Earth ChangesS


Cloud Precipitation

Record-breaking deluge hits Buenos Aires, leaving five dead


Times of India
Tue, 02 Apr 2013 16:48 UTC
Torrential rains in Argentina's capital have triggered flooding responsible for at least five deaths.

A record 6.1 inches (155 millimeters) of rain fell in just two hours in Buenos Aires on Tuesday. That's equal to all of normal rainfall for April.

The storm caused power outages, flooded subway lines and turned the streets into rivers.

Emergency officials are asking people to stay at home after a subway worker died when he was electrocuted after stepping on wet railway lines and after three men and a woman drowned to death.

Service on a subway line has been interruupted, and trains on other lines are delayed. Officials are asking people to avoid driving to prevent accidents.

The Argentine National Metereological Service expects more storms Tuesday in Buenos Aires and says heavy rains will continue until Friday.

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Ice Cube

Global Cooling - Methods and testable decadal predictions

Dr. Norman Page
Watts Up With That?
Tue, 02 Apr 2013 00:00 UTC
global cooling earth
© unknown
1. Methods and Premises

My approach to climate science is based on Baconian empirical principles as presented in a series of earlier posts on this site notably:

6/18/10 Thirty Year Climate Forecast
7/19/12 30 Year Climate Forecast -2 year Update
10/30/12. Hurricane Sandy-Extreme Events and Global Cooling
11/18/12 Global Cooling Climate and Weather Forecasting
1/4/13 Response toWUWT post on Neutrons and 1970 cooling period.
1/22/13 Global Cooling Timing and Amount
2/18/13 It's the Sun Stupid - the Minor Significance of CO2
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Bizarro Earth

Record dolphin, sea turtle deaths since Gulf spill

Jennifer Viegas
Discovery news
Tue, 02 Apr 2013 14:27 UTC
The oil slick as seen from space
© NASA imageThe oil slick as seen from space by NASA’s Terra satellite on May 24, 2010
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill happened in the Gulf of Mexico nearly three years ago, but the estimated 4.9 million barrels of oil that it released are still killing dolphins, sea turtles and other marine life in record numbers, according to new research.

The report, "Restoring a Degraded Gulf of Mexico: Wildlife and Wetlands Three Years into the Gulf Oil Disaster," found that dolphins were among the hardest hit animals. As of just earlier this year, infant dolphins were dying six times faster than they did before the spill. Scientists aren't even yet sure of the extent of the massive spill, given that it was impossible to fully clean up the chemical-laden, carcinogenic oil.

"Three years after the initial explosion, the impacts of the disaster continue to unfold," Doug Inkley, senior scientist for the National Wildlife Federation and lead author of the report, said in a press release. "Dolphins are still dying in high numbers in the areas affected by oil. These ongoing deaths - particularly in an apex predator like the dolphin - are a strong indication that there is something amiss with the Gulf ecosystem."

An infographic summarizes some of the findings.
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Ice Cube

Corrupt science doubletalk: Melt may explain Antarctica's sea ice expansion


BBC
Mon, 01 Apr 2013 17:56 UTC
Image
Antarctic sea ice shows a small but significant expansion, in contrast to the trend seen in the Arctic
Climate change is expanding Antarctica's sea ice, according to a scientific study in the journal Nature Geoscience.

The paradoxical phenomenon is thought to be caused by relatively cold plumes of fresh water derived from melting beneath the Antarctic ice shelves.

This melt water has a relatively low density, so it accumulates in the top layer of the ocean.

The cool surface waters then re-freeze more easily during Autumn and Winter.

This explains the observed peak in sea ice during these seasons, a team from the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) in De Bilt says in its peer-reviewed paper.

Climate scientists have been intrigued by observations that Antarctic sea ice shows a small but statistically significant expansion of about 1.9% per decade since 1985, while sea ice in the Arctic has been shrinking over past decades.
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Bug

A storm is coming in the form of the 17-year cicada

Michael Harper
RedOrbit
Tue, 02 Apr 2013 16:45 UTC
Cicadas
© Photos.com

Every 17 years, the Eastern seaboard plays host to millions and millions of visitors who arrive with only one purpose in mind: to mate.

The Magicicada septendecim Brood II, or periodical cicada has an unusual life cycle and spends most of its days living underground, living on the bounty of tree roots. Then, when they near the end of their life, they emerge to breed and procreate. Very shortly afterwards, they die before returning to the ground, leaving a mess for any humans who live in the area.

