Powerful Earthquake Strikes N. Sumatra, Indonesia

Serial No  1,542. If any posts are blocked in your country, please drop us a line.

Powerful earthquake measuring up to 7.9Mw strikes northern Sumatra, Indonesia

The quake struck at a depth of about 46km (28.6 miles) on April 06, 2010 at 22:15:02UTC about 205 km (125 miles) WNW of Sibolga, Sumatra, Indonesia. The epicenter was located at 2.236°N, 97.046°E.

The quake struck about 160km southeast of the magnitude 9.1 quake which triggered the destructive Boxing Day tsunami in 2004.

The epicenter was also about 34km NNW of the a magnitude 8.6 shock which occurred on March 28, 2005.

A magnitude 7.6 quake in West Sumatra in September 2009 killed 1,000 people, official records showed.

Tsunami Evaluation

The following bulletin was issued by the PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER/NOAA/NWS a short time ago:

SEA LEVEL READINGS INDICATE A TSUNAMI WAS GENERATED. IT MAY HAVE BEEN DESTRUCTIVE ALONG COASTS NEAR THE EARTHQUAKE EPICENTER. FOR THOSE AREAS – WHEN DAMAGING WAVES HAVE NOT OCCURRED FOR AT LEAST TWO HOURS THEN LOCAL AUTHORITIES CAN ASSUME THE THREAT IS PASSED. DANGER TO BOATS AND COASTAL STRUCTURES CAN CONTINUE FOR SEVERAL HOURS DUE TO RAPID CURRENTS.  AS LOCAL CONDITIONS CAN CAUSE A WIDE VARIATION IN TSUNAMI WAVE ACTION THE ALL CLEAR DETERMINATION
MUST BE MADE BY LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

NO TSUNAMI THREAT EXISTS FOR OTHER COASTAL AREAS IN THE INDIAN OCEAN ALTHOUGH SOME OTHER AREAS MAY EXPERIENCE SMALL SEA LEVEL CHANGES AND STRONG OR UNUSUAL COASTAL CURRENTS.

ESTIMATED INITIAL TSUNAMI WAVE ARRIVAL TIMES AT FORECAST POINTS WITHIN THE WARNING AND WATCH AREAS ARE GIVEN BELOW. ACTUAL ARRIVAL TIMES MAY DIFFER AND THE INITIAL WAVE MAY NOT BE THE LARGEST. A TSUNAMI IS A SERIES OF WAVES AND THE TIME BETWEEN SUCCESSIVE WAVES CAN BE FIVE MINUTES TO ONE HOUR.

LOCATION         FORECAST POINT     COORDINATES     ARRIVAL TIME
———————————————————————————————————
INDONESIA        SIMEULUE 2.5N  96.0E            22:46UTC 06 APR
+++++++++++BELAWAN 3.8N  98.8E            02:33UTC 07 APR

ADDITIONAL BULLETINS WILL BE ISSUED BY THE PACIFIC TSUNAMI  WARNING CENTER FOR THIS EVENT AS MORE INFORMATION BECOMES AVAILABLE.

THE JAPAN METEOROLOGICAL AGENCY MAY ISSUE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FOR THIS EVENT. IN THE CASE OF CONFLICTING INFORMATION…THE MORE CONSERVATIVE  INFORMATION SHOULD BE USED FOR SAFETY.

There was no report of damage or casualties, as of posting.  However, a major power blackout on Simeulue Island, west of Aceh province, Indonesia, has been reported.

Updates will posted in the comments section of this post.

Earthquake Details:

• Magnitude [USGS Estimate] 7.8
• Date-Time:
  • Tuesday, April 06, 2010 at 22:15:02 UTC
  • Wednesday, April 07, 2010 at 05:15:02 AM at epicenter
• Location: 2.236°N, 97.046°E
• Depth: 46 km (28.6 miles)
• Region: NORTHERN SUMATRA, INDONESIA
• Distances:
  • 205 km (125 miles) WNW of Sibolga, Sumatra, Indonesia
  • 230 km (145 miles) SW of Medan, Sumatra, Indonesia
  • 525 km (325 miles) W of KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia
  • 1425 km (880 miles) NW of JAKARTA, Java, Indonesia
• Location Uncertainty: horizontal +/- 7.4 km (4.6 miles); depth +/- 11.6 km (7.2 miles)
• Source: USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)
• Event ID: us2010utc5

Seismotectonics of the Indonesian Region

The Indonesian region is one of the most seismically active zones of the earth; at the same time it has a leading position from the point of view of active and potentially active volcanoes. It is a typical island-arc structure with its characteristic physiographic features, such as a deep oceanic trench, a geanticline belt, a volcanic inner arc and a marginal basin.

