Earth Changes

Cold wave grips Mumbai for 2nd day

Times of India
Tue, 17 Dec 2013 13:36 UTC

Mumbai: A cold wave continued to grip Mumbai for the second consecutive day with Santa Cruz recording a minimum temperature of 15.6 degrees Celsius on Monday.

On Sunday, Mumbai had recorded the first coldest day of this season with a minimum temperature of 15.7 degrees C. This sudden drop in temperature is due to the northerly cold winds, said V K Rajeev, director, India Meteor-ological Department (IMD), Mumbai. The temperature is currently 2-3 degrees below normal, and would continue for the next two-three days. "After that, the city might witness a slight rise in temperature."

IMD officials said that as the northern parts of the country cool further, the temperature in the city might drop a bit more towards the end of the year or early in January. "The temperature is likely to stay between 15 and 16 degrees C for the next few days," said an official.

If other parts of the country get even cooler, Mumbai might see some drop in the maximum temperature in the coming few days," said an official from the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

Officials said that last December, the maximum temperature in the city had dropped to about 30 degrees C around this time of the year giving Mumbaikars a respite from the heat during the day. Currently, the maximum temperature is a little above 32 degrees C. "Other parts of Maharashtra are already much cooler. Bur Mumbai's proximity to the coast adds to the humidity and keeps the maximum temperature high," said an official.

IMD officials said morning haze will be a fixture till the end of January adding to the coolness. "Earlier, the haze would lift by 7am. Now, it stays till about 8.30am. In December, more than 75% of the days witness a visible haze," the IMD official added.

Ice Age Cometh: Unprecedented influx of Arctic Ivory Gulls into UK

Lee G R Evans
uk400clubrarebirdalert.blogspot.co.uk
Mon, 16 Dec 2013 13:01 UTC

On par with a mammoth influx of juvenile Snowy Owls in North America (involving at least 750 so far), the UK has experienced its largest-ever influx of first-year Ivory Gulls from the Arctic ice-shelf.

Following the first off Seaburn (County Durham) on 30th November, an unprecedented five more have been discovered since......

Heavy snowfall causes damage in Lao Cai, Vietnam

qdnd
talkvietnam.com
Tue, 17 Dec 2013 11:39 UTC

Heavy snow has damaged large areas of crops while stopping traffic on many roads in Sa Pa district, the northwestern mountainous province of Lao Cai.

thanhnien.com.vn

According to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Sa Pa, more than 100 hectares of chayote and another 100 hectares of flowers were buried under snow.

Thick ice also blocked about 10 kilometres of Highway 4D linking Lao Cai and Lai Chau provinces. Efforts have been made by local authorities to clear the roads.

Freezing temperatures have also forced more than 8,500 pre-school and primary school students to cease their schooling.

According to the Lai Chau Department of Education and Training, thousands of students in the hard-hit districts of Sin Ho, Phong Tho and Tam Duong have had to stay at home. Students in 63 schools in Sa Pa, including 20 nursery, 22 primary and 21 secondary schools, have been allowed to stay at home on December 16 and 17.

Mt. Etna eruption shuts local airport

KXAN
Tue, 17 Dec 2013 07:16 UTC

A local airport in Italy remained closed after Mount Etna's latest eruption.

The volcano shot lava and ash into the sky throughout the weekend.

Catania's airport, located in eastern Sicily, shut down on Monday -- a number of flight departures and arrivals canceled.

At least two flights were diverted to the airport in Palermo, located in the western part of Sicily.

World's banana supply at risk from increasing number of bugs and spread of fungal disease

William Turvill
The Daily Mail, UK
Tue, 17 Dec 2013 10:22 UTC

'National emergency' declared in Costa Rica, one of the biggest suppliers

Country produces 1.2 million tons of bananas each year - one in five could be ruined by plagues of mealybugs and scale insects

Elsewhere, banana-eating fungus from Asia and Australia is spreading

Costa Rica, one of the world's biggest suppliers of bananas, has declared a state of 'national emergency' following estimates suggesting one in five bananas could have been destroyed this year by insects

Plagues of insects and a spreading fungus are threatening the world's supply of bananas, researchers have warned.

A state of 'national emergency' has been declared in Costa Rica, one of the world's biggest suppliers, while separately a banana-eating fungus from Asia is believed to be spreading.

Officials in the Central American country of Costa Rica fear that one in five bananas could have been ruined by insects this year. The country last year supplied 1.2 million tons of the fruit worldwide.

California wildfire grows to 500 acres

Press TV
Tue, 17 Dec 2013 04:49 UTC

Big Sur fire burned at least 15 homes by Monday evening and forced dozens of others to evacuate.

A wildfire that broke out late Sunday night along the Big Sur coast, California, burned at least 15 homes by Monday evening and forced dozens of others to evacuate, fire officials said.

The 500-acre blaze, which started near Pfeiffer Ridge Road in the Los Padres National Forest, was fueled by strong winds and was not at all contained by nightfall Monday. But fire crews were hopeful that calmer conditions could help them make progress overnight.

"Right now, the winds have died down; they were really gusting overnight and this morning," said Los Padres National Forest spokesman Andrew Madsten on Monday afternoon. "Hopefully they will get some containment lines cut now."

