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  • Irish Chronicles Document Links Between Volcanoes and Weather
    A study of over 40,000 written entries in Irish Annals and ice core measurements shows a strong corr...Read more

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    Irish Chronicles Document Links Between Volcanoes and Weather

    A study of over 40,000 written entries in Irish Annals and ice core measurements shows a strong correlation between the occurrence of volcanic eruptions and extreme cold weather in Ireland over a 1200 year period. Data analyzed in this study cover the period from 431 to 1649, during which time up to 48 volcanic eruptions are identified in Greenland ice core records through deposition of volcanic sulfate in annual layers of ice. You can find the study (open access), published on 6 June 2013 in IOP Publishing's journal Environmental Research Letters, at http://iopscience.iop.org/1748-9326/8/2/024035/article. Find out more about how volcanoes can influence climate.
  • EF-5 Tornado in El Reno, Oklahoma Widest Ever Recorded in US
    The EF-5 tornado that hit El Reno, Oklahoma on May 31st was the widest ever recorded in the US, acco...Read more

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    EF-5 Tornado in El Reno, Oklahoma Widest Ever Recorded in US

    The EF-5 tornado that hit El Reno, Oklahoma on May 31st was the widest ever recorded in the US, according to the National Weather Service in Norman Oklahoma. The tornado, which remained on the ground for 40 minutes and reached 2.6 miles across (4.2 km), took the lives of 18 people including storm chasers Tim Samaras, Paul Samaras and Carl Young. For more information on the tornado, visit http://ow.ly/i/2hfDG.
  • Atmospheric CO2 Level Tops 400 ppm
    During the week of May 13th, the CO2 level at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii topped 400 ppm rep...Read more

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    Atmospheric CO2 Level Tops 400 ppm

    During the week of May 13th, the CO2 level at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii topped 400 ppm repeatedly. Daily levels of CO2 can vary due to weather, and there are seasonal trends as well. The level of atmospheric greenhouse gases continues to increase, now over 120 ppm since the Industrial Revolution began. For more on the Keeling Curve, see http://keelingcurve.ucsd.edu/. Find out more about greenhouse gases and warming.
This is an image of the Sif Mons on the planet Venus.
Click on image for full size
NASA

Sif

Scandinavian story-tellers spoke little about goddesses, who were rarely the chief characters of their stories. Sif was the wife of the mighty Thor, the god of thunder. Sif was mostly cited for her conjugal fidelity, which she symbolized. She bore two sons from Thor, Magni and Modi, whose names respectively mean "strength" and "anger." The two sons' names indicate characteristics that they inherited from their father.

Sif was also mentioned in relation to the malicious god Loki, who one day cut Sif's long, blond tresses. When Thor discovered this, he was so angry at Loki that he decided to punish him severely. Thor was renowned for his extraordinary strength. He captured Loki and began to squeeze him ,threatening to break his bones. Loki cried for mercy and promised to convince some dwarfs to craft refined hair spun from gold which could flow from Sif's head.

One of the volcanoes on the planet Venus is named after the Norse goddess. Most of the planetary features of Venus are named after famous women and goddesses pursuant to a decision of the International Astronomical Union, the organization responsible for selecting names for all celestial objects. The probable reason for naming the features of Venus according to such criterion is because it's the only planet named after a goddess, the Roman goddess of love and beauty.

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