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.

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...

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.

* 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.

* 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]

* 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.

http://saskatoon.ctvnews.ca/atchison-stay-away-from-the-river-1.133...

Atchison: Stay away from the river

ater levels on the South Saskatchewan River have officially peaked, according to the City of Saskatoon. The river is currently higher than it’s been in 100 years.

On Saturday, the Saskatchewan Water Security Agency began releasing water from Gardiner Dam at a rate of 2,000 cubic metres per second to deal with inflows into Lake Diefenbaker that are 12 times the normal rate of 500 cubic metres per second.

By mid-afternoon Sunday the river through Saskatoon had risen about 30 centimetres above the level seen during 2005.

Granted this article does not reveal the "True" Cause, but another good example of extreme weather in Alaska.  The words wobble and "drunken driver" describing the jet stream are prominently displayed.  

WASHINGTON (AP) - The jet stream, the river of air high above Earth that generally dictates the weather, usually rushes rapidly from west to east in a mostly straight direction. 

But lately it seems to be wobbling and weaving like a drunken driver, wreaking havoc as it goes. The more the jet stream undulates north and south, the more changeable and extreme the weather.  

The most recent example occurred in mid-June when some towns in Alaska hit record highs. McGrath, Alaska, recorded an all-time high of 94 degrees on June 17. A few weeks earlier, the same spot was 15 degrees, the coldest recorded for so late in the year.

http://www.komonews.com/news/national/96-in-Alaska-Weather-extremes...

In the east of the Netherlands it was around 0 near the ground during the night, only occurred once before at the end of June in 2000 since they started to measure in 1901.

http://tinyurl.com/pj23zzb

http://twitpic.com/cz7tuh

Abnormal Percentages of Rainfall along East in June

http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/east-us-poised-for-flood...

NASA launches IRIS sun-watching probe - June 28

Replay Video Share

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NASA says the satellite's mission will be to examine a little-studied region of the sun in the hopes of improving space weather prediction.

"What is NASA trying to learn with this new satellite, which will be positioned exactly over the Equator at the same time each day? This is exactly what a scientist would need in order to ascertain a change in the Earth wobble!  The satellite hugs the Earth, hugs the Equator in fact, so the angle of view toward the Sun should change only for the slow passing of the seasons.  But during the daily Earth wobble, the angle of view toward the Sun changes as the N Pole is first pushed away from Planet X, then later compensates by bouncing back. The daily Figure 8 pattern also has the Earth first leaning to the right, then the left, a pattern that is overlaid over the polar push pattern.

"Since the wobble is palpable, measurable from the surface of the Earth by those measuring the Azimuth and timing of their sunrise and sunset, why does NASA need a satellite to give them details about the Earth wobble? More than the severity of the wobble can be ascertained, though the satellite will give this in exacting detail, showing and documenting trends. The magnetic blast coming toward Earth from the N Pole of Planet X will be measured, giving an early alert on the trend of steady increase expected to eventually devastate mankind’s electronics and satellites.  After the announcement, NASA may admit the true use of this satellite, but we doubt it."

ZetaTalk Chat Q&A for June 8, 2013

Historic, dangerous heat wave scorches western USA

All-time record temperatures are possible in Las Vegas, Reno and Flagstaff.

(Photo: Matt York, AP)

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• The heat wave is forecast to last at least through Monday
• Death Valley could reach 129 degrees, just a few degrees below the world heat record
• Dry thunderstorms will only intensify the wildfire threat

A blistering, potentially historic and record-breaking heat wave is beginning today in the West, and is forecast to last at least through the weekend.

Excessive heat warnings and watches have been issued today by the National Weather Service for most of Arizona, Nevada, California and parts of Utah. They are in effect through Monday.

"An excessive heat warning is issued when temperatures are forecast to reach dangerous levels that will stress the body if precautions are not taken," the weather service warns.

"Heat stroke symptoms include an increase in body temperature, which leads to deliriousness, unconsciousness and red, dry skin," according to a weather service online report. "Death can occur when body temperatures reach or exceed 106-107 degrees."

Infants and children, the elderly, as well as those with chronic medical conditions such as chronic kidney disease, asthma, hypertension and diabetes are at increased risk for heat-related illness, according to Robert Glatter, emergency room physician at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York. He says to prevent the adverse effects of heat-related illness, stay in a cool air-conditioned environment with access to plenty of cool fluids, mainly water.

The cause of the heat wave is a "massive and unusually strong high-pressure system" over the region, the weather service reports.

Extreme heat is supposed to hit the West on Friday and it could cause major travel woes for much of the country, whether you're flying, driving, or taking a train.

"Daytime temperatures will soar well into triple digits, and overnight lows will struggle to drop into the 70s and 80s," notes weather service meteorologist Mary Beth Gerhardt in a Weather Prediction Center report.

Notoriously hot Death Valley in California is forecast to reach 129 degrees, not far off the world-record high of 134 logged there exactly one century ago.

In some cities, record highs for any date throughout the year could be equaled or breached, says AccuWeather meteorologist Alex Sosnowski. Cities that could set all-time high temperature marks include Flagstaff, Ariz., Las Vegas and Reno, he adds.

An all-time record of 117 degrees could be broken Saturday in Las Vegas.

In Las Vegas Thursday afternoon, two Elvis impersonators and a performer costumed as the iconic "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign said they still planned to keep up their routine of working the tourist corridor in the broad daylight and turning in for the evenings, heat notwithstanding.

