Colorado Towns Left Stranded After Deadly Floods (Sept 12)

Walls of water cascading down hillsides caused flash floods across Colorado on Thursday, killing at least three people. The flooding cut off major highways, isolated mountain towns and closed the main campus of the University of Colorado, the authorities said.

“This is not your ordinary disaster,” said Joe Pelle, the sheriff of Boulder County, where two of the deaths were reported.

As heavy rain continued falling late Thursday, homes, bridges and small dams built along the mountains that bisect the state collapsed, succumbing to rushing floodwaters and record levels of rainfall. Mudslides swept down hillsides left treeless by recent wildfires. Firefighters made dozens of rescues as cars were overtaken by rain-swollen creeks and roads suddenly gave way.

Boulder County was hit hardest, with up to 6 inches of rain falling over 12 hours. But flooding was reported all along the Front Range, from Colorado Springs to north of Fort Collins.

Capt. John Burt of the Colorado State Patrol said a storm cell moved over the mountains during the night, headed east over the Plains, then circled back around. The National Weather Service warned of an "extremely dangerous and life-threatening situation" throughout the region as the flooding forced people from their homes and caused mud and rockslides in some areas.

"Move to higher ground now. Act quickly to protect your life," the Weather Service warned throughout the morning.

Boulder Office of Emergency Management spokeswoman Gabrielle Boerkircher said many roads were blocked and volunteers were trying to help stranded people until emergency crews could arrive.

Boerkircher told The Associated Press one person was killed when a structure collapsed in the tiny town of Jamestown. Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said another person was also found dead in northern Boulder.

"We're trying to get to Jamestown," Boerkircher said of a mountain community northwest of Boulder. "A lot of towns need assistance, and we cannot get through."

Two other structures in the area were also damaged and may have collapsed.

To the south, Colorado Springs spokeswoman Kim Melchor said police conducting flood patrols found a body in Fountain Creek on the west side of the city early Thursday.

National Weather Service meteorologist Bob Kleyla said a 20-foot wall of water was reported in Left Hand Canyon north of Boulder, and a firefighter radioed he was trapped in a tree. He said rescuers were trying to get through, but were blocked by debris.

In Broomfield, U.S. Highway 287 collapsed when a culvert washed out, dumping three vehicles into the rushing water. Three people were rescued and had minor injuries.

Near Lyons, about 2 feet of water was standing on U.S. Highway 36 as a normally shallow creek known for trout fishing flooded its banks.

At least one earthen dam gave way southeast of Estes Park, the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park, and water levels could rise downstream as authorities release more water to keep more dams from giving way.

A National Guard helicopter requested to help pull people from their homes hasn't been able to take off because of fog and low cloud cover throughout the area.

Flash flood warnings were issued for multiple counties in the region, including Jamestown and the Fourmile wildfire burn area.

Flash flood emergencies were also issued downstream from the Front Range mountain areas, including Fort Lupton, Dacono, Plateville and other farming areas as debris piled up near bridges.

An evacuation center for the mountain residents has been sent up in nearby Nederland, officials said.

Meanwhile, about 400 students in a dorm at the University of Colorado in Boulder were evacuated and classes were canceled Thursday and Friday because of the flooding.

Mudslides and rockslides were reported in several areas, with parts of U.S. 6, Boulder Canyon, Colorado 14 and U.S. 287 all reporting problems and temporary blockages during the evening Lefthand Canyon was reported blocked by one of the many slides.

Boulder police dispatchers were receiving calls of flooded homes and streets and submerged cars.

One volunteer fire crew was stranded on a mountainside after a wave of rainwater abruptly washed out a road, the authorities said.

Much of the worst of the flooding Thursday appeared to be in Boulder, where the university canceled classes Thursday and Friday and some 500 students and staff members were ordered evacuated. Dozens of buildings have been damaged, the university said, including the school’s theater and the Norlin Library.

A message posted on the university’s Web site Thursday announced: “Wall of water coming down Boulder Canyon. STAY AWAY FROM BOULDER CREEK.”

But the warning did not dissuade some people from flocking there. They stood on bridges marveling at the torrent of fast-moving brown water as it swept away anything in its path.

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Ryan Corbett, 24, a student who was among the onlookers. “I’ve lived here for seven years. This is unreal.”

A few miles north, a 50-yard wide portion of Route 36 was submerged as a stream bed overflowed and coursed by at 1,000 cubic feet per second, said Anne Reid, a firefighter with the Lefthand Fire Protection District.

“This is usually just a little stream that you wouldn’t even think to fish in,” Ms. Reid said.

The flooded highway has cut off residential areas for the foreseeable future, sweeping up whole willow and cottonwood trees as if they were twigs. John and Billie Brumder, who live across from the Crestview Estates neighborhood, said they were awakened at about 1:30 a.m. Thursday by the frightening sound of large rocks being dragged along the creek bed.

“When I heard that, I knew it was a big deal,” he said. “I knew we had to get out of there.”

Their car, which was already partly submerged, stalled, Mr. Brumder said, but they were able to escape in their pickup truck.

The authorities said Thursday afternoon that they expected the death toll in the state, currently at three, to rise.

One person drowned and a second person was killed when a structure collapsed in the town of Jamestown, northwest of Boulder. The third victim was found in Colorado Springs by police officers conducting flood patrols.

Rain had been falling in the Boulder area since Monday, but picked up significantly on Wednesday evening, causing mudslides in Colorado’s Front Range, where since 2010 wildfires have denuded some areas of trees and brush that would have normally helped soak up the moisture.

Dozens of streams and creeks overflowed, and downstream, portions of Colorado Springs and Denver flooded, as well as large parts of Boulder. The National Weather Service reported that more than 6 inches of rain had fallen in a 12-hour period. Forecasters predicted that the rain would continue into Friday.

According to provisional data from the United States Geological Survey, parts of Boulder Creek reached flood levels that have a 1 in 100 chance of occurring in any given year — what some refer to as a 100-year flood.

Sylvia Tawse, who owns a vegetable and flower farm in Longmont, said her husband got a call at 3 a.m. from the local fire chief, warning that a 20-foot wall of water was barreling down nearby Left Hand Creek. Ms. Tawse’s property, nestled among a patchwork of family farms about 10 miles north of Boulder, was spared. But her neighbors were not so lucky.

“We’re on slightly higher ground, so we’re not in danger,” she said. “But their farm fields are completely underwater.”

Ms. Tawse said that by early Thursday, Left Hand Creek, typically barely a trickle, had swollen into a raging rush of muddy water.

“We had a bad flood here in 1995,” she said. “But this is worse than that.”

Source

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/13/us/colorado-towns-are-left-strand...

Record rainfall soaks New Mexico, prompts rescues

By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press

Posted:   09/12/2013 07:20:41 AM MDT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.—The New Mexico National Guard and other rescue crews evacuated dozens of campers and residents who were stranded by floodwaters along the Pecos River as New Mexico was drenched Thursday by another round of record rainfall.

While the moisture is helping the state out of an unprecedented drought, the runoff was threatening an RV park near Brantley Lake and had pooled up around the community of Lakewood. Crews were using boats and helicopters to bring about 70 people to dry land, where they were checked by medical personnel and bussed to a shelter in Carlsbad.

Red Cross officials said 80 evacuees were staying at a shelter in Carlsbad on Thursday night with five people at another shelter in Vado.

National Guard officials said they were concerned floodwaters could breach a channel above the lake and spread out into an old lake bed, flooding the area and posing "life-threatening events."

Empty reservoirs along the Pecos River were filling up with muddy water Thursday afternoon, as northern New Mexico braced for its share of the moisture. Officials said areas with recent wildfire burn scars and mountain slopes—and places downstream from those areas—would be particularly vulnerable to mudslides and flooding.

"The rainfall totals from when this event began are going to be record-breaking, they already have been," said Kerry Jones, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Albuquerque.

Jones said it's likely some areas could see 6 to 10 inches of rain by the weekend. In one spot in the Guadalupe Mountains of southern New Mexico, more than 11 inches fell in a 24-hour period, which forecasters described as "unbelievable."

The rain-soaked plains of eastern New Mexico were shedding runoff into arroyos that were draining into the Pecos River. At Avalon Dam just north of Carlsbad, federal water managers reported flows of 6,000 cubic feet per second. There's typically no to little flow through the area at this time of year.

Authorities issued a plea for people to stay away from the river and the dam.

Another concern was the floodwaters flowing down the river and combining with runoff coursing through a large canyon near the southern edge of Carlsbad. By Thursday evening, the river's flow had reached about 13,000 cubic feet per second.

"We're watching everything very closely," said Mary Perea Carlson, a spokeswoman for the Bureau of Reclamation.

Although water levels in all reservoirs along the Pecos have significantly increased in the last 24 hours, Perea Carlson said plenty of storage space remains and all structures remain sound.

The city of Carlsbad closed a bridge along U.S. 285 as a precaution.

Volunteers with the American Red Cross were manning shelters in Chaves and Dona Ana counties to help motorists and residents affected by flood waters.

Officials at Carlsbad Caverns National Park closed the park Thursday and asked all employees and visitors to leave due to the potential for flooding along the park's main road. They planned to reopen the park Friday morning.

Near Alamogordo, two rain-caused rock slides on both sides of a tunnel on U.S. 82 closed the highway briefly Wednesday.

http://www.ruidosonews.com/ci_24077465/more-rain-expected-new-mexic...

Anchorage ties record for most consecutive rainy days

Read more here: http://www.adn.com/2013/09/13/3073271/anchorage-ties-record-for-mos...

Anchorage Daily News / adn.com

Rain overnight in Anchorage pushed the number of consecutive rainy days in the city to 18 -- tying a record set in September 1919, the National Weather Service reports.

As of 10 a.m. Friday, the weather service office on Sand Lake Road had measured .19 inches of rain since midnight, the agency reported.

That makes 18 straight days, starting Aug. 27, of measurable rainfall in the city. The earlier record was set in 1919,  from Sept. 7 to Sept. 24. Records in the city go back to 1915.

The forecast for Saturday doesn't look great for setting a record but it's not out of the question. The weather service is calling for a chance of rain Friday night, then partly cloudy on Saturday.

http://www.adn.com/2013/09/13/3073271/anchorage-ties-record-for-mos...

The last day of summer tries for one final heat record

By Jim Dalrymple II

| The Salt Lake Tribune

First Published Sep 21 2013 08:40 am • Updated 2 hours ago

On its last day, Summer packed one final, furious burst of heat for Utahns along the Wasatch Front.

Temperatures peaked at 90 degrees Saturday afternoon in Salt Lake City, tying the previous heat record for Sept. 21, set in 1944, according to the National Weather Service. Saturday’s high also marked the 78th time temperatures hit 90 degrees in Salt Lake City. That puts 2013 in second place for the most days at or above 90 degrees, tied with 2007 and just behind 1961, which had 82 simmering days.

The heat comes on the last day of the hottest summer on record, which saw buckling roadways and stressed crops as a result of the weather.

