Strange Phenomena Around The World In 2013: Red Arcs, Destructive Landslides, Insect Pledge

Red arcs, caused by magnetic storms, spotted for the first time in Italy

Red arcs over Europe: Astronomers capture bizarre phenomenon caused by magnetic storms for first time. Invisible to the naked eye, the arcs have been captured stretching from about 50 to 370 miles (85 to 600 kilometers) above the Earth, so high in the ionosphere, for the first time ever. Arcs are remnants of the magnetic storms that batter the Earth. Researchers had previously thought the phenomenon was obscured by light pollution.

This image shows on the left side the ‘all sky image’ of a glowing red arc invisible to the naked eye, and a low elevation shot showing the same phenomenon (right).The arcs have been detected high above most of Europe and these images were taken from Cima Ekar in Asiago, Italy on 26th September 2011.

The strange case of the sinking pontoon in Brazil

A failure of the land on the river bank probably generated a huge wave (a kind of tsunami) that was observed by a ship. These sort of collapse events can be very dramatic, as an earlier (and rather larger) one shows in the following video

Collapsed cliff turns the sea red in Torquay, UK

A cliff-top house at the centre of a legal dispute has all but fallen into the sea. The slip is believed to have happened at 9pm last night and roads near the scene have been closed off. Coastguards were warning people to stay away from the beach and police had cordoned off the area.

Flames snake in the Rhodda Valley, South Wales

Flames snake across the hillside in the Rhondda Valley as firefighters tackle a huge grassland blaze. South Wales Fire Service received 265 calls about grass fires in last week. Fire in Tonypandy threatened properties surrounding the mountain. Eight hectares of grassland and tress were destroyed

Locust infection in Madagascar

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