Earth Changes and the Pole Shift
Wild Weather, the Wobble Effect
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"We warned at the start of ZetaTalk, in 1995, that unpredictable weather extremes, switching about from drought to deluge, would occur and increase on a lineal basis up until the pole shift. Where this occurred steadily, it has only recently become undeniable. ZetaTalk, and only ZetaTalk, warned of these weather changes, at that early date. Our early warnings spoke to the issue of global heating from the core outward, hardly Global Warming, a surface or atmospheric issue, but caused by consternation in the core. Affected by the approach of Planet X, which was by then starting to zoom rapidly toward the inner solar system for its periodic passage, the core was churning, melting the permafrost and glaciers and riling up volcanoes. When the passage did not occur as expected in 2003 because Planet X had stalled in the inner solar system, we explained the increasing weather irregularities in the context of the global wobble that had ensued - weather wobbles where the Earth is suddenly forced under air masses, churning them. This evolved by 2005 into a looping jet stream, loops breaking away and turning like a tornado to affect the air masses underneath. Meanwhile, on Planet Earth, droughts had become more intractable and deluges positively frightening, temperature swings bringing snow in summer in the tropics and searing heat in Artic regions, with the violence of storms increasing in number and ferocity."
From the ZetaTalk Chat Q&A for February 4, 2012:
The wobble seems to have changed, as the temperature in Europe suddenly plunged after being like an early Spring, Alaska has its coldest temps ever while the US and much of Canada is having an extremely mild winter. India went from fatal cold spell to balmy again. Has the Earth changed position vs a vs Planet X to cause this? [and from another] Bitter cold records broken in Alaska - all time coldest record nearly broken, but Murphy's Law intervenes [Jan 30] http://wattsupwiththat.com/2012/01/30/bitter-cold-records-broken-in-alaska Jim River, AK closed in on the all time record coldest temperature of -80°F set in 1971, which is not only the Alaska all-time record, but the record for the entire United States. Unfortunately, it seems the battery died in the weather station just at the critical moment. While the continental USA has a mild winter and has set a number of high temperature records in the last week and pundits ponder whether they will be blaming the dreaded "global warming" for those temperatures, Alaska and Canada have been suffering through some of the coldest temperatures on record during the last week.
There has been no change in the wobble pattern, the wobble has merely become more severe. Nancy noted a Figure 8 format when the Earth wobble first became noticeable, in early 2005, after Planet X moved into the inner solar system at the end of 2003. The Figure 8 shifted along to the east a bit on the globe between 2005 and 2009, (the last time Nancy took its measure) as Planet X came closer to the Earth, encountering the magnetic N Pole with a violent push earlier in the day. But the pattern of the Figure 8 remained essentially the same. So what changed recently that the weather patterns became noticeably different in late January, 2012?
The N Pole is pushed away when it comes over the horizon, when the noon Sun is centered over the Pacific. This regularly puts Alaska under colder air, with less sunlight, and thus the historically low temps there this January, 2012 as the wobble has gotten stronger. But by the time the Sun is positioned over India, the N Pole has swung during the Figure 8 so the globe tilts, and this tilt is visible in the weather maps from Asia. The tilt has forced the globe under the hot air closer to the Equator, warming the land along a discernable tilt demarcation line.
The next loop of the Figure 8 swings the globe so that the N Pole moves in the other direction, putting the globe again at a tilt but this time in the other direction. This tilt is discernable in weather maps of Europe, again along a diagonal line. Depending upon air pressure and temperature differences, the weather on either side of this diagonal line may be suddenly warm or suddenly cold. The tilt and diagonal line lingers to affect much of the US and Canada, but the Figure 8 changes at this point to be an up and down motion, pulling the geographic N Pole south so the US is experiencing a warmer than expected winter under a stronger Sun. Then the cycle repeats, with the magnetic N Pole of Earth pushed violently away again as the Sun is positioned over the Pacific.
From the ZetaTalk Chat Q&A for April 6, 2013:
Would the Zetas be able to let us know what is causing the early break-up of the Arctic Ice, the ice seems to have taken on a swirling pattern at the same time, would this be wobble related? [and from another] http://www.vancouversun.com/news/national/Canada+Arctic+cracks+spectacular+event/8185609/story.html The ice in Canada’s western Arctic ripped open in a massive “fracturing event” this spring that spread like a wave across 1,000 kilometres of the Beaufort Sea. Huge leads of water – some more than 500 kilometres long and as much as 70 kilometres across – opened up from Alaska to Canada’s Arctic islands as the massive ice sheet cracked as it was pushed around by strong winds and currents. It took just seven days for the fractures to progress across the entire area from west to east. [and from another] http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=80752&src=iotdrss A high-pressure weather system was parked over the region, producing warmer temperatures and winds that flowed in a southwesterly direction. That fueled the Beaufort Gyre, a wind-driven ocean current that flows clockwise. The gyre was the key force pulling pieces of ice west past Point Barrow, the northern nub of Alaska that protrudes into the Beaufort Sea.
The Figure 8 formed by the N Pole during the daily Earth wobble has shifted somewhat to the East, due to Planet X positioned more to the right of the Earth during its approach. This was anticipated, and well described in ZetaTalk, the Earth crowding to the left in the cup to escape the approach of Planet X, so the angle between these two planets would change slightly. This shift of the Figure 8 to the East is due to the push against the Earth’s magnetic N Pole occurring sooner each day than prior. Thus instead of occurring when the Sun is high over the Pacific, over New Zealand, it is now occurring when the Sun is high over Alaska. All the wobble points have shifted eastward accordingly.
This has brought a lingering Winter to the western US, and a changed sloshing pattern to the Arctic waters. Instead of Pacific waters being pushed through the Bering Straits into the Arctic when the polar push occurs, the wobble is swinging the Arctic to the right, and then later to the left, creating a circular motion in the waters trapped in the Arctic. Since the Earth rotates counterclockwise, the motion also takes this path. This is yet another piece of evidence that the establishment is hard pressed to explain. They are attempting to ascribe this to high pressure and wind, all of which are not new to the Arctic, but this circular early breakup of ice in the Arctic is new.
KM
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-22536139
Snow and winds of 65mph hit Devon and Cornwall
Related Stories
Snow has fallen in parts of Devon in what has been described as "fairly unusual" weather for May.
Winds of up to 65mph also struck the South West coast overnight with a number of trees coming down, some blocking roads.
Western Power Distribution said homes in Cornwall were still without power after thousands were cut off overnight.
Two inches of snow also fell in Shropshire overnight and people have been warned to prepare for flooding.
“Start Quote
Gavin Fabiani-Layman Princetown residentFourteen flood alerts are still in place in Devon and Cornwall following heavy rain on Monday.
Sheila Coates, from Princetown, told BBC Radio Devon: "It's crazy. When I went to bed last night I couldn't see out of my front window for the snow.
"I've lived here all my life and I've never known weather like it at this time of year."
'It was mad'
Gavin Fabiani-Laymon, who also lives in Princetown, took a photo of the snow and said it lasted "about an hour".
"I went to walk the dog and opened the front door to a blizzard of snow.
"It was mad, it took me by surprise," he said.
The MET office said the snow which fell in Devon was "a transient feature".
Forecaster Philip Avery said: "May snowfall is unusual but not unheard of, even in southern England.
"Snow has even managed to fall into June… but that really is a rarity.
"The last really widespread snowfall in May was 17th May 1955 when much of England and Wales was affected by several hours of snow.
"Coincidently, Devon also saw significant snow on 17th May 1935."
He said the snow was caused by very wet and windy weather across the region on Tuesday combined with falling temperatures after sunset.
The winds are expected to ease during Wednesday with the weather getting drier and brighter.
May 15, 2013
Carlos
The official hurricane season in the Pacific east, starts on: June 1 and ends November 30, today is: 05/15/13, we have the first tropical storm, named: ALVIN.
Source: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/graphics_ep1.shtml?5-daynl#contents
May 16, 2013
Heather
Happening right now. Mile wide tornado near Dallas TX with grapefruit sized hail
PEOPLE have been killed by "grapefruit"-size hailstones as a tornado brings down buildings in Texas.
Hood County sheriff confirms fatalities, multiple injuries and extensive damage following the tornado, NewsBreaker reported.
The tornado, reported to be a mile-long is reported to be heading towards Cleburne, Texas.
"LIFE THREATENING SITUATION! Mile-wide tornado heading straight north now toward Cleburne, TX! TAKE COVER NOW! " reported Reed Timmer, of TVN.
Ryan Sloane of CNN reported that at least 10 people were injured in Hood County, Texas, with people trapped in homes.
The tornado slammed into the North Texas lakefront town of Granbury, demolishing homes and injuring an undetermined number of people, Houston Chronicle reported.
The tornado - part of a system of severe thunderstorms that spawned several tornadoes across North Texas - dropped large hail.
Police reported the hardest hit area was the Rancho Brazos subdivision and adjoining areas along Lake Granbury.
Another tornado hit the small town of Millsap, about 65km west of Fort Worth. Parker County Judge Mark Kelley said roof damage was reported to several houses and a barn was destroyed.http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/world/fatalities-in-hood-county-tex...
May 16, 2013
SongStar101
This is a huge sign of Wobble!
Omaha experiences record high and low temperatures in less than 72 hours
On Sunday, it was 32 degrees in Omaha, Nebraska. On Tuesday, it was 100 degrees.
The Omaha World-Herald reports that May 14 is the earliest day on record that the temperature in Omaha has reached triple digits, according to data from the National Weather Service. The temperature hasn’t been in that range in Omaha so early in the year since 1871.
In fact, Barbara Mayes of the National Weather Service says the official number could get even hotter before the day is over.
Amazingly, on Sunday there was still snow on the ground while on Tuesday, most residents were wearing shorts and sunscreen.
The largest temperature change on record within a 24 hour period occurred in Loma, Montana in 1972 when the temperature changed from -54 to 49 °F.
So, why was there such a dramatic shift in temperatures?
