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Ukraine
Missile Destroys Hospital
The Russian military fired multiple missiles and drones at targets across Ukraine yesterday, killing at least 41 people and reportedly striking Ukraine’s largest children’s hospital. While the Russian government has blamed the damage to the Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv on a failed Ukrainian air defense missile, officials from the U.N. Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine have expressed a high degree of confidence that the damage was caused by a direct hit from the Russian Federation. Yesterday’s attack adds urgency to Ukrainian appeals to Western allies for more air defense systems, as well as for greater latitude for Ukrainian forces to use Western-supplied weapons to counter-strike the origin points of attacks within Russian territory.
This map depicts the location of the Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv, Ukraine, that was destroyed during a massive Russian missile strike on targets across Ukraine yesterday. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: BBC
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United States
Hurricane Beryl Reaches Texas
Hurricane Beryl made landfall Monday morning in Matagorda, Texas as a Category 1 hurricane with sustained winds of 80 mph (128.7 kph), life-threatening storm surge, and flash flooding. At least eight people were killed as the storm tore through the southeastern part of the state, leaving 2.3 million people without power. The heaviest rainfall, measuring 13.55 inches (34.4 cm), was recorded near Houston, where the city’s river rose 8.5 feet (2.6 m) above high tide. On Friday, Beryl hit Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula as a Category 2 hurricane and angled toward south Texas. With sustained wind speeds of more than 160 mph (257 kph), Hurricane Beryl is the 2024 Atlantic season’s first hurricane and the earliest storm on record to reach the strongest possible ranking of Category 5. Beryl was the strongest storm to hit the south-eastern Caribbean in 20 years and killed at least eleven people in St Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, Jamaica and Venezuela.
This map depicts the path and strength of Hurricane Beryl, which hit the coast of Texas Monday as a Category 1 hurricane. Click on the map to learn more.
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United States
Alaskan Glaciers Melting Rapidly
The glaciers on a major Alaskan ice field are melting twice as fast as recorded over a decade ago. A new Nature Communications study led by scientists from Newcastle University identified how ice volume on Alaska’s Juneau Icefield has dramatically decreased since 2010 compared to decades prior. Juneau Icefield extends from Alaska through to the border with British Columbia, Canada, and is the fifth-largest ice field in North America. These predominantly flat, plateau ice fields are susceptible to accelerated ice loss amid climate change. Since ice loss happens across the whole surface, a much greater area is affected. As glacier thinning continues on the Juneau plateau and ice retreats to lower levels and warmer air, the feedback processes set in motion are likely to prevent future glacier regrowth. Researchers warn this will potentially push glaciers beyond a tipping point into irreversible recession.
This map depicts the Little Ice Age extent of the Juneau icefield glaciers in red, and the 2019 glacier extent in white. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: What country was the first to establish a shark sanctuary and official protections for 80% of its water resources?
A: Palau
Commonly referred to as one of the seven underwater wonders of the world, Palau’s western Pacific Ocean islands boast ecosystems of remarkable biodiversity. Palau created the world’s first shark sanctuary in 2009. The country forbids all commercial shark fishing within its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) waters. The sanctuary protects about 230,000 square miles (600,000 sq km) of ocean. Palau is home to 135 endangered or vulnerable shark and ray species. In 2015, Palau voted to establish the Palau National Marine Sanctuary (PNMS), one of the world’s largest marine protected areas with a planned five-year phase-in. On January 1, 2020, Palau fully protected 80% of its EEZ, prohibiting all forms of extractive activities including mining and fishing.
Source
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Q: Since the year 1500, about one-third of the Earth’s total lava flow has poured out of what country’s volcanoes?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in tomorrow’s DailyGeo.
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