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Indonesia
Tsunami Alert Follows Eruption
Authorities in Indonesia have issued a tsunami alert following several violent eruptions of a remote island volcano. Mt. Ruang, located on Ruang Island in the North Sulawesi province, has erupted five times since Tuesday, spewing ash columns more than 1.5 miles (2.4 km) into the atmosphere. The violence of the eruptions has sparked fears the volcano could collapse into the ocean and cause a tsunami, as it did in 1871. Authorities have raised the volcano alert to the highest level and widened the exclusion zone surrounding the site to 3.7 miles (6 km). More than 11,000 residents in surrounding areas are being evacuated. Indonesia’s volcanology agency says volcanic activity has increased following two earthquakes in recent weeks. Indonesia experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activity due to its position on the Pacific’s Ring of Fire, the area stretching from Japan through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific where tectonic plates collide.
This map depicts the location of Mt. Ruango, in Indonesia, which has been violently erupting for the last few days. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: The Guardian
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United States
Lahaina Fire Report Released
The Attorney General of the State of Hawai’i has released the first phase of a report by the Fire Safety Research Institute explaining the timeline of the devastating fire that destroyed the town of Lahaina on the island of Maui over the course of August 8 & 9, 2023. The report confirmed the fire originated from downed electrical wires falling into dry grasses. While first responders believed they had brought it under control, it reignited and burning embers were propelled through town by strong winds. This caused the fire to move a mile (1.6 km) in only 90 minutes, which was characterized as “incredibly fast.” Investigators report the information about the process and responses of Maui’s emergency administrators is lacking, and the information that is in the report shows Maui’s Emergency Management Director, who was in Oahu at the time, was trying to assess the situation with incomplete information during the crisis.
This map depicts the spread of the wildfire that destroyed the Hawai’ian town of Lahaina, on the island of Maui, in August 2023. Click on the map to learn more.
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United States
Two Cicada Broods To Emerge
The simultaneous emergence of two groups of periodical cicada, Brood XIII and Brood XIX, is set to take place for the first time in 221 years. Brood XIII (the Northern Illinois Brood) live up to 17 years underground, while Brood XIX (the Great Southern Brood) live up to 13 years underground. Whereas most concentrations of Brook XIX cicada will emerge in Missouri, Arkansas, and parts of the Southern coastal states, Brook XIII will have a smaller emergence across Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Illinois will see an overlap of the emergences of these two broods. Though the exact populations of the two broods will be difficult to predict, scientists expect trillions of cicadas.
This map depicts the counties in which the two broods of cicada are expected to emerge. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: What body of water is home to Null Island, the intersection of the Equator and the Prime Meridian?
A: Gulf of Guinea
The term “Null Island” jokingly refers to a fictional place at zero degrees latitude and zero degrees longitude (0°N 0°E), where the prime meridian and the equator intersect. The name is often used in mapping software as a placeholder to help find and correct database entries incorrectly assigned the coordinates 0,0. The point on the Earth’s surface defined as Null Island is located in international waters in the Atlantic Ocean, roughly 370 mi (600 km) off the coast of West Africa, in the Gulf of Guinea. The Gulf of Guinea is the northeastern part of the tropical Atlantic Ocean from Cape Lopez in Gabon, north and west to Cape Palmas in Liberia. Null Island is marked by the Soul buoy (named after the musical genre), a permanently moored weather buoy.
Source
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Q: What is the main river system of Ghana?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in tomorrow’s DailyGeo.
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