Archive for June, 2008
california fires time-lapse
animation spans satellite images from june 23 through the 27th. includes the fires in northern california, meltwater along the nw coast (and possibly a phytoplankton bloom?), the puget sound and vancouver, bc.
Images courtesy MODIS Rapid Response Project at NASA/GSFC
This is the daily update as of Thursday, June 26th at 9PM, from the Northern California Joint Information Center.
Current Situation: State and Federal firefighters continue to battle hundreds of
wildfires throughout northern California and are preparing for light to moderate
dry thunderstorm activity beginning tonight through the weekend. Fires are
activity burning and continuing to spread. High winds predicted to increase fire
behavior through the weekend. Priority of firefighting effort is for the protection of
life, property and natural resources.
Fires: 1,090
Acres: 165,091
Contained Fires: 241
Personnel Committed: 12,512
Resources Committed:
• Engines: 933
• Crews: 288
• Dozers: 262
• Water Tenders: 303
• Helicopters: 68
• Air Tankers: 14
• Incident Management Teams: 26
• Management/Overhead Personnel: 18511
Highway closures: State highways and local roads are closed
throughout northern California due to wildfire activities. Closures and delays are
in place for state highway 32, 36, 70, 89, 96 and 299. Numerous county and
local roads are closed as well. Travelers are advised to check with law
enforcement agencies and transportation departments prior to traveling.
Evacuations: Areas of Butte, Shasta and Trinity counties are under
evacuation orders at this time. Precautionary evacuation orders are in place for
areas in Lassen, Modoc, Mendocino, Trinity and Shasta counties. Residents are
advised to monitor the fire situation in their areas, check with local law
enforcement agencies for information, and be prepared to evacuate when
necessary.
Structures Destroyed: 20 residences, 1 commercial, 20 outbuildings.
Seven victims, aged 15 to 30, were stabbed Sunday morning (June 22, 2008) at the Sierra Nevada World Music Festival, with one victim requiring a life flight evacuation for a wound to the upper torso, in yet another tragic episode of ‘why drugs are bad’. I called the Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital to find out if the victim was ok, but the operator was unable to give me any information. I learned from the message boards that the victim was in stable condition.
Meanwhile, on Friday afternoon (June 20, 2008), lighting had passed through the area, igniting over a hundred blazes that would quickly choke the sky with a thick, unhealthy smoke. The Santa Rosa local paper, the Press Democrat, has good local coverage of the blazes which continue to rage. The air was so bad I slept in my car one night, and it reminded me of the San Diego fires in 2003. The sun was caught behind a smoky veil for the entire day, an orange globe trying to penetrate the haze. It is now hazy over the entire SF bay area. I woke up last night gasping for breath and had to break out my inhaler to help breathe.
if you need a card, they’re on the racks behind my dad. the polaroid got a little smudged on his hat and shirt. sorry dad.
NPR might think they can corner the market on science with their paltry, particle-deficient Science Friday’s, so it’s time to heat up the particle-accelerator and collide their sham…with a new one! We’re taking it to the next level: the very next day. Introducing Science Saturdays. Get your subatomic particles off on that, NPR! I’m also challenging Stephen Colbert to a science fair-off. We’ll see if he can send a hydrogen rocket into space or if he’ll just end up chasing Richard Branson between the Moon and New York City in his new Virgin Galactic Spaceship.
I’ve dug out a classic and I’m dedicating this episode of Science Saturdays to one of my favorite radio channels (when it’s not the pledge drive at least). Take a peek at Science Projects Handbook for some scientific inspiration. It’s “the actual science experiments of 36 young scientists on the threshold of fascinating careers.”
This is not a reprint people, this is the official, O.G. publication (see back cover). And if you read this book as a child, probably sometime between 1960 & 1970, and you are now a scientist, we are interested in hearing from you.
Heroes for Ghosts, a show featuring new paintings, drawings, screen prints and sculptures from Michael Sieben opens this Thursday at FIFTY24SF.
What did they get you to trade?
