History contains mysterious, mysterious, and at times quite explainable cases of disappearance from the map of Earth of geographical objects much. It is unpleasant to realize that the situation in your house changes far not to the best. And most important question: what expects us in the future if the present is helpless, – and remains open … The people living on islands are threatened not only by typhoons, a tsunami and eruptions of volcanoes. Inhabitants of the sea can also destroy their native places. At coast of Japan microscopic crayfish ate the whole island. It occurred only in fifty years and it is considered the fastest biological erosion in the world. It is about the island of Hoboro which is near Hiroshima, and about the little sea Crustacea belonging to group of isopods (Isopoda). Scientists found out that for a half of century uncountable hordes isopoda razed this plot of land in the ocean almost completely. From it there was only a small reef hardly noticeable on a water surface. It is interesting that else in 1928 length of the island equaled 120 m, and its highest point towered on 21,9 m above sea level. In the remained pictures taken in 1955 and 1965 it is visible that Hoboro had two rocky peaks and that on the highest of them there were plants. And here in pictures of 2008 anything there is no it any more. The highest peak almost completely disappeared, there was only 6-meter “hill”. The second peak, as well as the most part of the island, in general appeared under water. On the eve of a catastrophic earthquake in Japan only the shapeless heap of stones reminded of the former island. Researches showed that disappearance of the island – result of activity of microscopic crustaceans-izopod who in Japan are called by “nanatsuba-kotsubumus”. Length of these animals does not exceed several centimeters, however it does not mean at all that to beyond their powers to wipe off the face of the earth the whole islands. The matter is that they lay the eggs in cracks of coastal stones. By means of the substance emitted by their salivary glands, izopoda “dissolve” stones and thus clear away to themselves the road. As a result all rocks of the island were pierced. 50 years of continuous work made the business. Among inhabitants of the ocean not one izopoda deserved “glory of eaters of islands”. Also the starfish having the name “crown of thorns” is engaged in it. On her conscience coral reeves of the Red Sea and tropical part of the Indian and Quiet oceans. It is especially numerous at coast of Australia, on the Great Barrier Reef. Akantaster eats only polyps of hermatypic corals. There is it so: having fixed on a coral, it twists the stomach, covering with it the site equal to the area of his body. The digestive enzymes emitted by a stomach get through a time of a limy skeleton of corals and turn polyps into nutritious broth which and is absorbed then by an akantaster. He is fed alone and, as a rule, at night. Nevertheless, this animal obviously does not suffer from lack of appetite – is counted that one star eats up to 13 sq.m of corals a year. As a result of it activity of an akantaster leads to destruction of reeves, and also coral islands atolls which begin to break up slowly to pieces under the influence of oceanic waves. Last century two times flash of number of akantaster around the Great Barrier Reef was observed. As a result the mankind nearly lost this unique nature sanctuary. And tens of small islands near a reef ceased to exist. Islands disappear not only by means of gluttonous inhabitants of the seas and oceans. History recorded many mysterious facts. Near the island of Epi (New Hebrides) there is one more island – the island ghost. It regularly emerges from water and then … disappears. The area of this island is about 1 sq.km. It has no name. At each emergence in “pioneer” there is a right to give it the name. But … the island right there leaves under water after a while to arise and again to please next “pioneer”. Once two islands in the Laptev Sea – Semenovsky and Vasilyevsky – visited travelers. In a warm season on islands slopes of stone mountains were exempted from ice, on thawed patches the poor tundra vegetation appeared. Generally, islands as island. But now these islands are absent. The thawed snow which are flowing down from islands in the sea washed away from year to year their surface, the sea surf undermined coast, and in 1936 they disappeared. They say that the navigator of the vessel which approached the place where there have to be islands was so puzzled that changed a course of the ship and nearly got lost in a sea scope. In July, 1831 in the Mediterranean Sea as a result of a volcanic eruption there was a volcanic island. Italians called his Yulia, British – Graham, and Spaniards – Fernández. While between these states there was a dispute on its accessory, the island disappeared in the sea abyss. In 1950 it appeared again, but after a while disappeared again. The small island known in India as New Moore – Aylend, and in Bangladesh as Saut-Talpatti-Aylend also became a subject of territorial dispute between two countries and led to the fact that once on the island the Indian frontier guards were temporarily placed. But the island completely disappeared under water and reconciled arguing. According to the Indian researcher, sea level in this part of Bay of Bengal over the last ten years increases much quicker, than earlier. After this the island also other islands in Bay of Bengal can disappear. In 1952 during eruption of an underwater volcano in the Pacific Ocean near the Japanese islands there was an island which surface began to tower over water on 200 m. Having existed a little more year, the island disappeared under water. And such examples it is possible to bring much. Emergence and disappearance of volcanic islands happens under the influence of the internal forces hidden in a subsoil of our planet. But there are islands which can disappear from the face of the earth as a result of activity of the person. The small island of Nauru is entirely difficult valuable mineral fertilizer – phosphates. Decades extracted phosphates on this island and took away to Australia, England, New Zealand. The island decreased in sizes. Since 1900 when began to extract phosphates, “became easier than Nauru” on 50 million tons. Annually the island decreases in weight almost by 2 million tons. Islanders counted that if proceeds so further, then in thirty years of Nauru in general will disappear. Those who were interested in increase in extraction of phosphates suggested nauriyets to move to one of the Australian islands, but nauriyets refused. Colonialists were forced to concede to determination of the small people.
