Over the last 20 years, 90% of all deaths due to natural disasters occurred in low and middle-income countries.
More information: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/10/why-ending-poverty-is-key-to-reducing-deaths-from-disasters
Images
Mega-plumes from volcanic eruptions on Io
500km high eruption plumes on Jupiter’s moon Io, the most volcanically active object ever discovered!
Increasing frequency of natural disasters
The frequency and severity of natural disasters is increasing.
For more information, see the new World Bank report: Closing the gap : building resilience to natural disasters and man-made shocks through social safety nets
High likelihood of large earthquakes for Wasatch Front Region, USA
A new USGS report calculates a 43% chance of at least one large (magnitude 6.75 or greater) earthquake for the Wasatch Front region of of Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming in the next 50 years.
Full report: http://on.doi.gov/1SOKeQp
North Korea’s nuclear test detected on seismographs
North Korea’s nuclear test today created a magnitude 5.1 earthquake equivalent seismic signal and has been measured on seismographs around the world.
More info: http://ds.iris.edu/ds/nodes/dmc/specialevents/2016/01/05/2016-north-korean-nuclear-test
Mangrove forests protect against tsunamis
The tsunami in 2004 demonstrated that land protected by mangrove forests suffered far less damage than areas felled for resorts and farming.
The world’s deepest oceans and lakes to scale
I really love this image created by Randall Munroe of xkcd fame (click to enlarge).
UN world conference on disaster risk reduction
The proceedings from the 3rd UN World Conference on disaster risk reduction is now available online.
Earthquake progression in Turkey
Since 1939 the North Anatolian Fault in Turkey has had a series of large earthquakes (greater than magnitude 6.5) with a dominant westward progression towards Istanbul.