Much of the state also saw intense, dry wind Saturday. The NWS reported that winds along the Wasatch Front were expected to blow at 35 mph Saturday afternoon. Gusts could reach 45 mph. A wind advisory covered much of the eastern part of Utah Saturday, including Salt Lake City. Forecasters expected the entire middle of the state to see windy conditions as well, while thunderstorms were expected along the Colorado border.

In southern Utah, forecasters expected temperatures near 90 degrees Saturday. The St. George region also is under a wind advisory Saturday, with breezes reaching 35 mph in the afternoon.

But as if a switch were being flipped for the first day of fall, forecasters expect much cooler temperatures Sunday. Along the Wasatch Front, highs will only reach the mid 60s. Wind will continue and the NWS reports a 30 percent chance of rain.

 http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/56901504-78/degrees-saturday-lake...

Last Day of Summer Brings Snow in California Sierra (Sept 21)

SODA SPRINGS - As rain pounded the valley, snow accumulated in the Sierra Saturday, forcing drivers to put chains on their tires. Chain controls were in effect from Kingvale to Donner Lake.

Tyler Harbison can't remember the last time it's ever snowed this early in the Sierra.

"It definitely took everyone by surprise," said Harbison.

"I'm in a tank top. We brought flip flops. We're totally weren't expecting snow at all," said Andrea Avila of Santa Cruz.

She and her family are heading to Tahoe to see Avila's brother in the Ironman Competition Sunday. Snow was the very last thing on their minds.

Bob Carollo of Los Gatos is sporting his flip flops and and shorts tonight. He and his friends were backpacking down Royal Gorge and decided to leave early because of all the rain Saturday.

"About 2/3 the way backup to the ridge, it started snowing," said Carollo. "I'm embarrassed to say it; we were cursing the weather man as we were walking out, saying 'what?! Nobody said anything about snow!!'"

Source

http://www.news10.net/news/article/258182/2/Snow-in-the-Sierra-on-t...

Antarctic sea ice hit 35-year record high Saturday

Antarctic sea ice extent on September 22 compared to 1981-2010 median depicted by orange curve (NSIDC)

Antarctic sea ice has grown to a record large extent for a second straight year, baffling scientists seeking to understand why this ice is expanding rather than shrinking in a warming world.

On Saturday, the ice extent reached 19.51 million square kilometers, according to data posted on the National Snow and Ice Data Center Web site.  That number bested record high levels set earlier this month and in 2012 (of 19.48 million square kilometers). Records date back to October 1978.

(NSIDC)

"The increasing ice is especially perplexing since the water beneath the ice has warmed, not cooled.

“The overwhelming evidence is that the Southern Ocean is warming,” said Jinlun Zhang, a University of Washington scientist, studying Antarctic ice. “Why would sea ice be increasing? Although the rate of increase is small, it is a puzzle to scientists.”

In a new study in the Journal of Climate, Zhang finds both strengthening and converging winds around the South Pole can explain 80 percent of the increase in ice volume which has been observed.

“The polar vortex that swirls around the South Pole is not just stronger than it was when satellite records began in the 1970s, it has more convergence, meaning it shoves the sea ice together to cause ridging,” the study’s press release explains. “Stronger winds also drive ice faster, which leads to still more deformation and ridging. This creates thicker, longer-lasting ice, while exposing surrounding water and thin ice to the blistering cold winds that cause more ice growth.”

But no one seems to have a conclusive answer as to why winds are behaving this way.

“I haven’t seen a clear explanation yet of why the winds have gotten stronger,” Zhang told Michael Lemonick of Climate Central."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2013/09...

“Extraordinary” Pacific Storms Shatter Records, Seattle Tornado (Sept 30)
A series of storms battered the PNW bringing record rainfall, damaging winds and a rare September tornado near Seattle.

The NWS called today’s storm extraordinary for late September and much more like a November storm.

The center of the storm moved ashore the center of Vancouver Island (in British Columbia, Canada) early this morning with a minimum pressure of 970 mb, deeper than any hurricane to form in the tropical Atlantic this hurricane season. On West Vancouver Island, a wind gust was clocked at 76 mph (122 km/h) Sunday night.

What the NWS called the “poisonous tail” of the storm whipped coastal Oregon and Washington, spawning a small tornado outside Seattle in Frederickson – about 40 miles to the south.

The twister hit near a Boeing plant “causing some damage to a building’s roof, tipping over rail cars, and causing debris-blown damage to cars in a nearby parking lot”, reports KOMONews, a local TV affiliate.

Both Seattle and Olympia had their wettest September days on record, the NWS said. Seattle received more rain in that single day, 1.71 inches, than it averages in an entire September (1.50 inches). It has now received more than 5.8 inches of rain this month (nearly 4 times the average).

The onslaught of rain has continued further down the coast into Oregon.

“Through this morning, Astoria, Oregon had broken century-plus records for all-time wettest September (by over 1″), wettest September day (by almost 1″), and wettest 2-day and 3-day totals for September,” writes Capital Climate.

Portland and Eugene have also had their wettest September on records.

Source

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2013/09...

Simultaneous Hazardous Weather Warnings for nearly every State in US!

More states likely to show warnings further into this strange weather pattern....

http://www.intellicast.com/Storm/Severe/OutlookToday.aspx

Tornado Watch/Warning - Conditions are favorable for the development of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes in and close to the watch area. These watches are issued for large areas by the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma, and are usually valid for five to eight hours.

Severe Thunderstorm Watch/Warning - Conditions are favorable for the development of severe thunderstorms in and close to the watch area. A severe thunderstorm contains large damaging hail of 3/4 inch (20 mm) diameter or larger, and/or damaging winds greater than 58 mph (95 km/h or 50 knots) or greater. Isolated tornadoes are also possible but not expected to be the dominant severe weather event. These watches are issued for large areas by the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma, and are usually valid for five to eight hours.

(Flash) Flood Watch/Warning - Conditions are favorable for (flash) flooding in and close to the watch area. These watches are issued by the Weather Forecast Office and are usually issued six to twenty-four hours in advance of expected flood potential. In Canada, a Heavy Rainfall Warning has a similar meaning.

Flood Watch/Warning - General or areal flooding of streets, low-lying areas, urban storm drains, creeks and small streams is occurring, imminent, or highly likely. Flood warnings are issued for flooding that occurs more than 6 hours after the excessive rainfall. These warnings are issued on a county by county basis by the local Weather Forecast Office and are generally in effect for 6 to 12 hours.

Winter Storm Watch/Warning - Hazardous winter weather conditions that pose a threat to life and/or property are occurring, imminent, or highly likely. The generic term, winter storm warning, is used for a combination of two or more of the following winter weather events; heavy snow, freezing rain, sleet and strong winds.

High Wind Watch/Warning - Sustained winds of 40 mph (65 km/h) or greater for a duration of one hour or longer or frequent gusts to 58 mph (93 km/h) or greater.

Extreme Fire Watch/Warning in California shows on this map also:  http://www.weather.gov/

http://www.srh.noaa.gov/sjt/

Early Snow Kills 60,000 Cattle in South Dakota (Oct 7)

Frozen cattle on Oct. 7, 2013, along Highway 34 east of Sturgis, S.D. South Dakota

A record-breaking storm that dumped 4 feet of snow in parts of western South Dakota left ranchers dealing with heavy losses, in some cases up to half their herds, as they assess how many of their cattle died during the unseasonably early blizzard.

"It's the worst early season snowstorm I've seen in my lifetime,"

Gary Cammack, 60, who ranches on the prairie near Union Center about 40 miles northeast of the Black Hills, said cattle were soaked by 12 hours of rain early in the storm, so many were unable to survive an additional 48 hours of snow and winds up to 60 mph.

"It's bad. It's really bad. I'm the eternal optimist and this is really bad," Cammack said. "The livestock loss is just catastrophic. ... It's pretty unbelievable."

Disaster aid will be slow to come for South Dakota ranchers who lost as many as 60,000 head of cattle during an historic blizzard over the weekend, industry officials said on Tuesday.

Cattle died of hypothermia or suffocated under snowdrifts after a disastrous storm brought rain, then record snowfall and strong winds to the portion of the state west of the Missouri River, said Silvia Christen, executive director of the South Dakota Stockgrowers Association.

Early estimates suggest western South Dakota lost at least 5 percent of its cattle, said Silvia Christen, executive director of the South Dakota Stockgrowers Association. Some individual ranchers reported losses of 20 percent to 50 percent of their livestock, Christen said. The storm killed calves that were due to be sold soon as well as cows that would produce next year's calves in an area where livestock production is a big part of the economy, she said.

"This is, from an economic standpoint, something we're going to feel for a couple of years," Christen said.

Some ranchers still aren't sure how many animals they lost, because they haven't been able to track down all of their cattle. Snowdrifts covered fences, allowing cattle to leave their pastures and drift for miles.

"Some cattle might be flat buried in a snow bank someplace," said Shane Kolb of Meadow, who lost only one cow.

State officials are tallying livestock losses, but the extent won't be known for several days until ranchers locate their cattle, Jamie Crew of the state Agriculture Department said.

Ranchers and officials said the losses were aggravated by the fact that a government disaster program to help ranchers recover from livestock losses has expired. Ranchers won't be able to get federal help until Congress passes a new farm bill, said Perry Plumart, a spokesman for Sen. Tim Johnson, D-S.D.

Meanwhile, more than 22,000 homes and businesses in western South Dakota remained without power Monday afternoon, according to utility companies. National Guard troops were helping utility crews pull equipment through the heavy, wet snow to install new electricity poles.

At least 1,600 poles were toppled in the northwest part of the state alone, and workers expect to find more, Grand River Electric Coop spokeswoman Tally Seim said.

"We've got guys flying over our territory, counting as they go. We're finding more as we are able to access the roads. The roads have been pretty blocked on these rural country roads," Seim said.

"One of our biggest challenges is getting access to areas that are still snowed in," added Vance Crocker, vice president of operations for Black Hills Power, whose crews were being hampered by rugged terrain in the Black Hills region.

In Rapid City, where a record-breaking 23 inches of snow fell, travel was slowly getting back to normal.

The city's airport and all major roadways in the region had reopened by Monday. The city's streets also were being cleared, but residents were being asked to stay home so crews could clear downed power lines and tree branches, and snow from roadsides. Schools and many public offices were closed.

Cleanup also continued after nine tornadoes hit northeast Nebraska and northwest Iowa on Friday, injuring at least 15 people and destroying several homes and businesses. Authorities also are blaming the weather for a car accident that killed three people along a slick, snow-covered road in Nebraska.

In South Dakota, the 19 inches of snow that fell in Rapid City on Friday broke the city's 94-year-old one-day snowfall record for October by about 9 inches, according to the National Weather Service. The city also set a record for snowfall in October, with a total of 23.1 inches during the storm. The previous record was 15.1 inches in October 1919.

Sources

http://www.omaha.com/article/20131006/AP09/310069928

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/blizzard-kills-60...

VERY UNUSUAL:  Strongest storm ever recorded and three in a row?

Satellite images: Three powerful storms—Phailin, Nari, and Wipha—menace Asia at the same time

http://qz.com/134870/radar-images-three-powerful-storms-phailin-nar...