Dry air heading up from the Gulf of Mexico is to blame for both the extreme high and low temperatures, Mayes said that and a mixing of weather in the upper and lower levels of the atmosphere have led to a spike in temperatures across the region. On Tuesday, it was 103 degrees in Sioux City, Iowa and 100 degrees in Columbus, Ohio.
Adding to the weather drama, temperatures were already beginning to plummet in Omaha, with weather expected to be significantly cooler on Wednesday.
May 16, 2013
Kojima
[HPRCC News; 15 May 2013]
Here are some of daily high temperature records from May 14, 2013. Most locations had temperatures 20-30 degrees above their normal high temperature for the day. Furthermore, the locations of Omaha, Lincoln, and Grand Island all reached the 100 degree mark the earliest in their respective periods of record. The average time those cities hit the century mark is around the first week of July. These record high temperatures come just two days after some locations set daily low temperature records. During the morning hours of May 12, 2013 Omaha, Lincoln, and Norfolk had low temperature records of 32, 31, and 29, respectively. That is roughly a 70 degree temperature swing in approximately 60 hours(12th at 4am - 14th at 4pm).
May 17, 2013
Kojima
US: Snowiest April and Coolest April
For a printable version of the climate summary which includes more figures, data tables, and state summaries, click here.
Region Breakdown
The cooler conditions of March continued into April across the High Plains Region. Average temperatures were well below normal for the majority of the Region and in stark contrast to last year when many locations were in the top ten warmest on record. A rough southwest to northeast temperature gradient was apparent with average temperatures which were near normal across southwest portions of Colorado and Wyoming and up to 15.0 degrees F (8.3 degrees C) below normal in North Dakota and northeastern South Dakota.
Even with a late month warm-up, these cooler conditions caused locations in each state to be ranked in the top ten coolest Aprils on record. These cooler conditions were also accompanied by wintry weather and some locations ranked in both the top ten coolest and snowiest Aprils on record. Aberdeen, South Dakota had its coolest and 2nd snowiest April on record. The average temperature in Aberdeen was 34.9 degrees F (1.6 degrees C) which was 9.5 degrees F (5.3 degrees C) below normal (period of record 1893-2013). The old record occurred in 1950 with an average temperature of 36.0 degrees F (2.2 degrees C). More records occurred in Rapid City, South Dakota which had both the coolest and snowiest April. The average temperature was only 36.7 degrees F (2.6 degrees C) in Rapid City, and at 8.3 degrees F (4.6 degrees C) below normal, this temperature was able to easily beat the old record of 38.0 degrees F (3.3 degrees C) also set in 1950 (period of record 1942-2013).
May 17, 2013
Kojima
Texas Tornadoes (See also; Comment by ann s. yesterday)
* NWS: Estimated 16 North Texas Tornadoes, Some EF-3 & EF-4 [CBS DFW; 16 May 2013]
The tornado that touched down in Granbury has been given a preliminary EF-4 rating. That means the twister that touched down could have had winds up to 200 miles an hour. “One-hundred-sixty-six miles an hour to 200 miles an hour is the estimated wind speed of that tornado,” NWS meteorologist Dan Shoemaker explained. “And we don’t measure the winds, we look at the damage and then extrapolate that from the damage back to a wind speed.”
In Johnson County the tornado that touched down in Cleburne has been given a preliminary EF-3 rating. Weather investigators say the most significant damage was just east of Lake Pat Cleburne.
While the only deaths being reported are in Hood County and there was significant damage in Cleburne, those weren’t the only tornadoes that touched down on Wednesday. As of Thursday afternoon NWS officials estimate that 15 tornadoes touched down across North Texas.
Shoemaker said, “Until we can get all the team reports back and we hear from emergency managers in the other counties then we’ll have an actual number, but that could take a few days.”
Of the damage from the tornado estimated to have been a mile wide, Cleburne Mayor Scott Cain said, “We will respond. We will unite as a community. We will rebuild, and we will remain very close and we will make certain that everybody’s taken care of.”
The Cleburne Independent School District was closed on Thursday and Community Relations spokesperson Lisa Magers issued a statement saying, “With power outages and road conditions from Wednesday’s storms still a concern, all CISD campuses will remain closed through Friday, May 17.”
Late Thursday, the NWS confirmed an EF-1 tornado, measuring six miles wide and with winds of 90 miles per hour, touched down in Ellis county. Most of the destruction is centered in the City of Ennis. Leaders say the storm ripped a path of destruction a few miles long.
A total of 25 residences and 40 commercial buildings were seriously damaged in Ennis, including a number of locations in the historic downtown area. The Mayor of Ennis has already sent a request to Governor Perry asking that the city be declared a disaster area.
City Manager Steve Howerton said in the grand scheme of things are pretty good. “We’ve only had one very minor injury, it was a laceration to an arm and to a head resulting from broken glass. So we are blessed in that respect,” he said. “All of the critical infrastructure of the city is in place. Our hospital is in good condition. Our schools will all be open and observing their regular schedule today, so in that respect again, we’ve been spared.”
Thursday afternoon officials did confirm that damage caused in Parker County, in and around the Town of Millsap, was from a tornado. The twister that touched down in Millsap has been given a preliminary rating of EF-1. Winds from an EF-1 twister register between 86 and 110 miles an hour.
As of Thursday afternoon, the death toll from Wednesday night’s storms stood at six, with all of those deaths in the Rancho Brazos subdivision in Granbury. The identities of those killed, two women and four men, have not been released.
Storm and tornado damage left dozens of other people with injuries, and hundreds homeless. Officials with Oncor report some 8,500 people, across five counties remain without power.
* EF-4 Tornadoes Are Rare For North Texas [CBS DFW; 17 May 2013]
GRANBURY (CBSDFW.COM) - It was the deadliest tornado outbreak in North Texas in over 30 years, and Granbury was the hardest-hit area in all of DFW. The National Weather Service estimated that 16 twisters landed across North Texas, and some of them were EF-4 tornadoes.
What does that mean?
Storms of that strength are extremely rare. In the last 50 years, North Texas has only seen six EF-4 tornadoes, about one each decade. And even the total number of twisters was rare. In the last 50 years, there have only been seven days with 10 or more tornadoes.
The six fatalities on Wednesday made it the deadliest North Texas tornado day since April 1982, when a storm ripped through Paris.
A survey team from the National Weather Service walked through the damage on Thursday to determine the classification information. They look at several factors when trying to determine the strength of any particular storm. An EF-4 tornado has winds over 200 mph, and there can be signs that such a strong storm has passed through a neighborhood.
The survey team looked for the total loss of well-built homes and business structures, and large trucks that were either flipped repeatedly or moved short distances. They also looked for trees that were debarked and snapped close to the ground, or uprooted altogether.
An EF-4 tornado levels homes and practically requires a storm shelter in order to survive. And when you look at some of the damage done by these powerful twisters on Wednesday, it is almost unbelievable that there were not more deaths.
May 18, 2013
Derrick Johnson
Record heat after record cold in Wyoming
CHEYENNE — Less than two weeks after seeing heavy snow and record cold, Wyoming is now seeing record heat.
The temperature in Cheyenne reached 84 degrees on Tuesday, breaking the record of 83 degrees set in 1976.
On Monday, record highs were set in Casper, Lander, Riverton and Rock Springs.
It wasn't too long ago that the state was experiencing heavy snowfall and below-normal temperatures. On May 2, Cheyenne set a record low temperature of 9 degrees and was digging out from more than a foot of snow.
The National Weather Service says the hot weather has quickened the snowmelt, causing rivers and streams to rise to near flood stage in some areas.
http://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/wyoming/record-h...
May 19, 2013
Howard
Monster Tornadoes Hit Kansas and Oklahoma (May 19)
"It's tearing up everything," the pilot said. "Just ripping everything up in its sight."
Tornadoes touched down in three states on Sunday, ripping roofs off homes and turning trees to matchsticks, as severe weather swept the region.
Another large "violent and extremely dangerous" tornado was spotted on the southwest side of Wichita, Kansas, the National Weather Service said.
A confirmed tornado was also seen near Edmond, Oklahoma, said the weather service. Another tornado was spotted in nearby Luther, Oklahoma, but it was not immediately clear whether that was the same twister.
Aerial video from KFOR and CNN affiliate KOCO showed severe damage near Wellston and near Carney, Oklahoma. Roofs were ripped from homes, branches stripped from trees and roads were filled with debris.
Tornadoes were also reported east of Dale, west of Paden, and near Prague in Oklahoma.
Part of Interstate 40 in Shawnee, Oklahoma, was shut down in both directions Sunday night after a tornado touched down, overturning multiple tractor-trailers.
Still more tornadoes were spotted in Iowa, near Earlham, Huxley and east of Dallas Center, according to the weather service.
It did not mince words, telling people to take cover there, as elsewhere.
"You could be killed if not underground or in a tornado shelter. Complete destruction of neighborhoods, businesses and vehicles will occur. Flying debris will be deadly to people and animals," it said in its Kansas advisory.
Sources
http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/19/us/severe-weather/index.html
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2327172/Massive-tornadoes-h...
May 20, 2013
KM
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/parts-of-newfoundland-...
Parts of Newfoundland buried by record-breaking spring snow storm
GANDER, N.L. — The Canadian Press
Published Monday, May. 20 2013, 1:34 PM EDT
Last updated Monday, May. 20 2013, 1:34 PM EDT
Newfoundland and Labrador is digging out of a spring storm that walloped parts of the province over the weekend with record-breaking snowfall amounts.
Environment Canada says 54 centimetres of snow fell in Gander on Saturday and Sunday over a 20 hour period.
Meteorologist Wanda Rideout says the total climbs to 66 centimetres if you include the snow that had already melted before the brunt of the storm hit.
Rideout says those numbers shatter the previous record of 29 centimetres for Gander’s greatest May snowfall, recorded in 1945.
She says it was a localized system and surrounding areas got off lightly in comparison.
