MONUMENTAL SOLAR SYSTEM CHANGES: Jupiter is Melting - Scientists Reveal That the Planet's Rocky Core Has Been Liquefying!

Jupiter might be having a change of heart. Literally. New simulations suggest that Jupiter's rocky core has been liquefying, melting, and mixing with the rest of the planet's innards. With this new data, astronomers hope to better explain a recent puzzling discovery of a strange planet outside of our solar system. "It's a really important piece of the puzzle of trying to figure out what's going on inside giant planets," said Jonathan Fortney, a planetary scientist at the University of California Santa Cruz who was not affiliated with the research.

Conventional planetary formation theory has modeled Jupiter as a set of neat layers with a gassy outer envelope surrounding a rocky core consisting of heavier elements. But increasing evidence has indicated that the insides of gas giants like Jupiter are a messy mixture of elements without strictly defined borders. This new research on a melting Jovian core bolsters a mixing model of gas giant planets and would provide another avenue for heavier elements to flow throughout the planet. "People have been working on the assumption that these planets are layered because it's easier to work on this assumption," said Hugh Wilson, a planetary scientist at the University of California Berkeley and a coauthor of the new research appearing in Physical Review Letters. Although scientists had previously toyed with the idea of melting cores in large planets, nobody sat down and did the necessary calculations, said Wilson. Scientists have to rely on calculations of Jupiter's core environment because the conditions there are far too extreme to recreate on Earth. Wilson and his UC-Berkeley colleague Burkhard Militzer used a computer program to simulate temperatures exceeding 7,000 degrees Celsius and pressures reaching 40 million times the air pressure found on Earth at sea level. Those conditions are thought to be underestimates of the actual conditions inside Jupiter’s core. Nonetheless, the authors found that magnesium oxide -- an important compound likely found in Jupiter's core -- would liquefy and begin drifting into Jupiter's fluid upper envelope under these relatively tame conditions.

Researchers believe that similarly-sized gas giant exoplanets -- planets found outside of our solar system -- probably have similar internal structures to Jupiter. Consequently, scientists were baffled earlier this year when they found a planet with approximately the same volume as Jupiter yet four to five times more mass. Called CoRoT-20b, the new planet was announced in February, and its discoverers searched for a suitable explanation for its unusual density. Using conventional models, the astronomers calculated that the core would have to make up over half of the planet. For comparison, Jupiter's core only represents about between 3-15 percent of the planet’s total mass. With a core that large, CoRoT-20b presented a huge problem for traditional assumptions surrounding planet formation. "It's much easier to explain the composition of this planet under a model where you have a mixed interior," said Wilson. Even the team that discovered the planet noted that a mixing model could allow for a more palatable planet density. Wilson's simulations not only add credence to the mixing model of giant planets but also suggest that this specific exoplanet's core is probably melting just like Jupiter's. This melting may help explain why the exoplanet's heavy elements are likely stirred up and distributed throughout its volume, said Wilson.

Santa Cruz's Fortney agrees that most of the exoplanet's heavy elements likely reside in the outer envelope. Nonetheless, he expects other factors played a larger role in how the planet's interior became mixed: "It's more of a planet formation issue." Several other events, such as two gas giants colliding together, might explain the ultra-high density of this new planet, Wilson admits. Certain processes may also limit the effectiveness of the melting and mixing process. Liquefied parts of a gas giant's core may have trouble reaching the outer envelope due to double diffusive convection -- a process commonly found in Earth's oceans. When salty water accumulates at the bottom of the ocean, its density keeps it from mixing thoroughly with the upper layers. In a similar fashion, the heavy elements in Jupiter's core may have trouble gaining enough energy to move upward and outward. Scientists don't know how much this hindrance will affect potential mixing inside Jupiter, and many other questions remain to be answered about the melting process. "The next question is, 'How efficient is this process?'" said Fortney. Researchers will have more tools to answer this question once NASA's Juno probe reaches Jupiter in 2016. With the spacecraft's instruments carefully analyzing Jupiter's composition, Wilson believes that there will be signatures of mixing and core erosion. - FOX News.

EXTREME WEATHER ANOMALIES: Unseasonably Warm Temperatures - Freak Canada Warmth Shatters March Records as Warmth in Northern US Stokes Fire Concerns!

Highest historical temperatures for March have been rewritten in much of eastern Canada this week in the face of extraordinary warmth. Wednesday, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec City were among the cities and towns marking monthly highs after readings soared into the summerlike mid-20s C, commonly 20 to 25 degrees C above normal, over a wide area.

