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Wed, 27 Oct 2021
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Snowflake

Northern Sweden just had snow - in June!

Snow in Kiruna, Sweden
© Ulrica Strålind/Instagram @ulricastralind
Snow in Kiruna on June 1st.

June 1st means summer, right? Oh wait - this is Sweden after all. Bring on the snow and hail! Last month in Sweden was a month of extreme weather.

The far northern parts of Norrland saw record-low temperatures, the lowest since 1968 according to preliminary figures from the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI).

So surely, summer should be here by now? Well, think again - this is Sweden, after all. On June 1st, snow was falling over the small village of Kåbdalis in the northern county of Norrbotten.

"June 1st! From clear blue sky (and freezing cold) to snow storm in one minute. Yes, I do like snow. And I like winter. But maybe not in June," Kåbdalis resident Marie Nygårds wrote on Instagram.

In the arctic mining town of Kiruna, also in the Norrbotten county, residents got to experience a mix of weathers: "Hail, snow, thunder, +2 in Kiruna," Ulrica Strålind wrote on Instagram.

Windsock

NWS confirms rare 'microburst' caused storm damage in Sealy, Texas

Sealy microburst damage
© KHOU
Drone 11 footage shows the major damage in Sealy, Texas after severe weather moved through the area on Tuesday, May 23, 2017.
The National Weather Service says a rare microburst is to blame for the damage in Sealy during Tuesday night's storms.

Many thought that the damage was caused by a tornado but NWS says that microbursts can produce similarly strong winds, reaching up to 100 miles per hour.

Mike Fisher says he and his son are lucky to be alive - they were at home when the storm hit. Fisher said the sky turned black and that hail started to fall.

"They say an old wives' tail about a tornado sounding like a train, we didn't hear no train, all we heard was some loud hail hitting, of course all the windows blew out in got pretty rough after that," said Fisher.

No fatalities were reported. However, about a dozen people had to be treated for minor injuries.


Bizarro Earth

Shallow magnitude 6.8 earthquake strikes near Alaska's Aleutian Islands

Alaska Quake
© USGS
A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.8 has struck the Bering Sea between American and Russian islands, seismologists say. No tsunami warnings have been issued. (more)

The earthquake, which struck at 1:25 p.m. local time on Friday, was centered about 112 miles (180 kilometers) northwest of Attu Island in Alaska, or 168 miles (270 kilometers) southeast of Bering Island in Russia. It struck at a depth of about 19 miles (31 kilometers), making it a shallow earthquake.

The U.S. National Tsunami Warning Center put the preliminary magnitude of the earthquake at 6.8. "Based on earthquake information and historic tsunami records, the earthquake is not expected to generate a tsunami," the center said.

Friday's earthquake is expected to have been felt across parts of the Aleutian Islands, but damage or casualties are unlikely. The closest islands - Attu Island and Bering Island - have only a small population. Attu Island is also home to Attu Station, which was closed in 2010.

The sparsely populated region of Alaska, which sits on the so-called 'Pacific Ring of Fire', is occasionally struck by powerful earthquakes. Most notably, an enormous 9.2-magnitude earthquake struck north of Prince William Sound in Alaska on March 27, 1964, unleashing a tsunami which killed at least 143 people.

Arrow Down

30-ft wide, 30-ft deep sinkhole collapses road in Newberry, Florida

Newberry, FL sinkhole
© ASCO
A sinkhole opened in Newberry along Newberry Road just west of Northwest 266th Street, worsened by a burst water line.

Alachua County sheriff's deputies responded and were guiding morning commuters slowly through the area.

Newberry City Manager Mike New said the 3 inches of rain the city got Tuesday could have washed out soil supporting a waterline that subsequently sagged and ruptured, washing out even more soil and deepening the hole.

When deputies were called about 6:20 a.m. Wednesday, the sinkhole was about 30 feet wide and 30 feet deep near the roadway. Eventually, a portion of the road collapsed after the soil supporting it caved in.

