Cyclone Nagris devastates Myanmar

Myanmar, formerly known as Burma was hit by Cyclone Nargis on Saturday 3rd May as it ripped through the Irrawaddy Delta and the commercial capital Yangon. Five regions have been declared disaster zone and tens of thousands have been left homeless with over 350 deaths already reported.

With many communication networks down including roads and bridges and many remote villages having been affected it is difficult to get a full overview of the damage caused. UN International agencies are working to co-ordinate their response, however the movement of foreign aid workers is restricted in military ruled Myanmar. Travel permits and official escorts are required and the transport of supplies and materials has restrictions on it.
Current aid priorities include water purfication tables and mosquito nets and with many thousands now left homeless in the current rainy season, waterproof sheeting is required to provide some shelter.

For more details on the cyclone, follow up some of the news links below.

• Hundreds killed by Burma Cyclone (BBC News)
  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7382298.stm
• Burma Cyclone death toll rises to 351 http://itn.co.uk/news/74c8a9044360daa87e25538c06fe3bdd.html
• Burma Cyclone kills more than 350 people (Daily Telegraph) http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/burmamyanmar/1%20926897/Burma-cyclone-kills-more-than-350-people.html
• Death toll rises in devastating Burma Cyclone (ABC News) http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/05/05/2234974.htm
• Hundreds feared dead in Myanmar Cyclone http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/05/04/myanmar.cyclone/?iref=hpmostpop
• Over 350 dead as cyclone pounds Myanmar http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSBKK1919620080504?feedType=RSS&feedName=top
• Myanmar cyclone kills at least 351 http://www.afp.com/english/news/stories/newsmlmmd.c3d3441dc4f2f005fe9687f85725a30b.%20811.html
• Cyclone leaves at least 350 dead in Burma (Guardian) http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/may/05/burma.naturaldisasters
• Aid effort for cyclone-hit Burma http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7383573.stm
• Burma cyclone damage assessed http://www.itv.com/News/Articles/Burma-cyclone-damage-assessed-249930073.html
  

Images

• Nargis Cyclone http://www.flickr.com/photos/tza/2463807874/
• Cyclone Nargis map http://www.flickr.com/photos/chanmyasoe/2463112092/
• In Pictures: Burmese Cyclone (BBC News) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_pictures/7382836.stm
  

Videos:

• ITN – Burma Cyclone Video http://itn.co.uk/videos/a8d2efc7f141912790b8bc7bd8b035a4.html
• Cyclone batters Myanmar’s main city Yangon http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4NjDAKLxo4
• Hundreds die in Myanmar Cyclone http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUcL1mHYYMo
• Burma Must allow agencies in (Video from the BBC) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/7382685.stm

Chaiten Volcano Erupts ending long period of dormancy

Over a 1000 people have already been evacuated from the area around Chaiten in Southern Chile as Chaiten volcano contains to spew ash and other volcanic materials since it began erupting in the early hours of May 2nd.

The video clip below gives a brief overview of the status of the eruption so far:

Find out more about the eruption and the rescue / evacuation attempts which are under way by following some of the links below. Also think about the nature of the volcanic hazards involved.

• One dead as Chilean volcano spews ash for third day http://uk.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUKN0434134120080504
• Chaiten volcano erupted, hundreds evacuate http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/national_world&id=6119658
• Town evacuated as volcano erupts (Sky) http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30200-1314939,00.html?f=rss
• Tourists and locals flee Chaiten http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,23638788-5013605,00.html
• Hundreds of Chileans flee volcano (CBS News) http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/05/02/world/main4068577.shtml
• Volcano blows its top in Chile (Newsround) http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_7380000/newsid_7381700/7381752.stm
• Chile volcano prompts evacuation (includes video clip) – BBC News http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7381652.stm
• In Pictures: Chile Volcano erupts – BBC News http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_pictures/7381702.stm
• Eruption at Chaiten Volcano, Chile (The Volcanism Blog) http://volcanism.wordpress.com/2008/05/02/eruption-at-chaiten-volcano-chile/
• Satellite Image of Chaiten (The Volcanism Blog) http://volcanism.wordpress.com/2008/05/04/satellite-image-of-chaiten-2-may-2008/
• Chaiten Update – 3^rd May (The Volcanism Blog) http://volcanism.wordpress.com/2008/05/03/chaiten-update-3-may-2008/
• Chile Volcano Erupts, village evacuated (The Guardian) http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/feedarticle/7498036
  