In most subduction zones, motion of the subducted plate is nearly perpendicular to the trench axis. In some cases, for example Sumatra, where the motion is oblique to the axis, a strike-slip fault zone is seen, and is lying parallel to the volcanic chain.

In the subduction zone southwest of Sumatra, the Sunda trench axis strikes approximately N 37°W. The Indian Ocean crust is moving in an azimuth of approximately N 23°E relative to Southeast Asia, giving an angle of obliquity of 60°. Eastern Indonesia, forming the southeastern extremity of the Southeast Asian lithospheric plate, crushed between the northward-moving Indo-Australian and the westward-moving Pacific plates, is certainly the most complex active tectonic zone on earth. The rate of subduction is some centimeters per year; for example, it is 6.0 cm per year in the West Java Trench at 0°S 97°E (azimuth 23°); 4.9 cm per year in the East Java Trench at 12°S 120°E (azimuth 19°); and 10.7 cm per year in New Guinea at 3°S 142°E (azimuth 75°).

Frequent volcanic eruptions and frequent earthquake shocks testify to the active tectonic processes which are currently in progress in response to the continued movement of these major plates. The distribution of small ocean basins, continental fragments, remnants of ancient magmatic arcs and numerous subduction complexes which make up the Indonesian region indicate that the past history of the region was equally tectonically active.

Abridged from Southeast Asia Association of Seismology and Earthquake Engineering, Series on Seismology, Volume V – Indonesia, June 1985. (Source: USGS/EHP)

Maps

• Politcal Map of Indonesia
• Seismic Hazard Map
• Earthquake Density Map
• Seismicity Map of Indonesia

• Geography of Indonesia

Related Links:

• Strong Quake Strikes Andaman Islands
  
• Magnitude 7.0ML Quake Strikes Obira Indonesia
• Large Quake Could Strike Near Padang, Sumatra
• Powerful quake shakes Sumbawa, Indonesia
• Powerful Earthquake Strikes Banda Sea

• Strong Quake Strikes Sunda Strait, Indonesia
• Recent Earthquakes ≥ 6.0 Mw
• Earth undergoing significant geophysical disturbances
• Earthquakes: Human Enhanced Disasters – UPDATE 3 Oct 2009

