Submarine summer: More Russian regions drenched in tropical downpours (VIDEO, PHOTOS)

http://www.rt.com/news/russia-floods-chelyabinsk-chechnya-219/

Russia is being battered by massive tropic-like downpours in various regions, turning city streets into rivers. The latest disasters hit the city of Chelyabinsk, in the Urals, and the Republic of Chechnya, destroying communications and vehicles.

Chechnya is the latest in a string of Russian regions to experience the rage of nature, as heavy rains in the mountains which started on Saturday night have already left over 47,000 people without electricity. 

The republic is now extensively using available emergency power supplies, while the weather forecast is negative, promising more heavy rains and hails.

Shortly beforehand, Chelyabinsk – a city in the Urals Mountains with a population over a million – was drenched after a two-hour rainfall poured on to city streets. A thunderstorm combined with wind squalls, causing a series of power cuts.

The local railway station was completely flooded. Outside, knee-deep water left pedestrians housebound and damaged countless cars parked in lowlands.

It follows a similar disaster in Moscow when, on Friday July 13, it was affected by a record rainfall. Three were reportedly killed by lightning, and some of the streets in the capital’s historic center turned into furious streams, sinking dozens of parked cars. In some places the water was about one meter deep.

But evidently, it cannot be compared to the tragedy a week ago when record rainfall caused massive flood in Russia’s southern Krasnodar region on July 7. The wave of water coming from the mountains inflicted massive destruction in the area. According to the latest reports, 172 people lost their lives, while some 35,000 people have been affected by the catastrophe in total. The city of Krymsk was worst hit by the deluge, with Gelenzhik and Novorossiysk also sustaining serious damage.

Over 5,000 houses were devastated by the flood waters in the Krasnodar Region, 4,600 of them in the city of Krymsk. Altogether in the region some 250 houses were completely destroyed. Electricity, water and gas supply was discontinued for several days and locals are still struggling with the aftermath of the catastrophe.

Morocco hits 121°F (49.6°C): a national all-time heat record

Wednesday, 18 July 2012

The first new all-time national temperature record of 2012 belongs to Morocco, thanks to the 121.3°F (49.6°C) temperature measured at Marrakech on July 17, 2012. According to the Wunderground International Records data base maintained by our weather historian, Christopher C. Burt, the previous record was 120.4°F (49.1°C) at Agadir on July 30, 2009. A hotter temperature of 51.7°C (125.1°F) was reported from Aghadir (Agadir) Souss Massa Dra region on 17 August 1940 during a chergui wind event. However, this reading is considered unreliable by weather records researcher Maximiliano Herrera, since the temperature was 6°C higher than that measured at nearby stations.

Seven nations set all time heat records in 2011. Nineteen nations (plus the the U.K.'s Ascension Island) set all-time extreme heat records in 2010. One nation (Zambia, in 2011) set an all-time cold record during the period 2010 - 2012. With a very hot airmass in place over much of North Africa, the Middle East, and Western Asia the remainder of this week, more all-time national heat records may fall.

http://sawdis1.blogspot.com.ar/2012/07/morocco-hits-121f-496c-natio...

Storm darkens sky over New York City July 18, 2012

By John Makely, nbcnews.com

Photographer Inga Sarda-Sorensen took this stunning photograph as the storm descended on New York City Wednesday afternoon. Reports of hail and heavy rain along the Jersey Coast come before a predicted break in the hot weather over the next couple of days.

Photographer Dhani Jones (@Dhani jones on Twitter) took this photograph while flying around the storm and quickly posted it to his Instagram account, user name d0057.

Thunderstorms rolled through New York City on Wednesday, relieving the city of sweltering temperatures but replacing them with pounding rain, strong winds – and hail.

On Wednesday evening, storms affected air traffic along the East Coast and beyond. Inbound traffic to Newark International was delayed by more than 90 minutes, according to the FAA, while LaGuardia Airport was experiencing delays of more than two hours.

Thousands of New Yorkers lost power, and at least one injury was blamed on the storms, NBCNewYork.com reported.

Earlier in the day, temperatures hit 103 degrees in Newark, 100 in Central Park, 101 at LaGuardia and 96 at JFK Internation

http://photoblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/18/12816635-storm-dark...|utmccn=%28direct%29|utmcmd=%28none%29&__utmv=14933801.|8=Earned%20By=msnbc|cover=1^12=Landing%20Content=Mixed=1^13=Landing%20Hostname=www.nbcnews.com=1^30=Visit%20Type%20to%20Content=Earned%20to%20Mixed=1&__utmk=107641218

An aerial photo of the Mississippi river shows sandy areas where water had been before the drought. The river's levels are now nearing record lows.

Drought sends 'mighty Mississippi' river levels near record lows

The "mighty Mississippi" has lost some of its might with the season's epic drought taking its toll on river levels, which are falling to near historic lows.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will spend nearly $7 million dredging in an attempt to keep ports operational and keep the river open for barge traffic in the coming weeks. River levels in Memphis have dropped to within three feet of their historic lows from the 1988 drought.

In just one year, the river has gone through extreme fluctuation. Last May, it was within a foot of its record-high crest because of massive flooding, and today it's 55 feet lower and experiencing historic lows due to drought.

Dramatic images taken from NASA’s Terra satellite show the swollen river in late April of last year compared with images from early July this year. The expanse of the water was over 3 miles wide in parts of Missouri and Arkansas as levees were blown up in order to help protect the town of Cairo, Illinois from flood waters. The image taken July 2012 this year shows a much different story with the river less than a half mile wide in spots.

NASA’s Terra satellite shows the Mississippi River late April 2011 compared with images from early July 2012.

New data from U.S. Drought Monitor issued Thursday shows the drought has worsened in the past week, and now ranks as the second worst drought in U.S. history over the lower 48 since records began in 1895.

Nearly 64% of the contiguous United States is now in moderate to exceptional drought, second only to the summer of 1934, the height of the dust bowl era. Nearly 40% of the corn crop is now considered in poor or very poor condition, and this went up a sharp 8% in only a week.

During the 2012 crop year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 1,297 counties across 29 states as disaster areas, making all qualified farm operators in the areas eligible for low-interest emergency loans. And on Monday the USDA designated 39 additional counties in eight states as primary natural disaster areas due to damage and losses caused by drought and excessive heat.

A dozen states on Thursday were under some sort of heat advisory or warning, many of them over the worst-hit drought areas. The heat wave is expected to last through much of the weekend, which means conditions will likely continue to worsen over the coming weeks.

And the Army Corps said that the shrinking of the Mississippi means that saltwater is beginning to work its way upriver, which could threaten some water supplies.

http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2012/07/19/drought-sends-mighty-mississip...

