Earth changes

This volcanic eruption as well as more earthquakes centered on the Fukushima nuclear plant refocuses our attention on the dangers of seismic activity - not only for the damaged Fukushima plant but for any number of nuclear installations in North America.

In addition, another huge danger has been identified by Russian scientist, Natalia Shakhova; that is the potential for seismic activity in the Arctic to destablise methane clathrates (in addition to the melting of the ice and permafrost). If you watch the video below it clearly worries Dr. Shakhova.

In a recent article Sam Carana talks about what he calls the 'ring of ice' - the prominance of earthquakes in North America and around Greenland.

No doubt there are lines of indirect causality that science cannot see that are linked to what we are doing to the earth - not least fracking.

Hikers injured, dozens trapped after Japan's Mount Ontake volcano erupts

At least 30 people have been seriously injured in Japan after Mount Ontake volcano erupted, sending huge plumes of ash and stones into the sky.

SMH,

28 September, 2014

More than 10 remain unconscious, police said. Some were covered by the debris.
Initial reports were that one person had died but this was incorrect.



Local authorities said there were roughly 150 hikers in the area at the time of the Japan volcano eruption, according to the agency, which raised the Volcanic Alert Level for Ontake from 1 to 3.

Ash, rocks and steam continued to spew from Mount Ontake more than nine hours after it sprang violently to life as around 250 people were trying to scale its peak.


Four people were buried by the ash, with one having been dug out, Kyodo News reported

"I first thought it was thunder as I heard a bang and another bang, two or three times," a trekker told public broadcaster NHK.


Climbers descend Mt. Ontake, which straddles Nagano and Gifu prefectures, to evacuate as the volcano erupts in central Japan September 27, 2014.

"Then volcanic dust fell noisily."

Amateur cameraman Keiji Aoki told Jiji Press: "It was tremendous. I prepared for death when I got caught in the dust under a pine tree."

A suffocating blanket of ash up to 20cm deep covered a large area of the 3067-metre volcano, trapping climbers and forcing up to 150 into mountaintop shelters at one point.

 

Mount Ontake erupts forcing hikers to flee

Around 230 people have now reached the bottom but a further 40 are trapped at the summit where they will spend the night in shelters, local media reported.
Aerial footage of Ontake showed several cabins smothered with the thick dust, some with windows that appear to have been shattered by the force of the eruption.

NHK said 32 people had been seriously injured, including more than 10 who were unconscious.

"The speed of the smoke was too fast. You can't escape," a climber told NHK. "I'm worried that many more people are still on the mountain."

In Tokyo, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ordered the military to send troops to the peak to rescue hikers.

"We have confirmed that there have been injuries," Abe told reporters.

The last significant eruption of Mount Ontake, which straddles Nagano and Gifu prefectures in the centre of the country, was in 1979 when it expelled more than 200,000 tonnes of ash, according to local media.

Fukushima, Japan Rocked By Two Earthquakes in One Hour; Epicenter Near Nuclear Plants

Weather,

24 September, 2014

A pair of moderate earthquakes struck just off the coast of Japan's Fukushima Prefecture Wednesday, close to the nuclear power plants crippled by the March 2011 tsunami. There were no early reports of damage, injuries, or new problems at the nuclear plants.

The Japan Meteorological Agency says the first earthquake struck at 9:45 p.m. JST (8:45 a.m. EDT in the U.S.) and registered a magnitude of 5.0. The second quake, a slightly stronger magnitude-5.2 tremor, struck 46 minutes later.

Both were centered just off the coast of Fukushima Prefecture, where the Fukushima Daiichi and Fukushimi Daini reactors were severely damaged in the March 11, 2011 tsunami that followed a magnitude-9.0 quake farther offshore. 

The damage spawned the worst crisis at a nuclear power plant since the Chernobyl disaster in 1986, and prompted Japan to shut down most of its nuclear power plants.

Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) has been working to contain radioactive materials in the years since. TEPCO said there were no new abnormalities caused by Wednesday's quakes, nor any changes to radioactivity levels at the monitoring post there, according to public broadcaster NHK.

The company said there were no reported abnormalities at its Tokai Daini nuclear power plant, farther south along the coast of Ibaraki Prefecture. The plant has been shut down since 2011.

