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Liua is South Pacific's first cyclone in September for 70 years


Radio New Zealand
Thu, 27 Sep 2018 02:43 UTC
Tropical Cyclone Liua

Himawari-8 visible true colour image of Tropical Cyclone Liua on Thursday morning, local time.
Cyclone Liua is the first cyclone to form in the south-west Pacific in the month of September for nearly 70 years.

Liua is over the Solomons' Makira Island and is forecast to develop into a category two on the scale of one to five.

Its winds are weak, but forecasters are concerned about its slow pace and heavy rains.

The official cyclone season runs from 1 November to the end of April.

Chris Brandolino of the New Zealand climate and weather office, NIWA, said Liua comes even before forecasters have put together their cyclone outlook for the region.

"It is very unusual, in fact this is the first tropical cyclone to form in the month of September going back to 1950. It is certainly unusual."

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Camera

'22 degree sun halo' seen in the skies of central India


The Hindu
Mon, 24 Sep 2018 16:39 UTC
Sun halo over central India
© The Hindu
It is created when the Sun is aligned with ice crystals at a particular angle; phenomenon is region-specific

The people in the district witnessed a bright ring around the sun for few minutes on Monday, a rare optical and atmospheric phenomenon called '22 degree Sun Halo'.

Haronahalli Swamy, a functionary of Shivamogga Amateur Astronomers Association, told The Hindu that the 'Sun Halo,' a circle of light with 22 degree radius, is produced when sun light is refracted in hexagonal suspended ice crystals and super cool water droplets formed in the cirrus clouds. The halo is created when the Sun is aligned with these crystals at a particular angle.

He said that the halo is region-specific. This time, the residents of Shivamogga, Bhadravathi, Tirthahalli and Hosanagar taluks witnessed it from 10.30 a.m. to 11.45 a.m.
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Sun

Sun halos seen over Oregon's northern coast


beachconnection.net
Mon, 17 Sep 2018 20:25 UTC
Sun halo over Oregon
© Angi Wildt
Sun halos graced the skies above the north Oregon coast earlier today (Monday). Angi Wildt of Seaside took these photos of the esoteric wonder, which is the sibling of the nocturnal moon halo.

Both are the result of high cirrus clouds, ice crystals and a combination of refraction and reflection.

The common wisdom about moon or sun halos is that they are indicative of a coming rain storm or even snow. That's not always so, as today represents. The forecast for the Oregon coast tonight is not for rain but mostly clear skies, but fog after midnight.

According to EarthSky.org, those high clouds contain millions of tiny ice crystals. Like many Oregon coast sky phenomena - such as the Green Flash at Sunset - halos are made by refraction, which means the splitting of light. However here, the ice crystals also cause reflection, where sunlight is sparkling off the crystals.
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Question

Hundreds of sandpipers in 'collective suicide' at Ecuadorian high-altitude lakes

Natalia Oelsner with Associated Press
Euronews
Tue, 25 Sep 2018 19:26 UTC
Upland Sandpiper (Bartramia longicauda)
© Melissa James
Upland Sandpiper (Bartramia longicauda)
Every year in the high-altitude lake area of Ozogoche, in eastern Ecuador, hundreds of upland sandpipers (known in Spanish as cuvivíes ) fall dead in the months of September and October. Many theories have hoped to explain this bizarre occurrence in the Andean province of Chimborazo but it's not yet clear why these small greyish birds throw themselves into the freezing cold water of the lakes that are considered sacred by the local indigenous community.

While locals think of it as a supernatural phenomenon thought of as a gift to Mother Earth, researchers are trying to find a scientific explanation. Ornithologist Tatiana Santander has ruled out the possibility that the birds could have a sickness that was making them dive into the lake. "This happens every year, so it's a bit hard to prove that the birds are sick and die this way," Santander told AP.

Another theory says that the sulfuric steam from volcanic lakes is intoxicating the birds, however, no other local species appear to suffer from this. Although she hasn't been able to prove any of the theories, Santander believes the weather has something to do with the mysterious actions of the birds. "We consider that, because of the weather of the place, the strong winds make the birds fall into the lake and they receive a thermal shock that causes their death."

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Snowflake Cold

Coldest September 23rd ever measured in the Netherlands

Janene Pieters
NL Times
Mon, 24 Sep 2018 19:18 UTC
netherlands coldest
© ANP
With a maximum temperature of 10.9 degrees measured in De Bilt, Sunday was officially the coldest September 23rd ever measured in the Netherlands, Weeronline reports. The previous cold record for this day was 11.5 degrees on September 23rd, 1974. Sunday was also the coldest day in the Netherlands since April 5th.

