NASA - Hurricane Season 2010: Pineapple Express (Pacific Ocean)

Heavy rains force Californians from homes
California has been slammed with snow, floods and Mudslides, leading to road closures and forcing people from their homes. Heavy Rains, which began late last week in the normally arid region, are expected to continue in to Wednesday. Record rainfall led to the Evacuation of at least 2,000 residents due to torrential rains and high winds. A massive storm is expected to hit Southern California Tuesday night, bringing up to 25 centimetres of rain in high altitudes, according to the National Weather...

Pineapple Express
It's getting wet around here (from ABC7's Doppler radar): I'm right about where the "c" in Newport Beach is. It's coming down good now and supposed to continue like this for two more days. ...

A strong earthquake hits in the Pacific Ocean off southern Japan; tsunami warning issued
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A strong earthquake hits in the Pacific Ocean off southern Japan; tsunami warning issued
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Storm lashes California and leaves polluted water
LOS ANGELES (AP) - California residents who endured Flooding, Mudslides and Evacuations during a weeklong onslaught of rain now have another problem: contaminated water and fouled beaches. The rain washed trash, Pesticides and Bacteria into waterways, prompting health warnings. Four beaches were closed in Northern California's San Mateo County and another 12 miles of beach from Laguna Beach to San Clemente in Southern California's Orange County were off-limits because of sewer overflows. While...

West Coast Drenching and Feet of Snow
© weather.com The weekend kicked off a very stormy period for the West Coast that will extend into Wednesday. Up to 12 feet of snow has fallen in the Sierra, over 18 inches of rain in some locations, and winds well over 100 mph in the high country. If you've planned that holiday Ski Trip to one of the resorts in the Sierra Nevada, rest assured there will be plenty of fresh powder. The biggest challenge may be traveling there. Below is the stormy setup in place since this past weekend. ...

San Francisco, Los Angeles Brace for Flooding Rain
Heavy rainfall is causing people to break out the umbrellas and take precautions against Mudslides. This video has the details. More Flooding rain will target California through early in the week. Rainfall totals have already surged past a foot at some locations in the Golden State over the weekend, and several more inches of rain will inundate some areas in California through early in the week. Flood waters overtook some area roadways over the weekend. More rainfall today could exacerbate exis...

Was the 2010 Haiti Earthquake triggered by deforestation and the 2008 hurricanes?
The headline and the provocative repost are both from Meteorologist — and former NOAA Hurricane Hunter — Jeff Masters of the Weather Underground: Major Earthquakes occur when the stress on rocks between two tectonic plates reaches a critical breaking point, allowing the earth to move along the connecting fault. While the slow creep of the tectonic plates makes Earthquakes inevitable along major faults, the timing and exact location of the quake Epicenter can be influenced by outsid...

California braves floods, mud and snow
Residents of California have been coping with flash Flooding, mud, and heavy snow. In the city of Santee, rainwater caused a water pipe to give way, creating a giant Sinkhole. In Northern California, snow made for hazardous driving conditions in the Sierra Nevada mountains. Watch What will 2011 bring for gamers? This page is best viewed in an up-to-date Web Browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will ...

Major 7.4-magnitude quake hits near Japanese islands: USGS
A major 7.4-magnitude quake struck southern Japan Wednesday, the US Geological Survey said, with people in nearby coastal regions told to evacuate ahead of a possible two-metre-high Tsunami. The quake hit at 3:19 am local time (1719 GMT Tuesday), 153 kilometres (95 miles) east of Chichi-shima in Japan's remote Bonin island region and at a shallow depth of just 14 kilometres. There were no immediate reports of damage or injury. The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there was no thr...

Tsunami alert downgraded in Japan
Scores of villagers on a remote Japanese island chain scrambled for higher ground after a major 7.4-magnitude offshore quake early on Wednesday sparked a Tsunami Alert that was later downgraded. Waves of 30cm hit the shores of the Ogasawara islands, an archipelago with a population of about 2,300 some 1000km south of Tokyo, near Iwo Jima in the Pacific Ocean. The tremor, which struck at 2.19am local time (0419 AEDT), jolted people out of bed as loudspeakers blared across the island villages and ...

Japan 7.4 seabed quake sparks tsunami scare
Scores of villagers on a remote Japanese island chain in the Pacific scrambled for higher ground early Wednesday after a major 7.4-magnitude offshore quake sparked a Tsunami Alert. The seabed tremor struck at 2:19 am local time (1719 GMT Tuesday), jolting people out of bed as loudspeakers blared across the Ogasawara islands and authorities warned of the risk of a two-metre (six-foot) high local Tsunami. The tsunami alert was later downgraded and all warnings were lifted five hours after the quak...

Relentless Rain Forces Evacuations in California
Several western states have been pounded by Heavy Rain for the last six days and forecasters have warned that the most intense in a series of storms is on the way. Southern California residents have been warned to evacuate as concern grows about potential Mudslides in the storm-plagued region. After days of relentless rain, the most intense storm system is on its way. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, R-Calif., has declared a State of Emergency in several counties. The threat of Mudslides forced t...

California braces for major storm
Residents in Southern California are bracing for Flooding, thunderstorms, hail and even tornadoes from the worst in a week-long series of storms. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared a State of Emergency for a half a dozen communities in the state, some of which have already seen mud slides and flooded streets. Hundreds of people have been evacuated in the suburbs of Los Angeles. Forecasters said the storm could bring as much as 1in (2.5cm) of rain an hour. "There's going to be ...

