nature pictures

Uluru (Ayers Rock) - Australia

2008-08-19T21:59:00.000+07:00

Uluru, also referred to as Ayers Rock, is a large sandstone rock formation in the southern part of the Northern Territory, central Australia. It lies 335 km (208 mi) south west of the nearest large town, Alice Springs; 450 km (280 mi) by road. Kata Tjuta (The Olgas) and Uluru are the two major features of the Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park. Uluru is sacred to the Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara, the Aboriginal people of the area. It has many springs, waterholes, rock caves and ancient paintings. Uluru is listed as a World Heritage Site.

Uluru is one of Australia's most recognisable natural icons. The world-renowned sandstone formation stands 348 m (1,142 ft) high (863 m/2,831 ft above sea level) with most of its bulk below the ground, and measures 9.4 km (5.8 mi) in circumference. Both Uluru and Kata Tjuta have great cultural significance for the A?angu Traditional landowners, who lead walking tours to inform visitors about the local flora and fauna, bush foods and the Aboriginal dreamtime stories of the area.

Uluru is notable for appearing to change colour as the different light strikes it at different times of the day and year, with sunset a particularly remarkable sight when it briefly glows red. Although rainfall is uncommon in this semiarid area, during wet periods the rock acquires a silvery-grey colour, with streaks of black algae forming on the areas that serve as channels for water flow.

Kata Tjuta, also called Mount Olga or The Olgas owing to its peculiar formation, is another rock formation about 25 km (16 mi) from Uluru. Special viewing areas with road access and parking have been constructed to give tourists the best views of both sites at dawn and dusk.

credited to wikipedia and flickr users: andrew, peternijenhuis, jonathansabin, yewco, markeveleigh, vtveen, the_guenni, pedroqtc, vtveen

Mackenzie River - Canada

2008-08-11T22:00:00.000+07:00

The Mackenzie River originates in Great Slave Lake, in the Northwest Territories, and flows north into the Arctic Ocean. It is the longest river in Canada at 1,738 km and, together with its headstreams the Peace and the Finlay, the second longest river in North America at 4,241 km in length. The Mackenzie and its tributaries drain 1,805,200 square kilometers. Its mean discharge is 9,700 cubic metres per second.

The large marshy delta of the Mackenzie River provides habitat for migrating Snow Geese, Tundra Swans, and Brant as well as breeding habitat for other waterfowl. The estuary is a calving area for Beluga whales.

The river is navigable for approximately five months of the year. It freezes over in October and the ice on the river breaks up in May. During the winter months, sections of the river are used as an ice road.

During the ice-free period the river is navigable over its entire length. Barge traffic from an intermodal hub at the railhead at Hay River serves much of the Western Arctic.

The Mackenzie (previously Disappointment River) was named after Alexander Mackenzie, who travelled the river while trying to reach the Pacific Ocean in 1789. In the Dene languages it is called Deh Cho.

The divide between the Mackenzie basin and the basin of the Yukon River to the west forms the central portion of the boundary between Northwest Territories and the Yukon.

In 2008, Canadian and Japanese researchers extracted a constant stream of natural gas from a test project at the Mallik methane hydrate field in the Mackenzie delta. This was the second such drilling at Mallik: the first took place in 2002 and used heat to release methane. In the 2008 experiment, researchers were able to extract gas by lowering the pressure, without heating, requiring significantly less energy. The Mallik gas hydrate field was first discovered by Imperial Oil in 1971-1972.

credited to wikipedia and flickr users: opalmirror, anna154, evenelsewhere, jbbar, gslside, wiless, mfitch, eclecticblogs, jksnijders, nadiabob

Oasis in Morocco

2008-08-05T22:00:00.000+07:00

Oases are formed from underground rivers or aquifers such as an artesian aquifer, where water can reach the surface naturally by pressure or by man made wells. Occasional brief thunderstorms provide subterranean water to sustain natural oases, such as the Tuat. Substrata of impermeable rock and stone can trap water and retain it in pockets; or on long faulting subsurface ridges or volcanic dikes water can collect and percolate to the surface. Any incidence of water is then used by migrating birds who also pass seeds with their droppings which will grow at the waters edge forming an oasis.

credited to wikipedia and flickr users: artour_a, rasielcom, noushynoo, ccullen222, elmnopo, missmarmelade, akapadia76, jries, gazapofera, feke

The most dangerous beaches

2008-08-02T22:00:00.000+07:00

A beach vacation usually conjures up images of lying on white sand relaxing not dicing with death but Forbes.com has come up with a list of the world's most dangerous beaches.

Strong currents and deadly jellyfish are among the dangers that spring to mind but the biggest fear is sharks, according to Stephen P. Leatherman of the International Hurricane Research Center & Laboratory for Coastal Research in Miami.

"But in reality, you've got a better chance at winning the lottery than getting bitten," he told Forbes.com, adding that there were only 112 incidents globally of shark bites in 2007.

Following is a list of the most dangerous beaches by category which was prepared by Forbes.com and focuses mainly on the United States.

1. Shark Attacks/Bites

New Smyrna Beach, Volusia County, Florida.

The were 112 incidents of shark-human "contact" in 2007, according to the International Shark Attack File released in March but only one resulted in a human fatality. New Smyrna, an inlet on the eastern coastline of Florida, had the most attacks, with 17 bites recorded.

2. Pollution

Hacks Point Beach, Kent County, Md./Beachwood Beach West, Ocean County, N.J.

According to the National Research Defense Council, an environmental action group, these two beaches had the highest percentage of samples exceeding U.S. health standards in 2006.

3. Jellyfish Attacks

Northern Australia

The coast of Northern Australia serves as a home to chironex fleckeri, also known as the box jellyfish, which has caused 60 deaths in the last 100 years, according the Center for Disease Control, Australia. While fatalities are rare, about 40 people are hospitalized each year in the Northern Territory. Last year, a 6-year-old boy died in the Tiwi Islands, north of Darwin.

4. Lightning

Florida

Florida tops off the list as the most dangerous spot for lightning, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Between 1997 and 2006, there were 71 deaths caused by lightning in Florida, more than any other state. Popular beaches such as New Smyrna and Clearwater are often evacuated and then closed for days because of the threat of lightning.

5. Boating Accidents

Florida

Data by county or beach is not available, but according to the U.S. Coast Guard's Boating Safety Division, the state of Florida reported 633 boating accidents and 68 fatalities in 2006, the highest number of any state in the country with more people actively involved in boating in Florida.

6. Rip Current Drowning

Brevard County, Florida

In 2007, 10 people drowned in Brevard County due to the rip current alone, according to the United States Life Saving Association.

credited to reuters.com, forbes.com and flickr users: nsbbum1, kerrie radtke, coco21, rustyalaska

The Time Is Now, Climate Experts Warn

2008-07-29T22:00:00.000+07:00

Earlier this week, renowned NASA climate scientist James Hansen warned Congress of the dangers of climate change, exactly 20 years after he did so for the first time.

The message he delivered was almost the same as it was in 1988, but there was one key difference: "The difference is that now we have used up all slack in the schedule for actions needed to defuse the global warming time bomb," he said.

Hansen's message painted a stark and urgent picture of a world already past the point where significant damage would occur. Discovery News wanted to know if other scientists shared his view. Are we really in for it and at what point? What are our options for avoiding the worst?

Earth's Carbon Budget

Hansen argued this week that the "safe level of atmospheric carbon dioxide is no more than 350 ppm (parts per million), and it may be less." This recommended level is less than the amount currently in the atmosphere -- 385 ppm. It may also be less than the commonly discussed stabilization target of 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit (2 degrees Celsius) of temperature increase, which probably corresponds to an atmospheric CO2 concentration of about 350-400 ppm.

Already, he argued, arid lands are expanding, glaciers are receding, and Arctic sea ice is shrinking, driven by cycles of positive feedback, where melting leads to more warming of the exposed dark ocean water, which leads to more melting.

"As a result, without any additional greenhouse gases, the Arctic soon will be ice-free in the summer," Hansen said.

To forest ecologist Lee Frelich at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Hansen's argument that a lower stabilization target is safer makes sense.

"If you look at the paleological record, in the last interglacial period 110,000 to 120,000 years ago, the world was thought to have a climate that was two degrees warmer than today," Frelich said. "The oceans were 20 to 25 feet higher, but CO2 was only 290 ppm. I've always thought that if a CO2 content of 290 could cause that, why won't it do it now? Maybe there's just a lag time."

"I'm sympathetic to a more aggressive goal," said glaciologist Jay Zwally of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. "The goal that people have adopted of keeping it to a total of two degrees [Celsius] rise since the preindustrial is still going to allow enough warming that we'll have an even more significant impact than we've already seen," he said.

While other scientists agree that 350 ppm is a safer target that increases the likelihood we will avoid many of the negative effects of climate change, some also think it's unrealistic.

"Three hundred and fifty is impossible," said climatologist Stephen Schneider of Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif. "We're going to overshoot 350 and 450 and probably 550, though I sure hope not."

Schneider's hope is that while it might still be 20 years before actions to reduce CO2 emissions really have an effect, innovations over the next two decades will make it possible to dramatically reduce emissions.

"My cynical scenario is that there will be more Katrinas, massive fires, melting of the Arctic, and people will say, 'Oh my God, what have we done. We'd better undo this,'" he said. Such catastrophes could finally spark the dramatic change that's needed, he suggests, if we don't take action sooner of our own accord.

"I try not to talk about a threshold of two degrees," Schneider added. "At 1.8 the world is not fine. At 2.2, we don't turn into a climatic pumpkin. We just have more severe events. The object is not to get hung up on the numbers. The object is to get out there and get solutions."

Others agreed.

