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 newly discovered asteroid designated 2017 UR2 flew past Earth at 0.83 LD / 0.00213 AU (~318 643 km / 197 995 miles) on October 17, 2017, two days after it was discovered. This is the 43rd known asteroid to flyby Earth within 1 lunar distance since the start of the…
A small asteroid designated 2017 UJ2 flew past Earth at a very close distance of 0.05 LD or 0.00012 AU (~17 951 km / 11 154 miles) from the center of Earth on October 20, 2017, one day before it was discovered. This is the 42nd known asteroid to flyby Earth within 1…
Typhoon "Lan" is still very large and very strong typhoon located 695 km (430 miles) SW of Tokyo as of 09:45 UTC, Sunday, October 22, 2017, but is weakening. Warnings and advisories are now in place for almost the entire country. The storm is expected to…
On Thursday, October 19, a surveillance drone detected that the fracture in the crater of Agung volcano, Bali, Indonesia had widened since the satellite image taken Wednesday. While seismic activity under Agung is still increased, the seismic energy continues to…
Satellite images acquired October 15, 2017 show what appears to be a gas emission originating from Mount Michael on Saunders Island, South Atlantic Ocean. Prior to August 2015, the most recent eruptive activity detected was in the second half of 2012. Gas emissions…
After more than 5 years of quiescence, a powerful eruption started at Tinakula volcano, Temoto Province, Solomon Islands at 19:20 UTC on October 20, 2017. A second eruption was registered at 23:40 UTC. Heavy ashfall was reported on nearby islands. According to the…
Typhoon "Lan" is now a Super Typhoon heading toward Japan. Landfall is expected just southwest of Tokyo late Sunday (UTC), October 22 or early Monday, October 23, as a Category 2 or 3 hurricane equivalent on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Very…
A moderately strong solar flare measuring M1.1 at its peak erupted at 23:28 UTC on October 20, 2017 from the vicinity of old Region 2682, numbered 2673 two rotations ago. Radio signatures suggested and coronagraph imagery confirmed, a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) was…
Record-breaking rain and flooding it caused wreaked havoc across Queensland, Australia during the past 7 days, forcing evacuations, causing power outages, road closures, and widespread crop losses. At least 1 person has been killed and six are missing. For farmers,…
On October 19, 2017, Uganda's Minister of Health has officially declared the presence of Marburg virus disease, one of the most deadly known pathogens, in the eastern part of the country. The statement comes after one confirmed case was detected and died in…