Smoke could be seen as far away as Monterey Bay. No injuries have been reported, and fire officials said between 50 and 100 homes were evacuated by Monday evening. The Red Cross set up an evacuation center at the Big Sur Grange.

How the global warming whopper is being buried under a jillion pounds of Arctic ice

Michael Bastasch
The Daily Caller
Mon, 16 Dec 2013 21:46 UTC

It was only five years ago in December that Al Gore claimed that the polar ice caps would be completely melted by now. But he might be surprised to find out that Arctic ice coverage is up 50 percent this year from 2012 levels.

"Some of the models suggest that there is a 75 percent chance that the entire north polar ice cap, during some of the summer months, could be completely ice-free within the next five to seven years," Gore said in 2008.

The North Pole is still there, and growing. BBC News reports that data from Europe's Cryosat spacecraft shows that Arctic sea ice coverage was nearly 9,000 cubic kilometers (2,100 cubic miles) by the end of this year's melting season, up from about 6,000 cubic kilometers (1,400 cubic miles) during the same time last year.

Rare 'snow-nado' observed on Lake Superior, Minnesota

Maggie Koerth-Baker
Boing Boing
Mon, 16 Dec 2013 20:48 UTC

According to the Weather Channel, there are only six known photographs of winter waterspouts in existence. Then, last week, Jordan Detters captured a good minute and a half of video, showing winter waterspouts dancing along the waves of Lake Superior near Knife River, Minnesota.

While water spouts are relatively common in warm months, producing one in the winter requires a pretty specific set of meteorological circumstances, writes Minnesota Public Radio's chief meteorologist Paul Huttner. Thus, the dearth of images. In fact, for one to form at all you need a temperature difference between the water and the air of 19 degrees C.

Winter waterspouts occur when meteorological conditions are just right. You need a bitter arctic air mass passing over relatively warm lake water, and just enough light, low level wind shear to get the rapidly rising air currents spinning nicely.

Saturday's contrast between bitter arctic air (air temp was about -7 degrees at Two Harbors nearby) and relatively warmer lake water (offshore surface water temps were around 40 degrees) create an "enhanced lapse rate" as temps cooled rapidly with height above the water. That produces rising air, and the lift needed to generate strong updrafts. Slight wind shear gets the air spinning, and small vortexes can form into waterspouts over the lake.

Climate alarmists' search for proof going cold

Mark Landsbaum
Orange County Register
Fri, 13 Dec 2013 15:39 UTC

Recall global warming hysteria's halcyon days? Just 13 years ago, Dr. David Viner, senior scientist at Britain's University of East Anglia's climatic research unit, confidently predicted that, within a few years, winter snowfall will become "a very rare and exciting event."

"Children just aren't going to know what snow is," he said.

Of course, that doesn't mesh with what happened. This past October, the UK Express headlined, "Worst winter for decades: Record-breaking snow predicted for November."

By the end of November, Brits were shivering, "as Britain faces snow, ice and plummeting temperatures," reported the Mirror newspaper. "Most of Scotland has been issued severe weather warnings for ice, and temperatures are expected to remain low, causing problems with snow and ice across the country." Winter yet lay ahead.

Etna's volcanic ash cloud forces flights shutdown in eastern Sicily

SFGate
Mon, 16 Dec 2013 20:20 UTC

© Salvatore Allegra, AP
In this Sunday, Dec. 15, 2013 filer, Mt. Etna volcano spews lava during an eruption near the Sicilian town of Catania, Italy. Ash fallout from Mount Etna's latest spectacular eruption has forced the closure of Catania's airport in eastern Sicily.The airport said it would remain closed at least until Monday evening. Several flight departures and arrivals were canceled, and at least two flights were diverted to Palermo's airport in the western part of the Mediterranean island. Etna is Europe's most active volcano. Its latest series of eruptions has lasted for weeks now, occasionally causing a change in flight routes. The eruption hasn't forced evacuation of the villages on the mountain's slopes. Its last major eruption occurred in 1992.

An ash cloud from Mount Etna's latest spectacular eruption has forced the closure of Catania's airport in eastern Sicily.

The airport said it would remain closed at least until Monday evening. Several flight departures and arrivals were canceled, and at least two flights were diverted to Palermo's airport in the western part of the Mediterranean island.

Etna is Europe's most active volcano. Its latest series of eruptions has lasted for weeks now, occasionally causing a change in flight routes. The eruption hasn't forced evacuation of the villages on the mountain's slopes. Its last major eruption occurred in 1992.

Source: AP

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Earth Changes

Cold wave grips Mumbai for 2nd day

Ice Age Cometh: Unprecedented influx of Arctic Ivory Gulls into UK

Heavy snowfall causes damage in Lao Cai, Vietnam

Mt. Etna eruption shuts local airport

World's banana supply at risk from increasing number of bugs and spread of fungal disease

California wildfire grows to 500 acres

How the global warming whopper is being buried under a jillion pounds of Arctic ice

Rare 'snow-nado' observed on Lake Superior, Minnesota

Climate alarmists' search for proof going cold

Etna's volcanic ash cloud forces flights shutdown in eastern Sicily

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