We have stressed, at the very start of the ZetaTalk saga, that the weather would get increasingly extreme, with droughts and deluges occurring and switching about in an unpredictable manner, and that this included unpredictable changes in the jet stream. The jet stream is affected primarily by the rotation of the Earth, the slow roll, which pulls the Earth under her blanket of air and creates swirling in the temperate regions, the prevailing Westerlies, as cold air from the poles rushes to drop into voids created by this motion. The jet stream is affected secondarily by warm and cold spots, warm over land masses that are more quickly heated or cooled than the ocean, which can circulate and maintain a more even distribution within its depths. Hot air is lighter than cold, and rises, cold heavier and drops, thus the storm systems attempting to equalize the density of air. The temperature and density and direction of air masses can be determined, and thus the weatherman has historically offered predictions, but these predictions have become increasingly difficult, in part because of the Earth wobble which jerks the Earth about under her mantel of air, often at cross currents to the jet stream.  -ZT/2005

ZetaTalk: Jet Stream Tornadoes

Comment by Jenny Rogers 54 minutes ago

Hi

All over the UK weather their saying that the Jet stream has moved back. It hasn't!

Heaviest rains in 60 years kill 10 in Beijing: media

(Reuters) - The heaviest rain storm in six decades to hit the Chinese capital killed at least 10 people and caused widespread chaos, flooding streets and stranding 80,000 people at the city's main airport, state media reported on Sunday.

The storm, which started on Saturday afternoon and continued late into the night, flooded major roads and sent torrents of water tumbling down steps into underpasses.

In the Beijing suburb of Tongzhou, two people died in a roof collapse and another person killed was struck by lightning, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

Other deaths were caused by electric shocks from downed power lines and drowning, it added, without giving an exact breakdown.

More than 500 flights were cancelled at Beijing's Capital International Airport, the Beijing News said.

However, the subway system was largely unaffected, aside from being swamped with people desperate to get home and unable to use cars, buses or taxis.

The city received about 170 millimeters (6.7 inches) of rain on average, though a township in Fangshan District to Beijing's west was hit by 460mm (18.1 inches), Xinhua said.

The Beijing city government said on its website (www.beijing.gov.cn) it was working to get the metropolis back on its feet, but reminded people to prepare for further bad weather.

"The weather forecasters say that from late July to early September this city is prone to flooding, and there could be further large-scale storms or extreme weather," it said.

Many residents took to China's popular micro blogging site Sina Weibo to post dramatic pictures of the storm. Some complained the city should have been prepared, especially as the government had issued a severe storm warning the day before.

"It was forecast early on that Beijing would get torrential rain, so why were pumps and other facilities not prepared in time?" complained one user.

But at least one good result came from the storm.

The official pollution index, which had showed an unhealthy rating before the storm hit, registered "excellent" on Sunday, with the air noticeably free of its normal acrid smell.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Ed Lane)

Tornado Forms at 12,000 Feet Near Summit of Mount Evans, Colorado (July 28) -

Mount Evans twister rates a second in the record books

http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_21191680/mount-evans-twis...

The funnel-shaped twister that touched down on the crest of Mount Evans Saturday has been confirmed as a tornado — the second highest ever recorded by the National Weather Service in the United States.

"It's not unprecedented to have tornadoes in the mountains. But they are rare," said National Weather Service meteorologist David Barjenbruch.

Barjenbruch said at 11,900 feet the tornado was above treeline and did not do any damage. He said it did surprise many drivers on Mount Evans, some of whom were above the tornado and had the rare opportunity to look down into the funnel.

Witnesses posted pictures on Facebook, and the weather service was able to use those pictures and accounts as well as documentation from an official weather spotter and from Google Earth to determine the funnel-shaped cloud was truly a tornado and to place the tornado's touchdown point. Barjenbruch called it a "weak" twister.

He said tornadoes in the mountains generally are shorter-lived and weaker than tornadoes that form in more open terrain. But there have been strong, damaging tornadoes recorded.

The most violent mountain tornado occurred in Wyoming in 1987 and tore up a forest at 10,000 feet as it passed over the Continental Divide. Another violent twister occured in Utah in 1992. The only tornado to beat the Mount Evans twister in elevation occured in 2004 in Sequoia National Park in California at 12,000 feet.

Barjenbruch said it is hard to say if the numbers of mountain tornadoes are increasing because there is no good historical record for comparison. He said the twisters are more often reported and verified now because more people are in the mountains and are able to document the weather phenomenon with smart phones and cameras.

photo source

Rare Snowfall Stuns Much of South Africa (August 7) -

"Snow falling in Johannesburg is like getting snow in northern Mexico."

The snow began Tuesday morning, part of an extreme cold snap now biting into a nation still in its winter months. By mid-afternoon, officials recorded snowfall across every South African province except Limpopo, though a formal report from the region had yet to reach the South African Weather Service, agency spokeswoman Kenosi Machepa said. Satellite imagery suggested the snow reached there as well, she said.

The snow closed some roads and at least one high-altitude pass.

The snow grew heavier in the afternoon in Johannesburg, covering rooftops and slicking roads. Snowflakes are a rare commodity in Johannesburg, even during winter. South African Weather Service records show it has snowed in Johannesburg on only 22 other days in the last 103 years. The last snow fell there in June 2007.

Source
http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/around-the-world-deadly-...

I posted earlier that July 2012 was the hottest month ever recorded in Denver, CO. Well, now it has been expanded to include all of the US! Hottest month ever recorded!

the contiguous United States in July was 77.6 Fahrenheit, a full 3.3 degrees above the 20th century average.

The previous warmest July was in 1936, when the nation's average temperature was 77.4 degrees.

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/08/13182298-july-is-hottest...

 

@ Lisa Fisk

 

http://www.zetatalk.com/index/zeta469.htm  

 

Nancy is the the strange path of Hurricane Fay in the USA related to the approach of planet X? [and from another] Fay's 4th Florida Landfall One For The Record Books [Aug 23] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/08/23/fays-4th-florida-landfall_n_120803.html Tropical Storm Fay crossed into the Florida Panhandle on Saturday, becoming the first storm of its kind in recorded history to hit the state four different times. Though Fay never materialized into a hurricane, downpours along its zigzagging path have been punishing and deadly. Fay has been an unusual storm, even by Florida standards. It first made landfall in the Florida Keys on Monday, then headed out over open water again before hitting a second time near Naples on the southwest coast. It limped across the state, popped back out into the Atlantic Ocean and struck again near Flagler Beach on the central coast. It was the first storm in almost 50 years to make three landfalls in the state, as most hit and exit within a day or two.

This is a perfect example of what the Earth wobble is doing to the Earth and her atmosphere. If one imagines being positioned on the Sun, looking at Earth when the Sun is over Europe at high noon, one would not see the geographic N and S Poles in a straight up and down position, at 12 and 6 o'clock respectively. Instead, the N Pole would seem to be at 11 o'clock and the S Pole at 5 o'clock. Then as the globe turns and high noon is over the Americas, the N and S Poles would appear to be at 1 o'clock and 7 o'clock respectively. What this does for the atmosphere over the Atlantic is first it masses over the East Coast of the US, during the European lean, and then it masses over the Gulf of Mexico during the Americas lean. The air masses shift positions. This is why Fay has gone back and forth across Florida, instead of one of the usual routes that hurricanes take.

