Free Republic

In one of nature’s mysteries, 15 states will soon witness the reemergence of Brood X — or the Great Eastern Brood — of periodical cicadas. These “large, winged, kind of scary-looking but mostly harmless flying insects known for their almost deafening buzz” emerge in-unison every 17 years. Periodical cicadas have “black bodies and bold red eyes,” and spend 17 years lying underground in “wingless nymph form,” feeding on sap. While most cicadas travel as individuals or in small groups after reaching adulthood, periodical cicadas follow a strict schedule... “The end of May through June, it can get pretty loud —...

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran launched exercises featuring a wide array of domestically produced drones on Tuesday, Iranian media reported, days after the anniversary of the U.S. killing of a top Iranian general by a drone strike in Iraq. Iran and the regional forces it backs have increasingly relied in recent years on drones in Yemen, Syria, Iraq and the Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the Gulf. Iran’s armed forces are to test combat drones used as bombers, interceptors and in reconnaissance missions in the two-day exercises in central Semnan province, the semi-official Fars news agency said.

The Air Force's flight test center at the Nevada Test and Training Range continues to grow...the facility has grown dramatically since 2000, including the addition of a massive and mysterious hangar built at the base's southern end...an even larger extension to an existing hangar facility that is quite peculiar in nature points to the possibility that the age of large swarms of unmanned combat air vehicles (UCAVs) has finally arrived. For a year, construction has been underway in a section of the southern ramp area at the base, near where the original A-12 Oxcart hangars still stand. Four more modern...

The number of earthquakes detected in Iceland has already increased to 9,000. The series of earthquakes began as scientists in the country reported signs of activity from Iceland’s most active volcano. In its latest report, the Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) noted that it had detected a total of 9,000 earthquakes as of June 29. According to the agency, the earthquake swarm began on June 19 in areas northeast of Siglufjörður, which is a fishing town located on the northern coast of Iceland. Three of the earthquakes detected by the agency had magnitudes of over five. “The earthquake swarm began on...

PORT HARDY, B.C. - Four earthquakes measuring between 5 and 6 in magnitude struck Monday off the coast of Vancouver Island, the U.S. Geological Survey reports. The first quake registered 5.2 in magnitude and struck at 8:44 a.m. PST. The second quake, which measured 5.7 in magnitude, hit at 11:13 a.m. A third quake measuring 6.0 was recorded at 11:49 a.m. The fourth quake, also 6.0 in magnitude, struck at 12:56 p.m. All four quakes were centered about 100 miles west of Port Hardy, on the northern tip of Vancouver Island, and all were measured at a depth of about...

A county in central Kansas experienced a pretty shocking uptick in seismic activity last week — 11 earthquakes in five days. It started with a magnitude-2.4 earthquake Wednesday morning just 2 1/2 miles southwest of Hutchinson, Kansas, in Reno County, according to the United States Geological Survey. There would be 10 more before the week was out.

Thousands of Palestinians protested Friday at the fence dividing the Gaza Strip and Israel in a repeat of major demonstrations last week that turned deadly, as some burned tires that sent up massive plumes of smoke amid Israeli military gunfire. Three Gazans died from live fire, including a 16-year-old, and dozens were injured by late afternoon, Palestinian health authorities and local media said. The Israel military said the army responded with gunfire and water cannons as Palestinians hurled firebombs at soldiers and attempted to infiltrate Israeli territory. The demonstrations, which organizers say will continue for weeks, have presented Israel with...

The Israel Defense Forces estimated that 17,000 Palestinians were taking part in “March of Return” demonstrations along the Gaza border, focused at five main protest sites where rioters threw petrol bombs and stones at troops, and burned tires.

A series of mysterious attacks against the main Russian military base in Syria, including one conducted by a swarm of armed miniature drones, has exposed Russia’s continued vulnerability in the country despite recent claims of victory by President Vladimir Putin. The attacks have also spurred a flurry of questions over who may be responsible for what amounts to the biggest military challenge yet to Russia’s role in Syria, just when Moscow is seeking to wind its presence down. In the most recent and unusual of the attacks, more than a dozen armed drones descended from an unknown location onto Russia’s...

37 quakes -one was 5.3 on the Richter scale- NE of Soda Springs, Idaho (southwest of Yellowstone) in the past 7 hours. Close enough to be of possible concern?) Suspicious action from a fairly quiet area.

US Army Seeks Internet-of-Battlefield-Things, Distributed Bot Swarms After nearly two decades of war against technologically unsophisticated foes, the Army Research Lab is reorienting to counter China and Russia. The Army Research Lab is turning more of its attention to fighting land wars against far more technologically sophisticated adversaries than it has in the past several decades. In the coming months, the Lab will fund new programs related to highly (but not fully) autonomous drones and robots that can withstand adversary electronic warfare operations. The Lab will also fund new efforts to develop battlefield communications and sensing networks that perform well...

