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☆ Powerful solar flare that erupted from a sunspot three times the size of the Earth caused widespread radio blackouts
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A powerful solar flare exploded on Tuesday, caused by a sunspot three times the size of the Earth. There have been a series of recent space weather events as the sun enters a period of peak activity. A video of the sun taken on May 18 shows a powerful solar flare being released. As the sun becomes more active, it is exhibiting more frequent solar events like solar flares and coronal mass ejections. An X-class solar flare was spotted in March causing radio blackouts in parts of southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand.

☆ Asia's April heatwaves were '30 times more likely' because of climate change - scientists
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( David Stanway | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SINGAPORE, May 17 (Reuters) - Record-breaking heatwaves that hit large parts of South and Southeast Asia in April were made "30 times more likely" as a result of human-induced climate change, an international team of scientists said on Wednesday. Humid heatwaves that used to happen once a century in Bangladesh and India are now expected to occur every five years, while the heat in Thailand and Laos would have been "virtually impossible" without climate change, the scientists said. "The heatwaves were not natural," said Chaya Vaddhanaphuti, a team member from Chiang Mai University in Thailand, during a media briefing on Wednesday. "Unless we take drastic measures to reduce carbon emissions, heatwave events like this will continue to become more common," he said. Reporting by David Stanway; Editing by Kim CoghillOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

His main opponent is CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who represents an election coalition of six opposition parties. For the first time, Turkey’s factious opposition has coalesced around a single candidate. When a vicious earthquake on February 6 laid waste to large parts of southeast Turkey, Erdogan’s battled political aftershocks. More than 1.8 million voters living abroad already cast their votes on April 17, Turkish newspaper Daily Sabah reported Wednesday, citing the country’s deputy foreign minister. The Supreme Election Council (YSK) chief Ahmet Yener said last month that at least 1 million voters in quake-stricken zones are expected not to vote this year amid displacement.

☆ US intelligence believes 'slaughter-fest' fighting in Ukraine has cost Russia 100,000 dead and wounded in only a matter of months, White House reveals
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Russia has suffered 100,000 casualties since December, a top White House official said, citing US intelligence. John Kirby revealed that 20,000 Russian troops have been killed fighting in Ukraine in that time. Ukrainian troops have fought the Russians along a largely static front line across eastern and parts of southern Ukraine for months. In January 2023, the top general went on to say that Russia had suffered "significantly well over" 100,000 casualties. Recently leaked US intelligence documents reviewed by Insider suggested that Russia had endured up to 223,000 casualties, including 43,000 soldiers killed in fighting.

☆ Ukraine could launch its offensive against Russia any moment now. Here's what's waiting
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Tim Lister | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The defenses continue for hundreds of miles across the meandering southern front – where Ukrainian forces are expected to concentrate their counter-offensive in the coming weeks. This area will be critical should Ukrainian forces try to advance towards the city of Melitopol and split Russian forces in the south. It’s unclear where the equipment went but likely that it was sent north to reinforce Russian defensive lines. Russian-appointed officials in Zaporizhzhia claim there is already a large build-up of Ukrainian forces in the area. Ukrainian officials do not disclose the movement of units.

☆ Taras Stepanenko and Ruslan Malinovskyi keep playing despite Russia's invasion
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Ben Church | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Amid all the chaos and confusion, Stepanenko decided that his family would be safer hiding in the basement of their home. Midfielder Taras Stepanenko leads Ukraine out against Brentford B on March 23. A career amid conflictIn addition to representing his country, Stepanenko is proud to play for Shakhtar Donetsk, which is one of Ukraine’s biggest clubs. Like Stepanenko, he sees playing football as his national duty and a way of repaying those fighting on the frontline. Both Malinovskyi and Stepanenko will be key members of the Ukrainian national team in its bid to qualify for the European Championships, hosted by Germany, in 2024.

Temperatures this week are expected to be 15 to 20 degrees Celsius above normal for this time of year, with a chance they could hit 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in some places. In large parts of Spain, temperatures have exceeded 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit). Nighttime temperatures are also forecast to remain high, not dipping below 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit) in some places. Schools in central and southern Spain are concerned about protecting students and staff from overheated classrooms that don’t have air conditioning, Spanish media reported. The high temperatures come as a prolonged drought has gripped parts of southern Spain, as well as the northeast of the country, near Barcelona.