Drought shrinks Mississippi River to unprecedented shallow depths, threatens to close barge traffic. (August 10) -

http://www.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_t3#/video/us/2012/08/10/dnt-savidg...

Salt creeping up the Mississippi River

“(CNN) -- A drought in Louisiana has lowered the Mississippi River, leaving its southern tip awash in saline from the Gulf of Mexico and prompting health officials in Plaquemines Parish to issue a drinking water advisory.

"The water's perfectly safe to drink," said Guy Laigast, director of the parish's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, in a telephone interview Wednesday. "It's just got the elevated salt."

With the mighty Mississippi near its all-time low, the salty water has crept in as a wedge, he said. Because salty water is denser than fresh, it tends to collect at lower depths, he said.”

Watch dryness overtake U.S.

Source:

http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/15/us/louisiana-drinking-water/index.htm... 

Fall-like Weather Greets Northern U.S.

Enlarge

Multiple water spouts spotted on Lake Michigan (Aug 19)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2193480/Typhoon-batters-sou...

Typhoon batters southern Taiwan, with another heading for Japanese island of Okinawa

By John Hutchinson

PUBLISHED: 17:18 GMT, 25 August 2012 | UPDATED: 17:48 GMT, 25 August 2012

Coaches were overturned and hundred of people's homes were ripped apart as a typhoon swept through southern Taiwan.

The army were called in to help with the clean-up operation, as trees were uprooted and furniture was seen floating in the streets of the East Asian state.

Flood waters from Typhoon Tembin reached nine feet high in one town, where armored vehicles rescued several dozen people from their flooded homes.

Scroll down for video

Nightmare: The typhoon has ruined people's homes and possessions

Chaos: A billboard rests on the damaged roof of a shop after falling over in winds brought by Typhoon Tembin

Powerful: A tour bus lies on its side after being blown over by winds caused by the typhoon

Battling through: Residents clean flood damaged goods brought on by Typhoon Tembin in Hengchun Township in Pingtung County, southern Taiwan

The typhoon largely spared the island’s heavily populated areas, while another, larger storm was threatening to hit the southern Japanese island of Okinawa.

It is believed five people were injured in its path, including two firefighters.

Television pictures from the town of Hengchun showed empty buses overturned by raging waters and streets littered with uprooted trees and pieces of mangled furniture.

View from above: NASA's Aqua satellite flew over Typhoon Tembin after it had crossed southern Taiwan and re-emerged into the waters of the Philippine Seas

After quickly crossing the island, Tembin returned to sea by late morning.

Back in August 2009, Taiwan was devastated by Typhoon Morakot, which was the deadliest of its kind to ever hit the island, killing around 700 people.

The government was criticised for its slow deployment of supplies and troops, which could account for stationing around 50,000 soldiers on standby this time around should the typhoon return and wreak more havoc.

Typhoon Bolaven, meanwhile, could reach Okinawa soon with maximum winds near the eye forecast at 112 mph.

On Friday, the storm had winds of 101 mph, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

The agency issued advisories for gale-force winds in Okinawa and high waves in the waters around the island, where more than half the 50,000 U.S. troops based in Japan are stationed.

One of the biggest, Kadena Air Base, banned water-based activities in the rough seas as part of its preparations for the typhoon.

In Taiwan, authorities mindful of a devastating typhoon that took 700 lives three years ago had evacuated mountainous, landslide-prone areas and readied troops for rescue operations, but for the most part, they were not needed.

Winds measuring close to 96 mph toppled trees and blew out windows in the area, but no casualties were reported.

Forecasters say Tembin, now a tropical storm, appears to be heading for mainland China but could turn back and dump more rain across Taiwan’s southern agricultural heartland.

The impact of Tembin in the heavily populated areas of northern Taiwan was extremely limited.

Businesses and schools in Taipei were operating normally, and flights at the capital’s two airports were unaffected.

Helping hand: Taiwan soldiers help residents to clean areas affected by floods brought on by Typhoon Tembin

Dirty work: Soldiers muck in to help the residents out after the typhoon crashed through buildings

Big job ahead: Residents clean quarters affected by a mud slide caused by heavy rain dumped by Typhoon Tembin

No let up: Soldiers removing fallen trees in Taitung, southern Taiwan, in the aftermath of the typhoon

Extreme heat hits S. Dakota; schools close early

Up to 20 inches of rain and an 11-foot storm surge inundate Louisiana in what is now being called "more water than Katrina".

http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/isaac-stats-rain-floodin...

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2012/08/31/isaac-.html

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The first eight months of 2012 have been the warmest of any year on record in the contiguous United States, and this has been the third-hottest summer since record-keeping began in 1895, the U.S. National Climate Data Center said on Monday.

Each of the last 15 months has seen above-average temperatures, something that has never happened before in the 117 years of the U.S. record, said Jake Crouch, a climate scientist at the data center.

Winter, spring and summer 2012 have all been among the top-five hottest for their respective seasons, Crouch said by telephone, and that too is unique in the U.S. record. There has never been a warmer September-through-August period than in 2011-2012, he said.

"We're now, in terms of statistics, in unprecedented territory for how long this warm spell has continued in the contiguous U.S.," Crouch said.

He did not specify that human-spurred climate change was the cause of the record heat........

.......Alyson Kenward of the non-profit research and journalism organization Climate Central said in a statement, "Extreme heat is closely tied to climate change, and this summer's heat wave left a global warming signature in the data, particularly in the ratio of record high to record low temperatures."

Normally, the number of record highs and record lows would balance out, with an average ratio of one to one. This year, 25 states have had high to low temperature ratios of 10 to one or greater; 14 have had a ratio greater than 20 to one; and three have had greater than 40 to one ratios, Climate Central said.

Ohio topped this list with 49 record high temperatures for every record low.

DROUGHT PERVADES U.S. MIDSECTION

Last month was only the 16th warmest August on record, though still hotter than average, according to the climate data center, which is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

June was also warmer than average, while July broke the all-time heat record, the data center scientists said in a statement.

It was a dry summer: as of August 28, nearly 63 percent of the Lower 48 U.S. states were experiencing drought. Still, precipitation overall was near the long-term average, with the Southwest and Southeast wetter than average and the Northwest and Northern plains drier.

The Midwest has suffered the most extreme heat, according to Climate Central, which crunches the U.S. government's weather and climate numbers.

Wisconsin, Iowa and Missouri ranked first, second and third, respectively, in terms of extreme heat in 2012, Climate Central said, followed by Indiana, Minnesota, North Dakota, Illinois and Ohio. Two states outside the Midwest - Colorado and Arkansas - rounded out the top 10.

Outside the Lower 48, the U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Center has already reported that Arctic sea ice has shrunk to a record small size, and the melting season is not over yet. The Arctic is sometimes characterized as the world's air conditioner.