Ottawa reached a July-like high of 27.4 degrees C (81 F). The old record high at the nation's capital city was 26.7 degrees C (80 F) set back on March 29, 1946. In nearby Montreal, Quebec, the high of 25.8 degrees C barely edged out the old mark of 25.6, which was reached on March 28, 1945. Likewise, Quebec City edged out its standing record high, hitting 18.3 degrees C (65 F). The old maximum was 17.8 degrees C, which was written into the climate books on March 30, 1962. If some standing records were nudged aside, others were simply annihilated. Take Saint John, New Brunswick, where, before this month, it had not officially warmed above 16.8 degrees C (62F). But this March 29, 1999, mark was shattered by Wednesday's top reading of 25.4 degrees C (78 F). While populous southern Ontario shared in the exceptional, record-setting warmth, the city of Toronto had, as of Wednesday, failed to reach its all-time March high of 25.6 C, set in March 28, 1945. Early fog and cooling from nearby Lake Ontario were enough to spare the standing record high, even though it was the fourth-straight daily record maximum. Thursday, Toronto was set to take one last swipe at the all-time high before a cold front pared the temperature much of the way back to normal. - AccuWeather.

The unseasonably warm weather giving many U.S. residents an early taste of summer has raised the danger of wildfires in some northern parts of the country where such fires are unusual, officials warned on Wednesday.

In Wisconsin, where several grassfires over the past week claimed hundreds of acres and were blamed for two deaths, the Department of Natural Resources issued a high and very high fire danger alert for half the state. The National Weather Service also issued fire weather watch warnings on Wednesday for parts of North Dakota and Montana. Forecasters said the current warm weather and low humidity, combined with the unusually mild and dry winter, had turned vegetation in many areas into kindling that easily could be set alight by lightning strikes or human carelessness. The Weather Service said the risk in North Dakota and Montana would be especially high on Thursday because gusty winds out of the southeast, kicked up by the storm that moved into Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi on Wednesday, would "increase the potential risk for explosive wildfire growth." "If the winds are strong enough and the humidity is low enough, when a fire does start it can quickly get out of control," said Ken Simosko, a meteorologist in the Weather Service's office in Bismarck, North Dakota. On Wednesday, about 170 small wildfires were still burning on about 300 acres across the state of Wisconsin, which is now entirely snow free -- a rarity this early in the year. "Weather in Wisconsin is kind of crazy these days," said Catherine Koele, the state's Department of Natural Resources wildfire prevention specialist. "Typically we see drought conditions in the summer months, but that could be earlier because of the earlier warmer temperatures," Koele said. Wisconsin officials are also concerned about the residual effects of a windstorm in the northwestern part of the state last July. The storm left about 130,000 acres of downed timber in five counties."It poses a huge fire risk," Koele said. "They got some rain in a last couple days, which is really great. But going forward, the fire risk is really a problem." The unusually mild winter, which has left a parched landscape behind, is as much to blame for the fire danger as the current warm weather and low humidity, forecasters said. - MSNBC.

MONUMENTAL SOLAR SYSTEM CHANGES: Mystery Rising Within Mercury - Mysterious and Unusual Dynamic Changing the Core in a Widespread and Surprising Manner?!

Something besides volcanic eruptions and asteroid and comet impacts has sculpted the surface of Mercury -- an unknown process, possibly still going on today, that causes the ground to swell from the inside out. The evidence, collected by a NASA spacecraft orbiting the innermost planet, is scattered all over Mercury, including a dramatic finding that half of the floor of the biggest crater on the planet has been raised above the walls.

The topographical mishmash is a visible manifestation of a much deeper mystery. New studies show Mercury's massive iron core is even bigger than expected, with a previously unknown solid layer of iron-sulfide buried beneath the mantle.  "Figuring out an internal structure that was consistent with Mercury's gravity field was very challenging," planetary scientist Maria Zuber, with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, told Discovery News. "Our geochemistry colleagues kept sending us back to the showers saying 'Your gravity field can't be right because none of the internal structure models are fitting.' But we do now know that we got the gravity field right. It was very difficult." And unprecedented. Scientists know of no other planet put together like Mercury, with a solid iron core surrounded by liquid iron topped by solid iron-sulfide. Together, the core now accounts for a whopping 85 percent of the planet's structure, leaving a relatively puny mantle and crust.

"One of the things this has told us is that there are some unusual dynamics in the interior of Mercury going on that we haven't thought about before and that we don't understand," Zuber said. "Mercury is showing us that there are other processes at work that are changing the topographic heights by kilometers in some instances," added Carnegie Institution planetary scientist Sean Solomon, lead researcher of the ongoing NASA MESSENGER mission. "Directions that used to be level or downhill are far from level or are no longer downhill. Those changes have to be coming from inside Mercury," Solomon told Discovery News. "The magnitude and the widespread nature of these changes is a big surprise. If we can figure out how to read these changes, we will learn a lot more about how the interior of Mercury operated," he said. The research was presented Wednesday at the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference in Houston and will be published in this week's Science. - Discovery News.

GLOBAL VOLCANISM: Eruption Update for Santorini, Nevado del Ruiz, Etna and Iliamna!

