EARTHWATCH

Diary of the planet

2022-06-20 - Dist. by: Andrews McMeel Syndication ©MMXXII Earth Environment Service

Frozen Arctic

Arctic sea ice has been much slower to melt this spring than in the last 10 years, the result of temperatures being closer to the 1981 to 2010 average than the record warmth mainly experienced this century. Ice coverage in May was almost 5 million square miles, with Hudson Bay, the Beaufort Sea, waters of Arctic Canada and the eastern Siberian Sea still mainly frozen at a time when the ice should have been melting. While the June 1 sea ice extent was the highest of the last nine years, it was still 16,000 square miles lower than the 1981 to 2010 average and the 16th lowest ever recorded for the date.

Earthquakes

A wide area from Cyprus to southern Turkey and Lebanon was jolted by a sharp quake centered just off Cyprus on June 10.

• Earth movements were also felt in far eastern Turkey, eastern Afghanistan and neighboring parts of South Asia’s Hindu Kush region, central Nepal, Java, eastern Papua New Guinea and southwestern Iceland.

Triple La Niña

Predictions that the La Niña ocean cooling in the Pacific will strengthen for the third consecutive year likely means there will be more severe weather around the world for months to come. For the past two years, La Niña has brought crop-withering drought to Africa, unprecedented floods to eastern Australia and two very active Atlantic hurricane seasons. The U.S. environmental agency NOAA says that while La Niñas often come for two consecutive years, it now seems likely there will be a rare “triple La Niña.” Temperatures across the Pacific where the cooling typically occurs were the coldest since 1950 during April. They were also the coldest since 1988 in May.

Oscillating core

While scientists have for decades believed that Earth’s inner core consistently rotates faster than the planet’s surface, there is new evidence that the core oscillates and actually changed direction in the six years from 1969 to 1974. The discovery was made in part by examining seismic data from Soviet underground nuclear tests from 1971 to 1974. Without such blasts, only the less-revealing quake data are available. University of Southern California researchers say their findings explain the variations in the length of a day, which has wavered during recent decades.

Philippine blasts

The second explosion of the Philippines’ Bulusan volcano within as many weeks spewed ash over several communities and farms in Sorsogon and neighboring Albay provinces. At least 1,500 residents in ash-covered towns were ordered to evacuate after the eruption.

Plants vs. lighting

A new study documents how artificial light affects the seasonal rhythms of plants around U.S. cities. Researchers from Iowa State University found that man-made lighting at night alters the natural circadian rhythms of plants, lengthening the pollen season for many of them. They say this results in urban and suburban residents suffering from sneezing and itchy eyes for longer periods each year. By comparing nighttime satellite images in the visible spectrum with historic plant data around 3,000 urban sites, they found that artificial light causes leaf budding in the spring about nine days earlier while also delaying the colors of fall foliage by about six days. The longer growing season could also have implications for crops grown around urban settings.