May 20, 2013
Tracie Crespo
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/05/24/18462699-winter-maybe-ev...
'Winter' - maybe even snow - to return for Memorial Day weekend
View more videos at: http://nbcnewyork.com.
Memorial Day weekend is expected to feel more like “winter” for areas of the eastern U.S., according to forecasters at weather.com, with snow possible for parts of the Northeast.
The National Weather Service issued flash flood warnings for parts of Massachusetts and Texas early Friday as much of the country continued to be hit by miserable weather. The warnings are only issued when there is the potentially for “rapid” and “life threatening” flooding.
The Tri-State area was also hit by heavy rainfall and thunderstorms through the night, NBCNewYork.com reported.
A house in Glen Rock, New Jersey, was hit by lightning, sending a couple running outside.
“It sounded like an explosion,” one resident of the house told NBCNewYork.com. The strike went through the house’s alarm system. “Pieces of plastic hit me in the back of the head and I turned around … the alarm panel blew out of the wall.”
View more videos at: http://nbcnewyork.com.
Some areas of the Tri-State saw as much as 3 to 4 inches of rain by Thursday night.
In Connecticut, storms brought down trees in Waterbury and there were floods in Danbury, NBCConnecticut.com reported.
Weather.com said that while the Memorial Day weekend was supposed to mark the start of the summer season “unfortunately for parts of the East, it won't feel anything like summer. In fact, a few locales may refer to it as winter.”
“Low pressure is expected to wrap-up and crawl northward along the coast of New England late Friday into Sunday,” weather.com reported.
“As a result, most residents from New Jersey, eastern Pennsylvania and eastern New York to Maine will see a wet start to the weekend on Saturday,” it added. “The rain will continue over much of New England southward to near or just north of New York City right into Sunday.”
And weather.com said it could even get cold enough to see snow at higher altitudes in northern New York, northern Vermont, northern New Hampshire and northern Maine.
It said high temperatures were expected to be in the 50s and 60s from Pennsylvania and New York to New England both Saturday and Sunday.
In the Southeast, weather.com said it would be unseasonably cold with “near-record low temperatures” in Asheville, N.C., Nashville, Tenn., and Greenville, S.C., on Saturday morning in the 40s and low 50s.
Thunderstorms could hit Tennessee on Sunday, and parts of Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia on Memorial Day, Weather.com warned.
There would also be a threat of thunderstorm over the holiday weekend from the Plains into the middle and upper Mississippi Valleys.
The Northwest could see showers through the weekend, while dry weather was expected to prevail in the Southwest.
View more videos at: http://nbcnewyork.com.
*** I swear some of these reporters @ NBC NY read Zeta talk & actually create & post articles they WANT us to grab & post on the Pole Shift ning. Seems like more media disclosure every day. ***
May 24, 2013
Arctico
This morning while delivering newspapers I saw the first light of dawn and I knew it was early. Just to make sure I looked at the clock in our car. It was about 4:20 AM here in central Illinois. My wife even commented on it. Dawn should have occurred at 4:59 AM. This is the biggest piece of evidence I myself have witnessed directly although the evidence I have seen here confirmed the existence of Nibiru for me long ago. It will be interesting to see what time the sun sets tonight.
Moderator Note: Actual sunrise (as opposed to dawn, i.e, "first light") in central Illinois should be around 5:30 am. Below is for Decatur, IL.
May 25, 2013
Stra
Temperature differences for France for MAY 24 2012 and 2013.
May 25, 2013
Tracie Crespo
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/39788177?launch=52001245&csid=NBC_US_...
Heavy rain turns deadly in San Antonio
Raw chopper video shows rescuers coming to the aid of a man stranded on the roof of a building after floodwaters submerged the structure in San Antonio, Texas.
The wet weather plaguing many parts of the U.S. this holiday weekend has turned fatal in sodden San Antonio.
One person is dead, another is missing and nearly a hundred more have been rescued as heavy rain has pummeled the Texas city, causing flash flooding.
Eric Gay / AP
A San Antonio metro bus sits in floodwaters after it was swept off the road during heavy rains.
The majority of rescues were people trapped in their vehicles in low-lying areas of the city, San Antonio Fire Department spokesman Christian Bove told NBC News.
Bove confirmed one fatality thus far, a 29-year-old woman who was trapped in her vehicle and tried to escape the rising water by climbing onto the car's roof. She was washed away, and her body was found down the road against a fence.
A man who had been trapped in his vehicle is unaccounted for.
Weather Channel Meteorologist Nick Wiltgen said San Antonio received 12.16 inches of rain in the 24 hours ending at 11 a.m. Central Time on Saturday. That is just shy of the 24-hour record for the city of 13.35 inches in October 1998.
Eric Gay / AP
A man surveys floodwaters caused by heavy rains Saturday in San Antonio.
May 26, 2013
jorge namour
MAY 27 2013
Incredible on the Piccolo San Bernardo, Italy: 10 feet of snow in late May!
Starting from 10.30 in the morning chiudende will travel to the area, will be able to comfortably enjoy these incredible walls of snow!
http://www.meteoweb.eu/2013/05/incredibile-sul-passo-del-piccolo-sa...
May 27, 2013
Howard
34 Inches of Snow in New York on Memorial Day Weekend (May 27)
On a weekend that is traditionally the official kick-off of the summer season in the U.S. and usually associated with picnics, outdoor barbeques and sun bathing by the sea, it's a snowy Memorial Day weekend for parts of the northeast. On the aptly named Whiteface Mountain in upstate New York, there are at least 34 inches of snow on the ground. Other mountain peaks in Vermont reached 18 inches of snow, while some towns with higher elevations clocked in at about 7 inches of snowfall this weekend.
Photos: Snowy Memorial Day Weekend in Parts of New England
Source
May 27, 2013
lonne rey
The coldest spring in over 40 years (Germany)
Most have already guessed, but meteorologists now confirm the worst fears: That it is the coldest spring in over 40 years
March in Germany was more than 3 degrees colder than the long term average for the years 1961 and 1990. April was about 0.8 degrees warmer than the long term average. May was warmer than average at least in its first half.
"The long-term weather models of some international weather services had a" alluded to above average warm and sunny April and May. " This ultimately was the opposite. On Sunday morning, it even snowed again up to 600 meters down, "said meteorologist Dominik Jung wetter.net by Weather Portal
March was too cold, then April was warmer than normal. During the many years of sunshine target was exceeded even slightly in March, in April, there was about 5 percent less sunshine than usual. The month of May, however presents a rather gloomy picture: the sunshine target has been met with only 55 percent. Just 113 hours of sunshine in May 2013. Normal coverage would be around 205 hours of sunshine.
Five too cold winters in a row, the coldest March since decades and now the coldest spring in over 40 years ... in the northeast even for 130 years!
source in German
May 28, 2013
Kojima
Extreme high temperature and heat waves across India
* 440 sunstroke deaths in AP in 3 days, toll climbs to 524 [View Original][ReliefWeb 28 May 2013 / The Times of India 27 May 2013]
TNN | May 27, 2013, 06.33 AM IST
HYDERABAD: The intense summer heat continues to claim more lives even as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) warns of a severe heat wave in some parts of the state for two more days. The Official sunstroke toll released by the commissioner of disaster management on Sunday put the number of deaths at 524 since April 1. Of these, 440 deaths were reported in the last three days, with 250 cases coming to light since Saturday.
This is the first time that 440 people have lost their lives due to heat in the span of three to four days in the state. Between April 1 and May 23, the official sunstroke toll was only 84 but it zoomed to 524 by May 26. Guntur recorded the highest number of deaths with 95 people falling victim, followed by Prakasam district with 75 casualties.
According to the IMD, the maximum temperatures showed a marked increase at one or two places in coastal Andhra Pradesh but fell at one or two places in Telangana and Rayalaseema. The highest maximum temperature of 47 degrees Celsius was recorded at Tuni and Visakhapatnam airport. Vijayawada and Kakinada recorded 46 degrees Celsius while Bapatla, Machilipatnam, Rentachintala, Hanamkonda and Ramagundem recorded 45 degrees Celsius. Hyderabad was relatively cooler with the mercury at 41 degrees.
Severe heat wave conditions are expected in Prakasam, Guntur, Krishna, East and West Godavari and Visakhapatnam districts for the next two days. Warangal and Karimnagar are also expected to feel the brunt of the sun.
* Sitrep-1 Severe Heat Wave, 27.05.2013 [ReliefWeb 28 May 2013]
REPORT from Sphere India Published on 27 May 2013
Current Situation:
Due to extreme high temperature and heat waves across India, 7 people were reported death in Gurgaon, Haryana State and 524 people were reported death from Andhra Pradesh due to heat related illness and heat stroke since 1st week of April.
Details: (see attached PDF [Download PDF (100.65 KB)])
May 28, 2013
lonne rey
French ski station to re-open slopes, in June!
A combination of an icy winter and a chilly spring has meant that for the first time ever in the month of June, skiers will have the option of heading to the pistes in the French Pyrénées, French TV TF1 reported on Wednesday.
After recent cold weather, bosses at the ski station Porte Puymorens in the Pyrénées-Orientales region of the mountain range that divides France from Spain have taken the exceptional step to re-open the slopes this weekend after they had closed them at the end of the season in April.
Eric Charre, director of EPIC, the company that runs the station, told AFP that they wanted to “take advantage of all the snow that has not melted”.
The Pyrénées witnessed heavy snow falls throughout the winter that led to regular avalanche alerts being put in place.
At one point in the ski season, stations had to close because there was too much snow.
Spring in France, which forecasters say has been the coldest in 25 years in some parts of the country, has meant the snow, which would normally have melted away by this time of year, is still in abundance.
Charre said that slopes running between 1600m and 2500m in altitude “have as much snow as in winter”.
Source
May 30, 2013
Stra
Record high temperatures in Scandinavia
While southern Europe faced with unusually low temperatures, Scandinavia warms almost to 30 degrees Celsius.
