Monday, April 19, 2010 update:
Day 4 of flight disruptions because of the volcanic ash over Europe. Airports throughout Europe continue to be closed. Airlines are getting very grumpy. UK sending 3 Royal Navy warships to Spain to pick up stranded passengers.
Interesting links:
- Iceland 2010 A great list of links about the volcano: blogs, webcams, satellite and other photos, seismic information, etc.
- SwissEduc: Source for the spectacular photo at the top of the blog. Aerial and ground shots of the volcano.
In our Friday French class we covered vocabulary in the following sequence. We found the progression quite amusing...
- volcanos (un volcan: volcano, "un volcan est entré en éruption", la cendre: ash, la lave: lava, la caillou: pebble, le nuage: cloud, etc.)
- airplane engine (le moteour d'avion)
- phobias (avoir peur de ....)
- spiders (une arignée, une patte: leg for animals/insects)
- earthquakes (un tremblement de terre)
- dizziness ("J'ai la tête qui tourne.", s'evandour)
- bungee-jumping (le saut à l'elastique)
Like a scene in a disaster movie, the Icelandic volcano under the glacier with the unpronounceable name of Eyjafjallajokull (ay-yah-FYAH'-plah-yer-kuh-duhl ... see? even with the guide did you say it correctly?) erupted again on Wed, April 14 2010. This same volcano erupted just prior to our April 1 flight through Iceland, though the March 20th, 2010 eruption only caused a few disruptions.
Friday April 16 update: With the volcanic ash able to bring down aircraft, some 60% of flights in Europe have been grounded, and more than half of trans-Atlantic flights cancelled, the European air traffic agency, Eurocontrol, said.
As a gigantic cloud of volcanic ash drifted towards Europe, it caused upwards of 6,000 of flights to be cancelled. Half of North American flights are expected to be affected on Friday. On Thursday, France shut down 24 airports, including the main hub of Charles de Gaulle in Paris, and several flights out of the U.S. had to double back.
Airspace over the United Kingdom was closed to all flights except emergencies at least until Friday. The National Air Traffic Service said Britain had not halted all flights in its space in living memory, although most flights were grounded after Sept. 11. Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Belgium, Denmark and the Netherlands also announced the complete or partial closure of their respective airspace.
...An aviation expert said it was the first time in living memory that an ash cloud had affected some of the most congested airspace in the world, while a scientist in Iceland said the ejection of volcanic ash — and therefore disruptions in air travel — could continue for days or even weeks.It's the second time in 200 years this particular volcano has erupted. In the meantime, I'll keep an eye out for some beautiful sunsets here in Rouen!
Friday, April 16 update: Sunset was faintly pink. Perhaps Saturday will be more dramatic....
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