• Chilean town nearly deserted after Chaiten volcano erupts, spews ash http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/05/03/news/Chile-Volcano-Eruption.php
• Thousands flee as Chilean volcano erupts (Telegraph) http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/chile/1924533/T

Tornado Terror

A tornado in the US has claimed 9 lives as it ripped through Greensburg, Kansas on Friday (4th May 2007). Around 90% of the small rural town of Greensburg has been destroyed. Greensburg, is in Tornado Alley, the central part of the US which is frequently hit by tornadoes. Stunning video footage of the tornado (courtesey of Sky News http://news.sky.com) can be seen here.

The BBC News article can be found here.

9 people were killed just under two weeks ago when a strong tornado struck a small Texan community on the US border before passing into Mexico.

Find out more about these deadly natural phenomenum in this Tornadoes special from CNN with quizzes, photos and tornado facts and figures.

Stunning images of tornadoes can be found in the NOAA Tornadoes Photo library.

Tornado Formation

So how do Tornadoes form? This excellent animation from CNN shows the processes involved in the formation of a Tornado. The movement of air within a tornado is visualized by scientists in this animation.

The most severe "supercell" thunderstorms which often produce tornadoes from in unstable atmospheric conditions where cold dry polar air meets warm moist tropical air (ref). Tornado Alley in Central America is where some of the most devastating tornadoes occur in the US. The area includes parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. The area, broadly speaking is between the Rocky and Appalachian Mountains; the flat nature of the Great Plains of Tornado alley results in cold dry polar funnelled south from Canada meeting warm moist tropical air which is travelling north from the Gulf of Mexico (ref).

Tornadoes mostly form in the northern hemisphere between March to June when the conditions for the development of severe thunderstorms are optimum (ref). "A tornado is a violently rotating column of air in contact with and extending between a cloud (often a thunderstorm cloud) and the surface of the earth" (ref). The exact process of tornado formation is debated but the deadliest tornadoes results from supercell tornadoes (long-lived rotating thunderstorms which last several hours) and begin with air rising from the ground into the bottom of the thunder cloud. Changing wind speeds and wind directions result in the formation of a spinning vortex. This spinning updraft of warm air stabalises and feeds the thunderstorm (hence the long-lived characteristics of the supercell). Next a strong downdraft of cooler dense air forms with increasing speed bringing the rotating vortex downwards. As it reaches the ground, some of the downdraft spreads, as it does so a visible condensation funnel forms, when the downdraft reaches the ground, the funnel cloud becomes a tornado. As the updraft of warm moist air continues it feeds the tornado and it grows until it reaches the mature stage at which point it lasts from between a few mins to over an hour. Gradually the tornado weakens as it's air supply is reduced by the cold downdraft which wraps around the funnel (ref).

Find out what it is like inside a tornado through this amazing footage on the National Geographic site - a probe fitted with 7 video cameras captures footage from inside the tornado! Find out more about how this is done through an interview with the storm chaser.

See also this excellent flash from National Geographic looking at characteristics, formation and effects of Tornadoes.

Finally there are more stunning Tornado visualizations here.

The Effects of Tornados: A Case Study

Oklahoma Tornado - May 3rd 1999

A particularly severe Tornado (an F5 on the fajita scale) hit Oklahoma on May 3 1999 with winds of 318mph. It was the first stage of a severe weather system which latest 3 days. 36 people were killed in the tornado and it became the fourth most costliest single tornado in US history with $1.1 billion damages. A total of 10,500 buildings and 47 businesses were destroyed (ref).