The greatest shaking from both earthquakes was reported across central and eastern parts of Fukushima Prefecture, where the shaking was rated at level 4 on the 0-to-7 Japanese seismic intensity scale, known in Japan as "shindo." Weaker shaking was detected from Tokyo all the way north to Sendai in northern Japan.

The quakes were not strong enough to generate a tsunami.

Japan is one of the most seismically active countries in the world.

Earthquakes of this magnitude are relatively common there. A 5.6-magnitude earthquake struck Tochigi Prefecture on Sept. 16, rattling Tokyo and injuring eight people.

Powerful 6.2 magnitude earthquake strikes Alaska near Anchorage

The Extinction Protocol,

24 September, 2014

September 2014 – UNEAU, Alaska – A 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck Alaska on Thursday near Anchorage, but the U.S. Geological Survey said there was little likelihood of casualties or severe damage from shaking generated by the deeply rooted tremor. The agency said the quake’s epicenter was located 81 miles northwest of Anchorage, Alaska’s most populous city, and originated at a depth of 63.2 miles below the surface, which would have lessened its impact. “It was the earth rolling. It looked like I had double vision going on. Little bit of a vertigo,” said Alaska State Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters, adding there were no initial reports of injuries of damage. A magnitude 6.2 quake is considered strong and is generally capable of causing severe damage, though such temblors are not unusual in seismically active Alaska. Strong shaking was reported northwest of Anchorage, with mostly lighter rumbling elsewhere across a wide region.

But the USGS ranked the quake as having a low likelihood of causing shaking-related fatalities or economic losses, and the National Weather Service said no tsunami was expected to be generated by the tremor. Anchorage police said there were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries, just building and car alarms going off. A spokeswoman for the Matanuska-Susitna borough said the minivan she had been parked in at the time suddenly began rocking. “It was a pretty long earthquake,” the spokeswoman, Patty Sullivan, said from her office in Palmer, a few miles from where the earthquake hit. “Co-workers in the administration building experienced rocking and a violent jerk, a couple of them fled the building,” Sullivan said. “A couple books and knickknacks fell off the shelves, for some.”

Engineers were responding to reports of minor rockfall along a highway south of Anchorage, the Alaska Department of Transportation said. Photographs on social media websites showed offices with books, paper and chairs strewn about and products fallen from store shelves. The Alaska Dispatch News newspaper reported the temblor briefly interrupted a news conference being held by U.S. Senate candidate Dan Sullivan. –Chicago Tribune

Iceland volcano ‘pollutes Paris’

Euro News,

25 September, 2014

Iceland witnessed 40 earthquakes on Wednesday (September 24), which saw lava flow from an active volcano arrive within 200 metres of a highland road. There is currently no indication that the eruption will calm down.

Pollution emanating from the molten magma is said to have travelled as far as the French capital Paris, where at-risk groups are being advised to limit outdoor activity to a minimum.

Ring Of Ice

Arctic News,

30 August, 2014

Prominence of earthquakes in North America and around Greenland has prompted a team of researchers led by Arctic-news blog editor Sam Carana to coin the phrase “Ring Of Ice” to describe what they see happening in the Arctic.

“Melting of ice in north Canada and on Greenland is causing pressure changes, resulting in seismic activity”, explains Sam Carana.

Heavy seismic activity is ocurring along the faultlines that constitute the border of the North American Plate, similar to the the heavy activity along the Ring Of Fire around the Pacific Ocean.

Seismic activity roughly follows the borders of the North American Plate, which includes Greenland. However, where the major fault bends away to the west following the Aleutian Islands, seismic activity continues north through Alaska along a line that extends over the North Pole toward Svalbard.

This northward path through Alaska is illustrated by the earthquakes on the image below.

“Earthquakes are prominent along the entire border of the North American Plate”, Sam Carana adds, “but they increasingly appear to be taking this shortcut through Alaska and the underlying cause of this is melting of ice in north Canada and on Greenland”.

“This Ring Of Ice spells danger, just like the name Ring Of Fire indicates danger”, Sam Carana concludes. “The name Ring Of Fire warns about possible volcanoes, earthquakes, landslides and tsunamis. The Ring Of Ice seems even more dangerous, since seismic activity could destabilize methane hydrates contained in sediments under the Arctic Ocean, and could trigger huge methane eruptions. The fault line running from Greenland to Siberia is the most dangerous area on Earth in that respect".

‪Methane Hydrates - Extended Interview Extracts With Natalia Shakhova‬