Stockholm - While Europe is facing south for the season, unusually low temperatures are in Lapland in northern Europe yesterday recorded a record high temperature by as much as 29 degrees Celsius, says Slovenian Press Agency.
Nyrud at the station, which lies 250 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle, the Norwegian Meteorological Institute on Thursday afternoon recorded exactly 29.1 degrees Celsius.
Mercury has risen quite high in Sweden. In place Oeverkalixu, which lies about 800 kilometers north of Stockholm, the intent is 28.7 degrees Celsius. At the same time announced that the northernmost Swedish places like high temperatures have today.
In the Finnish town of Inari, which is nearly a thousand kilometers away from the capital Helsinki, is also intent historical record, namely 28.9 degrees Celsius, in writing STA.
bit.ly/14eGSxe
May 31, 2013
lonne rey
Rain, Rain, Go Away: Germany Drowns in Endless Downpour
For weeks, rain has been pounding Germany, whose serotonin-sapped residents are straining to hold on to the last vestiges of hope after already having suffered through the darkest winter in over four decades. But, save for a few soon-forgotten days of sunshine, most of Germany's vitamin-D-deprived residents have had to live through endless days of gray drizzle and downpour this spring. Though summer is officially just around the corner, refrains of "Can you believe this (insert expletive) weather?" have given way to silent, knowing looks and forlorn sighs.
Indeed, April showers have only been followed by more showers in May, when 178 percent more rain fell than the year before, according to estimates of Germany's National Meteorological Service (DWD). What's worse, the DWD says that -- except for in a lucky few parts of northwestern Germany -- Mother Nature has no plans to turn off the spigots anytime soon.
The DWD issued extreme weather warnings on Friday for the southern states of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg as well as regions of Thuringia, Saxony-Anhalt and Hesse, saying that up to 70 liters (18.5 gallons) of rain could fall per square meter (10.7 square feet). The rains could also spread to parts of Hesse and Lower Saxony.
Already for days, areas in the northern state of Lower Saxony have been fighting floods caused by overflowing rivers. A cyclist drowned in the capital city of Hanover on Thursday when she fell while riding on a closed, flooded highway and was washed away by the current. Police reports said that water levels were only slightly receding on Friday.
Similar flooding has been seen in many other German locations, where waters are filling basements, trapping inhabitants, closing small and major roads, and felling trees. "The weakened earth can no longer hold tree roots," said one police spokesman, adding that the rains have caused several landslides that blocked streets.
Common Pattern, Atypical Duration
The culprit behind the current round of misery is a low dubbed "Dominik." On Friday, the depression was east of the Alps and drawing air from the north. The DWD says that a low over Central Europe has been strengthening the weather effects for weeks. As a result, clouds are being pulled over Germany from north to south, where they climb up the Alps, cool off and then dump heavy rain. Although the pattern is not atypical, the DWD says, it usually doesn't last for weeks.
Between early Saturday and early Sunday, meteorologists are expecting to see up to 100 more liters of rain per square meter in the Alps. In certain spots of heavy congestion, this could even rise to 150 liters per square meter -- or more than typically falls in an entire month.
In fact, the DWD says that, from Germany's northern coastlines to the Alps, the earth is wetter than it has been in 50 years. This broad swath of muddy soil is causing major problems for the agricultural industry, the DWD reports, making it impossible to drive on 40 percent of fields, use machinery or spray against pests, diseases, molds or weeds.
Vegetable growers are getting the worst of it. In some fields of Lower Saxony, the water almost completely hides the raised rows of dirt in which the country's beloved asparagus is grown. The waters could also severely damage the upcoming harvest of early potatoes. "Even if they haven't already rotted in the ground, now you can't harvest them," said a DWD spokesman.
Source
Jun 1, 2013
lonne rey
Italy shivers through 'cursed spring' of relentless rain
June normally heralds the arrival of summer heat, but 2013's capricious weather is fuelling new meteorological obsession
They said summer was going to arrive this week," remarked Haq, "and instead came winter." Within minutes, torrential rain was lashing the cobblestones as thunder rumbled in the distance. "It's all the wrong way round," said a bewildered Haq, from Bangladesh. "It's incredible. I've been here for 10 years now and I've never seen anything like it. It's too strange."
Italian springs are often strange, but this one will perhaps be remembered as particularly capricious. As with much of northern Europe, the country has shivered its way through a good deal of the year. In the north-west, according to the Italian meteorological society, residents have had the coldest May since 1991. In much of the north-east, the spring has been the wettest for at least 150 years. A mountain stage of the Giro d'Italia bike race was called off due to snow and ice. Beach resorts in Tuscany have been flooded. Many farmers have suffered huge damage to their crops.
Now, as June arrives, it should technically be summer. But it certainly doesn't feel like it. "Last year, by this point, we were going to the sea. At the beginning of June we went down to the Fori Imperiali and sunbathed," said Mario Ramelli, a street-corner florist in central Rome. This spring's brutto tempo has been a topic of conversation with many of his customers – that is, those who stop to buy a pot of pansiesIn countries such as Britain where changeable weather is a given, the coming meteorological events have always been a favoured topic of conversation. But among Italians, this so-called cursed spring appears to have created what one magazine has called the latest national obsession.
"As well as a country of saints, poets and sailors, we are now a people of meteorologists," declared Panorama magazine, part of Silvio Berlusconi's media empire. "The more it rains," it noted, gloomily, "the more we become like the Americans, addicted to the weather forecast, glued to the Weather Channel, talking only of this."
Source
Jun 2, 2013
SongStar101
http://news.yahoo.com/damaging-storms-moving-east-south-202626913.html
The US gets pounded with weather extremes over just two days...
Heavy rain, thunderstorms, high winds and hail moved through sections of the Northeast on Sunday afternoon. The National Weather Service issued a rare tornado warning as a line of thunderstorms raced through New Hampshire into western Maine. The National Weather Service said a tornado warning was issued as radar indicated a possible tornado moving from Kingfield, Maine, to Bingham, Maine. The tornado was not immediately confirmed.
In northwestern South Carolina, authorities checked unconfirmed reports of a tornado, said Jessica Ashley, a shift supervisor for Anderson County's 911 center. The fire department responded to a report of roof damage to a home and callers said trees were blown over. No injuries were reported.
The weather service said thunderstorms and winds in excess of 60 mph in Vermont produced 1-inch-diameter hail and knocked down numerous trees and wires. In northern Maine, radar picked up a line of thunderstorms capable of producing quarter-sized hail and winds stronger than 70 mph. Forecasters warned of tornadoes.
The prediction for stormy weather in the New York City region produced delays at major airports. John F. Kennedy International Airport had delays of about two hours on departing flights, while La Guardia Airport was delayed nearly three hours, and Newark Liberty Airport was delayed more than three hours on arriving flights to New Jersey.
In the southern part of the United States, thunderstorms, high winds and hail were expected as part of a slow-moving cold front. Heavy rains could spawn flash flooding in some areas, the weather service said.
Meanwhile, residents in Oklahoma cleaned up after the storms there killed 13 people, including three veteran storm chasers. Tim Samaras; his son, Paul Samaras; and Carl Young were killed Friday. The Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., said the men were involved in tornado research.
Jim Samaras told The Associated Press on Sunday that his brother Tim was motivated by science.
"He looked at tornadoes not for the spotlight of TV but for the scientific aspect," Jim Samaras said. "At the end of the day, he wanted to save lives and he gave the ultimate sacrifice for that."
Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin toured damage in El Reno, about 30 miles from Oklahoma City. She said the death toll could rise as emergency workers continue searching flooded areas for missing residents.
The state Medical Examiner's Office spokeswoman Amy Elliott said the death toll had risen to 13 from Friday's EF3 tornado, which charged down a clogged Interstate 40 in the western suburbs. Among the dead were two children — an infant sucked out of the car with its mother and a 4-year-old boy who along with his family had sought shelter in a drainage ditch.
In Missouri, areas west of St. Louis received significant damage from an EF3 tornado Friday that packed estimated winds of 150 mph. In St. Charles County, at least 71 homes were heavily damaged and 100 had slight to moderate damage, county spokeswoman Colene McEntee said.
Northeast of St. Louis, the town of Roxana, Ill., also saw damage from an EF3 tornado. Weather service meteorologist Jayson Gosselin said it wasn't clear whether the damage in Missouri and Illinois came from the same twister or separate ones.
Five tornadoes struck the Oklahoma City metro area on Friday, the weather service said. Fallin said Sunday that 115 people were injured.
The storms formed out on the prairie west of Oklahoma City, giving residents plenty of advance notice. When told to seek shelter, many ventured out and snarled traffic across the metro area — perhaps remembering when a tornado hit Moore on May 20 and killed 24 people.
Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Betsy Randolph said roadways quickly became congested with the convergence of rush-hour traffic and fleeing residents.
"They had no place to go, and that's always a bad thing. They were essentially targets just waiting for a tornado to touch down," Randolph said. "I'm not sure why people do that sort of stuff, but it is very dangerous."
Jun 3, 2013
Kojima
German-speaking Swiss mop up from heavy rain [The Local.ch; 2 June 2013]
Aerial shot of flooding in Wittnau in the canton of Aargau from RTS video. (Screenshot)
Northern, central and eastern Switzerland mopped up on Sunday following torrential rain that triggered flooding in regions from Bern to Graubünden, leading to road closures, flooded basements, landslides and the evacuation of some residents.
Numerous rivers and lakes spilled over their banks over the weekend after as more than 200 litres of rail fell per square metre in eastern Switzerland starting on Friday.
Meteonews said Amden, a municipality in the canton of Saint Gallen, received as much as 250 litres over the weekend, a record for the country.
The rain subsided on Sunday but the level of water bodies remained dangerously high in various locations.
In the capital city of Bern, emergency workers placed barriers along the Aar River to minimize flooding, the ATS news service reported.
In the canton of Lucerne, a landslide in Werthenstein closed a rail line west of the city of Lucerne.
