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EartherNew Year’s Eve Fireworks in Sydney Will Go Ahead Despite Fires, Wind, and Smoke
Australia is experiencing some of the worst bushfires in the country’s history, but that’s not going to stop Sydney from enjoying an annual New Year’s Eve tradition. Fireworks in the country’s largest city will proceed like normal tomorrow night, despite the fact that the region is under a total fire ban and many smaller towns … Continued
By Matt Novak -
EartherClimate ChangePhoto of Koala and Firefighter Surrounded by Flames Perfectly Captures the Climate Emergency
It may have taken until the last week of the last month of 2019, but I think we’ve found the photo that most defines the year and quite possibly the decade. Eden Hills Country Fire Service, a volunteer fire department in South Australia, posted a photo on Sunday showing a firefighter confronting a wall of … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherClimate ChangeWater Thieves Steal 80,000 Gallons in Australia as Our Mad Max-Style Future Becomes Reality
Thieves stole roughly 80,000 gallons of water in a region of Australia that’s suffering from one of the worst droughts in the history of the country. And with record-breaking heat and bushfires getting even larger, it feels like Australia is living in the future. That future, unfortunately, looks a lot like Mad Max. Police in … Continued
By Matt Novak -
EartherEnvironmental JusticeAustralian Prime Minister Will Return From Vacation to a Camp of Pissed Off People
Australia has been left scarred by heat and flames and choked by smoke. Australians are understandably pissed the crisis has reached this point while the government peddles in climate denial. Many are so pissed, in fact, that they set up camp outside Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s home Thursday. The plan is to stay there until he’s … Continued
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EartherEarth ScienceAustralia Just Set a New Heat Record [Updated: Again]
There’s heat, and then there’s Australia heat. The country set a new record for its hottest day Tuesday as the average maximum temperature across Australia reached 40.9 degrees Celsius (105.6 degrees Fahrenheit). That’s 0.6 degrees Celsius (1.1 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than the previous record set in January 2013. The Australian Bureau of Meteorology announced this … Continued
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EartherClimate ChangeAustralian Journalists Forced to Broadcast Outside After Bushfire Smoke Triggers Fire Alarm Inside TV Studio
TV journalists for Australia’s ABC News went outside to deliver the 7pm broadcast in the capital city of Canberra today, but it wasn’t because the weather was pleasant. Bushfires near the city set off indoor smoke alarms at the TV studio and interrupted the evening broadcast. “The smoke alarm went off about half an hour … Continued
By Matt Novak -
EartherClimate ChangeAustralia May See Its Hottest Day Ever Recorded This Week
Australia just can’t seem to catch a break. Bushfires have been ravaging the country for more than a month. Australia ended 2018 with a record-breaking heat wave, and it appears this year will end the same. And in the process, the country could see its hottest day ever recorded. The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) released an update … Continued
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EartherClimate ChangeGreat, Now Australia’s Bushfires Are Fueling Climate Change
Australia is in the grips of a climate emergency. Bushfires in New South Wales and Queensland have killed six people and made the air toxic. Climate change helped fuel the fires, and now the fires are fueling climate change. The bushfires have emitted 250 million tons of carbon into the atmosphere, according to NASA data … Continued
By Dharna Noor -
EartherClimate ChangeSydney Is Choking on the Most Toxic Air on Earth
Australia has been on fire for more than a month, but the flames are hardly the only impact. Smoke from Australia’s bush fires engulfed Sydney in a smoke on Tuesday, creating the most toxic air on the planet. Scientists measure air quality using an index that measures major pollutants and uses them to rate how … Continued
By Dharna Noor -
EartherClimate ChangeAustralia’s Terrifying Bushfires Are Turning New Zealand Glaciers Pink
For weeks now, Australia has been dealing with severe bushfires. They’ve engulfed the country’s largest city in smoke, threatening air quality throughout New South Wales and destroying key koala habitat. In New South Wales alone, more than 100 bush and grassfires were burning as of Friday. Nearly 4 million acres have burned across the country … Continued
