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A team of researchers from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa (UHM) published a study this week that estimated the probability of a Magnitude 9+ earthquake in the Aleutian Islands--an event with sufficient power to create a mega-tsunami especially threatening to Hawai'i. In the next 50 years, they report, there is a 9% chance of such an event. An earlier State of Hawai'i report has estimated the damage from such an event would be nearly $40 billion, with more than 300,000 people affected. Earth's crust is composed of numerous rocky plates. An earthquake occurs when two sections of crust suddenly...

A powerful earthquake in Alaska sent towering waves up to 30 feet (9 meters) tall crashing down on Hawaii about 500 years ago, leaving behind fragments of coral, mollusk shells and coarse beach sand in a sinkhole located on the island of Kauai, new research finds. The quake, likely a magnitude 9.0, sent the mighty waves toward Hawaii sometime between 1425 and 1665, the study found. It's possible that another large Alaskan earthquake could trigger a comparable tsunami on Hawaii's shores in the future, experts said. The tsunami was at least three times the size of the damaging 1946 tsunami,...

MAP 7.3 2011/06/24 03:10:00 52.100 -171.700 40.0 FOX ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA MAP 7.4 2011/06/24 03:09:40 52.042 -171.842 46.8 FOX ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA

Semisopochnoi Island, from space, from sea level This image came up a few days ago in the Earth Observatory. Clicking it here will go to the full image from space, which isn't labeled. I wondered if they were any images of the Semisopochnoi volcanoes from sea/ground level or aircraft. There are. Below are two pictures of the Fuji-esque Sugarloaf Peak. Second is clickable, first isn't.

Portrait of the Outer Aleutians from space: Go here for links to larger resolution images: Outer Aleutian Islands Here are the names of some of the islands you can see in this image (from west to east): Kiska, Little Sitkin, Amchitka (long and narrow) Semisopochnoi (round), Gareloi, Tanaga, Kanaga, Adak, Great Sitkin, Atka (volcano on eastern end is Korovin) Obviously they're volcanic, so here are a couple of images of Gareloi. From the Space Station: From the surface:

WASHINGTON — After two centuries of an epic infestation, Alaska's Rat Island finally may merit a name change. The island, part of a national wildlife refuge in the sprawling Aleutian chain, appears to be pest-free for the first time since rats overran it after a Japanese sailing ship wrecked there in the late 1700s. Scientists stopped by in early August to check on the progress of the $3 million eradication. So far, "no sign of rats whatsoever," said Steve MacLean , the polar marine program director for The Nature Conservancy in Alaska , one of the partners in the rat-ridding...

Dutch Harbor Remembrance Day State Flags Lowered on June 3, 2009 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. 09-139 State Flags Lowered for Dutch Harbor Remembrance Day World War II bombing commemorated June 2, 2009, Anchorage, Alaska – Governor Sarah Palin has ordered state flags to be lowered to half-staff on June 3 to mark the 67th anniversary of the bombing of Dutch Harbor during World War II. “Today and every day, I encourage the residents of Dutch Harbor and all Alaskans to remember the soldiers who died or were injured defending and reclaiming our shores,” Governor Palin said. “We are forever in...

Recent pictures from Okmok. Nice of the volcano to erupt in the summer when it's sometimes visible! July 30. Shawn Dahle, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Mammal Lab August 2: Janet Schaefer, Alaska Volcano Observatory / Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys. August 3: Jessica Larsen, Alaska Volcano Observatory / University of Alaska Fairbanks, Geophysical Institute. Something completely different; one of my books has a picture of the largest crystal of "burmite", Burmese transparent amber, in the word. I hunted around and found an Internet picture of it. It's in the UK Natural History Museum,...

Magnitude 6.9 - ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA <!-- .map{ padding:10px 10px 10px 10px; width:120px; float:left; display:block; height:175px; text-align:center; } <p> .map a { text-decoration:none; } --> 2007 August 2 03:21:46 UTC Details Maps Where can I find...? Earthquake Details Magnitude 6.9 Date-Time Thursday, August 2, 2007 at 03:21:46 (UTC) = Coordinated Universal Time Wednesday, August 1, 2007 at 6:21:46 PM = local time at epicenter Location 51.358°N, 179.929°W Depth 48.1 km (29.9 miles) Region ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA Distances 234 km (146 miles) WSW (257°) from Adak, AK 404 km (251 miles) W (259°) from Atka, AK2132...

EUREKA, Calif. (AP) - Honk if you're glad the geese are gone. Humboldt Bay ranchers are overjoyed that hungry hordes of the messy fowl are finally on their way north to nest. Ravenous Aleutian cackling geese have been eating up their pasture. The Aleutian geese, once an endangered species, now number at least 60,000 and many like to feast on the sweet spring grasses of the Humboldt Bay bottomlands. They'll nest in the wind-chilled Aleutian Islands - then eventually head back to the land of the worried ranchers to fortify themselves again. A survey last month found 10,000 of the...