California flooded after record rainfall
A huge storm system dumped record amounts of rain on Southern California and prompted concern the poor weather could spread across the US. The deluge came at the end of a week that saw Los Angeles receive half its annual rainfall in just six days. Hundreds of people were evacuated in the city's suburbs, with particular concerns for homes in steep-sided canyons previously ravaged by Wildfires. Flood warnings and emergency orders have also been put in place in Arizona, Nevada and Utah. There are ...

Rain-soaked California braces for biggest storm yet
LOS ANGELES — After days of relentless rain, Southern California was bracing for the most intense storm system yet, with Evacuations ordered, roads covered by water and mud, and residents anxiously eyeing already saturated mountainsides denuded by Wildfires. Forecasters expected Heavy Rain to move into Arizona, Utah and Nevada on Wednesday, but the focus clearly was on Southern California, where a monster storm was expected to bring torrential rain, thunderstorms, Flooding, hail and possib...

Entire nation gets a 'ringside seat' to total lunar eclipse
If you step outside late tonight into early Tuesday morning, you may notice The Moon looks like a luminous rotten orange. It's a total lunar eclipse that will be visible to everyone in North and Central America, including Alaska and Hawaii. "We've all got a ringside seat to this one," says Alan MacRobert, editor of Sky & Telescope magazine. "We'll be watching it together." During a lunar eclipse, the Earth lines up directly between the sun and the moon, so there is no direct sunlight to hit ...

Meteorite yields building blocks of life
GREENBELT, Md., Dec. 21 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say they've found amino acids where they shouldn't be -- on a meteorite that formed from an asteroid so hot it should have destroyed the acids. NASA researchers say the amino acids, the building blocks of life, may have formed through some mechanism that does not require water, increasing the chances of finding life beyond the solar system, ScienceNews.org reported Tuesday. "Amino acids are forming in environments that we really didn't think were ...

Are You Watching Tonight's Eclipse?
Alessandro Della Bella/Keystone, via Associated Press The Moon rising behind hikers in Arosa, Switzerland Monday night and into the morning, the Earth will prevent the Sun’s rays from reaching the moon, what is known to laymen as a lunar Eclipse. It is supposed to be a particularly good show for people in North America who are  under clear skies, and a rare  way to usher in the winter solstice. It is the first time in 372 years that a lunar eclipse also marks the beginning o

More Gains For GOP
A month after frustrated voters handed the GOP a sizable majority in the U.S. House, several Republican-leaning states picked up additional seats on Tuesday as official state population totals were released by the U.S. Census Bureau. Texas, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia and Washington all picked up seats based on the new population data - with Texas gaining four new seats and Arizona picking up two additional seats. Meanwhile, New York and Ohio each lost a pair of...

Skywatchers set for total lunar eclipse
© AP The Moon could turn pink or blood red during the eclipse Skywatchers around the world are gearing up to observe a rare total lunar eclipse. The best viewing conditions for the eclipse are from North and Central America, parts of Northern Europe and East Asia. Astronomers say the Moon could turn a pink or blood red hue during the eclipse, which begins early on Tuesday morning GMT. It will be the first total lunar eclipse in three years. The Moon is normally illuminated by the Sun....

Monster Storm Pounds California
NASA's GOES-11 satellite captured an image of the famous 'Pineapple Express" weather pattern on Dec. 19, 2010 This is the Pineapple Express: a funnel of torrential rain over the West Coast, dropping hail, waterspouts and Flooding areas from San Diego up through Oregon. ABC News cites NWS Meteorologist Bill Hoffer, who's warned today is the most critical for Southern California: "It's going to be a three-ring circus", Hoffer says. Headline in the LA Times: LA Region Braces for Worst Storm Yet. ...

Strong Earthquake Hits Japan, Tsunami Warning Issued
TOKYO -- A strong Earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.4 has struck in the Pacific off southern Japan. Japan's Meteorological Agency has issued a Tsunami warning from the quake, which occurred about 80 miles off the Chichi Island in the Pacific Ocean. The offshore quake struck at around 2:20 a.m. local time at the depth of 6.2 miles. The agency issued a warning for a mild Tsunami for nearby islands. There was no immediate report of any damage or injuries....

Dramatic satellite image shows huge storms heading toward Los Angeles
A satellite image of the Pacific Ocean offers a dramatic preview of the storms that are expected to batter Southern California on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. © National Weather Service The satellite shot (above) shows a band of storm lining up in the Pacific and moving into California. The image below shows rains in California as of about 10:30 a.m. A northern cold front is expected to move into the Los Angeles basin Monday afternoon, mashing up with subtropical moisture that has b...

Strong Earthquake Near Japan Triggers Tsunami Warning
A strong Earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.4 has struck in the Pacific Ocean, triggering a Tsunami warning off the southern coast of Japan. Japan's Meteorological Agency said the quake occurred about 80 miles off the southern coast of Chichi Island in the Pacific Ocean. The offshore quake struck at around 2:20 a.m. local time. The U.S. Geological Survey also put the quake's magnitude at 7.4. The Japanese agency issued a Tsunami Alert of up to 6 feet for nearby islands and warnings of ...