While Cyclone Phailin—at one point, the strongest storm ever recorded in the Indian Ocean—makes landfall in India, two other tropical storms are also menacing Asia. The images above show the cyclone and two typhoons now. The first is from Weather Underground; the second, from Quartz meteorologist Eric Holthaus.

Typhoon Nari tore through the Philippines with wind gusts up to 116 mph, killing at least 13 people and leaving 2.1 million people without electricity. The storm largely spared Manila, the capital city, which is prone to flooding. Now forming again in the South China Sea, Nari is expected to hit Vietnam on October 14 at a similar strength—Category 3—as when it passed over the Philippines.

Typhoon Wipha is a lesser storm at the moment, but it’s strengthening quickly and forecasted to turn north toward Japan. Wipha, which officially became a typhoon yesterday, could pass by Tokyo on October 15 or 16.

It’s unusual, though not unheard of, for three named storms to stalk the Eastern Hemisphere at the same time. Wipha is the 26th Pacific tropical storm of the year; an average year has 26. Here’s another view of the three storms:

October 17, 2013

Papeete under hail, an exceptional phenomenon in Tahiti

Papeete, October 17, 2013 (AFP) - The hail fell on Wednesday Papeete, Tahiti, where this phenomenon is exceptional, said Meteo-France.

The hailstones the size of marbles, fell for about ten minutes, near the port of Papeete.

"We thought they were pebbles falling on our trailer," reflects on the local channel TNTV a young woman, . "It was still hurt when it fell on us, for me this is the first time, so it's pretty awesome," she adds.

This phenomenon of hail is found only once or twice per decade in this archipelago of French Polynesia in the tropical climate.

"For us, the temperature of zero degrees, it is 4,000 meters above sea level, so she had to cross the whole area of ​​positive temperature to reach us said forecasting division Météo-France to Tahiti.

http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=fr&tl=en&js=n&...

MAP

Large, Rare Tornado Strikes Greek Island (Oct 17)

An eerie sight greeted residents of Rhodes, Greece, early Thursday morning when an F2 tornado formed just off the coast of the island of Rhodes. A large rotating column of air is seen in this video along with multiple smaller funnel clouds.

Source

http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/videos-large-rare-tornad...

Atlantic hurricane season quietest in 45 years, experts say

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/10/24/us-weather-hurricanes-idUK...

(Reuters) - The 2013 Atlantic hurricane season looks set to go down as a big washout, marking the first time in 45 years that the strongest storm to form was just a minor Category 1 hurricane.

There could still be a late surprise in the June 1-November 30 season, since the cyclone that mushroomed into Superstorm Sandy was just revving up at this time last year.

But so far, at least, it has been one of the weakest seasons since modern record-keeping began about half a century ago, U.S. weather experts say. Apart from Tropical Storm Andrea, which soaked Florida after moving ashore in the Panhandle in June, none of this year's cyclones has made a U.S. landfall.

That meant relief for tens of millions of people in U.S. hurricane danger zones. But 2013 has been a bust for long-range forecasters who had predicted a stronger-than-usual burst of activity in the tropical Atlantic.

It has been "a very strange sort of year" in the unpredictable world of cyclones, said Jeff Masters, a hurricane expert and director of meteorology at Weather Underground (www.wunderground.com).

"We've been in this multi-decadal pattern of activity but it just didn't happen this year," Masters said, referring to the prolonged period of increased hurricane activity that began in 1995.

That period is still playing out, fed primarily by warm ocean temperatures in the tropical Atlantic that fuel hurricanes. But instead of increased activity, 2013 almost seems like a year when an enormous tranquilizer dart was fired into the heart of the main breeding ground for hurricanes.

A confluence of factors, including abundant sinking air and dry air, and possibly dust flowing out of North Africa's Sahara desert, kept a lid on hurricane formation in 2013, according to many cyclone experts.

That wreaked havoc with most leading seasonal forecasts like the one issued by Colorado State University on August 2. The errant forecast said 2013 would see above-average activity, with eight hurricanes and three that would develop into major hurricanes of Category 3 or higher on the five-step Saffir-Simpson intensity scale.

An average season has six hurricanes and three major hurricanes. But an August 8 outlook from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration called for six to nine hurricanes, three to five of which would become major hurricanes.

There were two short-lived Category 1 hurricanes this year, making it the first Atlantic season since 1968 when no storm made it beyond the first level of intensity, according to the National Hurricane Center.

It has also been a year marked by the fewest number of hurricanes since 1982 and the first since 1994 without the formation of a major hurricane.

In terms of so-called "Accumulated Cyclone Energy" (ACE), a common measure of the total destructive power of a season's storms, 2013 ranks among the 10 weakest since the dawn of the satellite era in the mid-1960s, said Dennis Feltgen, a spokesman for the Miami-based National Hurricane Center.

"The ACE so far in 2013 is 33 percent of normal," he said.

Long-range hurricane forecasts are eagerly awaited in U.S. financial and energy markets, which quiver every time a storm bears down on the U.S. oil and gas-producing region of the Gulf of Mexico.

Phil Klotzbach, a Colorado State University climatologist, readily admits that the forecasts are based on statistical models that will "occasionally fail," since the atmosphere is chaotic and subject to fluctuations that cannot be predicted more than a week or two in advance.

But Klotzbach and other experts say the models, and seasonal forecasts, still provide useful insight into something as unpredictable as extreme weather even if they do not always pan out.

"Obviously, individuals should not plan differently for a specific season based upon a seasonal forecast," Klotzbach told Reuters by email. "They are purely there to satisfy the public's curiosity based on our best knowledge of how large-scale climate features impact tropical cyclone seasons."

Despite the season ending with a whimper, Masters said long-range forecasts are still worth betting on.

"They have a point, as long as you understand their limitations," Masters told Reuters.

"You expect that they will have bust years, like this year. That's part of the game," he said. "But if you consistently bet the way they're going, then eventually over the long run they'll pay off."

Posted: Saturday, November 02, 2013 -

A hailstorm frosted Irazú Volcano on Friday- Costa Rica

A glacial freeze on Irazú? An official said the national park has never seen anything like it before.

Rhapsody in white on Irazú Volcano National Park. Photo

Meteorologists were expecting heavy rains Friday, but instead the country received a rare hailstorm that left Irazú National Park covered in white.

Alejandra Varela, a park official for the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC), photographed the aftermath of the unusual phenomenon, and Irazú Volcano SINAC shared the photo on its Facebook.

UPDATE: A forecaster at the National Meteoroligical Institute confirmed to La Nación that no snow fell in Costa Rica on Friday, and all the frost was left by the hailstorm.

http://www.ticotimes.net/More-news/News-Briefs/A-hailstorm-frosted-...

Video captures roll cloud in Texas

This is not your typical cloudy sky. Truck driver Bonnie Mask, who lives near Amarillo, Texas, looked out the window around sunrise last week and spotted an odd sight: A long, tube-shaped formation called a roll cloud.

Mask had the day off and decided to record the strange weather event for her husband, Todd. The video is captured from her deck in Timbercreek Canyon.

“Apparently, it’s pretty rare,” Mask told Yahoo News. She noted that she had never seen anything like it. “There was some cool air that blew over as the cloud blew over the house,” she said, adding that it was “kind of strange.”

Viewers of the video agreed. Doggone posted on Yahoo, “That is the freakiest thing I have seen so far — weather-wise, that is.” Kari J added, “That is a little eerie and slightly ominous.”

According to LiveScience.com, the bizarre cloud is formed when cold air forces warm, moist air higher into the sky. Then strong winds "roll" the cloud into the tube shape parallel to the earth's surface.

After what Mask estimates to be about 20 or 30 minutes, the long cloud formation, which seems to stretch endlessly across the horizon, rolled on by.

http://news.yahoo.com/video-captures-roll-cloud-in-texas-222843606....

Iraqi streets flooded by torrential rain
Heavy rainfall during the past four days flooded the streets in many Iraqi cities, including the capital Baghdad, forcing the Iraqi government to declare an emergency public holiday on Monday.

The wave of heavy rainfall turned many of Baghdad’s streets into rivers, paralyzing the traffic as many vehicles were trapped in dozens of huge puddles, particular in the downtown area.

Late on Sunday, the bad weather forced the Iraqi government to declare Monday as “a holiday for the state institutions except for Baghdad Mayoralty and the Ministries of Health and Municipalities.”

In Baghada’s old districts in the center, such as Qasir al- Abiyadh, as well as Baladiyat and Sadr City in the east, the floods entered many houses and cut some areas off from the rest of the city.

“The heavy rain and the lack of services due to the weak performance of Baghdad Mayoralty led to this catastrophe,” said Ahmed Ibrahim, whose car was caught in a flooded underpass in eastern Baghdad. “Poor drainage was behind this bad situation.”

In Sadr City, Ali Hussein’s home was flooded and his neighborhood was surrounded by floods. “Since yesterday, the water flooded into my house and damaged my furniture, we can’t go out to buy food and I can’t go to my work because all the roads are flooded,” said Hussein, a 44-year- old father of four daughters.

“We are using bricks and wood panels to step on when we move between the rooms,” he said. The Iraqi state meteorology body said that the rainfall is expected to continue on Monday and the weather will gradually turn clear in a few days.

Baghdad Mayoralty said in a statement that “the rainfall was the heaviest in nearly two decades and was at much higher rates than normal… It (sewage system) requires some time to drain the water from some areas of the capital Baghdad, especially those located in Rusafa (east of Tigris River).”

Since the US-led invasion in 2003, Iraq has long faced the lack of public services, which pushed many Iraqis to protest what they said corruption and incompetence of the government.

http://english.eastday.com/e/131111/u1a7768704.html

Sydney goes from fires to floods

Torrential rain leads to severe flooding in parts of eastern Australia

Violent storms lashed parts of Queensland and New South Wales on Saturday, flooding some roads and causing damage to some homes. A spokesman for the New South Wales Emergency Service said that they received around 1,000 calls for help during the overnight period.

Just a few weeks ago, this area was battling against some of the worst bushfires in their history. The early fires have raised concerns that it is going to be a long and hard bushfire season, so the heavy downpours were by no means unwelcome.

The worst of the weather occurred along the northern coast of New South Wales and also around the northern suburbs of Sydney. Between 30 to 40mm of rain was recorded across the area during a 12 hour period submerging many roads.

Passengers at Sydney airport were also badly affected with dozens of flights cancelled overnight as the thunderstorms rumbled on. Elsewhere, rising waters in the Nepean River, west of the city, forced the rescue of five people.

The downpours were accompanied by some strong and gusty winds and the disturbed weather is expected to persist along the east coast for much of the coming week. The heaviest rain is expected between Sydney and Brisbane where some parts could see a further 100 to 150mm of rain over the next two or three days.

Floods in Calabria, Italy

As mentioned in our update report on the floods in Sardinia, other area of Italy have also been experiencing sever weather. One of the worst hit areas has been Calabria, in particularly around   Catanzaro, Crotone and Vibo Valentia.