As drillers merged water from … lakes
In May, 2007 in the south of Chile the glacial lake disappeared. The Chilean topographers reported that the lake in March was the usual size, 30 meters in depth and of 4000 m3. Being in Bernardo’s park О’Higgins, in the southern Andes, the lake (was) seldom visited and had even no name. When to this place there arrived the Chilean foresters, they were surprised that they found only “ice blocks in a dry hollow of the lake and an abnormal crack” on that place where there was an anonymous lake. In eight kilometers from this place the river which had earlier width of 40 meters hardly streamed now. What for improbable incident forced to disappear all lake and the most part of the river? Recently if something happens to environment, then blame for it global warming. Undoubtedly, global warming exerts a great influence on lakes, as well as on any reservoir which experience abatement of the water level because of a combination of reduction of an amount of precipitation and temperature increase. In the province Magallanes where there was a lake, Tempano and Bernardo’s glaciers decreased, having filled up with water adjacent lakes. Experts, such as Gino Kasass and Andrey Rivera, the studying glaciers, consider global warming guilty of process of thawing of glaciers. So, increase of water level led to formation of a crack in an ice wall on the one hand lakes. Water flowed out through a crack to the neighboring fjord and from there in the sea, having left behind a dry bottom from the remains of ice floes. For some lakes fast emergence or disappearance is part of natural process. The Chilean lake did not exist 30 years ago, however globally warming forced it to disappear again. Many lakes, including the lakes of Alaska and the lake Jackson in Florida, carry out similar process regularly, disappearing and being filled during the certain seasons or from year to year again. The Arctic lakes existing for many thousands of years dry up and …. According to the Canadian scientists, evaporation of waters in these lakes was earlier, but it was hardly noticeable, now this process became more active, together with record temperatures also large-scale drainage of lakes came. For the last 24 years scientists from Alberta’s University in the city of Edmonton (Canada) together with colleagues from Royal university in Kingston (Ontario, Canada) traced a condition of lakes on the cape Hershel in the north of Canada. Scientists tell that else in 2006 during their visit to this region they found out that the polar lake which age was estimated at 6 thousand years completely disappeared. The lake of Lagoons which is also located on the cape in the 1980th had length of 160 m, width about 35 m and depth more than a meter represents a big pool the size 23×11 of m and no more than 10 cm in depth now. The lake Scourge Ridge which sizes in 2005 made 60×100 meters completely disappeared today. While some reservoirs naturally cyclically disappear and are filled, some industrial accidents can also force lakes to disappear and be filled. The area of the lake Penyor in Louisiana in 1980 made 5 sq.km, with depth 3,5 meters. On the island there was a botanical park, several oil derricks and mine on extraction of salt. On November 21 one boring team pulled out the drill which got stuck at a depth of 375 meters under a lake surface from a well. Suddenly they heard the accruing noise and their platform began to bend. Having been frightened of the fact that the tower will collapse, the team left a platform. The platform bent all stronger and stronger until unexpectedly disappeared under water. In that place where there was a platform, very quickly there was a huge whirlpool which drained in other drilling platforms and docks. Water rushed to the canal Delkambr who began to flow to the Gulf of Mexico, having turned 11 barges and having drained in a tow in whirlpool. When water began to arrive promptly, miners in salt mines began immediate evacuation.
As it became clear, the boring team made a mistake in calculations, having chosen the wrong place. The small opening promptly increased in sizes when water from the lake washed away rich I will merge walls of mine. Wonderfully all 50 miners managed to escape. But superficial, of 13 billion liters, the lake was suddenly lost. Delkambr developed the Channel created falls from salty water 50 meters high. After the crater was filled with salty water, in it there were new species of plants and animal, and also 9 of 11 barges emerged on a surface. Eventually, firm Teksako and her partners paid millions of dollars of a penalty, however it cannot protect from future accidents which consequences it is very difficult to predict.
“Interesting newspaper. World unknown” No. 24 2011
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