After lying dormant for nearly an entire century, the Cotopaxi volcano located in Quito, Ecuador is now a major threat to hundreds of thousands of people and species due to it's recent activity. In August, the volcano let out steam and ash and has only been rising in magma levels since. An eruption is looming near (months or even weeks away) that would melt the mountains snowcap, trigger massive floods, and overall cause grave danger to the surrounding species of the area. One species in particular is being looked after when in preparation for the predicted disaster's effects. 

The small, chocolate-striped rocket frog is an endangered species that was once very common to the Quito area. For unclear reasons, there is only one population left with less than 100 adults and an unknown number of juveniles and tadpoles. This species lives along the river located next to Cotopaxi, a river that gets it's main water source from the mountain's snowcap run off. ​If the volcano were to erupt, the lava and mud barreling that would overflow the river, along with ash settling on the land, would most certainly wipe out this rare species. Because there is only one very small population left in the entire world (that is located in Quito), scientists are currently working to capture the frogs and bring them to safety. So far, only 25 tadpoles and juvenile frog have been brought to safety, but the search is still on. With a third or more of Ecuador's amphibian species endangered, these scientists are doing all that they can to protect these species by collecting, housing, and breeding them in a safe environment. The plan is to capture all rocket frogs before the eruption, bring them to safety, breed and rebuild their species, then release them back into an environment in which they can thrive.

The Cotopaxi eruption is a massive threat to all living in it's surrounding areas. The effects of the eruption will be detrimental not only those residing there, but the volcano's surrounding environment. Many people are doing all that they can to prepare for this predicted eruption.

National Geographic's article," What Makes Hurricanes Like Joaquin Tick?" speaks of the current growing and unpredicted hurricane, Hurricane Joaquin, which is currently located in the western Atlantic near the Bahamas. The hurricane is intensifying faster than forecasters predicted. It moved to a category 3 hurricane two days ahead of predictions on Wednesday evening and will soon become a category 4 hurricane by this evening or Friday. It's rapid growth is part due to a drop in wind shear and an unusually warm pool of water surrounding the storm. The evaporation of warm water causes a hurricane to intensify - with the surrounding water of the storm warming, more water is evaporating, sending more and more energy to the storm. Joaquin has formed slowly. This slow growth rate has given the storm more time to gain energy, which helps to account for the storms explosive growth. Many are very unsure of the hurricanes direction. Some have predicted it to hit land between the Carolina's and New Jersey, while others have predicted it to bypass the shore and head east over the Atlantic. No matter the storms path, it will have an impact on the east coast, bringing a good amount of rain and moisture to the land or worse, causing flash floods.