Journal #4 - Earthquakes

Journal #4

            During the past couple of weeks, Dr. Richard had been lecturing in our class about landform and soil and mass wasting. What I found really interesting was when he started talking about geology. Geology is the study of planet Earth, and is typically divided into 2 different areas: Physical and Historical Geology. From what I learned on the PowerPoint, physical geology is the study of the material composition of the earth, while historical geology is the study of the origin of the earth and its evolution throughout the time. Natural hazards and environment issues are some of the problems and issues that are addressed by geology.

            One of the examples of the issues that were talked about that I find really interesting is the topic of earthquakes. An earthquake is also known as a quake tremor or tremblor. It is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth’s crust that then creates seismic waves. These waves determine the type and size of experienced over a period of time. Earthquakes are measured using observations from seismometers. If the magnitude of the earthquake is larger than 5 then it is reported for the entire globe. Magnitudes lower than 3 or lower earthquakes are mostly weak and magnitude of 7 and over potentially cause serious damage over large areas, depending on its depth.

            Being from California, I am definitely used to earthquakes. I am used to earthquake drills and know what to do from there. Feeling my bed shake a little at night when an earthquake hits doesn’t really phase me anymore because I’m so used to earthquakes.  But one experience with it that scared me and I would never forget was during the spring of 2010. I remember it was during Easter Sunday. I was in the parking garage with my grandmother when all of a sudden we hear this loud noise, and all I can see were the pipes shaking. I had no idea what was going on after. Until it hit me and I finally realized that we are on the base level of her 10 story building condominium and there is an earthquake. It only probably lasted for a minuet but it honestly felt like forever. I grabbed my grandmother’s hand and we both ran for the gate. It was so scary. It sounds really dramatic but it was one of the scariest earthquakes that I had to experience.

            The earthquake was then called the 2010 Baja California earthquake. It was a magnitude of 7.2 and started 16 miles south of Baja California. It occurred at 3:40 pm on April 4, 2010.  It said to have lasted for a minute and a half. The earthquake was the strongest to rock Southern California in at least 18 years, if not longer. San Diego was said to be situated in a very active seismic zone and surrounded by important faults. An aftershock of 4.4 had been felt throughout southern California.

Environmental Blog #3

            Exotic species are those organisms introduced into habitats where they are not native. In their natural habitats, these organisms developed stable populations and complex relationships with other species. When removed from the predators, parasites, diseases and competitors that have kept their numbers in check, species introduced into new habitats often overrun their new home and crowd out native species. Once they have been established, exotic species can rarely be eliminated.

            The wildlife of the Philippines includes a significant number of endemic plants and exotic animal species. The country’s surrounding waters have the highest level of biodiversity. The Philippines is considered as one of the seventeen megadiverse countries as well as global biodiversity hotspot. According to the 2000 Red List of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, 418 of the country’s 52, 177 species were listed as threatened.

            The exotic species in the Philippines include the Tamaraw and the Philippine Tarsier, which is one of the smallest species of primates in the world. They also have 3 exotic species of deer named, Philippine Deer, Calamian Deer and the Philippine Spotted Deer.

Philippine Spotted Deer

Calamian Deer

Philippine Deer

            The tarsier is a small species of primate that is found inhabiting the well-vegetated forest in the Philippines. It is a unique and distinctive looking animal that has evolved a number of specific features to help its nocturnal lifestyle. They have long legs, which enable them to leap distances up to 5 meters between branches. The most distinctive feature is on their heads. Because of their specially adapted vertebrae are able to turn 180 degrees in both directions so that they can see behind it without moving it’s body. Their enormous eyes can be up to 16mm across and enable them to hunt for prey and predators. They also have large bat-like ears to detect the slightest sounds.

The tarsier is an incredibly elusive animal that is known to be shy around humans. With the increasing human activity in areas of their habitats, they are being pushed into smaller and more isolated areas.

Today, many of the different tarsiers are either listed as being endangered or vulnerable by the IUCN. Although conservation work is striving to protect these animals and their remaining pockets of primary forest, they remain threatened by the loss of habitat throughout much of their natural range.

Typhoon Haiyan

A couple of weeks ago, we had a speaker come in and talk about hurricanes and tornados. I thought this topic was really interesting; therefore, this blog is going to be about hurricanes.

According to the textbook, Hurricanes are what we generally refer to as tropical cyclones. It consists of prominent low-pressure centers that are essentially circular, with a steep pressure gradient outward from the center. As a result, strong winds spiral inward. But in order for a storm to be classified as a hurricane, the wind must reach a speed of 119 kilometers per hour. The wind pattern of a hurricane pulls in warm water, which the causes or fuels that storm. As the warm water spirals into the storm, air rises and cools which then brings air to saturation. Condensation then releases water that builds up clouds and feeds the heavy rain.

In general, both typhoons and hurricanes are tropical cyclones but differ in their locations. The difference between hurricane and typhoon is that tropical cyclones in the west Pacific are called Typhoons and those in the Atlantic and east Pacific Ocean are called Hurricanes.

