The activity of Ili Lewotolok (or Lewotolo) volcano ramped up on 29 November 2020 with a series of eruptions. The largest of these eruptions occurred at about 9:45am local/Singapore time (1:45am UTC) and sent a gas and ash plume more than 5 kilometres (km) into the atmosphere. This powerful eruption was recorded by the infrasound network from the Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS).
Typhoon Goni (Rolly in the Philippines) caused more than 20 fatalities in the Philippines earlier this month. Just a few days later, Typhoon Vamco (Ulysses) struck the Philippines again, then Vietnam on the other side of the South China Sea. “It is fairly common for more than one storm to occur in an ocean basin at the same time”, said Associate Professor Adam Switzer, a Principal Investigator at the Earth Observatory of Singapore.
Climate Impact Asia is a documentary series made in collaboration with CuriosityStream and StarHub, available as both a one-hour TV special and a four-part mini-documentary series, it looks at the critical impacts of our changing climate systems on one of the most vulnerable regions in the world – Southeast Asia. The key themes explored in this series include:
Rising from the muddy depths of Singapore’s tropical swamps, the distinctive roots of the mangrove trees lie draped in a descending curve – with some parts of the roots buried in the wet soil, and other parts exposed to the humid air.
Did you know that in the past six weeks six volcanoes in Indonesia erupted? These volcanoes are Semeru, Anak Krakatau, Merapi, Kerinci, Dukono, and Ibu.
These recent eruptions are part of the usual volcanic bustle in Indonesia, impacting mostly the areas close to the volcanoes. While some of these activities were picked up all the way in Singapore, all were reported to aviation authorities.
The daily coverage of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the media has given the public an insight into how the crisis has impacted the healthcare sector. We’ve seen footage of hospitals inundated with stricken patients, hospital staff begging for supplies, and the global race to find the medical holy grail of the moment – a COVID-19 vaccine. But what about the other sectors of science that are not directly linked to the coronavirus? How are they coping with, even transforming in, this pandemic and the ensuing cross-border lockdowns?