"We'd much rather fight with the sun than fight with the drunk people," Elvis impersonator Cristian Morales said.

We're having a heat wave: Triple-digit heat out West: That's blazing hot

Utah isn't immune from the heat,either: Temperatures are expected to reach as high as 115 degrees in St. George, Utah, through the weekend.

"It's hard for us to say everyone should stay indoors when it's really hot," says David Heaton, the Southwest Utah Public Health Department public information officer. "There are always going to be folks going out during the day in hiking conditions. If you're going to go out, use caution, stay hydrated and watch for signs of heat exhaustion."

Little relief is in sight across the baked region: "A few isolated thunderstorms containing minimal precipitation will be possible along the higher elevations of the Rockies and Great Basin," according to Gerhardt. "Instead of providing relief from the heat this weekend, these dry storms will only enhance the fire weather threat across a very hot and dry region."

The National Weather Service is calling for temperatures to approach 120 degrees in Phoenix over the weekend. Phoenix has only been in the 120s three other times in history, according to Weather Channel meteorologist Chris Dolce.

Improbable as it might seem, the heat reminds Phoenix resident Anders Berg of his home in Sweden, where temperatures aren't likely to be much above 65 degrees this weekend. "It's like if it's a snowstorm in Sweden," he said. "You stay inside; you don't go out." The heat, like the bitter cold, isn't something to acclimate to, he said, but rather something to avoid.

While the West bakes this weekend, most of the East will see a humid, showery weekend, with heavy thunderstorms and an increased threat for flooding, AccuWeather forecasts.

Contributing: The Associated Press; Zach St. George, The Arizona Republic; Brian Passey, The Spectrum in St. George, Utah.

Ashawn Rabb runs through a fountain of water at the Red Ridge Park water park on June 27 in Las Vegas. A high pressure system stalled over the West is bringing high heat to a region used to baking during the summer. Julie Jacobson, AP

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June again too cold 

France: an autumnal weather yesterday afternoon

june 29 2013

The week that we live in is, it has not escaped you, very cool ... while we are closer to the middle of summer ... Even the eastern regions that have previously been saved (after the short episode of intense heat of mid-month) experienced in all respects horrible weather .  This last week of June is at the scale of France, the coolest month!

This cool for late June recalls the episode of bad weather experienced in late June 1981, when the maximum temperature did not exceed 11 to 14 ° C, with a gray sky and heavy rain.


A context weather season

With a depression centered on northern Europe, the cloudy and unstable returns concerned most of the country, sparing the Atlantic coast. These clouds, driven by a north wind chilled directly down the pole, have earned us this persistent gloom, whose highest point is reached since last Friday and now Saturday.



Temperatures below 10 ° C to seasonal averages

Friday afternoon, the regions extending from Midi-Pyrenees in the Franche-Comté and Rhône-Alpes, Auvergne or even Alsace, Lorraine and the Ile-de-France experienced weather conditions actually fall with a very low ceiling (stratus ubiquitous rain and moderate wind from the north-west). Temperatures struggled to reach 15 to 18 ° C over many cities.

Weather conditions are a far cry from the summer ...

Rise in temperature from Sunday

On Sunday, with the direction of the current in the west and southwest Monday, temperatures begin to rise: between Friday and Monday, we will win in places more than 10 ° C. .. In feit we simply rejoin the middle of the season ...

Source in French

translated with google

Just for the record the temps from a year ago

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/29/phoexix-heat-wave_n_352138...

Phoenix, Las Vegas Bake In Scorching Heat

DEATH VALLEY, Calif. — Scorching heat blistered the Southwest on Saturday, where highs between 115 and 120 degrees were expected for parts of Arizona, Nevada and California through the weekend.

Forecasters said temperatures in sunbaked Las Vegas could match the record of 117 degrees Saturday. Phoenix also was expected to hit that mark, matching the record for June 29 set in 1994. And large swaths of California sweltered under extreme heat warnings, which are expected to last into Tuesday night – and maybe even longer.

Dan Kail was vacationing in Las Vegas when he heard that the temperature at California's Death Valley could approach 130 degrees this weekend. He didn't hesitate to make a trip to the desert location that is typically the hottest place on the planet.

"Coming to Death Valley in the summertime has always been on the top of my bucket list," the 67-year-old Pittsburgh man said. "When I found out it might set a record I rented a car and drove straight over. If it goes above 130 I will have something to brag about."

The forecast called for Death Valley to reach 128 degrees Saturday as part of a heat wave that has caused large parts of the western U.S. to suffer. Death Valley's record high of 134 degrees, set a century ago, stands as the highest temperature ever recorded on Earth.

check out the photo of the sun in this article

http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/climate-weather/blogs/you-know-its...

Redditor Mohayat lives in Kuwait and snapped this amazing photograph of a traffic light literally melting under the hot summer sun.

 

 

Here is the current weather and forecast for Kuwait.

 

Vertical jet stream across N. America. 

http://www.ssec.wisc.edu/data/geo/index.php?satellite=west&chan...

http://squall.sfsu.edu/gif/jetstream_init_00.gif

Incessant rain leaves thousands water logged in Cox's Bazar [Dhaka Tribune; 1 July 2013]

Hundreds of people have been marooned in rainwater while houses, shrimp farms, crops land and salt beds have been inundated as major thoroughfares in the district have been submerged in torrential rain

Fishing boats and trawlers in the North bay have been advised to remain close to the coast on Sunday

The incessant downpour over the past few days has hit people in Cox’s Bazar hard, with many rendered homeless and the threat of landslides looming in the area. 

