Rare Nacreous clouds otherwise known as polar stratospheric clouds are being spotted across the island.
Twitter: Cecilia Daly
February 2, 2016 - EARTH - The following constitutes several of the latest reports of stunning cloud and light formation in the skies across the globe, as magnetic polar migration increases.
Nacreous rainbow cloud spotted in the skies over Ireland
The stunning clouds were pictured by people in a number of places, including Dublin and Belfast
A number of people noticed amazing rainbow coloured clouds in the sky over Ireland this morning.
The stunning clouds were pictured by people in a number of places, including Dublin and Belfast.
More images from Twitter:
They are known as polar stratospheric clouds or nacreous clouds and
usually appear during winter at high latitudes like Scandinavia,
Iceland, Alaska and Northern Canada.
The clouds are quite rare in Ireland and are mostly visible within two hours after sunset or before dawn.
They appeared as Storm Henry continues to batter the country. - Irish Mirror.
Rose-coloured sky in northern Canada amazes Iqaluit residents
Light scattering likely cause of deep red colouration, says CBC meteorologist
Residents of Iqaluit, Nunavut woke up on Tuesday morning seeing red — literally.
The city took on a strange rose hue throughout the day, wowing residents
and leading to plenty of theories. CBC North's Nick Murray snapped a
photo of the colouration outside CBC's Iqaluit bureau, which was shared widely across Facebookand Twitter. By Wednesday afternoon, the photo had reached nearly 200,000 people on CBC's Facebook pages alone.
The photo was quickly confirmed by other Iqaluit residents, some of which had their own theories.
"Ziggy Stardust just flew by," commented Kevin Robinson, a reference to the recent passing of David Bowie.
"Is it be cuz [sic] of your sunglasses?" asked Susie Pinguatuq, commenting on CBC Nunavut's Facebook page. Light scattering likely culprit
However, the likely answer for the strange colouration isn't related to
pop icons, or eyewear: instead, it's rooted in how light reacts with the
atmosphere.
CBC North meteorologist Ashley Brauweiler says Iqaluit's red sky is
likely a result of light scattering, where sunlight is reflected through
particles in the atmosphere. The colouring was also likely intensified
by the time of day the photo was taken — near sunset — when the sun is
lower in the sky.
"When the sun is at a low angle in the sky, the light has a longer
distance to travel," said Brauweiler. "The blue [colouration, which
leads to a more common 'blue sky'] gets removed by the ice crystals and
salt in the air, which leaves red visible."
"The clouds are much larger than light waves, which allows them to take on the colour, in this case pink."
- CBC News.
People across Leicester were left astounded this afternoon when an unusual cloud formation appeared in the sky.
The formation, which looked like a rainbow around an oval of bright
light, appeared at about 5pm in an otherwise murky, grey sky.
Witnesses took photos of the phenomenon and uploaded them to Twitter, many commenting on the "beautiful" appearance.
Leicester Mercury weatherman Dave Mutton said the formation was the result of a cold front moving from the North down to the South.
He said that when a cold front meets a warmer front, bits of cloud break off, creating a gap in cloud cover.
Today's 'gap' occurred just as the sun was setting behind it, creating the ethereal oval of light.
He said the rainbow effect appeared because of the light refracting through ice crystals or water droplets in the clouds.
Dave said: "It would have been quite a sight with the sun setting behind it."
However, Dave said it could have also been a polar stratospheric cloud.Polar
stratospheric clouds form at very high altitudes, between 15km and 25km
(about 50,000 to 80,000 feet) and at very cold temperatures (around -78
deg C).
They are also known as nacreous clouds, from nacre, or mother of pearl, due to their iridescent nature.
Lisa Tubby, of Thurnby Lodge, was among the many people intrigued by the phenomenon, but said it made her feel slightly anxious.
She said: "To be honest, at first I thought it was another planet
because of its circle shape, but also because I'd never seen anything
like it before.
"I told my daughter to come and have a look at it, and she said it was
similar to when petrol and water mix, but I told her that of course it
wasn't that as there isn't any petrol in the sky.
"I then went to my mum and dad's, who live just down the road from me,
and my dad said it was a rainbow, and my mum said that it was unlike
anything she had seen in her life. She's 52 years old."
On Twitter, Leicester Schools Welcome Refugees said that a similar cloud
formation appeared in Birstall at 4.30pm this afternoon.
Mercury photographer Chris Gordon captured the phenomenon, which was only briefly in the sky, on camera.
He said: "It's amazing. I've never seen anything like it. It's very reminiscent of a rainbow.
