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Snowflake

Best of the Web: Massive late-March snowstorm buries Europe's eastern Alps with up to 1.5 meter (nearly 5 feet) of snow


SnowBrains
Fri, 27 Mar 2026 15:46 UTC
nnnnnn
Emil Lonneberga shared these impressive powder shots from Engelberg.
A powerful late-season storm cycle has delivered a major refresh across the eastern Alps, with Switzerland leading the charge after several days of sustained snowfall. The standout has been Engelberg, where snowfall totals have been exceptional even by mid-winter standards. According to OpenSnow data, the resort received 84 cm (33 inches) in the past 24 hours and 132 cm (52 inches) over the past five days, catapulting conditions back into peak-season form.

The storm has been driven by a moist northwesterly flow, favoring northern Alpine regions and creating classic "Nordstau" conditions—where precipitation intensifies as air is forced over the mountains. The storm didn't stop at Switzerland. Zugspitze, Germany's highest peak, was also hammered, with around 1.5 meters (nearly 5 feet) of fresh snow reported in recent days. But that much snow comes with complications. In a post on social media, the resort cautioned: "A lot of snow does not automatically mean a lot of skiing. 1.5 meters of fresh snow must first be tamed... colleagues work around the clock to secure the ski area and prepare the slopes." Ongoing snowfall and poor visibility have delayed operations, with the resort indicating it expects to reopen over the weekend, pending improved weather conditions.

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Star of David

Flashback Best of the Web: Revealed: The Israeli Spies Writing America's News

Alan MacLeod
MintPress News
Thu, 17 Oct 2024 20:53 UTC
israel unit 5200 spies write news west
© MintPress News
One year after Oct. 7 attacks, Netanyahu is on a winning streak." So reads the title of a recent Axios article describing the Israeli prime minister riding on an unbeatable wave of triumphs. These stunning military "successes," its author Barak Ravid notes, include the bombing of Yemen, the assassinations of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, and the pager attack against Lebanon.

The same author recently went viral for an article that claimed that Israeli attacks against Hezbollah are "not intended to lead to war but are an attempt to reach 'de-escalation through escalation.'" Users on social media mocked Ravid for this bizarre, Orwellian reasoning. But what almost everybody missed is that Barak Ravid is an Israeli spy - or at least he was until recently. Ravid is a former analyst with Israeli spying agency Unit 8200, and as recently as last year, was still a reservist with the Israeli Defense Forces group.

Unit 8200 is Israel's largest and perhaps most controversial spying organization. It has been responsible for many high-profile espionage and terror operations, including the recent pager attack that injured thousands of Lebanese civilians. As this investigation will reveal, Ravid is far from the only Israeli ex-spook working at top U.S. media outlets, working hard to manufacture Western support for his country's actions.
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Fire

Best of the Web: Heatwave in most of US brings record-shattering high temperatures for March

Andrea Thompson
Scientific American
Fri, 20 Mar 2026 22:28 UTC
An astoundingly strong heat wave is not just setting records across the western U.S. — it's pulverizing them
heatwave usa
© NWS/NOAATemperatures across the western U.S. are soaring to 20 to 30 degrees Fahrenheit above normal.
Editor's note (3/21/26): Four stations (two in Arizona and two in California) recorded temperatures of 112 degrees Fahrenheit (44.4 degrees Celsius) on Friday, March 20, besting the all-time U.S. March record set just the day before. That is 1 degree F (0.56 degree C) below the all-time April U.S. record. Eight states have set all-time high temperature records for March during this heat wave.

On Wednesday in North Shore, Calif., the temperature soared to a stunning 108 degrees Fahrenheit (42 degrees Celsius) — matching the hottest March temperature on record for the state. And then, on Thursday, Phoenix, Ariz., hit 105 degrees F (41 degrees C) — the earliest such recording by more than a month. And that same day, the temperature just outside Martinez Lake, Ariz., reached 110 degrees F (43 degrees C) — the highest March temperature ever recorded in the U.S.

The heat wave that is engulfing much of the western U.S. right now is unprecedented. A high-pressure area — the strongest ever observed over the Southwest in March — ushered in the unseasonably scorching weather. This area, also known as a ridge because of the northward humps in the jet stream that the phenomenon is associated with, covers an enormous swath of the U.S. It will persist for days and is sending temperatures 20 to 30 degrees F (11 to 17 degrees C) above normal. It is "one of the more meteorologically exceptional events that I've seen in recent years in the American West, and that is saying something," said climate scientist Daniel Swain on his YouTube channel.

Comment: Nebraska is already fighting wildfires, including the largest in its history:


The snowpack is already gone in many places, whereas it's usually at its peak this time of year:


Sioux Falls saw a temperature swing of 49C in just 5 days:



This appears to have been driven, at least in part, by a 'marine heatwave off the US west coast - i.e., heating coming from below...