☆ Northern Lights Are Seen in Places Where They Normally Aren’t
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Livia Albeck-Ripka | Derrick Bryson Taylor | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The sky over an unusually wide swath of the northern hemisphere lit up with a brilliant display of color overnight into Monday morning, dazzling people across North America and Europe. The display was potentially visible as far south as Iowa in the United States, as well as in parts of southern England, scientists said. The phenomena, known as the aurora borealis or northern lights, occurs when particles emitted by the sun collide with particles that are already trapped around Earth’s magnetic field, and can often be seen from parts of Iceland, Canada and Alaska. But on Friday, the sun let off a large burst of energy, said Robert Steenburgh, a space scientist with the Space Weather Prediction Center at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (These bursts are also known as coronal mass ejections.)

☆ Russia warplane accidentally fires into city near Ukraine, causing blast -Tass
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] A view shows the accident scene following a large blast in a street in the city of Belgorod, Russia, April 20, 2023. Mayor of Belgorod City Valentin Demidov via Telegram/Handout via REUTERSApril 20 (Reuters) - A Russian warplane accidentally fired a weapon into the city of Belgorod near Ukraine late on Thursday, causing an explosion and damaging buildings, Tass cited the defence ministry as saying. Local authorities reported a large blast in the city, which lies just across the border from Ukraine. "As a Sukhoi Su-34 air force plane was flying over the city of Belgorod there was an accidental discharge of aviation ammunition," Tass cited the defence ministry as saying. The ministry said some buildings had been damaged and announced a probe was already under way, according to Tass.

☆ Hybrid solar eclipse draws thousands to remote Australian town
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SYDNEY, April 20 (Reuters) - A rare hybrid solar eclipse over a remote town on Australia's west coast drew thousands on Thursday to witness the event. Astronomy fans and enthusiasts from around the world travelled to Exmouth, a tiny beachside town roughly 1,200 kilometers from state capital Perth, to witness the total solar eclipse. Thursday's eclipse was a rare "hybrid" type, not seen worldwide since 2013. In a hybrid eclipse, depending on where viewers stand, the moon either blots out the sun, a total eclipse, or obscures the center while leaving a ring of light visible, an annular eclipse. While the total eclipse was only visible from a few parts of Australia, Indonesia and Timor Leste, a partial eclipse was visible across all three countries and parts of southeast Asia.

But it serves to highlight the importance of one of the most inaccessible parts of southeast Asia to the global tin supply chain. Imports from Myanmar grew from 30,000 tonnes in 2012 to 89,000 tonnes in 2013 and mushroomed to almost 500,000 tonnes in 2016. CHINESE DEPENDENCEThe Myanmar tin boom occurred at the right time for China's tin smelters, many of which were struggling to bring on new mining capacity as Beijing steadily tightened environmental controls on the mining sector. However, the threat alone underscores the fragility of tin supply at a time when Indonesia, the largest exporter of the metal in refined form, is mulling an export ban to stimulate the build-out of downstream processing capacity. This is probably not going to be the last time tin gets spooked by unexpected news from Myanmar.

☆ Spain's Asturias ravaged by fires as authorities blame 'terrorist' arsonists
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Vincent West | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dozens of fires have already been put off by emergency services in Asturias and the neighboring region of Cantabria over the past two days. [1/6] Firefighters use a controlled burn to tackle a wildfire in Setienes, Asturias, Spain, March 31, 2023. In the past, intentional fires have often been linked to pastoralists seeking to gain more grazing land for their cattle. The densely-forested mountainous region is one of Spain's rainiest areas, though fires are common in March, according to the regional government. A combination of scarce rainfall, high temperatures and winds has placed most of northern Spain at a high wildfire risk.

☆ Wildfires ravage Spain's Asturias as temperatures hit record highs
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MADRID, March 30 (Reuters) - More than 100 wildfires broke out in Spain's northern Asturias region on Thursday, most of them started on purpose by arsonists and others, authorities said, as temperatures soared to record highs. Flames raged near a road as cars drove by in Asturias, a lush region with rainy oceanic climate, local TV footage showed. Spain registered its hottest March 29 on record on Wednesday, with temperatures exceeding normal levels by seven to 14 Celsius (44.6-57.2 Fahrenheit), the meteorological agency AEMET said. The Canary Islands registered temperatures more common for the summer, with 37.8C in Tasarte, Gran Canaria. Other regions in the Basque Country and some parts of central Spain also recorded record temperatures for the time of year.