The cicadas are expected to return to the surface once more this year, and public radio podcast Radiolab is asking for help to predict when to expect the cicadas.

Radiolab is turning this somewhat dire occasion into an opportunity for community science. The cicadas normally only emerge once the temperature reaches 64 degrees Fahrenheit. The resulting swarm is what Radiolab will be calling #swarmageddon, hashtag and all. When the temperature is just right, the cicadas will begin burrowing out of their holes 8-inches in the ground and start looking for mates.

While the cicadas are around, the males make a loud sound to attract potential partners. Once they complete their carnal tasks, they promptly die, leaving unsightly large piles of dead bodies all around.
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Cloud Precipitation

Continuous hailstorms cause extensive damage in northern Vietnam


Saigon GP Daily
Mon, 01 Apr 2013 16:16 UTC
Vietman hailstorm
© UnknownHailstorms collapsed several houses in Lao Cai Province
Continually occurring hailstorms in the northern mountainous region in recent days have killed one person, injured 44, left tens of thousands of houses roofless or damaged, and destroyed thousands of hectares of rice and vegetable crops.

Hailstorms also hit provinces like Lao Cai, Ha Giang, Cao Bang, Bac Kan, Thai Nguyen, Son La, Tuyen Quang, Thanh Hoa and Nghe An. Of these, Lao Cai was the worst hit.

After recently being slammed by a cold front, Meo Vac District in the northeastern province of Ha Giang experienced a 15-20 minute hailstorm on March 31, which blew roofs off nearly 100 houses and devastated almost 700 hectares of plants and vegetables.

Hailstones of 6-7cms were accompanied by rain and thunderstorm. Lung Pu and Pai Lung Communes and Meo Vac Town suffered the most.
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Cloud Precipitation

Six swept away, more displaced in Kenya flash floods

Kipchumba Kemei and Mangoa Mosota
Standard
Tue, 02 Apr 2013 16:06 UTC
Kenya Flash flood
© Felix Kavi/Standard
Six people are feared dead after their matatu was swept away by flash floods in Narok South.

Three people in a vehicle crossing a bridge at Ole Polos in Ololulung'a area survived after they swam to safety.

The overloaded vehicle, according to Narok South DC Chimwaga Mongo, was swept away at the swollen Ole Polos Bridge.

"The overloaded vehicle was swept away by raging waters as it was crossing the bridge. The six were trapped inside it. The survivors swam to safety," said Mongo who added it was difficult for police divers and the public to locate the ill-fated vehicle because of poor visibility occasioned by heavy rains and high water levels. Rescue operations resume today.
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Cloud Precipitation

At least 11 dead as flash floods ravage Mauritius


Euronews
Mon, 01 Apr 2013 16:00 UTC
A day of mourning has been declared in Mauritius after at least 11 people lost their lives in savage flash floods that caught the Indian ocean island by surprise on Saturday.


Most of the dead were caught in an underground car park in the capital Port Louis, and police and rescuers are still looking for survivors two days after 152 millimetres of rain fell in less than two hours.
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Windsock

First April 1st US tornado in four years hits northwest Texas

Johnny Kelly
Examiner
Tue, 02 Apr 2013 15:47 UTC
April tornado Silverton, Texas
© Leslie RichardsonRare April 1st tornado touches down near Silverton, Texas.
A rare United States tornado for April 1st touched down in northwestern Texas, causing some damage on Monday.

Storm chasers and the public reported the tornado touched down near the small city of Silverton in Briscoe County, just after 4:30 p.m. Monday.

The National Weather Service reported the tornado caused damage to a metal barn in its path. Power poles were also snapped and blown over as winds were recorded up to 66 mph with the tornadic storm.
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Cloud Precipitation

Floods wash away bridge in central Spain, 3 dead


China.org
Tue, 02 Apr 2013 15:39 UTC
River Yeguas bridge washed away
© EFE
Three people died this Monday after a bridge over the river Yeguas in central Spain was washed away by flooding waters.

The three victims, including a couple and a young man, were on board two separate vehicles, a car and a lorry, driving along the N-420 road between the cities of Ciudad Real and Cordoba.

Persistent rainfall over the closing days of March has led to rising water levels in many of the country's rivers and reservoirs, according to data supplied by the Automatic Systems of Hydrological Information.
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