Weather & Earth Science News

Temperatures soar as heatwave hits Spain and Portugal with swathes of France on alert over heatwave and as it creeps into Britain, already it's the wrong kind of heat!  Trains are cancelled as tracks buckle in the sun .  And  why your patio is making the heatwave even hotter . Meanwhile, records broken as heatwave hits US northwest as well Aerial photos of the suburban community left devastated by 'mind-blowing' wild fire that consumed dozens of homes with just seconds warning in Washington on Sunday.  Meanwhile, Alaska wildfires have burned over a million acres - and fire season still has a long way to go .  It's the worst season on record, already.  Unrelenting rain leads to more flooding in Midwest Firefighters respond to 'mini-tornado' which shocked residents on Stafford housing estate - unusual for a dust devil to cause that much damage, but it obviously wasn't a tornado, mini or otherwise. In Australia, poor snow falls leave ...

Ukrainians shocked by huge twister From a week or so ago: downpour turns roads to rivers in Russian cities including Kursk and Moscow, whilst from last week, more pictures of Sochi as ex-Olympic city flooded . 113 in Walla Walla?  Historical E. Washington heat wave  shatters records , whilst Hundreds urged to fless as Wash. wildfire grows .  And across the border, 36 daily temperature records set in B.C. as campfre ban begins on south coast Phoenix hit by first dust storm of the monsoon season Scientists in south Asia struggle to understand heatwave Flood-hit Cameroon to demolish low-lying homes And a surreal storm rages against starry backdrop in winning weather photo

Pakistani mulls artificial rain as Karachi heatwave toll tops 1100 whilst in India, monsoon rain 24% excess so far, 60 die in Gujarat floods And a heatwave on the way for England?  Looks like we could see 30c+ next week with a Met Office forecast of hotter weather for the start of July - the MetO being somewhat more cautious than the tabloid press predicting Britain set to bask in scorching 35c heat as Wimbledon heatwave arrives on Tuesday (with the obligatory pictures of girls in wellies and very short shorts arriving at this weekend's Glastonbury Festival) At least one dead in Sochi's flash floods after a month's worth of rain fell on the Russian resort in one day The Thais talk of drought, and cats, and rain gods Tropical Storm Kujira: Flash floods kill 7 in northern Vietnam And more pictures as the aurora australis southern lights stun New Zealand

Parched Caribbean faces widespread drought, water shortages Pakistan heatwave: Death toll over 800 in Sindh In the US,  severe storms sweep through Northeast after battering Midwest with the Midwest in damage control as five tornadoes sweep through Illinois Australian snow fields anxious for some good falls as holidays beckon - not much to be seen on the ground at the moment.   But its another night of record lows for South Island as NZ's cold spell continues.. In Siberia, wildfires rage across region as hot weather, storms and carelessness combine No let-up seen in Santiago's driest June in 50 years Scientists show a decline in solar activity could not halt global warming , although if we had a repeat of the Maundr Minimum there's a chance we could see some cooler winters in Britain and we normally experience these days (no winter here for 3 years now .... ).  The full paper is available here . What is this mystery beam of light in the...

Pakistan calls for urgent measures as heatwave toll tops 450 Meanwhile, an Indian village experiences the pitter patter of fish from sky and 22 killed as heavy rains batter coastal M'rashtra   Derecho: Strong storms cause damage across Midwest with five rescued from storm-damaged buildings in Michigan More Alaska temperature records fall in wave of new highs But New Zealand drops to 20c below freezing Typhoon Kujira makes landfall in south China Chile's Santiago declares smog emergency Photos of dazzling northern lights, major geomagnetic storm hits Earth .  It was too cloudy (and too light!) to see anything here but there was a good display of the aurora down under as secret light show dazzled early risers and night owls across Australia An uplifted island: The island Isla Santa Maria in south of central Chile rose by 2m after the 2010 earthquake A mysterious 'pyramid' spotted on surface of Ceres - is it a lone mountain?   Or an alien city ....... ?! And...

