Weather & Earth Science News

In the SW USA,  heat wave may threaten world's hottest temperature whilst further north, Anchorage breaks record for most 70-plus days in June And research suggests humans play role in Australia's 'angry' hot summer Here in Britan, winged insects 'blasted'  by unsettled spring weather - but signs are, a good spell of summery weather in on the way in July.   Though lack of rain could then become the next issue (as it is, it looks like June will end up here at about 60% of average - the driest June since my records began in 2007) Finland hit by 28,000 lightning strikes Central China downpour forces 5,000 to evacuate India floods: thousands still stranded in Uttarakhand Flooding closes part of Iguazu National Park in Argentina Britain's shale gas deposits 'could supply country for 25 years' - further delaying the move to much greater energy efficiency? Russian meteor shockwave circled globe twice Voyager surfs Solar System...

A story which has only just hit National (and International) news , but was reported locally at the time: weather creates rare Cape Cod tsunami Are weather patterns leading to more ferry disruptions in Scotland?   Or are they leading to different ferry disruptions - with less severe southwesterly storms impacting some routes less, whilst more north or easterly winds affect those routes not so affected normally? Arizona in grips of dangerous heat wave as mercury rising across the West Western Australians experience 'tornado' terror in Port Headland storm and after the same record breaking storm, photos of kids, adults rescued in Roebourne floods after 220mm deluge Rain, hail and strong winds wreak havoc in Singapore but at least sea smog eases as rain douses fires in Sumatra. And research commissioned ny SNH suggests that old wind farm bases 'could be left in countryside' - although that does not, of course, mean that they will. 

India floods: mass cremation begin for Kedarnath victims , but questions now being asked: were India's floods caused by reckless human greed?    Not the rains that caused the floods, but rampant development and deforestation of the valley, leading to more instense flash floods, erosion and landslides And deforestation crops up again in a report on Asian mega-smog's smokey source in Sumatra : a massive environmental disaster that shows no sign of stopping.   And which will for decades cause the deaths of thousands through drought, flash-flood and landslide.   Not to say being a major cause of carbon emission derived global warming .   Time to ban palm oil?  It'd be a far more effective way of reducing AGW than if Britain obtained 100% of it's energy - including fuel for cars etc - from non-carbon derived sources. Oops, the Scotsman haven't learned, claiming a mini-tornado spotted in Scotland .   Maybe it came from a mini cloud afte...

India floods: rescuers race to save survivors in Uttarakhand.   Video footage as India flood death toll passes 1,000.   And the cause of the India floods: unusual weather systems clash was trigger As residents return to their homes in Calgary, Medicine Hat bracing for river's crest in flooded Alberta Tropical Storm Barry kills three in Mexico Last Thursday, man dies as violent storm hits Germany whilst in France third person killed in floods And haze from Indonesia continues to shroud Malaysia

Canada floods: three killed as waters threaten Calgary In NZ, there's more snow as winter misery continues India floods: death toll in Uttarakhand 'passes 500' Singapore mulls legal action over smog from Indonesia fires Tropical Storm Bebinca to hit S China

Albertans in awe at power of 'insane' flooding after torrential rain hits the region; Calgary mayor to flood evacuees: 'gather your valuables and go' .  But cat-astrophe avoided: Man braves rising flood waters to heroically save his pet as torrential floods hit western Canada . Also a gallery of photos from the Calgary Herald here . Storm in Switzerland injures serveral, disrupts transport  In Pictures: electric storms and floods hit France  Heatwave in Austria sets scores of new June Temperature records Tropical Storm Barry makes landfall in Mexico Largest iceberg cluster in five years sighted off Alaska In NZ, Wellington counts cost of polar storm whilst more extreme weather expected for the South Island For the third day running, a record new pollution high as haze chokes Singapore Paratroopers aid India flood victims as death toll soars whilst elsewhere in the country Nagpur records all-time highest temperature of 47.9c A...

