Earthweek: a diary of the planet
The first ‘immortal’
A U.K. gerontologist claims that the first person to be able to avoid the illnesses of old age and to live indefinitely has probably already been born. Author and chief science officer of the SENS Research Foundation Aubrey de Grey believes that the first person to live to be 1,000 is already walking the planet. But he tells Vice’s Motherboard website that true immortality is probably out of the question. “The first thing I want to do is get rid of the use of this word ‘immortality,’ because it’s enormously damaging. It is not just wrong; it is damaging,” said Mr. de Grey. “It means zero risk of death from any cause—whereas I just work on one particular cause of death, namely aging.” He said he’s already working on therapies that could take people age 60 years and rejuvenate them enough so they won’t be biologically 60 again until they are actually 90.
Warming extremes
Another report has revealed that the Earth’s warming climate is responsible for the recent increase in heat waves and heavy rain. A study published in Nature Climate Change compares conditions before the Industrial Revolution with the present day. It finds that about 75 percent of today’s extreme heat episodes can be attributed to climate change brought on by greenhouse gas emissions. Similarly, the researchers from Switzerland’s Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science at ETH Zurich found that 18 percent of extreme rainfall events today can be linked to the increase in global temperatures. The report’s authors say the events are not directly caused by the warming, but rather are the result of the chaotic nature of weather, amplified by the hotter atmosphere and oceans.
Chernobyl inferno
Ukrainian firefighters battled a large forest fire near the crippled Chernobyl nuclear power plant, scene of the world’s worst nuclear accident in 1986. About 200 firefighters with scores of vehicles worked to contain the inferno while aircraft dumped water on the flames, the state emergency services said. The blaze was sparked just two days after Ukrainians marked 29 years since blasts occurred at the facility, forcing the permanent evacuation of the surrounding area. Although officials say that there was no increase in the level of radiation around the plant due to the fire, a report published this year revealed that previous fires have spread radiation stored in the ground of the Chernobyl area’s forests across a wide swath of Europe. The Norwegian study found that the lingering contamination was blown as far away as Turkey, Italy and Scandinavia.
Ash hazards
Ash from violent blasts at Chile’s Calbuco volcano threatens to affect the country’s agriculture, livestock and fisheries for months to come. The volcano roared back to life on April 22 for the first time since 1972, spewing vast amounts of ash that disrupted air traffic as far away as Argentina and Brazil. Officials said thousands of sheep and cattle that were in danger of dying from the ash have been evacuated from the heavily affected Los Lagos region. “About 50 percent of Chile’s milk production is located in Los Lagos, so this is affecting the whole industry,” National Agriculture Society spokesperson Ema Budinich told The Associated Press. The ash threatens to turn pastures barren and to poison some of the fish in one of the world’s leading salmon-producing countries.
Serengeti wild canines
Wild dogs have been brought back to Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park more than two decades after the animals disappeared due to persecution, disease and competition with other predators. The Tanzania Daily News reports the Serengeti Wild Dog Conservation project is working with the Frankfurt Zoological Society in releasing the once-native canines into the park. The project’s aim is to set free six batches of 10 dogs, with the possibility of releasing one more batch in the future. The wild dogs were captured outside the park and kept in a special sanctuary before being set free.
Tropical cyclone
Tropical Storm Quang formed south of Java, then underwent unexpected explosive development to Category 4 force as it neared a remote area of northwestern Australia. That country’s Bureau of Meteorology forecasters predicted Quang would weaken to a tropical storm again before making landfall.
Earthquakes
Nepal suffered the world’s most deadly earthquake since the 2011 Haiti temblor, which caused catastrophic damage across the country. More than 6,200 people died from Tibet to northern India in collapsed buildings and from other quake-related incidents. A massive international relief effort was launched to cope with the colossal Himalayan disaster.
• Earth movements were also felt in northwestern and southern New Zealand, Ecuador and southern Mexico.