As of September 5, the ice on the Arctic Ocean was less than 1.54 million square miles (4 million square km), a 45 percent reduction compared to September conditions in the 1980s and 1990s.

Snow in North Iceland in early September is not unheard of but snowfall of two to three meters overnight at this time of year—when the sheep are still in highland pastures—is highly unusual.

Source

Setting the world on fire: Stunning picture of rare 'devil tornado' emerges
Mon, Sep 17, 2012

An awe-struck filmmaker has told of the moment he witnessed one of nature's rarest phenomena - a fire tornado.

Chris Tangey had been out in Alice Springs, Australia, scouting locations for a new movie.

After finishing he went over to help workers at a cattle station when he was confronted by one of nature's most intimidating spectacles.

Just 300 metres away was a 30-metre high fire swirl which "sounded like a fighter jet", despite there being no wind in the area.
A fire tornado, also know as a fire devil, is caused when a column of warm, rising air comes into contact - or causes - a fire on the ground.

These fire whirls are known to last for around two minutes on the very rare occasions they take place.

But Chris found himself mesmerised by the tornado for more than 40 minutes.

The 52-year-old said: "The weather was perfectly still and it was about 25 degrees celsius - it was an entirely uneventful day.
Then the next thing a man is yelling 'what the hell is that?' and I turned around and saw a 30-metre fire tornado.

"I was about 300 metres away and there was no wind but the tornado sounded just like a fighter jet. My jaw just dropped."

Chris, who runs Alice Springs Film and Television, in Australia, described it as a "once in ten lifetimes experience".

He added: "I've been shooting in the outback for 23 years and I have never seen anything like it. We've heard about them but they're never seen.

"If I had known what was about to happen then I would have happily paid $1,000 to watch it.

"At any time there were three different tornadoes, it just kept going and going for 40 minutes.

"The whole experience was staggering and the length and variety were astonishing."
Although they are rare, these spectacles are extremely dangerous.

In 1923, a fire whirl emerged during Japan's Great Kanto Earthquake and killed 38,000 people in just 15 minutes.

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/setting-the-world-on-fire-stunning-picture...

Potentially the first new cloud formation to be recognised for 61 years:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2207449/Bit-grey-area-Undul...

With its turbulent swirls and brooding peaks, this is the magnificent 'undulatus asperatus,' a new species of cloud discovered by amateur sky watchers.

Now the UK-based Cloud Appreciation Society (CAS) is lobbying for it to be formally recognised by the World Meteorological Organisation in Geneva and be included in the International Cloud Atlas. The latter has not been produced since 1975.

If the CAS is successful it will be the first time a new cloud type has been officially recognised since 1951.

Meaning 'agitated wave,' the undulatus asperatus was first photographed above Cedar Rapids in Iowa, U.S. in 2006.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

first observed shortly after the wobble started, most likely an effect of the disturbed wind patterns/jet stream

Extreme Storm Takes Brazil From 108 to -30 and Snow!

The MetSul blog this week (translated) tells a harrowing tale of extreme heat in Brazil, followed by severe storms with hail and flooding as a powerful Spring storm system (one of the most intense ever) moved through between September 15 and 17. The temperature at Antonina, Parana, Brazil spiked to 108° F (42.1 C) before the storm hit, breaking not only winter, but summer heat records for Southern Brazil.

Source

Tropical Storm Nadine, which formed in the north-central Atlantic 3 weeks ago (on Sept 11) is breaking records as one of the longest lasting tropical storms on record as it continues to loop in circles.

Source

Tropical Storm Nadine Still Alive, 3 Weeks Later -

http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20121002/ARTICLE/121009926

Nadine seemed destined to be forgotten as just another tropical storm that fizzled out at sea. Now, still churning loop-de-loops in the Atlantic Ocean, Nadine is making history as one of the longest-lasting tropical storms ever.

At about the same latitude as North Carolina, Nadine has been been a named storm for 20 days. If it lasts another week, Tropical Storm Nadine would break the record for longevity.

But even if it dies out, Nadine is already going down in the record books. Only seven tropical systems have remained at tropical depression strength or greater for longer than Nadine, according to National Hurricane Center records.

The storm that beats them all was the San Ciriaco Hurricane of 1899 — a record set before aircraft and satellites provided fine details of a storm's lifespan.

While the people in the Azores — a Portuguese island chain 970 miles west of Lisbon — are tiring of Nadine's persistence nearby, forecasters are marveling. The storm was making its third pass at the island on Tuesday, prompting the Portuguese government to issue a tropical storm watch.

"You usually don't see a tropical storm stick around at 35 degrees northern latitude for very long," said Mark Paquette, a meteorologist with Accuweather.com.

Nadine formed on Set. 11 in the north-central Atlantic, the last system spawned so far this year.

Since 1960, when satellites began capturing imagery of tropical systems, only four storms have outlived Nadine.

But Nadine, still producing 65 mph sustained winds on Tuesday, isn't finished yet. It was forecast to remain at tropical storm strength through Thursday.

If it does, Nadine will beat Inez of 1966, which lasted 20.25 days, and tie Kyle of 2002, which lasted 22 days.

Tropical Storm Ginger of 1971 lasted 27 days; the 1899 storm lasted 27.75. It is unlikely that Nadine will survive that long. A frontal system is forecast to push Nadine out of its bizarre loop later this week.

Nadine grew slowly into a hurricane last month on a mostly northward course, east of Bermuda. Instead of dying, like many storms that climb into northern latitudes, Nadine kept going.

By the time Nadine reached hurricane strength it was traveling nearly due east toward Europe. It weakened into a tropical storm on Sept. 16 and then wandered southwest of the Azores until falling apart on Sept. 21.

Less than two days later, Nadine re-strengthened into a tropical storm. It regained hurricane status on Sept. 28 before dropping to tropical storm strength on Monday, southwest of the Azores. On Tuesday, the National Hurricane Center predicted it would head straight toward the islands.

Nadine's unusual loop pattern is the result of a lack of steering flow from the jet stream, Paquette said. The storm is essentially caught in an eddy, circling and maintaining its strength from warm water, moisture and lack of competing winds.

Driest August & September in Vancouver BC on Record

Only eight mm of rain fell over those months this year, breaking the previous record set in 1907 of 9 mm of precipitation in August and September.

The 1907 record was set in Steveston, where weather data dates back to 1896.

Records have been kept in Vancouver since 1937.

The record for the month of August alone was set in 1986, when there was zero recorded rainfall.

There was 3 mm of rain this August.

For September, the record is 0.3 mm, set in 1975. This year, 5 mm of rain was recorded at Vancouver International Airport.

It’s expected the dry conditions will stick around — there’s still no rain in this week’s forecast.

First Week in October Brings Record Cold and Snowfall Across U.S. (Oct 7) -

With 74 record lows set on Oct 6 - as low as minus 5 degrees F (-21 C) in Wyoming and over a foot of snow in Minnesota, the unrelenting heat and drought of this year's summer has abruptly moved into winter within the first several days of October.