The following constitutes the volcano report from Erik Klemetti, who has also been documenting global volcanism online on WIRED.

Not a lot of new activity, but lots of news of rumblings from different volcanoes worldwide:

Webcam capture of the 22nd paroxysm since January 2011 of Etna in Italy, as seen on March 18, 2012.

Greece
Last week saw a lot of news about a new study that measured inflation at Santorini in the Aegean Sea occurring over the last 5 years. Combine that with the sharp increase in earthquakes, and it all points to magma rising under the famed caldera. The lead scientist on the research, Andrew Newman of Georgia Tech, estimates ~0.14 cubic km of magma has entered the upper part of the magmatic system under Santorini since January 2011 (clearly not an insignificant volume). You can get an idea of the rates and directions of inflation from this animated GIF from the research group. Now, any time a volcano with a legendary eruption like the Thera eruption that may have played a role in the fall of the Minoan empire, you definitely expect hyperbole and hysteria from the media. However, if an eruption happens at Santorini, expect it to be like the eruptions in 1939 and 1950. These eruptions added to the domes in the middle of the Thera caldera – impressive events on their own, but not the cataclysmic event of ~1610 B.C.

Colombia
All eyes are on Nevado del Ruiz right now and much like Santorini, Ruiz appears to be headed towards a new eruptive period. Last week’s Smithsonian/USGS Volcanic Activity Report mentioned “a gas plume rose 1.4 km above Arenas crater, originating from multiple emission sources and thermally anomalous areas within the crater” and the latest update from the Colombian Geological Survey (INGEOMINAS) mentions that the sharp increase in seismicity under Ruiz has continued, with earthquakes ranging in depth from 0.1 to 10 km below the edifice. They also suggest that sulfur dioxide emissions are up, although no values are given. Restrictions have been placed on tourists in the Los Nevados National Park, specifically for the area at the foot of Nevado del Ruiz.

Alaska
Iliamna is also continuing to rumble – and steam. The increased levels of seismicity at the Alaskan volcano has not abated while new pictures of the summit area clearing some a lot of steaming (see above). Both of these signs suggest new magma in the volcano, but so far there aren’t any other signals to say an eruption is very close. AVO has had Iliamna on Yellow/Advisory status since early March, however AVO geologist note that this activity is very similar to another uptick in seismicity and steaming that occurred in 1996 that did not lead to an eruption. The rumblings in 1996 lasted for almost a year before the volcano settled to background activity. You can follow the activity on the Iliamna webcam or webicorder.

Italy
Etna saw yet another paroxysm on March 18 – making it 22 paroxysms since January 2011 and the 4th of 2012. As with almost all the other events, the eruption saw strombolian explosions, fire fountains and lava flows issued from the volcano (see below). With only 2 weeks since the last paroxysm, the interval between is the shortest in the past five months, so when April 1 rolls around, it will be interested to see if Etna keeps up this pattern.

THESIS, ANTI-THESIS & SYNTHESIS: Earth Changes and the New World Order - Scientific Report Calls For Effective World Government to Stave Off Climate Catastrophe?!

A policy article authored by several dozen scientists appeared online March 15 in Science to acknowledge the following point: “Human societies must now change course and steer away from critical tipping points in the Earth system that might lead to rapid and irreversible change. This requires fundamental reorientation and restructuring of national and international institutions toward more effective Earth system governance and planetary stewardship.”

Receding Himalayan glaciers - one of the many monumental changes taking place across the planet.

The report summarized 10 years of research evaluating the capability of international institutions to deal with climate and other environmental issues, an assessment that found existing capabilities to effect change sorely lacking. The authors called for a “constitutional moment” at the upcoming 2012 U.N. Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio in June to reform world politics and government. Among the proposals: a call to replace the largely ineffective U.N. Commission on Sustainable Development with a council that reports to the U.N. General Assembly, at attempt to better handle emerging issues related to water, climate, energy and food security.

The report advocates a similar revamping of other international environmental institutions. Unfortunately, far more is needed. To be effective, a new set of institutions would have to be imbued with heavy-handed, transnational enforcement powers. There would have to be consideration of some way of embracing head-in-the-cloud answers to social problems that are usually dismissed by policymakers as academic naivete. In principle, species-wide alteration in basic human behaviors would be a sine qua non, but that kind of pronouncement also profoundly strains credibility in the chaos of the political sphere. Some of the things that would need to be contemplated: How do we overcome our hard-wired tendency to “discount” the future: valuing what we have today more than what we might receive tomorrow? Would any institution be capable of instilling a permanent crisis mentality lasting decades, if not centuries? How do we create new institutions with enforcement powers way beyond the current mandate of the U.N.? Could we ensure against a malevolent dictator who might abuse the power of such organizations? - Scientific America.