☆ A powerful 'X-class' solar flare just hit Earth. Forecasters are bracing for more sun activity in the coming days.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The sun blasted Earth with a powerful X-class solar flare on Tuesday, causing radio blackouts. Three more moderate solar flares followed, and we could see more eruptions in the coming days. This may be a precursor to even more solar activity in the coming days. NASA/SDOThat report forecast a chance of more M-class flares in the coming days, with a "slight chance" of another X-class flare on Thursday. More often, though, solar activity triggers energetic displays of Northern Lights, or aurora borealis, sometimes pushing them further south than their normal Arctic occurrence.

☆ Explainer: Why Lesotho parliament is debating reclaiming land from South Africa
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Carien Du Plessis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Even if the motion passes, its economically and militarily more powerful neighbour South Africa - which completely envelops Lesotho - is unlikely to cede the land. In fact, there are around twice as many Basotho in South Africa as in Lesotho. Historically, the seizure of Basotho land by Dutch settlers -- whose descendents, Afrikaners, now own most of the land in Free State -- is well-attested. Lesotho became a British protectorate in 1868, after the then king Moshoeshoe I appealed to British imperial authorities to prevent any more land being seized. Eswatini's King Mswati III has in the past similarly claimed that big parcels of neighbouring South African land were historically part of his kingdom and should be returned, but has never realised them.

☆ Spain tells 'fire tourists' to stay away from forest blaze
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Guillermo Martinez | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] A plane throws water over a wildfire in Pina de Montalgrao, Castellon, following a wildfire raged in eastern Spain, March 26, 2023. REUTERS/Lorena SopenaBARRACAS, Spain, March 26 (Reuters) - Officials urged 'fire tourists' to keep away from blazes raging in eastern Spain on Sunday, saying onlookers were putting themselves at risk and disrupting efforts to quell the flames. Police had spotted 14 cyclists near the scene trying to get a closer look, Gabriela Bravo, the regional head of interior affairs in the Valencia region, told reporters. "We ask once again and above all tourists not to engage in fire tourism, not to approach the perimeter area," she said. In Spain, 493 fires destroyed a record 307,000 hectares of land last year, according to the Commission's European Forest Fire Information System.

☆ Spain firefighters working to control blaze that has destroyed 4,000 hectares
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

VILLANUEVA DE VIVER, Spain, March 25 (Reuters) - Firefighters said on Saturday they had stopped Spain's first major wildfire of the year from spreading further through the eastern Valencia region, where it destroyed more than 4,000 hectares (9,884 acres) of forest and forced 1,500 residents to abandon their homes. In Spain, 493 fires destroyed a record 307,000 hectares of land last year, according to the Commission's European Forest Fire Information System. More than 500 firefighters supported by 20 planes and helicopters were working to bring the blaze under control near the village of Villanueva de Viver, in the Valencia region, emergency services said on Saturday. [1/2] A wildfire burns parts of rural areas in Monte Pino, Spain, March 24, 2023. "On Saturday morning, airplanes will try to stop the fire spreading to other communities," Bravo told a news conference on Friday night.

☆ Earthquake in Afghanistan kills at least 11, nine of them in Pakistan
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ISLAMABAD, March 22 (Reuters) - At least nine people were killed and 44 injured in northwest Pakistan by a magnitude 6.5 earthquake that struck in neighbouring Afghanistan late on Tuesday, a Pakistani government official said. At least two people were killed in Afghanistan, a disaster agency official there said. The quake was felt over an area more than 1,000 km wide by some 285 million people in Pakistan, India, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan and Turkmenistan, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre said. A 6.1 magnitude earthquake in eastern Afghanistan killed more than 1,000 people last year. In 2005, at least 73,000 people were killed by a 7.6 magnitude quake that struck northern Pakistan.

☆ Column: Global energy use and emissions hubs set to shift by 2050
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Gavin Maguire | Thomson Reuters | Gavin Maguire Is The Global Energy Transition Columnist. He Was Previously Asia Commodities | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

LITTLETON, Colorado, March 20 (Reuters) - The Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa will overtake China, North America and Europe as the key drivers of world energy use through 2050, with implications for global emissions potential and accountability. Combined primary energy use in the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa will grow from roughly 115,000 petajoules in 2023 to nearly 194,000 petajoules by 2050, an expansion of more than 78,000 petajoules. South Asia, Southeast Asia & Sub-Saharan Africa to be main drivers of global energy use by 2050This means that global energy consumption will continue to grow from current levels by 2050, despite the efforts of current energy transition leaders to reduce energy use by mid-century, DNV data shows. Downsizing of outdated or uncompetitive capacity is set to reduce Greater China's energy demand from manufacturing by 23% between 2025 and 2050, DNV data shows. If so, the global energy landscape of 2050 will not just have drastically different geographic concentrations of energy use, but also a cleaner emissions profile that may support energy transition efforts.

