Weather & Earth Science News

Wildfires ravaging Arctic Circle - EU monitor - as r apid summer Russian Arctic sea-ice loss enhances the risk of recent Eastern Siberian wildfires Deadly heatwaves in June? Climate scientists explain why extreme weather is battering Greece London carries out disaster training exercise to test if it’s prepared for ‘unbelievable’ 40C heat Tropical Storm Beryl forms; likely hurricane threat To Windward Islands Nepal landslides kill nine, including 3 children S atellite captures first-of-a-kind cloud image Green energy made up the majority of the EU’s electricity in 2023 And w hat record air conditioner sales reveal about India heatwave .  Of course, more air conditioning means more electricity means more global warming .....

Deaths mount as Pakistan swelters in heatwave Meanwhile the heat wave in Greece claims more tourist lives New Jersey beachgoer dies after being struck by lightning while trying to save kids during thunderstorm New tipping point discovered beneath the Antarctic ice sheet Another round in the YD impact debate as it's claimed that shocked quartz reveals evidence of historical cosmic airburst And from Black Sea to US Midwest, extreme weather threatens crop output

  A warning about carbon dioxide's heavy stamp on temperature: Doubling CO2 may mean 7 to 14 degree increase Minnesota’s Rapidan dam partially fails amid severe flooding There are multiple state of emergencies, evacuations on East Coast as stormy weather hits NZ As winter sets in, it may be South America’s snowiest start this century Tornado rips through 1,000-year-old temple in Georgia Marine cloud brightening models show unexpected consequences of geoengineering After predictions of a very active Atlantic hurricane season, a look at the factors that could lead this hurricane season astray Portugal is among the worst affected countries as climate change ramps up extreme wildfires And will climate change really lead to more immigration?   Some experts seem to think not ....   I totally disagree - I think they are ignoring the way in which climate change will increase all the factors that we know do cause migration.  Including war.

Floods drive people from homes in Iowa as much of US swelters in extreme heat with o ne million under flood warnings as heavy rain hits US Midwest ‘Multiple disasters all in one day’: New Mexico’s brutal week of fire and flood In Switzerland: Floods cause deadly landslide Heavy rain forces evacuation of thousands, dozens of scenic spots shut in east China city At least 1,301 people died during Hajj - Saudi Arabia Australia's coldest towns revealed following week-long cold snap across eastern Australia And climate models suggest that c loud geoengineering could push heatwaves from US to Europe

A week of Europe's crazy weather as in Germany, Hungary, Turkey: Heatwaves and storms disrupt life across Europe whilst Balkans hit by blackouts as heatwave persists and Swiss tourist ski resort is hit by flooding and landslide as river busts its banks in the shadow of the Matterhorn Volunteer firefighter dies battling Greece blaze Severe storm in Moscow kills at least 2 Meanwhile, another h eatwave continues to roast 65m people in US midwest and north-east with some US schools sending students home for 'heat days' Heatwave in Mexico claims lives of more than 150 since March C limate change made US and Mexico heatwave 35 times more likely Tropical S torm Alberto claims lives in Mexico and drenches US coast Satellite images show a m assive 200-mile long dust storm or ‘haboob’ sweeps over New Mexico   In Saudi Arabia, d eath toll at hajj pilgrimage exceeds 1,000 following extreme heat Death toll from southern China floods reaches 47 Excessive heat hits countries aro

A state of ‘catastrophe’ as downpours hit Chile Cars and houses submerged in severe flooding in Moscow Greece heatwave: Warning for tourists after four dead and more missing in record temperatures Heatwave expected to spread to 250m Americans in midwest and north-east And China’s record heat and heavy rain raise food security concerns   

Southern Florida sees record-breaking storms with up to 8in of rainfall and more to come as after rare flash flood emergency, Florida prepares for more heavy rainfall in coming days Acropolis closed during hottest hours in Greece’s earliest heatwave on record Record June heat – 111.2 degrees – blankets Cyprus as houses burnt down in out-of-control Paphos wildfire Egypt swelters under heat wave And in Wales, a mini tornado lifts campervan and tosses scooters across campsite