Nevermind the Tipping Point

"Time is of the essence here. I don't know if targets like 350 ppm are that useful," said John Harte of the University of California, Berkeley. "We can't make a regulation on something we can't control. We don't regulate temperature, and we don't even regulate the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere. However, we control what our automobiles look like. We control the efficiency of our devices. We control what our energy looks like."

"I'm not so enthused about the concept of the tipping point," he added. "My view is that we've probably passed some tipping points. We've entered some realms of irreversibility. There are probably many more, but we don't know where they are."

"We know that if we don't take action, it will be a disaster," he said. "That's all we need to know."

Whether they focused on thresholds or not, the scientists all agreed that the problem is urgent and that not doing anything will lead to disaster: rising sea levels, food shortages, spread of infectious diseases and extinctions.

Starting From Here...

Hansen argued that to achieve the target of 350 ppm, we need to put a moratorium on new coal-fired power plants and phase out burning coal without capturing and storing the carbon.

While scientists agree that coal is a huge part of the problem, they also emphasized the need to apply every available sensible strategy to address the problem.

"There seems to be an emphasis on coal and a distraction from other things we can be doing as well," NASA's Zwally said.

"Some people think that climate change is just about saving a few rare species, and it's just environmentalists making a fuss," Frelich said. "That's really not it."

"It's really about the quality of life for people," he continued. The Earth has been through many big changes before. There have been big extinctions, and new species have evolved to fill the ecosystems. It's not a big deal to the Earth's ecosystems, but it will be a really big deal for the quality of life of humans."

Frelich points out that right now the best soil for growing crops in the United States aligns ideally with the right climate for agriculture. But if the favorable climate moves north, it will be over Canada in an area where bedrock lies at the surface, stripped of soil by the last glaciation.

"If the best climate for growing crops lines up with the Canadian shield, that's an issue for people," he adds.

The scientists also pointed out that countries that tackle this most aggressively will be the winners, regardless of what other nations have committed to.

"The economic giants of the rest of this century are going to be the nations that are selling wind turbines and solar panels and efficient cars to the rest of the world," said Harte. "I would think we'd want to be the leader in that."

"Solving this problem is technologically and economically not that difficult," Harte added. "It's proving to be politically difficult."

credited to Discovery News

Top 10 unusual places to stay

2008-07-25T22:00:00.000+07:00

From converted train cars to converted prisons, travel Web site VirtualTourist.com has come up with its picks of the 10 most unusual places to stay.

"With limited vacation time, there's no reason your lodging shouldn't be part of the travel experience," said VirtualTourist.com general manager Giampiero Ambrosi.

1. Edisto River Treehouses - Canadys, South Carolina

For those who refuse to grow up, a stay in a tree house is a dream come true. Not only is it fun, but it's clean, safe, and very reasonable.

Each treehouse is tucked in the woods out of view of any other, nestled in the trees on the river's edge, located on its own private, gurgling creek, solidly constructed of completely natural, often local materials, fully furnished with kitchen, futons, outdoor grill, dining deck, screened with a well-vented sleeping area.

This small tree-house-sized cabin is nestled in the woods. It comes simply equipped with a gas stove and a gas lamp. Those not sleeping in the loft have a double futon. A charcoal grill and picnic table are just outside your door. Rental includes the use of a canoe.Cost: $100 per person per night.

2. Celica Hostel - Ljubljana, Slovenia

If you've always wanted to spend a night in the slammer, now's your chance. Once a military prison, this happening hot spot is now an art gallery/youth hostel

Hostel CELICA is a fully artistically renewed former prison on Metelkova street in the center of Ljubljana. The hostel is only 5 minutes walking distance from the main railway and bus station.

Hostel facilities: 24/7 service, Luggage room, Safety deposit box, Guests kitchen, Laundry, Wheelchair friendly, Friendly staff, Cyber point, Library, TV room, Souvenirs, Tourist information point, Hostel Information Point - HIP, Meeting rooms

3. Schottenstift Monastery - Vienna, Austria

If the bellboys look like monks, you're not imagining things. This hotel is actually a functioning monastery where your wake-up call might just be chanting.

Staying at the Schottenstift Monastery Guesthouse was the single best thing about my trip to Vienna. I can't imagine any hotel which would have pleased me so much or any more perfect location. The Schottenstift was founded in 1155 and while the gueshouse is relatively modern, the entry through the vast door and up the winding staircase is staight out of some medieval knight-templars tale. There is one triple room here and it is worth booking for two, just for the view.

Directly opening on to the street, every morning I could throw open the windows and savour all the sights and sounds of Freyung and the Christmas market. Waking up to pealing bells was a constant pleasure and coming home each evening to this warm, other-worldy haven right in the centre of everything was a thrill every time. Breakfast is included in the price and while it does not include any hot foods ( like bacon and eggs) there are loads of cheese, salami, breads, cereals, fruit etc.

There is a small extra charge for staying just one night. The Benedictushaus is open to all. though not very many people know about it.

4. The Red Caboose Motel - Strasburg, Pennsylvania

All aboard! Although they once traveled from city to city, these little red cabooses now function as private hotel rooms. Needless to say, kids go crazy for this place.

It all started in 1969 when Don Denlinger was dared to bid on 19 old cabooses being auctioned off by the Pennsylvania Rail Road. Although Don jokingly put in a bid below the scrap value of the cabooses, he still had the highest bid and was now stuck with the old train cabooses. What can you do with 19 Rail Road Cabooses???

What started off as a dare has grown into one of Lancaster County's most unusual motel, with over 40 rooms made from fully restored 25-ton cabooses. Located in the heart of Amish farmlands, the Red Caboose is now owned by Larry Demarco. After years of neglect, Larry has begun to fully restore the many colored cabooses to bring back the family fun.

5. Propeller Island - Berlin, Germany

Art lovers rejoice! From upside-down rooms to levitating beds, it's the next best thing to spending the night in a museum.

Propeller island - this means aesthetic sensation for the eye and the ear. propeller island is a pseudonym used by the german artist lars stroschen to publish his audio-visual creations. unlimited diversity, repeating nothing and copying nothing are the guiding principles here.
the most popular result: the CITY LODGE, a habitable work of art in the heart of berlin, whose wealth of ideas never fails to attract everyone into its gravitational field and to continue inspiring guests long afterwards. a magnet for creative individuals, those weary of consumption, those who see things differently, philosophers and seekers of perspective and vision. frequented by personalities from around the globe, this vision machine is a much-desired shooting site for photo sessions and video clips. is that perhaps the reason these rooms seem so familiar to you...?

6. Schlosshotel SchÃƒ¶nburg - Oberwesel, Germany

For a true fantasy experience, nothing beats a night in a genuine castle. In spite of its long history, all modern amenities, including Internet service, are available to guests.

Schlosshotel SchÃƒ¶nburg in Oberwesel - about 10km downstream from Bacharach - is certainly one of the most expensive, but also very best and most exclusive castle-hotels along the river Rhine. The old castle dates back to the 10th century and today the castle is used partly as a luxury hotel and another part of the old castle is used as a "Kolpingheim / hostel" and a hotel next to the castle.

7. Ariau Amazon Towers - Near Manaus, Brazil

Connected by a series of catwalks, eight buildings comprise this compound, which has become a favorite of celebrities and everyday travelers alike.

"Imagine a hotel built among Amazon treetops: catwalks 70 feet up leading from a great circular dining room of polished tropical woods, a bar like an eagle's nest, a honeymoon suite built 110 feet up a mahogany tree, and friendly monkeys, macaws, sloths, and parrots scampering, fluttering, and dangling all over the place."

Conde Nast Traveler, March 1996

Ariau Amazon Towers Hotel is located 35 miles from Manuas, Brazil at the confluence of the Rio Negro and Ariau Creek. Built entirely at the level of the Rainforest Canopy, Ariau's towers are linked together by 4 miles of sturdy wooden catwalks. This architectural wonder affords visitors a unique communion with the regions abundant flora and fauna while leaving the fragile eco-system completely undisturbed.

8. Hotel Sidi Driss - Matmata, Tunisia

The force was with the cast and crew of Star Wars when they filmed at this out-of-this-world property. The amenities are minimal, but at less than $20 a night, so is the price.

The Hotel Sidi Driss, where scenes from the Lars homestead in Star Wars were filmed. Accommodation is simple (the bedrooms are formed from individual caves hollowed out from the rock, with shared bathroom facilities), but unique; visit for a day trip or spend the night.

Ask your hotel if they can arrange a tour of a traditional troglodyte (cave) dwelling; many such properties are located around the village and are today still inhabited by local families. There is a small museum behind the Hotel Sidi Driss, displaying local history. The stone village of Tamezret, 10km west of town on the Douz road makes an interesting side trip.

9. Euromast - Rotterdam, The Netherlands

A tourist attraction by day, this imposing tower becomes an exclusive hotel at night. Those wishing to give it a go should book early; the tower's two suites fill up three months out.

Book the Euromast for a night and youâ€™ll feel like playing the leading role in a Hollywood movie: A bottle of champagne is waiting for you and till 1 oâ€™clock in the evening you can order room service, the view of Rotterdam is breathtaking and inside youâ€™ll experience the charm and romance of the sixties. The building dates back from that period and high up on the Euromast you can feel it too when youâ€™re rocking on the wind and when in winter frost flowers are covering the windows (no double glazing). Even the furnishing of the suites is completely â€˜sixtiesâ€™. And you can go outside as well. From 10 oâ€™clock in the evening till 10 oâ€™clock in the morning (from April to September till 9.30 hrs) the biggest and highest balcony in Rotterdam is all yours and yours alone.

10. The Giraffe Manor - Nairobi, Kenya

Don't bother with a "Do Not Disturb" sign. The long-necked visitors who peek in through the windows of this extraordinary compound will just ignore it.