The chilly weather on Sunday stood in stark contrast against the warm late summer weather of the past week. On Tuesday Maastricht even had a last tropical day, with a maximum above 30 degrees.

This is the third cold record broken in the Netherlands this year. The other two cold records were for the coldest February 28th and March 17th ever measured. The country also counted nine heat records over the summer.

Comment: See also the following article from last year: Coldest temperatures in decades recorded across the Netherlands

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Cloud Precipitation

Flash flooding in Connecticut, New Jersey and New York turns roads into rivers

Nick Corasaniti and Michael Gold
New York Times
Wed, 26 Sep 2018 18:42 UTC
A flooded sidewalk near 34th Street and Avenue E in Bayonne.
© Jessica Colon
A flooded sidewalk near 34th Street and Avenue E in Bayonne.
They climbed into rafts and river boats, Humvees and the bucket of a front-end loader to escape the rapidly rising water, as heavy rain lashed the northeast on Tuesday.

Flash floods snarled traffic and upended transportation across the New York region, leaving some fire departments overwhelmed by calls for assistance.

More than six inches of rain inundated swaths of Connecticut on Tuesday, flooding streets and college campuses and making for a challenging evening commute for many in the region. Parts of New York and New Jersey were also swamped by more than four inches in the past 24 hours.

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Snowflake Cold

Winter is coming to Bristol: Four months of snow forecast in the coldest winter for a decade

Bronwen Weatherby
BristolLive
Sun, 23 Sep 2018 13:11 UTC
Snow Filton train station in Bristol

Snow at Filton train station in Bristol
Winter is coming and this year's could be one of the coldest on record, according to one meteorologist.

The long-range weather forecaster predicts the climate could surpass even the Beast fron the East, which caused disruption between February and March this year.

A freezing assault could begin as early as November, followed by a four-month period of ice and snow.

The cause is believe to be 'supercharged' low-pressure systems, say weather forecast website El Nino.

A band of warm ocean air could bring a change in the weather's behaviour resulting in chilly temperatures across the UK.

Combined with a drop in solar activity, this winter could be one of the coldest in recent years with freezing winds, buckets of snow and minus temperatures all a possibility throughout the season.
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Snowflake

Over 1,500 still stranded in snow-marooned Lahaul-Spiti, Himachal Pradesh, India


Hindustan Times
Wed, 26 Sep 2018 12:52 UTC
A view of a snow-covered hills, at Keylong
© PTI
A view of a snow-covered hills, at Keylong in Lahaul-Spiti district, Monday, September 24, 2018. Over 1,500 tourists are stranded in the district due to heavy snowfall even as rescue operations are continuing.
Over 1,500 tourists are still stranded in snow-marooned Lahaul-Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh, officials said on Wednesday adding that the evacuation is on but it might take days.

Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur has instructed officials to evacuate those stranded on a priority basis, a statement said.

A total of 300 people were evacuated by Tuesday evening most of whom were faculty and students from IITs Mandi, Roorkee, Guwahati and Mumbai and some foreigners.

On Wednesday as the weather cleared, the state government and the Indian Air Force (IAF) stepped up their efforts to airlift tourists stranded for the past four days.

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Tornado2

Breathtaking video shows waterspout near Galveston Seawall, Texas

Julian Gill
Houston Chronicle
Wed, 26 Sep 2018 12:06 UTC
waterspout
© Cristen Selby
A dark base of cumulus clouds over the Gulf of Mexico gave way to a waterspout this morning near the Galveston Seawall, providing a somewhat rare sight for nearby drivers and pedestrians.

The spout did not appear to be associated with any storm systems, but forecasters predict a 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms in the area later this afternoon.

Cristen Selby filmed the video around 7:30 a.m. near 69th Street and the Seawall.

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Cloud Lightning

Three people and 43 sheep killed by lightning strikes in Karnataka, India


The Hindu
Wed, 26 Sep 2018 11:28 UTC
lightning
As many as 18 sheep died after being struck by lightning in Dongaon village of Chitapur taluk in Kalaburagi district on Tuesday. The sheep belonged to Ravi Pujari. A case has been registered in the Chitapur Police Station.

In Vijayapura

Vijayapura Special Correspondent writes:

In Vijayapura district, three people and 25 sheep died in two incidents of lightning strike on Tuesday. In the first incident in Kanal village of Basavanabagewadi taluk, Vithal Natikar (28) and Yelgurappa Yerjhari (27) died and their 25 sheep perished when lightning struck them.

In the other incident, Mallamma Jalpur (42) died after being struck by lightning as she was standing under a tree when it was raining in Hirur village of Muddebihal taluk.

Comment: On the same date elsewhere in India lightning strikes killed 3 in Odisha while 5 were fatally hit in Bangladesh.

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