"I decided to take the picture as everyone in the office was so excited
about it. Plus, I've always loved sunsets - they're my favourite
spectacle."
Posts on Twitter suggested the spectacle was visible all around the UK.
January 29, 2014 - BRITAIN -Heavy rain and strong wind has battered much of Britain, with fierce thunderstorms hitting London as the Met Office issued severe weather warnings.
Lightning strikes: This dramatic picture shows the moment a bolt of
lightning struck a building in
Birmingham as fierce storms battered
Britain.
Warning: Forecasters have warned of more heavy rain tomorrow in south
west England, creating the
danger of further flooding on the Somerset
Levels.
Shoppers were left drenched in fierce downpours across the south, while sports fans at football, rugby and horse racing meetings were hit by torrential rain.
London was struck by a fierce electrical storm in later afternoon, with lightning strikes cracking across the sky, pouring rain and hailstones pelting the city.
The thunderstorms also struck across the Midlands and into East Anglia, with winds of more than 50mph reported yesterday afternoon.
Birmingham was also hit by lightning, and enormous hailstones were said to have battered buildings in Leicester.
Rail travellers and motorists also faced disruption as highways officers were called in to clear trees in Warwickshire and South West Trains services were halted after trees toppled onto the railway lines.
Battering: This huge hailstone was spotted in Leicester, according to one Twitter user.
Strike: Lightning and heavy rain hit East Lindsey, Lincolnshire.
There were also delays on the route between London and Norwich after a tree fell onto overhead lines during a storm.
Britain
faces further flooding today as another band of heavy rain sweeps the
country – prompting one MP to call for the Army to be put on standby.
The saturated South West will bear the brunt, with blustery wet weather lasting several days.
Severe
weather warnings were issued yesterday by the Met Office for all of the
South West, and the Environment Agency said already full rivers are
likely to burst their banks.
There is also potential for further river flooding across the south west and southern counties.
The
risk of flooding from groundwater continues in parts of Wiltshire,
Dorset, Hampshire, West Sussex, West Berkshire and Surrey into next
week.
Low-lying areas of Somerset – where villages have
been only reachable by boat for a month – will be particularly hard
hit. The county is nearing breaking point, its council leader John Osman
warned.
West Somerset MP Ian Liddell-Grainger said
floods in his region were the worst for a century, adding: ‘I have told
the Prime Minister we need extra pumping capacity and we may also need
help from the military.’
He spoke after local councils
declared a full-scale emergency. Somerset County Council said: ‘We’ve
asked the Army to come up with solutions.’
Torrential: The thunderstorms struck across the Midlands and into East Anglia,
with winds of more than 50mph reported.
Somerset County Council has declared a 'major incident' for all areas affected by flooding in the county.
Deputy chief executive Pat Flaherty said: 'Our priority has to be to keep people safe. We are doing everything we can to do this and we believe that declaring a major incident shows just how urgent the situation is for many of our residents and communities.
'The reason we are taking this action is the long-term nature of the issues we are facing and to enable a consistent approach to the way that we deal with them.'
The county council will continue its help and support for people affected by flooding which includes a boat service for the cut-off community of Muchelney and Thorney, providing a pontoon bridge at Langport, supporting farmers providing a vital tractor service to communities, keeping roads open and evacuating residents when necessary.
Sedgemoor District Council has also declared a 'major incident' on the Somerset Levels.
Many communities are still coming to terms with the flooding that hit Somerset at the beginning of January and now face further problems.
The Environment Agency has issued ten flood warnings across the South of England. Parts of Wiltshire, Dorset, Hampshire, West Sussex, Berkshire and Surrey are also at risk.
A spokesman said: 'With the ground already saturated, rivers and groundwater levels remain very responsive to rainfall, particularly on the Somerset Levels.
'Environment Agency teams continue to operate up to 62 pumps 24 hours a day to drain an estimated 65 million cubic metres of floodwater off an area of the Levels spanning 65 square kilometres.'
The Met Office said: ‘There is potential to see nearly an inch of rain across the South West on Sunday.’
The Met Office issued an amber warning of severe weather for the south west, from 6am to 2pm today saying: 'More heavy rain will spread east across the area on Sunday. Given the current disruption on the Somerset Levels, the public should be prepared for further flooding.
The chief forecaster said that rain across the UK would be accompanied by strong winds with gusts of up to 80mph, and rainfall accumulations of 10 to 20mm were expected.
The Environment Agency has eight flood warnings in place for the south west, which mean flooding is expected and immediate action is required.
A deep depression building across the Atlantic will sweep over the north west and will lead to gusts of wind battering the north west of Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Northern Isles, they said.
