UPDATE: Coast Guard Flyover Photos

A reef, a blue lagoon and a coral atoll just barely out of the water — Wake Island may have been completely swept away by Super Typhoon Ioke.

From Voice of America

Super Typhoon Ioke has made a direct hit on Wake Island, pounding the tiny U.S. Pacific territory with catastrophic winds of up to 300 kilometers an hour.

Ioke is the strongest central Pacific typhoon in at least 12 years. Forecasters expect the “monster” storm to submerge Wake Island and destroy everything on it that is not made of concrete.

Wake is home to a U.S. Air Force base and a scientific outpost, roughly midway between Hawaii and Japan.

The eye of the typhoon skirted the north edge of the coral atoll Thursday. The U.S. Air Force had already evacuated all of the island’s 188 residents to Hawaii, 3,700 kilometers across the Pacific.

The residents - Air Force personnel and American and Thai contractors - left Monday aboard two U.S. C-17 Globemaster planes. It was the first time the territory was evacuated in nearly 30 years.

More about Wake Island’s history in pictures from Fox News.

We are in the midst of global warming and yet the ocean temperatures are cooling? Is this correct? New data in a soon-to-be-published paper indicate the opposite of what might be expected during a period of increasing Earth surface temperatures: the top 2500 feet of the ocean lost a tremendous amount of heat between from 2003 through 2005—about 20% of all the heat gained in the last half-century. Considering the thermal inertia the oceans must have, this is astonishing! (Image: Global Ocean Surface Temperatures - courtesy NASA)

A good article on this topic may be found at World Climate Report: A Sea Change in Global Warming?

The sudden cooling may be related to Earth’s Ocean Conveyor Belt, the phenomenon popularized by the movie “The Day After Tomorrow.” Nobody really knows though.

Just when the global warming alarmists are making their case against evil mankind warming the Earth, this has to happen - tsk, tsk.

The Santa Catalina Island Company added a new webcam on the famous Casino to the existing Pavillion Cam across the bay. This is the 7AM picture seen today from the new Casino Cam. Typical of the last weeks of summer, harbor moorings are nearly sold out.

Update: Banning House Webcam located at Two Harbors.

The terrorists will stop at nothing to entrap our soldiers . . .

Egregiously stolen from Hat tip to Rich Lowry at NRO’s The Corner

Our friend D.C. Roe deserves some real credit for this:

On August 28, 11:19 PM EDT the 2,996th name was assigned

Howard (Barry) Kirschbaum, age 53, a resident of New York, N.Y., will be honored by El Rider at the blog Flying Debris.

There will be more to come. But every name will be honored. It took exactly 90 days, and more hours than I’d care to count–and not just from me.

But for tonight I’ll take this victory and sleep well.

Patriot Post sent us this reminder of a great man’s philosophy that remains as appropriate today as it was in the 1980’s — and perhaps more.

“We’ve come to a moment in our history when party labels are unimportant. Philosophy is all important. Little men with loud voices cry doom, saying little is good in America. They create fear and uncertainty among us. Millions of Americans, especially our own sons and daughters, are seeking a cause they can believe in. There is a hunger in this country today — a hunger for spiritual guidance. People yearn once again to be proud of their country and proud of themselves, and to have confidence in themselves. And there’s every reason why they should be proud. Some may have failed America, but America has never failed us, and there is so much to be proud of in this land.” — Ronald Reagan

Update: Law Enforcement Against Microstamping

Once again, politicians and ill-informed citizens groups attempt to make legitimate gun ownership difficult to impossible.

From Cybercast News Service:

The California Senate on Thursday passed a bill that would require the “microstamping” of semi-automatic handguns — giving cartridges fired from those guns a unique imprint, which according to gun control advocates, would help police solve crimes.

Supporters say microstamping would turn spent cartridges into potential evidence in civil and criminal cases. According the California Million Mom March, “when the police retrieve the bullet casing at a crime scene, they can quickly track down the legal owner of the handgun that fired it.”

