Rishika holds a Master’s in International Studies from Stella Maris College, Chennai, India, where she earned a gold medal, and an MCA from the University of Mysore, Karnataka, India. Previously, she served as a Research Assistant at the National Institute of Advanced Studies, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, India. During her tenure, she contributed as a Junior Writer for Europe Monitor on the Global Politics website and as an Assistant Editor for The World This Week. Her work has also been published in The Hindu newspaper, showing her expertise in global affairs. Rishika is also a recipient of the Women Empowerment Award at the district level in Haryana, India, in 2022.
The Aviation Color Code for White Island volcano in New Zealand was raised to Orange on December 16, 2024, following observations of occasional volcanic ash emissions alongside larger steam and gas plumes on December 14. The activity could lead to a new eruptive episode. The Volcanic Alert Level remains at 2.
The Icelandic Met Office (IMO) detected an earthquake swarm in Hofsjökull volcano on December 13, 2024, with the strongest quake recorded as M3.3 at a depth of 8.8 km (5.5 miles). The last eruption of the Hofsjökull volcano occurred approximately 12 000 years ago.
The Australian Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) issued Severe to Extreme Heatwave Warnings for parts of all states and territories except Tasmania on December 14, 2024. The conditions are forecast to persist until December 17 with temperatures expected to remain elevated before a cooling trend begins on December 18.
A civil defense project to further raise earthen dams around the Svartsengi Power Plant was initiated on December 9, 2024. The effort aims to safeguard the infrastructure against future lava flows.
A severe ice storm caused dangerous travel conditions across central and eastern Iowa on December 13 and 14, 2024, leading to dozens of crashes and power outages.
Larger steam and gas plumes have been detected at Whakaari/White Island volcano, New Zealand since December 10, 2024. The Volcanic Alert Level remains at 2 and the Aviation Color Code is maintained at Yellow. No ash emissions have been detected so far.
The much anticipated Geminid meteor shower of 2024 is set to peak during the night from Friday, December 13 to December 14, 2024. The Geminids typically have a broad peak, lasting around 24 to 36 hours, because the Earth passes through a dense section of debris from 3200 Phaethon over an extended period. However, this year, a waxing gibbous moon, approximately 90% illuminated, will be present in the sky, which may reduce the visibility of the fainter meteors.
A series of earthquakes struck near the New Madrid Fault Line in southeastern Missouri on December 9, 2024, with the strongest registering M3.0 at 06:27 UTC (12:27 local time), according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). This region, known as the New Madrid Seismic Zone, is the most seismically active area in the United States east of the Rocky Mountains.
A new eruption was observed at Home Reef submarine volcano in Tonga through satellite imagery acquired on December 7, 2024. This marks the second eruptive phase at Home Reef volcano this year.
At least 10 people are dead, two are missing, and more than 1 000 homes in 172 villages have been submerged following a week of heavy rains in Java, Indonesia, local officials confirmed on December 9, 2024.
