M6.6 quake hits Papua New Guinea, 5.5 near Japan

Image via Wikipediahttp://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2011-06/16/content_12711094.htm

SYDNEY - An earthquake measuring 6.6 on the Richter scale jolted New Britain region, Papua New Guinea at 0003 GMT on Thursday, the US Geological Survey said, but no tsunami warning was issued.

The epicenter, with a depth of 21.50 km, was initially determined to be at 5.9944 degrees south latitude and 151.0950 degrees east longitude.

The quake struck 175 km east of Kandrian on New Britain and 577 km northeast of the capital Port Moresby.

An official at Geoscience Australia that it was not likely to have caused any damage.

Papua New Guinea, which is mired in poverty despite rich mineral deposits, sits on the so-called "Pacific Ring of Fire", a hotspot for seismic activity due to friction between tectonic plates.

Magnitude 5.5 - BONIN ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION

Magnitude	5.5
Date-Time	Wednesday, June 15, 2011 at 04:41:04 UTC Wednesday, June 15, 2011 at 02:41:04 PM at epicenter Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location	26.795°N, 144.100°E
Depth	14 km (8.7 miles)
Region	BONIN ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION
Distances	189 km (117 miles) E of Chichi-shima, Bonin Islands, Japan 357 km (221 miles) NE of Iwo Jima, Volcano Islands, Japan 698 km (433 miles) N of Farallon de Pajaros, N. Mariana Islands 1068 km (663 miles) SSE of TOKYO, Japan
Location Uncertainty	horizontal +/- 15 km (9.3 miles); depth +/- 6.2 km (3.9 miles)
Parameters	NST=306, Nph=310, Dmin=193.7 km, Rmss=0.6 sec, Gp= 79°, M-type=body wave magnitude (Mb), Version=9
Source	USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)
Event ID	usc000485l

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New, Deadly Cryptococcus Gattii Fungus Found in U.S.

clipped from news.nationalgeographic.com A new strain of hypervirulent, deadly Cryptococcus gattii fungus has been discovered in the United States, a new study says. The outbreak has already killed six people in Oregon, and it will likely creep into northern California and possibly farther, experts say. The new strain is of the species Cryptococcus gattii, an airborne fungus native to tropical and subtropical regions, including Papua New Guinea, Australia, and parts of South America. An older strain of the fungus was frst detected in North America in British Columbia, Canada, in 1999. No one knows how the species got to North America or how the fungus can thrive in a temperate region, experts say. "The alarming thing is that it's occurring in this region, it's affecting healthy people, and geographically it's been expanding," People can become infected with Cryptococcus gattii by inhaling the microscopic organisms—and there's not much you can do about it.

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