Earthweek: A Diary of the Planet (Oct. 10, 2014)

Degrees of Disagreement
A pair of California scientific argue in a leading scientific journal that the current 2-degree Celsius target for limiting global warming should be scrapped because it is impractical and unachievable.  David Victor and Charles Kennel, both from the University of California in San Diego, wrote in Nature that just as human health is measured by factors other than temperature, such as blood pressure, ;heart rate and body mass, "a similar strategy is now needed for the planet."  Several climate scientists around the world slammed the propsal, saying the arguments behind it were flawed.  And since the 2-degree target is the only one governments have ever agreed to, some argued that scrapping it could impede further efforts to curb greenhouse gas emissions.  Governments have pledged to finalize a treaty to limit climate change by late 2015 at a summit in Paris.
Eruption Threat
Unrest within Mayon volcano prompted Philippine authorities to move nearby residents and farm animals away from areas threatened by what appeared to be an impending eruption.  Approximately 55,000 people have been relocated since the 8,081-foot mountain began rumbling.  Evacuees have been housed in makeshift centers, typically schools and other government buildings.
Earthquakes
One person was killed and hundreds of others were injured by a 6.0 magnitude quake that wrecked buildings in China's Yunnan province.
*    Earth movements were also felt in the western Philippines, northern New Zealand, northwestern and southeastern Mexico and southern Nevada.
Hopping Return
The offspring of frogs airlifted off the Caribbean island of Montserrat in 2009 to save them from a deadly,invasive fungus have been returned to their historic habitat.  The mountain chicken frogs (Leptodactylus fallax) are the national dish of Montserrat and nearby Dominica.  They are so named because they reportedly taste like chicken and make a clucking noise in the rough terrain of the British territory.  They were nearly wiped out by both overhunting and a chytrid fungus that has ravaged amphibian populations worldwide.  After being bred in U.K. zoos from just two females, 51 frogs were returned to the island with GPS locators.  Scientists say they are hopeful the frogs won't be eaten or die from the pathogen.  "The fungus hasn't gone away, but frogs are surviving," said Ben Tapley, head of herpetology at the Zoological Society of London.  "It could be because they are living in microclimates that are not ideal for the fungus.  Or they could be developing immunity."
Arctic Carbon Trap
Findings that show Arctic sea ice helps remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere have some scientists concerned that its recent record melt could accelerate global warming.  Danish researcher Dorte Haubjerg Sogaard says that while it has long been known that Earth's oceans are able to absorb huge amounts of CO2, sea ice was thought to be impenetrable to the greenhouse gas.  But Sogaard and colleagues found that a combination of chemical and biological processes extract the gas from the atmosphere, sending the carbon tothe ocean floor.  She said the finding should be taken into account when predicting future CO2 accumulations.
Tropical Cyclones
Typhoon Phanfone left at least seven people dead and dozens of others injured after it lashed a long stretch of Japan, including metropolitan Tokyo.
*    Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands were drenched by developing Typhoon Vongfong, which later became the world's strongest tropical cyclone of the year while taking aim on Japan.
*     Remnants of Hurricane Simon brought flash flooding to parts of northwestern Mexico and the Desert Southwest.
*     Cyclone Hudhud threatened to strike eastern India late in the week as a Category-3 storm.
Chernobyl Legacy
Reindeer and other grazing animals in Norway have shown a sudden spike this fall in the amount of the radioactive isotope cesium-137 found in their bodies.  Scientists at the Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority say there has been a fivefold increase in the amount of contamination from the 1986 Chemobyl nuclear disaster than was measured just two years ago.  Lesser amounts of the isotope were found in some of the country's sheep.  Scientists point to a bumper crop of mushrooms this year as the reason for the increase.  The mushrooms readily absorb the contamination in the ground as they grow, and are later eaten by reindeer and other grazers.  Scientists say they are a little surprised by the magnitude of the increase, given that cesium-137 has a half-life of 30 years.  The Chemobyl disaster happened nearly 30 years ago, meaning about half of the radioactivity should have decayed by this time.