Whilst the UK experiences an unusually cold month, elsewhere it's very different .... Fires, floods and heatwaves plague Europe as extreme weather persists Majorca flooding: Palma airport is paralysed by huge storm whilst on the mainland, floods hit Costa Blanca region popular with holidaymakers Meanwhile, in Greece, heat spurs mini-lockdown announcement Eight more die as India faces 'longest' heatwave Northern China braces for record high temperatures in major heat wave  Mexico heatwave killing monkeys, lions offered frozen meat lollies Wildfires threaten unique Brazil ecosystem And evidence that t he solar system may have passed through dense interstellar clouds 2 million years ago, altering Earth's climate

Brutal heatwave cooks US south-west, an early sign of sizzling summer ahead whilst tornadoes strike Detroit and east coast as heatwave blankets US south-west - but as heatwave records plague Southwest, relief is in sight Multiple people rescued from flood waters as parts of NSW see month’s worth of rain in 12 hours  Diminishing snowfall means Australia's ski season is on a downhill slope, but new data shows there's an off-ramp Snow in June on Scotland's mountains as Arctic air sweeps in Given how wet it was, no surprise that we saw flood alerts at record level in Great Britain in first four months of 2024 More 'cold lava’ floods Philippines village after eruption And confirmation from Copernicus that May 2024 is the 12th consecutive month with record-high temperatures

We all remember May 2020.  That gloriously long, hot, sunny month when we were all stuck at home due to the Covid lockdown.  It must have been hotter than May 2024, surely?   Hence so many on social media questioning how this May could have been the warmest on record. A simple comparison of the two respective months, just looking at the daily UK extremes (as published on the MetO website at the time) is, however quite revealing.   May 2020 Mean UK Extreme:  11.16c Mean UK Extreme Maxima: 22.32c Mean UK Extreme Minima: -0.16c Highest Maximum Temperature: 28.2c Lowest Maximum Temperature:  14.2c Days >= 20c:  21 Days >= 25c: 10 Highest Minimum Temperature: 7.1c Lowest Temperature: -6.6c Air Frosts: 15 May 2024 Mean UK Extreme:  13.22c Mean UK Extreme Maxima: 22.54c Mean UK Extreme Minima: 3.91c Highest Maximum Temperature:  27.5c Lowest Maximum Temperature: 18.6 Days >= 20c:  26 Days >=25c:  4 Highest Minimum Temperature:  7.6c Lowest Temperature:  -1.1c Air Frosts: 2 So, tak

As 12 months of record heat stack up, scientists unpack the impacts around the globe Heat dome brings dangerous weather to western US The USA's hyperactive tornado year continues after near-record May Austria closes Danube for shipping as deadly floods spread across central Europe 'Tornado-like' storm devastates town in South Africa Floods affect over 600,000 in India's Assam, death toll rises to 18 Devastating Brazil floods made twice as likely by burning of fossil fuels and trees W hy a tool to tackle climate change is struggling for cash (but there's plenty of money if you want to cover peat bogs and heather moorland in blanket afforestation) And on the 80th anniversary, the story of t he Irish lighthouse keeper who gave D-Day the go-ahead

It's been a warm May and spring for the UK - the warmest, in fact, on record! But how can it have been the warmest May when it certainly didn't feel all that warm?   And that's the nub of the issue.  Feel .    Air temperatures are taken in a aspirated Stevenson Screen - not in direct sunlight.   In May, the sun can be as strong as it is in July and August.   On a bright, calm, sunny day, the sun feels very warm indeed.   Stand in the middle of a grassy field and take a temperature reading in direct sunlight.  It could well be as high as 35c.   But, if you look at the reading inside an adjacent Stevenson Screen, it will be a lot lower.  Maybe only 20c.    Now, do the same on a cloudy, breezy day.   It certainly doesn't feel as warm.   And your personal reading taken in the same spot shows it's only 22c.   That's 13c colder.   But the temperature in the Stevenson Screen is also showing 22c.   So it's actually a warmer day.  Comparing like with like under a

Southern Germany hit by catastrophic flooding Rescue worker dies amid flooding in southern Germany Harrowing moment three friends are filmed hugging each other before being swept away in flash floods in Italy Meanwhile a l ightning strike in Czech Republic injures 18 people And Sri Lanka monsoon floods kill seven people

Texas town deploys snow plows after 50-degree temperature swing and 2 feet of hail Mexico hit with relentless, deadly heatwave At least 18 dead as scorching 50C heatwave batters India Here in the UK, has spring weather really been that bad?   Very mild, very mild, not very sunny.... There was c oncern for Iceland town following new eruption - although activity seems to now be easing again. And why Canada is riddled with wildfires that burn year-round