Just over 25c in my garden yesterday, so the warmest day of the year so far.  And some nice, gentle, summer rain early this morning to save having to water the plants - perfect!  And a little mickey taking from the Aussies as Brits go balmy over 26c 'heatwave' Bit colder in NZ though (it is, of course, winter down there) where gales howl though Wellington as winter storm moves north with storm 'crunch time' yet to come And it's also freezing Argentina: temperatures below zero as polar wave continues The MetO have responded to some of the totally misleading headlines in yesterday's 'news'papers - such as The Sun - and also have a guest blog on how the Atlantic may influence wet summers Second victim swept away in French Floods Hot weather across Europe as heatwave fries Poland , and also heatwave scorches Balkan countries whilst in Germany, one killed as roads burst in heatwave Thousands took shelter in bathrooms and stairwells ...

Looks like being the warmest day of the year here today (so far!) - already up to 18.1c under cloudy skies when I left home but now the cloud's cleared and it's feeling decidedly hot out.  Thunderstorms and sweltering humidity as temperatures are set to top 27C on the hottest day of the year   I reckon at least 26c on the cards in my garden.  But no thunderstorms here, though a small chance of a distant rumble tomorrow.   And looking decidedly cool and unsettled again by the weekend..... As expected, more storms in France yesterday (and again today) as woman drowned in raging floods near Lourdes After yesterday's workshop in Exeter, scientists say UK wet summers down to Atlantic warming .  The actual MetO report is here . But are Britons right to moan about the weather?   Well yes, it's a national pastime!  But seriously, I think we get the best weather in the world: a bit like a Springsteen concert - you never know what you're going to ...

It's "baked Alaska": 90-95° temps shatter all-time records India floods: death toll rises after heavy rain After Vouvray crops dameged by hail storm yesterday, French residents warned of weather danger with more violent thunderstorms expected today Floodwaters recede in Germany as rescuers plug leaks Met Office experts meet to analyse 'unusual' weather patterns   whilst over at The Carbon Brief, Roz Pidcock explains David Rose's latest mash up of Met Office weather and climate research .   Finding out why it's been colder or wetter than usual - what factors might have insfluenced the change in our normal weather patterns - will help us with longer term forecasts in the future.   That's the point of the workshop.  Nothing more. In NZ, flood-hit South Islanders warned of snow storm Siberian summer: from 30 degress Celsius & sun to to snow in one day Jet Stream changes cause climatically exceptional Greenland ice...

10 people dead, 50 washed away as heavy rain lashes Uttarakhand whilst Mumbai gets 27 times more rain than this time last year Videos from last week as tornadoes hit south of France Big snow set to follow the rain in NZ Dramatic loss in snowfall for Los Angeles area mountains predicted Climate change overseas likely to affect UK food supplies - stop burning down the forests to grow soya, palm oil and biofuels then!

2 found dead in area burned by Colo. wildfire Storm kills two after rolling through Mid-Atlantic whilst torrential rains drench New York as rare June Nor'easter forecast to inflict wild winds and flooding into Friday .   And in Iowa, dramatic rescue as girl saved from raging flood . Met Office brainstorms UK bad weather British honey bee losses double in a year due to poor winter Apparently there's a wash-out summer on the way as rain expected for a month - but despite media lies, it looks like June will be a dry month here.  And it's not looking especially cold either (just no massive heatwave on the horizon is all). Storm causes evacuation at gymnastics festival in Switzerland Serbia readies flood defences as Danube nears record high And deluges claim lives in eastern Romania Queensland town of Pratten hit by wild storm After Typhoons Sendong in 2011 and Bopha in 2012, no surprise that Philippines tops in storm-related deaths ...

Britain wheat crop 'to fall by a third after extreme weather' Burst dyke leaves entire German town submerged as aerial shots reveal devastation of recent heavy rain   Severe weather expected in the US today as unusually massive line of storms aim at Midwest Meanwhile, trio of Colorado wildfires burn amid dry conditions and one killed in Nevada dust storm Houses destroyed as rain ravages Bangalore And is a sleeping climate giant stirring in the Arctic?

