7-11 June 2004

DataStreme Ocean will return for Fall 2004 with new Ocean News and Investigations files starting during Preview Week, Monday, 30 August 2004. All the current online homepage products will continue to be available throughout the summer break period.

• Revisiting the Titanic--Marine explorer Robert Ballard is currently assessing the current state of the submerged wreck of the HMS Titanic over an 11-day span (see http://www.returntotitanic.com ). The National Geographic cable-TV channel will feature a live show at 9 PM Eastern Time (See http://titanic.nationalgeographic.com/channel/titanic/)
• Witness an historic event -- Our neighboring planet Venus should pass between the Earth and the Sun early Tuesday (8 June 2004). The celestial geometry is such that Venus crosses the face of the sun in what astronomers call a "transit". Because the orbit of Venus is inclined slightly to that of the orbit of the Earth (by approximately 3.4 degrees), the transit of Venus is relatively rare, with the last one occurring in December 1882; another transit will occur in June 2012 and then again in December 2117. The transit of Venus has had scientific relevance, since it provided an opportunity to accurately determine the Earth-Sun distance (the "astronomical unit") before other more precise means were available. See NASA website http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/sunearthday/2004/index_vthome.htm
  Since this current transit will occur between 0513 and 1126Z (1:13 AM and 7:26 AM EDT), viewers in the eastern half of North America will only get to see an abbreviated portion of the transit just after local sunrise, while those in Europe and much of Africa and Asia should see the entire event, provided that skies are relatively cloud-free.
  NOTE: While Venus should be sufficiently large to be detected by eye as it cross the disk of the sun, do not attempt to look directly at the sun. Use an approved solar filter (as for solar eclipses), a welding glass (#14 or greater) or a proper projection method as provided in the "Safe Viewing Techniques" section of http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/sunearthday/2004/vt_observe_2004.htm. This site also has live webcast information, transit contact times and K-12 Activities.
• Reducing whale-ship collisions--Officials with NOAA Fisheries recently announced a new strategy aimed at reducing collisions between ships and the endangered North Atlantic right whales off the East Coast. [NOAA News]
• Global and US Hazards/Climate Extremes-- A review and analysis of the global impacts of various weather-related events, including drought, floods and storms during the current month. [NCDC]
• Earthweek -- Diary of the Planet [earthweek.com] Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.

• 7 June 1924...The Oil Pollution Act was passed. It was enforced by the Coast Guard.
  Protection of halibut in the North Pacific Ocean was placed under Bureau of Fisheries (Coast Guard- enforced since 1926). (USCG Historian's Office)
• 7 June 1972...Richmond, VA experienced its worst flood of record as rains from Hurricane Agnes pushed the water level at the city locks to a height of 36.5 feet, easily topping the previous record of thirty feet set in 1771. (The Weather Channel)
• 7-10 June 2001...Tropical Storm Allison made landfall along the Texas Gulf Coast near Galveston early on the 6^th and drifted northward before becoming stationary as a depression later in the day near Lufkin. Later, it began to drift back southward, moving offshore over the Gulf late on the 9^th at nearly the same place as it had made landfall. Allison caused disastrous flooding across the Upper Texas Gulf Coast, especially in the Houston where a storm total of 36.99 inches fell at Port Houston. Twenty-three people lost their lives in Texas. Damage in the region amounted to $5 billion, which included 45,000 homes, 70,000 vehicles and 2000 businesses. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 8 June 1937...Observation of the total eclipse of the sun was made by a U.S. Navy detachment commanded by CAPT J. F. Hellweg, USN, which was participating in the National Geographic Society - United States Navy Eclipse Expedition at Canton Island in the Phoenix Islands, Pacific Ocean. USS Avocet was assigned to this expedition. (Naval Historical Center)
• 8-9 June 1990...The Norwegian tanker Mega Borg released 5.1 million gallons of oil some 60 nautical miles south-southeast of Galveston, TX as a result of an explosion and subsequent fire in the pump room. Two crewmembers were killed. Coast Guard units fought the resulting fires and recovered spilled oil. (Information Please) (USCG Historian's Office)
• 9 June 1534...The French navigator Jacques Cartier became the first European explorer to discover the river that he named the St. Lawrence in present-day Quebec, Canada. (The History Channel)
• 9 June 1966...Hurricane Alma made landfall over the eastern Florida Panhandle near Alligator Point during the evening-- the earliest land-falling hurricane on the U.S. mainland on record. Peak sustained winds were near 90 mph. Highest winds reached 125 mph and lowest pressure 970.2 millibars (28.65 inches) were reported at the Dry Tortugas on the 8^th. (Intellicast) (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 9 June 1990...San Diego, CA set a new record rainfall amount on this date, as 0.38 inches of rain fell breaking the old record of 0.13 inches established in 1892. Moisture from the remains of Hurricane Boris was responsible for this rare rain event. (Intellicast)
• 10 June 1909...The International Distress Call (SOS distress signal) was used for the first time in an emergency. The Cunard liner SS Slavonia used the signal when it wrecked off the Azores. Two steamers received her signals and went to the rescue.
• 11 June 1764...The Sandy Hook Lighthouse, at the south point of the entrance to New York Harbor, was first lighted. Today, its octagonal tower, built by Mr. Isaac Conro of New York City with money collected by a group of New York merchants, is the oldest original light tower still standing and in use in the United States. (USCG Historian's Office)
• 11 June 1770...The British explorer Captain James Cook discovered the Great Barrier Reef off Australia when he ran aground. (Information Please)
• 11 June 1847...The English naval officer and an Arctic explorer Sir John Franklin died in Canada while attempting to discover the Northwest Passage.
• 12 June 1925...Lake Huron Lightship radio fog signal was placed in commission, being the first signal of this kind on the Great Lakes. (USCG Historian's Office)
• 12 June 1991...On the same day that Mt Pinatubo in the Philippines awakened from its 635-year slumber, Typhoon Yunya crossed Luzon province. Mudslides and flooding caused many deaths and when added with impacts of Pinatubo left more than a million homeless. (The Weather Doctor)
• 13 June 1415...Henry the Navigator, the prince of Portugal, embarked on an expedition to Africa.
• 13 June 1881...The steamer USS Jeannette was crushed in Arctic ice pack north of Siberia as the 1879-1881 Jeannette Arctic Exploring Expedition under the command of Lieutenant Commander George Washington DeLong, USN, attempted to reach the North Pole by ship. (Naval Historical Center)
• 13 June 1977...A tropical cyclone crossed the Arabian Sea from near the Laccadive Islands off southwest India and slammed into the island of Masirah, sultanate of Oman. Winds reached at least 104 mph and the 24-hour rainfall total was 16.95 inches. About 99% of buildings were damaged. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)

Return to DataStreme Ocean Homepage

URL: DSOcean/news.html

Prepared by AMS DSOcean Central Staff and Edward J. Hopkins, Ph.D., email hopkins@meteor.wisc.edu
ã Copyright, 2004, The American Meteorological Society.