• Night Sky Guide for June 2019

    June 1 – Conjunction of the Moon and Venus – 18:15 UTC. The Moon and Venus will share the same right ascension, with the Moon passing 3°14' to the south of Venus. The Moon will be 28 days old. The Moon will be at mag -8.9, and Venus at mag -3.9, both in the…

  • Levees failing along the Mississippi and Arkansas rivers, U.S.

    Historic flooding continues across the Midwest, causing levees to breach along the Mississippi and Arkansas rivers. Authorities have issued mandatory evacuation orders for parts of the region. Midwest is experiencing catastrophic flooding since mid-March, leading to…

  • Morganza Floodway opening postponed until June 6

    The Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) said in a news release Thursday, May 30, 2019, the opening of the Morganza Floodway planned for June 2 has been postponed until June 6, 2019. If USACE opens the floodway, it will be only the third time in history. The Mississippi…

  • Strong M6.1 earthquake hits near the coast of Philippines

    A strong earthquake registered by the PHIVOLCS as M6.2 hit near the coast Philippines at 10:12 UTC (18:12 LT) on May 31, 2019. The agency is reporting a depth of 76 km (47 miles). The USGS is reporting M6.1 at a depth of 90.2 km (56 miles). This earthquake can have…

  • Possible fissure eruption at Erta Ale volcano, Ethiopia

    A new fissure eruption is possibly taking place at lower ESE flank of Ethiopian Erta Ale volcano. The news was brought to our attention by volcanologist Tom Pfeiffer of Volcano Discovery on May 30, 2019. Their expedition leader reported an explosion in the Danakil…

  • Extremely rare, large tornado hits Los Angeles, southern Chile

    A large tornado formed in Los Angeles district of Bio Bio region, southern Chile during the afternoon hours (LT) of May 30, 2019, causing significant damage and multiple injuries. The tornado formed just before 18:00 LT and was preceded by strong winds and large…

  • Etna producing large lava flows, amazing night-time show, Italy

    The new eruptive phase of Etna volcano which started early May 30, 2019 (UTC) appears to be intensifying. Large lava flows are descending down its flanks, resulting in amazing night-time imagery. The eruption started with two new fissures opening on the northern and…

  • New high-level eruption at Agung volcano, Indonesia

    A new high-level eruption took place at Agung volcano, Bali, Indonesia at 03:42 UTC (11:42 local time) on May 31, 2019. According to the Darwin VAAC, a high-level eruption was observed on webcam and satellite imagery to an estimated height of 9.1 km (30 000 feet)…

  • Second EF-4 tornado of the season, 935 so far this year, U.S.

    Late Tuesday afternoon, May 28, 2019, an area of thunderstorms developed over southeastern Kansas. Through 16:00 local time, these storms became anchored on a warm front, which provided a source of forcing and enhanced low-level wind shear. The strongest storm…