Source

RARE OCTOBER SNOW ACCROSS SOUTH AUSTRALIA (OCT 11)

Rare at any time, there has been October snow across some southern areas of South Australia.

The weather bureau in Adelaide said the last reports of snowfall in the Adelaide and neighbouring Mount Lofty Ranges region in October were a century ago.

Locals at Hallett in the mid-north of the state, around Crafers, Mount Lofty, Lobethal and Belair in the Adelaide hills, Sevenhill in the Clare Valley and Mount Remarkable in the lower Flinders Ranges have been surprised by snowfalls.

Farmers in the agricultural areas have welcomed rainfall that has boosted their crop prospects.

Some grain growers say the falls have come too late for them, but crops in later districts will get the benefits.

The highest measured falls in the state have included 34mm at Kuitpo in the Mount Lofty Ranges, 27 millimetres at Wilmington in the upper north and 26mm at Melrose.

There have been 21mm at Clare in the mid-north, 19mm at Riverton, 17mm at Auburn, 8mm at Lameroo in the Murray Mallee and 11mm at Keith in the south-east.

Adelaide has had about 18mm.

A maximum wind gust of 91 kilometres per hour was recorded at Edithburg on lower Yorke Peninsula.

Emergency volunteers have been called to dozens of incidents since the rough weather first hit Adelaide late on Wednesday.

Many of the problems were with fallen trees.

At suburban Brighton, a car was crushed when a large shopping centre sign fell in high winds.

Raelene Zanker, from Booleroo Centre, said she had lived in the region for half a century and not seen snow so late in the season.

"Going back I think it was in the '70s some time we had lots and lots of snow, but we haven't had anything like that for years now and we've never seen snow in October before, well not since I've been here anyway," she said.

The October freeze saw Mount Lofty's minimum temperature hit 0.4 degrees Celsius this morning. It got as low at 0.6 at Naracoorte and 1.1 at Mount Crawford.

Senior forecaster Tom Boeck confirmed the rarity of the weather conditions.

"In springtime we do get some quite significant shifts in the weather in terms of temperature, but I must admit it's quite unusual to be getting a snow event in October," he said.

Source

Scientists find Antarctic ice is at record HIGH levels

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/10/121013-antarctica-s...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2216238/Now-theres-i...

14/10/2012
Two minitornades in Vendée near Marseille- FRANCE

The phenomenon is rare, took place in the early morning near La Roche-sur-Yon and in the afternoon at Plan de Campagne.

A hundred houses on the 435 that make up the town Vendée Saint-Hilaire-le-Vouhis has been affected to varying degrees by a large intensity of minitornade made ​​no victim Sunday morning. Whole sections of roof were blown off. Some trees also fell on the floor.

"It only lasted a few minutes, there was a lot of noise, rain and wind," testified residents with fire, reported the Agence France-Presse Isabelle Stern-Forestier, spokesman firefighters Vendée.

Public buildings, including a school, were affected, but also the church, "who lost an entire section of the roof," recounted Isabelle Forestier-Severe. No relocation request was made ​​for the time being. "People are shocked, especially the elderly, because of the magnitude of the noise," testified a resident.

Throughout the department of Vendée, firefighters made ​​more than 300 interventions
Sunday morning.
Météo-France and Meteo Consult bulletins were published Saturday in vigilance department in the Pays de la Loire, due to expected heavy rains and flood risk. Alerts were lifted during the day on Sunday for this area. Against by the Centre region, Météo-France warned that departments of Indre-et-Loire, Loir-et-Cher and Loiret remain vigilant.

At the same time, we learned that another minitornade blew Sunday afternoon on the commercial area of ​​Plan de Campagne, near Marseille, making a couple of minor injuries and causing widespread damage. At around 16:15, the tornado swept for 10 minutes some 20 hectares where are implanted numerous commercial brands. e sky was "very dark, there was a lot of wind, rain and flying objects many trees, pieces of wood, newspaper, cardboard packaging", told Agence France-Presse employee of a sign appliances.

VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=LR-43nKu8tU

Traduced by google
http://www.lefigaro.fr/actualite-france/2012/10/14/01016-20121014AR...
http://www.2012un-nouveau-paradigme.com/article-une-tornade-s-abat-...

RARE OCTOBER CYCLONE IN INDIAN OCEAN (OCT 15)

Tropical Cyclone Anais is estimated to have a maximum wind of 115 mph as of early this morning, which is equivalent to a category 3 hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean.
The southwestern Indian Ocean is prone to tropical cyclones but what makes Anais so rare is that it is occurring in October, which is early springtime in the southern Hemisphere.

The peak period for tropical events in this part of the world is normally during our winter months of January-March.

Anais is forecast to move southwest in the general direction of Madagascar for the next five days and weaken as it moves into cooler waters and unfavorable winds.

We rarely hear much about the southern Indian Ocean storms as the area has little land and the storms mostly stay at sea.

Occasionally Madagascar or the island nations of Mauritius and Reunion will take a hit, and more rarely a storm will reach mainland Africa.

Forecast responsibility for this region is through the French weather service, Meteo France, located in La Reunion to the east of Madagascar.

The countries in the Indian Ocean simply refer to these storms as Tropical Cyclones, regardless of intensity.

Tropical Cyclone Anais is the same thing as a hurricane in the Atlantic or typhoon in the western Pacific.

However, note that it rotates the opposite direction, clockwise, because it is in the southern Hemisphere.

To illustrate how unusual this event is, Anais is like having a Category 3 hurricane in the Caribbean in April.

Source

scientists warn the UK must plan for "periodic swings of drought conditions and flooding"

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-19995084

Dust storm shuts down interstate in northern Okla.

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — A massive dust storm swirling reddish-brown clouds over northern Oklahoma triggered a multi-vehicle accident along a major interstate Thursday, forcing police to shut down part of the heavily traveled roadway amid near blackout conditions.

In a scene reminiscent of the Dust Bowl days, choking dust suspended on strong wind gusts shrouded Interstate 35, which links Dallas and Oklahoma City to Kansas City, Mo. Video from television station helicopters showed the four-lane highway virtually disappearing into billowing dust on the harsh landscape near Blackwell, plus dozens of vehicles scattered in the median and on the shoulders.

"I've never seen anything like this," said Jodi Palmer, a dispatcher with the Kay County Sheriff's Office. "In this area alone, the dirt is blowing because we've been in a drought. I think from the drought everything's so dry and the wind is high."

The highway patrol said the dust storm caused a multi-car accident, and local police said nearly three dozen cars and tractor-trailers were involved. Blackwell Police Chief Fred LeValley said nine people were injured, but there were no fatalities.

State transportation workers were called into to close the highway between U.S. 60 and Oklahoma 11, an 8-mile stretch of the cross-country roadway.

"We have very high winds and blowing dust causing a near blackout condition," Capt. James West of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said Thursday afternoon. He said visibility was less than 10 feet.