The area saw between 100mm and 200mm of rain fall in just 24 hours up until yesterday. The result was flash flooding in several areas, as well as rivers overflowing. Roads were blocked with flood water and debris, and homes and streets inundated. Germaneto and Catanzaro were amongst the worst hit areas in the region.

Rainfall Amounts

Pagliarelle – 206mm Albi – 201mm Cotronei – 194mm

Although the storm and heavy rainfall that struck Calabria bears similarities to the disaster that recently hit Sardinia in the last few days, killing at least 17 people, no casualties have been reported in Calabria so far.

http://floodlist.com/europe/floods-calabria-italy

Slow Atlantic hurricane season coming to a close [NOAA; 25 November, 2013]

No major hurricanes formed in the Atlantic basin - first time since 1994

The 2013 Atlantic hurricane season, which officially ends on Saturday, Nov. 30, had the fewest number of hurricanes since 1982, thanks in large part to persistent, unfavorable atmospheric conditions over the Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea, and tropical Atlantic Ocean. This year is expected to rank as the sixth-least-active Atlantic hurricane season since 1950, in terms of the collective strength and duration of named storms and hurricanes.

“A combination of conditions acted to offset several climate patterns that historically have produced active hurricane seasons,” said Gerry Bell, Ph.D., lead seasonal hurricane forecaster at NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center, a division of the National Weather Service. “As a result, we did not see the large numbers of hurricanes that typically accompany these climate patterns.”

Thirteen named storms formed in the Atlantic basin this year. Two, Ingrid and Humberto, became hurricanes, but neither became major hurricanes. Although the number of named storms was above the average of 12, the numbers of hurricanes and major hurricanes were well below their averages of six and three, respectively. Major hurricanes are categories 3 and above.

Tropical storm Andrea, the first of the season, was the only named storm to make landfall in the United States this year. Andrea brought tornadoes, heavy rain, and minor flooding to portions of Florida, eastern Georgia and eastern South Carolina, causing one fatality.

The 2013 hurricane season was only the third below-normal season in the last 19 years, since 1995, when the current high-activity era for Atlantic hurricanes began.

“This unexpectedly low activity is linked to an unpredictable atmospheric pattern that prevented the growth of storms by producing exceptionally dry, sinking air and strong vertical wind shear in much of the main hurricane formation region, which spans the tropical Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea,” said Bell. “Also detrimental to some tropical cyclones this year were several strong outbreaks of dry and stable air that originated over Africa.”

Unlike the U.S., which was largely spared this year, Mexico was battered by eight storms, including three from the Atlantic basin and five from the eastern North Pacific. Of these eight landfalling systems, five struck as tropical storms and three as hurricanes.

NOAA and the U.S. Air Force Reserve flew 45 hurricane hunter aircraft reconnaissance missions over the Atlantic basin this season, totaling 435 hours--the fewest number of flight hours since at least 1966.

NOAA will issue its 2014 Atlantic Hurricane Outlook in late May, prior to the start of the season on June 1.

NOAA's National Weather Service is the primary source of weather data, forecasts and warnings for the United States and its territories. NOAA’s National Weather Service operates the most advanced weather and flood warning and forecast system in the world, helping to protect lives and property and enhance the national economy. Working with partners, NOAA’s National Weather Service is building a Weather-Ready Nation to support community resilience in the face of increasing vulnerability to extreme weather. Visit us online at weather.gov and on Facebook.

NOAA’s mission is to understand and predict changes in the Earth's environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and to conserve and manage our coastal and marine resources. Join us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and our other social media channels.

Storm causes havoc in Europe and deaths in UK
Updated: 22:36, Friday, 06 December 2013

The worst tidal floods in 60 years to hit the east coast of England caused several homes to fall into the sea at Hemsby in Norfolk overnight.

Two people were killed in Britain as the Met office measured winds of up to 225km/h when the storm hit Scotland and parts of England.

A lorry driver was killed and four people injured when his vehicle overturned and collided with other vehicles in West Lothian.

A second man died near Nottingham when he was hit by a falling tree.

Three properties collapsed completely into the sea and four more were seriously undermined as a result of the severe storms. 

British Police taped off the dangerous areas, where some of the homes were expected to be completely washed out to sea. 

Residents managed to rescue some furniture while their properties were claimed by the waves as the land collapsed.

Thousands of people in Norfolk were forced to spend the night in emergency shelters. 

North Sea oil and gas producers including ConocoPhillips, Maersk Oil, and Statoil cut production and evacuated staff from some platforms.

All train services in Scotland were cancelled for a time yesterday due to debris on tracks but services were slowly restored during the day.           

Northern Europe hit by severe winds

Hurricane-force Storm Xaver swept across northern Germany leaving choppy seas and a trail of damaged property. 

Xaver blasted into northern Europe late today where it really was an extreme winter gale at the North Sea coast.

The highest wind speeds were recorded at the North sea coast at around 150kph.

About 4,000 people in the northern state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania had no power today.

Schools were closed and about 70 flights at Hamburg airport were cancelled.

Officials said floodwaters in the northern German port city of Hamburg rose to 6.09 meters above normal levels.

A high-speed rail line running 300km between Germany's two largest cities Hamburg and Berlin was blocked by debris on the tracks. 

Stranded passengers were transferred to buses, Deutsche Bahn officials said.   

The Oresund bridge linking southern Sweden with Denmark was shut in the afternoon. Some railway lines in southern Sweden were closed with high winds expected in the south and heavy snow further north.              

In Denmark, railroad company DSB said it would stop operating most trains. Airline Alsie Express cancelled all domestic flights and the 6.8km Great Belt Bridge,which includes a 1.6km suspension bridge section was closed.                Copenhagen Airport, the Nordic region's busiest airport was closed to all traffic yesterday evening until this morning due to the storm.               

Trains in the northern Netherlands were halted, Dutch Railways said. 

At Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, 50 flights were cancelled with a spokesman warning of further possible cancellations

http://floodlist.com/europe/united-kingdom/uk-storm-floods-update

http://www.rte.ie/news/2013/1206/491180-storm-causes-havoc-in-europ...

Israel, the worst snowstorm since 1953 [PHOTOS

Friday, December 13, 2013

Bad weather in Israel also likely to persist over the weekend, with snow on Friday is expected to reach even higher areas to the south, to the Negev Desert: the first flakes fell on Mount Hermon, and they are also expected in some areas to the north and Galilee, as well as in altitude in the most central area of the country. The Jerusalem Municipality has issued the alert in virtue of which the schools have been closed in the metropolitan area. The courses at the Hebrew University have been suspended.

Many roads have been closed across the country on Thursday, including those linking Jerusalem to Hebron and to the Dead Sea. According to the forecast, temperatures are expected to remain lower than the norm for the rest of the week, decreasing steadily every day. The strong winds are creating inconvenience to Ben Gurion International Airport and Sde Dov Airport in Tel Aviv, where streets and sidewalks have turned into small rivers due to heavy rains.

As a result, it had to reschedule the date and time of the meeting of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry with President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Netanyahu Brenjamin to be held in the capital.

http://translate.google.com.ar/translate?sl=it&tl=en&js=n&a...

Frost falls on the Middle East and whitens the Syrian desert, Palmyra flakes on the archaeological site

hursday, December 12, 2013

The cold wave that Poland, Belarus and Ukraine has slingshots to the Aegean Sea, Turkey and the Asia Minor coast is giving really suggestive scenarios, from the depths of winter, right in the heart of the desert areas of Syria. Yesterday evening a beautiful snowfall, mixed with rain, has managed to whitewash the beautiful archaeological site of Palmyra, in the heart of the Syrian desert, as well as other places of the central Syrian desert. The measurements between the city of Palmyra and Homo were completely whitewashed by a layer of fresh snow fell during the night. Palmyra snow is really rare, but not rare, because the location is situated above 400 meters in height, in the middle of the Syrian desert

http://translate.google.com.ar/translate?sl=it&tl=en&js=n&a...

Bad weather, Canary devastated landslides and floods in Tenerife, El Hierro and La Palma, 5 dead- CANARY ISLANDS

Thursday, December 12, 2013

The bad weather has hit hard the Canary Islands in recent hours, for the second time in just a few days in this terrible beginning of December to the Atlantic islands of Tenerife, El Hierro and La Palma were literally devastated by torrential rains that new have caused 5 deaths and considerable damage. Eloquent images accompanying the article, coming from these locations between yesterday and today. Serious inconvenience to the population of the island, where schools and offices are closed for 3 days.
Last night hath also been a bad plane crash in runway of Los Rodeos airport in Tenerife, where a flight from Gran Canaria in landing has slipped on the wet track and ended up off the track, getting stuck in the mud. Fortunately there were no serious injuries, just bruises for some passengers.

http://translate.google.com.ar/translate?hl=es&sl=it&tl=en&...

Snowfall in Egypt: the snow whitens Cairo, has not happened since 1639!! [PHOTOS]

Friday, December 13, 2013,

Cairo, Egypt's capital, a metropolis of over 10 million people, where the snow is an event quite unique. The last time she had fallen in 1639, in the middle of the "Little Ice Age", well 374 years ago

This morning the cold in recent days has affected all of Europe south / east bringing the first snow in Istanbul, then in Jerusalem and the Syrian desert, came even more to the south, invading Egypt, where there have been severe thunderstorms snowy . In Cairo, the temperature dropped to +3 ° C and the snow has whitened the city in an extraordinary way, as we can see in the photos accompanying the article:

http://translate.google.com.ar/translate?sl=it&tl=en&js=n&a...

3 Feet of Snow in Jerusalem (Dec 13)

Nearly three feet of snow closed roads in and out of Jerusalem and thousands in and around the city were left without power. Israeli soldiers and police rescued  hundreds trapped in their cars by snow and ice.

In the West Bank, the branches of olive trees groaned under the weight of snow.

Sources

* Opposites Attract [Earth Observatory; 14 December, 2013]

* While Most of U.S. Froze, Parts of Alaska Set Record Highs. [Climate Central; 10 December, 2013; By Andrew Freedman]

While the continental U.S. has been shivering from coast-to-coast with temperatures dropping as low as minus-40°F (minus-40°C) amid one of the most severe early December cold snaps in several years, one state bucked the trend in an historic way. The same contorted jet stream pattern that brought the brutal cold to the lower 48 states pushed a pulse of milder-than-average air into Alaska, where some spots recorded temperatures unheard of for December.

Map showing temperature anomalies in the atmosphere, including notes showing the unusually warm air over Alaska (red area) and cold air from Canada to the U.S. (dark blue area). 

Credit: Modified from Tropicaltidbits.com via WeatherUnderground.

Along Alaska's northern coastline, which lies above the Arctic Circle, the warmest December temperatures on record in at least 70 years occurred this past week. At the airport in Deadhorse, which serves the oil production hub of Prudhoe Bay, the temperature hit 39°F (3.9°C) on December 7, the highest December temperature on record there since at least 1968, said Rick Thoman of the National Weather Service (NWS) in Fairbanks in an interview. Even more notable, perhaps, was the fact that it was raining, rather than snowing. Rain there is unusual so late in the year.