Ice Cube

Dilbert 1, Scientists 0.

dilbert on global warmimg
A communications group at Yale University has put out a video that seems to be a rebuttal to a Dilbert cartoon by Scott Adams poking fun at climate scientists and their misplaced confidence in models. The video is full of impressive-looking scientists talking about charts and data and whatnot. It probably cost a lot to make and certainly involved a lot of time and effort. The most amazing thing, however, is that it actually proves the points being made in the Dilbert cartoon. Rather than debunking the cartoon, the scientists acted it out in slow motion.

The Dilbert cartoon begins with a climate scientist saying "human activity is warming the earth and will lead to a global catastrophe." When challenged to explain how he knows that, he says they start with basic physical principles plus observations about the climate, which they then feed into models, pick and choose some of the outputs, then feed those into economic models, and voila. When asked, what if I don't trust the economic models, the scientist retreats to an accusation of denialism.

Attention

No hazardous substances found in 6 tissue samples of 243 dead Caspian seals in Kazakhstan

dead seals

No hazardous substances were found out in the samples taken after the mass die-off of the Caspian seals, Kazinform correspondent reports citing Kuangali Ashakhov, Chief of the Mangistau region's Forestry and Wildlife Territorial Inspection.

As reported earlier, 243 corpses of the dead seals were discovered and gathered in Tupkaragan district of Mangistau region in April. The dead animals were washed up on the shore.

The specialists of Almaty-based Research Institute of Hydrobiology and Virology took tissue samples of 6 species.

"The results of the tests are ready. No hazardous substances were found. We did not see any signs of poisoning. Water and soil samples are also normal," K.Ashakhov said

Attention

Signs and Portents: Cow born with a human-like head in Uttar Pradesh, India

Workers at an Indian animal shelter believe this deformed newborn calf is possibly a God

Workers at an Indian animal shelter believe this deformed newborn calf is possibly a God
A shocking video has emerged showing a cow born with human-like features in an animal shelter in India.

The calf was born with the eyes, nose and ears that resemble that of a human, while the lower part of its body had features of a cow.

However, the cow died within an hour of its birth yesterday, in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, northern India.

But as soon as the news spread, locals from nearby villages gathered to seek its blessing, believing it to be an avatar of Lord Vishnu, a Hindu God.

The video shows people offering flower garlands and bowing before the dead calf, which has been kept inside a glass box since it died.


Windsock

Giant dust storm sweeps through Khartoum, Sudan

Sudan dust storm
© YouTube/CGTN (screen capture)
A massive dust cloud - known locally as a "haboob" - has recently swept across the Sudanese capital, Khartoum.

The storm has brought vast amounts of sand and dust into the city, burying several homes and severely limiting visibility.

Ecosystems and natural resources in the country have been deteriorating due to climate change. Water supplies are scarce and severe droughts are common. After years of desertification, the country's rich biodiversity is under threat and drought has hindered the fight against hunger.

Experts say that without rapid intervention, parts of the African country - one of the most vulnerable in the world - could become uninhabitable as a result of climate change.


Snowflake Cold

June snow in Moscow just as Trump pulls out of Paris climate deal

Snow in June in Moscow
© Grigory Sysoev / Sputnik
While most countries in the northern hemisphere are enjoying warm weather and sunshine, fresh snow has fallen on the Russian capital - just one day after Donald Trump pulled the US out of the Paris climate change accord.

Photos and videos posted on social media resembled the beginning of winter, rather than the second day of June and the second official day of summer.

"Well, where is this global warming?" one person joked, posting a video of large hail stones. She added that she should be wearing shorts and sandals this time of year, but instead was wearing a jacket and boots.

Tornado2

Huge tornado terrifies locals in southern Russia

Russian tornado
© _kholodnayaya / Instagram
A spate of tornados spanning several regions caught residents in southern Russia by surprise. The natural phenomenon, which is unusual for the area, left people in fear and awe.

"Just look what a beauty we had yesterday... If I hadn't seen something similar myself 10 years ago, would not have believed it," an Instagram user from the Saratov region posted.