Mud and gravel buries sections of rail ines in the canton of Zurich between Rütli and Jonas (Saint Gallen) and also at Wald in the Töss Valley, ATS said.
Flooding of the Greifen and Pfäffikon lakes, in the canton of Zurich, was also reported, while the Rhine flooded its banks in Basel and elsewhere.
Various other lakes such as Constance, Zurich, Lucerne and Walenstadt were expected to see their levels to rise to a peak level late on Sunday, said MeteoSwiss, the national weather office.
Meanwhile, the heavy precipitation forced the closure of several mountain passes.
The Gotthard Pass closed on Saturday because of avalanche risks, Viasuisse said in a press release.
The San Bernadino pass in the canton of Graubünden closed due to snow, along with the Jaun pass in Fribourg.
Another landslide in the Oberalp pass in Uri closed the road, ATS said.
The rain was caused by a depression coming from Poland which hit eastern Switzerland early Friday.
Western Switzerland was largely spared the heavy rain, although the northern Jura region and the Fribourg pre-Alps were exceptions.
MeteoSwiss said the worst affected areas of the country received between 50 and 100 millimetres of rain from Friday morning until Saturday afternoon.
Snow fell in mountain regions above 1,600 metres, the national weather office said.
The persistent rain followed a wetter than usual May with less sunshine than average in many part of Switzerland.
The full extent of the damage caused by the flooding is not expected to be known for several days as cantons assess the situation.
Meanwhile, the forecast calls for warmer weather through this week, although thunderstorms are expected in many regions on Wednesday and Thursday.
Jun 3, 2013
lonne rey
Snow in June: Russia’s Siberian town in absolute anomaly (PHOTOS, VIDEO)
A layer of snow on the second day of summer has put the citizens of the Russian city of Kemerovo completely out of humor.
Bloggers were at a loss when commenting the issue.
“Snow in Kemerovo TODAY? That’s hardcore. The weather must’ve forgot it’s June.”
“With a sense of terror has just learnt it’s been snowing in Kemerovo. What’s next?”
“Tornado in the US. Floods in Czech Republic. SNOW in Kemerovo!”
The city in South Siberia is situated on 55°22'17.58" north latitude but even for that region -2 Celsius on June 2 morning is over the top. The region has seasonal inland climate, which means really cold winters and very hot summers.
This spring has been sort of cold in the Kemerovo Region, which witnessed snow in early May and an emergency extension of the heating season. No wonder that people have been waiting for warm summer days just like for manna from heaven, but instead got snowflakes.
But the locals are full of determination to recalculate sowing season schedule and plant kitchen gardens as usual and against all odds, probably because over 70 percent of Russia’s territory is the area of risk farming and people are used to encounter hardships of the kind.
Source
Jun 3, 2013
lonne rey
Flooding in the Alps
Heavy rain has caused widespread flooding in Austria and Switzerland. It has combined with melting snow to produce extreme conditions. People have been evacuated from their homes and there are reports of several deaths.
One of the worst affected areas is in Austria where a worker helping with the clear up operation was swept away near city of Salzburg. Two other people are missing.
A third person has been reported missing in the province of Vorarlberg.
Roads have been closed and we have heard from a PlanetSKI reader that the Austrian ski resort of Salbaach has been cut off as the road is deemed impassable.
Many roads in the Alps have been shut, including the one between Hopfgarten and Westendorf, due to mud slides.
Ski resorts are also now being pounded by heavy rain.
MeteoSwiss says the flood levels in St Gallen only happen once in 100 years.
Reports say four people are missing, feared dead, in Switzerland and Germany.
The army in Germany is on stand-by.
Rivers are at dangerously high levels as heavy rain continues to fall.
For a montage of pictures of the flooding and the efforts people are making to save their homes and possessions then see here.
Although there is danger in the Alps the most threatened areas are lower down as some of Europe's largest rivers are fed from the smaller ones coming down from the Alps.
For the latest information as rivers burst their banks and people are evacuated see this story on the BBC.
Prague, the Czech Republic is on high alert.
Flood barriers have been deployed and volunteers are filling sandbags in the city, the river Vltava reached its peak level in Prague during Monday morning.
The Prime Minister, Petr Necas, has called a special cabinet meeting to co-ordinate the emergency plan.
There are many flood alerts on the Danube and parts of Central Europe are bracing themselves.
Homes have been evacuated across southern Germany, the Czech Republic, Austria and Switzerland.
There have also been flood alerts in SW France and the Pyrenees.
We will bring you further news on the flooding, in the Alps and elsewhere, later on PlanetSKI.
Forecasters say the rain should ease off on Monday.
Once again at altitude this means more snow is falling and adding to the huge amounts still remaining.
Source
Jun 3, 2013
Kojima
Flood waters from Czech dams bear down on Prague [BBC News; 3 June 2013]
Footage shows animals at Prague zoo being moved to higher ground, and submerged emergency vehicles, cars and homes in other parts of Europe
The authorities in the Czech Republic have been forced to open dams in the south of the country, releasing huge volumes of water towards Prague.
The River Vltava, which flows through the capital, is rising and levels are expected to peak on Tuesday morning.
Severe floods caused by days of heavy rain have left at least seven people dead in the Czech Republic, and two others in neighbouring Austria.
Germany has drafted in the army to help reinforce flood defences in the south.
In the Bavarian town of Passau, floodwaters have now reached a level not seen since the 16th Century, making much of the town inaccessible.
Charles Bridge closed
In the Czech Republic, a nationwide state of emergency is in force. Around 3,000 people have been forced to leave their homes across the west of the country.
On Monday morning, the River Vltava was flowing at 2,800 cubic metres per second - 10 times its normal volume - through Prague's historic centre.
As a precaution the city's metro system and central sewage treatment plant were closed, metal flood defences were erected and sandbags built up along the banks of the Vltava.
The Charles Bridge - normally packed with tourists - has been closed and tigers at the city's zoo were even tranquilised and moved out of an enclosure thought to be at risk.
By Monday evening, the people of Prague had thought the worst was behind them, reports the BBC's Rob Cameron in the capital.
But then Prime Minister Petr Necas announced unexpectedly that a system of nine dams called the Vltava Cascade was dangerously full, and the pressure would have to be relieved.
At 20:00 local time (18:00 GMT) the floodgates on several dams were opened.
Our correspondent says the Vltava in Prague is now rising again, the situation exacerbated by several swollen tributaries.
Firemen and soldiers are raising the city's flood defences again to cope with the extra volumes of water on the Vltava, which has already burst its banks in several places.
North of Prague, further downstream, the River Elbe is rising to levels approaching those seen in 2002, the last time Europe experienced similar floods.
Seventeen people were killed in the Czech Republic then and the cost of the damage across the continent was estimated at 20bn euros (£17bn).
Disaster zone
Main roads in many areas of central Europe have been closed and rail services cut. Thousands of homes are without power.
In Austria, the meteorological service said two months of rain had fallen in just two days.
Floods across Central Europe
Austria Two people have died and several are missing in the west of the country
Germany Evacuations have taken place in Saxony while Bavaria is forecast more heavy rain
Czech Republic Seven people have died and Prague is on high alert. Troops have been called in to erect flood defences
A man was found dead near Salzburg after being swept away as he worked to clear a landslip, and another man who had been listed as missing was found dead in the western state of Vorarlberg. Three people remain missing.
More than 300 people were moved from their homes in Salzburg and the neighbouring Tyrol as the army worked with the civil authorities to clear landslides and make roads passable. Parts of the Pinzgau region, which includes Taxenbach, have been declared a disaster zone.
'Extremely dramatic'
In Germany, the army said it had sent 1,760 soldiers to southern and eastern areas to help local authorities reinforce flood defences.
The Bavarian towns of Passau and Rosenheim declared states of emergency, as forecasters warned of continuing heavy rain and a high risk of flooding from several rivers, including the Danube.
Water levels in Passau, which the Danube is joined by the Inn and Ilz rivers, were at their highest since 1501 and might rise further, the DPA news agency said.
Much of the city is inaccessible on foot and the electricity supply has been cut as a precaution. Inmates at a prison in danger of being flooded have also been moved.
"The situation is extremely dramatic," Herbert Zillinger, a spokesman for Passau's crisis centre, told the Associated Press.
Towns and cities in Saxony, Thuringia and Baden-Wuerttemberg have also been inundated by flooding, and the army has been deployed to help with the emergency effort.
In northern Saxony, water levels on the River Mulde were said to be particularly high.
A large area of Eilenburg north-east of Leipzig was evacuated, reports said, with 7,000 people being taken to emergency shelters.
Shipping was halted on parts of the Danube and Rhine rivers in Germany, and the entire length of the Danube in Austria. The rivers are used heavily to transport commodities such as grain and coal.
An emergency taskforce has been set up by the federal government, and Chancellor Angela Merkel plans to visit affected areas on Tuesday.
The European Union has said it stands ready to help the three countries as they tackle the devastating floods.
Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico also warned that there was a risk of flooding as water moved down the Danube, which flows through Bratislava.
"We are getting bad news from Germany and Austria. We have to do all we can to protect... the capital," he said.
The head of Hungary's National Disaster Authority, Gyorgy Bakondi, said 400 people were working on flood defences in the capital, Budapest, where he said the level of the Danube might reach or even exceed the height seen in 2002.
Jun 4, 2013
KM
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/story/2013/06/03/sk-torn...
Unusually early Tornado activity in Maple Creek, South Saskatchewan, Canada.
Family encounters tornado near Maple Creek, Sask.
Some Saskatchewan cattle ranchers got a scare Sunday when they encountered a tornado while coming home on the highway.
It happened while Perry Windjack and several members of his family were taking their empty cattle liner home after fueling up.
Windjack said they saw an ominous-looking rotating cloud about three kilometres away that appeared to form a tail that dropped toward the ground.
"It looked like it was heading east," he said. "We just wanted to get the heck out of there."
The tail pulled back up quickly and the family continued on their way.
Windjack said he's just glad everybody got home safely.