EXTREME WEATHER: 9 Killed by Avalanches in Chitral and Yasin in Pakistan!

4 female and a child died hit avalanche at Khot Wah area of Garamchishma. According to District Police Officer Chitral a powerful avalanche has hit the house of Sardar at Khotwah village of Garamchishma.  The Avalanche struck the valley during the dead night while people were sleeping.

Those who died were identified as Rashida Bibi, wife of Mr.Sardar of 28-year old,Sufaida Bibi daughter of Sardar  who was 16, Zareen Bibi daughter of Sardar 9, Shahida Bib daughter of Rahim 18 and Nibah Bibi daughter of Sardar of 3-year old. Local volunteers, Chitral scouts and Chitral police have reached on the spot and started rescue activities. They recovered 4 dead bodies and dead body of a child Nibah bib was still missing as of this report. Besides, the main road of Garamchishma, Mastuj and upper chitral are close due to snowfall land sliding and avalanches. Recently extreme weather has engulfed the northern part of Pakistan.

Earlier the Dardistan Times reported that 4 people of one family were hit by an Avalanche in Qorqolty valley of Yasin in the Ghizar District.“The Avalanche was triggered by the heavy rain and it originated from the mountains of Matoi along Dadang Chhar. It has destroyed properties along the way and has crossed the Qorqolti River. Tika Khan Family and several other families live Shhong Yatey and the area is hit by Avalanche almost every year. This year the residents were not lucky enough to get away the calamity” DT report said. Several avalanches have hit several parts of Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral area and the weather continues getting worsen. - The Dardistan Times.

MONUMENTAL EARTH CHANGES: Coldest, Deepest Ocean Water Mysteriously Disappears?!

The coldest deep ocean water that flows around Antarctica in the Southern Ocean has been mysteriously disappearing at a high rate over the last few decades, scientists have found.  This mass of water is called Antarctic Bottom Water, which is formed in a few distinct locations around Antarctica, where seawater is cooled by the overlying air and made saltier by ice formation (which leaves the salt behind in the unfrozen water). The cold, salty water is denser than the water around it, causing it to sink to the sea floor where it spreads northward, filling most of the deep ocean around the world as it slowly mixes with warmer waters above it.

A layer of Antarctic Bottom Water colder than 0ºC (colors, with darkest blue areas having the thickest layer,
and white none) covers the ocean floor around Antarctica (center, shaded grey). Rates at which this layer is
thinning during the study period (red numbers in meters per decade) are shown for for each deep basin
(outlined by thin grey lines). These rates are estimated using data from repeated oceanographic expeditions
(ship tracks shown by thick black lines). Note that seawater at the ocean surface stays liquid even at
temperatures approaching -2ºC because of its high salt content.

The world's deep ocean currents play a critical role in transporting heat and carbon around the planet, which helps regulate the Earth's climate.  Previous studies had indicated that this deep water has become warmer and less salty over the past few decades, but a new study has found that significantly less of this water has also been formed during this time.  Oceanographers examined temperature data collected from 1980 to 2011 at about 10-year intervals by an international program of repeated ship-based oceanographic surveys in the Southern Ocean.  They found that Antarctic Bottom Water has been disappearing at an average rate of about 8 million metric tons per second over the past few decades, equivalent to about 50 times the average flow of the Mississippi River, according to statement from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which helped fund the data collection. 

"In every oceanographic survey repeated around the Southern Ocean since about the 1980s, Antarctic Bottom Water has been shrinking at a similar mean rate, giving us confidence that this surprisingly large contraction is robust," said lead author of the study Sarah Purkey, a graduate student at the University of Washington in Seattle.  What's causing the reduction and what it means are things the researchers must still investigate. "We are not sure if the rate of bottom-water reduction we have found is part of a long-term trend or a cycle," said co-author Gregory C. Johnson, an oceanographer at NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Seattle. Changes in the temperature, salt content, dissolved oxygen and dissolved carbon dioxide of this prominent water mass have important ramifications for Earth's climate, including contributions to sea level rise and the rate of Earth's heat uptake.   "We need to continue to measure the full depth of the oceans, including these deep ocean waters, to assess the role and significance that these reported changes and others like them play in the Earth's climate," Johnson said. - Our Amazing Planet.

GLOBAL VOLCANISM: The Weekly Volcanic Activity Report - New Unrest and Ongoing Activities From March 14th to 20th; Part 1!

The following constitutes the new unrest and ongoing activities report from the Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, a cooperative project between the Smithsonian's Global Volcanism Program and the US Geological Survey's Volcano Hazards Program.

