Historic rainfall paralyzes Hong Kong
Extremely heavy rains brought by the remnants of Typhoon “Haikui” caused severe floods across Hong Kong on September 8, 2023, causing widespread disruption, evacuations, and leading to at least two fatalities.
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.
M6.6 earthquake hits south of the Kermadec Islands, New Zealand
A strong earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.6 hit south of the Kermadec Islands, New Zealand at 09:09 UTC on September 8, 2023. The agency is reporting a depth of 89.8 km (55.8 miles). EMSC is reporting M6.6 at a depth of 32 km (20 miles).
Extremely close approach of asteroid 2023 RS at just 0.03 LD – the 5th closest on record
A newly-discovered asteroid designated 2023 RS flew past our planet at an extremely close distance of just 0.027 LD or 0.00007 AU (~10 361 km / 6 438 miles) from the center of Earth at 14:26 UTC on September 7. This is the 53rd known asteroid to fly past Earth within 1 lunar distance since the start of the year and the first so far this month.
Tropical Storm “Yun-yeung” heading toward Japan
Tropical Storm “Yun-yeung” formed on September 5, 2023, as the 13th named storm of the 2023 Pacific typhoon season. The cyclone is heading toward Japan, where it is expected to make landfall on September 8, bringing heavy rains and strong winds.
The Weekly Volcanic Activity Report: August 30 – September 5, 2023
New activity/unrest was reported for 3 volcanoes from August 30 to September 5, 2023. During the same period, ongoing activity was reported for 22 volcanoes.
Strong M6.2 earthquake hits near the coast of Coquimbo, Chile
A strong earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.2 hit near the coast of Coquimbo, Chile at 23:48 UTC on September 6, 2023. The agency is reporting a depth of 41.4 km (25.7 miles). EMSC is reporting the same magnitude and depth.
Lee expected to rapidly intensify into an extremely dangerous hurricane
Tropical Storm “Lee” formed on September 5, 2023, as the 13th named storm of the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season. The storm is expected to rapidly intensify into an extremely dangerous hurricane by the weekend.
Typhoon “Haikui” – Record-breaking rains hit Fuzhou, causing massive flash flooding, China
After sweeping over Taiwan, Typhoon “Haikui” hit China’s southeastern province of Fujian early September 5, 2023, dropping record-breaking rains. Haikui caused severe flash flooding and traffic chaos, damaged power and communication lines, and forced more than 30 000 people to evacuate. At least one person died.
Extreme rainfall, major flooding event in Greece
Weather models suggest Greece will continue to be impacted by a major rainfall event over the next two days, raising the threat of major flooding in parts of the country. At the same time, a Mediterranean tropical-like cyclone, known as a medicane, threatens to escalate flooding risks in Sicily, Malta, and Libya.
Exceptionally heavy rains hit Rio Grande do Sul, causing deadly floods, Brazil
At least four people died Monday, September 4, 2023, after an extratropical cyclone dumped extremely heavy rains that triggered severe floods and landslides in the southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. Parts of the northern half of the state received 2 and even 3 months’ worth of September rains in just 72 hours.
