Heavy rains accompanied by thunder squall today caught Delhiites unaware, while chilly winds and rains brought down temperature in northern states of Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab.
The national capital, where rain led to water-logging in various stretches, received a total of 8.6 mm rainfall in a span of few hours, the MeT office said.
The maximum temperature was recorded at 26.4 deg C, while the minimum settled at 10.3 deg C.
The intense cold wave sweeping Himachal Pradesh continued today with chilly winds blowing across the region.
The minimum temperature dropped to 1.7 deg C and 2.2 deg in capital Shimla and Solan, while Sundernagar, Bhuntar and Dharamsala recorded a low of 4.8 deg C, three deg below normal.
Keylong and Kapla in tribal Lahaul and Spiti and Kinnaur districts recorded minimum temperatures of minus 8.1 deg C and minus 4 deg C.
Day temperature, however, rose to 8 deg C in Keylong, nine degree above normal.
The maximum day temperature dropped by few notches to stay at 11.6 deg C in Shimla, 14.5 deg C in Bhuntar, 16.4 deg C in Dharamsala, 17.4 deg C in Mandi and 17.3 deg C in Solan.
Earth Changes
South Dakota transportation officials on Monday reopened the section of Interstate 90 between Wall and Chamberlain that was closed Sunday due to a winter storm. I-29 between Sioux Falls and the North Dakota border remained closed.
The weekend storm dumped more than a foot of snow as well as freezing rain on parts of the Dakotas. Motorists were advised to use caution or not travel in many areas, including southern North Dakota.
The weekend storm dumped more than a foot of snow as well as freezing rain on parts of the Dakotas. Motorists were advised to use caution or not travel in many areas, including southern North Dakota.
A mix of rain, sleet and snow that blew across northern Ohio and glazed roads and power lines with ice has left thousands of people in the dark.
First Energy spokesman Mark Durbin says more than 80,000 customers were without power Monday morning. About half of those are in the Toledo area, and the other half are in the Cleveland area.
Durbin says crews are working to fix power lines but it's likely some customers won't have their power restored until Tuesday.
First Energy spokesman Mark Durbin says more than 80,000 customers were without power Monday morning. About half of those are in the Toledo area, and the other half are in the Cleveland area.
Durbin says crews are working to fix power lines but it's likely some customers won't have their power restored until Tuesday.
A strong quake hit New Zealand's second-biggest city of Christchurch on Tuesday for the second time in five months, toppling buildings, causing "multiple fatalities," trapping people beneath rubble and sparking fires.
Local TV showed bodies being pulled out of rubble strewn around the city center, though it was unclear whether any of them were alive, but police reported multiple fatalities after the 6.3 magnitude quake struck during the busy lunchtime.
"I was in the square right outside the cathedral - the whole front has fallen down and there were people running from there - there were people inside as well," said John Gurr, a camera technician who was in the center of the city when the quake hit.
"A lady grabbed hold of me to stop falling over ... It's not nice at all. We just got blown apart. Colombo Street, the main street, is just a mess ... There's lots of water everywhere, pouring out of the ground - its liquefaction - it's an absolute mess."
Local TV showed bodies being pulled out of rubble strewn around the city center, though it was unclear whether any of them were alive, but police reported multiple fatalities after the 6.3 magnitude quake struck during the busy lunchtime.
"I was in the square right outside the cathedral - the whole front has fallen down and there were people running from there - there were people inside as well," said John Gurr, a camera technician who was in the center of the city when the quake hit.
"A lady grabbed hold of me to stop falling over ... It's not nice at all. We just got blown apart. Colombo Street, the main street, is just a mess ... There's lots of water everywhere, pouring out of the ground - its liquefaction - it's an absolute mess."
© Agence France-Presse
Mount Bulusan spews ash in the Philippine town of Casiguran in Sorsogon province. The volcano has erupted showering an entire town with ash, although there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties, officials said
Mount Bulusan spews ash in the Philippine town of Casiguran in Sorsogon province. The volcano has erupted showering an entire town with ash, although there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties, officials said
The eruption of Bulusan, a 1,559-metre (5,115-foot) volcano, turned mid-morning into night for about 20 minutes across largely farming areas around its slopes, regional army spokesman Major Harold Cabunoc told AFP.
"There was a major ashfall. There was zero visibility," Cabunoc said.
State volcanologist Ramil Vaquilar told AFP that rumbling sounds accompanied the ash column that rose between two and 2.5 kilometres (1.2-1.6 miles) above the crater.
About 2,000 residents were evacuated from three farming villages in the area as the government banned people from within four kilometres of the crater, said Lieutenant-Colonel Santiago Enginco, the local army commander.