Hundreds of people have been marooned in rainwater while houses, shrimp farms, crops land, salt beds have been inundated as major thoroughfares in the district have been submerged in torrential rain.

AKM Nazmul Huq of Cox’s Bazar metrological office said all fishing boats and trawlers in the North bay have been advised to remain close to the coast and proceed with caution till further notice.

Light to heavy rain and south-southeasterly gusty or squally winds are likely to persist in the flood-hit areas over the next two days, he warned.

Meanwhile, 50 villages of Moheshkhali upazila, Cox’s Bazar sadar, Ukhia, Teknaf, Ramu, Chokoriya and Pekuya were flooded as rainwater broke embankments.

In Ramu upazila, more than 20 villages were submerged, with the water level of Bakkhali river increasing, leading to erosion across the region.

Likewise in Ukhia, around 200 dwellings were damaged and many shrimp farms near Naf river in Teknaf were flooded.

Shrimp cultivators Akkas, Altaj Ali, Hafez Zaker, Farid Alam of  Palongkhali union claimed that over Tk30m of losses were incurred as around 60 shrimp farms on a 3,000-acre land went under tidal water.

Rohingya refugees living illegally on different hills owned by the forest department were among those marooned in the rainwater.

The areas most affected in Cox’s Bazar are Poschim Palongkhali, Nolbonia, Tajlimar Khola, Rohmoterbil, Dhamonkhali and Balukhali areas under Palongkhali union, Machkariya, Modhurchora, Hajipara, Malvita Para, Ukhia Sadar, Boruapara, Ghilatoli, Hijlia, Tuturbil under Rajapalong union, Purbo Rotna Boruapara, Sadrikata, Poschim Rotna under Rotnapalong union, Kumarpara, Chowdhurypara, Mohajon Para, Uttor Boro Bil under Holdiapalong union and Pinijir Kul, Painashiya, Jaliyapalong, Sonar Para, Uttara Nidania, Chepotkhali and Monkhali under Jaliyapalong union. Administrators of Chakoriya upazila have been urging people to move to safer locations.

Gias Uddin, sub-engineer of Teknaf Water Development Board (WDB) said new cracks have developed in the 65-kilometre-long flood control dyke of the upazila, due to the effect of landslides and tidal incursions.

Teknaf upazila Chairman Sharif Mia said: “Low-lying areas have gone under rainwater, thus leaving thousands of people under 22 villages marooned.”

Locals alleged that officers of the local municipality and WDB have not taken measures to mitigate suffering by people affected.

Cox’s Bazar Deputy Commissioner Ruhul Amin said they have advised the upazila nirbahi officer to distribute food among the flood-affected people.

All kinds of necessary steps will be taken to rein in the fury of flood, he added.

@ Poli - Although muddled by the cover-up, the seismic event off the U.S. east coast on June 13 registered on DART II tsunami station 44402.  Thanks for posting.

Massive storm dumps nearly 2 feet of hail in New Mexico

Photo courtesy: Santa Rosa Fire Department

Drought and deluge in the U.S.

After Severe Drought, Wettest Spring in 40 Years (July 5)

After scorching temperatures and drought conditions devastated the nation’s crop production last year, farmers across the Midwestern farm belt are now dealing with the reverse side of Mother Nature – too much rain.

Meteorologists say the region experienced the wettest spring in 40 years, with rainfall in portions of the Midwest 8 inches above normal. From January to June, Illinois – the second largest corn and soy producer – had its wettest six months in history, with 28.7 inches, which is 8.9 inches above average.

Soggy farmland has pushed back the planting season, and some farmers have given up planting entirely. Farmers worry that wet soil will prevent corn and soybeans from developing the deep roots, about two to four inches, needed to fully grow. Oversaturated soil prevents roots from getting oxygen, and ideal moisture is located directly below the seed, not in the topsoil.

Much of the nation’s corn crop is sowed by July, however according to the US Department of Agriculture in its June acreage report, released last week, 91 percent of corn has yet to germinate, compared with 100 percent during the extreme drought the same time a year ago.  

Miles of algae in Qingdao turns China sea green

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Spectacular waterspout in Florida: photos and stunning video!

Last night a spectacular waterspout has enchanted thousands of Americans between Oldsmar and Safety Harbor, Florida. The spectacular waterspout has also touched down at Courtney Campbell, causing considerable damage to strong winds (up to 130km / h), which uprooted trees and damaged roofs. Truly breathtaking images photos and videos that we publish accompanying the article:

http://www.meteoweb.eu/2013/07/spettacolare-waterspout-in-florida-f...

http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=auto&tl=en&a...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=VXcY5MjCC-Y

Western China Floods Impact 1.6 Million (July 12)
A collapsed bridge over the Panjiang river is seen in Qinglian, Jiangyou city, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Tuesday, July 9, 2013. One sedan car, three minivans and one SUV fell into the torrent when the Qinglian bridge broke apart.

Floodwaters surging through Himalayan foothills in western China have swept bridges, houses and hillsides into roiling brown torrents, leaving at least 31 people dead and 166 missing Thursday, as heavy rains buffeted many parts of the country.

Flooding in the western province of Sichuan was the worst in 50 years for some areas, with more than 220,000 people forced to evacuate.