"Basically an empty cattle liner is just like a big old kite and we wouldn't have had much of a chance, had it developed into something," he said. "I think we could have been in some trouble."
Environment Canada told CBC News it was indeed a tornado the Windjacks saw, adding it touched down for a total of about five minutes.
Windjack's son Brodie videoed the swirling cloud for several minutes.
"It really turned into a funnel cloud and the tip started to drop down," Brodie Windjack said. "So there was a little bit of terror, I guess you could say, with all the tornadoes down in Oklahoma."
The Windjacks' ranch is about 15 kilometres southeast of Maple Creek.
Heavy rain and hail came with the storm and some parts of Maple Creek were briefly flooded.
Brodie Windjack shot this video of a tornado from his family's truck as they hustled to get home Sunday. (Brodie Windjack/YouTube)Jun 4, 2013
Howard
Drought and deluge evident on the Mississippi.
"Just five months ago, the Mississippi River was suffering from a severe drought. The river's bottom was actually bone dry in Memphis. Since then, the river has shot up 45 feet."
Missourians Grapple with Mississippi River Flooding
Jun 4, 2013
Nancy Lieder
I just took a measure here in Wisconsin at 6:55 am DST. By my measure the Sun was at Azimuth 53 in the NE and Altitude 40, Per Skymap it should have been Azimuth 73 and Altitude 17.
This is fully 20 degrees too far to the NORTH and fully 20+ degrees too high in the dome! I have had these readings pretty consistently, during sunny days, which are few and far between in our lingering cold spring here.
Jun 11, 2013
Beva
Massive dust storms hit southeast Colorado, evoking "Dirty Thirties"
Dirt is almost all that people can talk about these days in communities along U.S. 50 and 287.
Photos of fierce dust storms rolling across the state's Eastern Plains are showing up on Facebook and local TV news, harking to the Dust Bowl years that devastated southeastern Colorado in the 1930s.Farmers and ranchers are tolling their losses. People are praying for rain.
It's the inevitable result of three seasons of extreme drought in the area — D4 this year, the worst on the U.S. Drought Monitor scale, and no relief in sight, said state climatologist Nolan Doesken.
"The first year, it was very dry, but there was still reasonable vegetative cover," he said. "That started deteriorating last year, with more and more bare ground."
For miles on either side of U.S. 287 between Kit Carson and Lamar, the earth is brown and bare during a season that should be bursting with green native grasses and wheat. Even weeds aren't growing. Failed crops mean vast swaths of land with no roots to anchor parched topsoil.
Read more:Massive dust storms hit southeast Colorado, evoking "Dirty Thirties...http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_23420681/massive-dust-storms-hit-...
Jun 12, 2013
Gerard Zwaan
This video shows the wobble
Source: http://youtu.be/U8r6v8D_qUg
Jun 12, 2013
Howard
The cover-up has resorted to marginalizing its own mythology of severe weather causality.
The term "Derecho" emerged in the wake of last year's swath destruction across the northeastern half of the U.S. on June 29th that defied precident.
====================================================================================
(Courtesy of Astrogal50)
D.C. Derecho: Midwest to
East Coast Destructive Storms
Before Friday, June 29th, you may have never heard of the term "Derecho". I'm sure by now, you're well aware of what it means.... and it's probably something you wish you never knew about or had to experience.
A large cluster of thunderstorms developed Friday afternoon on June 29th in Eastern Iowa and continued to intensify, as it marched East into Northern Illinois and Indiana. A derecho is defined as a long lived wind storm that can travel for hundreds of miles with damage generally following a straight path. This is where the term "straight line winds" come from. The powerful thunderstorms travel very fast and as they accelerate, the storms sometimes tend to "bow". That can result in wind gusts between 60 and 100 mph. Take a look at a graphic, from the, showing the over 600 mile radius the derecho traveled.
Looking back at weather records, D.C. hasn't experienced a significant Derecho event before the Friday occurrence....
The 2012 D.C. Derecho will definitely make the record books. It was unlike something many of us have seen, but will remain infamous in our memories.
====================================================================================
A similarly powerful storm plowed across the same region on June 12, 2013, producing 3 tornadoes in the mid-Atlantic region alone, but since not as destructive as last year's Derecho, the storm's intensity was considered "low end".
http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2013/06/derecho-dc-storm-ph...
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-rains-winds-d...
http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2013/06/13/violent-afternoon-storm-de...
2012 Derecho
2013 Derecho
Jun 14, 2013
Nancy Lieder
6:17 am in Wisconsin, Sun WAY too far North. Skymap says it should be at Azimuth 68, but it is at Azimuth 43, a full 20 degrees too far North!
Jun 14, 2013
Mark
Britain's weather has now got so bad even the Met Office is worried: Forecasters to hold meeting over floods, droughts and even snow in May
Met Office has called extreme weather meeting for next week
Experts to discuss if it is result of climate change or just typically British
Meeting sparked after UK suffered its coldest spring for 50 years
'We have seen a run of unusual seasons in the UK,' Met Office says
After summer floods and droughts, freezing winters and even widespread snow in May this year, something is clearly wrong with Britain's weather.
Concerns about the extreme conditions the UK consistently suffers have increased to such an extent that the Met Office has called a meeting next week to talk about it.
Leading meteorologists and scientists will discuss one key issue: is Britain's often terrible weather down to climate change, or just typical?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2341484/Floods-droughts-sno...
Jun 14, 2013
Nancy Lieder
A very dramatic notice posted by someone in Sweden. The Sun rising way too early! The wobble has gotten quite extreme!
....................
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151499075874366&set=a...
WHY IS THE SUN RISING IN THE SKY OVER STOCKHOLME RIGHT NOW!! its been rising since about 1.20am its only 1.50am in the morning in sweden,its not suppose to Rise untill 3.30 in the morning,Watch now as it rise here, its a live click the link to see and look at time/clock at the topr right of the webcam. Pole shift/earth wobble?? cam..
Jun 15, 2013
Kojima
Heavy snow blankets the Siberian town of Nadym a day after the temperatures reached +30 Celsius, forcing residents to swap shorts for fur coats.
At euronews we believe in the intelligence of our viewers and we think that the mission of a news channel is to deliver facts without any opinion or bias, so that the viewers can form their own opinion on world events.
Copyright © 2013 euronews
* http://news.sky.com/story/1103914/siberia-scorching-sun-to-snow-sto...
Just one day after basking in temperatures of 30C, residents of a Siberian town were shocked to suddenly find themselves in the middle of a snow storm.
Nadym had been enjoying days of tropical weather before people were quickly forced to change their t-shirts and shorts for coats and scarves.
Sub-zero conditions are normal for the region through the long winter but are rare for June, when the sun gives people a brief but hot summer.
Amateur footage filmed in the town showed snow pouring down and covering streets, cars and parks - with people wrapped up and battling with the bitter cold.
Temperatures can drop as low as -50C in a Siberian winter, with the town of Oymyakon often recording the lowest numbers.
Weather Report from Nadym (Надым)
Nadym (Надым) weather report provides observations from the weather station, updated hourly. The table features wind speed, dewpoint, visibility and atmospheric pressure measurements as well as a detailed temperature graph. A log of weather variations over the past 18 days is also shown covering separate daytime and nighttime observations. The weather station is near Labytnangi, Russia.
Jun 17, 2013
lonne rey
Floods live. 250 evacuees in Haute-Garonne (france), the Lourdes Grotto submerged
The point at 12:30. 250 people were evacuated in Karnataka on Tuesday in the towns of St. Beatus, Bagneres-de-Luchon, rooms Pratviel and Fos. In the latter town, a bridge was washed away, animals have drowned in torrential floods.
Several lines were cut: the RN125 Labroquère to the Spanish border, the RD46, the RD618A and RD27C in Bagneres-de-Luchon. On the A64, the ramp to the RD645 is closed to store trucks. Passes of Ares Menté, Bales, Peyresourde and gate are subject to filtering to restrict traffic to only emergency and residents.
Many schools are closed: the high school and college Luchon, the College of St. Beatus schools Cierp-Gaud, Beatus, Fos and Saint-Mamet.
An emergency device was triggered by the prefecture of Haute-Garonne, which calls for greater vigilance.
In the Hautes-Pyrenees, the Massabielle Grotto in Lourdes was closed, submerged by the waters of the Gave. Hotels in Paradise Avenue closed their terrace. A camp was evacuated in Loures Barousse. A Arreau Neste topped 2.92 meters, flood level reference 1997.
Following strong storm precipitation that falls on the area since Monday, Lourdes was placed Tuesday in flood warning. Camping Luchon, he was evacuated. Several roads were cut.
Authorities fear joint flood Pike and One. Road Superbagnères is cut by a major mudslide.
Translated with google
Source in French
Jun 18, 2013
Mark
Meteorologists continue the cover-up despite the pending announcement: is it arrogance or is the announcement not an open secret in the UK as it is in the US?
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/stand-by-for-another...
After leading meteorologists and scientists met in Exeter to 'discuss the recent extreme weather' (code for discussing the effects of the wobble), they have decided to continue mis-leading the public as to the true cause of climate change by naming the culprit as 'Atlantic multi-decadal oscillations', a natural cycle which has supposedly occurred in the 1950s and 1880s previously.
They then go on to pick a few possible reasons for this out of a hat and such as melting Arctic ice or a disturbed jet stream, before predicting a further 5-10 years of wet summers.
Now, are they truly unaware of the upcoming announcement which will surely leave them with egg on their faces when the public quickly connects the presence of Planet X with today's weather anomalies, or are they maintaining the UK's active participation in the cover-up over the years and is it a co-incidence that their 5-10 year prediction of rain seems to mirror the Zeta information that there will be continuous drizzle after the poleshift, starting to lift only after 5 years?
Jun 19, 2013
Howard
Baked Alaska: Crazy weather swings from ice to fire
In Alaska, houses are built to keep warm air in and cold air out, not the other way around. So with a record-setting heat wave scorching the state, residents are sweltering amid temperatures soaring past 90 degrees Fahrenheit.
