Hole Punch Clouds

Hole Punch Clouds are simply high clouds that look like somebody punched a hole in them. The name is not scientific and sometimes you hear it as Punch Hole Clouds but they look unusual. If you look you could probably see them fairly often when we have Cirrus clouds but usually they are not too dramatic. On December 11, 2003 the sky was dramatic over Mobile County, Alabama. First, a layer of Altocumulus clouds moved in from the west. Even though these clouds were made of water droplets they were actually supercooled water. In other words, the temperature of the water was below freezing. These clouds were just below airplane condensation trails (contrails) indicating that the humidity was high at that level of the atmosphere. Then close to noon, within minutes, the blanket of Altocumulus clouds developed a hole. The hole turned out to be crystals of ice, transformed into regular Cirrus clouds, and then falling. By definition this was precipitation and since Cirrus clouds are made of ice crystals, you could call it snow, fallstreaks, or Virga. It evaporated well before hitting the ground. All of this is common but what was uncommon was the perfect circular shape that grew within a matter of minutes. Washington County, Alabama later saw a similar event on January 29, 2007.

Spirit Bear

The all white Kermode or Spirit Bear (Ursus americanus kermodei) is the rarest of the North American bears and something of a "holy grail" for wildlife enthusiasts and photographers, and of great spiritual significance to the Pacific Northwest First Nations community who consider its appearance to be a very good omen. A genetic variation of the ubiquitous North American Black Bear (Ursus americanus), the Spirit Bear is not an albino but rather the product of two parents possessing a common recessive gene. Because both parents must possess the gene in order to produce a white cub, it is possible for a white cub to have two black parents (if they both carry the gene), or a white parent to have a black cub (if it's mate does not carry the gene). Due to the delayed implantation common among bears which means a female may carry eggs fertilized by different males, a female carrying the gene may even have a mixture of black and white cubs in a single litter. Spirit Bears can occur in any Black Bear population but are exceptionally rare, except on a cluster of heavily forested islands off the Central Coast of British Columbia where there is an unusually high concentration of the recessive gene. Here 1 in 10 black bears are born white, and on some of the islands the ratio may be as high as 1 in 4. Although otherwise identical in biology and behaviour to other black bears, there is scientific evidence to suggest that spirit bears have some inherent advantages due to their otherwise very conspicuous colouration. Studies have shown that spirit bears have a greater degree of success catching salmon in broad daylight than their black brethren. This seems to be a result of their lighter colouration and light reflection off the water's surface, and may account for adult white bears being larger on average that their black contemporaries in the same area. WOW!

World's Youngest Mother

Lina Medina (born September 27, 1933 in Paurange, Peru gave birth at the age of 5 years, 7 months and 21 days and is the youngest confirmed mother in medical history. This world record is closely followed by a similar case in Russia. Lina was brought to a hospital by her parents at the age of 5 years because of increasing abdominal size. She was originally thought to have had a tumor, but her doctors determined she was in the seventh month of pregnancy. Dr. Gerardo Lozada took her to Lima, the capital of Peru, prior to the surgery to have other specialists confirm that Lina was in fact pregnant. A month and a half later, on May 14, 1939, she gave birth to a boy by a caesarean section necessitated by her small pelvis. The surgery was performed by Dr. Lozada and Dr. Busalleu, with Dr. Colretta providing anaesthesia. Her case was reported in detail by Dr. Edmundo Escomel to La Presse Medicale, along with the additional details that her menarche had occurred at 8 months of age, and prominent breast development by 4 years. By age 5 her figure displayed pelvic widening and advanced bone maturation. Her son weighed 2.7 kg (5.8 lb) at birth and was named Gerardo after her doctor. Gerardo was raised believing that Lina was his sister, but found out that she was his mother at the age of ten. He grew up healthy but died in 1979 at the age of 40 of a disease of the bone marrow. There was never evidence that Lina Medina's pregnancy occurred in any but the usual way, but she never revealed the father of the child, nor the circumstances of her impregnation. Dr. Escomel suggested she might not actually know herself by writing that Lina "couldn't give precise responses." Lina's father was arrested on suspicion of rape and incest, but was later released due to lack of evidence. Medina later married Raúl Jurado, who fathered her second son in 1972. They live in a poor district of Lima known as Chicago Chico ("Little Chicago"). She refused an interview with Reuters in 2002. There are two published photographs documenting the case. The first one was taken around the beginning of April, 1939, when Medina was seven and a half months into pregnancy. Taken from Medina's left side, it shows her standing naked in front of an inconclusive backdrop (either the side wall of a house with the sun shining on her, or a light-diffusing blanket in a room with an overhead light pointed toward the front of her body). This is the only published photograph of Lina taken during her pregnancy. This photograph is of significant value because it proves Medina's pregnancy as well as the extent of her physiological development. However, this photograph is not widely known outside medical circles. The other photograph is of far greater clarity and was taken a year later in Lima when Gerardo was eleven months old. Although the case was called a hoax by some, a number of doctors over the years have verified it based on biopsies, X rays of the fetal skeleton in utero, and photographs taken by the doctors caring for her. Extreme degrees of precocious puberty in children under 5 are very uncommon but not unheard of. Pregnancy and delivery by a child this young remains extremely rare because extremely precocious puberty is treated to suppress fertility, preserve growth potential, and reduce the social consequences of full sexual development in childhood, and because termination of such pregnancy is more widely available now than in the early 20th century.

Spirit Deer

Albino, or "spirit" deer are quite rare. Are they cool, or what?

Crazy Ocean Sea Foam

These pictures were taken along the Australian shoreline at Yamba (north of Sydney) in New South Wales. Australia and scientists say it was caused by impurities in the ocean, such as salts, chemicals, dead plants, decomposed fish and excretions from seaweed. A similar outbreak of sea foam occured not long after at Point Cartwright along Queensland's Sunshine Coast Looks like they're having fun!

Transparent Butterflies

Butterflies with transparent wings. Aren't they beautiful?

Pink Dolphins

This is a very rare sighting of an albino dolphin, with reddish eyes and glossy pink skin. It is small in comparison to the others it is traveling with, and appears to be a youngster traveling with mama. This little guy should not be confused with the more common Pink Dolphin (or Boto), which has a scientific name of Inia geoffrensis and is shown below. These dolphins can be found in most of the rivers from the forests of South America. When they are excited, they turn pink temporarily.

One Big Butterfly

The world's largest butterfly known as Queen Alexandra Birdwing can reach a wingspan of 31cm (14 inches), a body length of 8 cm (3.2 inches) and a body mass of up to 12 grams (0.42 oz), all enormous measurements for a butterfly. Not only are these magnificent creatures extraordinarily beautiful, they are also very rare. Queen Alexandra birdwings are found living only in remote jungles of Papua New Guinea. Alexandras are endangered, and very rarely seen by people, even in their native habitat, because they spend much of their short lifespan in adult form (about 3 to 4 months) floating above the jungle canopy.

Rare baby

This is a rare albino whitetail deer found abandoned by the side of the road. Isn't he cute? The people who found him named him "Powder", and he is now being cared for in a rehab farm where he can be safe and wild at the same time.

Total Lunar Eclipse

On August 28, we had a total lunar eclipse. Bob Johnson over at Black Holes and Astrostuff took these great photos. You can read more about it here, and here, or you can check out his photostream on Flikr.

Awesome Clouds

The clouds are called Mammatus clouds. They do not precede a tornado, or foretell a storm, but are formed when the air is already saturated with rain droplets and/or ice crystals and begins to sink. The worst of the storm is usually over when these kind of clouds are seen. They are quite rare, but really beautiful.