Wild extremes are now the 'new norm'. The 'heat dome' has already given way to a reversal to winter temperatures:



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Fireball 3

Best of the Web: Meteorite slams into Texas woman's home after fireball explodes over Houston area

Ben Kew
The gateway Pundit
Sun, 22 Mar 2026 11:36 UTC

Comment: They're coming down thick and fast now, especially over the US, it seems...


meteorite house texas
© Sherrie James
A meteorite crashed straight through the roof of a home near Houston, Texas, on Saturday, sending shockwaves through the local neighborhood.

Local officials say the incident happened at around 4:45 p.m. in northwest Harris County.

The space rock punched a hole through the roof of a two-story house, slammed into a bedroom floor, then ricocheted and struck the ceiling again.

Miraculously, no one was injured.

Fire Chief Fred Windisch of the Ponderosa Fire Department said he had never seen anything like it in decades of service.

The homeowner, Sherrie James, described hearing a loud explosion from inside the house.

Her grandson went to investigate and found a hole in the ceiling and the rock sitting on the floor below.


Comment: The American Meteor Society reports:
We received 149 reports about a fireball seen over TX on Saturday, March 21st 2026 around 21:39 UT.

For this event, we received one video and 5 photos.


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Seismograph

Best of the Web: 3 shallow earthquakes of magnitudes 6.2, 6.3 and 6.2 in 24 hours - South Pacific Ocean off Samoa on March 22


Volcano Discovery
Sun, 22 Mar 2026 10:13 UTC
mmmmm
A very strong magnitude 6.2 earthquake occurred in the South Pacific Ocean 184 km (114 mi) from Samoa in the late afternoon of Sunday, Mar 22, 2026 at 7.15 pm local time (GMT +13). The depth of the quake could not be determined, but is assumed to be shallow. The quake was reported felt by some people near the epicenter.

Earthquake details

Date & time Mar 22, 2026 06:15:36 UTC
Local time at epicenter Sunday, Mar 22, 2026, at 07:15 pm (GMT +13)
Status confirmed (manually revised)
Magnitude 6.2
Depth 10 km
Epicenter latitude / longitude 15.3824°S / 173.0468°W Samoa
Seismic antipode 15.3824°N / 6.9532°E Niger
Quality 42 seismic stations
Shaking intensity VII Very strong shaking near epicenter
Felt 2 reports
Primary data source USGS (United States Geological Survey)

Comment: Details of the other 2 from Earthquake Track:
6.3 Magnitude Earthquake 0.0 km from Si'umu, Tuamasaga, Samoa

UTC time: Sunday, March 22, 2026 15:30 PM
Your time: Sunday, 22 March 2026 at 15:30 GMT
Depth: 10.0 km
No tsunami statement issued
Magnitude Type: mww
USGS page: M 6.3 - 144 km NE of Hihifo, Tongae
6.2 Magnitude Earthquake 0.0 km from Hihifo, Niuas, Tonga

UTC time: Sunday, March 22, 2026 15:27 PM
Your time: Sunday, 22 March 2026 at 15:27 GMT
Depth: 10.0 km
No tsunami statement issued
Magnitude Type: mww
USGS page: M 6.2 - 149 km SSW of Lotofagā, Samoa
USGS status: Reviewed by a seismologist
Reports from the public: 0 persons


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Arrow Down

Best of the Web: Trump's last gleaming: The twilight of the decomposition of reality

Phil Butler
ZeroHedge
Fri, 20 Mar 2026 20:55 UTC
trump america wreck statue liberty graphic
© Phil Butler/GeminiThe twilight's last gleaming . . . .
I've written through enough upheaval to know when the ground has actually shifted beneath us. Today's chaos isn't the usual turbulence we've learned to absorb — the predictable cycles of crisis and recovery, or the familiar rhythms of things getting worse before they get better. Something structural has given way. We all feel it, even if we can't quite name it, even if we're still performing the motions of normalcy while the framework quietly collapses around us. I didn't think I'd be writing this kind of story either. But here we are, staring at presidents and prime ministers who have created a gap that wasn't supposed to open.

So let's dispense with the throat-clearing and the false reassurances. What follows isn't speculation about whether things might get strange; they already are. The question now is what has actually happened and what it means that we're all standing here watching the most incorrect leadership ever force an unimaginable reality into being, unfolding in real time. And with everyone in the world unable to look away, unable to pretend we don't see it.
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Bizarro Earth

Best of the Web: Beware the weapons of mass distraction

Josh Walkos
Josh Walkos/X
Thu, 19 Mar 2026 21:38 UTC
information warfare propaganda graphic
How cognitive and influence warfare is being waged against you

We have all experienced it, you're scrolling through social media and a post catches your eye, it makes a claim or shows you something that makes you say to yourself, "there is no way that's true," or it invokes an immediate emotional response and before you know it, you have begun typing a comment laced with vitriolic outrage.

But pause there for a moment. Before your fingers hit the keys, before you share it, before you screenshot it and send it to three friends who you know will be just as furious as you are.

