Earthweek: a diary of the planet
Eruptions
More than 100 people have been declared dead —and nearly 200 people remain unaccounted for — after the most powerful eruption of Guatemala’s Fuego volcano in four decades buried entire villages and farms in searing-hot ash or lava. Also this week, surging lava from Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano destroyed hundreds of homes in a single night. And Indonesia’s Mount Merapi sent a column of ash soaring high above Sumatra.
Tropical cyclones
Tropical Storm Ewiniar formed briefly before moving ashore in South China’s Guangdong province and losing force. Tropical Storm Aletta, the first named storm of the Eastern Pacific hurricane season, spun up from an area of disturbed weather off Mexico.
Virus on wings
The virus responsible for outbreaks of Alkhurma
hemorrhagic fever on the Arabian Peninsula and in Egypt might be taking flight in ticks hitching rides northward on migratory birds, researchers warn. With symptoms similar to those from Ebola, the Alkhurma virus seems to be spread to humans through contact with cattle and camels, or from tick bites. It was first identified in Saudi Arabia during the mid-1990s. Examination of thousands of ticks removed from migrating birds at several Mediterranean sites found some with Alkhurma virus RNA. Researchers at Sweden’s Uppsala University warn this means the virus could now
fly on to infect people and animals in other areas.
Gorilla rebound
The population of Africa’s critically endangered mountain gorillas has soared by a quarter since 2010, with wildlife authorities estimating the number now to be more than 1,000 individual primates. The population boom came despite the threat of poaching and armed groups vying for control on the chain of volcanic mountains that is home to the gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The population increase came after the introduction of park guards, veterinary care, community support projects and regulated tourism around the gorillas’ habitats.
Fireball bonanza
Treasure hunters in southwestern China recovered hundreds of meteorites after a fireball exploded over the region on June 1. Some of the meteorites crashed through the roofs of homes. Collectors were hoping to cash in on the windfall of
Increased conflicts between humans and wild bears in Japan have prompted the mountainous resort of Karuizawa to import a breed of dog renowned for its nonlethal bear-control abilities. Since the Picchio Wildlife Research Center introduced patrols using Finnish Karelian bear dogs to chase the animals from the resort, bear incidents with humans plummeted from 255 in 2006 to just four last year.
Earthquakes
Guatemala’s Pacific Coast was jolted by an offshore 5.2 quake that struck as the country’s volcano disaster was unfolding. Earth movements also were felt in northern Baja California, central Kansas and France’s Côte d’Azur.