February 23rd

What happened this week?

Oaxaca, Mexico requests emergency funds after the 7.2 magnitude earthquake. 
A 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit Oaxaca on February 16th, with its epicenter close to Pinotepa Nacional and Santiago Jamiltepec. Authorities in Oaxaca, Mexico are requesting emergency funds to supply food, shelter and health services in more than 30 municipalities that are still recovering from the Sept. 2017 earthquakes. At least 1,000 homes were damaged and Mexico City Mayor Miguel Angel Mancera Espinosa said rebuilding would take up to six years after the city was struck by a 8.2 magnitude earthquake last September, which left more than 300 dead... Read more

Interesting Facts

How rising temperatures and changes in climate can impact the aviation industry and air travel.

As temperatures increase and weather becomes more extreme, the aviation industry must adapt to changes both in the air and on the ground. Not only can higher temperatures  bring about severe consequences for aircraft take-off performance, but also changes in the jet stream when flying across the Atlantic could result in increased flight delays and turbulence ... Read more

Forests are losing their resilience to wildfires as warming climates are impacting post-fire tree regeneration.

A new study on the resilience of Rocky Mountain forests, led by Colorado State University scientists, found significant decreases in tree regeneration following 21st century wildfires. Historically, the look of forests changes over time, but according to research it will take much longer for sites to re-establish forests after a wildfire, if they return at all.  The study shows the pattern of reduced tree regeneration emerge consistently across all the sites ... Read more  Link to research paper



Earthquake early warning: How the U.S. trails Mexico in potential life-saver
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake in southern Mexico early Monday appeared to be an aftershock from a 7.2-magnitude temblor that hit Friday. Both triggered seismic alarms that echoed across the capital, giving people a head start of 30 seconds to a minute to take cover or exit an unsafe building. Mexico built its system in response to an earthquake that devastated the capital in 1985, killing an estimated 10,000 people... Read more

Policy Developments and Outlook

          

Trump again seeks to end funding for earthquake early warning system and how authorities and facilities in California are planning to test their earthquake early warning systems.  The Trump administration’s budget proposal released last week again zeroed out funding for the earthquake early warning program administered by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).  The U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees the USGS, said in its budget justification that the reduction in the earthquake hazards program was proposed to “address higher priorities... Read more  

One arm of the Trump administration thinks climate change is a security threat.
A report published on January 26th by the Department of Defence (DoD) found that more than half of the 3,500 military sites surveyed are already reporting climate-related problems. Droughts are leading to water shortages, heatwaves are causing some live-fire exercises to be cancelled and shifting wind patterns are disrupting aircraft sorties. In addition, critical outposts abroad are similarly vulnerable. Twenty years from now a new $1bn radar installed on the Marshall Islands could be under water. Diego Garcia, a staging post on an Indian Ocean atoll crucial for operations in the Persian Gulf, may be submerged too... Read more