The following links provide more details on the case study:

• Wikipedia - Oklahoma Tornado Outbreak
• NOAA - the Great Plains Tornado Outbreak - May 3rd 1999
• USA Today - May 3-6th 1999 tornadoes - a look back at the deadly outbreak
• BBC - US tornado break records
• BBC - Tornado terror in pictures
• BBC - Dozens killed by tornadoes
• BBC - In pictures - the eye of the storm
• BBC - Search for tornado victims

Footage of the May 1999 Oklahoma F5 tornado can be seen in this YouTube video.

Tornado Preparedness

Here is an excellent pdf file on Tornado Preparedness including information on Torndao formation as well as safety advice and disaster plans - helps to give a sense of how people living in tornado prone areas plan for the possible even of a tornado.

Other links:

• Tornado Preparedness and Response
• Safety tips from FEMA
• NOAA Tornado Portal
• Surviving a Tornado (USA Today - excellent)
  

Tornado Footage

This YouTube video contains footage of a collection of violent tornadoes and their aftermath.

Earthquakes in the UK

An earthquake measuring 4.7 on the richter scale struck Southern England at 8.18am this morning (Saturday 28th April 2007). The map to the left shows the location of the quake (source credit: U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior) - further maps of the quake (including seismicity) can be found here. It is also worth looking at the location on the Worldwide Earthquake locator (try altering the map to add on fault lines, plate names etc.)




News Articles:
Earthquake shakes part of Kent (BBC News)
Eyewitness accounts of the earthquake (BBC News)
Homes evacuated after earthquake hits Kent (Times Online)
Photographs of the earthquake damage (Sky News)
Earthquake shakes Southern England (SKy News)
The House shook "Its chaos down here" (Sky News)
Homes crumble as earthquake rocks Kent (This London.co.uk)
In pictures: Kent Earthquake (BBC News)
Q&A - Kent Earthquake (BBC News)

Video Links:
Interview with BGS on initial thoughts on Earthquake (Sky News Video link)
The View from above (Sky News video link)
Chimneys and Roofs damaged by quake (Sky News Video link)
Eyewitness Interview (Sky News video link)

It is also worth looking at the location of the quake in the Worldwide Earthquake locator (you can alter the map to display fault lines, plate boundaries etc.)

The latest earthquakes from around the world are mapped here.

Earthquakes in the UK

Between 200-300 earthquakes in the UK are recorded by the BGS (British Geological Survey) every year. Despite not being on a major plate boundary (the closest is the Mid-Atlantic Ridge), we do experience earthquakes due to the release of tensions in the crust built up by movements along pre-existing faults in the crust. The largest recorded earthquake to hit the UK was a magnitude 6.1. The quake hit in 1931, with its epicenter in the North Sea, 120km offshore NE of Great Yarmouth.

Further details on UK earthquakes and their cause and impacts can be found on the here. As can be seen from this list of earthquakes in the UK over the last 30 days, most of the earthquakes we experience are low i magnitude; those that are below 3.5 on the richter scale are rarely felt - hence why they are often not reported in the news. These quakes are however picked up by recording instruments. The BGS undertakes careful seismic monitoring with 145 seismic stations around the UK. By monitoring background seismic information, the BGS are able to better define the seismic risk in the UK.

Further information on earthquakes in the UK can be found here:

• Earthquakes in the UK (BGS)
• Felt Earthquakes in the UK (BGS)
• Seismicity and earthquake hazard in the UK (BGS)
• Small scale tremors in the UK (BBC News)
• History of UK earthquakes (Sky News)
• Dudley Earthquakes (2002)

Pictures Source: Credit U.S. Geological Survey, Department for Interior

Fragile Earth - Climate Change

Our 'Fragile Earth' - what does the concept of fragility mean? how fragile is our Earth?

The concept of fragility depends on how easily an ecosystem is disrupted. The stability of an ecosystem is a measure of the capability of the ecosystem to return to an equilibrium state following a disturbance.

