Welcome to Sott.net
Sat, 01 Apr 2023
The World for People who Think

Extreme Temperatures

Arrow Down

Avalanches caused by heavy snow kill at least 20 in Tajikistan


Reuters
Thu, 16 Feb 2023 12:30 UTC
A view shows the area affected by an avalanche in Gorno-Badakhshan region, Tajikistan, February 15, 2023. Committee of Emergency Situations and Civil Defense of Tajikistan

A view shows the area affected by an avalanche in Gorno-Badakhshan region, Tajikistan, February 15, 2023. Committee of Emergency Situations and Civil Defense of Tajikistan
A series of avalanches has killed 10 more people in eastern Tajikistan, the Central Asian nation's government said on Thursday, bringing the death toll over the past two days to 20 and forcing hundreds of families from their homes.

Most of the avalanches hit the Gorno-Badakhshan autonomous region, which borders China and Afghanistan, and where more than 400 households have been relocated away from dangerous areas.

Avalanches have hit homes as well as roads, the government said, and all international traffic has been suspended.

The mayor of provincial capital Khorog, Rizo Nazarzoda, urged its 30,000 residents to stay at home as heavy snow and rain fell.

Videos from the area showed one-storey buildings covered up to their roofs with snow and ice blocks, with rescue teams digging through the snow in search of bodies.
      Read More...
Snowflake

37 inches of fresh snow in 48 hours dumped on Ski Santa Fe, New Mexico


kob.com
Wed, 15 Feb 2023 19:35 UTC
mmmmmmm
Ski Santa Fe received 37 inches of fresh snow from this past storm.

Officials said the conditions are outstanding with an 80-inch base.

"We've had one of the most incredible storm cycles I've seen in years," said Jack Dant, manager of Ski Santa Fe. "This is gonna help us get through the rest of the season without having to do any additional snow making."

Dant says they would've loved to see this much snow back in October, but is thrilled for a fresh dumping just before spring break. He expects a lot of locals will be hitting the mountain this weekend.

      Read More...
Snowflake

Major snowstorm dumps 40 cms (15.7 inches) of snow on Cape Breton, Canada

Kyle Moore
ctvnews.ca
Tue, 14 Feb 2023 13:06 UTC
More than 40 centimetres fell on some parts of the island, making it the largest snowfall so far this winter.
© Kyle Moore/CTV Atlantic
More than 40 centimetres fell on some parts of the island, making it the largest snowfall so far this winter.
People in Cape Breton woke up to a lot of snow on Tuesday.

More than 40 centimetres fell on some parts of the island, making it the largest snowfall so far this winter.

"It's unbelievable. Welcome to winter. It finally came in February," said Don Vaters, who lives in Glace Bay, N.S.

Vaters was out shovelling in the early morning hours, daydreaming of a warmer climate.

      Read More...
Snowflake

Alta Ski Area, Utah surpasses 500 inches of snowfall for the season


SnowBrains
Tue, 14 Feb 2023 12:59 UTC
Never-ending snow
© Alta Ski Area Facebook
Never-ending snow
Alta Ski Area in Little Cottonwood Canyon, UT, has always been known as one of the snowiest resorts in America, but this year has taken things to a new level. 5″ of fresh snow in the last 24 hours has taken the resort to 501″ for the season.

In 1981-1982 Alta set its long-standing record for the most snowfall between October and January with an astounding 442 inches. Without shock to the locals who have experienced a miraculously snowy winter, Alta broke that record on January 25th, 2023, with a total of 445 inches of snowfall between October and January.

Alta joins Mammoth Mountain, CA, as the only two resorts in the world with over 500″ of fresh snow this season.

The resort has a 132″ base, and there are a couple more feet of snow in the forecast.

In the last ten years, Alta has surpassed 500″ in 19/20 (542″), 18/19 (626″), and 16/17 (596.5″).
      Read More...
Arrow Down

2 backcountry skiers killed by avalanche in British Columbia

Avy Brains
SnowBrains
Wed, 15 Feb 2023 12:50 UTC
The scene of the fatal avalanche.
© Avalanche CA
The scene of the fatal avalanche.
Two backcountry skiers were caught and killed in an avalanche on an east-facing slope on Potato Peak, approximately 25 miles south of Tatla Lake, British Columbia, on Saturday, 11th February, reports Avalanche Canada.

The skiers had accessed the area using snowmobiles but were skiing at the time of the accident. Both victims were fully buried and did not survive. Search and Rescue was notified when the victims were reported overdue. The victims were located and recovered from the accident location.

The size 2 deep, persistent slab avalanche ran on a layer of facets approximately 10-25″ from the base of the snowpack. The slope was highly wind-affected, containing deeply wind-drifted snow and areas where the snow cover was thin and rocky. The crown depth was reported to be highly variable, between 25 and 50″.
      Read More...
Snowflake

Anchorage in Alaska has seen almost double its usual snowfall since December

Wesley Early
Alaska Public Radio
Mon, 13 Feb 2023 15:32 UTC
Anchorage residents clear snow on Monday.
© Elyssa Loughlin/Alaska Public Media
Anchorage residents clear snow on Monday.
With the latest weekend storm in Anchorage, the city's snowfall tally since the start of December now totals about 6 feet.