Previously, the highest December temperature recorded at any of the two climate observation sites that have served Prudhoe Bay over the years was 35°F (1.7°C), set on Dec. 31, 1973, according to Chris Burt, a blogger at WeatherUnderground.

Thoman said it’s possible, but not likely, that other climate stations in that area — such as data collected at now defunct Cold War-era early warning radar stations — recorded slightly milder December temperatures when they were operating in the 1950s and 1960s.

December high temperature records were also set or tied at Barter Island AFB, which is a tiny airport located on a sliver of land along Alaska’s wind-whipped North Slope region, and in the small village of Wainwright, another Arctic shore location. Barter Island reached 37°F (2.8°C), which tied its record last set in 1973, and Wainright hit 32°F (0°C), beating the old record of 30°F (minus-1.1°C) last set in 2006.

Some weather stations located along the Dalton Highway south of Prudhoe Bay saw temperatures climb into the 40s, Thoman said.

Other noteworthy Alaska records included a December record high of 54°F (12.2°C) in King Salmon, which is situated along Bristol Bay in southwest Alaska. That broke the previous record of 51°F (10.6°C), and records there date back to World War II. Daily high temperature records were also set at Kotzebue, Bettles, and Cold Bay, Alaska, among other locations, Thoman said.

The first nine days of December ran 22.2°F (minus-5.4°C) above average in Barrow, and 18.5°F (minus-7.5°C) above average in Kotzebue, according to NWS data.

A strong ridge of high pressure was the main cause of the record warmth in Alaska. The high shunted the jet stream, which is a high speed current of winds in the upper atmosphere, to the north of the state, while simultaneously displacing cold, Arctic air southward into Canada and the continental U.S.

Thoman said such weather patterns are not uncommon during the winter months, although the extreme nature of this one was. “This kind of thing does happen with some frequency in the cold season,” Thoman said. “You get these amplified patterns, and the cold air’s gotta go somewhere, so you build up the ridge somewhere over the Gulf of Alaska . . . pump warm air into Alaska, and on the east side of that high, that cold air is going to come plunging south.”

The small northern Alaska community of Wainwright, pictured during the summer. 

Credit: Wikimedia Commons.

In recent years, studies have shown an association between extremely wavy or “amplified” jet stream patterns, with large ridges and troughs, and Arctic sea ice melt and snow cover decline during the spring and summer months. It's an active area of research, but there’s no doubt that climate change has been having profound impacts in Alaska and other areas of the Arctic region.

The 2012 Arctic Report Card depicted a region undergoing rapid and pervasive changes related to manmade global warming, including the ramifications from plummeting spring and summer sea ice cover, melting permafrost, a rapid loss of spring snow cover, and various other climate change impacts. The 2013 edition of the Report Card, published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, will be released on Thursday.

Recent news reports from Alaska show that increasingly mild fall seasons and erratic weather patterns have had significant effects on local communities.

For example, In Wainwright, changes in weather patterns have diminished the opportunities for subsistence hunters to safely hunt whales and caribou during the fall harvest season, according to a new study published in the journal Arctic.

Alaskans have also seen a precipitous decline in the Western Arctic Caribou Herd, which is thought to be a result, at least in part, of an increase in fall freezing rain events. A colder atmosphere used to produce more snow events, but ice storms have become more common along the caribou’s migration routes, which is helping to thin the herd, according to reporting by the Alaska Dispatch.

Although the long-term forecast calls for continued warming during the next several decades, in the near term, the high pressure area over Alaska is weakening, allowing colder air and snowier weather to return to the Frontier State, Thoman said.

The upcoming weather pattern will be “A big change from what we’ve had, that’s for sure,” Thoman said.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2524565/Balmy-December-temp...

What winter? Balmy December temperatures means apples and raspberries are ready to eat

• Gardener finds lilies, raspberries, garlic and apples growing in Bristol
• Temperatures have reached highs which are typical of April's weather
• But Britain is set to be hit by a storm on Christmas Day, says forecaster
  
• Flooding and power cuts in southern England today after heavy rain
  

By Hugo Gye

PUBLISHED: 11:29 GMT, 16 December 2013 | UPDATED: 14:33 GMT, 16 December 2013

Mild December weather has led to the premature growth of raspberries, apples and other fruit which have been 'tricked' into thinking that it is already spring.

Temperatures in the South of England were forecast to reach 14C (57F) today - typical weather for April.

However, the unseasonal conditions are unlikely to last, according to forecasters who have predicted a Christmas Day storm.

Mild: The relatively warm weather has encouraged raspberry bushes to grow fruit several months early; horticulturalist Steve England is pictured with a plant he found in Stoke Park, Bristol

Unusual: The plant was apparently 'tricked' into thinking that it was already spring

Gardener Steve England was leading a wildlife walk through a park in Bristol when he saw several plants growing which should still be dormant for the winter.

He was surprised to see wild garlic, apples and lilies all apparently thriving, but it was when he saw the raspberries that he realised how unusual the situation was.

 

'We all had a single refreshing and tasty out-of-season raspberry and went home full of the joys of spring,' he said.

'The trees are also completely laden with apples - I've never seen anything like it.'...

Snowfall unprecedented in Saudi Arabia: the whitewashed desert around Tabuk [PHOTO-SHOCK] Tuesday, December 17, 2013

In recent days, an exceptional cold snap and snow has hit Europe first south / east, then across the Middle East and eventually even Saudi Arabia, with exceptional snowfall unprecedented in human memory: between 11 and 12 13 December, the snow has reached large areas of desert Arab country par excellence, especially in the region of Tabuk, an area from the typical desert climate where the average fall in December less than 10mm of rain with highs always outweigh the + 25 ° C.
arabiasaudi1002 But this time it rained so plentiful, with flooding and flooding in the desert, and heavy snow on the hills. We are in the land of Maydan and Dedan, mentioned in the Bible, where a group of dedicated local meteorology (yes, there are even there!) Have created a truly exceptional report, saying he was "thrilled" to have met on their way also some experts local meteorology, which had penetrated inland areas to observe the rare snowfall. As we can see in the pictures, the accumulations are locally abundant, even greater than 10cm, as well as very large. He has not treated by isolated snow showers grainy, but of real storms with temperatures below zero.
Here are the extraordinary images (video first, then the gallery with all the great photos):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJoQZJUlrTo

http://translate.google.com.ar/translate?sl=it&tl=en&js=n&a...

Who Stopped the Rain? 2013 Driest Year On Record in San Francisco

There hasn't been a year like this in San Francisco since 1946 -- which was a deluge by comparison.

That was the last time so little rain fell in the city by the Bay, according to the National Weather Service.

In 1946, 8.79 inches of rain fell during the calendar year -- and this year, as of this week? Not even half as much: 3.38 inches of rain has fallen on San Francisco International Airport since January.

We're parched..

MORE: California Lawmakers Call for Drought Declaration

December is typically among the wettest months: on average 4.03 inches of rain fall during the last month of the year, or more than the city has seen to date in 2013.

By mid-December, 18.37 inches fall, on the way to 20.65 inches annually on average, according to AccuWeather.com.

Storms follow the Pacific jet stream, which has been aiming at northern Canada rather than the Bay Area, according to metereologists.

There may be rain on Thursday, but only for a short time. After that, it's dry, dry dry up until 2014.

http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/San-Francisco-Driest-Year-On-R...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2525993/What-happened-Siber...

What has happened to Siberia? Russian region famous for being cold experiences freak warm weather in December for first time in living memory

• In some parts of the normally-frozen region there is barely any snow at all
• Temperatures often fall to as low as between -30C and -40C in December
• But in some regions they are hovering well above freezing and it's raining 
  

PUBLISHED: 20:45 GMT, 18 December 2013 | UPDATED: 22:59 GMT, 18 December 2013

It is famous for being one of the coldest, most inhospitable places on earth.

But after weeks of the warmest winter weather in living memory there's something peculiarly absent in many parts of Siberia this December - snow.

At this time of year the harsh east Russian region is normally covered in a thick layer of the white stuff with temperatures plummeting to as low as -40C.

Feeling the heat: A bridge near the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk this week on what appears to be more like a bright Spring day rather than freezing Russian winter

Unusual: Many Siberian locals say the lack of December snow is unprecedented in living memory

But in recent weeks many areas have seen daytime temperatures hovering well above zero and even more unusually long spells of heavy rain.

While Siberia remains slightly colder than western Europe, most locals say they have never experienced a December so warm.

Fyodor Olifirenko, 83, from Novosibirsk, the most northerly city in the world, told the Siberian Times: 'I do not remember such a warm December.

'In 1963 there was some thaw on December 24-25, it was raining a bit. But by morning all was frozen and after that started strong frosts.'

'But such weather - when it is constantly raining in the middle of December - I see this for the first time'.

In the city of Tomsk, where it normally averages around -15C at this time of year, the forecast next week predicts long spells of sunshine and relatively balmy temperatures of between -1C and -5C.

By comparison, the average December day time temperature in London is only slightly higher at around 6C.

A group of Tomsk locals made the most of the sunshine by stripping down to their swimming gear to pose for pictures.

Freak Snowfall in Vietnam Strands Drivers, Damages Crops (Dec 20)

Snowfall in Sa Pa town in the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai, which began Sunday, has caused serious damage to farms.

According to the town’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, 100 hectares of chayote and another 100 hectares of flowers were destroyed, and all vegetables and other crops were buried by snow.

Heavy snowfall also led to constant traffic congestion on Highway 4D connecting Lai Chau and Lao Cai provinces. More than 50 cars were unable to continue driving, as of noon Monday.

Local authorities reported that some 5,000 people flocked to Sa Pa to watch the snow, adding to the traffic congestion.

The province has quickly mobilized workers and rescuers to remove snow and assure that travel remains safe.

The Nui Xe Station said that it began snowing at around 9am yesterday, Dec 15.

It said that at a height of over 1,900m above sea level, temperatures had dipped to as low as minus two degrees Celsius, forming icy sheets 10-20cm thick.

Average temperature in Sa Pa remained low yesterday at about minus one degree Celsius, with constant heavy smog and drizzle.

Earlier, on Thursday, the province experienced heavy downpours of 30-50cm, and temperatures in Sa Pa dropped then to 5-7 degrees Celsius.

According to the Lao Cai Hydro-meteorological Forecasting Centre, another cold spell is expected to hit the province in the coming days.

The centre has also warned of strong winds, whirlwinds and hail storms that could threaten the lives and properties of residents.

Meanwhile, northern Viet Nam as a whole has experienced intense cold weather with temperatures ranging between 17 and 11 degrees Celsius. The temperature has dropped to below 10 degrees Celsius in a few mountainous areas, weather experts have said.

The National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting yesterday echoed provincial warnings that mountainous areas in the north should be prepared for the possibility of tornadoes, hailstorms and strong winds.

Sources

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/548019/vietnam-snowfall-damages-farms

http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/travel/91675/tourists-flock-to-see...

http://asiancorrespondent.com/117316/northern-vietnam-hit-by-freak-...

http://world.time.com/2013/12/17/freak-snowfall-hits-vietnam/

Record-Breaking Warmth Across the Eastern U.S. (Dec 21)

Temperature records were smashed by a freak heat wave across the eastern United States at the start of winter in the northern hemisphere.