North Island storm damage: Heartbreak of worst ever floods whilst more snow, ice, flooding hit South Island A weekend heatwave kills more than 120 in Pakistan as Karachi breaks 10-year record with 45 degrees scorching heat Tropical Storm cools down central Vietnam while moving to southern China In India, flood fears as heavy rains continue to batter AP and TS Annual sea ice extent for May below average, again - the third lowest in the satellite record - however Antarctica continues to set record highs   Thousands of villagers flee as Indonesian volcano continues to spew rocks, ash and hot gas up to 15 kilometres away And scientists tame lightning bolts with laser beams

A US study confirms Earth 'entering new extinction phase' - the full paper can be accessed here (thanks to John Mason for the link) India monsoon rains bring busy Mumbai to grinding halt In Canterbury, NZ, hundreds face third night without power after damaging snow storm while there's a state of emergency in Whanganui as flooding hits lower North Island Saturn's moon has Earth-like 'polar winds' as well as 'waterfalls' rainfall and sea - but on Titan it's liquid methane rather than water. And no noes, we're all going to die (again): mankind will be extinct in 100 years because of climate change, warns expert in doom porn (so far as I can tell he is not an expert in anything else of relevance!)

NOAA data now in shows Earth has its warmest May and is off to warmest year on record - of course, some will tell us that's simply because NOAA manipulates the data to show what they want and really we're plummeting into a new ice age .....    .....which, if true, makes it even odder that Alaska breaking records with unsually hot, dry weather - shouldn't Alaska be getting colder? Further south, Arizona swelters in triple-digit temps as heat wave drags on , with 115f in Phoenix Storm heads northeast after flooding Oklahoma, Arkansas Of course, it's mid winter in NZ, so no surprise that South Island wakes to freezing conditions, closed roads - plenty of snow for skiers  Research by the Niels Bohr Institute suggests a risk of major sea level rise in England, northern Europe - up to 1.5m by the end of the century, assuming global temperatures - leading to increased melting of ice caps - rise by around 4c as per some predictions.   Meanwhile, a separa...

North Korea says it faces worst drought in a century Rain a welcome relief for parched western Queensland, but graziers warn drought is not over Tropical Storm Bill raises Texas flood fears In the Yukon, Hubbard Glacier defies climate change, continues advancing A new WHOI study shows accelerated warming of continental shelf off north-east USA - but it's not necessarily related to atmospheric global warming. Hailstorms leave millions of euros of damage in Austria at the weekend Mount Asama volcano erupts near Tokyo

UK's 'tornado alley' identified , sort of ... Georgia flood: Up to 20 missing as Tibilisi cleans up Mexico's south-west braces for Tropical Storm Carlos whilst Texas is back in the bull's-eye as Tropical Storm Bill forms in the Gulf of Mexico The latest global temperature data are breaking records - with May the second warmest on record according to NASA and 2015 well on track to be the hottest year ever recorded. Remote cave study reveals 3,000 years of European climate variation Sinabung eruption: Thousands flee Indonesia volcano Mount Everest shifts three centimetres south-west due to earthquake in April.   So not very far then! Saturn's cyclones: From little storms, big storms grow New computer simulations unveiling the ancient climate of Mars suggests it was more likely to have been cold and icy than covered in oceans. And a look at our scorced Earth in 2100: NASA maps reveal how climate change will cause tempe...

Georgia flood: Tbilisi residents warned over zoo animals after devastating flood which has killed at least 12 people - more pictures from the Daily Mail of apocalyptic scenes in Georgia Tropical Storm Carlos set to become a hurricane again as it soaks Mexican resort town In Australia, freak hailstorm turns the Red Centre white, blanketing parched earth in ice Dense mayfly swarm causes crashes, closes US bridge Philae comet lander wakes up

Siberia registers its warmest recorded spring sparking new fears for rapid climate change whilst floods break the banks of the Ob, with 10 metre rise in water level as snows melt Here, we have had the first significant rain of the month and the first rumbles of thunder were heard in Evesham overnight since last July ....  But no spectacular storms (as some had hoped for/predicted).    Rain ruins more than three million days in Plymouth each year Massive rainfall floods streets throughout Denver metro area Heavy rains cause flooding in southern Oman as Cyclone Ashobaa weakens Summer in Madrid: Hail, storms and flashfloods And not quite the Total Perspective Vortex, but the incredible map that reveals our place in the universe

Red River flooding in Louisiana: Homes submerged in Shreveport as residents evacuate Cyclone Ashobaa approached Oman Nepal landslides and floods kill at least 15 Flood situation worsens in Assam, Brahmaputra flowing above danger level And a look at India's hellish heatwave, in hindsight Scientists solve mystery of the milky rain: Strange phenomenon in Pacific Northwest was caused by dust from a dry lake 'Naked' tourists arrested for causing earthquake on sacred mountain Dramatic ice sheet collapse 135 thousands years ago triggered strong global climate change 'Blood cells' found in dino fossils And excitement as an alleged 'ball of fire' spotted over Wellington - showing that even New Zealanders can be dumb at times.  It's just a perfectly normal aircraft contrail.