• FEWW Earthquake Links
• Volcanoes
• FEWW Volcano Links

Historic Earthquakes in Indonesia

• 1917 01 20 – Bali, Indonesia Fatalities 1,500
• 1938 02 01 – Banda Sea, Indonesia – M 8.5
• 1965 01 24 – Sanana, Indonesia (Ceram Sea) – M 7.6 Fatalities 71
• 1976 06 25 – Papua, Indonesia – M 7.1 Fatalities 5,000
• 1992 12 12 – Flores Region, Indonesia – M 7.8 Fatalities 2,500
• 2000 06 04 – Southern Sumatera, Indonesia – M 7.9 Fatalities 103
• 2002 10 10 – Irian Jaya, Indonesia – M 7.6 Fatalities 8
• 2002 11 02 – Northern Sumatera, Indonesia – M 7.4 Fatalities 3
• 2003 05 26 – Halmahera, Indonesia – M 7.0 Fatalities 1
• 2004 01 28 – Seram, Indonesia – M 6.7
• 2004 02 05 – Irian Jaya, Indonesia – M 7.0 Fatalities 37
• 2004 02 07 – Irian Jaya, Indonesia – M 7.3
• 2004 07 25 – Southern Sumatra, Indonesia – M 7.3
• 2004 11 11 – Kepulauan Alor, Indonesia – M 7.5 Fatalities 34
• 2004 11 26 – Papua, Indonesia – M 7.1 Fatalities 32
• 2004 12 26 – Sumatra-Andaman Islands – M 9.1 Fatalities 227,898
• 2005 01 01 – Off the West Coast of Northern Sumatra – M 6.7
• 2005 02 19 – Sulawesi, Indonesia – M 6.5
• 2005 02 26 – Simeulue, Indonesia – M 6.8
• 2005 03 02 – Banda Sea – M 7.1
• 2005 03 28 – Northern Sumatra, Indonesia – M 8.6 Fatalities 1,313
• 2005 04 10 – Kepulauan Mentawai Region, Indonesia – M 6.7
• 2005 05 14 – Nias Region, Indonesia – M 6.7
• 2005 05 19 – Nias Region, Indonesia – M 6.9
• 2005 07 05 – Nias Region, Indonesia – M 6.7
• 2005 11 19 – Simeulue, Indonesia – M 6.5
• 2006 01 27 – Banda Sea – M 7.6
• 2006 03 14 – Seram, Indonesia – M 6.7 Fatalities 4
• 2006 05 16 – Nias Region, Indonesia – M 6.8
• 2006 05 26 – Java, Indonesia – M 6.3 Fatalities 5,749
• 2006 07 17 – South of Java, Indonesia – M 7.7 Fatalities 730
• 2007 01 21 – Molucca Sea – M 7.5 Fatalities 4
• 2007 03 06 – Southern Sumatra, Indonesia – M 6.4 Fatalities 67
• 2007 07 26 – Molucca Sea – M 6.9
• 2007 08 08 – Java, Indonesia – M 7.5
• 2007 09 12 – Southern Sumatra, Indonesia – M 8.5 Fatalities 25
• 2007 09 12 – Kepulauan Mentawai region, Indonesia – M 7.9
• 2007 09 20 – Southern Sumatra, Indonesia – M 6.7
• 2007 10 24 – Southern Sumatra, Indonesia – M 6.8
• 2007 11 25 – Sumbawa Region, Indonesia – M 6.5 Fatalities 3
• 2008 02 20 – Simeulue, Indonesia – M 7.4 Fatalities 3
• 2008 02 25 – Kepulauan Mentawai region, Indonesia – M 7.2
• 2008 11 16 – Minahasa, Sulawesi, Indonesia – M 7.4 Fatalities 6
• 2009 01 03 – Near the North Coast of Papua, Indonesia – M 7.7 Fatalities 5
• 2009 01 03 – Near the North Coast of Papua, Indonesia – M 7.4
• 2009 02 11 – Kepulauan Talaud, Indonesia – M 7.2
• 2009 08 16 – Kepulauan Mentawai region, Indonesia – M 6.7
• 2009 08 28 – Banda Sea – M 6.9
• 2009 09 02 – Java, Indonesia – M 7.0 Fatalities 81
• 2009 09 30 – Southern Sumatra, Indonesia – M 7.5 Fatalities 1,117
• 2009 10 01 – Southern Sumatra, Indonesia – M 6.6
• 2009 10 24 – Banda Sea – M 6.9
• 2009 11 08 – Sumbawa region, Indonesia – M 6.6 Fatalities 2

El Niño Update [5 April 2010]

Serial No  1,541. If any posts are blocked in your country, please drop us a line.

ENSO Cycle: Recent Evolution, Current Status and Predictions

El Niño Weekly UPDATE prepared by Climate Prediction Center / NCEP –  5 April 2010

The latest weekly SST departures are:

• Niño 4   ~  0.9ºC
• Niño 3.4  ~  1.0ºC
• Niño 3 ~ 0.9ºC
• Niño 1+2 ~0.1ºC

El Niño Map. [SOURCE: NOAA/ Climate Prediction Center / NCEP]

SST Departures (ºC) in the Tropical Pacific During the Last 4 Weeks
During the last 4-weeks, equatorial SSTs were more than 1.0°C above average between 165°E and 120°W and near the western S. American coast.

Global SST Departures (ºC)
During the last four weeks, equatorial SSTs were above-average across the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic Oceans.

Weekly SST Departures (ºC) for the Last Four Weeks

• During the last four weeks, positive SST anomalies have persisted across the central, east-central, and far eastern Pacific.
• During the last 30 days, equatorial SST anomalies are nearly unchanged across much of the Pacific.

