WEEKLY WATER NEWS

15-19 May 2006

Water in the Earth System will return for Fall 2006 with new Investigations files starting during Preview Week, Monday, 28 August 2006. All the current online website products will continue to be available throughout the summer break period.

Water in the News:

• Deadly typhoon hits the Philippines -- Typhoon Chanchu (the western Pacific's counterpart to a hurricane), which was rated a Category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Intensity Scale, cut across the Philippines late last week, accompanied by strong winds and torrential rain. As of Sunday, the death toll associated with this typhoon had reached 32, following the retrieval of bodies from a capsized boat. The typhoon was heading northwestward across the China Sea and could make landfall in southern China early this week. [CNN]
• Flooding poses danger in New England -- The counterclockwise circulation of winds around a stalled storm system over the Great Lakes has resulted in heavy rainfall across New England over the weekend, with some locations receiving between 7 to 10 inches of rain by Sunday. The governors of Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine have declared states of emergency as river levels reached flood stage, water has flowed over dams, roads have been washed out and several hundred people were forced from their homes. [USA Today]
• Monitoring glaciers from space -- Earth scientists intent on determining if glaciers are waxing or waning have been employing several sophisticated tools over the last decade, including satellite images to document the glacial areal size, along with radar to obtain glacial thickness. An international project that involves over 60 institutions, GLIMS (Global Land Ice Measurements from Space), is designed to monitor the world's glaciers
  • A recent image obtained by an astronaut onboard the International Space Station shows a Patagonian glacier in South America with its terminus where icebergs are calving into a lake. [NASA Earth Observatory]
  • An image obtained from sensors onboard an orbiting satellite shows the roughly 300 glaciers within North Cascades National Park in Washington State to the north of Seattle. The US Geological Society has been using these images to help monitor the changes in the glaciers in this national park. [NASA Earth Observatory]
• The famous Cape Horn seen from space -- An image obtained by the ASTER (Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer) instrument onboard NASA's Terra Satellite shows a portion of Cape Horn and the islands that are collectively called Tierra del Fuego at the tip of South America. Strong winds, large waves and occasional icebergs in the waters off the Cape made travel around the Cape extremely hazardous, especially for sailing ships. [NASA Earth Observatory]
• An update on a small tsunami -- A magnitude 7.9 earthquake below the ocean floor off the South Pacific island nation of Tonga on 3 May 2006 produced a small tsunami that propagated northward across the Pacific. A tide gauge at Pago Pago, American Samoa and five other gauges along the Hawaiian Islands captured the extent and timing of the arrival of this tsunami, which caused water levels to be displaced upward by little more than one foot. [NWS Honolulu Forecast Office]
• Water supply in Sri Lanka remains crippled from tsunami -- More than 16 months after the devastating tsunami destroyed many coastal communities along the Indian Ocean, the water supply remains in short supply in coastal sections of Sri Lanka, with many wells either destroyed or contaminated. [EurekAlert!]
• Earth's oceans are subducted -- - Based upon sampling of volcanic gases, scientists at the University of Manchester have found that ocean water appears to be absorbed or subducted into the Earth's mantle over time, resulting in "geological water cycle." [EurekAlert!]
• Hurricane season begins in the eastern North Pacific -- The 2006 hurricane season in the eastern North Pacific Ocean basin begins today, 15 May 2006. The hurricane season in the North Atlantic basin, including the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico will begin in two weeks on 1 June. The official hurricane seasons in both basins end on 30 November 2006. NOAA has declared next week (21-27 May 2006) to be Hurricane Awareness Week across the nation.
• A new children's book focuses on hurricane awareness -- The NOAA Teacher at Sea program announced a second children's book entitled "Teacher in the Air" at the recent National Science Teachers Association conference. This book was co-authored by a NOAA Teacher in the Air and a navigator assigned to a NOAA hurricane hunter aircraft [NOAA News]
• Preparing for the upcoming hurricane season -- Speaking at last week's Governor's Hurricane Conference, Max Mayfield, the Director of the National Hurricane Center and Florida Governor Jeb Bush urged the public to prepare early for the upcoming hurricane season. They were also advised to heed evacuation warnings and not rely too heavily on the projected track of the hurricane. [USA Today] Homeland Secretary Michael Chertoff also reported that the federal government is better prepared to respond to landfalling hurricanes this season. He also advised state and local officials, along with companies and the public to be equally ready. [USA Today]
• North American Safe Boating Week -- Commencing this coming Saturday, the week of 20-26 May has been declared 2006 National Safe Boating Week, to help kick off the 2006 North American Safe Boating Campaign. Check the Safe Boating Week site maintained by the Safe Boating Council.
• Global and US Hazards/Climate Extremes -- A review and analysis of the global impacts of various weather-related events, including drought, floods and storms during the current month. [NCDC]
• Global Water News Watch -- Other water news sources can be obtained through the SAHRA Project at the University of Arizona [SAHRA Project]
• Earthweek -- Diary of the Planet [earthweek.com] Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Historical Events:

