Cyclone Gonu is the strongest tropical cyclone on record in the Arabian
Sea, and is also the strongest named cyclone in the northern Indian
Ocean. The second named tropical cyclone of the 2007 North Indian Ocean
cyclone season, Gonu developed from a persistent area of convection in
the eastern Arabian Sea on June 1. With a favorable upper-level
environment and warm sea surface temperatures, it rapidly intensified
to attain peak winds of 240 km/h (150 mph) on June 3, according to the
India Meteorological Department. Gonu weakened after encountering dry
air and cooler waters, and early on June 6, it made landfall on the
eastern-most tip of Oman, becoming the strongest tropical cyclone to
hit the Arabian Peninsula. It then turned northward into the Gulf of
Oman, and dissipated on June 7 after making landfall in southern Iran.
Intense tropical cyclones like Gonu are extremely rare over the Arabian
Sea, as most storms in this area tend to be small and dissipate
quickly. The cyclone caused 50 deaths and about $4.2 billion in damage
(2007 USD) in Oman, where the cyclone was considered the nation's worst
natural disaster. Gonu dropped heavy rainfall near the eastern
coastline, reaching up to 610 mm (24 inches), which caused flooding and
heavy damage. In Iran, the cyclone caused 28 deaths and 216 million in
damage (2007 USD).
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclone_Gonu>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
350:
Roman usurper Nepotianus of the Constantinian dynasty proclaimed
himself Roman Emperor, entering Rome with a group of gladiators.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nepotianus>
1621:
The Dutch West India Company received a charter for a trade monopoly in
the West Indies by the Dutch Republic.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_West_India_Company>
1937:
Months after he abdicated the British throne, Edward, Duke of Windsor
married American socialite Wallis Simpson in a private ceremony near
Tours, France.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_VIII_of_the_United_Kingdom>
1963:
The Buddhist crisis: Soldiers of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam
attacked protesting Buddhists in Huế, South Vietnam, with liquid
chemicals from tear gas grenades, causing 67 people to be hospitalised
for blistering of the skin and respiratory ailments.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hue_chemical_attacks>
1992:
The High Court of Australia delivered its decision in the landmark case
Mabo v Queensland, recognising the land rights of the Aborigines.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mabo_v_Queensland>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
apothecary (n):
A person who makes and provides/sells drugs and/or medicines
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/apothecary>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
It is the greatest of all mistakes to do nothing because you can only
do little.
--Sydney Smith
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Sydney_Smith>