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.
Typhoon “Haikui” made landfall in Taiwan’s mountainous and sparsely populated eastern county of Taitung, along the coastal township of Donghe, at about 07:40 UTC (15:40 LT) with winds up to 155 km/h (96 mph).
A strong earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.1 hit Kuril Islands, Russia at 20:49 UTC on September 1, 2023. The agency is reporting a depth of 141.2 km (87.7 miles). EMSC is reporting the same magnitude and depth.
New activity/unrest was reported for 2 volcanoes from August 23 to 29, 2023. During the same period, ongoing activity was reported for 16 volcanoes.
Hurricane “Idalia” intensified from Category 1 to Category 4 in just 24 hours and made landfall shortly before 08:00 EDT (12:00 UTC) on Wednesday, August 30, 2023, near Keaton Beach in Florida’s Big Bend. The hurricane officially hit as a Category 3 storm with winds reaching 200 km/h (125 mph).
Idalia has strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane and is expected to become a major hurricane tonight before it reaches the Big Bend coast of Florida. It is likely to still be a hurricane while moving across southern Georgia, and possibly when it reaches the coast of Georgia or southern South Carolina on Wednesday.
A very strong earthquake registered by the USGS as M7.1 hit the Bali Sea, Indonesia at 19:55 UTC on August 28, 2023. The agency is reporting a depth of 516 km (320 miles). EMSC is reporting the same magnitude and depth.
New activity/unrest was reported for 3 volcanoes from August 26 – 22, 2023. During the same period, ongoing activity was reported for 20 volcanoes.
A deep earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.2 hit Argentina at 14:22 UTC on August 23, 2023. The agency is reporting a depth of 568.8 km (353.4 miles). EMSC is reporting M6.2 at a depth of 565 km (351 miles.
Tropical Storm “Hilary” — previously a Category 4 hurricane — reached California on August 20, 2023, marking its position as one of the rare storms to maintain integrity upon reaching the state. The storm, with surface winds over 80 km/h (50 mph), brought with it record-breaking rainfall and caused widespread flooding and power outages across the region.
Hilary rapidly strengthened into a Category 4 hurricane at 06:00 UTC on August 18, 2023, and continued moving WNW toward Baja California Peninsula, Mexico. Significant flooding impacts are possible across portions of the Baja California Peninsula and the southwestern United States.