• 15-24 May 1951...Hurricane Able did a "loop-the-loop" north of the Bahamas and reached Category 3 strength off Cape Hatteras, NC. (The Weather Doctor)
• 15 May 1972...The worst ice jam flooding of memory for long-time residents took place along the Kuskokwim River and Yukon River in Alaska, marking the first time since 1890 that the two rivers "flowed as one". The towns of Oscarville and Napaskiak were completely inundated. (15th-31st) (The Weather Channel)
• 16 May 1874...The Mill Creek disaster occurred west of Northhampton, MA. Dam slippage after a rain resulted in a flash flood that claimed 143 lives, and caused a million dollars in property damage. (David Ludlum)
• 16 May 1883...A three-day flood was in progress throughout the Black Hills of South Dakota that resulted in damages of over one million dollars in the Rapid City area. (Intellicast)
• 16 May 1917...Marquette, MI had its latest opening of navigation on Lake Superior in history. (Intellicast)
• 17-21 May 1887...An early season tropical storm raked Cuba and The Bahamas. (The Weather Doctor)
• 17 May 1980...Thunderstorms dumped 16 inches of rain in a 24-hour period at Lake Charles, LA. (Intellicast)
• 17 May 1983...A golfer playing the Fox Meadows Course in Memphis, TN was struck by a bolt of lightning that went through his neck, down his spine, came out a pocket containing his keys, and went into a nearby tree. Miraculously, he survived! (The Weather Channel)
• 17 May 1988...Thunderstorms produced large hail and damaging winds over the Carolinas during the afternoon and evening. A "thunderstorm of a lifetime" in northern Spartanburg County, SC produced hail for forty-five minutes, leaving some places knee-deep in hail. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 17 May 1997...Two inches of snow fell at Herman, MI, marking the last measurable snow for the 1996-1997 snow season. The 384.0 inches for this just concluded snow season broke a state snowfall record that was set the previous 1995-1996 season of 347.0 inches. The average snowfall at Herman is 239.7 inches. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 18 May 1950...As many as 100,000 people were evacuated in Winnipeg, MB as the Red River crested at 30.3 feet above normal water level. Floodwaters damaged 5,000 homes and buildings. (The Weather Doctor)
• 18 May 1980... Mount St. Helens in Washington State erupted, ejecting smoke and ash to a height of 63,000 feet. The smoke plume rose to a height of 80,000 feet. The ground was covered with heavy ash to the immediate northeast and visibility was reduced to less than one mile for a downwind distance of 400 miles. Five deaths were caused and over 2000 people were evacuated due to mudslides and flooding when the snowpack melted. Small particles in the cloud reached the East Coast in 3 days and circled the world in 19 days. (David Ludlum) (Intellicast)
• 18 May 1990...Thunderstorms deluged Sioux City, IA with up to eight inches of rain, resulting in a record flood crest on Perry Creek and at least 4.5 million dollars damage. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 19 May 1257...On St. Dunstan's Day, a tornado traveled from Windsor to St. Albans in England and was described as a "marvellous sore tempest of weather, the air being darkened on every side from the four corners thereof, and withal chanced such a thunder as few the like had been heard." (The Weather Doctor)
• 19 May 1955...Lake Maloya, NM received 11.28 inches of rain in 24 hours to establish a state record. (The Weather Channel)
• 19 May 1984...Texas received heavy rain from thunderstorms, with 4.22 inches falling on Beaumont in 6 hours and Port Arthur receiving over 6 inches of rain in about 8 hours. (Intellicast)
• 19 May 1987...Thunderstorms in Texas produced thirteen inches of rain northwest of Lavernia. The heavy rain, along with golfball-size hail, destroyed eighty percent of the crops in the area, while high winds toppled trees. Golf ball size hail was also reported south of Dallas and around San Antonio. Up to eight inches of rain drenched Guadalupe County. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 19 May 1988...Severe thunderstorms in southwest Texas produced hail as large as tennis balls around Midland, with the hail accumulating up to a foot deep. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 19 May 1990...Thunderstorms deluged Hot Springs, AR with thirteen inches of rain in nine hours resulting in a devastating flood. Two waves of water, four to six feet deep, swept down Central Avenue flooding stores and the famous bathhouses on Bathhouse Row. Water released from Lake Hamilton devastated the area between it and Remmel Dam. The 500-foot Carpenter Dam Bridge across Lake Catherine was completely washed away, as were cabins and mobile homes near the lake, many of which flowed right over the top of Remmel Dam. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 20 May 1729...A waterspout moved on land at Bexhill, Sussex, England to become a tornado. The tornado leveled many buildings along its path of destruction, 12 miles long and on average 380 yards wide. (The Weather Doctor)
• 20 May 1999...A devastating cyclone, packing winds of up to 170 mph and a high storm surge, struck the Sindh Province in southern Pakistan. Some 600 villages were devastated and more than 400 people killed. (The Weather Doctor)
• 20 May 1990...Nearly 13 inches of rain fell in just 9 hours at Hot Springs, AR. A wall of water 4 to 6 feet high roared though the city. Cars, many occupied, were seen floating down Central Avenue. As many as 85 people had to be rescued from flooded cars and buildings. (Storm Data) (The National Weather Summary) (Intellicast)

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Prepared by AMS WES Central Staff and Edward J. Hopkins, Ph.D., email hopkins@meteor.wisc.edu
ã Copyright, 2006, The American Meteorological Society.