10th December - Today's News: The Coldest Place on Earth Discovered?

Cold, ice grip US as more snow to blanket East and huge ice sheets smash onto parked cars from apartment blocks as US endures ice storm cold snap - but it remains rather mild and quite dull and boring in Britain.  No sign of winter here as yet!   There's also been record warmth in Alaska's Arctic.

But if it's real cold you want, head to Antarctic where coldest spot on Earth identified by satellite.  Although Antarctic record low temperature disputed by the Russians ...... There may well be even colder spots.

Perth braces for five days of searing heat rising to 40c by Monday

Hurt seals flood wildlife center after tidal surge

Chinese cities hit hard by smog again

And let's get this one sorted straight away, it's claimed in the Guardian today that the US Navy predicts summer ice free Arctic by 2016 - but actually they just project that if the trend of decline from 1996-2007 continued, then it could be so by 2016 ± 3 years (so, in theory, by 2013).  And note a high level of uncertainty. They are not saying that it will be.   So before you comment, read the Paper, not the headline!   Also, worth noting that the paper concerned was published in 2012 - so it's not even a new story.

New long-lived greenhouse gas discovered

Martian freshwater lake may have support life - NASA

And today's silly headline is about 180mph winds for Christmas!   Well, that's if you believe a girl from the bookies .......    There's actually no evidence whatsoever for such a storm, either before or over Christmas (which currently looks unsettled, with maybe some snow showers in the NW), though undoubtedly there'll be many gales hitting the Scottish Highlands over the winter, with gusts of 140mph+ quite possible at 4,000 feet.