Ask yourself: Why that post? Why right now? Why you?

Here is what most people don't realize in that moment, that reaction you just had? That flash of anger, that spike of fear, the intoxicating certainty that you have just witnessed something outrageous and undeniable? That may not have happened to you by accident, it may have been engineered.
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Tsunami

Best of the Web: Hawaii Storm: 100,000 without power amid flash floods - 15 inches of rain in 24 hours, 46 inches in 5 days - heavy snow on summits (UPDATED)

Marni Rose McFall
Newsweek
Sat, 14 Mar 2026 13:22 UTC
mmmm
Forced evacuations as water rises at Otake camp
Over 100,000 people are without power in Hawaii as a rare storm pummels the entire state with dangerous thunderstorms, high elevation snow, and several inches of rain.

The storm stretch comes as the Kona low weather system drags tropical moisture over the islands, raising the threat for at least a foot of rainfall in the hardest‑hit areas.

Governor Josh Green issued an emergency proclamation on Monday. "A Kona low weather system is expected to produce prolonged heavy rainfall that could lead to flash flooding statewide, with the highest likelihood of flooding impacts across the smaller islands and urban areas," a news release from Green's office said.

Now, the website Power Outages is reporting on the failures impacting customers across the state. As of reporting on Saturday morning, there were more than 120,000 customers without power in Honolulu.

Honolulu was the hardest hit area. The East of Honolulu is reliant on power lines bringing electricity to the area from Windward Oahu. According to a report from Hawaii New Now, these transmission lines have been damaged, impacting service in the area.


Comment: Update March 15

BigIslandNow.com reports:
A powerful Kona low continues sweeping through the Hawaiian Islands, bringing strong winds and heavy flooding rainfall. The entire Big Island was put under a flash flood warning shortly after 9 p.m. Saturday, March 14, as heavy rains continued to fall.

Hawaiʻi County officials say residents should continue to avoid all unnecessary travel because of significant risks of flash flooding and strong, locally damaging winds.

The storm produced heavy rainfall and strong wind gusts Saturday throughout large areas of Hawaiʻi Island, as well as flash floods that closed multiple sections of Highway 11 in Kaʻū. causing the county to urge residents in those areas to shelter in place.

Some areas in Kaʻū received 10 to 15 inches of rain in 24 hours. Moderate to heavy rainfall was expected to remain in place over Kaʻū through Saturday evening, leading to significant flash flooding.
Update March 16

SFGATE.com reports:
Hawaii saw multiple rain records fall after a slow-moving kona storm dropped major precipitation across the different islands.

The island of Maui saw the heaviest rainfall, with multiple areas reporting over 20 inches of rain and one location logging as much as 46 inches of precipitation March 10-15, according to the National Weather Service.


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Fireball 3

Best of the Web: Northeast Ohio's frightening meteor fireball boom felt across 3 states on March 17

David Kesiena
RollingOut.com
Tue, 17 Mar 2026 18:54 UTC
WKYC Channel 3 YOUTUBE/NWS Pittsburgh captures video of meteor shooting across the sky
WKYC Channel 3 YOUTUBE/NWS Pittsburgh captures video of meteor shooting across the sky
Residents across Northeast Ohio woke up to something far louder than a St. Patrick's Day celebration this morning. Just before 9 a.m., tens of thousands of people across Northeast Ohio, as well as parts of Pennsylvania and New York, heard and felt what many described as a massive explosion.

No one knew immediately what had caused it. Within hours, the National Weather Service office in Cleveland provided an answer.

What the National Weather Service confirmed

The NWS Cleveland posted on social media that the latest Geostationary Lightning Mapper imagery pointed to a meteor as the source of the boom. The agency shared the imagery alongside its assessment, making clear that the event was natural in origin rather than the result of any industrial or structural incident.


Comment: [Update: Calculated total impact energy 1.5 kt TNT]
The Center for Near Earth Object Studies

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Fireball 4

Best of the Web: Long-duration fireball streaks across western Turkey skies, possibly an Earth-grazing meteor on March 15


Space Weekly
Mon, 16 Mar 2026 14:00 UTC
mmmmm
A bright fireball was observed over western Turkey on the evening of March 15, with residents across Uşak Province reporting a slow-moving luminous object crossing the night sky for more than 20 seconds.

Videos recorded by witnesses show a bright white to bluish-green object with a compact head and a narrow glowing tail moving across the sky at a shallow angle before fading from view. The long visible duration and smooth motion distinguish the event from typical meteors, which usually last only a few seconds.

Preliminary analysis suggests the object may have been an Earth-grazing meteor, a rare type of fireball that skims the upper atmosphere at very shallow angles.

Earth-grazing meteors enter the atmosphere at a shallow trajectory and travel hundreds of kilometers through the upper atmosphere before exiting again into space or continuing along a long atmospheric path. Because they remain at high altitude, they can remain visible for 10 to 40 seconds, significantly longer than most meteors.

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