Many natural ecosystems have a degree of fragility, for example Tropical Rainforests are highly evolved with a high biodiversity with thousands of species well adapted to life in the rainforest and able to occupy their own niche in the ecosystem, but the whole rainforest system is inherently susceptible to change and deforestation can have a major impact on the ecosystem. It can be argued that humans have compounded and in some instances induced fragility, increasing the vulnerability of the world's ecosystems.

"From over fishing of our oceans and depleting fish stocks to dangerous low leves; from toxins, emissions and pollution entering and choking the atmosphere and making the hole in the ozone layer bigger and causing more harmful sunrays to penetrate through then their should be, thus warming the oceans, melting the ice, and threatening animals environments; from rainforest being bulldozed down to create grazing land for cattle and commerical development, thus destroying natural environmental structure and animals habitats, animal species going extinct, and more.

These problems are caused by humans and humans only; it's scary, it really is, and will over serve to get worse if the human race takes an apathetic attitude towards the planet it ultimately needs to survive; your's and my planet.

We are dependent on the earth's biodiversity for survival and without it we're in big trouble." (William Richardson)

This is the introduction to this interesting video from You Tube called "Call of Life" Facing the Mass Extinction. At only 10 minutes it is well worth a view and gives consideration to a number of key environmental issues and the impacts of humans on our planet.

To follow some of these key issues up I have drawn together some of the most resources and articles.

Climate Change (Part 1)
This issue is forefront in the news at the moment and there are many programmes on TV and articles in the news considering the causes and effects of climate change. The issue is even the focus of TV adverts raising awareness of the issues:

This advert is from American TV:

This TV Advert - Tomorrow's Climate - Today's Challenge is part of a UK government initiative

Indeed climate change is not an issue without contention as was highlighted recently in the Channel 4 documentary "The Great Global Warming Swindle", in which the widely held belief that climate change is largely due to man-made rises in carbon dioxide emissions, was challenged. The arguements underpinning this challenge to the idea that climate change is a man-made phenomenon can be read here on the Channel 4 microsite.

I can not do justice the extensive resources / articles on climate change in a single post and indeed every week sees news stories related to climate change appear in the papers and on the TV so I intend to blog about this in a number of posts between now and the exam to give you some idea of the issues surrounding it through examples.

The weblinks below are to some of the best 'generic' sites on Climate Change which provide a useful introduction to the causes, effects and issues surrounding global warming.

BBC Climate Change Portal - as well as explaining the basics of climate change, looks at stories in the news related to our changing climate as well as views and opinions on the issues - well worth exploring. Linked to this are the Climate Change pages from the BBC Weather Centre - this site considers the evidence for a changing climate, the impacts that climate change is likely to have on us in the UK, the ways in which we need to adapt both now and in the future and the policies and politics of climate change.

The Challenges of Climate Change A site from the Open University exploring many of the issues related to climate change

Tomorrow's Climate - Today's Challenge. The government funded site has a number of key resources aimed to help you understand climate change, including basic climate facts, challenging myths and UK climate change change.

The impacts of Global Warming on the world's ecosystems is well documented and this excellent site gives a "World View of Global Warming" documenting the impacts of climate change around the world.

Finally for now - this new article from the BBC is must see resource on understanding the impacts of Climate Change around the world. An interactive map enables you to explore the projected impacts around the world as well as explore directly the impacts on water, ecosystems, food, coasts, industry and health. The resource links in to BBC news articles with examples of these impacts that are already starting to be seen around the world.

Having looked at Climate Change in detail here, other posts will explore some of the other big issues.

Drought in Australia

Australia is currently suffering from its worst drought on record. In the Murray Darling Basin (the main irrigation area of Australia) it is reported that unless sufficient rain falls in the next 6-8 weeks there will not be any water allocations for irrigation until May 2008. As the two main rivers supplying the area are at such low levels there will soon only be enough water to meet supplies of drinking water. The drought has already had a massive impact on farmers with milk yields already down and many farmers are facing ruin unless there is significant rainfall soon. This is a threat that is becoming increasingly real with this weeks warning that irrigation to prime farmland will have to be cut unless the rains come soon. Already many rivers have been reduced to a trickle and water restrictions have been put in place in many urban areas.

