Hawaii •

Hawaii Fights Against Mosquito-Borne Diseases

February 17, 2016 By Deborah Nielsen Leave a Comment

Traveling south this year? You will need to take some extra precautions.

The State of Hawaii fights against mosquito-borne diseases, including dengue fever and Zika virus. Hawaii’s governor David Ige declared a state of emergency for mosquito-borne illnesses on Sunday.

According to the news, on Hawaii’s Big Island the state has been in the midst of a dengue fever outbreak, with more than 250 confirmed cases. Hawaii Gov. David Ige declared on Friday in a news conference that there have been no locally transmitted cases of the Zika virus in the state.

However, there are concerns that the islands could be at risk of a Zika virus outbreak because the same mosquitoes that can carry dengue fever also can carry the Zika virus. Six residents of Hawaii are known to have contracted Zika during travels to the outbreak areas. In addition to the South American and Caribbean countries noted as sources of Zika infection, the virus is active on Pacific islands including American Samoa.

Despite the fact that the number of dengue fever cases in Hawaii has decreased over recent years, the state continues to fight to completely destroy the infection and transmission of dengue fever, according to the governor’s office.

As stated by Gov. Ige in the same conference, the authorities are doing everything possible in order to stay proactive and prevent vector borne diseases in the state.

There have been no locally acquired Zika cases in the U.S. or Hawaii, and we’d like to keep it that way.

affirmed the governor in his statement. The emergency proclamation comes to help the state acquire more financial funds in order to control outbreaks.

According to Fox News, a December report from the Centers for Disease Control highlighted deficiencies in the state’s vector control department. Now, Hawaii is rushing to build up its mosquito control staff. During the economic downturn, Hawaii reduced its mosquito control and entomology staff to 25 positions in 2016 from 56 employees in 2009.

On the other hand, the Department of Health plans to hire 10 new staffers with money the governor released and health officials are searching for more funding to rebuild the staff, according to Virginia Pressler, director of department.

Another aspect of the emergency order gives mosquito control officials the ability to spray property with pesticides, even if the owner objects. There has been much controversy about pesticide use in Hawaii over recent years, including allegations that agriculture companies are spraying too many pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides on their crops.

All in all, people who are traveling south this year, definitely need to take some extra precautions. However, travelers should not be alarmed by the new proclamation or allow it to alter their travel plans to any of the Hawaiian Islands, according to Hawaii Tourism Authority officials.

Image Source: edugeography.com.

The Story Of Wisdom, The 65-Year-Old Laysan Albatross

February 12, 2016 By Deborah Nielsen Leave a Comment

Meet Wisdom. She’s a beautiful Laysan Albatross and a 65-year-old mother.

The story of Wisdom, the 65-year-old Laysan Albatross is the topic that defies the knowledge of scientists all around the world.

Meet Wisdom. She’s a beautiful Laysan Albatross, widely thought to be the world’s oldest bird currently roaming planet Earth. However, what made headlines back then was not the fact that she was 65-years-old. The report was instead about the fact that she had laid an egg at such an old age.

Back when the report was released, the Albatross had come back to U.S. soil, at the Midway Atoll national wildlife refuge, located northwest of Hawaii, with a mate, after remaining incognito for over a year. She was back at the world’s largest nesting albatross colony to raise her new chick – also thought to be her 40th.

It seemed like age was nothing but a number for this rare albatross. And that turned out to be true. Two months later and in present time, it has been confirmed that the egg laid by Wisdom did hatch and that she has had her 40th chick. This is an impressive feat for a bird as old as her, says a report by The Christian Science Monitor.

Wisdom’s egg hatched earlier this month (February 1) and both the mother and the chick are doing well. The hatchling, named Baby Kūkini, is also being cared for by its father, identified as ‘Gooo’. The father is called by that name because the identification tag on his leg reads ‘6000.’

According to locals, Kūkini is Hawaiian for ‘messenger’ and the young bird is being mostly cared for by its father as Wisdom often leaves for long periods of time to bring back food that she regurgitates to Kūkini.