Across the United States, May was the wettest on record, despite drought in West Blanca earliest storm to hit Baja California, Mexico and whilst the Atlantic is, and is expected to remain, quiet, overall the northern hemisphere hurricane season off to record start, fuelled by El Nino Watch incredible time-lapse footage of supercell storm forming over Kansas - taken in June 4th by Robert Simmer In Australia, flash flood risks increase as storm peak downpours intensify Second storm slams Bangkok And NASA claim that the world won't end in September - but I bet they are lying .....

More than 30 taken to hospital after two huge lightning bolts strike German music festival - just as well ACDC weren't there playing Thunderstruck at the time ....   Meanwhile, two die as rains lash central Switzerland overnight. Weakening Tropical Storm Blanc nears Baja California Cyclonic storm in Arabian Sea may delay monsoon in India And a new survey reveal countries where citizens don't want climate change action - and it's the 'West' that tops the list ....

There are now 11 confirmed deaths as earthquake-stranded climbers rescued from atop Malaysia's Mount Kinabalu with several still missing. Colorado storms escalate into devastating tornadoes and hailstorms and some good pictures as stunning stovepipe tornado grinds across Colorado landscape near Denver Tropical storm hits Kent with reports of flash flooding and giant hailstones - hmmm, I think you'll find it was a thunderstorm and the hail, though big for Britain, was not quite so impressive compared with the cricket ball sized stones they sometimes get elsewhere in the world.   Drought in Puerto Rico threatens prolonged water rationing In China, heavy rains lash Hunan, claim six lives Antarctic sea ice sets new high in May Hubble studies Pluto's wobbly moons

Explosion rips through Ghanaian petrol station killing at least 150 people after floodwater washes fuel into a fire while the victims were sheltering from torrential rain First tornado of 2015 confirmed in Canada Maui beach flooded by waves generated by a storm 5,000 miles away Drought fears after lower monsoon forecast in India Malaysia earthquake traps 160 climbers on Mount Kinabalu US scientists: Global warming pause 'no longer valid' - although I have been saying this for some time (it only exists if you select which data you look at, and in any case a linear increase would not be expected unless all other factors were eliminated.   The underlying trend continues regardless.) their particular arguments have come under some criticism . Interuption of Gulf Stream may lead to large cooling in Europe - apparently it happened in the Eemian, which was a warmer period than today. Nice photos of mammatus in Siberia: the beauty of the cloudy sky ...

Yangtze sinking: Could Mei-yu front be behind disaster?    It certainly looks like massive thunderstorm complez, tornado capsized Chinese ship In NZ, flooding wreaks havoc in Dunedin - with more rain expected UAE heatwave arrives as temperatures hit 50.5c in Al Ain 'It is climate change': India's heat wave now the 5th deadliest in world history A silly story from the BBC telling us that snow falls over Scotland's mountains - which is actually as unusual in May and early June as rain .....   It's not even as much as we saw in 2009 and 2010 , for example, and lying snow was more extensive in some parts this time last year.    Did comet impacts create the mystery lunar swirls? And that age old connundrum: if a tree falls in the forest and there is no-one there to see it, does it make a sound? may finally have been answered.   It doesn't, because new test backs up theory that the world doesn't exist until we look at it...

Japan's average temperatures in May hit record highs whilst in the US, Washington DC had its warmest May ever recorded  in 2015 ,  in Connecticut it was the warmest May on record and in Alaska record conditions lead to warmest, driest May in Juneau's history .   And Yukon sets forest fire record for May . Here, winds of up to 78mph bring down trees and cause rail delay s (there was even a branch coe down off a tree by my house: first time that has happened) whilst the end of the week should see summer returns, but no heatwave In NZ, one dead as storm batters Northland and Auckland In Melbourne winter start breaks coldest June day record whilst Canberrans awake to freezing temperatures to match those of Snowy Mountain peaks   Chinese ship capsizes on Yangste with hundreds missing as Chinese weather officials sent to site of capsized ship amid reports fter it was allegedly hit by a 'cyclone' whilst elsewhere a huge tornado caught on camera...

In Australia winter wastes no time settling in with huge dumps of snow on the first day   Texas floods: enough rain fell in May to cover the entire state 8 inches deep as Texas floods death toll rises to 31 Rain brings little relief to southern India as heatwave death toll nears 2,200 Hurricane Andres strengthens to category 4 storm Torrential rain and floods mire parts of New York city Rain on Uluru a stunning sight for lucky tourists Arctic sea ice disappearing at record rate