Southcentral Alaska hit four all-time highs yesterday (June 17), ranging between 88 F in Seward to 94 F in Talkeetna, according to the National Weather Service's Alaska forecast office. In the southeastern portion of the state, Skagway, a popular cruise ship port-of-call, reached 83 F, almost as warm as St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands. Just about every part of the state was warmer than average yesterday, the NWS said.
The blazing hot temperatures are just the latest records to fall this year in Alaska. Residents also endured history-making cold temperatures throughout spring and flooding and evacuations caused by the never-ending winter. A mass of Arctic air stuck over the state for weeks this spring was responsible for the chilly weather. It finally fell prey to the warming effects of 18 hours of sunlight at the end of May.
"Eventually, the sun is going to win out, and once it did, boy, did things change in a hurry," said Michael Lawson, a meteorologist with the NWS Alaska forecast office in Anchorage.
Marine layer loses
While Interior Alaska and towns near the Alaska Range regularly see high temperatures in the summer, extreme heat rarely flares up in Alaska's coastal communities, which are cooled by marine breezes. But a high-pressure ridge parked over Southcentral Alaska is pushing refreshing afternoon sea breezes offshore.
"It's really much rarer for places in Southcentral Alaska to get as hot as they've been getting," Lawson told LiveScience. "This ridge has been so strong the sea breeze hasn't been getting a chance to cool us down."
The heat wave will continue for the rest of the week, the NWS forecasts. The unusually strong, high-pressure system is intensifying over mainland Alaska, continuing the heat wave. Interior and Southwest Alaska will reach upwards of 90 F, and Southeast and Southcentral Alaska will see highs in the upper 70s and 80s F.
A year without a spring
Yet just a month ago, Alaska was in the grips of a never-ending winter, with late-season snowstorms and record-low temperatures in mid-May. The wild weather swing has wreaked havoc on the annual ice melt along rivers, causing ice jams and flooding. The town of Galena was evacuated late last month due to flooding from an ice dam on the mighty Yukon River. The Nenana Ice Classic, a betting contest on the Nenana River's ice breakup, set a record for the latest-ever crack and cave in of the ice.
"It was an incredibly rapid transition," Lawson told LiveScience. "Literally, our spring was about five days before we jumped into summer-type weather."
A persistent low-pressure trough that remained stuck over the state brought wave after wave of cold Arctic air into Alaska, Lawson said, keeping temperatures lower than normal for most of the winter.
This week's warm weather could bring more flooding from melting snow and ice at higher elevations, the NWS has warned. A red flag fire warning, which signals dangerously dry air and possible strong winds, was also issued over the weekend for much of the state because of drier conditions caused by the hot air mass. A forest fire broke out east of Fairbanks on Monday evening (June 17), prompting temporary road closures. A 30,000-acre fire is also burning in Southwest Alaska.
Source
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/06/18/19026098-baked-alaska-cr...
Jun 19, 2013
Shaun Kazuck
NBC News just did a 30 second video report on how 63% of polled Americans said that their GPS has led them astray of late. They of course did not even try to explain why that is (wobble) when it is supposed to be so accurate being created and still used by the military. They just said older generations of people still carry maps and an atlas. Good advice for all I'd say!
http://www.nbcnews.com/video/nightly-news/52246284/
Jun 19, 2013
Nancy Lieder
@Wayne,
unfortunately for the elite hunkering down at Atchison, Kansas, this will all be well under water, and likely well before the Pole Shift. Atchison, Kansas is right on the Missouri River, in the part of Kansas destined to be part of the new inland bay in the US.
Jun 19, 2013
KM
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/06/20/canmore-flooding-alberta-he...
The town of Canmore is under a local state of emergency as heavy rainfall continues to drench the tiny mountain community.
The rain, which has been falling steadily since Thursday evening, has forced road closures on major highways near Canmore, Banff and Kananaskis.
People living near Cougar Creek have been evacuated, as the swelling river erodes the riverbank and inches closer to homes.
The town says on its website that power is also out across the community
People are being asked to stay away from the river banks of Cougar Creek, as the rising water may have made them unstable.
Several videos and photos from Canmore show homes on the banks of Cougar Creek threatened by the powerful surge.
Parks Canada has closed the Trans-Canada Highway at the Norquay interchange, after heavy rain caused a mudslide around 1:00 a.m. Thursday morning. The slide, which occurred two kilometres west of the interchange, affects westbound traffic only.
According to park officials, no one was hurt by the debris.
The following additional road closures are in effect:
The City of Calgary has issued a state of emergency, as water levels on the Bow and Elbow Rivers climb dangerously high. The city has begun to deploy sandbags and temporary dams.
Calgarians are reminded to stay away from underpasses, which can flood quickly, as well as keeping a safe distance from river banks.
The city projects flood water will exceed levels of the massive flooding in 2005 in Calgary.
An emergency has been declared in Turner Valley due to a sour gas leak.
High River, south of Calgary, has also declared a state of emergency, as the Highwood River rises quickly and begins to overflow.
Residents in the Wallaceville area are being encouraged to evacuate and campers in George Lane Park are being told to leave as well.
A critical alert for flooding has also been issued in Black Diamond by the Government of Alberta, and mandatory evacuations are in effect.
Search and rescue staff are looking for two missing adults south of Black Diamond at Highway 22 and Highway 541, after a trailer collapsed.
The STARS air ambulance responded at 10:30 a.m. and is now on scene.
The City of Lethbridge has also declared a state of emergency, to ensure all resources will be available for the Lethbridge River Valley and area.
Environment Canada has issued a heavy rainfall warning for much of southwestern Alberta, including Canmore, Banff, Calgary, Airdrie, Crowsnest Pass, Nordegg, Okotoks and Rocky Mountain House.
The weather agency says the downpours have already produced over 70 millimetres of rain and another 100 millimetres could fall by Friday.
Jun 20, 2013
SongStar101
Flooding may force 100,000 from west Canada homes
SOURCE-Picture
HIGHWOOD RIVER, Calgary (AP) — Water levels from heavy flooding in western Canada were expected to peak around noon on Friday possibly forcing as many as 100,000 people from their homes, officials said.
Torrential rains and widespread flooding throughout southern Alberta on Thursday forced the closure of the Trans-Canada Highway and isolated the mountain resort towns of Banff and Canmore.
The flooding washed out roads and bridges, left at least one person missing and caused cars, couches and refrigerators to float away.
Communities were hit hard just south of Calgary, a city of more than a million people that hosted the 1988 Winter Olympics.
Many downtown neighborhoods were ordered evacuated as the evening went on. Officials said the evacuation would take place in stages over the next few days. The province reported that 12 communities were under states of emergency.
One woman who had been stranded on top of a trailer was missing after it was swept away, STARS air ambulance spokesman Cam Heke said.
Motorists who were trapped overnight Wednesday by water spilling over Canada's main western highway had to be rescued by helicopter, Town of Canmore spokeswoman Sally Caudill said.
"I woke up at about three o'clock in morning to the sound of this kind of rumbling, and it was the creek," said Wade Graham, a resident of Canmore. "At first it was just intense, pretty powerful, amazing thing to watch. As daylight came, it just got bigger and bigger and wider and wider, and it's still getting bigger and bigger and wider and wider."
He added, "I watched a refrigerator go by, I watched a shed go by, I watched couches go by. It's insane."
Bruce Burrell, director of the Calgary Emergency Management Agency, said water levels on the Bow River aren't expected to subside until Saturday afternoon. The Bow River Basin already has been battered with up to 100 mm (3.9 inches) of rain.
"Depending on the extent of flooding we experience overnight, there may be areas of the city where people are not going to be able to get into until the weekend," he told a news conference.
In High River, Mounties asked people with motorboats to help rescue at least a dozen stranded homeowners.
"We have people on their rooftops who were unable to evacuate fast enough," said RCMP Sgt. Patricia Neely.
Environment Canada issued a rainfall warning for the affected areas, estimating as much as 100 millimetres more rain could fall in the next two days.
Jun 21, 2013
SongStar101
Sun bathers, reptiles emerge in Alaska heat as wildfires spread
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) - With a heat wave gripping Alaska, strange things have been happening under the midnight sun.
Anchorage residents, who a month ago shivered through an unseasonably cold spring and a surprise May snowstorm, have donned swimsuits and depleted stores of fans to ward off record heat in the state's largest city.
Temperatures have run as much as 20 degrees Fahrenheit above normal, with daytime highs in Anchorage climbing into the 80s in recent days, and the sudden onset of atypical warmth has been blamed for unleashing wildfires and flooding alike.
Moose have been spotted near lawn sprinklers around Anchorage and at least one invaded someone's kiddie pool. Pet reptiles, normally confined to heated indoor spaces because of Alaska's cold outdoors, are making rare public appearances.
Park managers at Goose Lake, one of Anchorage's few outdoor swimming spots, had to eject a pet iguana named "Godzilla," along with some pet snakes and a turtle that patrons brought to the crowded sandy shoreline, said Doreen Hernandez, the city aquatic superintendent who has been working at the site.
Pets are not allowed at Goose Lake for health reasons, although she conceded that the rule is usually applied to dogs.
"We don't have a sign that says `No Snakes,'" she said.
Heat records have been broken around the state, with an all-time record high of 96 degrees reached on Tuesday in Talkeetna, the tiny town famous as the jumping-off site for Mount McKinley expeditions. The previous record high there was 91 degrees.
SIZZLING SOLSTICE
The heat spell has come at the peak of Alaska's summer, just before the solstice, a time of nearly round-the-clock daylight as the sun barely grazes the horizon overnight.
In Valdez, operators of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline marine terminal halted oil-tanker loading for 4 1/2 hours late Monday night and early Tuesday morning as a precaution after temperatures at the terminal hit 92 degrees.
"Our systems aren't used to operating in that heat," said Katie Pesznecker, a spokeswoman for operator Alyeska Pipeline Service Co.
