History of Extreme Super Moons, global flooding / weather effects

Are "SuperMoons" linked to Indonesia and Japan earthquakes/tsunamis?

Historical Supermoons and subsequent weather patterns

Super Moon - A new or full moon at 90% or greater of its closest perigee to Earth has been named a "SuperMoon" by astrologer Richard Nolle.

Extreme Super Moon - Occurs when a Super Moon when passing closest to Earth. Specifically, an extreme "SuperMoon" is when the moon is full or new as well as at its 100% greater mean perigee (closest) distance to earth. By this definition, last month's full moon, this month's and next month's will all be extreme "SuperMoons".

Extreme Super Moons have occurred in 1955, 1974, 1992/1993, and 2005; the 2011 Extreme Super Moon will be the closest since 1993.

2005 Supermoon possibly connected to Dec 2004 Indonesia earthquake?

The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an undersea megathrust earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC on Sunday, December 26, 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. The quake itself is known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake. The resulting tsunami is given various names, including the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Asian Tsunami, Indonesian Tsunami, and Boxing Day Tsunami.

AccuWeather Facebook fanpage member Daniel Vogler adds, "The last extreme super moon occurred was on January 10th, 2005, right around the time of the 9.0 Indonesia earthquake. That extreme super moon was a new moon. So be forewarned. Something BIG could happen on or around this date. (+/- 3 Days is my guess)"



1993 Flooding and Weather events

American Midwest Great Flood of 1993 wikipedia webpage

1993 North America Storm of the Century


The majority of experts claim that supermoons are not related to the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan, however when we get to March 20th or March 21st, at that point it will be much more prudent to begin assessing whether there is any correlation.


Supermoon related links:

History of Extreme Supermoons linked to Japan, Haiti, Indonesia earthquakes

Extreme Supermoon March 19,2011 information

Supermoon did not cause Japan earthquake: Discover Magazine's Bad Astronomy blog

Wikipedia web page on Supermoons

Astronomical explanations of Mayan 2012 prophecies

Extreme "SuperMoon" on March 19 may trigger tidal waves, earthquakes

The potential effects of the Moon's closest passing to Earth in 18 years may be exaggerated, however it is a fact that on March 19th, 2011, the Moon will illuminate our night sky from just 221,567 miles (356,577 kilometers; closest she has been in 18 years) away, and in addition, it will be full moon!

According to Universe Today:

It is a scientific fact when the Moon is at perigee there is more gravitational pull, creating higher tides or significant variations in high and low tides. In addition, the tidal effect of the Sun’s gravitational field increases the Moon’s orbital eccentricity when the orbit’s major axis is aligned with the Sun-Earth vector. Or, more specifically, when the Moon is full or new.



For those who totally dismiss the idea that 2012 "end of era" predictions may have been astronomically derived, next weekend could be the beginning of a revised world view. For those of us who look to the stars and other heavenly bodies as sometime causes of cataclysmic weather on Earth, it may be wise to seek inland, higher ground first. Then, and only after sanctuary has been found, we can hope and pray that this lunar event is benign.


Supermoon and astronomy related links:

Space.com Article: Will March 19 'Supermoon' Trigger Natural Disasters?


Universe Today: Supermoon or Superhype?


1993 Storm of the Century, 5 days after "supermoon"


Great Flood of 1993, from one month after to seven months after "supermoon"


UPDATE: AS Japanese earthquake / tsunami happened one day after this post, the following link was added on March 15th, 2011:

Historical and future extreme supermoons, links to Japan, Haiti, Indonesia earthquakes

Madison WI Live Webcams; Wisconsin web cameras

Wisconsin GOP escalates attacks against American workers with civic union-busting

1000s of protesters pour into Wisconsin capitol

We interrupt the pondering over 2012 Transit of Venus and other astronomical phenomena to bring you some footage from Earth, specifically the streets of Wisconsin, USA. The big protest is coming this Saturday in Madison, however methinks things could get interesting even before then, as tonight's actions illustrate the Wisconsin GOP is way over the line, and about to get pushed back.


Madison Wisconsin live web cameras

Various Live Traffic Camera feeds from Madison Wisconsin

Lake Mendota webcam in Wisconsin



Milwaukee Wisconsin live webcam feeds

Central and Greater Milwaukee WI live traffic cameras

Space Oddity, song lyrics by David Bowie

Space Oddity, by David Bowie

Ground control to Major Tom
Ground control to Major Tom
Take your protein pills and put your helmet on
(Ten) Ground control (Nine) to major Tom (Eight)
(Seven, six) Commencing countdown (Five), engines on (Four)
(Three, two) Check ignition (One) and may gods (Blastoff) love be with you

This is ground control to Major Tom, you've really made the grade
And the papers want to know whose shirts you wear
Now it's time to leave the capsule if you dare

This is major Tom to ground control, I'm stepping through the door
And I'm floating in a most peculiar way
And the stars look very different today
Here am I floatin' 'round my tin can far above the world
Planet Earth is blue and there's nothing I can do

Though I'm past one hundred thousand miles, I'm feeling very still
And I think my spaceship knows which way to go
Tell my wife I love her very much, she knows
Ground control to Major Tom, your circuits dead, there's something wrong
Can you hear me, Major Tom?
Can you hear me, Major Tom?
Can you hear me, Major Tom?
Can you...
Here am I sitting in my tin can far above the Moon
Planet Earth is blue and there's nothing I can do

NASA: Apophis asteroid to pass near Earth in 2012, 2029 and 2036

Russian scientists say chances of Apophis collision with Earth highest in 2036

For those concerned about the effects of Venus during its 2012 Transit, add in the 2012 passing of the asteroid Apophis, and concerns that its orbital path will be affected by Earth, creating a series of closer and closer encounters.

