aggression, and distribution, saltwater crocodiles are regarded as the most dangerous extant crocodilian to humans. Source: Deposit Photos

Several hundred attacks on humans by crocodilians are reported annually, both non-fatal and fatal. To improve our understanding of human-crocodile conflict (HCC), a database was launched back in 2016. The Worldwide Crocodilian Attack Database, “CrocBITE” website and database was co-funded in 2013 with a small grant ($10,000 AUD) from Australia’s Charles Darwin University.

Where native large crocodilians and humans live close to each other, crocodile attacks on humans occasionally occur. In fact, only 9 out of 23 crocodilian species are considered dangerous to adult humans, and in those six species, only individuals 2 meters (6.6 feet) and longer in length are capable of killing adult humans.

Geology

Humans can cause deadly Earthquakes

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date October 16, 2017
No Comments on Humans can cause deadly Earthquakes

The 2008 Sichuan earthquake (Chinese: 汶川大地震; pinyin: Wènchuān dà dìzhèn; literally: "Great Wenchuan earthquake") occurred at 14:28:01 China Standard Time on May 12, 2008. Measuring at 8.0 Ms, the earthquake's epicenter was located 80 kilometers (50 mi) west-northwest of Chengdu, the provincial capital, with a focal depth of 19 km (12 mi). The earthquake was also felt in nearby countries and as far away as both Beijing and Shanghai - 1,500 km (930 mi) and 1,700 km (1,060 mi) away -where office buildings swayed with the tremor. Strong aftershocks, some exceeding 6 Ms, continued to hit the area up to several months after the main quake, causing further casualties and damage. Over 69,000 people lost their lives in the quake, including 68,636 in Sichuan province. 374,176 were reported injured, with 18,222 listed as missing as of July 2008. The earthquake left about 4.8 million people homeless, though the number could be as high as 11 million. Some scientists believe that the construction and filling of the Zipingpu Dam with 320 million tons of water over a well-known fault line may have triggered the earthquake.

Humans can cause deadly earthquakes, and it’s called the Human-Induced Earthquake (HiQuake). On May 12, 2008, a huge 7.9 MW earthquake hit Chengdu, a sub-provincial city that has served as the capital of China’s Sichuan province. Over 69,000 people lost their lives. 374,176 were reported injured, with 18,222 listed as missing as of July 2008. The earthquake also left about 4.8 million people homeless. Some scientists believe that the construction and filling of the Zipingpu Dam with 320 million tons of water over a well-known fault line may have triggered the earthquake (see notes 1).

Sichuan earthquake is only one example of (but the deadliest by far, though) many earthquakes that triggered by human activities, according to a study published in the journal Seismological Research Letters, titled “Database of earthquakes triggered by human activity is growing – with some surprises”.

Geology

Shinmoedake Volcano Eruption [Amazing Drone Footage]

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date October 16, 2017
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Shinmoedake volcano 2017 eruption — Aerial footage of the eruption of Shinmoedake. It is an active stratovolcano with a height of 1,421 m (4,662 ft) above sea level. A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a conical volcano built up by many layers (strata) of hardened lava, tephra, pumice, and volcanic ash. Unlike shield volcanoes, which usually built almost entirely of fluid lava flows and named for their low profile, resembling a warrior's shield lying on the ground, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile and periodic explosive eruptions and effusive eruptions.

James Reynolds, the storm chaser, and a drone pilot shot amazing aerial footage of the eruption of Shinmoedake, a volcano in Kagoshima Prefecture, Kyūshū, Japan. You can also hear the rumbling sound coming from the volcano.

Planet Earth

World Sunlight Map

A world sunlight map: you can watch the sunrise and sunset all over the world on this computer-generated illustration of the Earth’s patterns of sunlight and darkness, in real-time. Provided by die.net, which hosts collective ‘net projects of a few dozen friends in the United States.

You can access the world sunlight map by clicking here. Here is a sample view of the map below, which is showing the sunlight pattern of Earth on October 5, 2015.

Planet Earth Geology

Earthquakes Between 2001 and 2015 (animation)

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date October 3, 2017
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The American scientific agency within the United States Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) published an animation on youtube showing the Earthquakes of the First 15 Years of the 21st Century (between January 1, 2001, and December 31, 2015). The animation shows every recorded earthquake in sequence as it occurred at a rate of 30 days per second. It is based on the new SOS dataset of all the earthquakes in that period from the US NWS Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

Life on Earth Animals Oceans

Blue Planet II – The Prequel by BBC

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date September 30, 2017
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On September 27, BBC has published the prequel of “Blue Planet II”. Like “The Blue Planet”, which was premiered on 12 September 2001, it is narrated by Sir David Attenborough, the English broadcaster and naturalist. The exclusive track was developed by the German composer and record producer Hans Zimmer and the English rock band Radiohead.