Nonsense, say Second Amendment supporters, who view the bill as yet another attempt to burden gun manufacturers and further restrict gun sales in the state. They say that gun makers, faced with the added expense of microstamping semiautomatic weapons, would either stop selling their wares in California or drastically raise prices.

[ . . . ]

The bill’s lead sponsor, Assemblyman Paul Koretz (D-West Hollywood) acting in tandem with the Coalition to Stop Handgun Violence, has been fighting to pass the bill since last year.

Koretz, from the People’s Republic of West Hollywood, is one of these far-to-the-left politicians who want to disarm all legitimate gun owners in the state. The Coalition to Stop Handgun Violence is an ad hoc front for a socialist group for unilateral disarmament.

But the California NRA Members’ Councils says the microstamping would create false evidence trails.

“Micro-stamped cartridge cases fired and abandoned at government agencies facilities or private shooting ranges could be gathered and used to ’seed’ crime scenes with the with ‘evidence,’ implicating law enforcement officers and citizens” in crimes they had nothing to do with, the group said in an analysis on its website.

The gun-rights group also said microstamped cartridges could not be recycled because they might implicate secondary users of reloaded cartridges. “Millions of pounds of metals will be turned into scrap and require expense disposal requirements imposed so it will not enter landfills.”

And without the ability to sell and recycle used (microstamped) cartridge cases, the cost of firearms training will increase for government agencies, the gun rights group added.

Second Amendment supporters also note that microstamps can be easily defeated by replacing parts of the handgun that have been stamped; polishing the microstamp with abrasives or modifying the stamp; and in some cases, the stamped markings may be filled in with residue produced by normal firing of the gun.

Criminals who steal guns, smuggle them into the state, sell them on the black market to violent gangs and possible terrorists, will bypass any and all provisions of this measure.
That leaves gun manufacturers, dealers and owners holding the bag on the extra expenses this insane law would require.

Californians, urge your representative to the state legislature to oppose the bill (AB 352). And contact Governor Schwarzenegger, asking him to veto the bill should it ever be passed by both state houses. Since the vote in the state senate was 22-18, that falls well short of the 27 votes needed to override a veto.

Read the whole story.

These lemons are quite large, measuring 4 inches (10 cm) long by 3 inches (7 cm) wide. Now, this wouldn’t be weird in itself, but the tree that they’re growing on is only 40 inches (1 m) tall! These are destined to be used in my favorite lemon bar recipe in about a week.

Unfamiliar with Solar phenomena? Read what the Sun is and how it does what it does:

More about Why Solar fusion activity is the primary 
mechanism for climate change on Earth — not people!

This is a study in two observations made over the last 400 years: observed annual sunspot numbers and derived global temperatures. The sunspot numbers were recorded by various solar observers since Galileo’s time. Temperatures have been derived from scientific evidence such as ice and earth cores, and several other valid methods. These were collected by various climate studies and were compiled by NASA scientists to produce an animation of Earth’s climate changes over 399 years between 1599 and 1998.

Climate Change

First look at the NASA video that chronicles global temperature since 1599 AD:

Red indicates warmer surface temperature while blue indicates cooler. The little year clock, although difficult to read, ticks off the years in rapid succession from 1599 through 1998.

You should notice two things as you watch the animation:

1. The Earth has generally been getting warmer
2. Extended periods of cooler temperatures have occurred

Annual Sunspot Count

Next, look at this graphic depicting solar cycles and the number of sunspots counted each year:

You should notice two things as you observe this graphic:

1. The sunspot count per year has been getting generally larger
2. Extended periods of low sunspot numbers have occurred

Correlating The Two Phenomena Together

And finally, look at this two-minute presentation that ties both observations together:

A few additional conclusions:

