Weather & Earth Science News

Climate change Mr Frump?   2018 is wettest year on record in Washington D.C., Baltimore, over a dozen other cities in East and Midwest .  Meanwhile, the USA's western drought ranks among the worst of the last millennium     2018 - the UK's second sunniest year on record And in northern Queensland, Cairns all-time rain record set to fall - with another 147mm in the past day How reliable tropical weather pattern to change in a warming climate And new satellite images reveal the extent of Indonesian volcano's dramatic collapse

Extreme heatwave in Australia: catastrophic fire conditions as temperature records broken but in the far north, another cyclone possible by New Year's Eve, Bureau of Meteorology warns In the US winter Storm Eboni drives blizzard warnings across Midwest; at least 2 dead  And it's claimed in Siberia that a large hill crashes into the Bureya River caused by 'a meteorite' though it just looks like a normal landslide to me ....

At the weekend, Anak Krakatau erupted causing another Indonesia tsunami: Rock band Seventeen swept away by waves .    By Christmas Day, Indonesian rescuers continue survivor search as tsunami death toll reaches 429 and today Indonesia flights rerouted as volcano alert level raised Meanwhile in Italy, erupting Mount Etna volcano sparks earthquake in Sicily, injuring ten Australian heatwave sees capital cities and regional towns swelter as one outback town smashes temperature records with 28 days above 40C in one month 2018 will be the first year with no violent tornadoes in the United States Istanbul outskirts covered in snow Water shortages worsen in Afghanistan as drought persists  Indian capital chokes as pollution levels hit the worst this year And climate change: Huge costs of warming impacts in 2018

Okay, ice rather than snow, but it looks the part as new pictures reveal 'winter wonderland' on the red planet A Canadian woman confirmed dead after severe windstorm hits B.C. More severe storms predicted for southern Queensland with large hail, wild winds Green thunderstorms: there have been many theories behind the mysterious glow No sniggering at the back! Scientists say that a rock collision 'twice as big as Earth' pushed Uranus onto its side No more updates till after Christmas, so have a good 'un and remember: it's all about doing whatever you enjoy doing most!

Merry Solstice one and all! Why the hailstones in the Sydney storm were so weird looking and a sweltering 42C Christmas heatwave hits Queensland as Sydney recovers from a once-in-a-generation hail storm A tornado injures at least one person and damages a home in Florida and debunking 3 myths following the 'rare' Seattle tornado

2019: close to record-breaking year, forecasts Met Office thanks to an expected El Nino combining with underlying global warming. Highly unusual tornado causes 'catastrophic' destruction in Washington state Huge hailstones batter parts of Sydney as a severe storm sweeps through Deadly Cyclone Phethai makes landfall in India with at least two dead Why is sea level rising faster in some places along the US East Coast than others?   Bascially, it's not, but some coasts are sinking under post-glacial rebound as well  New light shed on what drove last, long-term global climate shift around 1 million years ago 20 volcanoes across Indonesia currently showing above normal activity Incredible pictures capture moment Mount Etna erupts sending lava and huge columns of gas into night sky And the latest report from BoM on the State of the Climate: Thank goodness for ocean sinks currently holding more warming extremes at bay

First up, an apology, of sorts, to the media.  Apparently Met Eireann named Storm Deirdre at the weekend because it was a bit breezy on Craggy Island.   It still had nothing to do with freezing rain or snow. Today, hundreds left without power after rain and wind hits Northern Ireland where a weather warning was issued, unlike for Scotland where 70-80mph gales have hit, resulting in a 'major incident' as lorries topple on Larne to Cairnryan ferry .   Meanwhile, in the SW a Russian cargo ship runs aground off Cornwall coast and in Eire, flood risk after heavy downpours, thousands of homes and businesses without power .  Craggy Island was only slightly breezy though, so this storm is unnamed.  Climate change leading to water shortage in Andes, Himalayas as glaciers melt How the full story on climate change requires the long view The most-distant solar system object ever observed is called ...... Farout And some 'incredibly det...

Holidaymakers are evacuated from luxury South African resort after massive storms bring terrifying flash floods and hail storms From the BBC: Storm Deirdre: Wind, snow and rain hit parts of UK - except, of course, it wasn't Storm Deirdre ....   We just had some miserable cold rain. Flash flooding washes cars off roads in Queensland's south as the north cleans up after Ex-Tropical Cyclone Owen dumps more than half a metre of rain in north Queensland  And another volcano on Pacific 'Ring of Fire' erupts in Indonesia sending huge columns of ash spewing 25,000 feet into the sky

Snow and freezing rain expected in Britain today, especially across the north of the country.   The media have once again booped by declaring it "Deirdre" - but the MetO don't name storms on the basis of a amber warning for ice ....   We'll no doubt get a couple more "Deirdres" before it actually occurs. Thousands lose power as wild weather lashes Sydney again Ex-Cyclone Owen downgraded to tropical low half a day after crossing Queensland coast Frump has his fingers in his ears again as it's reported that the scientific basis for EPA's Endangerment Finding is stronger than ever And new research may upend what we know about how tornadoes form - it appears they may form from the ground up.