Congrats #SeabirdWisdom and her mate on their adorable new chick! #Papahānaumokuākea pic.twitter.com/WdATp1vAMX

— Papahānaumokuākea (@HawaiiReef) February 9, 2016

Wisdom was first banded way back in 1956 by then 40-year-old biologist Chandler Robbins. The man who first saw her is now 97. She was ‘rediscovered’ by him after four decades. Another piece of amazing statistic released by officials is the fact that Wisdom might have in her lifetime, flown more than 3 million miles since she was first tagged. That is the equivalent of six trips from the Earth to the Moon and back!

According to the World Wide Fund for Nature, albatrosses usually live up to 60 years. These birds attain sexual maturity at about 5 years old, but usually breed when they are 7 to 10 years old. Laysan albatrosses (Phoebastria immutabilis) face several threats to their survival. In 2001, an analysis estimated that about 5,000 to 18,000 Laysan albatrosses are killed because of pelagic longliners in the North Pacific.

To sum up, the story of Wisdom is quite heroic. Like humans, older birds experience weakness and they do not have the same endurance as when they were younger. It is only admirable that the 65-year-old mother hunts food for her hatchling with the risk that in the process, she might face tremendous threats in the environment.

Image Source: static.us.

Costa Rica Achieved 99 Percent Renewable Energy in 2015

December 29, 2015 By Rebecca McGhee Leave a Comment

Almost all of the Central American nation’s electricity came from renewable sources in 2015, the state electricity agency said. Will other countries follow this model?

On Friday, the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) said in a statement that the country reached 99 percent renewable energy this year.

For the first 75 days of 2015, the country had been fully running on renewable energy, according to the Costa Rican government. Then, Costa Rica’s target became to run 97.1 percent on wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass sources for the rest of 2015.

Costa Rica dedicated itself to renewable energy somewhat out of necessity. Much like Venezuela – which used to sell oil to neighbouring countries until it went bankrupt – Costa Rica had to find alternative sources of energy.

Bonaire Le, an energy consultant, said that some of the factors that influence the pace at which renewable energy develops include: legislative mandates, crude oil prices, competitive substitutes, and so on.

Another nation, India – which happens to be the third-largest carbon polluter in the world – has also made a plan to cut carbon emissions and to make its economy energy-efficient. The Indian government stated that in 2030 the country will produce forty percent of its electricity from sources that are non-fossil-fuel based, such as wind, solar, and hydropower.

In Uruguay, about 95 percent of the electricity comes from renewable sources. National Director of Energy Ramón Méndez stated that the country has drastically reduced its carbon footprint over the past decade.

In September, the Swedish government allocated 4.5 billion kronor (approximately $545 million) for green-energy infrastructure. Renewable energy powers about 66 percent of electricity in Sweden. Iceland and Norway rank higher than Sweden. Denmark also generated 140 percent of the country’s electricity from wind power.

This year, Hawaii set a goal of 100 percent renewable energy by 2045. In thirty years, the American state should be running solely on wind, solar, and geothermal power. Currently, the city of Burlington, Vermont, relies 100 percent on renewable energy. California has also pledged to generate fifty percent of its energy from renewable resources by 2030.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s (NREL) Renewable Electricity Futures Study found that the United Stated could generate 80 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2050.

Image Source: theenergyst

Study Reveals, The Use Of E-Cigs Rising Among Teens

December 15, 2014 By Jason Leathers 1 Comment

Why do teens smoke e-cigarettes? Is it safe to say that they are more health cognizant than their flammable cigarette ancestors? Or else, are they more defiant and risk taking than their conventional smoking companions?

In any case, e-cigarettes are rapidly developing in fame and use among youngsters.

“The predominance of electronic cigarette use in this populace was significantly higher than rates reported from past studies carried out in 2011 to 2012,” as per a team of specialists who considered 1,941 ninth and tenth grade students in Hawaii. The study is published in the current issue of Pediatrics.

The specialists start to figure out if teens who use e-cigarettes captivate uniquely in contrast to customary smokers or non-smokers in other risk taking practices like drinking or marijuana. They found that dual smokers — the individuals who smoked both e-cigarettes and customary cigarettes — are more inclined to take risks.