1. The media will print or broadcast sensationalized headlines to sell copy regardless of scientific value
2. The media will print or broadcast manipulated science with half-truths and invalid conclusions to damage politicians with whom they do not agree
3. Politicians seize on these unverified claims in order to blame their opponents
4. Uneducated/uninformed people are as gullible as ever

References

• Western hemisphere climate animation courtesy NASA — adapted from NASA Visible Earth
• Sunspot number graphic courtesy of PAGES
• Animated presentation “Correlation Between Solar Activity and Global Temperature” created by Cap’n Bob
• Ultimate Global Warming - SPF 2 Million Won’t Be Enough

Update: Read about how cosmic rays interact with solar flux to alter Earth’s climate in a subsequent article.

Lately, I’ve been studying solar phenomena because I think the topic is so critical to understanding the natural processes that affect global weather and climate. An interesting segué from the weather aspect, however, is into the subject of auroras - Aurora Borealis in the North and Aurora Australis in the South. What causes them?

Occasionally, we see auroras in Southern California, but it’s an extremely rare sight. The last auroral display I can remember seeing was way back in 1962, although other people have seen them several times since then. The UCLA webcam on Mount Wilson near Los Angeles recorded the image to the right on March 30, 2001.

Anyhow, back to the topic of what causes these elusive Rainbow Curtains — from SOHO and NASA – Space Weather:
Continue reading » Behind the Rainbow Curtains

Happy Birthday, National Park Service!

On August 25, 2006, the National Park Service celebrates its 90th birthday. Created in 1916 under the Organic Act, Congress and President Woodrow Wilson charged the Park Service with overseeing 35 public land units to preserve America’s vast diversity for future generations.

Much has changed in 90 years! Now, not only does the National Park Service manage all of America’s 390 park units, its responsibilities have grown into complex fields, such as scientific research, archeology, historic preservation, interpretation and education outreach. Over 84.4 million acres of parkland provides habitats for 369 threatened or endangered species, houses 100 million items in museum collections, contains 1.5 million archaeological sites and protects 27,000 historic structures. Our beloved National Park sites are visited 277 million times a year, employ 20,000 employees, and receive valued assistance from 144,000 volunteers per year.

Can’t think of the just right birthday gift? Donate to the National Park Foundation to ensure America’s greatest collection of natural, cultural and historic sites are taken care of for the next 90 years!

Story courtesy NPS Newsletter

UPDATE: Vote on Pluto’s planet status

Clyde Tombaugh must be turning over in his grave.

From AP via Forbes:

Astronomers Say Pluto Is Not a Planet - Forbes.com

Leading astronomers declared Thursday that Pluto is no longer a planet under historic new guidelines that downsize the solar system from nine planets to eight.

Image: Pluto and moon Charon

After a tumultuous week of clashing over the essence of the cosmos, the International Astronomical Union stripped Pluto of the planetary status it has held since its discovery in 1930. The new definition of what is - and isn’t - a planet fills a centuries-old black hole for scientists who have labored since Copernicus without one.

[. . . ]

The decision by the prestigious international group spells out the basic tests that celestial objects will have to meet before they can be considered for admission to the elite cosmic club.

For now, membership will be restricted to the eight “classical” planets in the solar system: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.

Much-maligned Pluto doesn’t make the grade under the new rules for a planet: “a celestial body that is in orbit around the sun, has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a … nearly round shape, and has cleared the neighborhood around its orbit.”

Pluto is automatically disqualified because its oblong orbit overlaps with Neptune’s.

Instead, it will be reclassified in a new category of “dwarf planets,” similar to what long have been termed “minor planets.” The definition also lays out a third class of lesser objects that orbit the sun - “small solar system bodies,” a term that will apply to numerous asteroids, comets and other natural satellites.

It was unclear how Pluto’s demotion might affect the mission of NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft, which earlier this year began a 9 1/2-year journey to the oddball object to unearth more of its secrets.

Update: Thanks to HYSCIENCE for the trackback and kind words.