Cyclone Owen to reach category four today as it closes in on Queensland's coast Further south, Melbourne weather brings flash flooding to CBD and eastern suburbs as deluge dumped on city whilst a severe thunderstorm causes power outage to Central Coast, major delays at Sydney Airport In South Africa it's reported that a very selective tornado damages 26 schools in Eastern Cape ......  I can't find any reports of any other buildings being damaged so suspect it's just cumulative wind damage over a period of time, with the "real" story being just that 26 schools that have had damage from strong winds in recent months will have the necessary repairs carried out during the holiday period. The long dry: Why the world's water supply is shrinking And Nasa's Jupiter mission Juno reveals giant polar storms

In Australia, wild weather set to continue after heavy rain strands scores of motorists in Victoria, whilst Tropical Cyclone Owen reaches category three on NT coast, may develop to category four today Rare light pillars cast colorful columns into Wisconsin’s night sky Not good for us "coldies"; how climate change is 'shrinking winter' Record-wet and record-dry months increased in regions worldwide And a 'surprise' Palu tsunami clue found on seafloor

The mystery of the strange blob that appeared on weather radar on a clear day is solved - military chaff, and the ambient weather conditions meant it hung around longer than normal.  Not the first time this has happened. Elsewhere in the USA, Winter Storm Diego leaves four dead, one missing; over 60,000 without power in Southeast In Australia, extreme weather on the way as tropical cyclone, southern low pressure system develop in the east Meanwhile Darwin swelters through hottest night ever recorded Some good news as the Great Barrier Reef shows signs of resilience to bleaching in south, but researchers are wary Humans may be reversing the climate clock, by 50 million years Warming, sea-ice loss: Arctic Report Card tracks region's environmental changes with the "second-warmest air temperatures ever recorded; the second-lowest overall sea-ice coverage; lowest recorded winter ice in the Bering Sea; and earlier plankton blooms due to early melting...

Skyscrapers of a bleak city loom out of icy mist on Tazov peninsula - but it is an amazing mirage Winter storm kills one, knocks out power to 310,000 in U.S. Southeast Scientists watching rising Tasman Sea temperatures - again Heavy rain in Libya last week with Benghazi airport closed as heavy rain triggers flooding How a shorter sea ice season is changing life in the Arctic (the important point being that such changes ARE happening, however much Frump and his oily buddies deny it)  And Nasa's InSight probe listens to Martian winds

Air pollution claimed the lives of 1.24 million people in India in 2017, Lancet study finds Malibu is hit by huge mudslides that shut down parts of South California highways In Australia, heatwave hits the Northern Territory, beating temperature records across the Top End Cypriot President Anastasiades offers help after flooding deaths in north It seems water extraction is the reason why Tehran is sinking dangerously And 'mysterious Steve' photo wins astronomy festival contest - Steve being a " Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement " 

Greenland ice sheet melt 'off the charts' compared with past four centuries Australia's latest extreme heatwave to stretch from northern WA to Adelaide and Melbourne It's reported that, according to the Met Office, global warming made UK heatwave 30 times more likely - but that doesn't mean it wouldn't have happened regardless. Cars and coal help drive 'strong' CO2 rise in 2018 And how wind power vulnerable to climate change in India

Three rainbows photographed in Gloucestershire - the third rainbow being a reflection bow In Cyprus, the blame game starts after as storm clean-up goes on Queensland heatwave smashes BOM November records, Stradbroke Island keeps burning Meanwhile, Owen becomes the first tropical cyclone of the season and the first to develop in the Coral Sea in December since 1997 And the scene of massive landslip in Highlands remains 'a risk' with Kinlochhourn likely to remain cut off until sometime next year.  

The wettest December hour on record: Person hurt by lightning, flights delayed, schools closed as storm rages across Auckland with four cows killed by lightning in dramatic storm Shock as Chinese cities covered by bizarre yellow snow - caused by sand More floods in Iraq as families flee Mosul homes following flash floods Thinner Arctic sea ice could mask long-term climate trends And how a boom in corn production during the 20th century altered summer weather in the US Midwest, researchers find

In the US, rare December tornadoes rip through several states with several injured and one dead Australia's BOM spring review reveals warm weather and average rainfall — with another hot summer on the way .   Meanwhile, Queensland heatwave set to continue until mid-week, bushfires keep raging Eastern Europe set for break from two weeks of freezing weather - conversely, here, the temperature didn't once drop into single figures yesterday.   A typical English December day ....  Climate change: 'World at crossroads' warning as key talks begin And the Atlantic hurricane season comes to an end with 15 named storms

Alaska earthquake: Anchorage rocked by aftershocks Storm Diana: Woman dies in Wiltshire as tree crushes car In Turkey: Flash floods hit Bodrum Queensland's 'abnormal' bushfires linked to climate change How weird weather is turning the Arctic brown     Venezuela's last glacier is about to disappear Half the world’s annual rain falls in just 12 days - but it could soon be falling in just 11 days .... Space weather and the very real risks the Sun poses to Earth And scientists reveal substantial water loss in global landlocked regions at least in part due to human activities.