Previous highs for this time of year were shattered by as many as 10 degrees from the Gulf Coast up into New England.

Sources

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2013/12...

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=4

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/weather/warm-weather-breaks-rec...

25 December 2013

30 killed as worst floods in 90 years hit Brazil

Nearly 50,000 people flee their homes as thousands of homes are destroyed and many neighborhoods left without electricity. 

At least 30 people lost their lives in floods and landslides caused by heavy rains in Brazil which President Dilma Rousseff described as the worst floods to hit the country in the last 90 years.

Rousseff visited on Tuesday flood-hit areas in the southeast states of Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo, where she pledged millions of dollars in aid to supply necessities and rebuilt the zone.

According to the president, the government has already sent foods and medical equipment by ground and air to the area.

Espirito Santo Governor Renato Casagrande said that nearly 50,000 people fled their homes. Thousands of homes were destroyed, the transportation system was paralyzed, and many neighborhoods were left without electricity.

Casagrande expressed fear that the number of victims could rise as communication with some flood-hit areas was not in place.

http://www.worldbulletin.net/?aType=haber&ArticleID=125643

New Mexico marks year of weather extremes.

It seemed there was no end in sight after three years without any meaningful snow or summer rain. In 2013, New Mexico's drought had become what climate experts and water managers were calling unprecedented.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/mexico-marks-weather-extremes-1730437...

Asheville shatters rainfall record in 2013

“ASHEVILLE — The year started wet, and then it just kept raining. And rained some more.

The soggy weather pushed Asheville to a yearly rainfall record in 2013, far outpacing the old mark set 40 years ago. Along the way, area residents were forced to deal with flooding, land slides, washed out roads and crop failures.

Meteorologists can’t point to any specific global weather pattern as the cause, said William Angel, a meteorologist with the National Climatic Data Center in Asheville.

“It was just a persistent wet pattern,” Angel said. “We’ve had very efficient rain producers. The storm systems were able to tap moisture from the Pacific, the Gulf and the Atlantic.”

Many of the systems, including the one that dumped heavy rain on the mountains Sunday, were slow-moving, he said, which allowed rainfall totals to climb dramatically.

Since Jan. 1, Asheville has recorded 74.22 inches of rain, a whopping 29.49 inches above normal. This year’s total easily eclipses the old record of 64.91 inches set in 1973.”

“We are beating the old extreme by almost 10 inches,” Angel said. “It is significant.”

http://www.citizen-times.com/article/20131226/NEWS/312260017/Ashevi...

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Pakistan - record cold wave

Men and woman sitting around fire to warm their hands in Hyderabad as they avoid the coldness of the weather. ONLINE PHOTO by Nadeem Khawer

ISLAMABAD/QUETTA: Almost the entire country was in the grip of a cold wave on Monday, with a number of cities and towns struck by temperatures ranging between -17C and -21C. The federal capital went through its most uncomfortable day in 46 years as the mercury plunged to three below Celsius.

And even Karachi, known for its mild winters, was not far behind, recording a minimum temperature of six degrees Celsius. The city is likely to face more cold on Tuesday and Wednesday.

A minimum temperature of -2.8C in Islamabad had been recorded in 1984, but the lowest temperature recorded in the city is -3.9C in 1967.

Officials said that the wave was the fallout of extreme cold weather conditions in Europe as cold winds coming from there dry up after crossing the Central Asian region.

These cold and dry winds are also delaying the winter rains as the strong currents push the warm, moist winds rising from the Arabian Sea.

“These systems coming from the northwest last up to five or six days,” Meteorological Department Director Dr Mohammad Hanif said. The Met Office forecast very cold and dry weather for Tuesday in most of the country, with cloudy conditions along with rain and light snowfall over the hills at places across a swathe stretching from Gilgit-Baltistan to Lahore and Sargodha divisions.

“But these are not the regular winter rains. They will only bring light rain because these clouds are part of the westerly wave that has separated from the European system and has reached up to Kashmir,” Dr Hanif said.

The winter rains are likely to begin after mid-January, which will be followed by the Siberian cold wave that brings very cold winds to the whole country.

The lowest temperature recorded on Monday was -15C in Kalat. It was -13C in Quetta, -12C in Skardu, -10C in Parachinar, -7C in Astore, Gupis, -6C in Malamjabba, Drosh and Murree and -5C in Gilgit.

It was the 14th day of a wave of very cold weather in northern Balochistan and Quetta. Meteorological department officials said they had recorded the lowest minimum temperature of -21C at Harboi hill station in Kalat, -17C in Ziarat, Khanozai, Toba Achakzai, Toba Kakari and Darra Kozak and -13C in Pishin and Mastung.

Pipelines burst after water froze and diesel in the fuel tanks of vehicles also froze.

Water overflowed from the sewerage system and froze on the roads. A layer of ice also formed around the walls of water tanks.

The suspension of gas supply and very low pressure increased the hardships of the people and the prices of coal, wood and kerosene skyrocketed.

Harboi, at 8,000-foot altitude, is rich with reserves of juniper forests and wildlife, including leopard, mountain wild goat Markhor, ibex, wolf, fox and wild rabbit. People of the area were forced to leave for warmer places, leaving some men to guard their homes. “People living in Harboi have dug trenches and lit juniper wood to save themselves from the extremely cold weather,” Mehboob Shahwani, a local, said.

He said gas supply to Kalat town was suspended. “Timber is being sold at Rs400 per 40kg and LPG gas at Rs220 per kg, which are unaffordable for the poor,” he said.

An All Parties Action Committee of Kalat called for immediate restoration of gas supply.

The situation in Ziarat, Khanozai, Qila Saifullah, Muslim Bagh, Toba Achakzai, Toba Kakari, Zhob and other areas was also worsening.

Ziarat was facing shortage of gas supply.

Roads and offices in Quetta wore a deserted look. The Met Office said the temperature there might drop to -15C. People of Sariab area blocked the Quetta-Sibi highway in protest against suspension of gas supply.

“Our children and elderly are falling sick because the SSGC has suspended supply to our area that has a large population,” Abdul Rashid told Dawn.

Source: http://www.dawn.com/news/1077459/record-cold-wave-grips-parts-of-co...

December temperatures for Pakistan (Islamabad) should be :

5C (41F) to 18C (64F)

Source: http://www.holiday-weather.com/islamabad/averages/december/

* Floods in Southeast Brazil [Earth Observatory; 30 December, 2013]

Widespread floods are plaguing at least three states in southeastern Brazil. Heavy rains lasted throughout December 2013 in Minas Gerais, Bahia, and Espirito Santo, causing floods and mudslides. December rainfall in Espirito Santo has already reached 714 millimeters (28.11 inches), an all-time record monthly rainfall, according to weather blogger Christopher Burt. As of December 30, at least 45 people had died and an estimated 70,000 people were evacuated. Others were left isolated after the collapse of hundreds of kilometers of roads, said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired the top image of floods along the Doce River in Espirito Santo on December 30, 2013. The lower image, from December 27, 2012, offers a contrasting view of normal conditions for the season. Floods are evident in the muddy, tan water that stretches for kilometers along the coast and in the swollen reservoirs north of the river. The Cotaxé River is also flooded, and brown smudges along the lower edge of the image indicate flooding around Vitória, the state capital, which is just out of the scene. The floods are sending plumes of sediment into the Atlantic Ocean.

* Heat wave in Argentina, flooding in Brazil. [Weather Underground; 30 December, 2013]

An intense and prolonged heat wave has enveloped northern Argentina for the past two weeks causing serious power outages and social unrest (this December may go down as the hottest month on record in Buenos Aires--since 1856) while heavy rainfall in southeastern Brazil has resulted in floods that have killed at least 44 so far.

Heat Wave in Argentina

For Buenos Aires, this month is set to be the warmest December on record and perhaps even the warmest single month on record with an average temperature so far of 26.6°C (79.9°F) at the Observatorio site. The previous warmest December was that of 1994 with a 25.5°C (77.9°F) average and the warmest month on record was January 1989 with a 26.6°C (79.9°F) average. Temperature records in Buenos Aires go back to 1856. The city has seen temperatures above 30°C (86°F) everyday since December 13th and over 33°C (91.4°F) since December 22nd. The temperature peaked at 39.0°C (102.2°F) on December 27th (the hottest temperature on record for Buenos Aires is 43.3°C/109.9°F on January 29, 1957 and the average December high is 28.1°C/82.6°F).

Climate data for Buenos Aires for December. With an average temperature of 26.°C (79.9°F) so far, it is possible that this has been the warmest month on record for the city. OGIMET.

The heat wave has prompted the Mayor of Buenos Aires, Mauricio Macri, to declare a state of emergency because of power and water shortages, and the city administration has been ordered to take a day off today (Monday December 30th) to conserve electricity. At least three deaths have so far been attributed to the heat. The heat wave is forecast to break by Wednesday (at least in the Buenos Aires region).

In the northwestern interior of Argentina temperatures over 45°C (113°F) have been observed, with a peak reading of 45.5°C (113.9°F) at Chamical, La Rioja State on December 26th. This is just 1.8°C (3.2°F) shy of the hottest reliably measured temperature in South American history (which was a reading of 47.3°C/117.1°F at Campo Gallo on October 16, 1936—other higher readings such as the oft cited 48.9°C/120°F at Rivadavia on November 12, 1905-were made with questionable instrumentation). The nearby city of Santiago Del Estero has measured 40°C (104°F) or more everyday since December 21st.

The climate table for Santiago Del Estero for the month of December. All but five days of the month have reached 35°C (95°F) or higher. OGIMET.

Flooding in Brazil

According to press reports, torrential rain in Espirito Santo State and Minas Gerais States (north of Rio de Janeiro) has resulted in flash floods and mudslides that have claimed the lives of at least 44. Another 61,000 have been forced to evacuate their homes. Local civil defense officials claimed “the rains to be the worst in 90 years”. Heavy rains have been plaguing portions of Brazil since October and in early December a storm killed 16 and destroyed 200 homes in the city of Lajedinho in Bahia State. This month some exceptional rainfall has fallen. Capelinha, Minas Gerais state has accumulated 930 mm (36.61") of precipitation so far. Aimores, also in Minas Gerais State, has recorded an astonishing 831 mm (32.72") which is 71% of what they normally receive in a year.

The swollen Doce River has overflowed its banks in Vitoria, the capital of Espirito Santo State, flooding portions of the city. So far this December an all-time record monthly rainfall of 714 mm (28.11") has fallen besting the previous wettest month on record of 663 mm (26.10") in November 2008. Precipitation records go back to 1923 here. Photo AFP.

* Heatwave kills seven in Argentina [BBC News; 31 December, 2013]

Meteorologists say some of the highest temperatures have been recorded since records began

A heatwave affecting Argentina has left at least seven people dead - most of them elderly - in the past week, officials say.

The heat has been compounded by power cuts, which have prevented many people from using air conditioning.

In Santiago del Estero and other northern provinces temperatures have soared to over 45C (113F).

Meteorologists say it has been the worst heatwave in the region since records began in 1906.