The stretch of closed roadway reopened Thursday evening after crews cleaned up debris and waited for winds to die down, Oklahoma Department of Transportation spokesman Cole Hackett said.

The area is just south of the Kansas state line in far northern Oklahoma. Interstate 35 runs from the Mexican border in south Texas to Duluth, Minn.

A red flag fire warning was in place for parts of northern Oklahoma on Thursday, as was a blowing dust advisory.

The National Weather Service forecast for the area said winds would subside to 20 mph or lower overnight but that gusts as high as 28 mph could continue. Calm winds were expected by Friday night.

The area has suffered through an extended drought and many farmers had recently loosened the soil while preparing for the winter wheat season.

"You have the perfect combination of extended drought in that area ... and we have the extremely strong winds," said Gary McManus, the Oklahoma associate state climatologist.

"Also, the timing is bad because a lot of those farm fields are bare. The soil is so dry, it's like powder. Basically what you have is a whole bunch of topsoil waiting for the wind to blow it away. It's no different from the 1930s than it is now."

Steve Austin, a Kay County commissioner, said visibility was terrible.

"It looked like a huge fog was over the city of Ponca City," he said. "We've had dust storms before, but I don't remember anything of this magnitude in years."

 http://news.yahoo.com/dust-storm-shuts-down-interstate-northern-okl...

From Drought to Deluge in Spain (Oct 21) -

Two bridges collapsed and roads were closed when heavy rain and flooding hit Sadaba, near Zaragoza, in Spain

After the driest winter in 70 years and the worst forest fires in a decade, Spain and Portugal have been hit by strong winds and flooding rains and there has been some loss of life.

The heavy rain set in after an Atlantic storm system came arrived from the west. It quickly ran into a large area of high pressure which had developed over central Europe, dragging warm moist air in from the Mediterranean. The resulting converging winds forced the air to rise rapidly resulting in the violent downpours.

The worst of the flooding hit the northeastern Catalonia region of Spain. Here, emergency management teams working in Gerona province, found the body of a woman in the sea after she was swept away by a huge wave on the beach at Lloret del Mar.

Authorities are also looking for two other people who have since been reported missing. Citizens were urged to take extreme precautions all along the coast where waves as high as 2.5 metres battered the shores.

The region of Aragon experienced heavy rain, causing flooding and widespread damage in the province of Zaragoza. The torrential downpours raised the water level of a river until it flooded houses and stores and damaged cars parked along the roadways.

Meanwhile, Villadolid, located on the Spanish Plain to the north of Madrid recorded 44mm of rain in 24 hours on Thursday. Further north, Santander had 67mm in the same period Thursday evening going into Friday.

The worst of the rain is now moving into the western Mediterranean Sea, but there will still be further sharp showers affecting eastern Spain over the next couple of days. Any respite thereafter is likely to be short-lived. More heavy rain is expected to move across Spain and Portugal by the middle of next week.

Source

Interesting how the forecasters are saying look out for red rain... since when has the Sahara had red sand/dust?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2220928/Scenes-Red-October-...

Reflecting on a stunning autumn as 20C days are predicted for this week... but watch out for 'blood rain' at Halloween due to red dust blown from the Sahara

• The onset of autumn has transformed the foliage around the Lake District into a glorious patchwork of green, red and gold
• Forecasters are predicting unseasonably warm weather next week thanks to a warm band of air from North Africa, but warned the mild conditions won't last, with snow on its way towards the end of the week
• 'Blood rain' also expected as band carries red Saharan dust

UK experiences 'weirdest' weather (Oct 19)

The UK has experienced its "weirdest" weather on record in the past few months, scientists say.

The driest spring for over a century gave way to the wettest recorded April to June in a dramatic turnaround never documented before.

The scientists said there was no evidence that the weather changes were a result of Man-made climate change.

But experts from three bodies warned the UK must plan for periodic swings of drought conditions and flooding.

The warning came from the Environment Agency, Met Office and Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH) at a joint briefing in London.

Terry Marsh, from the CEH, said there was no close modern precedent for the extraordinary switch in river flows. The nearest comparison was 1903 but this year was, he said, truly remarkable.

What was also remarkable - and also fortunate - was that more people did not suffer from flooding. Indeed, one major message of the briefing was that society has been steadily increasing its resilience to floods.

Paul Mustow, head of flood management at the Environment Agency, told BBC News that 4,500 properties had been flooded this year.

"But if you look back to 2007 when over 55,000 properties were flooded, we were relatively lucky - if lucky is the right word - for the impacts we saw this summer," he said. ...

Source

Central Australia baking in rare October heat

Much of central Australia is baking in heat not experienced at this time of year in decades.

Temperatures have been reaching the high thirties each day for about a week, the longest it has been this hot at this time of year in more than 20 years.

Source

5 Tornadoes and 2 Feet of Snow in Northern California (Oct 22) -

Chain installers work as snow falls on eastbound Interstate 80 near Nyack, Calif., Monday, Oct. 22, 2012.

http://www.gadsdentimes.com/article/20121023/WIRE/121029935?Title=T...

Fall looked a lot like winter across Northern California on Monday as the first major storm of the season spawned 5 tornadoes, brought out snow plows on Interstate 80 and showered the rest of the parched region with much-needed rain.

The tornado touched down 40 miles north of Sacramento. Only minor damage was reported when it hit at 3:15 p.m. near Yuba City.

There were several other reports of funnel clouds north of Sacramento, but no others touched down, said National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Kurth.

Forecasters were calling for up to 2 feet of snow at the highest elevations in the northern Sierra Nevada, a good sign for a state dependent on winter snow accumulation for its water supply.

"It looks like Mother Nature threw us our first snowball," said Rochelle Jenkins of Caltrans, which was enforcing chain controls above 4,300 feet on I-80, the state's main highway from San Francisco to Reno, Nev.

There were reports of downed power lines and trees across the northern half of the state.

Despite the threat of rain, the skies remained clear so the San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals could play the deciding seventh game of the National League Championship Series at AT&T Park

Before the game there was a 30 to 40 percent chance of scattered showers across the region at game time, said Charles Bell, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

"It's one of these cases where one city could pick up a little, but one 20 miles away would be dry," he said. "If any go through it will be relatively light — less than a tenth of an inch — and fairly brief."

Earlier in the day, chain controls were in effect on U.S. Highway 50 southwest of Lake Tahoe. By late morning, nearly an inch of rain had fallen on Sacramento.

Law enforcement authorities were working most of the morning to clear five jackknifed big rigs that forced the closing of Highway 20 east of Nevada City, where at least 6 inches of snow had accumulated by midmorning.

Caltrans, meanwhile, worked to keep traffic flowing through a 10-mile construction zone on I-80 about 75 miles northeast of Sacramento, using plows to toss snow over concrete barriers.

A winter storm warning above 5,500 feet was in effect until 5 a.m. Tuesday. The heaviest snowfall was expected on Monday, though snow showers were expected into Tuesday night, said Karl Swanberg, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Sacramento.

More widespread precipitation was expected to move across Northern California on Wednesday.