Astronomy Earth from Space Planet Earth Solar System Space Exploration

Total Solar Eclipse 2017 Images From Space [plus videos]

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date September 6, 2017
No Comments on Total Solar Eclipse 2017 Images From Space [plus videos]

2017 Total Solar Eclipse from the ISS — 2017 Total Solar Eclipse as seen from the International Space Station. Only six people saw the event from the Space: NASA's Randy Bresnik, Jack Fischer and Peggy Whitson, ESA (European Space Agency's) Paolo Nespoli, and Roscosmos' Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin and Sergey Ryazanskiy. This photo is published by Paolo Nespoli on his twitter account. I switched the photo upside down 180-degree for a better view.

On Monday, August 21, an estimated 2 million to 7.4 million Americans traveled to see the first total solar eclipse in 99 years to go coast to coast in the United States, which went from Lincoln Beach, Oregon, to Charleston, South Carolina. But, some of them were unlucky, as the weather was overcast in some places. But, luckily for them (and for us), NASA captured some amazing and beautiful images of the eclipse and published them on their website.

Planet Earth

No, Earth is NOT As Smooth As a Billiard Ball! [Here’s Why]

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date August 17, 2017
23 Comments on No, Earth is NOT As Smooth As a Billiard Ball! [Here’s Why]

Is Earth as smooth as a billiard ball? No, it is not. — Is Earth as smooth as a billiard ball? No, it's not.

You may have heard it has been said that if the Earth were shrunk down to the size of a billiard ball, it would be smoother than it. In other words, the Earth is smoother than a billiard ball. Is that true?

Back in 2008, on the “Bad Astronomy” blog on discovermagazine.com, in the article titled “Ten things you don’t know about the Earth“, Phil Plait wrote about that, and said “…according to the World Pool-Billiard Association, a pool ball is 2.25 inches in diameter and has a tolerance of +/- 0.005 inches.” and after making some calculations, he concluded that “… the urban legend is correct. If you shrank the Earth down to the size of a billiard ball, it would be smoother.”

Planet Earth Astronomy

What would happen if the Earth stopped rotating?

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date August 10, 2017
No Comments on What would happen if the Earth stopped rotating?

In December 1972, Apollo 17 spacecraft took a photo of Earth from space, at a distance of about 45,000 kilometers (28,000 miles). This image, with the official NASA designation AS17-148-22727, became known as "The Blue Marble", one of the most iconic photos of Earth from space. In fact, it was not the first clear image of Earth taken from space - similar photos had already been taken as early as 1967. But, the 1970s were the scene of a big surge in environmental activism. For example, on April 22, 1970, the first "Earth Day" was organized by Gaylord Nelson, former senator of Wisconsin, and Denis Hayes, a Harvard graduate student. Millions of people gather in the United States for the event. So, in today's terms, image AS17-148-22727 went "viral" and became a symbol of the environmental movement, as a depiction of Earth's frailty, vulnerability, and isolation amid the vast expanse of space. According to NASA archivist Mike Gentry, it is among the most widely distributed images in human history.

The Earth rotates from west to east with a linear velocity of 465.1013 m/s (1674.365 km/h) at the equator. But what would happen if the Earth stopped rotating abruptly? Online magazine Tech Insider presented a video demonstrating the development of events in this case.

Solar System Astronomy Physics Planet Earth

Here’s why we see only one side of the Moon [Tidal locking explained]

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date August 3, 2017
2 Comments on Here’s why we see only one side of the Moon [Tidal locking explained]

Why do we see only one side of the moon: Moon in the sky over trees — You have probably heard references made to the "dark side" of the Moon - there's even a Pink Floyd album with that name. But, in fact, there's no "dark side" of the moon. Because it is not illuminated by the Earth, it is illuminated by the *Sun*. All the surface of the moon lit by the Sun as the Moon rotates. But, we always see the "same side" of the moon from the Earth. Photo: pexels.com

Why do we see only one side of the Moon? You have probably heard references being made to the “dark side” of the Moon – there’s even a Pink Floyd album with that name. But there’s no “dark side” of the moon because our satellite is not illuminated by the Earth, it is illuminated by the Sun. All the surface of the moon gets lit by the Sun as the Moon rotates. But, yes, we see only one side of the moon, and here’s why.