ETNA Sicily (Italy) 37.734°N, 15.004°E; summit elev. 3330 m

Sezione di Catania - Osservatorio Etneo reported that the twenty-second paroxysmal eruptive episode since January 2011 took place at New SE Crater (New SEC) of Etna during the morning of 18 March following two weeks of quiescence. Roaring from high-pressure degassing was heard on 16 March. The next day there was incandescence and multiple vapor clouds with minor ash content that rose from New SE Crater. In the early hours of 18 March the incandescence intensified due to Strombolian activity on the crater floor, and volcanic tremor amplitude rapidly increased. Strombolian activity continued to intensify, and just before 0700 lava flowed through the deep breach in the SE crater rim. At about 0825 the ash content in the gas plume rising from the crater became more significant and pulsating lava fountains from a vent on the crater floor rose about 100 m high. Shortly before 0900 two vents were active within the crater and a jet of lava was emitted from another vent within the breach in the SE crater rim. During 0900-0915 lava fountaining was essentially continuous from all three vents. An intense shower of coarse-grained pyroclastic material falling onto the N and NE flanks of the cone generated avalanches and clouds of rock and dust, which traveled to the base of the cone. A plume rose 4-5 km above Etna and drifted E. Ash and lapilli fell mainly in the area between the villages of Zafferana Etnea and Sant'Alfio, extending toward the Ionian Sea between Riposto and Pozzillo.

The main lava flow descended the steep W slope of the Valle del Bove. Several lava lobes, however, took a more northerly path to areas covered with thick snow. The interaction of the lava and snow led to rapid melting of the snow, generating small lahars, and strong explosions that produced ground-hugging vapor-and-ash clouds resembling pyroclastic flows, which repeatedly descended on the floor of the Valle del Bove. The vapor-and-ash clouds rose 1-1.5 km above the floor of the Valle del Bove. This phenomenon continued intermittently for some time after the cessation of the lava fountaining and ash emission, until about 1130.
Lava fountaining and strong ash emission continued without significant variations until about 1040; afterwards the activity rapidly diminished in intensity, and the last ash clouds were observed around 1110. Similar to the previous episodes, the lava that flowed through the breach in the SE crater rim advanced for several hours after the cessation of the paroxysmal activity into the upper part of the Valle del Bove. The lava reached a distance of about 4 km from the source, stagnating S of Monte Centenari. A small lava flow, emitted from a fracture on the N flank of the cone, followed the same path as a flow emitted from the same fracture during the 4 March paroxysm, and traveled a few hundred meters. Map

ILIAMNA Southwestern Alaska 60.032°N, 153.090°W; summit elev. 3053 m

AVO reported that during 9-20 March seismicity at Iliamna was above background levels. Satellite images acquired during 9-16 March showed a plume drifting 56 km downwind that was likely water vapor. The report noted that long-lived fumaroles at the summit of Iliamna frequently produced visible plumes, but the current plume appeared to be more robust than usual. Scientists aboard an overflight on 17 March observed vigorous and plentiful fumaroles at the summit, consistent with the elevated gas emissions. Gas measurements indicated that the volcano was emitting elevated levels of sulfur dioxide and carbon dioxide. The Alert Level remained at Advisory and the Aviation Color Code remained at Yellow. Map

NEVADO DEL RUIZ Colombia 4.895°N, 75.322°W; summit elev. 5321 m

According to INGEOMINAS, the Observatorio Vulcanológico and Sismológico de Manizales reported that during 12-18 March seismicity at Nevado del Ruiz decreased but gas emissions remained at significant levels. Gas plumes rose 2 km above the crater and sulfur dioxide odors were reported by local people. The Alert Level remained at III (Yellow; "changes in the behavior of volcanic activity"). Map

CLEVELAND Chuginadak Island 52.825°N, 169.944°W; summit elev. 1730 m

AVO reported that a small explosion from Cleveland was detected at 1455 on 13 March by distant seismic stations and infrasound arrays. Weather conditions prevented the detection of a possible eruption cloud in satellite images or by visual observation of the summit. No other activity was detected during 14-19 March. The Volcano Alert Level remained at Watch and the Aviation Color Code remained at Orange. No current seismic information was available because Cleveland does not have a real-time seismic network. Map

For the complete list with  geological summary, click HERE.

GLOBAL VOLCANISM: The Weekly Volcanic Activity Report - New Unrest and Ongoing Activities From March 14th to 20th; Part 2!

The following constitutes the new unrest and ongoing activities report from the Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, a cooperative project between the Smithsonian's Global Volcanism Program and the US Geological Survey's Volcano Hazards Program.