“Individuals who utilized just e-cigarettes did not score high on variables, for example, defiance, sensation seeking, and peer smoker affiliations contrasted and dual smokers,” said by study authors, headed by Thomas A. Wills, Phd, University of Hawaii Cancer Center. “The dual smokers evidently symbolize individuals who are inclined to problem behavior.”

As anyone might expect, non-smokers symbolized the least hazard while e-cigarette smokers or just conventional cigarettes fell someplace in the center.

The electronic cigarette industry is making an exhaustive job of showcasing their item as 96% of secondary school students utter full consciousness of e-cigarettes. The rate of utilization (17%) among this age group far surpasses ignitable just use (3%).

Teens in Hawaii see more tobacco advertisements than in different parts of the United States, maybe to adjust for a much higher sales tax on the item. The researchers propose that the high rates of e-cigarette smokers among this group may likewise be helped by their guardians.

“Reports from school directors propose that a few parents see e-cigarettes as alluring and purchase them for teenagers,” said the researchers. “Heads observe this when they take e-cigarettes from students, parents’ complaint and ask them back.”

Conventional cigarette users did not accept e-cigarettes to be any healthier. These teens “are more susceptible to the impacts of nicotine, reflected in their high score on smoking hopes, and maybe they are less socially involved in peer gatherings,” say the analysts.

Here’s Why Milky Way’s Supermassive Black Hole Didn’t Gobble

November 5, 2014 By Jason Leathers 2 Comments

A celestial object known as ‘G2’, believed to be a cloud of hydrogen gas was discovered by researchers in 2003. However, earlier this year, it had a close encounter with a supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way.

The astronomers were quite excited about this phenomenon because this would eventually enable them to see the huge gas cloud being gobbled up by the black hole called Sagittarius A*.

In contrast to what the astronomers expected, however, G2 was not smashed during its encounter with the black hole, and a recent study reveals an authentic explanation why.

Andrea Ghez from the department of physics and astronomy at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and colleagues said that, “the reason G2 proceeded intact after its encounter with the black hole is that it is not actually a cloud of hydrogen gas at all.” The study is published on 3^rd November in the Astrophysical Journal Letters.

The researchers claimed that if G2 had been a hydrogen gas cloud as initially assumed, it could have been torn apart by Sagittarius A* that would have produced celestial fireworks.

Ghez said, “G2 survived and continued happily on its orbit; a simple gas cloud would not have done that. G2 was basically unaffected by the black hole. There were no fireworks.”

The researchers conducted a detailed study of G2 with the help of the world’s largest optical and infrared telescopes at the W.M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii and suggested that G2 is probably a pair of stars.

The binary star system had been orbiting the black hole together and then merged to become an extremely large star enveloped in the dust and gas with its movement being influenced by the powerful gravitational field of the black hole, Ghez and colleagues claimed.

Similarly, the researchers noted that G2 seemed to be one of a rising class of stars close to the black hole, which were created due to the powerful gravity of the black hole causing the binary stars to merge into one.

“G2 is a dusty red object linked with gas that reveals tidal interactions as it’s next to its closest approach to the Galaxy’s central black hole. We propose that G2 is a binary star merger product and will ultimately appear similar to the B-stars that are tightly clustered around the black hole (the so-called S-star cluster),” researchers wrote.

Hawaii – Lava Flow Update 25 Oct. Saturday

October 26, 2014 By Germaine Hicks Leave a Comment

Hawaii County Civil Defense advertised in a discharge Thursday morning that the slender finger of the June 27 magma stream has progressed pretty nearly 425 yards since yesterday. The front had assumed control over the first stream front in the previous two days.

The new stream front is dynamic and keeps on moing in a northeast course.

As of this present morning’s evaluation by Civil Defense, the propelling stream is more or less 0.3 miles from the Apa’a St. zone.

Because of the change in stream movement and progression, Apa’a St. also Cemetery Road will be shut between the Pahoa Transfer Station and Kaohe Homesteads Road.

Common Defense and open security staff will likewise be in the region all day and all night to keep up close perceptions of stream action.

Smoldering action has stayed at least and smoke conditions are moderate. Wildfires are not presently a danger.

