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 powerful winter storm stranded more than 300 vehicles in the Andes mountains near the Argentina-Chile border on July 9, 2022. The Los Libertadores border crossing was later shut down by authorities.
Wheat prices jumped 6.6% worldwide in a single day with a decisive turnaround under the pressure of the resumption of dialogue between the US and China which seems interested in buying foreign wheat and corn, which marked an increase of 4.6%.
The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) raised the alert level for Tsurumidake and Garandake, Kyushu, Japan on July 8, 2022, from 1 to 2 (restriction on proximity to the crater). The last eruption at this volcano took place in the year 867 (VEI 3).
Some 15 000 people have been airlifted to safety after severe flash floods swept through makeshift camps during an annual Hindu pilgrimage to an icy Himalayan cave in Jammu and Kashmir, India. The cave is located at an altitude of 4.1 km (2.5 miles) and is covered with snow most of the year except for the short summer period when it is open to pilgrims.
A long-duration M2.5 solar flare erupted from AR 3053 at 20:49 UTC on July 8, 2022, producing a partial halo coronal mass ejection (CME).
Comet 2017 K2 (PanSTARRS) – dubbed ‘The Record-Breaker’ – will make its close approach to Earth on July 14, 2022, and then reach perihelion (the closest point to the Sun) on December 19, close to the orbit of Mars. The comet is record-breaking because it was already becoming active when it was discovered in 2017 under the feeble glow of the distant Sun.
Governments from Portugal to Italy are calling on citizens to limit water use to a bare minimum due to severe drought and scarce rainfall.
A confirmed EF-2 tornado touched down in Goshen, Ohio on July 6, 2022, causing extensive damage to hundreds of homes and injuring 2 people.
New activity/unrest was reported for 2 volcanoes from June 29 to July 5, 2022. During the same period, ongoing activity was reported for 21 volcanoes.
A very bright daylight fireball was seen and recorded over Wellington, New Zealand at around 01:50 UTC on July 7, 2022 (13:50 LT). The event lasted about 10 seconds and was followed by a loud boom. It provided a wealth of scientific data as it left signatures on weather radars, seismometers, and geostationary satellites.
