Extreme Temperatures
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Attention

IMF head wants world wide carbon taxes

IMF Logo
© Off-Guardian
IMF Chief Kristalina Georgieva has called for every government to implement some form of carbon taxes or "carbon pricing" in the near future.

Yes, we're into week two of the UN's COP28 climate change summit, and the hits just keep on coming.

For example, yesterday it was announced sixty-three world governments have pledged to reduce the emissions from air conditioners and electrics fans.

[You can read a detailed breakdown of the other pledges made during COP28's first week here. Now, back now to the carbon taxes...]

Speaking at COP28 in Dubai, and repeated in an interview with the Guardian, Georgieva extolled the virtues of "carbon pricing" and heaped praise on the EU and Canada for their implementation:
When you put a price on carbon, decarbonisation accelerates. The Europeans introduced the emission trading scheme [in 2005] and they have been growing and yet emissions went down by 37%. You see the same thing in Canada with their carbon tax."
While both the speech and interview discuss the proposed carbon taxes in terms of corporations as "major polluters", any tax applied to big business would be directly passed onto private citizens via price increases.

Dig

Vehicles disappear under 4 feet of snow in Utah

A vehicle buried in snow in Little Cottonwood
© Luke StoneA vehicle buried in snow in Little Cottonwood Canyon, Utah, on Dec. 4, 2023.
Footage taken on Monday shows a number of vehicles buried under more than 4 feet of snow in Little Cottonwood Canyon in northern Utah.

In the video, many of the vehicles appear as large white mounds with only black windshield wipers sticking out of the snow.

People were digging for hours in hopes of freeing the vehicles from the thick layer of snow, according to Luke Stone, who shot the footage.

"Dozens of cars had not moved or been touched since the storm started, so they were totally buried," Stone said.

The early-winter burial began on Friday, when 16.5 inches of snow fell, according to the nearby Alta Ski Resort. On Saturday, 20 additional inches fell, followed by 19 more inches on Sunday.


Comment: Related: Utah ski resorts pummeled with feet of snow


Igloo

Best of the Web: Leading Russian polar scientist: Cooling begins in 2030...Climate crisis a 'Globalist Scam'

IceAge
© Iceagenow
A top polar scientist interviewed by the Russian Academy of Sciences says we need to prepare for serious global cooling, to begin by 2030-2035. Cites studies of Lake Baikal and historic climate epochs.

People's Voice here reports: "One of the world's top Arctic scientist's has spoken out to debunk the 'climate crisis' narrative" and warns the public that "the Earth is actually about to enter a period of 'global cooling.'"

According to leading polar scientist Andrey Fedotov of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), "the warming is about to end" and "The Earth is about to enter an 'ice age.'"

Cooling starts in 2030

The period of "unfavorable cold" will begin around 2030. Fedotov issued the warning in a statement published by the RAS, the country's leading scientific institution.

Fedotov said the warming is about to end and the cause is not humans. The Russian scientist says the cooling will be brought on by solar activity.

Snowflake Cold

Temperatures in Siberia dip to minus 56 Celsius as record snow blankets Moscow

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Temperatures in parts of Siberia plummeted to minus 56 degrees Celsius on Monday while blizzards blanketed Moscow in record snowfall and disrupted flights as winter weather swept across Russia.

In the Sakha Republic, located in the north-eastern part of Siberia and home to Yakutsk, one of the world's coldest cities, temperatures fell below minus 50 degrees, according to the region's weather stations.

In Oymyakon, an area in Sakha, the temperature was recorded at minus 56 degrees Celsius on Monday evening.

Russian forecasters said it would feel like more than minus 60 degrees Celsius in Oymyakon given the wind and humidity and that temperatures would fall further overnight.


Snowflake

Utah ski resorts pummeled with feet of snow

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"30-49 inch storm totals in many spots in Utah."

Buried cars. Deep base layers, and snow piling up seemingly by the second. Utah is experiencing a major snow storm, leaving mountains covered and skiers stoked.

Powderchasers, a popular IG account dedicated to helping people source fresh pow, posted "30-49 inch storm totals in many spots in Utah (Beaver, Solitude, Snowbasin, Powder, Alta). Colorado totals are 15-30 inches."

Resorts across Utah are open, with a solid base and fresh snow to boot.

Snowbasin has a 45 inch base, with 31 new inches in the past 48 hours and 14 inches over the last 24.

