25th July - Today's News

Tibet reports record high temperature in over 58 years

Humans emulate volcanoes in the stratosphere

By the 1970s, people were spewing so much soot, ash, and other tiny particles into the lower atmosphere that climate researchers called the effect the "human volcano." Now it looks like humans are imitating volcanoes in yet another part of the atmosphere. New research blames this decade's thickening of the haze in the stratosphere on the burst of coal burning around the world. The chief offender appears to be China.

Another possible cause for the increase in noctilucent clouds perhaps?

Somerset twister whirls across the southwest as strange summer weather continues - although a funnel cloud in summer is no more strange that a hot sunny day. But this is the Daily Mail! By the way, I recorded 0.8mm of rain yesterday - all of it falling before daybreak. As usual the storms bypassed the Vale, though I did hear one solitary rumble of distant thunder - the first since 15th June and probably all I'll get the rest of this summer.....

Conditions are rather more extreme across Europe though, and here are a few of the latest stories from the storms in central Europe, heatwave in the SE and wildfires and heatwaves affecting southern countries. Some tragic reading.

Southeast Europe swelters in heatwave

Violent storms slam Central Europe

Extreme weather kills 18 in Europe

Wildfires rage in southern Europe

Fires engulf the island of Sardinia