Thirty-eight high school students were treated for ashfall inhalation, Enginco said.
Heavy rains, mainly in January, killed more than 100 people and saturated farms in one of Africa's major food producers, leading the government to declare 33 municipalities disaster areas.
"The flood damages around the country run to about 2.8 billion rand, according to our assessments," Johannes Moller, president of Agri SA, told delegates at an agriculture conference.
He said crop losses accounted for 1 billion rand, while infrastructure losses on farms, mostly along the Vaal and Orange rivers, cost farmers about 1.8 billion rand in the Northern Cape, with the remaining 200 million in damages elsewhere in the country.
Moller later told Reuters they were hopeful government would provide financial assistance to get more than 1,000 commercial and emerging farmers back on their feet within 12 months.
"I'm quite hopeful that in the end that government will decide to give financial aid, because that's the only way that we can start rebuilding and do it within one season," he said.
A day after a winter storm dumped more than 10 inches of snow on Metro Detroit, more white is expected tonight - but in much smaller bursts.
The National Weather Service has issued a winter weather advisory through 10 p.m. for part of lower southeast Michigan.
As much as 2-3 inches of snow could fall tonight near Monroe, while about half an inch was expected in Detroit, according to the weather service. Overnight lows will dip into the teens.
Highs Tuesday and Wednesday could be in the 20s and 30s.
The next major weather system comes Thursday, when highs are expected to rise near 40 and bring a wintry mix of rain and snow showers.
Early models show much of the heaviest rain could trek south, said Matt Mosteiko, a meteorologist at the NWS station in White Lake Township. "It looks like we'll miss out on the bulk of precipitation."
Sunday's storm caused numerous accidents, snarled traffic, prompted city snow emergencies and knocked out power statewide. Road crews also stepped up efforts to take advantage of the lighter traffic due to Presidents Day.
About 109,000 utility customers were without power today and more than 117,000 had been affected by weather-related outages. Consumers Energy spokesman Tim Pietryga said in a statement that most of the Jackson-based utility's customers without power are in Kalamazoo, Lenawee, Monroe, Hillsdale, Calhoun and Branch counties. DTE Energy Co. said no major outages have been reported.
© Unknown
The Krísuvík volcanic system (also spelled Krysuvik) consists of a group of NE-SW-trending basaltic crater rows and small shield volcanoes cutting the central Reykjanes Peninsula west of Kleifarvatn lake. Several eruptions have taken place since the settlement of Iceland, including the eruption of a large lava flow from the Ogmundargigar crater row around the 12th century. The latest eruption at Krísuvík took place during the 14th century.
The Krísuvík volcanic system (also spelled Krysuvik) consists of a group of NE-SW-trending basaltic crater rows and small shield volcanoes cutting the central Reykjanes Peninsula west of Kleifarvatn lake. Several eruptions have taken place since the settlement of Iceland, including the eruption of a large lava flow from the Ogmundargigar crater row around the 12th century. The latest eruption at Krísuvík took place during the 14th century.
Sunspot complex 1161-1162 quieted down over the weekend, producing few intense flares. Could it be the quiet before the storm? The tempestuous appearance of the region suggests more action could be in the offing. Rogerio Marcon sends this picture from his backyard observatory in Campinas SP Brasil:
Marcon recorded the image using an H-alpha filter tuned to the red glow of solar hydrogen. It reveals several dark magnetic cores, each larger than Earth itself, interconnected by turbulent arcs of magnetized plasma. Similar filters are now available in the Space Weather Store for readers who would like to see these 'spots with their own (safely filtered) eyes.
NOAA forecasters estimate a 60% chance of M-class solar flares during the next 24 hours. Stay tuned for action.
© Rogerio Marcon
AR1161 and 1162 in h-alpha light. A big magnetic complex. Location: Campinas SP Brasil Image Taken: Feb. 20, 2011
AR1161 and 1162 in h-alpha light. A big magnetic complex. Location: Campinas SP Brasil Image Taken: Feb. 20, 2011
NOAA forecasters estimate a 60% chance of M-class solar flares during the next 24 hours. Stay tuned for action.
© USGS
Earthquake Location
Earthquake Location
Monday, February 21, 2011 at 23:51:43 UTC
Tuesday, February 22, 2011 at 12:51:43 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location:
43.600°S, 172.710°E
Depth:
5 km (3.1 miles)
Region:
SOUTH ISLAND OF NEW ZEALAND
Distances:
NEAR Christchurch, New Zealand
225 km (140 miles) SSE of Westport, New Zealand
305 km (190 miles) SSW of WELLINGTON, New Zealand
310 km (190 miles) NE of Dunedin, New Zealand