Meteorologists blame the anomaly on rapid shift in atmospheric wind patterns. The system that brought cold air from the north during the spring changed suddenly, sending in hot air from the south and southeast.
The rapid heat-up caused considerable flooding of mountain streams, said Tom Pepe, an Anchorage-based meteorologist for the National Weather Service.
"You get big pieces of ice that jam up small parts of rivers,"
Flooding along the Yukon River late last month caused severe damage in several Native Alaskan villages, most notably the Athabascan community of Galena, where nearly all residents were evacuated by aircraft.
Property damage along the river was estimated at $10 million, said Tony Luiken, a state emergency management spokesman. The governor has declared a disaster.
The heat wave also has stoked numerous wildfires, many ignited by dry-lightning strikes fueled by ample dry brush.
A lightning-sparked wildfire straddling the Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge and Wrangell-St. Elias National Park tripled in size in one day, and was last measured at more than 25,000 acres, the National Park Service said on Wednesday.
Jun 21, 2013
lonne rey
Rainstorm wreaks havoc in western Switzerland
A violent storm packing winds of up to 130 kilometres an hour, hail and heavy rain swept through western Switzerland on Thursday uprooting trees, disrupting transport and sparking flash flooding.
Traffic at Geneva’s airport was disrupted and numerous streets were turned into rivers from the heavy rain, the ATS news agency reported.
Skyguide said air traffic at Geneva airport was suspended for 20 minutes while the storm passed through.
Traffic was also delayed on Swiss Federal Railways trains between Geneva and Lausanne.
In 15 minutes, as much as 20 millimetres of rain fell in the Geneva region, the weather service of the Swiss broadcaster SRF reported.
The storm, coming a day before the official start of summer, marked a dramatic change in weather following a four-day heatwave that saw temperatures well above 30 degrees.
Local news media website ArcInfo.ch reported heavy damage in various parts of Neuchâtel from hailstones measuring up to five centimetres in diameter.
Vehicle and building windows were smashed and vineyards were damaged, the website reported.
Trains came to a standstill between Neuchâtel and Chaux-de-Fonds and Neuchâtel and Val-de-Travers following a mudslide.
At least a dozen other municipalities sustained damage from the storm as it tracked toward the French border.
In Biel, in the canton of Bern, dozens of people were injured as strong winds devastated a campsite for the Swiss federal gymnastics festival for the second time in a week, cantonal police said.
Police, firefighters, ambulance attendants and Swiss army members responded to deal with the situation, according to media reports.
The exact number of injured people could not be immediately confirmed.
Tents were thrown in the air and many people were trapped beneath debris, the SDA news service reported.
Last Thursday, strong winds forced cancellation of the opening ceremonies of the festival, involving 60,000 athletes from across the country.
Malcolm Curtis (news@thelocal.ch)
http://www.thelocal.ch/20130620/rainstorm-wreaks-havoc-in-western-s...
Jun 22, 2013
KM
http://thewatchers.adorraeli.com/2013/06/21/polar-blast-hit-new-zea...
Severe weather and polar blast hit New Zealand
Posted by Chillymanjaro on June 21, 2013
New Zealand was hit by the large low pressure system bringing destructive storms that have swept over the country in the last 24 hours, damaging houses, roads and seawalls, as well as closing dozens of schools and leaving thousands without power. Luckily, fierce storm is now showing signs of ease.
Polar blast dumped record early season snow in New Zealand. Heavy snow has fallen in parts of the South Island, cutting off some communities. Areas like North Canterbury and inland parts of northern Southland and Otago have already had some big snow totals.
The deep Antarctic air swept across the country backed by the band of torrential showers - many with hail, thunderstorms and damaging winds. Hail was unusually heavy for Auckland area. A thunderstorm that moved through from the Tasman Sea also caused multiple power outages around the county.
Damaging gales are persisting across areas around Cook Strait, including parts of Wellington. Swells of up to 10 meters have been reported in Cook Strait. Number of houses were losing roofs, windows were breaking and other structural damage was reported. Wellington recorded near record winds of 200 km/h, uprooting trees, downing power lines and ripping off roofs. Severe weather conditions disrupted and canceled flights across the country, with more delays expected as gale force winds are predicted to wallop the lower North Island.
A tornado has been seen in the Waikato community of Paterangi, south of Hamilton on June 20, 2013. Huge size of the wintry blast moving in can still produce tornadoes and squalls in western New Zealand.
Bands of clouds over east coasts of the both NZ islands captured by MODIS satellite on June 21, 2013 (Credit: LANCE/MODIS/Worldview)
Authorities warned people to remain indoors due to the aggressive nature of the storms coming in from the Tasman Sea, as part of the polar blast hitting New Zealand. Storm-force southerly winds brought down trees and slips in many Wellington suburbs. Driving conditions around the region are treacherous and motorists are urged to stay off the roads unless absolutely necessary.
According to WeatherWatch, the eastern side of both islands will still be in the firing line of a very cold southerly flow that will bring more wintry showers and snow on the hills. After the next 48 hours, an unfavorable weather conditions are expected to move away from the country.
Jun 22, 2013
Kojima
* 160,000 people affected by floods in Xinjiang, China [ReliefWeb; 21 June 2013: View Original; News.Xinhuanet; 2013-06-21]
URUMQI, June 21 (Xinhua) -- Hailstorms and torrential rain-triggered floods have left about 160,000 people affected in the southern part of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, local authorities said on Friday.
As of Thursday afternoon, the floods have affected more than 101,000 people in Aksu Prefecture and led to nearly 3,000 of them being relocated. About 12,000 hectares of croplands have been damaged, 1,638 houses toppled and 6,197 houses damaged by the floods, according to the regional civil affairs department.
Hailstorms have stricken 19 towns in Kashi Prefecture, leaving 60,000 people affected in the area, said the prefecture's flood control and drought relief headquarters.
The hail has also injured 84 people and killed 89 heads of livestock and 11,200 domestic birds in the prefecture.
Relief supplies such as quilts, tents as well as food have been sent to the areas. Relocation of the affected people is under way.
Floods in China leave thousands stranded [WSB Radio; 21 June 2013]
Floods in China's northwest Gansu province have left at least 10,000 people stranded and damaged infrastructure. The floods were the result of heavy rainfall Wednesday night. By Thursday morning 11 villages were suffering power outages and thousands of residents were left stranded by torrential floodwaters. Meanwhile, neighbouring Xinjiang province was hit by a rare mid-June snowstorm.
Jun 23, 2013
Kojima
* Ecuador: Drought DREF operation nº MDREC007 [ReliefWeb; 12 June 2013]
Summary: Ecuador’s southern region has gone for four months without rain. The province of Loja is the most affected province due to this drought. Given this situation, on 8 May 2013, during a meeting with the provincial Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), a contingency plan was presented for an immediate response to provide water for human consumption and use in the agricultural and livestock activities in the affected cantons of Zapotillo, Celica, Chaguarpamba, Olmedo, Paltas, Calvas, Sozoranga, Espíndola, Catamayo, Macará and Puyango.
Considering that the provincial economy is completely based on agricultural and livestock, the rainfall that is 72 per cent below normal has caused losses in the corn, peanut, and bean crops and there is a high scarcity of food and foliage for cattle. According to the forecast report from the National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology (INAMHI), rain is not expected in upcoming days; clouds with misty rain in the evening and fog are expected.
As part of its response plan, the Ecuadorian Red Cross (ERC) has conducted, in coordination with the National Secretariat of Risk Management and the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Aquaculture and Fishing (MAGAP), a Damage Assessment and Needs Analysis (DANA) in the most vulnerable communities located in the cantons of Zapotillo, Paltas, Célica and Macará. A total of 1,025 directly affected households have been identified
* Ecuador: Drought (as of 11 Jun 2013) [ReliefWeb; 11 June 2013]
Jun 23, 2013
Kojima
* Springtime melt in Greenland: Late start, rapid spread [NSIDC: National Snow & Ice Data Center; June 21, 2013]
Surface melting of the snow and ice of the Greenland Ice Sheet had a slightly late start, but quickly spread over a significant area, extending over more than 20% of the ice sheet in early June and reaching above 2,000 meters (6,500 feet) elevation in some areas. Small melt lakes have begun to form on the ice sheet, as seen by the new USGS/NASA Landsat-8 satellite.
Overview of conditions
After the annual re-calibration of the melt algorithm in mid March (see March 18 post), very little melt was detected until May. A few southern coastal areas began melting in mid-May, followed by inland higher-elevation ice and all remaining coastal areas about June 3, when warmer conditions arrived. Surface melting reached the “Saddle” region of the ice sheet (located where the pale bluish band extends from the east to the west coastal zones in Figure 1) on June 11 and 13. Only the central eastern coast remains relatively melt free.
Conditions in context
At this point, the pace of melt is well above average, but well behind the early, intense start seen in the record 2012 season (see February 5 post).
After a spike in melt area in early June, cooler conditions have brought the melt area near the average extent of ~20% of the ice sheet.
Rising temperatures
Cool conditions in April and May shifted to warmer-than-average weather along both coasts in early June, which initiated more widespread melt on the ice sheet. This shift roughly coincided with a larger change in the Arctic Oscillation from near-neutral conditions to slightly positive, and a shift from generally easterly and northerly winds to southwesterlies. The sea ice on both sides of Greenland remained at near-normal extent through the period.
A report from the field
With summer beginning, many Greenland researchers are now in the field, and reporting back on observed surface melting conditions. Thomas Mote from University of Georgia, who is in the Kangerlussuaq area with Asa Rennermalm of Rutgers University, reports indications that there was a fairly warm late winter, a cool spring, and heavy snow in May. This area has experienced strong melting, but much of it is the melting of the late spring snowfall. There is word of a 1-kilometer (0.6 mile) long meltwater lake about 7 kilometers (4 miles) inland on the ice east of Kanger. They did observe some fairly large meltwater streams and moulins.
Jun 23, 2013