In the southern Sierra Nevada, the California Highway Patrol issued a chain warning for Highway 168 near Shaver Lake. Yosemite National Park was expecting about 8 inches of snow above 6,000 feet. Tioga Pass and Glacier Point Road were closed at 10 p.m. Sunday, but officials intended to assess conditions on both as weather improves.

The storm system originated in the Gulf of Alaska and has stalled over the Pacific Northwest, bringing colder temperatures and gusty winds of 80 mph at the crests of the Sierra Nevada.

hurricane sandy surprising experts.  lower pressure than expected, taking a rare turn that models show hurricanes taking in the past, but meteorologists still seem surprised, and just the size of it! 

the zetas stated they aren't sure what the council of the worlds will do in the time between now and the announcement, if and when it comes.?

sozt
This puts the announcement on hold until after the election. Just what the
Council of Worlds decides to do, in the meantime, is unknown at this time. They
have declared war on the cover-up, but cannot fault Obama for trying. He
struggled for a month during sabotage by professional cover-up artists.
Disasters within the US, which Obama addresses well and with compassion, would
not hurt Obama’s chances, and in fact would likely enhance them. Thus the S
American roll with some sinking of Caribbean islands, extreme N American bow
tension and early New Madrid quakes might occur, as all of this is well behind
schedule. Signs in the skies are beginning to be seen without filters,
worldwide, and this trend is likely to increase so the Earth changes are
connected to this presence. end sozt

http://www.zetatalk5.com/ning/20oc2012.htm

the z's didn't say hurricane, but if that was the plan, they wouldn't:)

the wheather channel is on overtime and, with the storms rare left turn, are very weary of this storm

Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Hurricane "Sandy" throughout the North American continent
Climate anomalies were also slaughtered in Europe. In Moscow meteorologists promise unprecedented cold and freezing rain.
Last week climate anomalies have also shot on the Eurasian continent. Because of snowfall a few French and Swiss cities remained without electricity. Moscow meteorologists predict rain and icy cold strong. Two years ago, 27 people suffered from this phenomenon of nature

Traduced by google

http://www.2012un-nouveau-paradigme.com/article-les-calamites-clima...

Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Weather Alert: New degradation around the Mediterranean
Depression will grow in the Mediterranean and circulate between the Balearic Islands, Corsica and the Gulf of Genoa, bringing with it moderate to heavy rains in the Mediterranean.
Accumulations are expected in the range of 80 to 100 mm
http://www.2012un-nouveau-paradigme.com/article-alerte-meteo-nouvel...

Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Heavy rains wreak havoc in Buenos Aires- Argentine- and its suburbs

Heavy rains have wreaked havoc Monday in Buenos Aires and its suburbs, where two people were killed, while power cuts multiplied and transport was severely disrupted, officials said.
In six hours of 3:00 to 9:00 local, it rained 87.4 mm, according to the Meteorological Service nationalism
Many avenues of the capital and several expressways leading to downtown were flooded, some vehicles being blocked and other washed out.
Five of the seven subway lines in the capital, as well as several suburban rail links have their service interrupted for several hours. The water is locally engulfed in subway stations, up to flood some ways, according to images broadcast by several TV channels.
Several failures have hit the traffic light system, contributing to the impression of chaos in this city of 14 million people.
http://www.2012un-nouveau-paradigme.com/article-de-fortes-pluies-se...

Flooding on the coast of the Balkans with hurricane force winds

Thursday, 1. november 2012

In Croatia, the night had the fierce, occasionally hurricane south at speeds even exceeding 120 kilometers per hour stopped several ferry connections to the area of ​​Split - including the islands of Brac and Vis and between Mljetom and Peljesac. Peljesac is t. i. Ladislav cyclone caused extensive damage. High waves were also insulted parts of Split.
 
Rijeka is the water from entering the city center and includes main flooded market. Also, in several places in the area Pula sea level rises caused a number of problems, the sea is also flood the area of Zadar. Due to situation hampered transport in the river and in Gorski Kotar.

Sources:

bitly.com/RxU9x6

bit.ly/PpSSKi

Hottest November day in decades for parts of southeast QLD

It's been a hot day for parts of southeast Queensland, but a cooler change is sweeping through the region.

Built up heat from over central Australia was dragged over the region by northwesterly winds during the morning, bringing the hottest November day for many years to a range of places.

Maryborough was one of the warmest, maxing out at 36 degrees, its warmest November day in 18 years.

Double Island Point reached 33 degrees at midday, which was the hottest day there since January and the hottest November day since 1957. Meanwhile Bundaberg airport recorded their hottest day since February at 32.

Source

Flooding in Slovenia: parts of the country under water

MONDAY 05/11/2012

Floods in Slovenia caused a lot of trouble and fear among the population. Water has flooded many buildings and roads and triggered a series of landslides. It is closed several roads and rail links.

Red alarm for large parts of the country. Centenary water: Severe clock on the Drava river, sirens and record levels of river flow. Dravograd suffered great disaster, black cut off from the world.Traffic information center for the State Highway on its website indicates that almost half of the roads in our country crippled by flood.

bitly.com/WqTbIH

bitly.com/SIsBGE

Hottest Year On Record In The U.S. Might Still Be 2012, Despite Cooler October

After 16 straight months with above-average temperatures, October temperatures in the lower 48 states averaged slightly below average, according to data released Thursday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Even with a cooler October, 2012 is still on track to be the warmest year on record in the U.S., propelled by a widespread March heat wave, the warmest spring on record, and the third-hottest summer on record. The month of July, for example, set the record for the hottest month of any month since weather records began in 1895.

During October, 19 states between the Canadian border south to the Gulf of Mexico had monthly temperatures below their 20th century averages, with just the Southwest and Northeast coming in warmer than average.

Caption: Year-to-date temperature departures from average. Credit: NOAA/NCDC.

October 2012 temperature departures from average. Credit: NOAA/NCDC.

According to NOAA, for 2012 not to be record-setting warm would require November and December to be much cooler than average. Those two months would have to have an average temperature among the coldest on record for that period in order to avoid at least tying the annual record.

The record warmth this year is consistent with both the influence of manmade global warming — particularly the prevalence of record warm nighttime temperatures — and natural climate variability, which has also favored warmer-than-average conditions in the U.S. this year.

In addition to the national record, numerous cities also remain on track to set a record for the hottest year. The average temperature during the January-to-October period in Grand Island, Neb., which has experienced some of the most intense drought conditions and had a sizzling summer, has been running 4.5°F above average, which is the warmest stretch of weather on record for that location.

Green Bay, Wis., is also on course to establish a new benchmark for the warmest year, having exceeded its January-through-October average by 5.3°F. The NOAA report contains a list of cities with significant year-to-date temperature anomalies.

Despite the landfall of Hurricane Sandy, October failed to bring widespread, significant drought relief to much of the country. Nearly 60 percent of the contiguous U.S. remained mired in drought conditions through last month, and the nationally averaged precipitation total was slightly above the long-term average, with below-average precipitation occurring in the Southern Rockies and Central and Southern Plains.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/09/hottest-year-on-record-us-...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2231342/Tourists-Venice-swa...