Binoculars

More than normal influx of hungry short-eared owls to UK from Scandinavia

Short-eared owls, like this one seen over Kent in October, are proving a hit with bird-watchers in East Yorkshire
© Gareth FullerShort-eared owls, like this one seen over Kent in October, are proving a hit with bird-watchers in East Yorkshire
An influx of short-eared owls along England's east coast has sparked interest among bird-watchers across the UK eager to see the visitors.

In recent weeks, large numbers of the owls have been spotted at places such as the banks of the Humber estuary.

Wildlife guide Margaret Boyd, from East Yorkshire, said "so many more than normal" had been spotted in the area.

A "shortage of food" in regions like Scandinavia was thought have left the owls looking further afield, she said.

According to the RSPB, short-eared owls were "of European conservation concern" as their numbers were in moderate decline.


Snowflake

Best of the Web: Heavy snowfall shuts down air, rail links in southern Germany: Munich hit with record-highest snowfall for December


Comment: German officials report that this was the biggest daily snowfall in Munich in the month of December since record-keeping began...


A man crosses a road early in the morning after heavy snowfall in Munich
© Matthias Schrader/APA man crosses a road early in the morning after heavy snowfall in Munich
Heavy snowfall overnight has paralysed air and rail connections in the southern German state of Bavaria, leaving thousands of travellers stranded.

All flights were grounded at Munich Airport, a key regional and international hub, until 6am (05:00) GMT on Sunday, the airport said. Air traffic had initially been suspended until noon (11:00 GMT) on Saturday.

"Passengers are strongly advised not to travel to the airport today [Saturday] and to check the status of their flight with their airline before travelling to the airport tomorrow," airport authorities said.

German airline Lufthansa noted the knock-on effect of the closure of Munich airport, saying that many other airports in Germany, including the one in Frankfurt "are affected with limited flight operations".

The severe weather, which is expected to continue, also disrupted rail services in Bavaria, with the main railway station in the capital, Munich, brought to a virtual standstill.


Snowflake

Snow and gusty winds hit inactive volcano summit on Hawaii's Big Island

Several inches of snow dumped on Hawaii's Maunakea, which has a peak of nearly 14,000 feet.
Several inches of snow dumped on Hawaii's Maunakea, which has a peak of nearly 14,000 feet.
Snow and gusty winds lashed the summit of an inactive volcano in Hawaii as a 'Kona low' low-pressure system brought stormy weather to the state.


Snowflake Cold

Snowstorm causes massive power cuts across Ukraine - at least 10 dead (UPDATE)

Dozens of passengers in Ukraine have had to be rescued from vehicles stuck in heavy snow
© DSNS EMERGENCIES SERVICEDozens of passengers in Ukraine have had to be rescued from vehicles stuck in heavy snow
Snowstorms and strong winds have left more than 2,000 towns and villages without power across many regions of Ukraine, local officials say.

They say 48 people, including children, have been evacuated from trapped vehicles in the worst-affected Odesa region in the south-west.

At least six people have suffered from hypothermia. Traffic is currently blocked on 14 motorways.


Comment: Update November 28

CNN reports:
At least 10 people have died and thousands remain cut off from the power grid in Ukraine, in three days of stormy weather that has blanketed parts of the country in heavy snow, a senior official said Tuesday.

More than 400 settlements across 11 regions were without electricity, and more than 1,500 responders were trying to reach thousands of people in need of rescue, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko wrote on Telegram, as fresh bouts of snow are expected to continue this week.

Another 23 were injured, including two children, Klymenko said Tuesday, adding the deaths were in Odesa, Kharkiv, Mykolaiv and Kyiv regions.

Videos showed Ukrainian police battling fierce winds as they pushed and towed cars back onto icy highways after they had slid off-road into ditches.



Snowflake Cold

More than 40 inches of snow blankets the Northeast as arctic blast sweeps the US

Heavy snow along Route 4 in Killington, Vt., on Tuesday.
© Killington Police DepartmentHeavy snow along Route 4 in Killington, Vt., on Tuesday.
Significant winter weather hit communities across the interior Northeast on Wednesday morning, causing at least one fatal road accident.

As expected, more than 40 inches of snow fell over the past two days over parts of the Great Lakes and interior Northeast in the first significant lake-effect snow event of the season.

The heaviest snowfall was recorded at Constableville, New York, where 42.7 inches landed.

All lake-effect snow warnings expired at 7 a.m. Wednesday. By the afternoon, the snow was winding down across the Great Lakes, with a few flurries or light snow showers trickling across lakes into northwest Pennsylvania and western New York. Heavy snowfall is not expected through the rest of Wednesday, but 1 or 2 inches of snow will still be possible.