Earth Changes

Ireland: Eight weeks of rain, now Atlantic storms

Irish Independent
Sat, 08 Feb 2014 00:00 UTC

Met Éireann has forecast gusts of 130 km and heavy and prolonged showers all weekend.

Coastal counties of Munster, Wexford and Galway are the areas most at risk of flooding today as gusty winds and heavy showers sweep across the country.

All parts will be subjected to widespread heavy and prolonged blustery showers with some thundery downpours.

Some areas of the country suffered minor flooding after last night's heavy showers.

There is some minor flooding on the Tramore Rd approaching Musgrave Park in Cork City.

In Co. Tipperary, many areas remain closed due to flooding including Convent Rd, Dry Bridge, Old Bridge and the Quays in Clonmel, with local diversions in place.

The Athlone Rd is closed until next Friday due to flooding at Anglers Rest.

Roads are very wet in Galway City and winds are quite strong but there have been no reports of any tress down or flooding.

There is a lot of excess surface water in and around Dungarvan in Co. Waterford but there are no reports of any flooding.

Winter storm for South, East next week could signal a pattern change

Alex Sosnowski
Accuweather
Sat, 08 Feb 2014 05:28 UTC

A large, slow-moving storm may affect the Southern and Eastern states next week with snow, ice and rain. However, the storm may ultimately be a pattern changer.

Into the first part of next week, dry air will work to inhibit snow in the Northern states, but in the South, a storm forecast to brew could cause major problems.

According to Southern Weather Expert Dan Kottlowski, "Lingering cold air and plenty of moisture could lead to an extended period of snow and ice in portions of the South next week."

The setup could bring a couple of days of precipitation over the Gulf Coast states to Tennessee

and the Carolinas. Some of that precipitation will fall as snow and ice over the interior.

"A number of communities over the interior South may have more significant, longer-lasting ice and snow when compared to the storm from late January," Kottlowski said.

The details will unfold over the next several days on exactly where and how long the snow, ice and rain will occur.

Heavy snow claims two lives in Japan

Press TV
Sat, 08 Feb 2014 04:46 UTC

© Unknown
Jetliners of Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) are parked covered in snow at Tokyo International Airport (Haneda), February 8, 2014.

Heavy snow and severe weather in Japan have left at least two people dead and nearly 90 others injured.

Japan's public broadcaster NHK reported on Saturday that nearly 90 people were wounded in snow-related accidents in eastern Japan. Seventeen of them, seriously.

Two passengers, aged 88 and 90, lost their lives in a car accident on their way to a nursing home in Ishikawa, central Japan, the broadcaster added.

Over 600 flights were canceled in the country as the weather agency issued a severe storm warning for the capital, Tokyo, which received as much as 12 centimeters (4.8 inches) of snow on Saturday afternoon.

Railway operators also temporarily suspended services of Shinkansen bullet trains in western Japan, the NHK said.

According to meteorological agency, a quickly developing low-pressure front is approaching eastern Japan.

More signs of global cooling? Sun's record weak polar field may forebode Maunder-like Minimum

P Gosselin
NoTricksZone
Fri, 07 Feb 2014 22:23 UTC

The Sun in January 2014 and News of the Sun's Polar Field
By Frank Bosse
(Translated, edited by P Gosselin)

Over the last month solar cycle 24 (SC24) has seen some rather brisk activity. The sunspot number (SSN) reached a value of 82.0, which however was only 77% of the normal value (106) for the 62nd month into a cycle. The southern hemisphere (SH) contributed to most of the overall result in January, outperforming the northern hemisphere (NH) 61:21. The following graphic depicts current activity (in red) and normal activity (in blue):

The figure also shows SC5 in light red. SC5 has some degree of similarity to the current cycle so far.

Ice Age Cometh: Great Lakes ice cover spreading rapidly - Lake Superior sets new record

Mark Torregrossa
mlive.com
Thu, 06 Feb 2014 15:52 UTC

Ice continued to build this past week on the Great Lakes due to the cold air and temperatures staying below freezing, and Lake Superior's new record shows it.

The lake is 92 percent frozen, toppling a 20-year-old record of 91 percent set on Feb. 5, 1994. That statistic helped total Great Lakes ice cover soar, and we can expect to see more form in coming days.