The Giraffe Manor is an elegant, personally hosted, small and exclusive hotel, famous for its resident herd of giraffe. The Giraffe Manor offers a rich blend of welcoming accommodation, highly trained and friendly staff, as well as one of Nairobi's finest kitchens.

Travellers from all over the world now make The Giraffe Manor part of their East African safari, the only place in the world where you can enjoy the breathtaking experience of feeding and photographing the giraffe over the breakfast table and at the front door.

credited to reuters.com and VirtualTourist.com

First hurricane of the 2008 Atlantic storm season - Hurricane Bertha

2008-07-21T22:00:00.000+07:00

Hurricane Bertha strengthened again into a Category 2 storm on Wednesday as it inched closer to Bermuda, but it remained uncertain whether the hurricane would actually strike the British mid-Atlantic colony, U.S. forecasters said.

The first hurricane of the 2008 Atlantic storm season surprised forecasters with the speed and vigor at which it strengthened into a "major" Category 3 hurricane on Monday, only to almost fizzle back into a tropical storm on Tuesday.

But warm waters and more favorable atmospheric wind conditions allowed the storm to once again gain traction and reach the second level on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale of hurricane intensity, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

"Additional strengthening is forecast during the next 24 hours and Bertha could again become a major hurricane," the Miami-based center said in an advisory.

Hurricanes of Category 3 and above are called "major" hurricanes and are the strongest and most destructive. Hurricane Katrina, which devastated New Orleans in 2005, was a monstrous Category 5 storm in the Gulf of Mexico before coming ashore as a Category 3.

Hurricane Bertha's top sustained winds had reached 105 miles per hour by 5 p.m. EDT, the hurricane center said.

The storm was around 600 miles southeast of Bermuda, a wealthy finance center whose 66,000 people are regarded as among the most storm-conscious and whose building codes rank among the strictest in the region.

It was moving northwest near 12 mph and was expected to slow down and turn north on a course that would take it well to the east of Bermuda. Bermuda, though, still needed to keep an eye on Bertha, the hurricane center said.

It was highly unlikely that the storm would target the U.S. East Coast, hurricane experts said, and the Gulf of Mexico, where the United States produces a third of its domestic crude oil, has been out of the firing line for days.

Bertha developed last week near the Cape Verde islands off Africa.

Its formation so far east so early in the season that began on June 1 and its explosive growth from a tropical storm into a major hurricane could be seen as harbingers of a busy summer.

Hurricane experts have predicted the six-month season, which rarely gets into high gear before August, would see an average or above-average number of storms, though nothing like record-busting 2005, when 28 formed.

credited to newsdaily.com and reuters.com

Beautiful Lake Western Brook in Canada

2008-07-19T22:00:00.000+07:00

The Western Brook Pond is a Canadian fjord or lake located in Gros Morne National Park on the west coast of the island of Newfoundland. It is in the Long Range Mountains, the most northern section of the Appalachian Mountains.

It is surrounded by steep rock walls 600 m (2,000 ft) high., having been carved from the surrounding plateau by glaciers. After the glaciers melted, the land rebounded and the fjord was cut off from the sea. Salty water was eventually flushed from the fjord leaving it fresh. The catchment area is composed of igneous rock with relatively thin soil, so the waters feeding Western Brook Pond are low in nutrients and the lake is classified as ultraoligotrophic. It is fed by Stag Brook at the extreme eastern end of the lake and by numerous waterfalls cascading from the plateau above. One of these, Pissing Mare Falls at 350 m (1,100 ft), is one of the highest in eastern North America.

The lake is accessible by a moderate-easy 3 km (1.9 mi) hiking trail over coastal bogs and low limestone ridges. Two tour boats, one with a capacity of 70 passengers and the other 90 passengers, cruise the lake from June to mid-October. The lake waters are pristine, having had very little impact from human activities. The tour boat operators had to undergo special certification to ensure that their operations would have minimal impact on the environment.

In the early part of the 20th century, a part of the surrounding cliff broke off and fell into the lake, causing a 30 m (98 ft) tsunami.

credited to wikipedia and flickr users: joanpopular, tmod, rjproduct, murrayrudd, hoodieR, learningful, prestonbromley

Sacred sites of Bali

2008-07-15T22:00:00.000+07:00

The island of Bali is geographically located about 8 degrees south of the equator and about 18 degrees north of the western end of Australia. One of the thousands of islands that make up the Indonesian archipelago, Bali is a relatively small island with an area of only 2147 square miles (5633 sq. kilometers). Originally inhabited by aboriginal peoples of uncertain origin, Bali was colonized by a seafaring people, called the Austronesians, some four of five thousand years ago. Since the seventh century AD, the animistic Balinese have absorbed diverse elements of Mahayana Buddhism, orthodox Shivaism and Tantrism. Today, the island is the only remaining stronghold of Hinduism in the archipelago, and Balinese religion is a fascinating amalgam of Hinduism, Buddhism, Malay ancestor cults, and animistic and magical beliefs and practices.

A range of towering volcanic mountains divides the island into northern and southern portions. For the Balinese these mountains are the homes of the gods. The range includes four primary sacred mountains: Agung, Batur, Batukao and Abang. Of these, Gunung Agung, Bali's highest mountain at 10,308 feet (3142 meters), is the most sacred to the island's Hindus, while Gunung Batur is considered most holy by the aboriginal people living in the remote jungles around Lake Batur. Mt. Agung is the abode of Batara Gunung Agung, also identified as Mahadewa, the supreme manifestation of Shiva. Mt. Batur and Lake Batur are sacred to Dewi Danu, the Goddess of the Lake. Also called Ida Ratu Ayu Dalem Pingit, this goddess is regarded as the provider of irrigation water in the form of bubbling natural springs that issue all over the lower slopes of Mt. Batur. An enormous fresh-water lake of 4240 acres, sacred Lake Batur is considered by farmers and priests to be the ultimate source of the springs and rivers that provide irrigation water for the whole of central Bali.

Bali is an island of temples. The Department of Religion has cataloged at least eleven thousand temples - small and large, local and regional. The Balinese call a shrine palinggih, which simply means "place" or "seat" and refers to any sort of temporary or permanent place toward which devotions and offerings are made. In no case is the shrine itself considered sacred; the shrine exists or is built as a residence for sacred, or holy, spirits - either ancestors or Hindu deities. Balinese temples are not closed buildings, but rectangular courtyards open to the sky, with rows of shrines and altars dedicated to various gods and deities. The gods are not thought to be present in the temples except on the dates of the temple's festivals, and therefore the temples are usually left empty. On festival days the congregation of each temple assembles to pray to and entertain the visiting deities. Most Balinese families belong to a half dozen or more temples and devote several weeks of labor each year to maintaining the temples and preparing them for numerous festivals.

In Bali are found six supremely holy temples, called Sad Kahyangan, or the "six temples of the world". They are Pura Besakih, Pura Lempuyang Luhur, Pura Gua Lawah, Pura Batukaru, Pura Pusering Jagat, and Pura Uluwatu. The most famous temple in all Bali is the triple shrine located in the courtyard of the Pura Penataran Agung at Pura Besakih. At this shrine three Padmasanas (a type of shrine) are arranged side by side. Although it is often said that the three shrines are for Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, all are fundamentally dedicated to Shiva. The elaborate tiered shrine is called a meru and symbolizes the world mountain, Gunung Maha Meru. Something like a Chinese pagoda, a meru is constructed of an odd number - up to eleven - of thatched tiers. The laws of traditional Balinese architecture carefully specify the dimensions of a meru, the way it must be constructed, the types of wood appropriate for each part, and the ceremonies involved in its dedication. If, for some reason, a shrine must be moved to another location, the spirit of the shrine is first transferred to a daksina, a special offering, which is then placed nearby in a temporary shrine. The original shrine is completely destroyed. None of its components may be reused for any purpose. Often the materials are dumped into the sea to insure that they are not unwittingly used again. This practice is in contrast to certain other religious traditions where the reuse of the remains of earlier temples is considered to actually increase the sanctity and power of newer temples.

Other important Balinese temples are Pura Ulun Danu Batur, the Temple of the Crater Lake, dedicated to the Lake Goddess Dewi Danu, and Tirta Empul, where flow the holiest waters of Bali, believed to possess magical curative powers.

credited to sacredsites.com and flickr users: xdawnx, ashkani, alfianz, natureschild, usch150905

Most beautiful beaches in Dubai

2008-07-11T22:00:00.000+07:00

I would add Dubai beaches to the best beaches in the world list. Dubai has a few magnificent white sandy beaches. Water is crystal clear. So if you are a beach lover then you will love Dubai beaches.

My favourite Dubai beaches are Jumeirah beach and Mamzar park beach.

Jumeirah Beach

Jumeirah is about 25 minutes drive from the Dubai city centre. Jumeirah beach is world famous because of Burj Al Arab 7 Star Hotel and Jumeirah Beach Hotel. You can visit the 7 star hotel if you are planning visit this beach.

Jumeirah beach is a few kilometres long. Not very crowded. Barbecue facilities are available in many places. Lifesavers are on duty throughout the day.

Jumeirah beach is a very safe place even for children. Water is very shallow. There is a road parallel to the beach. You can drive and select the best spot for you.

Mamzar Beach

Mamzar is a famous park in Dubai. One border of the park is the lovely Mamzar beach. Therefore you need to buy tickets to the park to access the beach.

Mamzar is also about 25 minutes drive from the city centre, but in a different direction from Jumeirah beach. This beach is made for holidaymakers. It has barbecue spots, chalets and many more facilities to attract visitors.

Jebel Ali Beach in Dubai

Jebel Ali is about 40 KM away from the Dubai city. Jebel Ali is famous due to various things. Most of the duty free industrial zones are located in Jebel Ali. It is also known as a place of good Golf Clubs, holiday resorts and hotels.

