I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.
Increased eruptive activity continues at Mexico’s Popocatepetl volcano on March 1, 2024. The activity over the past 24 hours consisted of 148 exhalations and 1 034 minutes of tremor.
On Thursday, February 29, 2024, the Smokehouse Creek Fire expanded beyond 404 686 ha (1 million acres) in Texas, marking it as the largest wildfire in the state’s history. The blaze, which also extended into Oklahoma, has claimed the lives of at least two individuals and continues to pose a significant threat to homes, cattle, and livelihoods in the Texas Panhandle.
On February 28, 2024, parts of central and northern Italy were hit by heavy rains, causing widespread flooding and landslides. In Alto Adige, an avalanche in Racines di Dentro resulted in one fatality and two serious injuries. The severe weather led to the closure of roads, rail lines, and schools in affected regions, with evacuations ordered due to rising river levels and landslide risks.
A large fireball was recorded over Recife, Brazil at 01:49 UTC on February 28, 2024 (22:59 LT, February 27). The event was captured by webcams and NOAA’s GOES-East satellite.
This aerial view shows burned houses and structures across Fritch, Texas caused by the Windy Duece Fire on February 28, 2024. More than 100 homes were destroyed from Fritch to Borger, Texas.
A rare EF-2 tornado touched down in Grand Blanc, Michigan, just after midnight on February 28, 2024, confirmed by the National Weather Service (NWS) in Detroit. With estimated peak winds reaching 185 km/h (115 mph) and spanning a path of 9.1 km (5.7 miles), this event marks only the second February tornado in the region’s history, with the previous one occurring on February 28, 1974, in southwest Wayne County.
The Smokehouse Creek Fire started on Monday, February 26, 2024, in Hutchinson County, Texas, amidst adverse weather conditions, and has rapidly grown over the next 2 days to the second-largest wildfire in the state’s history. Texas Governor Greg Abbott has declared a disaster in 60 counties in response to the wildfire, which has only been 3% contained.
An atmospheric river (AR) and low-pressure system are forecasted to bring widespread precipitation, including heavy snowfall in the Sierra Nevada and potential flooding along the US West Coast, from February 28 through March 3, 2024.
New activity/unrest was reported for 1 volcano from February 21 – 27, 2024. During the same period, ongoing activity was reported for 17 volcanoes.
A series of out-of-control wildfires swept through the Texas Panhandle on February 27 and 28, 2024, prompting tens of thousands of residents to evacuate, causing widespread power outages, and forcing the temporary shutdown of the Pantex Plant, a critical nuclear weapons facility. The disaster, affecting numerous homes and prompting a disaster declaration in 60 counties, saw the Smokehouse Creek Fire rapidly grow to Texas’ 2nd largest wildfire in history.
