Eclipse delights crowds in Siberia, China

Blacked-out sun witnessed in far-flung regions ... and on the InternetThe moon's shadow swept across the planet from Canada to China on Friday, delighting skywatchers who flocked to remote regions to see a total eclipse of the sun. The stellar spectacle — which arises when the moon passes directly between the sun and Earth — began in northern Canada, tracked across Greenland and the Arctic, then moved through Russia and Mongolia.The celestial display ended in China, where some saw it as a dark omen ahead of next week's start of the Olympic Games in Beijing.In Novosibirsk, one of the largest cities in the path of totality, thousands of people mixed awe with excitement as day turned into night. All gazed in wonder as an eerie silence descended on the Siberian city, and gushes of unusually strong wind tore through the crowd of skywatchers. Birds stopped chirping and the temperature suddenly dropped.It's very dramatic when the darkness suddenly comes. That's why thousands of tourists go to see.

Giant chunks break off Canadian ice shelf

Giant sheets of ice totaling almost eight square miles broke off an ice shelf in the Canadian Arctic last week and more could follow later this year, scientists said on Tuesday.

Temperatures in large parts of the Arctic have risen far faster than the global average in recent decades, a development that experts say is linked to global warming.The ice broke away from the shelf on Ward Hunt Island, an small island just off giant Ellesmere Island in one of the northernmost parts of Canada.It was the largest fracture of its kind since the nearby Ayles ice shelf -- which measured 25 square miles -- broke away in 2005.Scientists had already identified deep cracks in the Ward Hunt shelf, which measures around 155 square miles. The shelf is one of five along Ellesmere Island in the northern Arctic."Because the break-off occurred between two large parallel cracks they're thinking more could go this summer before the freeze sets in".said the scientist

"It underscores the fact that each year we're now crossing new thresholds in environmental change in the High Arctic, and of course our concern in the longer term is that these may signal the onset of serious change at all latitudes, much further to the south, for example," he told Reuters.

Life from Venus blown to Earth?

Life on Venus could be blown to Earth by powerful winds, scientists claim.
Previous research has considered the possibility of micro organisms existing in Venus's atmosphere despite extreme temperatures on its surface. But two scientists at the Cardiff Centre for Astrobiology say microbes from Venus could actually be blown into the Earth's atmosphere by solar winds. Their findings follow analysis of data from the European Space Agency's Venus Express probe, launched in 2005. They suggest that under certain conditions, these microbes from high in Venus's atmosphere could be blown into the Earth's atmosphere.This process would only take days or weeks. But the Sun, Earth and Venus must be suitably aligned, which last happened in 2004 and will not happen again until 2012. Prof Wickramasinghe said: "Venus and Earth have often been referred to as sisters because of their geological similarities. "Our research proposes that the two sisters may be biologically interconnected as well." "The idea of life on Venus, particularly the clouds where the temperature and pressure are similar to the Earth, has been floated around for a while but is not really very likely," he said.He added that it was "most unlikely" anyway that microbes from Venus could be transferred to the Earth's atmosphere by solar winds. The Venus Express probe, launched in November 2005, is orbiting the planet to study its atmosphere. Scientists hope to learn how Venus, which is similar to Earth in size, mass and composition, evolved so differently over the last 4.6 billion years. The mission was the first to be sent to the planet in 15 years.

Complete Baby Tyrannosaurid Unearthed in Mongolia

TOKYO — Japanese and Mongolian scientists have successfully recovered the complete skeleton of a 70-million-year-old young dinosaur, a nature museum.

The scientists uncovered a Tarbosaurus — related to the giant carnivorous Tyrannosaurus — from a chunk of sandstone they dug up in August, 2006 in the Gobi Desert in Mongolia, said Takuji Yokoyama, a spokesman for the Hayashibara Museum of Natural Sciences, a co-organizer of the joint research project."We were so lucky to have found remains that turned out to be a complete set of all the important parts.The latest find would be a major step toward discovering the growth and development of dinosaurs.

Is world's wettest place getting drier?

The town of Cherrapunjee, in the north-eastern Indian state of Meghalaya, is reputed to be the wettest place in the world.

But there are signs that its weather patterns may be being hit by global climate change. "Not without reason has Cherrapunjee achieved fame as being the place with the heaviest rainfall on earth," wrote German missionary Christopher Becker more than 100 years ago. "One must experience it to have an idea of the immense quantity of rain which comes down from the skies, at times day and night without a stop. It is enough to go a few steps from the house to be drenched from head to foot. An umbrella serves no purpose."

But according to Cherrapunjee's most renowned weather-watcher, Denis Rayen, the climate of the town is changing fast.

Tropical storm forms off Southeast coast

Cristobal hits Carolinas with rain, surf but not likely to become hurricane.

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Tropical Storm Cristobal formed off the Southeast coast Saturday — the first to threaten the United States this hurricane season. Gale-force winds and heavy rains were expected to lash the Carolinas as the storm grazed the shoreline on a northeasterly path.
At 5 p.m. ET, the center of the storm was about 125 miles east of Charleston, S.C., and about 225 miles southeast of Cape Hatteras, N.C.
With maximum sustained winds at 45 mph, it was moving toward the northeast at about 7 mph and was expected to hug the Carolinas’ coast during the next two days.

Mysterious Insect Baffles Experts have been baffled by the presence of an unidentified insect in parts of London.
The tiny red and black bug first appeared in the Natural History Museum's Wildlife Garden in March 2007. Since then it has become the most common insect in the garden and has also been spotted in Regent's Park and Gray's Inn.

Water 'Widespread' on Early Mars Water was once widespread on Mars, data from a Nasa spacecraft shows, raising the prospect that the Red Planet could have supported life.

Researchers found evidence of vast lakes, flowing rivers and deltas on early Mars, all of which were potential habitats for microbes.They also discovered that wet conditions probably persisted for a long time on the Red Planet.

It wasn't this hot, boiling cauldron. It was a benign, water-rich environment for a long period of time.

Grunting fish yield vocal clues

Grunting fish have helped scientists to date the origins of vocal sounds to about 400 million years ago.

Toadfish and midshipman fish use a variety of different sounds to attract mates and scare off rivals. Now US researchers have found that the area of a fish's brain that drives vocalization is extremely primitive.

Cyclone Nargis Had All the Makings of a 'Perfect Storm'

BANGKOK, Thailand — A cyclone with winds up to 120 mph. A low-lying, densely populated delta region, stripped of its protective trees.

When Cyclone Nargis struck Myanmar's Irrawaddy delta and pushed a wall of water 25 miles inland, it had all the makings of a massive disaster."When we saw the (storm's) track, I said, 'Uh oh, this is not going to be good," said Mark Lander, a meteorology professor at the University of Guam. "It would create a big storm surge. It was like Katrina going into New Orleans."