It SHOULD be a National Historic Landmark

First I'm going to show the bad news.  Then I'm going with the bad climate news. And I'l; finish with the nauseating political climate news.

Climate Change Science Atop Mauna Loa Could Stall Amid Federal Cuts

The NOAA office in Hilo that supports that carbon dioxide sampling has been flagged for a possible lease cancellation.

"The Hilo-based office supporting that Mauna Loa Observatory is one of at least 34 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration facilities flagged for possible closure, according to a list circulated by Congressional Democrats."

"Mauna Loa’s peak offers an ideal spot to collect air samples on the planet’s growing carbon dioxide levels, researchers say, due to its thin air and remote location in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, away from major urban centers."

"Sample collections began there in 1958 under Charles Keeling, a scientist studying seasonal carbon dioxide patterns in the atmosphere. The rise in carbon dioxide levels detected at Mauna Loa in subsequent decades became known as the Keeling Curve. His research further linked that increase to the growing use of fossil fuels."

That last part is why it should be a National Historic Landmark, and perhaps an International Scientific Landmark as well.  The Keeling Curve is one of the most iconic, and one of the most recognizable, and also the most undeniable, data plots in the history of Earth science. And the flaming idiots supposedly running this country want to end it (and be nefarious about it too). 

So, there hasn't been an update on the potential lease cancellation, as far as I can tell. But there was this:

Hawaii’s Mauna Loa Observatory just captured ominous signals about the planet’s health

"Atmospheric levels of planet-warming carbon dioxide aren’t just on their way to yet another record high this year — they’re rising faster than ever, according to the latest in a 66-year-long series of observations.

"Carbon dioxide levels were 4.7 parts per million higher in March than they were a year earlier, the largest annual leap ever measured at the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration laboratory atop a volcano on Hawaii’s Big Island. And from January through April, CO2 concentrations increased faster than they have in the first four months of any other year."

"For decades, CO2 concentrations at Mauna Loa in the month of May have broken previous records. But the recent acceleration in atmospheric CO2, surpassing a record-setting increase observed in 2016, is perhaps a more ominous signal of failing efforts to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions and the damage they cause to Earth’s climate."

I'm going to finish with a couple of paragraphs from this stupefyingly maladorous New York Times article.

"President Trump has frequently dismissed the risks of global warming. And Russell Vought, the current director of the Office of Management and Budget, wrote before the election that the next president should “reshape” the Global Change Research Program, because its scientific reports on climate change were often used as the basis for environmental lawsuits that constrained federal government actions."

"Mr. Vought has called the government’s largest climate research unit, a division inside the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a source of “climate alarmism.” "

"Hate" is a strong word. But I truly detest this man. 

 

Lighthouse of the Week, April 27 - May 3, 2025: Faro del Tigre, Isla Aguada (Range Rear), Mexico

 

As promised, this week I'm featuring the other Isla Aguada lighthouse, also called the Faro del Tigre. This one's not for show, it's a working light. 

I can show the location, just like last week, because they're basically in the same place (as you'll see photographically further below).  This time, I'll zoom closer in. Both the original and the new one are located at the "Faro Museo".

The Lighthouse Directory provides this information about the new one.

"Date unknown (station established 1908). Active; focal plane 23 m (75 ft); four white flashes every 15 s. 20 m (66 ft) slender round concrete tower with lantern and gallery. Lighthouse painted with narrow red and white horizontal bands, although it was formerly painted all white. ... Located just north of the historic lighthouse."

I have the pictures next, including one showing both of them.

The North American Sphinx

 

Sphinx Mountain is a very recognizable, somewhat isolated mountain in Montana, located here. It's not very far from either the west or north entrance to Yellowstone National Park. It's 10,840 feet (3304 meters) at the summit.

It looks remarkably different depending on what direction it's being viewed from. I acquired a couple of pictures to illustrate that, which appear below.

Wikipedia informs this about the geology of Spirit Mountain.

"Sphinx Mountain is of interest to geologists as it exposes an unusual formation known as the Sphinx Conglomerate (Eocene) which overlays the Livingston Formation (Late Cretaceous). The conglomerate is found only on Sphinx Mountain and the adjacent peak, The Helmet. It was first identified by geologist A.C. Peale during geological surveys of the region in the 1880s."

It is also a popular hike and climb.

The Wreck of the Western Reserve

 

OK, not exactly as tune-worthy as the "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" by Gordon Lightfoot, but this one happened in Lake Superior too, and it was recently found on the bottom. 

Unlike the Edmund Fitzgerald, the Western Reserve wasn't hit by a November gale, but rather an August gale. Lake Superior can be really mean just about anytime of the year. 

Here's the story about the find.

