Disaster looms ahead

An environmental disaster looms ahead following an explosion in the Gulf of Mexico last week. About 42,000 gallons of oil a day are leaking into the Gulf from the blown-out well drilled by the Deepwater Horizon oil rig. As authorities seek to control what could be the worst oil spill to date in US history, marine creatures and barrier islands remain the most vulnerable. —Text & photos from Agencies

A satellite photo provided by NASA shows the oil slick from the 42,000 gallon-a-day oil leak from a well in the Gulf of Mexico following and explosion at the The Deepwater Horizon platform on April 20.  The Mississippi Delta is at image center, and the oil slick is a silvery swirl to the right.

Crude oil sits on the surface of the water that has leaked from the Deepwater Horizon wellhead in the Gulf of Mexico near New Orleans, Louisiana. An estimated leak of 1,000 barrels of oil a day are still leaking into the gulf.  

This aerial photo shows, oil, at top of photo, in the Gulf of Mexico, eight miles off the Southwest Pass of the Mississippi River at the Southern tip of Louisiana on.

A crew boat is seen past workers on an oil skimmer assisting in the cleanup of a leaking pipeline that resulted from last week's explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico.

A boat makes its way through crude oil that has leaked from the Deepwater Horizon wellhead.

Weathered oil from a leaking pipeline that resulted from last week's explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig is seen on the surface of the Gulf of Mexico.

A seagull flies over the Chandeleur Islands, home of the Breton National Wildlife Refuge, is seen off the Southeastern coast of Lousiana. The barrier islands are at risk from the growing oil spill.

A starfish washes ashore on the Chandeleur Islands.

An oil rig near the Deepwater Horizon wellhead in the Gulf of Mexico.

A Sandpiper is seen on the shore of the Chandeleur Islands, home of the Breton National Wildlife Refuge, off the Southeastern coast of Lousiana.

Elouise Brown, right,and her sister Bonnie Bethel, both of Kentwood, La., speak about the beauty of the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Oil from a blown-out well could be a threat to destroy the Gulf Coast wildlife and damage the beach front along the Coast which is still recovering from Hurricane Katrina.

Shrimping and fishing boats are seen docked at sunrise. The seafood industry in the Gulf of Mexico could be adversely affected by the growing oil slick that resulted from the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig last week. 

Source: Dawn Media Gallery

Underwater River in Mexico

If you are a professional diver you should visit Cenote Angelita Mexico.
These amazing pictures were taken by Anatoly Beloshchin in the cave Cenote Angelita,
Mexico. Here’s his description: “We are 30 meters deep, fresh water, then 60 meters deep
– salty water and under me I see a river, island and fallen leaves… Actually,
the river, which you can see, is a layer of hydrogen sulphide.”
It must be an unforgettable feeling once you’re there and see it with your own eyes.

 Source:Binscornor

Stunning new images of the sun

While many people celebrated Earth Day on Thursday, NASA had its eye on the sun.
The space agency released stunning new images of the sun that have been sent back by its Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), which was launched into space on February 11.
The craft is just beginning its five-year mission, which will help scientists learn more about our sun's dynamic processes, examining the sun's magnetic field and researching the role the sun plays in Earth's atmospheric chemistry and climate.
This full-disk multiwavelength extreme ultraviolet image of the sun was taken by the SDO on March 30. The false colors denote different gas temperatures. Reds are relatively cool (at least in terms of the sun) at about 60,000 Kelvin, or 107,540 degrees Fahrenheit, while the blues and greens are hotter, at more than 1 million Kelvin, or 1,799,540 degrees Fahrenheit.
Photo by NASA/Goddard/SDO AIA Team

 "These initial images show a dynamic sun that I had never seen in more than 40 years of solar research," said Richard Fisher, director of the Heliophysics Division at NASA's Washington headquarters. "SDO will change our understanding of the sun and its processes, which affect our lives and society. This mission will have a huge impact on science, similar to the impact of the Hubble Space Telescope on modern astrophysics," said Fisher.

Photo by NASA/SDO/AIA

A solar flare erupts on the mass of incandescent gas we call the sun.
Photo by NASA/SDO/AIA

This "solar prominence eruption" was captured on March 30. The SDO records images with clarity 10 times better than high-definition television, according to NASA.
Photo by NASA/SDO/AIA

Bursts of material from the sun generate magnetic reconnection events in Earth's magnetic field. Eventually, this sends high-speed electrons and protons into Earth's upper atmosphere, which forms aurorae.
Photo by NASA/GSFC/SDO/HMI

The SDO sends 1.5 terabytes of data back to Earth each day. Three main observation tools include the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager, which maps solar magnetic fields; a group of four telescopes known as the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly, which photograph the sun's surface and atmosphere; and the Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment, which measures fluctuations in the sun's radiant emissions.
Photo by NASA/SDO/AIA

The SDO observed this flare, which started a wave associated with a coronal mass ejection.
Photo by NASA/GSFC/SDO/AIA

The Solar Dynamics Observatory in the clean room. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., built, operates, and manages the SDO spacecraft for the agency's Science Mission Directorate in Washington.
Photo by NASA


Via: Cnet News

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