(Nov. 11)

The Floating City: Heavy rains flood Venice and reach the sixth highest tide level in 150 years 

• 70 per cent of central Venice underwater today reaching 59 inches
• Tourists waded through waters in wellington boots and donned swimwear
• Iconic St Mark's Square flooded leaving normally bustling square deserted
  

By Larisa Brown

It may be known as the Floating City of love.

But romance was cast aside today as gondolas were swapped for wellington boots and swimwear.

High tides and heavy rain flooded Venice's dry streets, leaving tourist hotspots virtually deserted.

Tourists chose to wade through the waters in boots, with one group donning swimwear to sit at a table in the iconic submerged St Mark's Square.

Scroll down for video

People sit at the table of a bar in a flooded St. Mark's Square today after high tides have flooded the romantic city in Italy

A young man and a woman enjoy swimming in a deserted square that is usually dry and inundated with tourists

People take a coffee break in a flooded shop as rainfall reached 59inches in Venice

One hardy couple even decided to go for a quick swim.

Others had less enjoyable tasks, with some visitors being forced to wade through nearly waist-high waters carrying suitcases on their shoulders.

Heavy rains and seas whipped up by strong winds brought the lagoon city's high tide mark to its sixth-highest level since records began being kept 150 years ago in 1872.

The water levels rose to critical levels overnight.

It was reported that 70per cent of central Venice was under water today as the high tide mark reached 59.06inches.

Water, water everywhere: The usually crowded Saint Mark's Square was deserted as flood waters rose making it impossible to visit

Washed out: The view towards St Mark's Basin looks a little different from normal. More than 70 per cent of Venice has been left flooded after the city was hit by a high tide

A tourist crosses flooded the iconic square carrying a suitcase on her shoulder while wading through the waters

Wearing plastic bags to cover his legs, a tourist carries two suitcases in flooded waters

70per cent of central Venice was underwater today

A shop assistant controls the tide that threatens to inundate his shop in the romantic city

Those who decided to take a break from the flooded streets were captured in wellington boots standing in water in coffee shops.

Makeshift wooden walkways had to be used to cross areas of St Mark's square, with transportation proving difficult for residents.

Italian news reports said the same weather system causing chaos in Venice was wreaking havoc elsewhere in north and central Italy, with some 200 people evacuated from their homes in hard-hit Tuscany.

Flooding is common in the city at this time of year. Moveable barriers that would rise from the sea bed to protect Venice from high tides have been in the works for years but will not be operational before 2014.

Parents carry their children and possessions wrapped in carrier bags in a small street today

Tourists walk on footbridges near the Rialto bridge as heavy rain puts a dampener on their tour of the city

One tourist takes off their boots to walk on a makeshift footbridge in the rain

Brutus drops record snow on Helena

Helena crushed a snowfall record Thursday, and was on the way to doing the same Friday as winter storm Brutus brutalized the town.

Helena saw 8.8 inches of snow Thursday. The previous snowfall record for Nov. 8 was 2.3 inches, set in 1903.

Source

COLDEST WINTER IN 100 YEARS ON WAY

BRITAIN will grind to a halt within weeks as the most savage freeze for a century begins.

Temperatures will fall as low as minus 20C in rural areas, forecasters warned last night, while heavy snow and “potentially dangerous” blizzards will close roads and cripple rail networks.

James Madden, forecaster for Exacta Weather, said: “We are looking at some of the coldest and snowiest conditions in at least 100 years. This is most likely to occur in the December to January period with the potential for widespread major snowfall across the country.

Britain’s “roller coaster” November has so far seen freezing temperatures followed by almost spring-like conditions. Temperatures rose by 22C in just 24 hours as milder weather triggered heavy rain in Scotland and the North.

Source

Back-to-Back Super Storms Pummel SE Australia, Weather Bureau Under Fire (Nov 17) -

Queensland was hit by two severe thunderstorms yesterday. One tore through the streets, the other ignited the sky with 22,000 lightning strikes and left nearly 30,000 homes without power.

As the clean up continues from storms that ripped through Brisbane, the weather bureau has warned resident to brace for more wild weather.

The strongest storm developed in the eastern Darling Downs region, near Pitsworth, where hail of up to 10cm in size pummelled the land.

The Lockyer Valley received the highest rainfall with 114mm dumped yesterday.

Meanwhile, in Brisbane, Alderley recorded 90mm, and Toowong had 88mm.

Lightening strikes have sparked between 10 and 15 grass fires southwest of Brisbane.

A Queensland Fire and Rescue spokeswoman said the fires were burning in several locations including Ravensbourne.

“They are going pretty much everywhere but it doesn’t say how big they are,” the spokeswoman said.

Meanwhile, the weather bureau has come under fire for failing to issue a specific warning about yesterday's freak Brisbane storm until after the damage had been done.

The bureau had warned that storms were likely to hit during the day, and at 8.20am a forecaster told couriermail.com.au they were expecting "the main round of thunderstorms will develop from about the middle part of the day".

But as the freak storm began to form minutes later, the bureau fell silent.

From 8am, amateur weather watchers were warning on web-based forums about the intense cell systems that were forming at Inglewood and moving towards the coast.

By 10am it was clear to anybody watching the weather radar on the bureau's own website that a big storm was headed towards the city - and Energex's lightning tracker recorded more than 1000 strikes during the next 30 minutes.

People started leaving comments on the bureau's Facebook page to ask for a storm update. But still the bureau remained silent.

The front of the storm smashed into the suburbs about 10.30am, with its massive winds described by those in its path as a freak storm much stronger than the usual summer blows.

Another 2000 lightning strikes later, the bureau issued its first specific warning about the storm.

By then the front of the storm had passed over the inner-western suburbs and the central business district and was almost at the coast.

Massive snow tornado seen for the first time in the republic of Buryatia, East of Russia

As reported by TV company "Arig Us" from Republic of Buryatia, Russia- in the cold Republic of Buryatia, which is located in the east of Russia, for first time observed the snow tornado- huge tornado, which suddenly appeared out of the snow on the uninhabited forests of Buryatia.

Source

Video of monster waterspout on Batemans Bay in NSW Australia (Nov 18) -

Worst Drought Remains in Great Plains States

The U.S. Drought Monitor report released Thursday, based on data recorded through Tuesday, showed drought or abnormally dry conditions covering 73.77 percent of the 48 contiguous states, compared to 72.45 percent a week ago. The worst drought remains in the Great Plains states, stretching from the southern half of South Dakota to Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle, with large areas of exceptional drought still in play. The worst drought in the Midwest continues to be in the extreme drought stage in northwest Iowa and southwest Minnesota, while Ohio and Indiana were almost out of drought and large areas of Michigan and Kentucky were also out of the drought stages.

http://www.ubalert.com/kJ3