Typhoon Haiyan, which is also known as Typhoon Yolanda, was one of the most powerful tropical cyclone that devastated portions of Southeast Asia, particularly the Philippines, which was in fact my hometown. It is supposedly the deadliest Philippines typhoon on record killing at least 6,000 people. According to CNN, more than 27,000 people have been reported injured and 1,800 people are still missing. According to Jeff Masters, director of meteorology at Weather Underground, Haiyan had sustained winds of 230 km/h to 315 km/h when It struck the Philippines making it the strongest cyclone ever at the time of landfall.

Despite the destructive winds, a storm surge, which is the height of the sea above the tide, can conflict the heaviest damage and kill the most people. Storm surges vary a lot even among the most powerful storms, because the rise in ocean water is driven not just by the wind speed but how long high winds are sustained, how fast the storm moves forward, whether a storm makes landfall during high or low tide, and especially the shape of the sea floor leading up to the coast. The estimates for Haiyan’s surge are between 15 and 20 feet where it first made landfall.

            

After this catastrophic typhoon hit the Philippines, the after math is truly heart breaking. The pictures I have found are devastating. And to this day, I still pray for the families that were affected by the typhoon and  am very thankful to god that my family are okay.

Sources:

Fischetti, Mark. "Was Typhoon Haiyan a Record Storm?" Scientific American Global RSS. N.p., 12 Nov. 2013. Web. 07 Mar. 2014.

Staff, CNN. "Typhoon Haiyan Death Toll Tops 6,000 in the Philippines." CNN. Cable News Network, 13 Dec. 2013. Web. 06 Mar. 2014.

"Super Typhoon Haiyan: Satellite Images." BBC News. N.p., 8 Nov. 2013. Web. 07 Mar. 2014.

"Typhoon Haiyan Storm Surge Destroys House in Seconds - Video." Theguardian.com. Guardian News and Media, 18 Nov. 2013. Web. 07 Mar. 2014.

San Diego Weather vs. Denver

            San Diego and Denver are two major cities in my life. I currently reside in Denver, while San Diego will always be my hometown. There are similarities between the two cities, as well as differences. The most obvious difference between the two cities is the weather.

            San Diego weather is perfection, that is, in my own opinion. The climate in the city often varies over short geographical distances due to mountains, hills and the bay.  I experienced the weather difference over the geographical distances. When I lived in a town called Alpine, it seemed to be always 5-10 degrees cooler than El Cajon, which is the city where I went to high School. I always though that it was very weird, but the reason for that is because Alpine is in the mountains, while El Cajon is nestled in a valley surrounded by mountains. SD typically experiences mild and sunny weather, for the majority of the year. In the wintertime and the early months of the year, the city experiences heavy precipitation while during the months of May and June, a thin layer of clouds cover the coastal and inland communities. Some call it “May Gray” or “June Gloom.” May gray and June gloom is a local saying that refers to thee way in which San Diego sometimes had trouble shaking off the fog that comes in during those months.  Summer to early fall is typically the hottest times of the year. The months of September through February then bring dry and warm winds from the desert called Santa Ana. These winds can burst out in gusts of 100mph and it can lower the humidity level to single digits because they bring sometimes hot but always dry conditions. Santa Ana can easily spread or worsen fires. “The Santa Ana winds are actually warm due to barometric pressure increases: as the air is pulled down to sea level from the higher altitudes of the Great Basin and Rocky Mountains to the east it compresses and heats up.”

            Denver on the other hand has beautiful weather as well.  Although it is known for it’s “bipolar weather, “ and 300 days of sunshine a year, it still experiences all four seasons. It is amazing how one day it will be snowing and the next day it will be bright and sunny. The summers range from mild to hot with an occasional afternoon thunderstorms and high temperatures that can range up to the 90s. While the winter ranges from mild to occasional bitter cold where you can’t feel your face. And again, in the winter time it is possible for it to be snowing the night before and have it be sunny the next morning. Last year, I saw snow fall  in the month of may which shows extreme weather patterns for Colorado.

            What I thought was really interesting is literally experiencing both climates from both cities. During the first week of February, I went home to San Diego for the weekend. This was during the snow storm in Colorado. On February 5^th, the temperature in Denver was -11 degrees with a -30 wind chill.  It was the coldest I have ever been in Denver and needless to say, I was very ready to go home to the warmer weather in San Diego. The first few days in San Diego were a little chilly. It rained for the first couple days and was overcasted. But then eventually it got warmer and the temperature went up to the 60s, which to me is perfectly nice and warm, it felt like spring. But to the local San Diegans, this temperature is considered quite chilly and for some even freezing. That cracked me up a little.

            In conclusion, both cities experience beautiful and different weather patterns. San Diego experiences weather that Denver does not experience and vice versa. The reason for this is their geographic location. Because San Diego is closer to the ocean, they experience less temperature fluctuations than Denver who experiences 4 seasons. I love living in both cities and experiencing both weathers.