Nationwide, at least 46 people have died due to the violent weather since Sunday, according to figures from the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the official Xinhua News Agency. Thousands of homes have been destroyed or damaged and transportation has come to a virtual standstill in hard-hit areas.

Many of the casualties in Sichuan were from a massive landslide that struck a scenic resort outside the city of Dujiangyan, killing 18 people and leaving 107 missing. An entire hillside collapsed onto clusters of holiday cottages where city dwellers escape summer heat, a survivor told Xinhua.

"The noise was like thunder and went on for two or three minutes. My first thought was that I too would be buried," Gao Quanshi, 47, was quoted as saying. Phone lines were cut, so villagers had to trek to nearby government offices to call for help, he said.

Images from the scene showed a valley filled with mud and rocks, with only the tops of trees sticking through. Drenched rescuers wearing helmets and life jackets worked mostly with hand tools to prevent harming any survivors still trapped beneath.

A total of 352 tourists had been rescued from the area as of Wednesday night, Xinhua said. Overall in Sichuan, there were at least 31 people dead and 166 missing, said the provincial department of civil affairs.

A mudslide in Sichuan's Aba prefecture left three people dead and 12 others missing, Xinhua said.

Mudslides and flooding are common in China's mountainous areas, killing hundreds of people every year, but in some areas the current floods are already the worst in half a century. Reports said the 94 centimetres (37 inches) of rainfall that fell on Dujiangyan over 40 hours beginning Monday was the heaviest since records began being kept in 1954.

Also in the west, more than 2,000 people were rescued after being trapped for several hours Wednesday in a highway tunnel between Dujiangyan and Wenchuan — the epicenter of the Sichuan earthquake five years ago that left 90,000 people dead or missing.

Bridges have been closed and train service suspended in some parts of the province.

In nearby Beichuan county, flooding destroyed buildings and wrecked exhibits at a memorial for earthquake victims.

The flooding also caused the collapse of an almost 50-year-old bridge in a neighbouring county, sending six vehicles into the raging waters and leaving 12 people missing.

The region lies in the foothills of the Tibetan Plateau, where mountains rise sharply from the densely populated Sichuan basin. Fast-running rivers quickly overflowed their banks, flooding scores of towns and parts of the provincial capital of Chengdu, where the waters rose to the second floor and covered the tops of cars.

In Chengdu, stone bridges and brick houses along river banks were swept away, including one in which the residents were taking shelter, while others crumbled into the saturated earth already rent with fissures from the magnitude-8.9 2008 earthquake.

In the northern province of Shanxi, at least 12 workers were killed Tuesday when a violent rainstorm caused the collapse of an unfinished coal mine workshop they were building.

Another three people were drowned in a car in Hebei province outside the capital, while an additional 11 people were reported dead or missing in Yunnan province, Beijing, Inner Mongolia and Gansu province.

Source

http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Worst+flooding+west+China+count...

                Comment by lonne de vries 17 hours ago           

While the Northeast is burning up, Texas and Oklahoma recorded their all-time lowest temperatures for July 15. And in parts of Alaska, the readings were warmer Monday than parts of Texas. Alaska's eastern interior was in the low 80s, while Abeline, Texas, recorded a cool 68 degrees.

Temperatures in the Northeast are five to ten degrees above normal, with New York City experiencing the highest above-normal temperatures of any place in the country. The hottest summer in U.S. history _ an average 73.83 degrees for the season _ occurred during the Dust Bowl in 1936. The 2011 and 2012 summers tied for second hottest but were only one-tenth of a degree cooler than the record.

source.

http://o.canada.com/2013/07/16/saskatchewan-storm-photos-tornadoes-...

Saskatchewan storm brings hail, multiple tornadoes

Tornadoes, hail reported as large cell sweeps through

It was a wild day of weather yesterday in parts of Saskatchewan as a large storm cell made its way through the province.

Much of the southern part of the province were put on alert with tornado and severe thunderstorm watches through the afternoon and evening. Although it wasn’t quite as “Oklahoma-style” as Weather Network chief meteorologist Chris Scott predicted on Twitter, it sure packed a wallop.

Environment Canada has confirmed three tornadoes touched down during the storm — one southeast of Regina near Kronau and Gray, one west of Yorkton and one north of Humboldt, reports the Star Phoenix.

There are reports of four other possible, but unconfirmed, tornadoes, including heavily-photographed funnel near Hague.

The storm also brought large hail, in some places ankle deep, and frequent lightning.

a video montage of crazy weather across the world

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=L0i2aTSZ...

Millions are affected by heat wave,  heat to exceed 90 in nearly all states.  Health concerns loom.

http://www.today.com/video/today/52506974/http://www.today.com/vide...

TODAY   |  July 18, 2013

Forecast: 90 degrees or above in 47 states

Nearly every state in the U.S. is forecasted to experience temperatures in the 90s or above, as doctors issue warnings about heat stroke.

Mid Latitudes in a grip of massive heatwave worldwide: http://www.wunderground.com/climate/extremes.asp

Severe weather affects Dutch people in Spain

Source: http://youtu.be/v4rMMFA7cDQ

Source: http://youtu.be/OV3hAJo4A4E

North of Calgary Alberta Painted White By Ferocious Hailstorm (July 6)

Areas north of Calgary were pounded by a brutal hailstorm that left a large swath of land a half-mile wide and 75 miles long painted white.  Within 15 minutes, the ground was mired in a full foot of hailstones.