But Jebel Ali is more famous because of the beautiful beach and proposed Palm Island development. Also there are lot of luxury apartment buildings are in Jebel Ali.

The Dubai beach does not have large waves. Especially Mamzar beach is almost like a swimming pool. However, Jumeirah beach has waves on windy days. You will have to wait for a good day if you are planning windsurfing.

Friday is the weekend in Dubai. Dubai beaches are a bit crowded on Thursday evenings and Fridays.

The bad news is alcohol is not permitted in public places in Dubai. That includes Dubai beaches. Therefore donâ€™t expect beach bars along the beach.

credited to flickr users: chrised, bigblue, radziun, ttva, spoonfork, chrisdubai, wackospecialist, nuppo, asteyn, eidetic-images, dnilo

Arctic ice melting at record speed

2008-07-08T22:01:00.000+07:00

Tens of thousands of years ago, "armadas of ice" crumbled off of the ice sheet covering North America into the Atlantic Ocean. Meanwhile, thousands of miles away on the other side of the continent, icebergs calved off of another ice sheet into the Pacific.

Their synchrony -- just uncovered by new research -- suggests the events might be connected in a long-distance domino effect. The fact that melting at one location may influence ice sheets afar may be useful in understanding the behavior of ice today, according to the study's authors.

"What it is saying is that these ice sheets are connected," said lead author Ingrid Hendy of the University of Michigan. "If we melt Greenland, we could raise sea level and affect Antarctica. Or, if we melt Greenland, we can affect the tidewater glaciers up in Alaska."

Hendy and colleagues analyzed a sediment core collected off the western coast of Vancouver Island, in southern British Columbia. They analyzed the grain sizes of the sand and pebbles in the 130-foot core, using zooplankton remains to determine the date when the debris was deposited. The team published their results in Paleoceanography.

Because the core was taken offshore, past where waves could carry large particles of sand, large debris inside it is assumed to come from an iceberg -- laden with larger sand and pebbles trapped in the ice -- that floated out to sea and melted overhead, dropping the grains to the sea floor.

Such events in the sediment record indicate times when icebergs calved off a nearby ice sheet, in this case the Cordilleran Ice Sheet, which grew down from Alaska into northern Washington, reaching its maximum size 17,500 years ago.

Hendy identified three calving events, but they did not occur in synchrony with major climate swings in the Pacific.

"I was anticipating that I'd see the ice sheets responding to the rapid climate events," Hendy said. "What I found was that the ice sheet doesn't really care."

But the two major events both coincided with enormous so-called Heinrich events approximately 16,000 and 47,000 years ago, when huge numbers of icebergs broke off of the Laurentide Ice Sheet, which covered most of Canada and much of the northern United States, into the north Atlantic.

"Heinrich events are armadas of ice," said John Clague of Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia, who was not a part of the study. "They are massive discharges of ice."

Hendy proposes two explanations for how the Heinrich events in the north Atlantic may have influenced melting in of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet in the Pacific.

One possibility is that the Heinrich events triggered sea-level rise, which caused the margins of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet to float up and destabilize.

However, there is no strong evidence that a change in sea level occurred at these times. "But there's something going on then, because the corals don't seem to be growing," Hendy said.

Another possibility, she said, is that continental temperatures had increased, especially in summertime, leading to calving from both ice sheets.

"If you warm up the North American continent, you connect the Laurentide to the Cordilleran," she said.

"The relation between the events in the west and the east is good enough that coincidences and accidents won't work," said Richard Alley of Pennsylvania State University in State College, "but I'm not positive whether one can tell whether the [ice debris] is a warming or a cooling signal in the west, or maybe a sea-level signal."

Alley thinks sea level is least likely.

Understanding the connection between the ice sheets could be helpful for predicting what will happen under today's climate change.

"We know that our climate models now can't predict the full amount of climate change that we see," Hendy said, "If we know what the connections were in the past, we could say whether they would happen again."

credited to discovery.com

VatnajÃ¶kull - Iceland

2008-07-05T22:01:00.000+07:00

VatnajÃ¶kull is the largest glacier in Iceland. It is located in the south-east of the island, covering more than 8% of the country. With a size of 8,100 km², it is the largest glacier in Europe in volume (almost 3,000 km²) and the second largest (after Austfonna on Nordaustlandet, Svalbard) in area (not counting the still larger ice cap of Severny Island of Novaya Zemlya, Russia, which is located in the extreme northeast of Europe).

The average thickness of the ice is 400 m, with a maximum thickness of 1,000 m. Iceland's highest peak, HvannadalshnÃƒºkur (2,110 m), is located in the southern periphery of VatnajÃƒ¶kull, near Skaftafell National Park. It is classified as an ice cap glacier.

Under the glacier, as under many of the glaciers of Iceland, there are several volcanoes. The volcanic lakes, GrÃƒÂmsvÃƒ¶tn for example, were the sources of a large glacier run in 1996. The volcano under these lakes also caused a considerable but short-time eruption in the beginning of November 2004. During the last ice age, numerous volcanic eruptions occurred under VatnajÃƒ¶kull, creating many subglacial eruptions. These eruptions formed tuyas, such as HerÃƒÂ°ubreiÃƒÂ° which originally sat beneath VatnajÃƒ¶kull during the last ice age.

VatnajÃƒ¶kull has been shrinking for some years now, possibly because of climatic changes and recent volcanic activity.

According to Guinness World Records VatnajÃƒ¶kull is the object of the world's longest sight line, 550 km from SlÃƒÂ¦ttaratindur, the highest mountain in the Faroe Islands. GWR state that "owing to the light bending effects of atmospheric refraction, VatnajÃƒ¶kull (2119m), Iceland, can sometimes be seen from the Faroe Islands, 340 miles (550km) away". This may be based on a claimed sighting by a British sailor in 1939.

credited to wikipedia and flickr users: patmueller, brostad, snorkstelp, steverideou, cuba_photos, bigfez, rossinblu, sverre_klein

Antigua and Barbuda - Paradise on Earth

2008-07-01T22:01:00.000+07:00

All the signs pointed towards Antigua. The island had warm, steady winds, a complex coastline of safe harbors, and a protective, nearly unbroken wall of coral reef. It would make a perfect place to hide a fleet. And so in 1784 the legendary Admiral Horatio Nelson sailed to Antigua and established Great Britain's most important Caribbean base. Little did he know that over 200 years later the same unique characteristics that attracted the Royal Navy would transform Antigua and Barbuda in one of the Caribbean's premier tourist destinations.

The signs are still there, they just point to different things. The Trade Winds that once blew British men-of-war safely into English Harbour now fuel one of the world's foremost maritime events, Sailing Week. The expansive, winding coastline that made Antigua difficult for outsiders to navigate is where today's trekkers encounter a tremendous wealth of secluded, powdery soft beaches. The coral reefs, once the bane of marauding enemy ships, now attract snorkelers and scuba divers from all over the world. And the fascinating little island of Barbuda -- once a scavenger's paradise because so many ships wrecked on its reefs -- is now home to one of the region's most significant bird sanctuaries.

Antigua (pronounced An-tee'ga) and Barbuda are located in the middle of the Leeward Islands in the Eastern Caribbean, roughly 17 degrees north of the equator. To the south are the islands of Montserrat and Guadaloupe, and to the north and west are Nevis, St. Kitts, St. Barts, and St. Martin.

Antigua, the largest of the English-speaking Leeward Islands, is about 14 miles long and 11 miles wide, encompassing 108 square miles. Its highest point is Boggy Peak (1319 ft.), located in the southwestern corner of the island. Barbuda, a flat coral island with an area of only 68 square miles, lies approximately 30 miles due north. The nation also includes the tiny (0.6 square mile) uninhabited island of Redonda, now a nature preserve. The current population for the nation is approximately 68,000 and its capital is St. John's on Antigua.

Temperatures generally range from the mid-seventies in the winter to the mid-eighties in the summer. Annual rainfall averages only 45 inches, making it the sunniest of the Eastern Caribbean Islands, and the northeast trade winds are nearly constant, flagging only in September. Low humidity year-round.

credited to flickr users: negro, frannybanny, andreamaccioni, xstevex1, hihot, andre_m_pipa, arojass_

Aerial images prove existence of remote Amazon tribe

2008-06-20T23:58:00.000+07:00

Deep in the Amazon jungle, one of the Brazil's last uncontacted indigenous tribes has been photographed from the air, to prove its existence.

The pictures show tribesmen, painted red from head to toe, preparing to defend themselves with longbows against the aircraft carrying out the photography.

The images, taken by the Brazil's department for Indian affairs (Funai), reveal a number of thatched roof huts in a small clearing in the forest, in the western Amazon, close to Envira, which is not far from the border with Peru.

Funai warned that logging in the region threatened the existence of the few remaining uncontacted indigenous communities.

"We did the overflight to show their houses, to show they are there, to show they exist," said Jose Carlos dos Reis Meirelles, an expert on uncontacted tribes at Funai. "This is very important because there are some who doubt their existence."

Meirelles said the tribe lived in six small communities, each with about six communal houses, in an area known as the Terra Indigena Kampa e Isolados do Envira.

He added that other uncontacted groups on the Peruvian side of the border, who have also been photographed by experts, were being pushed from their homes by illegal logging.

"What is happening in this region [of Peru] is a monumental crime against the natural world, the tribes, the fauna, and is further testimony to the complete irrationality with which we, the civilised ones, treat the world," Meirelles said.

Loggers, often prepared to kill as they move into new areas, have forced uncontacted tribes from Peru into Brazil. The area is regularly full of smoke from the burning of recently-logged areas.