KARYMSKY Eastern Kamchatka (Russia) 54.05°N, 159.45°E; summit elev. 1536 m

KVERT reported that during 9-16 March seismic activity from Karymsky continued to be detected and indicated that possible ash plumes rose to an altitude of 3.1 km (10,100 ft) a.s.l. on 14 March. Satellite imagery showed a thermal anomaly on the volcano during 10-13 March. The Aviation Color Code remained at Orange. Map

KILAUEA Hawaii (USA) 19.421°N, 155.287°W; summit elev. 1222 m

During 14-20 March, HVO reported that the lava lake periodically rose and fell in the deep pit within Kilauea's Halema'uma'u Crater. Almost daily measurements indicated that the gas plume from the vent continued to deposit variable amounts of ash and fresh spatter nearby. Incandescence was visible from both a small pit on the NE edge and a small spatter cone on the SE edge of the Pu'u 'O'o crater floor, and on the upper part of the lava-tube system on the E flank. Lava flows continued to advance down the pali and across the coastal plain, and were about 2 km from the coast.Map

KIZIMEN Eastern Kamchatka (Russia) 55.130°N, 160.32°E; summit elev. 2376 m

KVERT reported moderate seismic activity at Kizimen during 9-16 March and a large thermal anomaly that was detected in satellite images. Video and satellite observations indicated both continued effusion of a large lava flow on the E flank and hot avalanches. Strong gas-and-steam activity was observed with the video camera. The Aviation Color Code remained at Orange. Map

POPOCATEPETL México 19.023°N, 98.622°W; summit elev. 5426 m

CENAPRED reported that during 14-20 March steam-and-gas emissions rose from Popocatépetl and incandescence from the crater was observed at night. Emissions contained small amounts of ash on 14 March. On 18 March emissions again contained a small amount of ash and were accompanied by increased incandescence from the crater. Map

PUYEHUE-CORDON CAULLE Central Chile 40.590°S, 72.117°W; summit elev. 2236 m

Based on seismicity detected during 13-20 March, OVDAS-SERNAGEOMIN reported that the eruption from the Cordón Caulle rift zone, part of the Puyehue-Cordón Caulle volcanic complex, continued at a low level. Plumes observed during 13-16 March in web camera and satellite images rose 0.4-1.2 km above the crater, and drifted 30 km E on 14 March, 20 km N on 15 March, and 17 km NNE on 19 March. Incandescence from the crater was observed during 13-14 and 16-20 March. The Alert Level remained at Red. Map

For the complete list with  geological summary, click HERE.

MYSTERY: Symbol of an Alien Sky, Man-Made or Natural Phenomena - Unidentified Space Object Falls From the Sky in Siberia?!

Space experts are trying to solve the mystery of ‘a UFO fragment’ which crashed close to a village in Siberia. Locals insist the metallic object – which resembles a large rubbish bin – fell from the skies but initial checks by experts have concluded it is neither from a rocket nor a missile. It is now under police guard as interest in the ‘visitor’ intensifies.

Weighing 200 kilograms and around two metres in height, locals fixed it onto a trailer and took across the snow to the village where local inspectors checked it. ‘The object found is not related to space technology. A final conclusion can be made after a detailed study of the object by experts,' said the Russian space agency Roscosmos. Locals insist the metallic object - resembling a large shiny rubbish bin - fell from the skies. The object is six feet long and is at least partially made of titanium steel. It's now under police guard as interest in the 'visitor' intensifies. It was found near a village called Otradnensky some two thousand miles and three time zones east of Moscow. The Russian media immediately claimed ‘fragments of a UFO’ were discovered in the remote forest. Locals had heard strange sounds in the thick woodland in December, it was claimed. But it was only on Sunday that the find was reported to local police who then alerted Moscow. Yuri Bornyakov, head of rescue service department of Kuibyshevski district of Novosibirsk region, said: ‘We measured the radiation level near and inside the object. We found no radiation here.’ 

Initial theories that it was part of a space rocket or a satellite form a failed launch in Kazakhstan have been denied. Head of Department for Civil Defence and Emergency Situations of the Kuibyshevski, Valery Vasiliev, said part of the fragment was made of ultra strong titanium. Finder Sergey Bobrov undertook in an official statement that he would keep the UFO safe, but locals reported that  ‘police came during the night and secretly removed it’. A local police spokesman confirmed the object was now under guard by the force on orders from unspecified authorities. ‘You can see inside it, all is open, it's empty, no danger here. We were asked to take and store it. We brought it here. And now we are going to wait until they come to take it if they need it’ said Sergei Sulein. - Daily Mail.

 WATCH: Images of the "UFO Fragment".

RATTLE & HUM: "The Sounds of the Apocalypse" - Mysterious Loud 'Booms' Strike Cape Fear, North Carolina?!

Big booms and shaking were felt along the North Carolina coast Tuesday that have some people worried. Now, folks are booming with big bang theories on what they say causes the mysterious rocking and rolling along the coast.

"Anything that can shake the houses, not just one or two houses, but a whole neighborhood and it can be heard from Southport to Bolivia and Sunset Harbor, it has to be something big," said Bolivia resident Erick Myles. Folks across the Cape Fear say the mysterious booms are back and this time they seem stronger than ever. People say they had different experiences depending on where they were at the time. "It's kind of freaky to me because I heard it but I didn't see anything," said Southport resident Jamie Hoffmann. "I didn't hear the booms but I felt shaking twice," said Boiling Spring Lakes resident Ruth Finley.

