One Touch of Nature

And this, our life, finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, sermons in stones, and good in everything.

 William Shakespeare

Chris Hadfield Commander of ISS:
Good Morning, World, and Happy Earth Day from orbit! One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.

It reminds me a famous poem from Saadi :
Human beings are members of a whole,
In creation of one essence and soul.
If one member is afflicted with pain,
Other members uneasy will remain.
If you have no sympathy for human pain,
The name of human you cannot retain.

In proportion, our atmosphere is no thicker than the varnish on a globe. Deceptively fragile.   Chris Hadfield

And now a touch of our beautiful but fragile planet

Only one Earth

Earth Day is around the corner. April 22 is approaching fast. In this image from ISS 450 km above the earth surface, the cities glowing in a blue background. It also shows that cities grow at a rate that might be mistaken for a sky full of stars and galaxies( earth is up and sky is down).More crowded cities means more pollution and more need for a proper management.One study shows that nearest Earth-like planets could be 13 light-years away.Recent discovery which released April 18 2013 revealed that outside of our solar system in a land far far away, we may find three earth-like planets . But to reach one of it (Kepler 62e) you need to travel 1200 years in speed of light. It means with current technology we have to stick to our blue-green planet to survive.For how long we can exhaust the earth resources without thinking about this fact that it is only one planet called Earth?
The following video clip filmed last year but it is still true in most big cities.

Toronto and Garbage problem

Strongest Quake shakes Persian Gulf and beyond

A very strong earthquake shakes south eastern part of Iran that is very close to Pakistan border.The shock was so strong that whole region from Iranian cities to Arabian cities felt it. According to USGS the recent earthquake has following parameters:

Magnitude	7.8
Date-Time	Tuesday, April 16, 2013 at 10:44:20 UTC Tuesday, April 16, 2013 at 03:44:20 PM at epicenter
Location	28.107°N, 62.053°E
Depth	82 km (51.0 miles)
Region	IRAN-PAKISTAN BORDER REGION
Distances	194 km (121 miles) SE (144°) from Zahedan, Iran 256 km (159 miles) NNW (336°) from Turbat, Pakistan 256 km (159 miles) WSW (250°) from Dalbandin, Pakistan 605 km (376 miles) NE (34°) from MUSCAT, Oman

The earth quake was so strong that estimated its power is 40 times more than the quake that jolted city of Bam  360 Km NW of the current quake. Bam quake happened in December 26, 2003 with 6.6 magnitude and killed thirty thousands of people. But the recent quake is very deep( 82 to 95 Km according Iranian Geophysics Centre) and  population is sparse and low that's why  casualty has remained very low.Indeed, according to official news most casualties happened in more populated area in Pakistan with 34 people while Iran reported only one person killed and around 27 people injured.
Same as the quake that shook Bushehr in April 9 2013,the Arabian platform is responsible for the shock and after shocks. 

Clockwise Vs CounterClockwise

In meteorology, a cyclone is an area of closed, circular fluid motion rotating in the same direction as the Earth. This is usually characterized by inward spiraling winds that rotate anti-clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere of the Earth.

It is definition of Wikipedia and it is true.On the other word , direction of clouds movement depends on their location on the earth. Generally speaking If a cyclone forms in northern hemisphere, winds which try to reach to the center of a low pressure incline to right.In southern hemisphere winds incline to left on their way toward the center of a low pressure.Thus , in northern hemisphere, clouds spin around the low pressure center anti-clockwise or counterclockwise, and in southern hemisphere, clouds rotate clockwise around center of a low pressure( depression).

Here is a cyclone over Iceland (Northern hemisphere)

Here is a cyclone over Pacific coast of Chile (Southern hemisphere)

This image is sent by Chris Hadfield , Commander of International Space Station on April 2013. Center of the cyclone or eye of the cyclone is visible from space, huge and thick rows of clouds spinning clockwise around the center .

What do you see from orbit?

Commander Chris Hadfield keep sending astonishing pictures from space.Nesting 400 to 500 kilometers above the earth surface, ISS sending us pictures which looks a little bit different and amazing.

Clouds over Western Europe

A love cloud

Sand Dunes,Erosion by sand and wind,Arabian peninsula

Swirling clouds, Pacific Ocean,Mexican coast

A fish bone made of clouds and St. Helana Island. South Atlantic Ocean

Lagoons and everglades Florida key Southern United States.

Effect of water and ice erosion on hard rocks of Patagonia,South America, Andes, Chile

 Geshm Island, An empty salt dome and red soil (Iron Oxides accumulation), Hormuz Strait, Persian Gulf. Iran

A Sahara Cloud and its shadow, Africa

Erosion by sand and wind Sahara, Africa