99942 Apophis (pronounced /əˈpɒfɪs/, previously known by its provisional designation 2004 MN4) is a near-Earth asteroid that caused a brief period of concern in December 2004 because initial observations indicated a small probability (up to 2.7%) that it would strike the Earth in 2029. Additional observations provided improved predictions that eliminated the possibility of an impact on Earth or the Moon in 2029. However, a possibility remained that during the 2029 close encounter with Earth, Apophis would pass through a gravitational keyhole, a precise region in space no more than about 600 meters across, that would set up a future impact on April 13, 2036. This possibility kept the asteroid at Level 1 on the Torino impact hazard scale until August 2006, when the probability that Apophis will pass through the keyhole was determined to be very small. Apophis broke the record for the highest level on the Torino Scale, being, for only a short time, a level 4, before it was lowered. Its diameter is approximately 270 meters (885 ft).

Recent reports out of Russia say that scientists there estimate Apophis will collide with Earth on April 13, 2036. These reports conflict on the probability of such a doomsday event, but the question remains: How scared should we be?

“Technically, they’re correct, there is a chance in 2036 [that Apophis will hit Earth]," said Donald Yeomans, head of NASA’s Near-Earth Object Program Office. However, that chance is just 1-in-250,000, Yeomans said.

The Russian scientists are basing their predictions of a collision on the chance that the 900-foot-long (270 meters) Apophis will travel through what’s called a gravitational keyhole as it passes by Earth in 2029. The gravitational keyhole they mention is a precise region in space, only slightly larger than the asteroid itself, in which the effect of Earth's gravity is such that it could tweak Apophis' path.
“The situation is that in 2029, April 13, [Apophis] flies very close to the Earth, within five Earth radii, so that will be quite an event, but we’ve already ruled out the possibility of it hitting at that time,” Yeomans told Life’s Little Mysteries. “On the other hand, if it goes through what we call a keyhole during that close Earth approach … then it will indeed be perturbed just right so that it will come back and smack Earth on April 13, 2036,” Yeomans said.

The chances of the asteroid going through the keyhole, which is tiny compared to the asteroid, are “minuscule,” Yeomans added.

The more likely scenario is this: Apophis will make a fairly close approach to Earth in late 2012 and early 2013, and will be extensively observed with ground-based optical telescopes and radar systems. If it seems to be heading on a destructive path, NASA will devise the scheme and machinery necessary to change the asteroid’s orbit, decreasing the probability of a collision in 2036 to zero, Yeomans said.

There are several ways to change an asteroid’s orbit, the simplest of which is to run a spacecraft into the hurtling rock. This technology was used on July 4, 2005, when Deep Impact smashed into the comet Tempel 1.

Many scientists agree that Apophis warrants closer scrutiny. To that end, in February 2008 the Planetary Society awarded $50,000 in prize money to companies and students who submitted designs for space probes that would put a tracking device on or near the asteroid. Several other groups have studied or plan to study missions to Apophis.


Sources: News.Yahoo.com, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/99942_Apophis

NASA finds 5 Earth-sized planets in "Goldilocks" zone

If you read the announcement that 68 planets the size of Earth had been discovered, and also that 54 "habitable zone" planets had been found, you were probably wondering how many were BOTH similar in size to Earth and in a habitable or Goldilocks (not too hot, not too cold) orbit.

Here's the answer, courtesy of SpaceDaily.com:

"We went from zero to 68 Earth-sized planet candidates and zero to 54 candidates in the habitable zone - a region where liquid water could exist on a planet's surface. Some candidates could even have moons with liquid water," said William Borucki of NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., and the Kepler Mission's science principal investigator.

"Five of the planetary candidates are both near Earth-size and orbit in the habitable zone of their parent stars."

The remaining 49 habitable zone candidates range from super-Earth size - up to twice the size of Earth - to larger than Jupiter. The findings are based on the results of observations conducted May 12 to Sept. 17, 2009 of more than 156,000 stars in Kepler's field of view, which covers approximately 1/400 of the sky.

"The fact that we've found so many planet candidates in such a tiny fraction of the sky suggests there are countless planets orbiting stars like our sun in our galaxy," said Borucki.



Full SpaceDaily.com article on NASA'a Kepler discoveries, by by Michael Mewhinney and Rachel Hoover

Kepler telescope spots 54 exoplanets in "habitable zone"

Of the over 1,200 exoplanets discovered orbiting nearby stars, the Kepler telescope and scientists working with the images have defined 68 that are relatively close in size to Earth, plus 54 in the "habitable zone", also known as the "Goldilocks" zone (not too hot, not too cold). If even one of these is ultra-close to Earth in climate this will prove to be incredibly inspiring news; Car 54 where are you?

These new discoveries mean a tripling from the previously known 400 or so exoplanets (planets outside our solar system, eg. orbiting a different star / sun), and one of these newly-discovered solar systems has at least six exoplanets, the most yet discovered in a solar system other than our own.


Keplar Solar system and Exoplanet links:

NASA'a Kepler telescope makes exciting exoplanet discoveries

Kepler exoplanets discovery excites astronomers

Solar System with 6 Planets found 2,000 light years from Earth