Everyone we talked to said this was not the first time they have experienced the unknown sound and shaking. Some folks even say they hear the booms every week. One thing is for sure, people say they want answers. Seismologist say nothing registered on the Richter Scale Tuesday in our area and the military says it is not responsible for the sounds or shaking. Although scientists and authorities can't seem to pinpoint where the noise is coming from, residents have their own theories. "I know that there's an explanation and it has to be military," Myles said. "The ocean," said Hoffmann. "Something with the ocean."

"I think they're earthquakes," said Finley. "Tremors." Some people we talked to said they were very concerned with the booms now that we're nearing the end of the Mayan calendar which some people believe marks the end of the world. They say the confusion surrounding the booms only builds up their theory that we're nearing the end of days. - WWAYTV3.

WATCH: Mysterious booms heard in Cape Fear.

RATTLE & HUM: "The Sounds of the Apocalypse" - Loud Booms Reported Go Unsolved in Savannah, Georgia?

Some in people in Savannah, Georgia, described the noise as explosions. Others called it cannon fire. Whatever it was, at least a few people are likely to attribute the mysterious sounds to a UFO.

Boom noises were reported in Ashland County on Saturday night, but authorities were unable to identify the source. Residents from Jeromesville to Savannah reported hearing loud sounds around 7 p.m. "Apparently some residents, mostly around Savannah, heard what they described as loud bangs, cannon fire and in some cases, explosions," said Ashland County Sheriff's Deputy Kurt Schneider. "We sent a couple of guys up to that area to check it out and nobody saw anything at all."


He said 9-1-1 calls came in a cluster, but no further calls came later in the night. "There were no crashes, no fires, no reports of anyone being hurt," Schneider said. He said deputies responded to one residence on a tip it was the source of the noises, but an investigation proved otherwise. "We even checked the fracking site where they were doing the drilling, and it was all quiet over there, too," he said. - Mansfield News Journal.

GLOBAL VOLCANISM: The Weekly Volcanic Activity Report - New Unrest and Ongoing Activities From March 14th to 20th; Part 3!

The following constitutes the new unrest and ongoing activities report from the Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, a cooperative project between the Smithsonian's Global Volcanism Program and the US Geological Survey's Volcano Hazards Program.

SAKURA-JIMA Kyushu 31.585°N, 130.657°E; summit elev. 1117 m

JMA reported that on 12 March an explosion from Sakura-jima's Showa crater ejected tephra that landed as far as 2 km from the crater. Based on information from JMA, the Tokyo VAAC reported that during 14-21 March explosions often produced plumes that rose to altitudes of 1.5-2.7 km (5,000-9,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted N, NW, and SE. Pilots observed ash plumes during 18-20 March that rose to altitudes of 1.2-4 km (4,000-13,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted SE and E. Map

WATCH: Sakurajima erupts violently.

SHIVELUCH Central Kamchatka (Russia) 56.653°N, 161.360°E; summit elev. 3283 m

KVERT reported that activity at Shiveluch increased on 10 March and during 10-14 March daily explosions produced ash plumes that rose to altitudes of 3-5 km (10,000-16,400 ft) a.s.l. During 10-16 March ground-based observers and satellite imagery indicated that a viscous lava flow continued to effuse in the crater formed during a 2010 eruption. Satellite imagery showed a thermal anomaly on the volcano and ash plumes that drifted 64 km NE and SE during 10-11 and 13 March. The Aviation Color Code remained at Orange. Based on information from Yelizovo Airport (UHPP) and satellite images, the Tokyo VAAC reported that an ash plume rose to an altitude of 5.2 km (17,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted SE. Map

SOUFRIERE HILLS Montserrat 16.72°N, 62.18°W; summit elev. 915 m

MVO reported that on 9 March at 1720 a small pyroclastic flow from the Soufrière Hills lava dome traveled about 1.75 km W down Spring Ghaut and produced a small ash cloud that rose 1.2 km and drifted W. During 9-16 March activity was at a low level. The Hazard Level remained at 2. Map

TUNGURAHUA Ecuador 1.467°S, 78.442°W; summit elev. 5023 m

IG reported that, although visual observations of Tungurahua during 14-20 March were mostly limited due to cloud cover, steam plumes were noted on 18 March which drifted W. On 19 March explosions were detected by the seismic network. During brief periods where the crater was visible, observers noted incandescence emanating from the crater and a few blocks rolling 200 m down the flank. Slight ashfall was reported in Choglontus (8 km SW), Manzano (8 km SW), and Penipe (15 km SW) the next morning. Map

VILLARRICA Central Chile 39.42°S, 71.93°W; summit elev. 2847 m

According to Projecto Observación Visual Volcán Villarrica (POVI), spattering from Villarrica's lava lake was visible during 7-9 March. Four small ash emissions were observed during 13-14 March. Map

For the complete list with  geological summary, click HERE.