Source

http://www.theatlanticcities.com/neighborhoods/2013/07/huge-land-sc...

In a flash, heatwave gives way to deluge: Spectacular storms across Britain destroy homes as hottest weather for seven years finally comes to a halt

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2374858/UK-weather-Heatwave...

Britain's sunny spell ended with a bang after the country was hit by violent tropical thunder- storms that herald a month of unsettled weather.

For almost three weeks the UK has basked in glorious sunshine during the longest heatwave for seven years. But Met Office forecasters say the storms have ushered in changeable conditions for the coming weeks.

Skies across the country were illuminated with dramatic scenes of lightning in the early hours yesterday as a fortnight’s worth of rain fell in some places.

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

(It should be noted that, before the weather switched suddenly, the weathermen in the UK were predicting that the heatwave would last all through August)

Brazil - Snow reaches more than 80 cities in the South and closes highways and schools

The mass of polar air that passed through Argentina before coming to Brazil at the end of last week dropped snow in at least 87 cities of Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul.

The cold wave, which reaches South, Southeast, Midwest, and up to two northern states of the country (Rondônia and Acre), is the longest in 13 years, according to the National Institute of Meteorology (Inmet).

“Should greatly disrupt agriculture”

“There were 17 days in all. Now, there are already seven days with temperatures below zero, and certainly this will continue until Friday, which should greatly disrupt agriculture, especially citrus plantations and lettuce, and bring problems health,” says meteorologist Lucia Gularte of Inmet.

Among the places hit by the snow are two capitals: Curitiba and Florianópolis. In Curitiba, the record snow made on Tuesday by Simepar Meteorological Institute is the first since 1975.

In Santa Catarina, Epagri / Ciram snow recorded in the region of the Morro Cambirela in Palhoça, in Florianópolis. It is the first occurrence of the kind in 29 years, also seen in other cities in the metropolitan region, as Alfredo Wagner, Angelina and Burnt Ranch, and several parts of the state.

Altogether, at least 57 cities in Santa Catarina had snow.

Largest snowfall in decades

According to weatherman Marcelo Schneider of Inmet, the snowfall in Santa Catarina and Paraná is one of the largest in decades. In some cities, such as Curitiba, the last occurrence was 38 years ago.

“The accumulation of snow in southern Paraná is also rare. So what draws attention is the duration of cold days, the permanence of the polar air and snow, not the absolute minimum temperature,” explains Schneider.

Source

http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=auto&tl=en&a...

Storm System Moves Backwards Across U.S., Pummels Kansas With Baseball Sized Hail (July 25)
A low pressure system that started in the Eastern United States has retrograded under a ridge of high pressure to the north over the last couple of days.  This system is moving from east to west, which is extremely unusual for this hemisphere.  Such storms usually move east to west for a short period of time, but this one will make it to Southern California by the time it weakens.

And with it came a hailstorm that pounded south-central Kansas with baseball sized hail.

The Hutchinson News reports dealerships in the city were scrambling to get insurance appraisals after the fast-moving storm hit the area Tuesday night.

Large hailstones pounded hundreds of vehicles parked in dealers' lots.

The general manager of Midwest Superstore says all 400 cars on the lot were damaged, and signs announcing discounts of up to $6,000 went up immediately. But Nick Hill also says that some vehicles will be taken away for salvage if they're deemed a total loss.

At Hutchinson's Midway Motors, two pickups worth a combined $100,000 were destroyed when a 100-foot flagpole was toppled by winds gusting over 80 mph.

Sources

http://www.theweatherspace.com/2013/07/14/unusual-storm-system-movi...

http://www.kake.com/news/headlines/Kansas-Vehicle-Dealers-Coping-Wi...

http://www.wdam.com/story/22916915/kansas-walloped-by-baseball-size...

Strange Orange Sky Over Michigan (July 22)

"All of a sudden it got very yellow outside, it felt strange and mysterious. Then it slowly looked very orange, it was the craziest thing I have ever witnessed over my head. I almost expected to see a tornado or something!

These clouds looked like "Bubble Cups" but in meteorology terms they are called Mammatus clouds. They are extremely rare in this part of the country and many people have never seen anything like it before."

Taken around 8 p.m. CDT on July 22 coinciding with a cold front that moved through the area. The high for that day around Iron Mountain, Mich., was 85. The day was also marked with high humidity. When the cold front moved through, it pushed down from atop the warm air and created the pockets in the clouds.

Sources

http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/orange-sky-clouds-apocal...

http://www.news.com.au/technology/sci-tech/strange-orange-mammatus-...

North Pole Melting Leaves Small Lake At The Top Of The World (VIDEO)

The North Pole probably looks a bit different than you would expect right now. Because, at this very moment, it's actually a lake.

Photos from North Pole Environmental Observatory

Produced by Jake Bialer

The time-lapse video below comes from a webcam set up by the North Pole Environmental Observatory that has monitored the state of Arctic sea ice since the spring of 2000. Surprisingly, the pole has been melting since at least 2002, according to photos on the project's website.

July is usually the warmest month in the area, but temperatures were 1 to 3 degrees Celsius above average this year. The shallow lake you see at the pole is made of meltwater sitting on top of a layer of ice, according to the observatory.

Arctic sea ice has become a noticeable victim of climate change. The area of ice cover expands and contracts every year with the change in seasons, but last summer's minimum extent was the lowest on record and this year's maximum winter coverage was the sixth-lowest since satellite observations began in the 1970s.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/25/north-pole-melting-leaves_...

