Perpetual Ocean

Submitted by ward on Mon, 04/02/2012 - 11:37am

Author:

NASA

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This visualization shows ocean surface currents around the world during the period from June 2005 through December 2007. The visualization does not include a narration or annotations; the goal was to use ocean flow data to create a simple, visceral experience.

Link:

http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a000000/a003800/a003827/

Level:

Global

Year:

2012

Plan now for climate-related disasters - U.N. report

Submitted by ward on Mon, 04/02/2012 - 10:52am

Author:

David Fogarty and Deborah Zabarenko

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* Rising population, development put more in harm's way

* Policymakers urged to act in next few decades

* Less emphasis on mitigation, more on cutting risk

By David Fogarty and Deborah Zabarenko

March 28 (Reuters) - A future on Earth of more extreme weather and rising seas will require better planning for natural disasters to save lives and limit deepening economic losses, the United Nations said on Wednesday in a major report on the effects of climate change.

Link:

http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/plan-now-for-climate-related-disasters-un-report/

Level:

Global

Year:

2012

Losses from Natural Disasters Reach New Peak in 2011

Submitted by ward on Mon, 04/02/2012 - 10:38am

Author:

Petra Low

Losses from Natural Disasters Reach New Peak in 2011

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The breakdown of loss-relevant events among the main hazards-geophysical, meteorological, hydrological, and climatological events-is more or less in line with the average over the past 30 years. In 2011, some 91 percent were weather-related-37 percent each were storms and floods and 17 percent were climatological events like heat waves, cold waves, wildfires, and droughts-while 9 percent were geophysical events, including earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions.

Link:

http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1109661510249&s=97799&e=001Xgwpi7pTPMkfTMG9hNBz0pBxCwV_sxNeuqsf_5YUWHlNYP59nYki3CI0MLZRQz5fMLWbiKB6IR6SZNsum-HBfmSWgKQJybNvvSsn2lpfzwnUuTINRxgK6BjO6vQYBYs_KOZqUp0K0AYZbspgwWTpPvcPXefXqWLabU9T3s_7GFpxe9bvNV9cVg5WVdAAd10ACMX2uLz

Level:

Global

Year:

2012

Fukushima reactor shows radiation levels much higher than thought

Submitted by ward on Mon, 04/02/2012 - 10:30am

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Damage from disaster so severe that clean-up expected to take decades, according to latest examination of nuclear plant

One of Japan's crippled nuclear reactors still has fatally high radiation levels and much less water to cool it than officials estimated, according to an internal examination that renews doubts about the plant's stability.