RATTLE & HUM: "The Sounds of the Apocalypse" - Mysterious Noise Rattles Barrie Neighbourhood in Ontario?!

A neighbourhood in Barrie's northwest end was rattled Tuesday night when a "sonic boom" brought residents out of their homes.

Rob Higgins and his two sons were watching TV around 10 p.m. when a loud noise, described as jet plane breaking the sound barrier, ripped through the Wallace Drive home. "It was like a loud sonic boom. When I went outside, numerous neighbours came out to see what happened," Higgins said. "No one could see anything. Some people said it sounded like a major car crash."

At least 10 neighbours were on the street looking around in curiosity when Higgins and his family were surprised by the sound. "Originally, I thought it was some huge thing was thrown at our house. Not a car, but maybe a big barrel or something large," he said. "I went outside a realized everyone heard something and it couldn't have just been our house." Barrie police said there were no calls for service in the area at the time or reports matching a loud sound. If anyone heard the sound or knows what it is contact the Examiner at 705-726-6537, ext 282. - The Barrie Examiner.

GLOBAL VOLCANISM: Geological Deformations - Recent Inflation at the Santorini Volcano Measured by Scientists!

The Santorini volcano has remained relatively calm for 60 years since its last eruption in 1950, but started to re-awake in early 2011 with beginning inflation and increased seismic activity under the volcano. A brand-new study of a team around Professor Andrew Newman, a geophysicist from Georgia Tech university, is now publishing the results of deformation measurements using precise GPS measurements in the scientific journal Geophysical Research Letters.

The scientists have set up more than 20 GPS stations on the island in 2006. From 2006 until early 2011, no significant relative movements were measured. This changed in early 2011: "After decades of little activity, a series of earthquakes and deformation began within the Santorini caldera in January of 2011," said Newman. "Since then, our instruments on the northern part of the island have moved laterally between five and nine centimeters. The volcano’s magma chamber is filling, and we are keeping a close eye on its activity." Newman cannot be certain whether an eruption is imminent since observations of such activity on these types of volcanoes are limited. In fact, similar calderas around the globe have shown comparable activity without erupting. However, Newman says the chamber has expanded by 14 million cubic meters since last January. That means enough magma has been pumped into the chamber to fill a sphere 3 football fields across. The most likely scenario for the next eruption (should it occur within years to decades) would be an event comparable to the eruptions in the past centuries, such as the 1925-28,l 1939-41 eruptions. "That could be dangerous," notes Newman. "If the caldera erupts underwater, it could cause local tsunamis and affect boat traffic, including cruise ships, in the caldera. Earthquakes could damage homes and produce landslides along the cliffs."

More than 50,000 tourists a day flock to Santorini in the summer months (from May to October), and it is common to see 5-10 cruise ships in the caldera near Fira. Santorini has produced one of the largest eruptions in human history. The Minoan eruption which occurred in around 1613 BC, was a major plinian eruption ranking 6-7 on the VEI scale and erupted about 30 cubic km of rhyolite magma. It devastated and reshaped the island at that time, which was inhabited by a sophisticated people related to the Minoans, and caused regional and world-wide disturbances. Such an event is fortunately not likely to be expected any time soon. The geologic history of Santorini suggests that such major eruptions have been occurring at large intervals of roughly 20-30,000 years, during several cycles during the past 400,000 years, and follow long (thousands of years) quiescence intervals. According to the study of Newman, the current inflation in the magma chamber is less than 1 percent of the Minoan blast. - Volcano Discovery.

CELESTIAL CONVERGENCE: Mars And The New M95 Supernova Explosion!

Image Taken: Mar. 18, 2012.  Location: Salamanca, Spain

"On March 18th, I photographed the planet Mars among the galaxies of Leo," reports amateur astronomer Oscar Martín Mesonero of Salamanca, Spain. "The next morning, I learned that a supernova exploded in the galaxy M95. I quickly checked the photos and there it was!"

"Unwittingly, using my ED80, I had photographed a supernova of magnitude +13.5 only two days after its discovery," says Mesonero. "I never expected the night to bring so many wonderful things."

The rapidly brightening supernova is an easy target for mid-sized backyard telescopes equipped with CCD cameras--and it's easy to find only a degree south of Mars. Astrophotographers, now is your chance to catch a supernova in the act.

MORE IMAGES:  From Anthony Ayiomamitis of Athens, Greece; from Efrain Morales Rivera of Aguadilla, Puerto Rico; from Zlatan Merakov of Smolyan, Bulgaria; from Jeff Donaldson of Enfield, NS Canada. - Space Weather.