Fire brigade in Bertrix (Luxembourg) removes hailstones with bulldozers

The storm this morning has already caused several floods in Hainaut. In Luxembourg Bertrix they had to clear hailstones with bulldozers . According to several French websites  between 20 and 30 cm hail was reported, as can be seen inter alia in the video below this article.

In Bertrix the fire department called out to remove fallen trees from the road and damaged roofs, once during the storm also hail from the sky had fallen. "In some places we had to use bulldozers to remove hailstones, especially near Ochamps on the road.We have never seen this We then called on the support of the Civil Protection," the fire brigade of Bertrix.

In Rouvroy scouts had to be evacuated with the help of the fire brigade of Virton.

The wind also tore off the roof of a school in Montignies-sur-Sambre (Hainaut).

source +video

http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=auto&tl=en&a...

Many cities in northern Wisconsin set records for lowest high temperature today.  Some of these records are close to 100 years old.  Here is the report from wunderground.com

An unseasonably cold airmass invaded the Great Lakes region 
this weekend. This airmass... combined with cloud cover and 
scattered showers held high temperatures in the 50s and low 
60s.

                                   Record
city                              low         Max old     record year(s)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Antigo                         55           68             2011,1915
Appleton                     60           68             1928
Green Bay                  62           67             1928,1925,1915
Manitowoc                  61           63             1992
Marshfield                  57           69              1915
Merrill                        57           63              1915
Oshkosh                   62           70               1928
Rhinelander               55           66               1991
Stevens Point            56           67               1972
Sturgeon Bay            61           65               1915
Wausau                    61           63               1945,1915
Wisconsin Rapids      59           67               1915

Normal/average temperatures this time of year for Rhinelander, WI are a high of 79 and a low of 55.

http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/Heavy-Rain-Causes-Floodin...

Tornado Rips Through Milan Italy (July 29)

A tornado has ripped through a suburb of Milan, injuring 12 people and damaging buildings and vehicles.

Video shot by witnesses on their mobile phones captured the twister tearing through an industrial region in Grezzago, leaving a trail of devastation as it destroyed cars, overturned trucks and uprooted telegraph poles.

"We were inside there and a lorry crashed into the wall and came through it. Then all the windows broke and we couldn't understand what was happening," said Stefano Grimoldi who was caught up the carnage.

"Look there is no more roof, no more doors, there's nothing left," he added.

"It lasted, I'm not sure, the time it took, ten minutes or a quarter of an hour," they added.

Firemen, civil protection and other rescue services rushed to the scene. Although no deaths have been reported there are reports of a dozen injuries.

Source

http://news.sky.com/story/1121989/milan-tornado-12-hurt-after-twist...

In the US, we went from record hot to record cold - as per the Zetas, a true extreme of temperature swings we will and are experiencing.  Plus many record rainfalls.

http://www.climatedepot.com/2013/07/30/1122-record-cold-temps-in-th...

Pipestone, Minnesota July cold breaks 102-year-old record

Sweatshirts aren't the usual attire for baling hay, but a cold snap made the job more pleasant last week as this group made a second cutting for Gary Gorter. 

Weekend temperatures in Pipestone plummeted to lows not seen for 102 years as a cold air mass from northern Canada slipped down into the region. 

Temperatures of 39 degree and 38 degrees were recorded in Pipestone on Saturday morning, July 27 and Sunday morning, July 28 respectively, according to Mike Gillispie, National Weather Service meteorologist out of Sioux Falls, S.D. 

The lows broke the record of 42 degrees set in 1911. 

"There are a few others in the upper 40s, but only two incidences down that cold," Gillispie said - - the 1911 record and then a 44-degree low recorded in 2005. 

The cold air mass combined with light winds, clear skies and low humidity to allow the temperatures to plunge over the evening hours. The pattern isn't abnormal, Gillispie said, but it doesn't typically occur during the dog days of summer when high-pressure ridges generally extend all the way through the northern plains. 

"When we're setting records that have been around for 100 years, it doesn't happen often," Gillispie said. 

The NWS's latest 30-day weather model for August predicts the unseasonable cold won't last, with Pipestone straddling regions with forecasts of normal to above normal temperatures. 

Kabul - Heavy rain and flash floods in eastern Afghanistan claimed at least 60 lives, many are still missing, summarizes the Slovenian Press Agency. Floods hit the area around Kabul and in the provinces Vardak and Host.

Floods are surprised to Afghanistan, as well as in this country is currently very hot. Estimated by meteorologists as the warmest summer in Afghanistan over the past 50 years.

So far, 42 deaths counted only in the Kabul area, but increased total water we now take this one after 61 lives, including many women and children, were reported by the Afghan government in Kabul. They fear, however, that the number of victims has increased because many people still missing.

Sources: bit.ly/1coG7u7

http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/08/04/3081849/flash-floods-kill-35...

http://www.stripes.com/news/middle-east/dozens-feared-dead-in-afgha...

http://zeenews.india.com/news/south-asia/flash-floods-kill-35-in-af...

New heat record in Austria - 39.9 degrees in Carinthia

Dellach in Carinthia's Drau was achieved with 39.9 degrees, the highest temperature ever measured in Austria on Saturday afternoon from the Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics (ZAMG). The hitherto applicable, also scored in Dellach record high of 39.7 degrees in 1983 was exceeded by 0.2 degrees.