The Brazilian government has a policy of not contacting the few tribes which are untouched by the outside world and whose way of life has apparently changed little in thousands of years. It is not known to which tribe they belonged, Funai said.

It is understood that when the plane first overflew the village, the people scattered into the forest. When it returned a few hours later they had painted themselves red and fired arrows into the sky.

"They must have suffered some sort of trauma in the past and must know that contact is not a good thing," Fiona Watson, of Survival International, said.

Her organisation estimates that there are around 100 similar groups around the world in places like Brazil, the Andaman Islands and New Guinea.

"All of them face a common threat. Their lands are increasingly being encroached upon by loggers, oil companies and so on. They are under threat of violence. We know of past cases where 50% of the community has been lost within 12 months of initial contact [with the outside world]," she told the BBC's Today programme.

She welcomed the Brazilian policy of not contacting groups and attempting to demarcate lands to prevent unrestrained land-grabbing.

credited to guardian.co.uk

Beautiful island Ailsa Craig in Scotland

2008-06-19T22:03:00.001+07:00

Ailsa Craig is an island in the outer Firth of Clyde, Scotland where granite was quarried to make curling stones. "Ailsa" is pronounced "ale-sa", with the first syllable stressed.

The island is located approximately 16 km (10 miles) west of Girvan. 2 miles in circumference and rising to 338 metres, the island consists entirely of a volcanic plug of an extinct volcano that might have been active about 500 million years ago.. It belongs to the administrative district of South Ayrshire, in the ancient parish of Dailly.

There is a lighthouse on the east coast facing the mainland and a ruined keep of uncertain origins perched on the hillside above.

Ailsa Craig is a 1,114 feet high volcanic rock that protrudes from middle of the Firth of Clyde. With the Ayrshire town of Girvan being only ten miles east of the Craig, some local boat owners offer trips around the rock.

credited to wikipedia

Karnak temple - Egypt

2008-06-19T22:03:00.000+07:00

The Karnak temple complex, universally known only as Karnak, describes a vast conglomeration of ruined temples, chapels, pylons and other buildings. It is located near Luxor in Egypt. This was ancient Egyptian Ipet-isut ("The Most Selected of Places"), the main place of worship of the Theban Triad with Amun as its head, in the monumental city of Thebes. The complex retrieves its current name from the nearby and partly surrounding modern village of el-Karnak, some 2.5km north of Luxor.

The complex is a vast open-air museum and the largest ancient religious site in the world. It is probably the second most visited historical site in Egypt, second only to the Giza Pyramids near Cairo. It consists of four main parts (precincts) of which only one is accessible for tourists and the general public. This is the Precinct of Amun-Re, and this it is also the main part of the complex and by far the largest part. The term Karnak is often understood as being the Precinct of Amun-Re only, as this is the only part most visitors normally see. The three other parts, the Precinct of Montu, the Precinct of Mut and the Temple of Amenhotep IV (dismantled), are closed to the public. There also are a few smaller temples and sanctuaries located outside the enclosing walls of the four main parts, as well as several avenues of human and ram-headed sphinxes connecting the Precinct of Mut, the Precinct of Amon-Re, and Luxor Temple.

The key difference between Karnak and most of the other temples and sites in Egypt is the length of time over which it was developed and used. Construction work began in the 16th century BC. Approximately thirty pharaohs contributed to the buildings, enabling it to reach a size, complexity, and diversity not seen elsewhere. Few of the individual features of Karnak are unique, but the size and number of features are overwhelming. Construction of temples started in the Middle Kingdom and continued through to Ptolemaic times.

The history of the Karnak complex is largely the history of Thebes. The city does not appear to have been of any significance before the Eleventh Dynasty, and any temple building here would have been relatively small and unimportant, with any shrines being dedicated to the early god of Thebes, Montu. The earliest artifact found in the area of the temple is a small, eight-side from the Eleventh Dynasty, which mentions Amun-Re.

Major construction work in the Precinct of Amun-Re took place during the Eighteenth dynasty. Thutmose I erected an enclosure wall connecting the Fourth and Fifth pylons, which comprise the earliest part of the temple still standing in situ. Construction of the Hypostyle Hall may have also began during the eighteenth dynasty, though most building was undertaken under Seti I and Ramesses II. Merenptah commemorated his victories over the Sea Peoples on the walls of the Cachette Court, the start of the processional route to the Luxor Temple.

The last major change to Precinct of Amun-Re's layout was the addition of the first pylon and the massive enclosure walls that surround the whole Precinct, both constructed by Nectanebo I.

In 323 AD, Constantine the Great recognised the Christian religion, and in 356 ordered the closing of pagan temples throughout the empire. Karnak was by this time mostly abandoned, and Christian churches were founded amongst the ruins, the most famous example of this is the reuse of the Festival Hall of Thutmose III's central hall, were painted decorations of saints and Coptic inscriptions can still be seen.

Thebesâ€™ exact placement was unknown in medieval Europe, though both Herodotus and Strabo give the exact location of Thebes and how long up the Nile one must travel to reach it. Maps of Egypt, based on the 2nd century Claudius Ptolemaeus' mammoth work Geographia, have been circling in Europe since the late 14th century, all of them showing Thebesâ€™ (Diospolis) location. Despite this, several European authors of the 15th and 16th century who visited only Lower Egypt and published their travel accounts, like Joos van Ghistele or Andre Thevet, put Thebes in or close to Memphis.

The Karnak temple complex is first described by an unknown Venetian in 1589, though his account relates no name for the complex. This account, housed in the Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale di Firenze, is the first known European mention since ancient Greek and Roman writers of a whole range of monuments in Upper Egypt and Nubian, including Karnak, Luxor temple, Colossi of Memnon, Esna, Edfu, Kom Ombo, Philae and others.

Karnak ("Carnac") as a village name, and name of the complex, is first attested in 1668, when two capuchin missionary brothers Protais and Charles FranÃƒ§ois d'OrlÃƒ©ans travelled though the area. Protaisâ€™ writing about their travel was published by MelchisÃƒ©dech ThÃƒ©venot (Relations de divers voyages curieux, 1670s-1696 editions) and Johann Michael Vansleb (The Present State of Egypt, 1678).

The first drawing of Karnak is found in Paul Lucas' travel account of 1704, (Voyage du Sieur paul Lucas au Levant). It is rather inaccurate, and can be quite confusing to modern eyes. Lucas travelled in Egypt during 1699-1703. The drawing shows a mixture of the Precinct of Amun-Re and the Precinct of Montu, based on a complex confined by the tree huge Ptolemaic gateways of Ptolemy III Euergetes / Ptolemy IV Philopator, and the massive 113m long, 43m high and 15m thick, first Pylon of the Precinct of Amun-Re.

Karnak was visited and described in succession by Claude Sicard and his travel companion Pierre Laurent Pincia (1718 and 1720-21), Granger (1731), Frederick Louis Norden (1737-38), Richard Pococke (1738), James Bruce (1769), Charles-Nicolas-Sigisbert Sonnini de Manoncourt (1777), William George Browne (1792-93), and finally by a number of scientists of the Napoleon expedition, including Vivant Denon, during 1798-1799. Claude-Ãƒ‰tienne Savary describes the complex rather detailed in his work of 1785; especially in light that it is a fictional account of a pretended journey to Upper Egypt, composed out of information from other travellers. Savary did visit Lower Egypt in 1777-78, and published a work about that too.

credited to wikipedia and flickr users: joanot, twose, selva, jannet_duroc, xfp, merlin_1, sonofgroucho, juanj

When volcano gets angry

2008-06-19T22:02:00.007+07:00

A volcano is an opening, or rupture, in a planet's surface or crust, which allows hot, molten rock, ash, and gases to escape from below the surface. Volcanic activity involving the extrusion of rock tends to form mountains or features like mountains over a period of time.

Volcanoes are generally found where tectonic plates are pulled apart or come together. A mid-oceanic ridge, for example the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, has examples of volcanoes caused by "divergent tectonic plates" pulling apart; the Pacific Ring of Fire has examples of volcanoes caused by "convergent tectonic plates" coming together. By contrast, volcanoes are usually not created where two tectonic plates slide past one another. Volcanoes can also form where there is stretching and thinning of the Earth's crust (called "non-hotspot intraplate volcanism"), such as in the African Rift Valley, the Wells Gray-Clearwater Volcanic Field and the Rio Grande Rift in North America and the European Rhine Graben with its Eifel volcanoes.

Volcanoes can be caused by "mantle plumes". These so-called "hotspots" , for example at Hawaii, can occur far from plate boundaries. Hotspot volcanoes are also found elsewhere in the solar system, especially on rocky planets and moons.

credited to wikipedia and flickr users: volcanodiscovery, photovolcanica, dmustaine, guano, sandy-leemans, ibhmc, hageonline, contactgmt, franck

Hawaii sunset

2008-06-19T22:02:00.006+07:00

The State of Hawaii is a state in the United States, located on an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of Australia. The state was admitted to the Union on August 21, 1959, making it the 50th state. Its capital is Honolulu on the island of Oahu. The most recent census puts the state's population at 1,211,537.

credited to wikipedia

Krakatoa eruption 1883

2008-06-19T22:02:00.005+07:00

Krakatoa , also spelled Krakatao or Krakatowa, is a volcanic island in the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra in Indonesia. The name is used for the island group, the main island (also called Rakata), and the volcano as a whole. It has erupted repeatedly, massively, and with disastrous consequences throughout recorded history. The best known eruption culminated in a series of massive explosions on August 26 - 27, 1883, which was among the most violent volcanic events in modern times. With a Volcanic Explosivity Index of 6, it was equivalent to 200 megatons of TNT â€” about 13,000 times the yield of the Little Boy bomb (13 to 16 KT) that devastated Hiroshima, Japan.

