How was the recent earthquake in Virginia different from those in more earthquake-prone regions? What caused the earthquake to occur?

A tornado likely struck the towns of Ithaca and Danby early Thursday morning, according to Tompkins County officials. 

More than a year after the January 2010 earthquake devastated Haiti, Cornell's GHESKIO clinic continues to provide aid to patients with HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis. 

The largest country in the world by area, the Russian Federation, has frigid winters and moderate summers, in which temperatures rarely top 70 degrees. This July, record temperatures exceeded 105 degrees, hitting the nation with a high price - wildfires began on July 29 and spread to central and western Russia.

On Feb. 27, when Haiti laid in shambles from a magnitude 7.0 earthquake that leveled the nation less than two months prior, a magnitude 8.0 earthquake struck Chile. The quick succession of these two calamities jolted public conscience of earthquakes, rekindled curiosity about forecasting and generated speculation about the relationship between natural disasters and climate change.

GALVESTON, Texas (AP) — Officials were stung by an ill-fated attempt to let residents and business owners "look and leave" their hurricane-battered city, which only created frustrating traffic jams for two days. Now, their message is clear: Stay away from Galveston.

There is talk of opening the island in pieces, but that plan is not yet ready. An attempt to let evacuees return home all at once quickly devolved into a logistical nightmare that left traffic backed up for 20 miles. That only added to the evidence that Galveston Island is far from ready to return to everyday life.

"We could not accommodate that many people at one time," city manager Steve LeBlanc said. "We were hoping to have more of a trickle of cars than a tidal wave."