Yesterday morning, mist descended over large parts of the country, with large swathes of the countryside shrouded in light fog.
Forecaster Kirk Waite said: 'We've got a deep low pressure developing in the Atlantic that will swing past the north west of the country and it will bring strong winds.
'For much of the country this will reach at 40-50mph gusts in the far west and also the north west, this could be more towards 50-60mph.'
Mr Waite said the yellow warning in Northern Ireland, the west of Scotland and the Northern Isles would last from midday today to 9am on Monday.
London was hit by a deluge of rain, as ominous black storm clouds filled the skies.
Fog blankets the rolling hills in Somerset as rain and wind are expected to hit Britain this weekend.
'There is a potential for gusts reaching 80mph - but that's for the extreme regions,' he said.
'Overnight showers will die away. Should be quite breezy, but quite clear. The temperature will fall.'
He added that today the cloud would build, and a band of rain will sweep in at 6am into western parts of the country.
He said: 'This will move quite quickly but it is expected to have cleared by 3pm.
'There is a yellow warning where we're expecting 15-25mm of rain quite widely.
'There is a risk that some areas may see a little more of that.
'Behind this band of rain there will be wintry showers in the north and over high ground.'
The extreme weather warning followed a thick blanket of dense fog that descened over much of Britain at the start of the week. - Daily Mail.
August 08, 2013 - EARTH - The following constitutes several of the latest reports of weird animal behavior across the planet.
Huge 'Frankenfish' Hooked In Virginia Sets A World Record.
This fish is even meaner than it looks.
A Virginia man who caught a fish known as "Frankenfish" has set a world record. Caleb Newton hooked the 17-pound, 6-ounce northern snakehead in a creek in northern Virginia during a fishing tournament June 1. The "Frankenfish" gets its nickname because of its appearance and adaptability. The invasive species native to Asia is able to breathe air and survive in very shallow waters or mud. The Free Lance-Star reports the International Game Fish Association confirmed the record catch. It beat a snakehead caught in Japan in 2004 by 2 ounces. Newton is a 27-year-old plumber in Spotsylvania County. He has said it only took him about a minute to get it into the boat, and the 3-foot long fish barely fit into his cooler. - FOX News.
14-Foot Brumese Python Found Eating Local Cats In Florida.
Imagine walking into your shed on a balmy Florida afternoon and discovering an enormous snake eating a cat's skull.
Sounds like the opening scene for SyFy's next disaster movie right?
WRONG! This is a real story with a real 100 lbs. snake. Ok, now that you
are genuinely shocked, let's discuss what happened.
A 14-foot Burmese python was found by a man while he was performing home
repairs in Hialeah, Florida. Officials immediately responded to the
home and when they entered the shed to assess the snake situation the
python was eating a cat's skull. The Miami-Dade Venom Unit also
discovered that there was a large amount of molted skin in the shed,
leading them to the conclusion that the massive snake had made the shed
his makeshift home. "It was very nicely holed up in a shed, it's been
there a while," Lt. Lisa Wood, of the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Venom Unit, said of the reptile.The
discovered python had also solved the mystery of why there had been a
large number of disappearances of local cats and rabbits. "Speaking with
the neighbors, apparently there's a couple of rabbits and a cat missing
from the neighborhood recently so the snake may be to blame for that,"
Wood added.
WATCH: Giant albino python found in florida.
Although officials now had a new mystery on their
hands, how exactly did this 14-foot snake make its way into a shed? The
Miami-Dade Venom Unit suspected that the python was a pet who ever
escaped from his home or was abandoned after the snake had grown too
large. According to CBS,
it is illegal to own or sell pythons in Florida, and it is against
federal law to import the snakes or sell them across state lines.
Video crews captured officials attempting to work out the safest way to detain the python and remove the massive animal from
the shed. The unit eventually removed the door of the shed to expose
the body of the python, they then pulled the snake back, passing through
many people's hands before they took hold of the animal's head to
ensure safety. The unit then placed the massive white and yellow snake
into bag for traveling. What would you do if you encountered a 14-foot Burmese python? I would probably faint, then cry, then faint again. - Latin Times.
Large Snake Discovered In Leicester Garden Pond, England.
Christine McAdam holds the snake she found in netting over her garden pond in Aylestone, Leicester.
