Powerful earthquake hit Indonesian island of Java destroying at least 63 people lives.   No less than 300 people are injured and death toll may rise as many houses buried inside the ground due to mudslide.

The United States Geological Survey stated a magnitude to 7.0 badly damaging 700 houses. Building and houses in several villages of West Java collapsed. Medical team has been sending off to the city. Destroyed possessions include mayor’s house and a mosque. Quake did sense Jakarta 200km to the north where hundreds run away to streets from offices and shops. District of Cianjur was one of the badly hit area 100km south of Jakarta with 40 people missing while other were dead due the building collapsed in Tasaikmalaya in the town of Sukabumi. Death toll could rise, as contact with remote areas has not yet set up. Interaction with coastal areas cut down even though those are supposed to be most affected ones. Rescue team is trying to find survivors in many areas of West Java. Quake felt 500 km away from its epicenter in Surabaya second largest city in Indonesia. Seismologists witness slight rise in sea level at Pelabuhan Ratu signifying a sense of small tsunami. December 2004 tsunami killed more than 200,000 people approximately in Asia due to an earthquake occurred in the coast of Sumatra in Indonesia. Indonesia lies on the Pacific Ring of fire most lively areas for earthquakes and volcanic in the world.

A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck Tokyo and other parts of central Japan injuring 43 people. The main impact of the earthquake was on transport systems as it stopped Shinkansen bullet train service and also authorities had to close a motorway in Makinohara which was damaged due to a landslide caused by the quake. Hamaoka Nuclear Power Plant in Shizuoka was shut down after the quake. The power plants two reactors were shut down to check the impact of the quake.

Although a tsunami alert was raised but was cancelled later. Japan is one of the most seismically active zones on earth and geologists have warned that Tokyo could be hit by a major earth quake in next 50 years. The quake hit Japan at 2007 hrs GMT on Monday and had its epicenter 170 kilometers south west of the capital.

Another earthquake stuck off the coast of Andaman Islands. The quake was of 7.6 magnitude and its epicenter was in the Indian Ocean, 257 kilometers not the Aandaman capital Port Blair. There was a tsunami warning issued post the quake for the costal areas of India, Myanmar, Indonesia, Thailand, Bangladesh and Andaman Islands. But it was later on cancelled.

Over more then a million people have been displaced as Typhoon Marakot hit the eastern coast of China. According to the latest estimates the Typhoon is expected to over 1.2 billion US$ in damages. The Typhoon made landfall at 16:20 hrs in the coastal town of Beibe in Xiapu county of Fujjan province. According to the latest reports the Typhoon created winds that clocked 118 kmph. The storm has impacted more then 1.5 million homes in Taiwan as they were out of power and some 440,000 were without water supply. According to reports one child died dude to a building collapse. The Typhoon caused a record 2.5 meters rainfall in Taiwan.

China has sounded a red alert of the highest degree and recalled all shipping vessels in the region. As the epicenter of the storm reached China, heavy rains lashed the costal province flooding more the 16,000 hectares of land area causing 300 homes to collapse. Typhoon Marakot has also caused flooding due to heavy rains in Philippines. It is reported that the heavy rains caused 10 deaths flooding and landslides.

Another storm hit the western coast of Japan killing 13 people. Typhoon Etau has caused landslides and flash floods in the island nation. The number of victims is expected to go up as heavy torrential rains continue in the region. As Typhoon Etau moves ahead, the Japanese capital Tokyo prepares for one of the strongest stormy of the century.

The first of the four earthquakes had its epicenter about 343 miles southeast of the border city of Tijuana and measured 5.8 on the Richter scale. The tremors of the quake were felt as far as Phoenix in Arizona State. The earthquake happened at 10:55 am. The next and the most powerful of the four happened at 10:59 am and measured 6.9 on the Richter scale. This was followed by two subsequent earthquakes of 5.0 magnitude on the Richter scale at 11:33 am and 5.9 magnitude on the Richter scale at 11:40 am.

As per the latest reports there has been no damage to property or injuries. Fire department personal are looking for possible building cracks and leakage in gas and water lines. There have been no distress or damage report calls on 911 till now.

Mexico is one of the most seismically active regions on the planet as the North American plate moves against the Cocos Plate. There have been many earthquakes in the past due to the movement of these tectonic plates.

People in Asia got a rare opportunity to have a glimpse of the longest solar eclipse of the century, it was a mesmerizing opportunity eclipse chasers from across the globe. It was also a feast for armature observers as many did basic preparation to observe the spectacle. At its peak the eclipse lasted for six minutes and thirty nine seconds. The eclipse started over west India and move eastwards with the moons shadow falling over parts of east India, Nepal, Burma, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Japan and the Pacific. The eclipse became a total eclipse over west India at 0053 hrs GMT and it was last visible over land at Nikumaroro Islands on the Pacific ocean where it ended at 0418 hrs GMT. Apart from the total eclipse a partial eclipse could be observed from most parts of Asia.

There ware some disappointments too, as thousands of people had gathered in Taregna, the epicenter of the eclipse, but monsoon clouds obscured the view. Some enthusiasts took eclipse chasing to a new level by using a chartered to get a perfect view from about the clouds. People in east china were also not that lucky as clouds obscured the view in many locations.

Many gathered at religious locations to have a dip in the holy waters as it is considered auspicious to observe the event while immersed in holly water. Many ghats of the river Ganges and also other holly locations like Brahma Sarovar in the holy city Kurakshetra.

Another unfortunate incident happened in Varanasi where two people died and many injured in a stamped on the banks of the river Ganges.

The eclipse also provides an opportunity to astronomers and astrophysicists to study and collect data on the gases surrounding the sun which is also knows as the sun’s corona. Eclipse also help us in studying solar flairs and other related events.

The next total solar eclipse will occur on 11 July, 2010 and would be visible from a narrow corridor in Argentina and Pacific Ocean.

A major earthquake hit the west coast of the Southern Island of New Zealand. The earthquake was of very high magnitude and measured 7.8 on the Richter scale. A tsunami warning has been issue post the earthquake. The earthquake happened at 20:22 hrs local time and the epicenter of the quake was 161 kilometers west of the Invercargill. The info was release by the United States Geological Survey a monitoring body that measures earthquakes around the world.

As of now there have been no confirmed reports that the earthquake created a tsunami and thus the warning as of now only applies for New Zealand. The tremors of the earthquake were felt in the city of Queenstown as the buildings shook violently. There was also an aftershock and it happened twenty minutes post the quake and measured 5.2 on the Richter scale. There have been no casualties but has downed power and phone lines in the region.

If we look at past history, there have been Tsunami’s as a result of offshore earthquakes including the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake which created a devastating tsunami and caused major loss of life and property and is one of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history. The main impact of the Tsunami was in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, and Thailand.