NORTHERN CORONAL HOLE

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Spaceweather.com - 4/18/13

 

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NORTHERN CORONAL HOLE: A dark coronal hole has opened up in the sun's northern hemisphere, and it is spewing a stream of solar wind into space. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory took this multiwavelength UV photo of the gap on April 18th

 

Coronal holes are places where the sun's magnetic field opens up and allows solar wind to escape. In the image, arrows denote roughly where the solar wind is going. Solar wind from this particular coronal hole should reach Earth's orbit on April 21-22. A direct hit is unlikely, though. Because of the coronal hole's high northern latitude, the solar wind stream is likely to brush only the northern half of Earth's magnetic field. Nevertheless, polar sky watchers should be alert for auroras when it arrives.

 

Link: Spaceweather.com

1 Person Hospitalized After Chicago Sinkhole Swallows 3 Cars [VIDEO]

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Natureworldnews, By: James A. Foley, 04/18/2013

 

Chicago Sinkhole

 

Drivers in Chicago had a rough start Thursday morning after a sinkhole opened up in a residential neighborhood, injuring one and claiming three cars. The Chicago Tribune reports one person was taken from the sinkhole and rushed to Northwestern Memorial Hospital. The person is reported as in serious-to-critical condition.

 

The sinkhole opened up at 5:20 a.m. after a night of strong storms, the Chicago Sun Times reported. According to the Tribune, the fire department responded within 10 minutes of the sinkhole being reported and arrived to find two vehicles in the sinkhole. A third slid in after crews arrived.

 

For more on this story visit www.natureworldnews.com

Scientists Convert Cellulose into Amylose Starch

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Natureworldnews, By: Staff Reporter, 04/17/2013

 

Percvial Zhang led the team that found a way to convert cellulose to starch

 

Scientists have now found a way to convert cellulose to starch, a process that can be used to obtain food from all kinds of plants and not just food crops. Cellulose is found in all plant cells and is the most common carbohydrate in the world. However, humans can't use cellulose as a food source as they lack the enzymes to break it down. In fact, no vertebrate can digest cellulose directly due to the lack of necessary enzymes. However, animals like cows, sheep and goats have symbiotic bacteria in their intestinal tract that help them digest the carbohydrate.

 

The study, led by Y.H. Percival Zhang, an associate professor from Virginia Tech, has found a way to obtain food from plants that could reduce the burden on agriculture. The study team produced a kind of starch from cellulose called amylase, which is a good source of dietary fiber.

 

Colorado River Is America's Most Endangered River, According To American Rivers Group

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Natureworldnews, By James A. Foley, 04/17/2013

 

The Colorado River was named America Most Endangered River in 2013 by the American River group. The nine other rivers on the list are all different from the 2012 list of most endangered rivers.

 

The Colorado River has been identified as America's most endangered river in an annual survey of the health of the nation's rivers. Demand for water from the Colorado River is outpacing the supply and a recent study by the Colorado's Bureau of Reclamation says in addition to there not being enough water in the river to meet current demands, up to a 30 percent decrease in flow by 2050 will ensure that the river will not meet future demand either.

 

According to the American Rivers group the Colorado River is so over-tapped that it dries up to a trickle before reaching the sea. The group says a century of water management policies and practices that have promoted wasteful water use have put the river at a critical crossroads.

Cool and gusty blast for Sydney

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Weatherzone, By: Rob Sharpe, 04/18/2013

 

Sydneysiders should enjoy today's pleasant weather as a spell of cold, wet and windy weather is due to set in tomorrow. The coldest pair of days since October are forecast to hit Sydney, with temperatures set to reach 19 and 20 degrees. However the mercury is likely to sit around 17 for the majority of each day.

 

Strong winds and showers are expected in eastern parts of Sydney. Winds will gust above 60 km/h and could even reach 80km/h on late Friday or early Saturday. Western parts of Sydney will be fresh and gusty at times with just a few showers.

 

For more on this story visit www.weatherzone.com

Volunteers continue flood fencing fix

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Weatherzone, By William Rollo, 04/18/2013

 

Farm volunteer group BlazeAid says there is still about a month's fencing work to be completed in the Banana Shire, in central Queensland, after the summer floods.

 

The group has been operating out Dululu, west of Gladstone, for the past month. Coordinator Col Vardy says volunteers have so far repaired about 45 kilometres of fencing. He says there is still plenty to be done and anyone can help.

 

For more on this story visit www.weatherzone.com

Coldest days since spring for Tasmania

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Weatherzone, By: Ben McBurney, 04/18/2013

 

 

The seasons have well and truly changed in Tasmania, with some places likely to see their coldest days since October over the next couple of days. A cold front swept across the state overnight, bringing showers and the coldest air mass the state has seen since spring.

 

Hobart managed to reach 13 degrees at 11am this morning, and is unlikely to get any higher today as the air mass continues to cool. This is the city's coldest day since October when it hit just 11 degrees, and is a cool reminder that winter is on its way. Strahan on the west coast also only managed to creep up to 13.4 degrees today, its coldest day since November.

 

For more on this story visit www.weatherzone.com

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