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EartherEarth ScienceMeet Hector
Earth is the best planet, hands down. You should need no reminding of this, but on the off chance you do, allow me to introduce you to Hector. That’s him in the satellite imagery above. Though it make look like a volcanic eruption, Hector is actually a storm system that appears with such regularity that … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherBeloved Koala Famous for Viral Rescue Has Been Put Down
The inferno that’s ripped through thousands of square miles of Australia has, as of four days ago, reportedly claimed six lives, around 600 homes, millions of acres of forest, and koalas en masse. Today we’ve lost another baby, whose rescue uplifted social media for a fleeting moment and whose death quashes joy. But it’s for the … Continued
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EartherClimate ChangePeople and Dogs Unite to Save Koalas From Australia’s Horrific Bush Fires
The past few weeks of bush fires have created a nightmare in Australia. Smoke has clogged the Sydney skyline, and state governments have issued terrifying warnings essentially urging residents to flee or risk death. The toll on wildlife has been equally heavy. Roughly 2.5 million acres of forest have burned, destroying crucial habitat and incinerating … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherEarth ScienceSydney Choked in Smoke as Wildfires Rage in New South Wales
The city of Sydney—Australia’s most populous and the capital of New South Wales (NSW) state—was swathed in thick smoke on Tuesday morning amid more than 50 bushfires on the state’s east coast, the Guardian reported. According to the Guardian, the smoke over Sydney mostly came “from a huge fire at Gospers Mountain” northwest of the … Continued
By Tom McKay -
EartherEarth Science‘It’s Where People Die’: Australia Faces Unprecedented ‘Catastrophic’ Bush Fire Weather
Wildfires have left a trail of scorched earth around the globe this year from the Arctic to California. Now it’s Australia’s turn to burn. Wildfires lit up the countryside last week, and this week could be even worse. The fire agency in Australia’s most populous state is warning of “catastrophic” bush fire conditions on Monday … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherClimate ChangeAustralia’s Terrifying Bushfires Remind Us Climate Change Is Here
Bushfires are raging through southeastern Australia and have possibly killed hundreds of koalas at one nature reserve. This comes as firefighters finally contain California’s Kincade Fire in Wine Country and as Friday marks the first anniversary of the deadly Camp Fire in California. Climate change is affecting all parts of the globe, and it appears … Continued
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Tech NewsNewsIran Releases Two Travel Bloggers Jailed for Flying Drone Without Permission
Two Australian travel bloggers who were jailed in Iran this summer for flying a drone without a license have been released and are reportedly back in Australia. The Australian government isn’t saying whether the two were swapped for an Iranian prisoner in Australia, but the timing of their release would suggest that’s precisely what happened. … Continued
By Matt Novak -
Tech NewsNewsPresident Trump’s Lies Are Finally Called Out in Rare Statement From U.S. Intelligence Community Watchdog
The watchdog for the U.S. Intelligence Community issued a rare statement Monday night in an attempt to correct misinformation currently being spread by the President of the United States. The short version from the Inspector General of the Intelligence Community: The rules for whistleblowers were not recently changed to let secondhand information be deemed credible … Continued
By Matt Novak -
Tech NewsNewsBillionaire Threatens to Sue YouTuber For Calling Him ‘Fatty McFuckhead’ and Photoshopping Him as Trump’s Baby
Clive Palmer, an Australian billionaire often called the Donald Trump from Down Under, is threatening to sue YouTuber Friendly Jordies for defamation. The popular YouTube personality and comedian, whose real name is Jordan Shanks, posted a video with the threatening letter he recently received from Palmer’s attorney which, among other things, claims that Palmer was … Continued
By Matt Novak -
Tech NewsNewsAustralian State to Use Smartphone Detection Cams to Catch and Fine Distracted Drivers
The government of New South Wales state in Australia is rolling out tech to automatically catch drivers who don’t put down their cell phones on the road, the Associated Press reported on Monday. According to the AP, New South Wales Roads Minister Andrew Constance described the program as the first of its kind in the … Continued
By Tom McKay