The victims of the extreme weather lived in Santiago del Estero, located 1,100km (680 miles) north of Buenos Aires.

Hundreds of people in the province have required medical help and doctors have warned people to stay indoors during the hottest hours.

Tyres on fire

Argentina's ageing power grid has been struggling to keep up with increased demand for air-conditioning.

Ice cream parlours and other businesses have lost their stocks due to the power cuts

Authorities are blaming the energy shortages on the hot weather. But the opposition accuses the government of mismanaging the crisis.

Many people are protesting about the lack of services, says the BBC's Irene Caselli in Buenos Aires. Some parts of the city have been without power for two weeks.

Residents have set fire to rubbish bags and tyres on the roads, causing traffic jams as many left the capital for the new year festivities.

Buenos Aires Mayor Mauricio Macri, a former ally of President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, said private energy suppliers could not take all the blame.

"The main responsibility is with the federal government," he said. "The government must make sure there is an investment programme, which has not happened in the last decade."

Polar Vortex Brings Dangerous Cold Temperatures To Midwest

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The coldest, most dangerous blast of polar air in decades gripped the Midwest and pushed toward the East and South on Monday, closing schools and day care centers, grounding flights and forcing people to pull their hoods and scarves tight to protect exposed skin from nearly instant frostbite.

Many across the nation's midsection went into virtual hibernation, while others dared to venture out in temperatures that plunged well below zero.

"I'm going to try to make it two blocks without turning into crying man," said Brooks Grace, who was out to do some banking and shopping in downtown Minneapolis, where temperatures reached 23 below with wind chills of minus 48. "It's not cold — it's painful."

The mercury also dropped into negative territory in Milwaukee, St. Louis and Chicago, which set a record for the date at minus 16. Wind chills across the region were 40 below and colder. Records also fell in Oklahoma, Texas and Indiana.

Forecasters said some 187 million people in all could feel the effects of the "polar vortex" by the time it spread across the country on Monday night and Tuesday.

Record lows were possible in the East and South, with highs in the single digits expected Tuesday in Georgia and Alabama. Subzero wind chills were forecast up and down the coast, including minus 10 in Atlanta and minus 12 in Baltimore.

From the Dakotas to Maryland, schools and day care centers shut down.

"You definitely know when you are not wearing your thermal undergarments," said Staci Kalthoff, who raises cattle with her husband on a 260-acre farm in Albany, Minn., where the temperature hovered around 24 below zero and winds made it feel like minus 46. "You have to dress really, really warm and come in more often and thaw out everything."

Even with this nostril-freezing cold, the family still prefers winter over summer.

"You can always put on more layers," she said. "When it gets hot, you can only take off so much."

For a big swath of the Midwest, the subzero cold moved in behind another winter wallop: more than a foot of snow and high winds that made traveling treacherous. Several deaths since Saturday were blamed on the snow, ice and cold, including a 1-year-old boy who was in a car that went out of control and collided with a snowplow Monday in Missouri and three fatal accidents in Michigan.

It took authorities in southern Illinois using 10-ton military vehicles known as "wreckers" until early Monday to clear all the chain-reaction accidents caused when several semis jackknifed along snowy interstates. The crash stranded about 375 vehicles, but there were no fatalities or injuries, largely because motorists either stayed with their cars or were rescued and taken to nearby warming centers, said Jonathon Monken, director of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency. Others got stuck in the snowdrifts, including the Southern Illinois University men's basketball team, which had to spend the night in a church.

In the eastern United States, temperatures in the 40s and 50s Monday helped melt piles of snow from a storm last week, raising the risk that roads would freeze over as the cold air moved in Monday night, said Bob Oravec from the Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Md. The snap was set to be dramatic — Springfield, Mass., enjoyed 56 degrees Monday morning but faced an overnight low of 6.

More than 3,700 flights were canceled by late Monday afternoon, following a weekend of travel disruption across the U.S. Airline officials said de-icing fluid was freezing, fuel was pumping sluggishly, and ramp workers were having difficulty loading and unloading luggage. JetBlue Airways stopped all scheduled flights to and from New York and Boston on Monday. Southwest ground to a halt in Chicago earlier in the day, but by the evening, flights resumed in "a trickle," a spokesman said.

Authorities in Indiana and Kentucky — where temperatures dropped into the single digits and below, with wind chills in the minus 20s and worse — warned people not to leave their homes unless they needed to go someplace safer.

The company that operates the power grid supplying energy to more than 61 million people in parts of the Mid-Atlantic, Midwest and South asked Monday night that users conserve electricity because of the cold, especially in the morning and mid-afternoon.

Meanwhile, utility crews worked to restore power to more than 40,000 Indiana customers affected by the weekend storm and cautioned that some people could be in the cold and dark for days.

Ronald G. Smith Sr. took shelter at an Indianapolis Red Cross after waking up the previous night with the power out and his cat, Sweet Pea, agitated.

"The screen door blew open and woke me up, and it was cold and dark. I got dressed and I was scared, thinking, 'What am I going to do? My cat knew something was wrong. He was jumping all over the place," Smith said.

Officials in Chicago and other cities checked on the homeless and shut-ins for fear they might freeze to death on the street or in their homes.

Between a heater that barely worked and his drafty windows, Jeffery Davis decided he would be better off sitting in a downtown Chicago doughnut shop for three hours Monday until it was time to go to work.

He threw on two pairs of pants, two T-shirts, "at least three jackets," two hats, a pair of gloves, the "thickest socks you'd probably ever find" and boots, and trudged to the train stop in his South Side neighborhood that took him to within a few blocks of the library where he works.

"I never remember it ever being this cold," said Davis, 51. "I'm flabbergasted."

Only a few hardy souls braved the cold on the Nicollet Mall in Minneapolis, normally a busy pedestrian area. Many people downtown used the extensive heated skyway system, where it is warm enough to walk around in office attire.

Nearly all stores on the skyway were open as usual. Jersey Devil Pizza & Wings was not.

"Apologies ... We are East Coast wimps. Too cold! Stay safe, see you Tuesday," read a sign taped to the door.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/06/polar-vortex-dangerous-col...

FREEZING NORTH,BURNING SOUTH

Australia adds new colour to temperature maps as heat soars

EARTH WOBBLE ANYONE

Polar vortex over US brings abnormally mild weather to Scandinavia

The freezing polar vortex that has gripped the US has extended an abnormally mild winter in Scandinavia and disrupted the seasonal patterns of flora and fauna.

The weather system that brought snow, ice and record low temperatures to many parts of the United States this week left Iceland, Greenland and Scandinavia much warmer than normal.

On the back of a generally mild winter, there have been reports of bears emerging early from hibernation in Finland, changes in the behaviour of migratory birds off the coast of Sweden and plants appearing earlier than normal in Norway.

Scandinavia and Russia's cold weather during the winter comes from a high-pressure system that keeps warmer, more humid air and low-pressure systems with wind and rain from coming up from the Atlantic Ocean.

The weakening of the jetstream that holds this in place has allowed cold air to spill further south into much of the United States and Canada, while bringing above-average temperatures to parts of Europe.

The knock-on effects of the vortex follow one of the mildest Decembers in a century in Nordic countries. Ketil Isaksen, a scientist at the Norwegian Meteorological Institute, said the country had been 4.2C above the mean temperature for December with parts of Oslo and south-eastern Norway experiencing the third warmest December on record. "It was very unusual to see no snow in large areas where it is normal in December. Only in the mountains and certain parts of Norway could you find snow."

Much of the precipitation in lowland and populated areas had fallen as rain instead of snow, he said. "In general it was a very wet December. Large parts of Norway had up to three times as much rain as normal and the country as a whole had 180% more than average."

Finland too has seen heavy rain, with flooding in western coastal areas and the majority of Finland's lakes containing record volumes of water. Temperatures exceeded their normal seasonal average by 4-5C nationwide, with Helsinki and southern Finland recording the mildest second half of December in 30 years.

Temperatures in parts of Sweden have fluctuated greatly, at Nikkaluokta falling from 4.7C on 3 December to -40.8C on 9 December, then rising two days later to 7.7C. Many locations measured their warmest December temperatures on record. "In the north, winter has arrived, but in the south it's autumn according to the meteorological definition," the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute said.

The rainy weather in Finland has reportedly disrupted the winter slumbers of many bears, bringing them out of hibernation early. Heavy rains and high waters may have invaded some dens, forcing the animals to seek new shelter.

Prof Jon Swenson of the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, leader of the Scandinavian bear project, said he was worried about the indirect effects of the warmer weather. "If you go down into southern Europe, it's warmer, and there are some bears that don't hibernate.

"It doesn't seem to be harmful not to hibernate," he said. "What we are afraid of is that it means there will be more thawing periods … this really stresses the berry-producing plants. This can cause some mortality, and can have a very adverse effect on berry production. And that's what the bears survive on in the autumn, and what they use to get them through the winter. So the results of this mild weather won't be seen for some time."

Last week, the local Norwegian newspaper Sunnmørsposten published reader photographs of daffodils emerging as early as 14 December as well as crocuses, daisies, dandelions and honeysuckle.

The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Norway chief executive, Nina Jensen, said she was "cautious about drawing conclusions from one mild winter into specific changes in nature", but there were signals that changes were happening.

"We are definitely seeing plants like bluebells flowering that wouldn't come out until spring, and birds singing that wouldn't normally be at this time of year. There are quite obvious changes in the growth season, plant growth and migratory bird routes and timing. The flip side of this warmer winter is that we will also have an increasing threat of harmful introduced organisms, such as the wild boar or ticks that thrive in warmer temperatures."

Pål Hermansen, a wildlife photographer based in Oslo, said: "It's the smaller things where you see it most, especially butterflies and other insects. The combination of 'proper winters' with lots of snow, alternating with winters like this one, makes everything very unstable. In the 30 years I've been working we've seen butterfly populations reduce by 80-90%. We're now seeing mosquitos and ticks during the winter, which is unheard of. Ticks are spreading much further north than they ever were before."

Stephen Menzie, an ornithologist working at Falsterbo Bird Observatory – a migration point in south-west Sweden – said it was "certainly true" that milder weather this year had played a part in delaying the southbound migration of many species.

"We had one day in November when we ringed over 800 birds, compared to the same period last year when we struggled to catch double figures on most days."

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/jan/10/polar-vortex-us-...

http://www.sott.net/category/4-Earth-Changes

Norway: The sea froze so fast that killed thousands of fish instantly

Posted: 14 Jan 2014

Air temperature (7.8 degrees Celsius) in Lovund Island (Norway) in combination with a strong wind immediately frozen sea water, trapping and killing thousands of fish.

Some locals say they've never seen a phenomenon of such magnitude. However, Aril Slotte, Head of Fish, Institute of Marine Research in Norway, said in statements to the local radio 'NRK' which is not uncommon, for example, sardines are much closer to the shore when they are followed by predators and sometimes become trapped by low tide in areas like where this oddity occurred.

http://translate.google.com.ar/translate?sl=es&tl=en&js=n&a...

MAP

Vertical jet stream over N. America today.