That's almost double what's usual in those two-and-a-half months, according to the National Weather Service. And, it's just the amount recorded at the weather service's official measuring spot at the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport. Some parts of town saw more, including this weekend, said meteorologist Matthew Fazal. The West Anchorage spot got about 7 inches of snow on Sunday, a new record.

"If you're going toward the Hillside, we've been getting reports of 16 to 18 inches of snow," Fazal said.

He said, just this month, more than 23 inches of snow have fallen in Anchorage.

"The normal is six," he said. "So that gets us 17.5 inches above normal."

      Read More...
Arrow Down

Latest suggestion for cooling the planet involves blasting the moon

Mike McRae
Science Alert
Thu, 09 Feb 2023 05:15 UTC
Blast the Moon
© 0fjd125gk87/Pixabay
With each passing year, the effects of rising global temperatures become even more obvious, while the chances of avoiding greater catastrophes in the future retreat like every melting glacier.

Desperate to avoid worst-case scenarios, researchers have proposed various measures that could, at the very least, buy us the time we might need to mature as a society and work to undo the damage.

Blasting a steady stream of dust from the surface of the Moon is the latest suggestion to get a solid scientific appraisal, with University of Utah computational astrophysicist Ben Bromley and computer scientist Sameer Khan and Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory astrophysicist Scott Kenyon giving the idea a tentative thumbs up.

This isn't to say it falls into the 'good idea' category. Not yet, at least. But as far as extreme measures go, it's a plan that could come with far fewer risks and potentially lower costs than many other strategies being entertained for emergency options.

Thanks to historic levels of carbon dioxide lingering in our atmosphere, every joule of solar radiation that warms the planet has a slightly lower chance of returning to space.

The logical thing to do would be to work together to kick our nasty habit of smoking fossil fuels. Shocking as it seems, it could be faster and easier to engage in mammoth-scaled engineering projects that literally reflect a proportion of sunlight before it hits Earth and is converted into a form that's likely to stick around as heat.
      Read More...
Snowflake

Barbara weather front pounds Greece for 3rd day, meter of snow on Evia island

Tasos Kokkinidis
Greek Reporter
Tue, 07 Feb 2023 12:04 UTC
The coastal town of Aidipsos in Evia is covered in snow.
© Greek Reporter/Korina Pantazi
The coastal town of Aidipsos in Evia is covered in snow.
The Barbara weather front continues to bring low temperatures, frost, and heavy snowfall in several parts of Greece for a third day on Tuesday.

Residents in the Central Greece regional units of Viotia, Fthiotida, Magnesia and Evia have been urged to "drastically limit movements and follow the instructions of the authorities" due to heavy snowfall in their area.

The warning was issued via the 112 service to mobile phones shortly before 9.30 a.m. as the Barbara cold weather front caused schools in various parts of the country to close for a second day.

Parts of the city of Volos were reported to be covered in up to 20 centimeters of snow, with heavy snowfall was also reported in Pilio and Zagora, all of which are in Thessaly.

Heavy snow is also reported in Hania, Crete, with parts of Evia island covered in up to a meter of snow. Hellenic Electricity Distribution Network Operator said it was on alert for power cuts due to the weather, and had placed over 150 people on call on Evia, hard hit by snow.

      Read More...
Snowflake

Heavy snowfall disrupts Slovakia


WION
Tue, 07 Feb 2023 11:33 UTC
mmmmmmmm
Strong winds and snow storms have caused traffic disruptions in Slovakia. With some rail routes and the main east-west highway being closed due to heavy snowfall.

      Read More...
Tornado2

Unchartered territory: Icy-cold waterspout forms over Vermont lake in dead of winter - Media names it 'steam devil'

Adriana Navarro
Yahoo! News
Mon, 06 Feb 2023 14:46 UTC
A steam devil was seen churning over Lake Champlain from Burlington, Vermont, on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023.

A steam devil was seen churning over Lake Champlain from Burlington, Vermont, on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023.
Record-low temperatures chilled New England on Friday, leading to a cold-weather phenomenon that's rarely seen in the United States.


Comment: Er, how about never-before-seen?! At least, not in the modern era...


A handful of folks in Burlington, Vermont, caught sight of a funnel over Lake Champlain Friday afternoon, but this was no waterspout. The funnel instead drew in steam fog, also referred to as sea fog, creating what is referred to as a "steam devil."


Comment: Oh 'tis referred to as that, eh? Or did y'all just make that up on the spot?!



Comment: Right!...

Clearly, they don't know what they're talking about.

More likely, this is yet another manifestation of differing electric potential between surface and atmospheric layers of the planet.

      Read More...
Amazon Smile
Revolt! T-shirts