New state record in Lower Austria

In Lower Austria, a new state-record was 39.7 ° C on Saturday. The old heat record for Lower Austria was 39.3 ° C in Waidhofen / Ybbs, measured on 5 Juli 1950.

August new records

In Tyrol (38.9 ° C in Lienz), Vienna (38.5 ° C in Vienna / Danube field) and Styria (38.8 ° C in Frohnleiten) it was in August, never as hot as Saturday. The old record was in August at 37.4 ° C in Tirol Innsbruck / University (13th August 2003 and August 2, 2013), in Vienna at 38.2 ° C in Vienna / Danube field (13 August 2003) and Styria at 38.5 ° C in Leibnitz (13 August 2003).

The Top 5 from Saturday

Lesachtal / K 39.9 ° C
Millstatt / K 39.1 ° C
Ferlach / K 39.0 ° C
Feistritz / K 38.9 ° C
Lienz / T 38.9 ° C

Already 39.2 degrees last week

At the culmination of the first heat wave the mercury column last Sunday were indeed increased in heights rarely reached, it was ultimately quite enough in Waidhofen (NE) and in Bad Goisern (Upper Austria), not with each 39.2 degrees.

Source: bit.ly/13O9sFf

* Heatwave kills four in Japan: by Staff Writers; Tokyo (AFP) Aug 11, 2013

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Heatwave_kills_four_in_Japan_999....

A heatwave stifled Japan Sunday as the temperature topped 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit ) in two cities, leaving at least four people dead over the weekend, officials and reports said.

The Japan Meteorological Agency said the temperature reached 40.6 C in Kofu, 100 kilometres (60 miles) west of Tokyo, in mid-afternoon.

The weather agency had warned early Sunday that the temperature would soar past 35 C in 39 of the country's 47 prefectures. It warned people to drink plenty of water and use air-conditioners.

On Saturday the mercury topped 40 C for the first time in Japan since August 2007, when it had reached an all-time high of 40.9 C in two separate cities.

An 84-year-old woman and a 66-year-old man in western Japan died from heat stroke on Saturday after they were found collapsed in fields, Kyodo news agency said.

Two more deaths from heat stroke were confirmed by officials on Sunday.

An 80-year-old woman died in hospital after she was found collapsed at her wooden home Sunday morning in Arita, a city south of Osaka, a medical evacuation official said. The living room where she was found was not air-conditioned.

In Saitama north of Tokyo, a 60-year-old man died in hospital after he was found unconscious on a street Saturday afternoon.

The heatwave, also gripping parts of China, has been caused by a Pacific high pressure system covering most of the Japanese islands, the weather agency said.

In early July a heatwave in the country claimed at least a dozen lives, according to media reports.

* Record high temperatures in Austria: by Staff Writers; Vienna, Austria (AFP) Aug 08, 2013

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Record_high_temperatures_in_Austr...

Temperatures in Austria rose above 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) on Thursday for the first time since records began in the mid 19th century, the meteorological office ZAMG said.

At Neusiedl am See the temperature reached 40.6 degrees Celsius, although the ZAMG said this had to be double checked, while in Bad Deutsch Altenburg, also in eastern Austria, the mercury hit a confirmed 40.5 degrees.

Prior to records set in the current heatwave, Austria's previous high temperature of 39.7 degrees was set some 30 years ago.

The capital Vienna was sweltering in temperatures of up to 39.5 degrees, the highest since 1957.

No extra deaths from the heatwave were reported although hospitals saw a rise in patients with dehydration and blood circulation problems.

First Europe,  now all of Asia in record heat wave!  http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2013/08... 

Japan, South Korea soar to hottest recorded levels

South Koreans swim at Caribbean Bay swimming pool in South Korea’s largest amusement park Everland in Yongin, about 50 km (31 miles) south of Seoul August 11, 2013. South Korea has been suffering from the sweltering heat wave for weeks with temperatures in most parts of the country soaring above 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit), reported a local news agency (REUTERS/Lee Jae-Won)

Late last week Austria and Slovenia established new records for extreme heat in ce.... Moving east, we can now add South Korea and Japan to the list of countries with new high temperature records, courtesy the summer of 2013.

The Wall Street Journal reports Shimanto city, in southern Japan, climbed to 106 degrees (41 C) Monday, the country’s highest temperature ever measured.

In Tokyo, the nighttime temperature dropped to just 87 F (30.4 C) Sunday tweets The Weather Channel’s Nick Wiltgen, its highest overnight low temperature in 136 years of record-keeping.

The hot weather is being blamed for 9 deaths in Japan over the weekend writes IOL News.

In South Korea, the record-breaking heat peaked Saturday.

“[T]he government issued a warning of power shortages and the highest temperature ever recorded by the Korea Meteorological Association was hit: 39.2 degrees [102.6 F], reached Saturday in Gimhae in the country’s southeast,” reports the Wall Street Journal.

This latest sweltering stretch in South Korea follows Seoul’s hottest June in 106 years of records.

A bulging heat dome – or ridge of high pressure – centered over the East China Sea is main driver of the heat, forecast to continue for the next several days.

Heat dome centered over Korea and southern Japan this weekend via a GFS model simulation of high altitude pressures (WeatherBell.com)

Excessive heat has also plagued parts of China this summer.  Shanghai broke its high temperature record on three separate occasions (July 26, August 6, and ultimately August 7 – 105.4ºF (40.8ºC)).