As indicated by the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, magma keeps on ejecting at a low release rate from Puʻu ʻōʻō into the June 27 stream magma tube.

HVO clarified in a discharge toward the end of last night that after researchers mapped the region yesterday evening through helicopter, the length of the stream was measured to be 11.1 miles as measured as a straight line and 12.9 miles as measured along the hub of the stream.

As indicated by HVO, the stream is keeping on followwing the steepest-drop way to Pahoa.

The first stream front has likewise proceeded with development at a rate of around 44 yards in the previous two days.

HVO has an overflight booked for Friday.

Current stream movement does not represent a quick danger to groups in the territory and there no clearings at present occurring. Should departures get to be fundamental, occupants of influenced territories will be given satisfactory notice to securely clear.

The following magma stream group update gathering will be held Thursday, Oct. 23 at 6:30 p.m. at the Pahoa High School Cafeteria with delegates from Civil Defense and HVO.

NASA’s Hawaiian Dome Mock Mission to Mars

October 22, 2014 By Germaine Hicks 1 Comment

As per the recent study financed by NASA, a group of people will spend the next 8 months of their lives living in an isolated dome on a Hawaiian volcano.

Bend Bulletin stated, the study dubbed as HISEAS (Hawaii Space Exploration Analog & Simulation) has been designed to determine how well a small group of people can survive and work together.

Certainly, the study appears to be a test for future manned missions to Mars. NASA already planned to send astronauts to Mars in the 2030s, which is a long and lonely trip. It will take approximately 6 months for astronauts to reach at the Red Planet. After reaching, they will spend 500 days on the planet and tire out another 6 months to back home.

Uncover Michigan reported, “The long-time isolation within the dome can lead to a number of psychological problems such as depression and personality conflicts. The principal investigator for the just started project, Prof. Kimberly Binsted said that the psychological risks of living in in isolation were still not fully understood and not totally corrected for.”

“How do you pick and hold up astronauts for a mission that will last 2 to 3 years in a way that will keep them healthy and performing well? I’m so interested to see how I react. ‘I don’t know’ is the short answer. I think it could go a lot of different ways,” Binsted added.

Though, NASA’s Hawaiian dome mission to Mars is not the first of its kind. A similar mission in Russia lasted 520 days.

Hawaii Might Be At Risk for Massive Tsunami, Researchers Revealed!

October 21, 2014 By Deborah Nielsen 2 Comments

Hawaii, a benign place considered by many as “paradise,” unveils a dark past. A buried debris pile uncovered by researchers revealed that the destructive earthquake, which brought a tsunami on the Hawaii’s Kauai Island about 500 years ago, hinting a similar event might hit Hawaii’s shores in the near future.

“The earthquake with the magnitude of 9.0 happened in Alaska and brought 30-foot tall waves to Hawaii between 1425 and 1665. In contrast, the resulting tsunami was at least 3 times the size of a tsunami that caused damage in Hawaii in 1946,” LiveScience reported.

David Burney, a paleoecologist at the National Tropical Botanical Garden in Kalaheo, discovered the site back in the late 1990s, but his theory that a massive tsunami left the ocean debris found in the sinkhole was not verified until now.

In a recent study, Honolulu officials have modified their tsunami evacuation maps in case a destructive tsunami hits the region of around a million residents. As per the American Geophysical Union press release, the evacuation areas will be more than double in some locations on the new maps. A tsunami, to the size of the one in the study is projected to happen once every 1000 years, making the odds that it will happen in any given year quite small at 1%.

The sinkhole left by the tsunami that struck 500 years ago holds a layer of sediment with distinct traces of the ocean: coral fragments, mollusk shells and beach sand. The sediment remained a mystery until the 2011 Tohoku earthquake hit Japan and pulled tall, damaging waves inland to flood the island nation.

“The Japan’s earthquake was bigger than almost any seismologist ever thought. The live coverage showed the devastation it caused, I wonder, did we get it right in Hawaii? Are our evacuation zones the correct size?” he added.

Gerald Fryer, a geophysicist at the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center but not participated in the study said, “I have seen the deposit and I’m absolutely convinced it’s a tsunami, and it had to be a monster tsunami.”

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