Alert Level: Normal Volcano Notification Service YELLOWSTONE VOLCANO OBSERVATORY INFORMATION STATEMENT U.S. Geological Survey Thursday, June 15, 2017, 9:03 PM MDT (Friday, June 16, 2017, 03:03 UTC) YELLOWSTONE VOLCANO (VNUM #325010) 44°25'48" N 110°40'12" W, Summit Elevation 9203 ft (2805 m) Current Volcano Alert Level: NORMAL Current Aviation Color Code: GREEN The University of Utah, a YVO member agency, sent out the following press release about a magnitude 4.5 earthquake near West Yellowstone, MT that occurred at 6:48 PM MDT. PRESS RELEASE University of Utah Seismograph Stations Released: June 15, 2017 07:55 PM MDT The University of Utah Seismograph Stations reports that...

.. For those of us living on the flanks of an active volcano the temblors are commonplace. Most go unfelt. Those that are felt seem routine. ..Yesterday there was a "FEELER" [what the neighbor kids call an earthquake that they feel.] It registered about 4.5 on the Richter Scale and had it's epicenter along Campanula Creek in Yellowstone National Park. .. The quake was the latest in an earthquake swarm that started on May 31, 2017 and has produced 305 measurable temblors. Most are below the 'feeler' threshold of 2,5 on the Richter Scale. DUCK CREEK MEADOWS .. A few...

Battalion chief: Beekeeper was harvesting honey from personal hiveA swarm of bees killed a dog, injured a beekeeper and a firefighter and prompted residents living in a Ceres neighborhood to be under a shelter-in-placer order, according to an official with the Ceres Fire Department. The attack happened at about 5 p.m. Sunday when the beekeeper, 53, was trying to harvest honey from his beehive in his backyard in the 2700 block of River Valley Circle, battalion Chief Rick Scola said. There were about 4,200 bees inside the hive, which equals about three pounds of bees, and for an unknown reason,...

Ref: Drone SWARM technology https://www.google.com/amp/compositesmanufacturingmagazine.com/2017/01/department-of-defense-successfully-tests-composite-drones/amp/

A swarm of earthquakes that rattled the Salton Sea area earlier this week has increased the probability of a major quake hitting Southern California. The California Office of Emergency Services (OES) issued an earthquake advisory warning residents and officials in Ventura, San Diego, San Bernardino, Riverside, Orange, Los Angeles, Kern and Imperial counties that there was a greater possibility of a major earthquake through Oct. 4. ... The swarm occurred in a region known as the Brawley seismic zone, which is located near a fault network that connects the southernmost end of the San Andreas fault with the Imperial fault....

A 23-year-old man died Thursday after being swarmed by bees and stung 1,000 times while hiking in Usery Mountain Park in Arizona, authorities said. Alex Bestler and a friend were on the Merkle Trail when a large swarm of bees descended on them “without provocation or warning” shortly before 9 a.m., according to a Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office news release. The victim’s friend — identified only as Sonya — managed to escape by seeking shelter in a restroom, but Bestler was overcome by the swarm, the release stated. He was lying on the ground covered in bees when Sonya returned...

San Ramon, California, appears to have broken a new earthquake record over the last two weeks: A total of 408 small quakes have shaken the East Bay city, almost four times the record set in 2003 in half the amount of time. "I've not felt so many tremors in decades," Mark Stone said outside a San Ramon Starbucks on Tuesday morning. "My dog, Gimmel, she's the first one to know a couple of seconds before." The U.S. Geological Survey reports that as of Oct. 13, the Northern California Seismic Network had detected 408 earthquakes – at least a dozen since...

Why We Need Swarms Of Autonomous Drones by ClaudiaR 12/10/2015 Most drones fly high above the terrain, connected to their human operators, alone, one by one for now. The main beneficiary of this semi-unmanned technology has been the army so far. Fly alone, identify the target, controlled from the center the get the green light to launch the missile. The autonomous drone of the future are independent and no longer alone, instead, fly and swim in groups. Just like locusts, we’ll have swarms of drones, communicating to each other and surrounding environment, like a mobile network of connected robots. Passed...

NORTH HOLLYWOOD (CBSLA.com) — A swarm of bees killed a 5-year-old female pit bull in North Hollywood Saturday. The attack occurred in the 11000 block of Cumpston Street. A tree in the neighborhood was being cut down and there was a bee hive inside the tree. When the bees got agitated they attacked the dog, named Babe. “Don’t provoke the bees, don’t throw anything at them,” warns exterminator Mason Denny. “Common sense you know.” The bee hive will be removed Sunday. No word on how large the swarm or hive is.