After 132 years, team finds wreck of the Western Reserve in Lake Superior

"The Western Reserve was the flagship of the Minch Navigation Company and carried bulk cargoes like coal and iron ore. When the vessel set out for Two Harbors, the ship was running light with no cargo and only 28 people aboard.

They included the crew and [wealthy shipping magnate Captain Peter G.] Minch, his wife Anna, their 9-year-old son Charlie and 6-year-old daughter Florence. Anna’s sister, Mary Englebry, and Mary’s 10-year-old daughter, Bertha, were also on board.

When they reached Whitefish Bay, wind and waves prompted the captain to drop anchor as they waited for a storm to pass. However, a decision to head back out into the open lake sealed their fates, and waves overtook the vessel around 9 p.m.

The ship cracked in half with most of the crew in the stern and the family and a few crew members in the bow. Crew in the back of the boat began lowering lifeboats as the ship sank."

Sadly, though the family made it into the lifeboats, as they were getting close to the shore many hours later, the lifeboat overturned and the family was lost. One survivor made it to shore.

This video from Inside Edition goes over that, and includes underwater footage.

I wanted to get an idea of how far away the wreck of the Western Reserve was from the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. The map linked here gives an approximate idea. The point that says "Lake Superior" is a point roughly 60 miles northwest of Whitefish Point, which is where the Western Reserve is located. The red pin is the location of the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.  There are maps of Lake Superior shipwrecks that show there are many, many more wrecks in this area of the lake.

Fires will not happen under Trump (apparently)

 

This happened to a place in Maryland, but no matter where it happened it was STUPID.

Trump administration cancels classes at National Fire Academy amid funding freeze

"  “The NFA is a powerhouse for the fire service,” said Marc Bashoor, a former Maryland fire chief and West Virginia emergency services director with 44 years of fire safety experience. “It’s not a ‘nice to have’. It is the one avenue we have to bring people from all over the country to learn from and with each other. If we want to continue to have one of the premier fire services in the world, we need to have the National Fire Academy.” "

This next link goes to the Baltimore Banner, which you'd have to subscribe to in order to read the whole article (I'm not a subscriber), but I think the headline is enough.

Trump-voting town alarmed by FEMA cuts to National Fire Academy

I can say it again: you get what you vote for, if what you vote for wins. And this is what they voted for.

Below is the color map of the Presidential vote in Maryland. (Blue for Harris, red for the idiot, as you'd expect.) To find Emmitsburg, which is the Trump-voting town alluded to in the headline of the second article, look for the light blue patch near where the state starts to narrow down to the Maryland Panhandle extending to the west. There are a few precincts that are light blue -- that's Hagerstown. If you move to the east from there, you can see a few dark red patches. The one of those that is closest to the border is Emmitsburg.

Screw 'em. 

Getting what they voted for, and not liking it

 

Apparently Trump voters (sometimes confused with Republicans) haven't been happy with what the new Administration has been doing.  Polls are dropping as I write this. 

Obviously the President has a floor of about 40% of voters that worship him -- truly -- so no matter what horrid thing he does, they'd still support him. They are, of course, aided and abetted by the Trump-side media, which doesn't tell them things they don't want to know.

But still, there are signs of discordance and disillusionment.

Why buyer’s remorse is boiling over in congressional GOP town halls

Republican constituents are pushing back on Trump’s policies and their representatives.

"And they [the constituents] are angry that their representatives don’t appear interested in doing much about any of these things. Their message, chanted by unhappy voters at a Wisconsin listening session, is directed solely at the elected official: “Do your job!”

Agreement on what exactly the job is, though, can be hard to find, no matter where you are. I remember years ago, at a fancy dinner for public policy fellows from all walks of life, our table of idealistic mid-careerists got lost in a tense debate over what makes for a good leader in government. Some argued that congressional representatives’ primary job is to take their cues from their constituents when deciding matters of law and policy. Others countered that voters entrust representatives to make choices on their behalf using personal judgment instead. Each side believed government must be responsive; we differed only on how best that could be achieved."

If I may be allowed a comment (of course I can, it's my blog):

" "I'm sorry if I startled you. I couldn't sleep. In trying to resolve my dilemma I remembered something I'd once read, "that a representative owes the People not only his industry, but his judgment, and he betrays them if he sacrifices it to their opinion." (Lyman Hall, representative from Georgia, in the musical "1776", quoting Edmund Burke, Member of Parliament)

The true 100-foot wave? Maybe

 

I haven't researched this much, and the article came out at the end of January.  

So now I've researched it a bit, and not much else has been said. So I assume that the claim is being assessed.

I'll tell you one thing for sure -- it was a big wave.

100-foot wave surfed at Maverick's? Potentially.

You can see the assessment in the article linked above.  The shot is below.  The name of the surfer is Alessandro "Alo" Slebir.