☆ Earthquake of magnitude 6.5 hits northern Afghanistan, killing at least 3
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

KABUL, March 21 (Reuters) - A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck northern Afghanistan on Tuesday evening, according to the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre, killing two in the east of the country and one child in neighbouring Pakistan. The tremor was very deep, 194 km (120.5 miles), and its epicentre was in the Hindu Kush mountain range, near the remote northern Afghan province of Badakhshan. A spokesperson for Red Cross said they had no immediate reports of damages from Badakhshan's capital but were making checks on other areas. "We felt a strong earthquake, according to primary information the main place (affected) was Yamgan District," he said. A 6.1 magnitude earthquake in eastern Afghanistan killed over 1,000 people last year.

☆ Some cash in on land boom near Indonesia's new capital, others despondent
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Stefanno Sulaiman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/3] Trucks are seen near a palm oil plantation at a village located near Indonesia's projected new capital, known as Nusantara National Capital, in Sepaku, East Kalimantan province, Indonesia, March 8 2023. Headman Rizki Maulana Perwira Atmadja, 38, said land prices around his village - 10 km (6 miles) from where a presidential palace is being built - had jumped four-fold. Land prices in places near a water reservoir had risen over 16-fold, said Junaidin, the village chief of Tengin Baru, a settlement of around 4,000 people within Nusantara's development zone. He said large property companies had not sought to acquire land banks in Nusantara due to the moratorium on permits. However, the Nusantara authority said land speculation should not affect development plans as compensation for land would be measured fairly by an independent party.

☆ How the Turkey earthquake caused thousands of aftershocks
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +11 min

10,000 tremors How Turkey has been rattled by aftershocks since the Feb. 6 earthquakeThousands of earthquakes struck southern Turkey in the weeks after a 7.8 magnitude earthquake on Feb. 6, killing more than 50,000 people in Turkey and northwest Syria. Chart shows about ten thousand earthquakes that have been recorded in southern Turkey since a 7.8 magnitude earthquake occurred on February 6. The Turkey quake also triggered a magnitude 7.5 earthquake that caused a separate rupture in the Earth’s surface, which in turn caused thousands of aftershocks. Domino effect Seismologists define aftershocks as temblors triggered by a large earthquake, close in time and location. Chart shows aftershocks that occurred in 24 hours after the 6.4 magnitude earthquake in southern Turkey within 30 kilometers around the city of Antakya.

☆ Magnitude 5.6 quake hits Turkey; more buildings collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A magnitude 5.6 earthquake shook southern Turkey on Monday — three weeks after a catastrophic temblor devastated the region — causing some already damaged buildings to collapse, an official said. A father and daughter were reported trapped beneath the rubble of one building. Malatya was among 11 Turkish provinces hit by the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that devastated parts of southern Turkey and northern Syria on Feb. 6. That quake led to more than 48,000 deaths in both countries as well as the collapse or serious damage of 173,000 buildings in Turkey. AFAD, Turkey's disaster management agency, said that close to 10,000 aftershocks have hit the region affected by the quake since Feb. 6.

☆ 20-minute drive turns into 7-hour nightmare for stranded traveler after winter storm wreaks havoc across US
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Aidan Pollard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Alahn Ek, who lives just outside of Portland, Oregon, told Oregon Live a 20-minute drive to her friend's house wound up taking seven hours in heavy snow and standstill traffic. "It was like I blinked" and suddenly the snow was falling, she told Oregon Live. Hannah Schaferm a spokesperson for the Portland Bureau of Transportation, told Oregon Live the city is equipped for winter weather, but not in the face of a storm like the one that came this week. As parts of the country continue to experience severe weather, officials across the US are warning travelers to remain vigilant. "Snow & freezing rain are creating hazardous road conditions in parts of the state," New York Gov.

☆ Bird flu spreads to new countries, threatens non-stop 'war' on poultry
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Tom Polansek | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Argentina found the virus in wild birds, while dead swans in Uruguay tested positive. The United States, Britain, France and Japan are among countries that have suffered record losses of poultry over the past year, leaving some farmers feeling helpless. Poultry in the Northern Hemisphere were previously considered to be most at risk when wild birds are active during spring migration. Some experts suspect climate change may be contributing to the global spread by altering wild birds' habitats and migratory paths. Farmers are trying unusual tactics to protect poultry, with some using machines that make loud noises to scare off wild birds, experts said.

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