A recent study by Társilo Girona of the University of Alaska Fairbanks and Kyriaki Drymoni of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität in Munich proposed a new machine learning technique for predicting big earthquakes months in advance. The study, published in Nature Communications on August 28, 2024, intended to improve earthquake predictions and public safety.
An amazing dayling fireball was seen and heard over Eastern Cape, South Africa on Sunday, August 25, 2024. Initially thought of as space junk, it was later confirmed to be a car-sized meteor that entered the atmosphere between 06:30 and 07:00 UTC (08:30 and 09:00 LT). Reports of the following sonic boom were heard more than 200 km (124 miles) away from the site of the original sighting.
A large landslide struck the Pedersen Lagoon in Alaska at around 12:55 UTC on August 7, 2024, generating a 17 m (56 feet) high local tsunami. The landslide was confirmed by aerial photos of the region from August 9. Preliminary data suggests a total volume of 2 million m3 (6.5 million feet3).
Researchers discovered that Earth’s rotational slowing occurs in a staircase pattern rather than a flat drop. This pattern, discovered after intensive geological and astronomical investigation, shows alternating periods of stability and fast change in Earth’s rotation over the last 650 million years.
An analysis of data from Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) aboard the International Space Station has revealed an unexpected surplus of cosmic rays made of deuterons — atomic nuclei made up of a proton and a neutron.
A comprehensive study led by Grigoriy Doronin, using data from NASA’s Aura MLS and NOAA’s SWPC, examined mesospheric ozone depletion due to solar proton events (SPEs) over the past two decades. The study, which ran from 2004 to 2024, demonstrated the considerable impact of high-energy protons from the Sun on ozone levels, indicating notable changes in depletion patterns across the northern and southern hemispheres.
New research investigated the influence of extreme solar particle events on the Earth’s ozone layer and climate, concentrating on how these events interact with varying geomagnetic field strengths and providing crucial insights into possible hazards to human health and ecological stability.
A robust aftershock sequence, currently exceeding 450 earthquakes, continues to shake Kern County in Southern California after M5.2 on August 7, 2024 — the strongest quake to hit the region in three years.
A landslide in Farwell Canyon, British Columbia, Canada on July 30, 2024, caused a large section of earth to collapse, creating a 1 000 m long (3 281 feet) debris mound that obstructed the Chilcotin River. As water pooled behind the blockage, authorities issued urgent flood warnings and evacuation orders.
Johannes Kepler’s half-forgotten 1607 sunspot drawings were re-examined in a 2024 study and revealed previously hidden information about the solar cycles before the Maunder Minimum, a unique grand solar minimum in observational history. This study questions previous assumptions and improves on the historical chronology of solar cycles.
