The weather here has taken a very bizarre turn towards the cool. At the beginning of the week, the temperatures reached 40C and were such that I decided to have a tepid shower; it was very refreshing. Now, a cold front has moved through and daytime highs have been around 20C. The smell in the air reminds of me of autumn back home. I also noticed in the news that it's been one of the coldest winters in Europe. It could be a result of localized cooling caused by global warming. Let me explain. Global warming could lead to increased evaporation rates, which means more precipitation at higher latitudes. The higher snowfalls, in turn, reflect more sunlight causing localized cooling. It could be happening but then again, this could just be a fluke.
Reading comments online, many people talk about climate change thinking it an abnormal process. Don't be fooled, we live on a dynamic planet. We only don't realize the changes because human lifespans are short compared to most Earth-changing processes. For example, I would expect the temperature to be rising since we have only just come out of a glacial period. In fact, we are in an interglacial period meaning that more ice ages are coming. Also, for the record, only about 3% of total CO2 emissions are anthropogenic (man-made). If humans were the worst thing to happen to this planet, life would have checked out eons ago. There have been greater temperature variations in the past clearly without the benefit of human agency. That's all I have to say about that. Well, not really, but it's all I'm going to say now.
Speaking of cataclysmic events, I'm sure you will have heard of the destructive wildfires in southeastern Australian. They are now officially the worst natural disaster in Australia's history, costing some 200 lives, although that number may be higher. Australians have responded to this crisis with their usual resiliency and millions have been donated in just the last week. We can only hope that southeastern Victoria will be able to rebuild. Of the 6 most destructive fires, 2 have been deemed suspicious. 1 person is currently in custody charged with intentionally setting a fire, but so far, not murder (death by arson). In Canada, this would be murder in the first degree but Australian jurisdictions don't make that distinction. What more is there to say other than we can openly hope that the fires will be brought under control shortly.
It's not just rural areas that are threatened by fire, but major cities as well. In 2003, a major bushfire swept through the Canberra area killing 4 people, damaging 500 homes and threatening the city itself. It also destroyed the Mount Stromlo Observatory, a world-famous astronomical research facility. I took a bike ride out there on Wednesday.
Mount Stromlo, about 10 km from Canberra started life in 1924 as the Commonwealth Solar Observatory. From there it grew to a large observing and research complex. In 2003, the fires destroyed all but 1 telescope and most of the buildings. You can see Mount Stromlo clearly from the city but prior to January 18th, 2003, the whole mountainside was forested. Now, it's mostly grassland. Mount Stromlo is still in the process of rebuilding 6 years on and I suspect that it will never be rebuilt to its former splendour. Most of the observatories are still there in their dilapidated states. It's sad, but it shows the awesome power of fire in the Australian bush. Along the way I stopped at the ACT Bushfire Memorial.
At the beginning, I had a wonderful time at an important function at the harness race at Exhibition Park In Canberra (EPIC). This was the local Canberra Cup but because of the heat, few people showed up. The function had several important people including the CEO of ACTTAB (effectively my supreme boss) and Jon Stanhope, the Chief Minister. I took bets all evening from a little cubicle from which I could not stray. The people were very friendly. At the end of the night, in the public section, there was an Elvis Presley impersonator singing. At times, I wonder if Elvis is spinning in his grave with all these poor imitations of him. Then I remember that Elvis isn't dead, he just went home.
I actually had another run-in with the Chief Minister today. He came into the Jamison ACTTAB outlet and placed a bet with me. I didn't recognize and I only know it was him because my supervisor told me. I didn't believe her at first but she was adamant, and I have no reason to doubt her. Stanhope seems like a nice enough guy.
In other news, I had some of my photos from scout camp published in a Ukrainian community newspaper, Vilna Dumka (Free Thought). A local counsellor wrote a synopsis of the camp and asked me to give her some photos which I did. This newspaper is distributed across Australia. I guess I'm following in my maternal grandfather's footsteps as a journalist. He helped found Ukrainian newspapers and wrote articles on various subjects. I can't really say that having some photos published really makes me any kind of journalist; besides, radio is my preferred medium at the moment. Also, I've started going to AFL umpire training. A new season is upon us and I'm anxious to get back into the game. I hope I'm not too rusty. However, with school and ACTTAB, I don't know how much time I'll be able to devote to umpiring. On the plus side, now that I have a bike, I no longer have to beg people for rides to the venues or from training.
Today was also my last day of regular employment at Cafe Pronto. It's not that I didn't enjoy making pizza, it's just time to move on. Between school and ACTTAB, I just don't have the time to do this. I'm also far better paid at ACTTAB and that it also an important consideration. I've given Cafe Pronto 6 good months and I think it's time to move on.
1 comment:
Seems that the focus of research in Astrophysics at ANU is concentrated at its Siding Spring Observatory. Perhaps there are other reasons than financial that are holding back the reconstruction of the facility on Mt Stromlo?
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