Pictures of the moment tornado touched down over Baltimore as Maryland battered by severe weather Deadly flooding continues to swamp Europe but after the Danube reached record high levels, Hungary floodwaters begin to subside .   In the Czech Republic, floods claim 11th life, some rivers rise again amid new rain Amount of dust blown across the Western US is increasing And Martian clay contains chemical implicated in the origin of life, astrobiologists find

Heavy rain and flooding in Europe continues as Germany steps up flooding evacuations .  On Sunday,  flash floods hit Warsaw whilst in Switzerland, torrential rain floods centre of Vaud town .   But at least Budapest flood averted after Danube falls .   Meanwhile as Czechs tackle flood aftermath, rains to exceed average next month as well, so there may be more problems to come.   Here in Evesham we've only had 0.5mm of measureable rainfall all month ..... Remnants of tropical storm Andrea delivers spring soaking to Maritimes Two dead - including baby left in hot car - as heatwave grips southwest USA 31 people killed as monsoon rain lashes Sri Lanka 5.7 earthquake rattles remote Australia Severn Barrage: environment and economy benefits 'unproven' says the Government, who presumably prefer covering thousands of square miles of hills with 3,000 heavily subsidised wind turbines (and associated roads and pylon) instead ....

Flooding continues to spread in Europe with Hungary Danube set for record high.  Meanwhile, German floods: counting the cost and laying the blame , with video footage as Dresden braces for flood as German rivers burst banks .   And experts warn mosquito plague to follow floods . Elsewhere in Europe, Austrian flood handling successful but exhausting ,  more storms hammer Poland but neighbours bear brunt In the wake of Tim Samaras's death, are storm chasing 'crossing the line'? And it's confirmed that Oklahoma tornado was widest on record Tropical storm Andrea batters Florida and Mexico before heading up the East Coast In Australia there's no snow for opening weekend: what the ski resorts don't want you to know but better news in NZ where dump gives ski areas solid ground base Pakistan wilts under record heat wave Ancient Irish texts show volcanic link to cold weather whilst in Borneo, stalagmites provide new view of abr...

The situation in eastern Europe worsens as flood waters from Czech dams bear down on Prague and torrential rains take toll across Poland whilst German-speaking Swiss mop up from heavy rain and German city submerged by 'dramatic' 500-year flood - it should be noted though that although current floods are worse than usual, such events not uncommon this time of year, for example June 2009 and May 2010 . Oklahoma storms: amateur storm chaser took photo of tornado that killed him Wildfires hit US West, could spread to Native American sites whilst east coast sees violent remains of storm that brought tornadoes to Oklahoma Four people rescued and hundreds call for help as flash floods strike Melbourne A look at the science behind South Australia's rain Flooding and gales hit NZ In Greenland, are melting ice sheets to become the norm? And this is one amazing photo: rare red sprite lightning shows up during aurora - well done Mike!  See more here  ,...

A sad day for the stormchasing community as it was revealed yesterday that Tim Samaras, his son Paul and their colleague Carl Young were killed after their car was hit by one of the Oklahoma tornadoes on Friday.   Tim was not just a well respected (and cautious) chaser but a scientists whose work has undoubtedly helped saved many hundreds of lives over the years. Three storm chasers - including father and son - killed 'doing what they loved' in Oklahoma tornado as death toll rises to 12 Remembering Tim Samaras: veteran storm chaser killed in Okla. tornado And from National Geographic, our haunting last interviews with storm chaser Samaras Fly now, free Central Europe on alert for flooding with state of emergency declared in Prague and two missing in Austria as heavy rains force evacuations . Meanwhile, snow in June: Russia's Siberian town in absolute anomaly So if it's good weather you want, don't bother with Europe .  In fact, stay here!  Bec...

New Oklahoma tornadoes 'kill five' with hundreds injured - many caught in vehicles overturned on the highway. Meanwhile, Arkansas weather woes kill 3, including county sheriff It's been another cold month in Britain - and in Evesham the first this year to see above average rainfall.  But it's not just us suffering as Italy shivers through 'cursed spring' of relentless rain and France's spring coldest since 1987 In Melbourne, record rainfall lashes city Elevated carbon dioxide making arid regions greener - so it's not all bad.  Glacier impact on sea-level rise depends on its shape Centuries old frozen plants revived after 400 years beneath a glacier And the world fails to end again as asteroid 1988 QE2 flies past Earth