A large snake has been discovered trapped in netting in a back garden pond. Christine McAdam was in her garden in Aylestone, Leicester, on Friday afternoon when she spotted something in the netting that covers her pond. She said: "I noticed something caught up in the mesh in my pond and I looked closer and it was a big snake. "It's about two foot long and it's certainly not a grass snake or anything you would expect to find in this country. "I've never seen anything close up like this before and I was scared it would bite me." Christine, 58, enlisted the help of neighbour Rick Wright to cut the net and release the snake. She has been trying to get hold of the RSPCA to take the snake off her hands. She said: "I've been phoning and getting a message that says if you find a fox or snake or anything, just let it go. "But I don't think I should with this one. It's so big. "It's in a plastic box at the bottom of my garden for the moment. "I'm keeping it out of the sun." - This Is Leicester.
Python Holds Up Traffic On Expressway Near Birmingham, England.
Police photo of the snake discovered on the Aston Expressway.
A five-foot snake caused tailbacks on a busy Birmingham commuter route on Thursday morning. The exotic pet, believed to be a python, was spotted on the city-bound carriageway of the A38(M) Aston Expressway near to Dartmouth Circus at 9am. One lane was temporarily closed while the slithering creature was caught and safely removed from the highway by officers from the Central Motorway Police Group. They are now trying to find out how the roving reptile got there. The lane closure caused further misery for motorists using the busy Expressway to get into Birmingham. Traffic has been particularly bad on the road since the St Chad and Queensway tunnels in the city centre were closed for refurbishment on July 19. The 40-year-old tunnels are being given a long overdue overhaul and will remain closed until September 2. - Twycross Zoo, in Warwickshire, was closed for a while on Thursday after chimpanzees escaped their living area. A spokesman said: "One of their group of chimpanzees found their way into a secure service area within their enclosure. This required closure of the zoo whilst keepers encouraged the chimps back into their normal living areas with ice cream and fizzy drinks. At no time were the public at risk, and no people or chimps were harmed during the incident. "However, it is part of our safety procedures that we close the zoo whilst such events are resolved." - Birmingham Mail.
Escaped Python Kills Two Kids In New Brunswick, Canada.
Two young boys who were at a sleepover in an apartment above an exotic
pet store in Campbellton, N.B., were killed by a large African python
that got loose early Monday.
The python escaped from the Reptile Ocean exotic pet store and killed
the children, reportedly five and seven years old, who were found at
6:30 a.m.
According to deputy mayor Ian Comeau, the snake escaped and slithered
through the ventilation system to the residence above where the children
had spent the night.
Well before the tragedy, an online petition was asking for Reptile Ocean to be shut down.
On thepetitionsite.com,
the page's administrator wrote: "The way his animals are treated is not
right, and I will fight against them till something is done. Sick
animals should not be around healthy ones. They should not even be up
for adoption. I am disgusted by that place and will no longer step a
feet (sic) in there ever again."
On its Facebook page,
Reptile Ocean describes itself as an "Exotic pet store open to the
public for purchase and viewing! Wonderful animals. fun for everyone."
Responding to a post by Reptile Ocean on Saturday that read "sharing is
caring," one visitor to the page commented: "You know what ISNT
caring...have your snakes escape and then kill some children."
QMI Agency could not reach Reptile Ocean, local police or the mayor of Campbellton. - The Toronto Sun.
Eight-Foot Sturgeon Found Belly Up In Lake Washington.
Keith Magnuson who lives in Seattle along the shores of Lake Washington, was waterskiing Saturday when he came across a giant dead fish. "At first I thought it was a shark, but then we figured out it was a large sturgeon," Magnuson said. Magnuson found the sturgeon that he and a friend estimated to be about 8 feet long floating belly up north of Matthews Beach. The dead sturgeon is now tied to a post, and state Fish and Wildlife planned to send out a biologist to take a look at it in the next couple days. "It is not a common fish to find in the lake and rather unique," said Annette Hoffman, a state Fish and Wildlife biologist in Mill Creek. "We recalled another sturgeon was found in the lake (back in 1987 that was 11 feet long and weighed 640 pounds)." Another 5 ½-foot sturgeon was caught in 2005 by a University of Washington research boat. According to Hoffman, sturgeon commonly migrate up and down the vast Columbia River. Locally, sport anglers also pursue them near the mouth of the Snohomish River. "Sturgeon live in deepwater, and are bottom feeders so they're not easy to spot," Hoffman said. Sturgeon are one of the oldest - dating back to the prehistoric times - and largest freshwater fish in the world, growing up to 20 feet long and weighing more than 1,000 pounds. - Seattle Times.
Man Finds 2 Meter-Long Snake In His Car In Bordeaux, France.