The 1883 eruption ejected more than 25 cubic kilometres of rock, ash, and pumice, and generated the loudest sound historically reported: the cataclysmic explosion was distinctly heard as far away as Perth in Australia approx. 1,930 miles (3,110 km), and the island of Rodrigues near Mauritius approx. 3,000 miles (5,000 km). Near Krakatoa, according to official records, 165 villages and towns were destroyed and 132 seriously damaged, at least 36,417 (official toll) people died, and many thousands were injured by the eruption, mostly from the tsunamis that followed the explosion.

The eruption destroyed two-thirds of the island of Krakatoa. Eruptions at the volcano since 1927 have built a new island in the same location, called Anak Krakatau (child of Krakatoa).This island has a radius of roughly 2 kilometers and a high point around 200 meters above sea level. The original island of Krakatoa had a high point at an estimated 2000 meters above sea level and had a radius of 9 kilometers.

Early eruptions

In the years before the 1883 eruption, seismic activity around the volcano was intense, with some earthquakes felt as far distant as Australia. Beginning 20 May 1883, three months before the final explosion, steam venting began to occur regularly from Perboewatan, the northernmost of the island's three cones. Eruptions of ash reached an altitude of 6 km (20,000 ft) and explosions could be heard in Batavia (Jakarta) 160 km (100 miles) away. Activity died down by the end of May.

The volcano began erupting again around 20 July. The seat of the eruption is believed to have been a new vent or vents which formed between Perboewatan and Danan, more or less where the current volcanic cone of Anak Krakatau is. The violence of the eruption caused tides in the vicinity to be unusually high, and ships at anchor had to be moored with chains as a result. On 11 August larger eruptions began, with ashy plumes being emitted from at least eleven vents. On 24 August, eruptions further intensified. At about 1pm (local time) on 26 August, the volcano went into its paroxysmal phase, and by 2pm observers could see a black cloud of ash 27 km (17 miles) high. At this point, the eruption was virtually continuous and explosions could be heard every ten minutes or so. Ships within 20 km (11 nautical miles) of the volcano reported heavy ash fall, with pieces of hot pumice up to 10 cm in diameter landing on their decks. A small tsunami hit the shores of Java and Sumatra some 40 km (28 miles) away between 6pm and 7pm.

Cataclysmic stage

On August 27, the volcano entered the final cataclysmic stage of its eruption. Four enormous explosions took place at 05:30 hrs, 06:42 hrs, 08:20 hrs, and 10:02 hrs - all times are local. The last explosion was the loudest. Each was accompanied by very large tsunamis and are believed to have been over 30 meters (100 ft) high in places. A large area of the Sunda Strait and a number of places on the Sumatran coast were affected by pyroclastic flows from the volcano. The explosions were so violent that they were heard 3,500 km away in Perth, Western Australia and the island of Rodrigues near Mauritius, 4,800 km away; the sound of Krakatoa's destruction is the loudest sound in recorded history, reaching levels of 180 dBSPL 100 miles (160 km) away.. The pressure wave from the final explosion was recorded on barographs around the world and can be clearly identified as occurring at seven distinct intervals. Ash was propelled to a height of 80 km. The eruptions diminished rapidly after that point, and by the morning of August 28 Krakatoa was quiet.

"The Burning Ashes of Ketimbang"

Around noon on August 27, a rain of hot ash fell around Ketimbang in Sumatra. Around a thousand people were killed, the only large number of victims killed by Krakatoa itself, and not the waves or after-effects. Verbeek and later writers believe this unique event was a lateral blast or pyroclastic flow, similar to what happened in 1980 at Mt. St. Helens, which crossed the water. The region of the ashfall ended to the northwest of Ketimbang, where the bulk of Sebesi Island offered protection from any horizontal surges.

After eruptions

Small eruptions continued through October, and were reported through February 1884 (although any after mid October were discounted by Verbeek). In the aftermath of the eruption, it was found that the island of Krakatoa had almost entirely disappeared, except for the southern half of Rakata cone cut off along a vertical cliff, leaving behind a 250-meter-deep caldera.

Effects

The combined effects of pyroclastic flows, volcanic ashes and tsunamis had disastrous results in the region. There were no survivors from 3,000 people located at the island of Sebesi, about 13 km from Krakatoa. Pyroclastic flows killed around 1,000 people at Ketimbang on the coast of Sumatra some 40 km north from Krakatoa. The official death toll recorded by the Dutch authorities was 36,417, although some sources put the estimate at 120,000 or more. Many settlements were destroyed, including Teluk Betung and Ketimbang in Sumatra, and Sirik and Semarang in Java. The areas of Banten on Java and the Lampung on Sumatra were devastated. There are numerous documented reports of groups of human skeletons floating across the Indian Ocean on rafts of volcanic pumice and washing up on the east coast of Africa, up to a year after the eruption. Some land on Java was never repopulated; it reverted to jungle and is now the Ujung Kulon National Park.

Tsunamis and distant effects

Ships as far away as South Africa rocked as tsunamis hit them, and the bodies of victims were found floating in the ocean for weeks after the event. The tsunamis which accompanied the eruption are believed to have been caused by gigantic pyroclastic flows entering the sea; each of the five great explosions was accompanied by a massive pyroclastic flow resulting from the gravitational collapse of the eruption column. This caused several cubic kilometers of material to enter the sea, displacing an equally huge volume of seawater. The town Merak was destroyed by a 46 metre-high tsunami. Some of the pyroclastic flows reached the Sumatran coast as much as 25 miles (40 km) away, having apparently moved across the water on a "cushion" of superheated steam. There are also indications of submarine pyroclastic flows reaching 10 miles (15 km) from the volcano.

A recent documentary film showed tests made by a research team at Kiel University, Germany of pyroclastic flows moving over water. The tests revealed that hot ash traveled over the water on a cloud of superheated steam, continuing to be a pyroclastic flow after crossing water; the heavy matter precipitated out of the flow shortly after initial contact with the water, creating a tsunami due to the precipitate mass.

Smaller waves were recorded on tidal gauges as far away as the English Channel. These occurred too soon to be remnants of the initial tsunamis, and may have been caused by concussive air waves from the eruption. These air waves circled the globe several times and were still detectable using barographs five days later.

Geographic effects

As a result of the huge amount of material deposited by the volcano, the surrounding ocean floor was drastically altered. It is estimated that as much as 18-21 km³ of ignimbrite was deposited over an area of 1.1 million km², largely filling the 30-40 m deep basin around Krakatoa. The land masses of Verlaten and Lang were increased, and volcanic ash continues to be a significant part of the geological composition of these islands. Poolsche Hoed ("Polish Hat") disappeared. A new rock islet called Bootsmansrots ('Bosun's Rock', a fragment of Danan) was left.

Two nearby sandbanks (called Steers and Calmeyer after the two naval officers who investigated them) were built up into islands by ashfall, but the sea later washed them away. Seawater on hot volcanic deposits on Steers and Calmeyer caused steam which some people mistook for continued eruption.

The fate of Krakatoa itself has been the subject of some dispute among geologists. It was originally proposed that the island had been blown apart by the force of the eruption. However, most of the material deposited by the volcano is clearly magmatic in origin and the caldera formed by the eruption is not extensively filled with deposits from the 1883 eruption. This indicates that the island subsided into an empty magma chamber at the end of the eruption sequence, rather than having been destroyed during the eruptions.

Global climate

In the year following the eruption, average global temperatures fell by as much as 1.2 degrees Celsius. Weather patterns continued to be chaotic for years, and temperatures did not return to normal until 1888. The eruption injected an unusually large amount of sulfur dioxide (SO2) gas high into the stratosphere which was subsequently transported by high-level winds all over the planet. This led to a global increase in sulfurous acid (H2SO3) concentration in high-level cirrus clouds. The resulting increase in cloud reflectivity (or albedo) would reflect more incoming light from the sun than usual, and cool the entire planet until the suspended sulfur fell to the ground as acid precipitation.

Global optical effects

The eruption darkened the sky for days afterwards, and produced spectacular sunsets throughout the world for many months. British artist William Ashcroft made thousands of colour sketches of the red sunsets half-way around the world from Krakatoa in the years after the eruption. In 2004, researchers proposed the idea that the blood-red sky shown in Edvard Munch's famous 1893 painting The Scream is also an accurate depiction of the sky over Norway after the eruption. Munch said: "suddenly the sky turned blood red ... I stood there shaking with fear and felt an endless scream passing through nature." Also, a so called blue moon had been seen for two years as a result of the eruption.

Possible causes

The cause of the violent explosions has also attracted debate. Four theories are:

Contemporary investigators believed that the volcano's vents had sunk below sea level on the morning of 27 August, letting seawater flood into it and causing a massive series of phreatic (interaction of ground water and magma) explosions.
The seawater could have chilled the magma, causing it to crust over and producing a "pressure cooker" effect relieved only when explosive pressures were reached.

Both these ideas assumed that the island subsided before the explosions; however, the evidence does not support that conclusion and the pumice and ignimbrite deposits are not of a kind consistent with a magma-seawater interaction.

A massive underwater land slump or partial subsidence suddenly left the highly pressurized magma chamber wide open.
The final explosions may have been caused by magma mixing caused by a sudden infusion of hot basaltic magma into the cooler and lighter magma in the chamber below the volcano. This would have resulted in a rapid and unsustainable increase in pressure, leading to a cataclysmic explosion. Evidence for this theory is the existence of pumice consisting of light and dark material, the dark material being of much hotter origin. However, such material reportedly is less than 5% of the content of the Krakatoa ignimbrite and some investigators have rejected this as a prime cause of the 27 August explosions.

