Weekly Weird News for 17 December 2021
Wicked week of weather
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On to the news of the week. It’s quite grim. Apologies ahead of time.
This week was very much about the weather. Weird weather has always been an interest of mine. I almost chose meteorology as a major instead of geology. There is no lack of news about devastating weather events this week. Most people have undoubtedly heard about the catastrophic tornado that hit the central US on Friday night. The hardest-hit states were Kentucky, Illinois, Arkansas, Missouri, Mississippi and Tennessee. The death toll will likely exceed 100 people. https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/12/11/us/tornadoes-midwest-south
US battered by tornadoes fueled by unseasonable warmth
Scientists note that the risk of tornadoes may be changing, for better or worse depending on where you live, but the US will remain the leader in tornado occurrences by country. Why? Because of the warm humid air masses from the coast that clash with cold dry air masses from the interior. Tornadoes form and can travel far across the flat plains. https://thehill.com/changing-america/enrichment/education/585928-why-america-has-the-most-tornadoes-in-the-world
Photos whipped away by the wind
People outside the affected storm area found photographs on their property and suspected they might be from tornado-damaged homes. They were right. On Claiborne Farm, a legendary thoroughbred farm in Paris, Kentucky, a photo of two children that was noticed by a horse was picked up and saved. The family was from Campbellsville and their home was destroyed. In Indiana, across the Ohio river, a woman found an older photo on the windshield of her car. Using the name on the back, the source of the photo was discovered 130 miles away in Dawson Springs, Kentucky, where homes were leveled. A Facebook group was set up to chronicle items found strewn across the land in the home that they could be returned to the owners who might now have nothing else. https://www.wkyt.com/2021/12/16/photo-found-central-ky-horse-farm-believed-be-tornado-hit-area-western-ky/ and https://www.wkyt.com/2021/12/13/photo-tornado-damaged-home-lands-almost-130-miles-away/
Conspiracy mongering to deal with the catastrophe
Meanwhile, heartless and thoughtless bastard Alex Jones promoted the idea that the storm events were a geoengineered event - a ludicrous proposal. Anything he can do to slander science and the political figures he opposes, and to disrespect people who have lost so much, he will stoop that low. Other cult-like followers of ex-President Trump are also touting this conspiracy idea, continuing to exhibit either astounding ignorance about nature or peddling lies for a purpose. But, worse, is that people believe them as they wrestle with the impact of bad things happening in the world. One might notice how certain sections of the population insist that some nefarious agent is responsible for a catastrophe. To everyone’s detriment, they fail to grasp the complexity of society and the environment and, thus, we humans are failing to mobilize a meaningful effort to combat the problem - whether that be global warming, COVID, or rotten politics. https://www.yahoo.com/news/alex-jones-wonders-joe-biden-015445268.html
Weird weather continued
The bad weather continued for several days as nasty conditions battered additional central states. The record warmth fueled a strong system that caused hurricane-force winds and unheard of tornado sightings in December in Minnesota, Nebraska, and Iowa. https://www.axios.com/storm-plains-midwest-damaging-winds-tornadoes-d4d91bb9-4909-4b53-ac41-eedb6e1d9b85.html
Record warmth in Siberia confirmed
Also out this week is news of a confirmed record high temperature in the Arctic in 2020. The UN recognized a measurement of 100.4 degrees F in a Siberian city in June 2020 - the highest ever measured above the Arctic circle. Temperatures have been measured there since 1885. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/arctic-record-siberia-100-degree-heat-climate-change-alarm-bells-un/
Wildfires, fueled by global warming, actually make the situation worse. Wildfires produced a record amount of carbon emissions in parts of Siberia, the United States and Turkey in 2021. https://www.reuters.com/business/cop/siberia-us-wildfires-broke-emissions-records-this-year-2021-12-06/
Black box to record the end
Society as we know it will eventually overturn, no doubt. But our end may be recorded by a “black box” storage device that scientists will install in Tasmania, a geographically stable area. The device will record data on climate change for whatever civilization follows. It will be powered by solar energy. https://www.reuters.com/business/cop/australians-create-black-box-hold-world-accountable-climate-crisis-2021-12-07/