A 5.7m (19ft) python has been seized after it fell from the ceiling of a charity shop in Australia. The python, weighing 17kg (37lbs), was recovered by a snake-handler after police investigated a suspected break-in at the shop in Ingham, Queensland. "Its head was the size of a small dog," said police spokesman Sgt Don Auld. The snake fell through a ceiling panel, smashing shop goods. Police said it may have got in through the roof, which was damaged by Cyclone Yasi in 2011. When police were initially called to the property on Monday, they believed a person had fallen through the ceiling because the roof panel had been cut in half. Crockery, clothes and other goods were scattered all over the floor. Police were called back to the shop the following day when a large crowd formed outside. Sgt Auld said the snake must have been hiding when police went there the first time. It has been released in nearby wetlands. - BBC.
Snake Slips Out Of French Postal Packet.
A French post office employee had the fright of her life when a metre-long python slithered quietly out of a parcel and rubbed against her. The woman was alone in the post office in the village of Blenod-les-Pont-a-Mousson in eastern France, when she felt the chilling caress and screamed for help. Firemen caught the fugitive reptile and discovered a second one in the parcel. The pair was identified by a vet as ball pythons - non-aggressive snakes that coil up into a tight ball when threatened - and was donated to a nearby zoo.
"They're not dangerous but they're very impressive," an officer said. Ball pythons are popular with snake enthusiasts as pets but are also a protected species for which owners need a legal certificate stating they have not been taken from the wild. Customs officers raided the home address of the parcel's sender, where they found no certificates but two other snakes, a stuffed caiman and a stuffed turtle which the owner had been trying to sell over the Internet. The post office stressed that its terms and conditions clearly forbade the shipping of animals, live or dead. - Daily Times.
Shark Found On New York Subway Car.
Commuters encountered an unexpected passenger when they boarded a New York City subway train early Wednesday: a shark. A still wet 1-and-a-half foot shark carcass was discovered on the floor of a subway car at around midnight in downtown Manhattan. "I thought it was just a plush toy or a prank," passenger Juan Cano told CNN. "When I saw the teeth that's I knew it was real, it was no toy." The shark, described as weighing between five to 10 pounds, was discovered near a row of seats by passengers on the Queens-bound N train at the 14th Street stop. The shark had blood on its mouth, as though it has recently been punctured by a fishing hook, according to Cano.
The shark quickly drew a crowd, as entering subway riders began to photograph and pose with the shark, even adding a subway fare card, soft drink can and a cigarette to the supine shark as props. After several stops, an MTA official entered the train at Queensboro Plaza, cleared it of passengers, and locked its doors, Metropolitan Transit Authority spokesmen Kevin Ortiz told CNN. The shark was removed later that night and disposed of. The shark's species was never identified. MTA officials were unable to "determine the shark's origin," according to Ortiz. This is not the first case of a mysterious shark appearance. In Nantucket last week, a 5-foot-long shark carcass was discovered outside the door of a bar on Water Street. "I have no idea how or why it got there." Sea Dog Brew Pub manager Jim Agnew told CNN.
WATCH: Shark found on New York subway car.
Asked whether anything out of the ordinary happened that evening, Agnew could only point to having to ask two people to leave, but those were "peaceful ejections" he said -- adding that the customs had since returned to the bar. Some have speculated that the appearance of sharks in mysterious places is a publicity stunt for the Discovery Channel's "Shark Week." Photos of the two mysterious sharks have exploded on social media using the hashtag #sharkweek. Discovery Channel denies any involvement. "Shark Week is all about conservation, so it deeply saddens us that someone would think that this was funny or in any way connected to our celebration of sharks," said spokeswoman Laurie Goldberg. MTA officials told CNN they have no plans to "continue investigating" how the shark got on the subway. - CNN.
8 Injured After Rodeo Bull Gets Loose At Minnesota Fair.
Authorities say a bull ran through the Dakota County fairgrounds Wednesday night, injuring eight people before being shot by a county deputy and captured by handlers. Dakota County Sheriff Dave Bellows said a penned 1,200-pound bull got loose at around 8:15 p.m. and ran through the fairgrounds for about 15 minutes. “It was just stampeding through the crowd,” said Andrew Larsen, a witness.
WATCH: Several injured after rodeo bull escapes at Minnesota fair.
The bull injured eight people, including a woman who suffered head injuries and was airlifted from the scene. She was not named, but her condition was listed as serious. The seven other victims, including a child, suffered what medics deemed to be a variety of non-serious injuries. They received treatment on site. Bellows said bull handlers captured the bull after a deputy shot it twice. The bull is still alive. Rice Rodeo sponsored the fair event, Bellows said, and the bull is owned by the Gold Medal Cattle Company. - CBS Minnesota.