Verbeek investigation

Although the violent engulfment phase of the eruption was over by late afternoon of August 27, after light returned by the 29th, reports continued for months that Krakatoa was still in eruption. One of the earliest duties of Verbeek's committee was to determine if this was true and also verify reports of other volcanoes erupting on Java and Sumatra. In general, these were found to be false, and Verbeek discounted any claims of Krakatoa still erupting after mid October as due to steaming of hot material, landslides due to heavy monsoon rains that season, and "hallucinations due to electrical activity" seen from a distance.

No signs of activity were seen in the next several years until 1913, when an eruption was reported. Investigation could find no evidence the volcano was awakening, and it was determined that what had been mistaken for renewed activity had actually been a major landslide (possibly the one which formed the second arc to Rakata's cliff).

Anak Krakatau

Verbeek, in his report on the eruption, predicted that any new activity would manifest itself in the region which had been between Perboewatan and Danan. This prediction came true in June 1927 when evidence of a submarine eruption was seen in this area. A few days later, a new island volcano, named Anak Krakatau ("Child of Krakatoa"), broke water. Initially, the eruptions were of pumice and ash, and it (and 2 more islands) was quickly eroded away by the sea; but eventually Anak Krakatoa #4 produced lava flows faster than the waves could erode them. Of considerable interest to volcanologists, this has been the subject of extensive study since the new island broke water permanently in August 1930

Current activity

The island is still active, with its most recent eruptive episode having begun in 1994. Since then, quiet periods of a few days have alternated with almost continuous eruptions, with occasional much larger explosions. Since the 1950s, the island has grown at an average rate of five inches (13 cm) per week. This volcano started erupting again in October and November 2007, when hot gases, rocks, and lava were released. Scientists monitoring the volcano have warned people to stay out of a 3 km zone around the island.

credited to wikipedia and flickr users: hida, flydime, nothingdestroyed, nadinexf, volcanoes

Valley of the Kings - Egypt

2008-06-19T22:02:00.004+07:00

The Valley of the Kings is a valley in Egypt where for a period of nearly 500 years from the 16th to 11th century BC, tombs were constructed for the kings and powerful nobles of the New Kingdom (the Eighteenth through Twentieth Dynasties of Ancient Egypt). The valley stands on the west bank of the Nile, across from Thebes (modern Luxor), within the heart of the Theban Necropolis. The wadi consists of two valleys, East Valley (where the majority of the royal tombs situated) and West Valley.

The area has been a focus of concentrated archaeological and egyptological exploration since the end of the eighteenth century, and its tombs and burials continue to stimulate research and interest. In modern times the valley has become famous for the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun (with its rumours of the Curse of the Pharaohs), and is one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world. In 1979, it became a World Heritage Site, along with the rest of the Theban Necropolis

The types of soil where the Valley of Kings is located are an alternating sandwich of dense limestone and other sedimentary rock (which form the cliffs in the valley and the nearby Deir el-Bahri) and soft layers of marl. The sedimentary rock was originally deposited between 35 - 56 million years ago during a time when the precursor to the Mediterranean Sea covered an area that extended much further inland than today. During the Pleistocene the valley was carved out the plateau by steady rains. There is currently little year-round rain in this part of Egypt, but there are occasional flash floods which hit the valley, dumping tons of debris into the open tombs.

The quality of the rock in the Valley is inconsistent, ranging from finely-grained to coarse stone, the latter with the potential to be structurally unsound. The occasional layer of shale also caused construction and conservation difficulties, as this rock expands in the presence of water, forcing apart the stone surrounding it. It is thought that some tombs were altered in shape and size depending on the types of the layers of rock the builders encountered.

Builders took advantage of available geological features when constructing the tombs. Some tombs were quarried out of existing limestone clefts, others behind slopes of scree, or were at the edge of rock spurs created by ancient flood channels.

The problems of tomb construction can be seen with tombs of Ramesses III and his father Setnakhte. Setnakhte started to excavate KV11, but broke into the tomb of Amenmesse, so construction was abandoned and he instead usurped the tomb of Twosret, KV14. When looking for a tomb, Ramesses III extended the part-excavated tomb started by his father. The tomb of Ramesses II returned to an early style, probably due to the quality of the rock being excavated.

Between 1998-2002 the Amarna Royal Tombs Project investigated the valley floor using ground-penetrating radar and found that below the modern surface the Valley's cliffs descend beneath the scree in a series of abrupt, natural "shelves", arranged one below the other, descending several metres down to the bedrock in the valley floor.

The Valley of the Kings has been a major area of modern Egyptological exploration for the last two centuries. Before this the area was a site for tourism in antiquity (especially during Roman times). This areas illustrates the changes in the study of ancient Egypt, starting as antiquity hunting, and ending as scientific excavation of the whole Theban Necropolis. Despite the exploration and investigation noted below, only eleven of the tombs have actually been completely recorded.

Most of the tombs are not open to the public (16 of the tombs can be opened, but they are rarely open at the same time), and officials occasionally close those that are open for restoration work. The number of visitors to KV62 has led to a separate charge for entry into the tomb. The West Valley has only one open tomb â€“ that of Ay â€“ and a separate ticket is needed to visit this tomb. The tour guides are no longer allowed to lecture inside the tombs and visitors are expected to proceed quietly and in single file through the tombs. This is to minimize time in the tombs, and prevent the crowds from damaging the surfaces of the decoration. Photography is no longer allowed in the tombs.

In 1997, 58 tourists and 4 Egyptians were massacred at nearby Deir el-Bahri by Islamist militants from Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya. This led to an overall drop in tourism in the area.

As of 2005, on most days of the week an average of four to five thousand tourists visit the main valley. On the days on which the Nile Cruises arrive the number can rise to nearly ten thousand. These levels are expected to rise to 25,000 by 2015. The West Valley is much less visited, as there is only one tomb that is open to the public.

credited to wikipedia and flickr users: hjmf21, juanj, tianzhou, anecia, shelbyroot, kambizkamrani, shelbyroot, microkitten, tonayo, kerken

Rising Mississippi River threatens Midwestern towns

2008-06-19T22:02:00.003+07:00

A small Illinois town was evacuated this morning after a levee breach along the Mississippi River. About 50 people in Meyer, Ill., have had to leave their homes.

The evacuation order is likely not the last in Illinois or in neighbouring states. Towns along the Mississippi River were bracing for more floods Wednesday.

The Mississippi broke through a levee near Gulfport, Ill., Tuesday, covering about 5,000 acres in the region. The floodwaters got so dangerous for boats in the area, that officials used a helicopter to rescue at least three people.

The surging water in the town was just the latest in a spate of floods to hit the region over the past several days.

About 25,000 people left their homes in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, after floodwaters there rushed through large parts of the city, damaging buildings and water treatment plants throughout the region.

The rising Mississippi will likely threaten communities in several states for the rest of the week, leaving many residents on edge. Lois Russell, 83, a Gulfport resident, says he was forced out of his farmhouse after 57 years.

"What else am I going to do? Where else am I going to go," he asked.

Other communities are preparing to follow Gulfport's lead. Officials in towns along the Mississippi are considering evacuation plans and have bolstered defences against rising floodwaters. In Clarksville, Mo., the U.S. National Guard, students, inmates, and residents have been sandbagging around historic buildings and businesses to minimize damage.

However, the potential damage may not be as bad in this round of floods than in the past. Over the past few years, the federal government has bought out homes in some of the most vulnerable flood areas. But not everyone has sold their properties to move to higher ground.

The Mayor of Chelsea, Iowa, says residents in the area have learned to cope.

"For the most part, it's another flood," Roger Ochs said. "For Chelsea, it's more of an inconvenience

The National Weather Service fears the worst may yet be ahead for some communities along the Mississippi. Officials say the river near Canton, Mo., may reach 8.5 metres Thursday. That's four metres above the flood stage. Crests near the towns of Quincy, Ill., and Hannibal, Mo., are expected to be about 4.5 metres above the flood stage.

The flooding in eastern Iowa and surrounding areas has already caused US$1.5 billion in damages.

credited to CTV.ca

Biggest Animals on Earth

2008-06-19T22:02:00.002+07:00

In the Animal kingdom, size is a big factor in the battle for survival. For these large animals, predators are scarce but illegal hunting activities reduce their number considerably. Contrary to many expectations, the largest animal on Earth was not a dinosaur. The largest known to man was more than half the size of a blue whale. Here are the superlatives in terms of size for the wild.

Biggest living animal on Earth â€“ The Blue whale
Biggest weight ever recorded for a blue whale was 190 tones and was 30 m (100 ft). Since whaling was banned, a 7.3% per year increase has been noticed since Soviet Union whaling has ended. Sadly, the Blue Whale remains listed as â€œendangeredâ€ on the IUCN Red List of threatened species

Biggest land animal â€“ The African Bush Elephant
The baby elephant at birth weighs an amazing 100kg while the biggest elephant recorded weighed 12,272 kg or 13.5 tons. The African Bush Elephant is found in most African countries excluding the Sahara and tropical rainforest of the Congo. Currently, elephants are endangered and almost exterminated in some parts of the continent by ivory poaching.

Biggest carnivore on Earth â€“ The Southern Elephant Seal
The record for the species is held by an animal having a weight of 5,000 kg (11,000 lb) and a height of 6.9 m (22.5 feet). Inhabitants of Antarctic and sub-Antarctic islands, hunting led these seals on the brink of extinction in the 19th century, but the total population now reaches 600,000.

Biggest primate on Earth - The Eastern Lowland Gorilla
The Largest living primate is this black gorilla; a male of this species reached over 225 kg (500 lb) and 1.83 m (6 ft) in the wild. Overall, the largest primate ever to walk the Earth was the Gigantopithecus, which, according to estimations, reached 3 m (10 ft), weighing 300 to 550 kg (700 to 1,200 lb). Only found in the tropical forests of eastern Zaire, Africa, fewer than 5,000 gorillas may remain according to the latest estimates.