Global SST Departures (ºC)
During the last four weeks, equatorial SSTs were above-average across the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic Oceans.

Central & Eastern Pacific Upper-Ocean (0-300 m) Weekly Heat Content Anomalies
Since April 2009, the upper-ocean heat content has been above average across the eastern half of the equatorial Pacific Ocean. Sharp increases in heat content during June and October 2009 coincide with the development and subsequent strengthening of El Niño, respectively. Since late February 2010, the heat content anomalies have decreased.

Sub-Surface Temperature Departures  (ºC) in the Equatorial Pacific

• Since mid-February 2010, positive subsurface temperature anomalies increased in association with the downwelling phase of an oceanic Kelvin wave
• Recently, the Kelvin wave has increased temperatures in the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. The upwelling phase of the Kelvin wave has contributed to below-average temperatures at depth in the central Pacific.

Click image to enlarge.

Atmospheric Circulation over the North Pacific & North America During the Last 60 Days
During February, strong mid-latitude westerlies(East Asian and Atlantic jets) were accompanied by troughs overthe eastern North Pacific and near the eastern U.S. The anomalous troughs were associated with below-average temperatures over much of the central and eastern United States. At higher latitudes, strong ridging was associated with above-average temperatures across most of Canada. Since early March, the flow across the N. Pacific and Atlantic has weakened. This pattern has contributed to below-average temperatures across the southern U.S. while ridging and above-average temperatures were observed over Canada and the northeastern U.S.

Pacific Niño 3.4 SST Outlook

• A majority of the models indicate that the Niño-3.4 temperature departures will gradually decrease at least into the summer.
• The models are split with the majority indicating ENSO-neutral conditions by May-July 2010, which persistinto the fall. Several models also suggest the potential of continued El Niño conditions or the development of La Niña conditions during the late summer or fall.

SST Outlook: NCEP CFS Forecast Issued 4 April 2010

Summary
El Niño is present across the equatorial Pacific Ocean.
Sea surface temperatures (SST) are more than 1.0ºCabove-average across much of the central and eastern equatorial Pacific.
Based on current observations and dynamical model forecasts, El Niño is expected to continue at least through the Northern Hemisphere spring 2010.

Unless otherwise stated, information and images on this page are sourced from Climate Prediction Center/NCEP/NOAA. Edited by FEWW

Related Links:

• Your Worst Fears About El Niño

• Climate Locked into ‘Unending’ El Niño?
• What Florida Might Look Like in 2014
• SE Australia Toasted Brown
• UK Flooding
• Speaking of El Niño, OLR Anomalies in Australia
• El Niño Update [16 Nov 2009]
• Recognizing El Niño
• El Niño and La Niña: Tracing the Dance of Ocean and Atmosphere
• TAO Diagrams
• El Niño Forecasts

El Niño Updates – Last 4 Weeks:

• El Niño Update [29 March 2010]
• El Niño Update [22 March 2010]
• El Niño Update [15 March 2010]
• El Niño Update [8 March 2010]

• El Niño [Main Page, Links to Weekly Updates Archive]

Indian Point Nuke Plant Going Gone?

Serial No  1,540. If any posts are blocked in your country, please drop us a line.

NY State Denies Key Permit to Entergy Corp for its Indian Point Nuke Plant

Entergy Corp has been denied a request for a water-quality certification for its Indian Point nuclear power plant in New York, without which it cannot operate the  plant.

Indian Point nuclear plant seen from across the Hudson River.

Indian Point Energy Center (IPEC) is a three-unit nuclear power plant (unit one was shut down in 1974) located in Buchanan, New York.  The plant is situated on the east bank of the Hudson River, 50km (31 miles) north of Manhattan. Owned and operated by Entergy Corp, the plant provides about a third of electricity for the New York metro area.

The state regulators said that the plant’s cooling systems “do not and will not comply with existing New York State water quality standards.” The denial took into account a proposal for modification made by Entergy.

The ruling said Indian Point’s two operating units consume about 3.5 trillion liters (915 billion  gallons) of water each year destroying 1 billion fish and fish eggs, including the endangered shortnose sturgeon, thus violating state laws and the federal Clean Water Act.