Temperatures compared to normal in northern Siberia over the last week of July. Dark reds indicate differences from average of over 20 degrees (NASA).

The searing heat has extended to the northern reaches of Asia as well. Unusually hot weather – some 20 degrees above normal  – bubbled up into northern Siberia in late July, likely contributing to a rash of wildfires.

So while temperatures have been pretty ordinary in North America this summer, the heat has been punishing from central Europe across the Orient.

Rare summer snowfall in Xinjiang

China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region witnessed a rare display of summer snowfall on Tuesday as a powerful cold air front moved into the area.

Xinjiang has been suffering scorching heat since July, with temperatures reaching over 40 degrees Celsius. A powerful cold air front has recently moved into the region, causing much and heavy rainfall.

However, one netizen under the username "Chief of the Daolang Tribe" uploaded a group of photos taken near the Tieliemaiti Pass to his microblog account on August 13, saying that some rare summer snowfall occurred near the Duku section of National Highway 217.

The snowfall's photos went viral within hours as residents in most parts of southern China are still enduring a heat wave.

Source

Sunburned in Siberia: Heat Wave Leads to Wildfires

• Andrew (AP)
• Posted August 17, 2013 at 5:36 a.m.

An intense heat wave in Siberia has contributed to an unusual flare up of wildfires across the fragile and carbon-rich landscape. Smoke from the fires is lofting high into the atmosphere, and is drifting toward the Arctic, where soot can hasten the melting of snow and sea ice.

The Siberian city of Norilsk, the most northerly city in the world with a population greater than 100,000, recorded temperatures above 83F over eight consecutive days starting on July 18, according to blogger Chris Burt of Weather Underground. During that timespan, Burt reported, the mercury hit 90F, breaking the record for the hottest temperature recorded for the city. For comparison the average July high temperature in Norilsk is a comparatively chilly 61F.

Norilsk isn’t an isolated example, but rather sits amid a sea of abnormally hot temperatures and smoky conditions in north-central Siberia. According to NASA’s Earth Observatory, from July 20 through July 27, temperatures were about 30F above average across a large swath of this vast, sparsely populated region.

The warm weather has contributed to a spike in wildfires. As of July 29, wildfires continued to burn at least 22,200 acres in Siberia, according to news reports. Heavy smoke from them grounded commercial flights in Omsk, a city in southwestern Siberia, Russia Today reported.

The Siberian fires come on the heels of Russia’s worst wildfire season on record in 2012. Fires burned roughly 74 million acres that year, well above the 50 million acres burned on average for the period from 2000 to 2008. While it’s still early to tell if 2013 will challenge 2012 for a record-setting year, one thing to note about this season is the unusual location of the fires. Typically, large wildfires burn on the southern fringe of the taiga, a dense forest ecosystem also known as the boreal forest, but this year’s fires are burning in a more central portion of the taiga.

Northern Russia has warmed more rapidly than many other places on the globe in recent decades, and according to NASA, researchers expect the number of taiga wildfires there to double by the end of the century.

A recent study of taiga wildfires in Alaska found that these forests are burning at the highest rate in at least the past 10,000 years, and climate change projections show even more wildfire activity may be to come as the northern climate continues to warm and precipitation patterns change.

Concurrent with the heat in Russia, Alaska has had a hot summer too, with wildfires already charring more than 1 million acres across the state. In Anchorage, temperatures topped 70F for 15 consecutive days in the latter half of the month. That beat the previous string of days above 70F, which was 13 days set in 2004.

Temperature records have fallen from the coast to the interior. Fairbanks is nearing its all-time record for the greatest number of 80-degree days, having had 29, which is well above their average of 11 such days in a typical summer.

Trees, plants, and soils across the northern latitudes lock up 30 percent of the world’s carbon, far more than forests closer to the equator. The forests are also currently a carbon “sink,” which mean they take up more carbon than they release. While they still act as net carbon sinks at present, it’s possible that wildfires could help flip that role in the future by making these ecosystems a source of carbon dioxide and methane emissions that accelerate global warming.

Fires in the region also deposit soot on ice sheets and glaciers, reducing the amount of incoming solar radiation that the ice can reflect back to space. The dirty ice can then melt faster because it absorbs more heat. Research has suggested that process is already happening in Greenland. Speeding up the melt can contribute to increased sea level rise as well as shifts in weather patterns further south.

Greenland itself saw the highest temperature ever recorded on the island on Tuesday, according to the Washington Post’s Capital Weather Gang blog. The temperature reached 78.6F in Mantiisoq located in the west coast of Greenland. The previous record of 78F was set in 1990 at Kangerlussuaq, also located on the west coast.

The culprit behind much of the extreme heat in each case has been large, strong, and persistent areas of high pressure, which have set up shop over these high latitude locations, keeping cooler weather and precipitation at bay.

Pink snow falls in heat of summer in Karaganda 15 August 2013, 11:03

CA-NEWS (KZ) - A pink snow has fallen in Karaganda in the heat of summer, reported local television channel.

Snowfall started in Karaganda on August 13 after 10.00 pm covering the roofs of buildings, eyewitnesses say.

Meteorologists have not registered snow, however. They forecast rain for that day and were skeptical about snow reports. Though the probability of snowfalls in August is not excluded by them. They call it wonders of nature.

- See more at: http://en.ca-news.org/news:526790/#sthash.43TL3jbK.dpuf