The current drought in Australia began back in 2002 but it is over the past 6 months that the effects have been felt particularly severely. The increased frequency of El Nino weather patterns causing drought are blamed on global warming and there are few scientists who dispute the role of global warming in causing the recent drought conditions. You can read more about this in this excellent article from the Independent "Australia's epic drought: the situation is grim"

Other online resources linked to the current drought situation in Australia

Amazing (and very worrying!) photographs of the drought situation from the Guardian

A Global Warning from the dust bowl of Australia (The Independent) - which looks at how this is a taste of things to come - not only for Australia but for the world as recent reports articulate with clarity that global warming will bring severe drought to areas around the world.

Drought threatens crop catastrophe, Australian prime minister says (The Guardian)

Australian's warned of water cuts (BBC News website)

Some news stories from earlier in the year:

Howard says water key challenge (BBC News website)

Queensland to drink waste water (warnings in January following the threat to drinking water supplies - BBC News Website)

Meanwhile in Australia a global crisis arrives in the back yard

Video Resources on the drought in Australia

BBC News Website

There are 3 excellent sort videos from the BBC website exploring the issues of the current drought in Australia. You will need a broadband connection to watch these (either in Real player or Windows Media Player). To view go to the BBC website and under search type in Drought+Australia - the links to the videos will appear on the right hand side.

Devastating Drought Down Under (looking at the drought turning farmland to dust - a disaster which some scientists fear is linked to global warming)

Australia Fears over drought (concerns over farmers facing ruin as rivers remain unreplenished)

Queensland drinks waste water (a story from January reporting that People in North East Australia are set to drink recycled water because of severe drought)

You Tube

A number of videos have been posted on YouTube looking at the current drought situation in Australia - they help to bring to life through images just how badly the country is being affected.

An excellent video - looking at the severity of the drought crisis in Australia and in particular how farmers are being affected.

Wivenhoe dam provides water for Brisbane but is already at only 18% capacity - water supply is now a real cause for concern.

Photo credit: Rick Abbot / Flickr - Creative Commons

Globalisation - the debate

I thought I would post a few links to get you thinking about the hotly debated topic of Globalisation - I am sure you have done much on this already in your Human Geography studies at A2 but there are some great reference sites out there which help to illustrate what is meant by Globalisation as well as provide case studies and add to the debate over the impacts of globalisation on the developing world. Why not have a look at some of the following - the first few links provide an excellent introduction - but there are some further more detailed links to really get you thinking! I will post more on this as Globalisation issues appear in the news.

As a starting point there are some excellent resources from the BBC to explore - including this introduction to Globalisation which considers The Key Facts about the Global Economy

The BBC has a special report section on Globalisation with many articles exploring the issues related to Globalisation.

Globalisation - In-depth BBC World Service - this site makes an interesting read with some particularly interesting examples of globalisation - including the Fast Food Industry and the Music Industry.

The Globalisation Guide - an excellent site considering the key questions on Globalisation - looking at what it is, who is involved as well as consideration of the impacts of globalisation - on the environment, culture etc.

What is Globalisation? - article from the Guardian

Wikipedia - Globalisation

Special Report on Globalisation from the Guardian - includes links to various articles related to Globalisation

Focus on Globalisation (Global Eye magazine) - an introduction and two case studies (i) Global Fashion Industry and (ii) the sugar trade - good examples here.

There is an interesting video here including a discussion of Globalisation asking the question "Is the anti-globalisation movement wrong?" and what impact free-trade has on developing countries.

First part of the video can be viewed here:

the rest of the video (parts 2 and 3) can be viewed on You Tube.

The Globalisation Debate - Guardian Unlimited - a series of special report articles.