Biggest rodent in the world - The capybara
If you thought mice and rats were an issue, meet the largest of their kind, the capybara. An adult can reach 80 kg (176 lb), 1.5 m (5 ft) long and 90 cm (3 ft) tall. The population is stable and the capybara is not considered a threatened species.

Biggest reptile in the world - The Green anaconda
Main character for many horror movies, the largest anaconda to be recorded had 9.5 m (31.4 ft) and 250 kg (550 lb), although larger ones do exist. The largest anaconda to be captured, even though it was not weighed because it escaped, was 11.43 m (37.5 feet).

Biggest bird the world â€“ The Ostrich
Related to the extinct Elephant Birds of Madagascar, that exceeded 3 m (10 ft) and 500 kg (1,120 lb), the Ostrich currently has the title for biggest bird. It can reach 2.7m (9ft) and a weight of 156 kg (345 lb). Its eggs are the largest eggs in the world, reaching 1.4 kg (3 lb).

Biggest fish on Earth - The Ocean Sunfish
The Sunfish is the largest bony fish, reaching 3.6 m (12 ft), a height of 4.5 m (15 ft) and a weight of 2,273 kg (5,000 lb). Found in tropical and temperate waters around the globe, the sunfish has few natural predators and are considered a delicacy in Japan or Taiwan.

Biggest insect in the world â€“ Giant weta
If you are afraid of tiny roaches in your kitchen, this can possibly freak you out.The weta is the biggest living insect, weighing 71 grams. Endemic to the New Zealand archipelago, 16 of the 70 species of weta are now at risk of disappearing. To prevent them from going extinct, programs have been implemented since 1970.

credited to flickr users: radek2166, mgsbird, lillianbennett, tut99, lipkee, riordan david, funkenclimb

2008-06-19T22:02:00.001+07:00

The TÃƒ©nÃƒ©rÃƒ© is a desert region in the south central Sahara. It comprises a vast plain of sand stretching from northeastern Niger into western Chad, occupying an area of over 154,440 square miles (400,000 km²). Its boundaries are conventionally said to be the AÃƒÂ¯r Mountains in the west, the Ahaggar Mountains in the north, the Djado Plateau in the northeast, the Tibesti Mountains in the east, and the basin of Lake Chad in the south.

The name TÃƒ©nÃƒ©rÃƒ© comes from the Tuareg language, meaning "desert", in much the same way that the Arabic word for "desert", Sahara, came to be applied to the region as a whole.

The TÃƒ©nÃƒ©rÃƒ© is arid, with an extremely hot and dry climate and virtually no plant life. Temperatures reach as high as 42 Â°C (108 Â°F) in the summer, with little more than 25 mm (1 in) of rain annually. Water is notoriously difficult to find, even underground, and wells may be hundreds of miles apart.

Most of the TÃƒ©nÃƒ©rÃƒ© is a flat basin, once the bed of the prehistoric Lake Chad. In the north, the TÃƒ©nÃƒ©rÃƒ© is a vast rock strewn plain (called a Hamada), periodically broken by ancient volcanic hills. In the south, is the Erg of TÃƒ©nÃƒ©rÃƒ©, a great dune sea which, with the Erg of Bilma to its east, forms rows of shifting dunes, some as high as 40 meters. To the west, the AÃƒÂ¯r Mountains rise up, in some places with the dune seas meeting cliff-faces. To the east-south east, TÃƒ©nÃƒ©rÃƒ© is bordered by the Kaour cliffs, which form a leeward side chain of oases over a more than 100 km north to south line. Periodic mountain peaks, like the Blue Mountian in the north, or the Agram hills protecting the oasis of Fachi in the south, are rare but notable landmarks.

The region was not always a desert. During the prehistoric Carboniferous period it was a sea floor and later a tropical forest. A major dinosaur cemetery lies at its western edge; many fossils have been found there, having eroded out from the ground. An almost complete specimen of the crocodile-like reptile Sarcosuchus imperator, nicknamed the SuperCroc, was discovered there by paleontologists. During early human history, it was a fertile land much more congenial to human life than it is now. The region was inhabited by modern humans as long ago as the Paleolithic period some 60,000 years ago. They hunted wild animals and left evidence of their presence in the form of stone tools. During the Neolithic period about 10,000 years ago, ancient hunters created rock engravings and paintings that can still be found across the region. The human population dwindled as the Sahara dried out, and by 2500 BC it had largely become as dry as it is today.

The TÃƒ©nÃƒ©rÃƒ© is very sparsely populated. The modern inhabitants of the TÃƒ©nÃƒ©rÃƒ© are largely Tuareg of Ayr and Azawagh. Three Tuareg federations, Kel Ayr, Iwillimidan Kel Denneg and Kel Gres ruled the area until the arrival of the French colonial army, which occupied the land. Other ethnic groups dwelling in the TÃƒ©nÃƒ©rÃƒ© are the Hausa, Songhay, Wodaabe, the Moors, and Tebu.

The desert is also known for the celebrated Tree of TÃƒ©nÃƒ©rÃƒ©, once the most remote in the world. The tree was knocked down by an allegedly drunk Libyan truck driver in 1973, despite being the only tree for several hundred kilometres. It was replaced by a metal sculpture. Despite this unfortunate mishap, the tree is still often indicated on maps of the region as a notable landmark.

credited to wikipedia and flickr users: nygus, ianna, yelema, mike in croydon, willemstom

Sunset at Santorini

2008-06-19T22:02:00.000+07:00

In the evening hordes of people arrive simply to watch its sunset. Every available seat, wall, step or patch of ground is occupied and picnicking while watching the sunset is almost de rigueur.

A common method for enjoying the sunset is to take one of the boat charters from the docks at Thira. After visiting the volcano in the middle of the caldera, the boat will visit the opposite island for a time before heading out a mile or so from the island. At sunset the boat will sail in a figure 8 until the sun goes below the horizon, providing a long view of the setting sun and ample photographic opportunities.

credited to wikipedia

Los Glaciares National Park - Argentina

2008-06-19T22:01:00.007+07:00

Parque Nacional Los Glaciares is a national park in the Santa Cruz Province, in Argentine Patagonia. It comprises an area of 4459 km². In 1981 it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

The national park, created in 1937, is the second largest in Argentina. Its name refers to the giant ice cap in the Andes range that feeds 47 large glaciers, of which only 13 flow towards the Atlantic Ocean. The ice cap is the largest outside of Antarctica and Greenland. In other parts of the world, glaciers start at a height of at least 2,500 meters above mean sea level, but due to the size of the ice cap, these glaciers begin at only 1,500m, sliding down to 200m AMSL, eroding the surface of the mountains that support them.

Los Glaciares, of which 30% is covered by ice, can be divided in two parts, each corresponding with one of the two elongated big lakes partially contained by the Park. Lake Argentino, 1,466 km² and the largest in Argentina, is in the south, while Lake Viedma, 1,100 km², is in the north. Both lakes feed the Santa Cruz River that flows down to Puerto Santa Cruz on the Atlantic. Between the two halves is a non-touristic zone without lakes called Zona Centro.

The northern half consists of part of Viedma Lake, the Viedma Glacier and a few minor glaciers, and a number of mountains very popular among fans of climbing and trekking, including Mount Fitz Roy and Cerro Torre.

The southern part has, as well as a number of smaller ones, the major glaciers which flow into Lake Argentino: Perito Moreno Glacier, Upsala Glacier, and Spegazzini Glacier. Typical excursion boats travel between icebergs to visit BahÃƒÂa Onelli, and the otherwise inaccessible Spegazzini and Upsala. The Perito Moreno is reachable by land.

The mountains hold most of the humidity from the Pacific Ocean, letting through only the ice coldness (annual average of 7.5 Â°C) and creating an arid steppe on the Argentine side of the range. This area is habitat for Ãƒ±andÃƒºes, guanacos, cougars, and gray foxes, who have suffered from the invasion of the cattle industry and are currently endangered, but find shelter inside the national park. There are over 1,000 species of birds in the area (condors, eagles, and others), but only 100 have been registered. Between the ice and the Patagonian steppe there is a fertile area of forests composed mainly of lengas and guindos, but also Ãƒ±ires. Within these more hospitable areas also live huemul deers and Torrent Ducks.

Los Glaciares is a major attraction for international tourists, and has an annual budget of one million dollars (1994). Starting points of tours are the village of El Calafate at the shore of Lake Argentino but outside the park, where the park's administration has its headquarters, and El ChaltÃƒ©n village in the northern part of the park, at the foot of the Fitz Roy. Other touristic points in the park include Lago del Desierto and Lago Roca.

credited to wikipedia and flickr users: feffef, nehemias, aferrari, alejandro gabriel alonso, zzb, suomiland, tristan benedict-hall, romeral, madrarua

nature pictures

Uluru (Ayers Rock) - Australia

Mackenzie River - Canada

Oasis in Morocco

The most dangerous beaches

The Time Is Now, Climate Experts Warn

Top 10 unusual places to stay

First hurricane of the 2008 Atlantic storm season - Hurricane Bertha

Beautiful Lake Western Brook in Canada

Sacred sites of Bali

Most beautiful beaches in Dubai

Arctic ice melting at record speed

VatnajÃ¶kull - Iceland

Antigua and Barbuda - Paradise on Earth

Aerial images prove existence of remote Amazon tribe

Beautiful island Ailsa Craig in Scotland

Karnak temple - Egypt

When volcano gets angry

Hawaii sunset

Krakatoa eruption 1883

Valley of the Kings - Egypt

Rising Mississippi River threatens Midwestern towns

Biggest Animals on Earth

TÃ©nÃ©rÃ© desert - Niger

Sunset at Santorini

Los Glaciares National Park - Argentina