Hellish Red Pacific Sunsets From Siberia Wildfires

Smoke from Siberian wildfires turns Northwestern sunsets a fiery red

The scenes have almost felt like they're out of Hollywood imagination -- brilliant red sunrises and sunsets the last couple of days around Western Washington. 

Why so red? It's a byproduct of the massive wildfires that recently burned a large area in Siberia. 

The atmospheric winds are aligned this week to carry the smoke across the Pacific Ocean and into the Pacific Northwest. 

First up, to get an idea of just how much smoke is in the atmosphere, look at this visible satellite image taken on April 14 of the southeastern Siberia area where the wildfires got out of control: Read More

Ironically Coined 

"The GATES of Hell "

Dr. Kinesa's - Global Edge


Anybody remember the last line in that book by Milton, Paradise Lost? I think it had something to do with heaven and hell in our minds. 

Oh well... 

International Offices
April 30,2015

Nuclear Forests of Chernobyl

Forests Around Chernobyl Aren't Decaying Properly

Satellite Photograph

(Smithsonian Magazine) – Nearly 30 years have passed since the Chernobyl plant exploded and caused an unprecedented nuclear disaster. The effects of that catastrophe, however, are still felt today. Although no people live in the extensive exclusion zones around the epicenter, animals and plants still show signs of radiation poisoning.

Strange Small-Brained Bird

Birds around Chernobyl have significantly smaller brains that those living in non-radiation poisoned areas; trees there grow slower; and fewer spiders and insects—including bees, butterflies and grasshoppers—live there. Additionally, game animals such as wild boar caught outside of the exclusion zone—including some bagged as far away as Germany—continue to show abnormal and dangerous levels of radiation. 

However, there are even more fundamental issues going on in the environment. According to a new study published in Oecologia, decomposers—organisms such as microbes, fungi and some types of insects that drive the process of decay—have also suffered from the contamination. These creatures are responsible for an essential component of any ecosystem: recycling organic matter back into the soil. Issues with such a basic-level process, the authors of the study think, could have compounding effects for the entire ecosystem.

Glowing Forests

The team decided to investigate this question in part because of a peculiar field observation. “We have conducted research in Chernobyl since 1991 and have noticed a significant accumulation of litter over time,” the write. Moreover, trees in the infamous Red Forest—an area where all of the pine trees turned a reddish color and then died shortly after the accident—did not seem to be decaying, even 15 to 20 years after the meltdown.

(Read More)