Zebras corralled
In an update from many months ago, three zebras that had escaped from a Maryland property in August have been accounted for. Two were recaptured after 4 months on the loose. They are fine. A third died after it was caught in an illegal trap. The owner was charged with cruelty after he failed to take action for the escaped animals which resulted in the death. Originally, it was thought that up to six animals had escaped. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/two-large-zebras-return-maryland-farm-four-months-escaping-rcna8813
Mysterious road heave explained
In another update, also from last September, authorities have discovered what happened to a road in Detroit that was damaged when it heaved and cracked, wrecking a nearby building and making the locals nervous about an explosion. The cause was found to be overloading. The soil shifted under heavy materials on the surface impacting underground utlities lines. https://news.yahoo.com/mysterious-8-foot-mound-swelled-170810791.html
Owl survives harrowing accident
In Saskatchewan, snowy owls can fly into the path of vehicles. A rescue organization says that rarely ends well for the bird, but occasionally, they survive and may become stuck in the vehicle grill. Recently, a bird was found to still be alive and was rehabbed with a concussion but no broken bones. She will be released soon. The organization suggests that you stop and check if you hit a wild animal and call wildlife volunteers to help. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/regina-salthaven-west-fielding-high-volume-calls-snowy-owls-1.6283103
A flock of grebes was not so fortunate when they suffered traumatic injuries when landing on a pond in Utah. The bird deaths are still mysterious. They were not shot but the injuries are consistent with impact trauma. Stormy weather might have been a factor. https://www.stgeorgeutah.com/news/archive/2021/12/10/ajt-mysterious-grebe-downing-leaves-hundreds-of-dead-birds-floating-in-quail-creek/#.Ybvjqn3MKZy
Animals confused by Xmas traditions
Two stories reveal how animals can find this whole holiday thing all a bit weird. A family in South Africa had a venomous hitchhiker in their Christmas tree. Rescuers were called in to safely remove the boomslang from the tree and released it. https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2021/12/13/safrica-venomous-boomslang-snake-Christmas-tree-Western-Cape-South-Africa/5251639429783/
Bear attacks decoration
A woman in California recorded a bear cub having an altercation with an inflated giant reindeer yard decoration. It’s adorable but the reindeer managed to get the best of the cub.
More evidence for Mars water
The European space agency reports that a Mars probe has discovered a signal for near-surface water in a deep canyon on Mars. The source of hydrogen is expected to be ice. Another Mars probe also collected evidence of water. https://www.esa.int/ScienceExploration/HumanandRoboticExploration/Exploration/ExoMars/ExoMarsdiscovershiddenwaterinMarsGrand_Canyon
Chasing space ghosts
Meanwhile, the US Congress is about to approve legislation that creates a new office in the Pentagon to investigate UFO sightings. The main problem is that the evidence justifying the need for such an office is tremendously poor and fueled by a few fanatical people who believe that the earth is being buzzed by mystery craft. These same people who have been proven to be less than credible are cashing in on the related media exposure. Just a reminder, after over 70 years of looking for proof of aliens, exactly zero pieces of reputable evidence has turned up. It’s not for lack of trying, either. If there ever is anything interesting that turns up, I’ll be sure to mention it. https://newrepublic.com/article/164699/pentagon-ufos-gillibrand-ndaa-spending
Ghost orb caught on camera
This is a good one. A clip of a light going down the street in Norwich, England before dawn looks quite weird. The fairly clear footage captured on a closed-circuit camera bears no hint of tampering. Only at the initial appearance of the light does it look like it is held by a person. Then any trace of a body disappears. But it doesn’t mean it’s a ghost. One professor quoted in this article suspects it is a person carrying their phone with the flashlight on. I can’t insert the video but if you have a look, you can see this is a testable claim. Someone should certainly try to reproduce the effect. https://www.eveningnews24.co.uk/news/what-is-this-mysterious-norwich-light-orb-8565990
