Teo Blašković founded The Watchers in 2011 and edited it until 2026, covering seismic and volcanic activity, extreme weather, space weather and near-Earth objects. Articles on this page are his archive.
A strong and shallow earthquake registered by the JMA as M6.4 hit Shikoku, Japan at 16:08 UTC on January 21, 2022. The agency is reporting a depth of 40 km (24.8 miles). EMSC and USGS are reporting M6.3 at a depth of 41.8 km (26 miles). The epicenter was located…
New activity/unrest was reported for 4 volcanoes from January 12 to 18, 2022. During the same period, ongoing activity was reported for 16 volcanoes. New activity/unrest: Barren Island, Andaman Islands (India) | Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai, Tonga Islands | Piton…
Tsunami waves caused by the massive eruption at Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano in Tonga on January 15, 2022, hit a tanker that was unloading crude oil at a refinery in Lima, Peru, causing an ecological disaster. The incident took place in the district of…
A strong solar flare measuring M5.5 at its peak erupted from Active Region 2929 at 06:01 UTC on January 20, 2022. The event started at 05:41 and ended at 06:12 UTC. A Type II Radio Emission with an estimated velocity of 329 km/s was detected at 05:57 UTC. Type II…
Photos from the Kingdom of Tonga show streets and buildings covered in heavy ash after the massive eruption at Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai on January 15, 2022. While streets and roofs can be cleared, tsunami waves, up to 15 m (49 feet) in some places, and heavy…
Our planet entered a stream of fast-moving solar wind on January 18, 2022, sparking G2 – Moderate geomagnetic storm. A slightly enhanced solar wind environment is anticipated today as CH HSS effects taper, followed by a minor enhancement due to glancing blow effects…
A shallow earthquake registered by the USGS as M5.3 hit Qadis District of Badghis Province in western Afghanistan at 11:40 UTC on January 17, 2022. The agency is reporting a depth of 18.8 km (11.7 miles). EMSC is reporting M5.6 at a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). The…
The Tongan Navy has reported major damage in the Ha’apai Islands after the major eruption at Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano on January 15, 2022. Waves that hit Ha'apai Islands were estimated to be 5 – 10 meters (16 – 33 feet) in height, reaching…
The Kingdom of Tonga remains cut off from the rest of the world after a massive volcanic eruption at Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'pai volcano some 65 km (40 miles) N of capital Nuku'alofa on January 15, 2022. A 1.2 m (4 feet) tsunami hit Nuku'alofa some 30…
A large near-Earth asteroid designated 1994 PC1 will fly past Earth at a distance of 5.5 LD / 0.01325 AU (1.98 million km / 1.23 million miles) on January 18, 2022. This is the second-closest approach of this object to Earth since 1933. 1994 PC1 is an Apollo-class…