Source

'Possibly hundreds of thousands of acres of land will go fallow' in California

https://www.commondreams.org/headline/2014/01/14-5#.UtY8dUmsvXY.twi...

A major and unyielding drought in California is causing concern in the nation's "food basket," as farmers there say the U.S. food supply could be hit hard if the conditions in their state don't rapidly improve, Al Jazeera America reports Tuesday.

"This is the driest year in 100 years,” grower Joe Del Bosque told Al Jazeera, expressing concern that the hundreds of workers he employs for each year's harvest could be without a job this season.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, 2013 was the driest on record for most areas of California, "smashing previous record dry years" across the state, including regions where approximately half the fruits, vegetables and nuts in the U.S. are grown.

Those conditions have not relented as 2014 begins with most of the state experiencing official 'severe' or 'extreme drought' conditions.

And as Al Jazeera reports, reservoirs, which store water that flows from the snow pack in the Sierra Nevada mountains, are at less than 50 percent capacity—20 percent below average for this time of year.

* All Dry on the Western Front [Earth Observatory; 18 January, 2014]

2013 was a dry year for California, but it has nothing on 2014 so far. January is on track to be California’s driest on record, and since the state receives half of its precipitation between December and February, it appears that the 2013-2014 water year could be the driest on record too. With that possibility in view, California governor, Edmund Brown declared a state of emergency on January 17, urging Californians to conserve water.

From brown landscapes to the bare mountains, California is clearly dry in this view from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite, taken on January 18, 2014. The lower image, taken on January 18, 2013, contrasts last year’s drought conditions with the extreme conditions currently in place.

The most striking difference between the two years is the amount of snow cover on mountains. The Sierra Nevada range has very little snow, and Coast Range and Cascade Mountains are almost completely snow free. California gets a third of its water supply from mountain snow, but with warm, dry weather, little snow has accumulated. In January 2014, the snowpack was between 10 and 30 percent of normal. Since much of the snow pack can come from just a few events, one or two big storms could make a significant difference. The widespread snow in 2013 may be from one such event, since snow covers not only the mountains, but also the basins and ranges of Nevada to the east. By spring of 2013, the Sierra Nevada snowpack would be well below average, contributing to the worsening drought.

Less striking at first glance, but just as telling is the condition of the vegetation west of the Sierra Nevada. In 2013—a year into the drought—the central valley was green with growing crops. The coastal hills were also green from winter rain. In 2014, everything west of the forested mountains is brown. Even irrigated agriculture in the center of the state appears to be limited compared to 2013. Viewing the images with the image comparison tool makes it easier to see the difference in vegetation from last year to this year.

Under such conditions, California may be prone to water shortages, crop loss and the loss of farm jobs, and increased wildfires, warned the emergency proclamation.

Extreme Chill in the Eastern US continues,  unusually mild in the West.  Wobble pattern anomalies are very noticeable.  GFS shows the Polar Wobble pattern going completely whack.  Worst cold ever for some regions.

GFS Ensemble 500mb anomaly (left) and spaghetti (right) forecast for 6 days out.

Brutal cold returns to Midwest for extended stay

http://news.yahoo.com/brutal-cold-returns-midwest-extended-stay-172...

CHICAGO (AP) — A persistent weather pattern driving bitterly cold air south out of the Arctic will cause temperatures from Minnesota to Kentucky to plummet Monday, turning this winter into one of the coldest on record in some areas.

For about 2½ days, actual temperatures will range from the teens to below zero, and the wind chills will be even colder, minus 43 in Minneapolis, minus 23 in Milwaukee and Chicago, minus 14 in Kansas City, Mo., and minus 3 in Louisville.

In fact, the National Weather Service says most of the Midwest will feel far colder than Monday's expected high in the nation's northernmost city, Barrow, Alaska — minus 4.

National Weather Service Meteorologist Scott Blair stopped short of calling the latest round of cold part of the polar vortex, which are winds that circulate around the North Pole.

"There's really nothing abnormal about the air that's coming into the area," he said. "It's just been a very persistent pattern" of cold air.

He said it's an amplified pattern of the jet stream, and cold air is filtering in behind a large trough of low pressure. He explained further: "Troughs are typically associated with unstable or unsettled weather, and, at this time of the year, much colder air."

In the Chicago area, residents were bracing for a historic deep freeze. Monday's high was expected to be minus 4 degrees, and it could get as low as negative 17 downtown, with wind chills as low as 40 below. Such temperatures are expected to hold into Tuesday.

If Chicago makes it to 60 hours below zero, it will be the longest stretch since 1983, when it was below zero for 98 hours, and the third longest in 80 years.

Chicago Public Schools called off Monday's classes for its nearly 400,000 students a day in advance, as did suburban districts. Earlier this month, when it was below zero for 36 straight hours, CPS closed for two days.

North Dakota and South Dakota residents dealt with dangerous cold Sunday and wind gusts that reached up to 60 mph. The high winds led to blowing snow that made it nearly impossible to travel in some parts.

"This is definitely the most widespread event we've had this year," said weather service meteorologist Adam Jones in Grand Forks, N.D.

Snow and high winds in Indiana led officials there to restrict vehicle traffic or recommend only essential travel in more than half of the state's counties. And Iowa officials said the combination of snow and high winds would make traveling dangerous; forecasters there called for wind chills to be as low as 40 below zero on Monday.

In Michigan, snow on the roads and deep subfreezing temperatures contributed to multiple crashes Sunday that forced expressway closings. And on Saturday night, two people were killed in Grand Haven Township in western Michigan because of similar weather conditions, authorities said.

Alex Alfidi, manager at Leo's Coney Island restaurant in the Detroit suburb of Birmingham, said the extreme winter weather is hurting his business.

"We slowed down big time," Alfidi, 39, said, noting that while he's been getting some carryout business, the casual walk-in customers have been staying away.

He also said it's hard for him and his employees to get to and from work in the snow, ice and cold. Sometimes, the 24-hour restaurant is operating with just him and a waitress.

Alfidi said he has seen some challenging winters in 15 years in Michigan, but none as bad as the current winter.

"This is the biggest one," he said.

http://www.crh.noaa.gov/wxstory.php?site=unr

This link is updated 1-2x a day, so after 27 Jan it may be different.

This is exactly what we have been experiencing in South Dakota for the past month. This is actually a mild swing back and forth compared to two weeks ago when we went from -5F to 51F then 48F then back to 12F the next day. It is hard for the body to adjust to this! Too cold, too warm... it has been like this since December 2013!

In addition, it has been continually WINDY for almost 3 weeks. We have had high wind warnings in place EVERY DAY somewhere in the upper Midwest since the first week of January 2014.

This is the weather for Custer, SD for the month of January 2014: (notice the range for the normal high and low below)

I've never been a fan of roller coasters... and this is only the beginning.

The wettest January in 100 YEARS: Britain soaked by double the normal rainfall - and another deluge is due this weekend

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2548592/Southern-England-en...

• Parts of southern England have seen the wettest January since records began more than a century ago in 1910
• Large area from East Devon to Kent and inland across parts of Midlands has already seen twice the average rainfall
• Snowflakes fall on Birmingham and across much of the West Midlands, with more predicted for Friday
• Soldiers sent to Somerset Levels to bring relief to villages which have seen most significant flooding for 20 years
• Further heavy rain expected in the area and the Met Office warns of significant downfalls tomorrow and Saturday
• Up to an inch of rain could fall across Somerset Levels throughout Saturday, with strong winds of up to 60mph
• On Friday morning there were 43 Environment Agency flood warnings in place, and 162 less serious flood alerts
• High tides of at least 40ft expected on Friday evening in Cardiff and Weston-Super-Mare with 31ft set to hit Liverpool

* Winter Heat Swamps Alaska [Earth Observatory; 4 February, 2014]

While much of the continental United States endured several cold snaps in January 2014, record-breaking warmth gripped Alaska. Spring-like conditions set rivers rising and avalanches tumbling.

This map depicts land surface temperature anomalies in Alaska for January 23–30, 2014. Based on data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite, the map shows how 2014 temperatures compared to the 2001–2010 average for the same week. Areas with warmer than average temperatures are shown in red; near-normal temperatures are white; and areas that were cooler than the base period are blue. Gray indicates oceans or areas where clouds blocked the satellite from collecting usable data.

A persistent ridge of high pressure off the Pacific Coast fueled the warm spell, shunting warm air and rainstorms to Alaska instead of California, where they normally end up. The last half of January was one of the warmest winter periods in Alaska’s history, with temperatures as much as 40°F (22°C) above normal on some days in the central and western portions of the state, according to Weather Underground’s Christopher Bart. The all-time warmest January temperature ever observed in Alaska was tied on January 27 when the temperature peaked at 62°F (16.7°C) at Port Alsworth. Numerous other locations—including Nome, Denali Park Headquarters, Palmer, Homer, Alyseka, Seward, Talkeetna, and Kotzebue—all set January records.

The combination of heat and rain has caused Alaska’s rivers to swell and brighten with sediment, creating satellite views reminiscent of spring and summer runoff. On January 25, 2014, the Aqua satellite collected this image of sediment flowing into the Gulf of Alaska from numerous rivers along the state’s southeastern coast.

All of the heat, moisture, and melting snow has elevated the risk of avalanches. A series of extremely large avalanches in late January sent snow and debris crashing onto the Richardson Highway, blocking the road and cutting the port town of Valdez off from highway access. The avalanches dumped a mound of snow 100 feet (30 meters) tall and up to 1,500 feet (460 meters) long on the highway.

* Weather Underground (2014, January 27) Record Warmth in Alaska Contrasts Cold Wave in Eastern U.S. Accessed February 3, 2014.

Weather: According to the forecast, winter will not come

France

January in Haute-Garonne is in the top 5 hottest since 1922 and also one of the wettest. We had two times more water than usual at the beginning of the year. Weather and France announces mild temperatures until April. Winter will not come!

There are no more seasons. If you believe the forecasts of Météo-France, not only do we not have winter, but the cold, the true, will not come. "All the models agree, apart from English, explains Pascal Boureau forecaster engineer. They exude a reliable overall trend shows that the months of February, March and April are expected to experience high temperatures between 10 and 15 degrees with lower rainfall and the Autan wind from the south. The end of winter is clearly at odds with the past year. "

Computers say there will be no cold wave by spring. "Already January has been exceptional with only two days of frost and even at -0.2 ° C for the lowest temperature, said Pascal Boureau, while on average it is nine days."

Source

* 4 February 2014: Europe – Severe Weather [Relief Web; 4 February, 2014]

* Download PDF (669.92 KB)

Situation

• In the last few days severe weather conditions (snow, low temperatures, rains, winds, high waves, storm surge) have hit several parts of Europe, causing damage, power outages and transportation problems.

• A new low pressure system has formed over the Atlantic and is moving towards Ireland and UK, it may reach these countries on 5 February. Strong winds, rains, waves, storm surge may affect parts of UK and Ireland, as well as parts of northern Spain, western Portugal and western France. (JRC Storm Surge calculations for 5 February, using as input ECMWF wind and pressure data, as of 4 Feb 00:00 UTC, are shown in the map)