An endangered species, the shortnose sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum) is a small North American sturgeon which live  in about a dozen or so large river and estuary systems along the North American Atlantic seaboard. They spawn in fresh water, making Hudson River an ideal habitat, where the largest adult population of about 30 – 40,000 are found.  “Sucked in with enormous volumes of water, battered against the sides of pipes and heated by steam, the small fry of the aquatic world are being sacrificed in large numbers each year to the cooling systems of power plants around the country.”

The president of environmental group Riverkeeper, Alex Matthiessen, said the ruling was a turning point in efforts to stop Indian Point’s “environmental assault on the Hudson River and force the plant’s early retirement due to the risks its continued operation poses to public health and safety.” Reuters reported.

“We’re disappointed in the notice of denial, but we expect to have an opportunity to convince the DEC it made a mistake,” Entergy spokesman Jim Steets said, adding that  the company has 30 days to request a public hearing, and that it will appeal the decision by the Department of Environmental Conservation.

Related Links:

• Fish, Fish Eggs Holocaust
• Indian Power Workers Drink Radioactive Water
• Three Mile Island Cats Have 9 Lives, Too?
• French Nuke Waste Plagues Siberia
• Q. How Can You Tell When Ecosystem Nears Collapse?

US Weather Forecast: Heavy Snow, Heavy Rain

Serial No  1,539. If any posts are blocked in your country, please drop us a line.

Possible Heavy Snow, More Snow, Rain and Thunder Storms,  Flash Flooding, Severe Thunder Storms and More Rain

Click Image to enlarge. (24-Hr FE ED).

• Click HERE to Animate Image. (Source: SSEC/Wisc-Uni)

Current Weather (Java Needed)

Forecast Map April 5  (PM)

Forecast Map Now

Click images to enlarge.

Precipitation Forecast (5-day)

Valid 12:00UTC  04/05/10 –  12:UTC 04/10/10
[contours only]

Precipitation Forecast (5-day)

Valid 00:00UTC 04/06/10 – 00:00UTC 04/11/10
[contours only]

National Weather Hazard (Snapshot)

• National Weather Hazard (Current)
  

Related Links:

• Weather
• Satellite Imagery
• Current Conditions (Daily forecast, drought outlook, weather warning, max. temps. UV Index …)

Year of Mine Explosions, Too?

Serial No  1,538. If any posts are blocked in your country, please drop us a line.

25 Miners Killed, 4 unaccounted for after coal mine explosion in Montcoal, West Virginia

If there was a direct relationship between the number of mine explosions and the amount of coal consumed globally, and there is, then 2010 should be regarded as worst year for mine blasts, so far.

The more coal dug  out, the more danger posed to the environment and individuals, especially those in the front lines.

At least 25 miners have been killed and 4 others are missing after an underground explosion caused the collapse of a Montcoal, West Virginia coal mine roof on Monday.

Massey Energy’s Mining Locations. Source Massey Energy. Image may be subject to copyright.

The explosion occurred at the Upper Big Branch Mine, about 50 km  (30 miles) south of Charleston, West Virginia, owned by Massey Energy’s subsidiary Performance Coal Co., officials were reported as saying.

A number of miners were also said to have received injuries, but no further details were available as of posting.

Massey Energy produced about 36.7 million tons of coal in 2009, with sales of about $2.32 billion, according to the company’s news release.

Company President Baxter Phillips said they had 2.3 billion tons of coal where that came from.

Massey Energy’s local Mountain Top Removal operation closest to Performance Coal Co., Raleigh County, West Virginia. Source Google.

Denuded areas are Massey Energy’s partial footprint in West Virginia. Click images to enlarge.

The deadliest mining disaster in the United States occurred also in West Virginia, when a mine explosion killed 362 people near Monongah, in 1907.

Since 1970, at least 150 people been killed in recorded mining incidents in the United States.

Here’s the formula once again:

More Coal = More Mine Explosions + More Climate Chaos + More Environmental Disasters + More Deaths

Related Links:

• Another Oil Leak Nightmare Made in Australia
• U.S. power plant explosion kills 50*
• 2010: Year One of Human-Enhanced Disasters
• Major Blackout Plunges Brazil into Darkness
• Murphy’s law has no time vector!