The air temperatures this past week averaged around five degrees below normal for the Great Lakes area. This amount of deviation from normal means it was a fairly cold week.

As of February 5, 2014, the entire Great Lakes system is now reportedly covered 77 percent with ice, according to the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. Last week at this time the ice cover was 66 percent. The 77 percent ice cover now still lags behind 1994, when the entire Great Lakes system had an average ice cover of 84 percent on February 5. This data is according to Jia Wang, physical oceanographer at the Great Lakes Environmental Research Center in Ann Arbor, MI.

Let's look at each individual lake.

Comment: Then again perhaps there will be no thaw and no normal spring.

Increasingly common 'rare snow' blankets Iran's capital Tehran

BBC
Fri, 07 Feb 2014 15:27 UTC

Heavy snow in northern Iran has left around 480,000 homes without power and some towns and villages cut off.

The winter storms were the worst in 50 years, with two metres of snow falling in some areas since the weekend.

Homes buried as severe snow strikes Austria

BBC
Fri, 07 Feb 2014 15:24 UTC

Large parts of Europe have been hit by severe weather, with snow, rain and high winds causing disruption in several countries.

Houses in Austria were buried under a thick blanket of snow, as the BBC's Rebecca Donovan reports.

Record snowfall buries Italian village

BBC
Fri, 07 Feb 2014 13:55 UTC

Record snowfall in the north of Italy has left some people trapped in their homes.

Villagers in Madesimo had to dig their way out of their properties after several days of wintery weather.

Rebecca Donovan reports.

Gervais beaked whale washes up dead, Cayman Islands

James Whittaker
compasscayman.com
Thu, 06 Feb 2014 12:25 UTC

Marine biologist Tom Quigley stands over the dead whale.

A rarely seen Gervais beaked whale was found washed up dead on the mangroves in Little Cayman.

Scientists from the Central Caribbean Marine Institute have taken measurements and collected tissue samples from the whale in an effort to confirm the identification of the species.

The Gervais beaked whale is not uncommon in Caribbean waters, though they are elusive and rarely seen.

According to Samantha Hamilton of CCMI, the whale, which measured roughly 12 feet and resembles a large dolphin, is the most commonly stranded in North America.

She said whale strandings typically occur when the animal is sick or in response to environmental cues, such as toxic red tides.

Whales have also been known to strand themselves en masse, when one member of a pod beaches. Whale strandings have been recorded throughout history, though more recently military sonar had been highlighted as a potential cause of beaked whales beaching themselves.

Dead Pygmy Sperm whale found floating in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

khon2.com
Thu, 06 Feb 2014 12:16 UTC

Tests are being done to figure out what killed a whale that was found floating off Pearl Harbor Wednesday morning.

The whale was seen in the West Loch area.

Marine officials say it was a 12-foot-long adult pygmy sperm whale.

It weighed between 800 and 1,000 pounds.

"The cause of death is likely not going to be determined. The whale carcass was unfortunately very decomposed, but they will look at what is remaining of the whale and try to determine a cause of death," said NOAA Regional Marine Mammal Health and Response Manager David Schofield.

Officials say pygmy sperm whales are hard to study at sea because they stay far away from boats.

New Lt. Governor of Virginia Winsome Sears: "We're going to have safer neighborhoods, safer communities, and our children are going to get a good...

parzival

Bill Gates is going to be the one with the uncertain future,,, * New Lt. Governor of Virginia Winsome Sears: "We're going to have safer...

parzival

The more we hear about adverse affects the more we will merely shrug. It's a catch 22. Is that an asteroid trail in the photo?

sass

Welcome to the new normal. The more sensory exposure we have about such things, the less it is an issue.

sass

more misbehaving phuqqin' jewzskies starring on the sott; speaks for itself

Jibrish

Earth Changes

Ireland: Eight weeks of rain, now Atlantic storms

Winter storm for South, East next week could signal a pattern change

Heavy snow claims two lives in Japan

More signs of global cooling? Sun's record weak polar field may forebode Maunder-like Minimum

Ice Age Cometh: Great Lakes ice cover spreading rapidly - Lake Superior sets new record

Increasingly common 'rare snow' blankets Iran's capital Tehran

Homes buried as severe snow strikes Austria

Record snowfall buries Italian village

Gervais beaked whale washes up dead, Cayman Islands

Dead Pygmy Sperm whale found floating in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

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