August 2010 Archives
I'd like to try some of these, myself (although a few look too intimidating).
You can find more information here.Researchers working in the Black Sea have found currents of water 350 times greater than the River Thames flowing along the sea bed, carving out channels much like a river on the land.
The undersea river, which is up to 115ft deep in places, even has rapids and waterfalls much like its terrestrial equivalents.
The scientists, based at the University of Leeds, used a robotic submarine to study for the first time a deep channel that had been found on the sea bed. They found a river of highly salty water flowing along the deep channel at the bottom of the Black Sea, creating river banks and flood plains much like a river found on land.
Dr Dan Parsons, from the university's school of earth and environment, said: "The water in the channels is denser than the surrounding seawater because it has higher salinity and is carrying so much sediment.
Image via Wikipedia
While it's impossible to predict the exact effects of this eruption, it is certainly possible that it will disrupt communications in some areas. The article, which you can read here, notes that NASA "recently warned that Britain could face widespread power blackouts and be left without critical communication signals for long periods of time, after the earth is hit by a once-in-a-generation 'space storm.'"Experts said the wave of supercharged gas will likely reach the Earth on Tuesday, when it will buffet the natural magnetic shield protecting Earth.
It is likely to spark spectacular displays of the aurora or northern and southern lights.
"This eruption is directed right at us," said Leon Golub, of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA).
"It's the first major Earth-directed eruption in quite some time."
Scientists have warned that a really big solar eruption could destroy satellites and wreck power and communications grids around the globe if it happened today.
This is particularly troubling, of course, because we are believed to be in a period of subdued solar activity that is scheduled to end - explosively - in 2013. If a flare like this one is "subdued," I'd hate to see what's coming our way in '13.
UPDATE: You can see pictures of this solar flare, and find more information, at NASA's website.
