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Wed, 29 Mar 2023
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Extreme Temperatures

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."

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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.
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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.

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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.

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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...
Arrow Down

Two killed, one missing after avalanche in Himachal Pradesh, India


Devdiscourse.com
Mon, 06 Feb 2023 11:40 UTC
Representative Image
© ANI
Representative image
Two labourers were killed and another is feared trapped under the snow after an avalanche hit the Shinkula-Darcha road in Lahaul and Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh, officials said on Monday.

The avalanche hit Chika village on Sunday evening, they said.

Three labourers were buried under the snow along with snow cutters in the avalanche, the officials said.

A team comprising police personnel, health officials and district disaster management authority members rushed to the spot and started the rescue operation, they said.

The bodies of Ram Budha from Nepal and Rakesh from Chamba have been recovered. The third labourer, Passang Chhering Lama (27), a resident of Nepal, is missing, according to the state emergency operation centre.

The rescue operation was stopped at night as the temperature and visibility dropped. It will resume on Monday morning, the officials said.
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Snowflake Cold

Snow and winter storms cut power, disrupt traffic across the Balkans


TVP World
Sun, 05 Feb 2023 11:05 UTC
mmmmmmmm
Gale-force winds and snowstorms closed roads and left more than 25,000 households in Serbia without power on Sunday, while fallen trees disrupted traffic in neighboring Croatia and Montenegro.

In Croatia, a red alert was issued for the regions along the Adriatic coast due to north winds estimated to reach 130 kilometers per hour.

Authorities in Montenegro's coastal town of Budva warned citizens to stay indoors after strong winds on Saturday destroyed a school roof, brought down trees and lamp posts, sank a tourist boat and disrupted traffic along the coast.

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Snowflake

Authorities on alert as heavy snowfall continues in Greece


ekathimerini.com
Sun, 05 Feb 2023 15:36 UTC
nnnnnnnn
The cold weather front 'Barbara' hit Greece with snowfall that started late on Saturday continued on Sunday as far south as Central Evia, cancellations of boat schedules, and snow chains on tires required in Attica and sections of the Peloponnese.

Meanwhile, the Civil Protection, Fire Brigade, police, regional, and city authorities are meeting again since 11:00 on Sunday morning.

In Attica, traffic police has said drivers moving in the entire road network of the Attica prefecture must carry snow chains or other non-slip equipment. It also banned heavy trucks of over 3.5 tons from several highways. Authorities have also banned such trucks from sections of the Athens-Thessaloniki national road as well.

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Arrow Down

Austria and Switzerland: 10 dead in avalanches in Alps over weekend (UPDATE)


Deutsche Welle
Sat, 04 Feb 2023 15:27 UTC
nnnnnnnn
Austrian authorities logged at least 17 avalanches in the popular skiing destination of Tyrol over the past 24 hours. The dangerous conditions there and in Switzerland have already claimed five lives.

At least five people were killed in avalanches in the Austrian and Swiss Alps, authorities said on Saturday.

Three of the dead were killed while visiting the Austrian Alps.

Officials in the Austrian state of Tyrol have urgently cautioned tourists, skiers and other winter sports athletes to avoid the slopes amid a very high avalanche risk.

Comment: Update February 5

BBC reports:
Weekend avalanches kill 10 in Austria and Switzerland

Ten people have been killed in several avalanches across the Austrian and Swiss Alps over the weekend.

Tourists from New Zealand, China and Germany were among the dead at a number of different ski resorts.

Austrian authorities put in place a level four avalanche alert - the second highest - following intense snowfall and wind in the area.

Despite the warnings, ski resorts in western Austria have been filling up due to school holidays in Vienna.

Austrian police announced five deaths on Sunday, including that of a 59-year-old man who was using a snow plough in the western region of Tyrol.

They also recovered the bodies of a ski guide in Sankt Anton am Arlberg and a 62-year-old man who was cross-country skiing around the summit of Hohe Aifner.

On Saturday, a 17-year-old New Zealander, a 32-year-old Chinese national and a German man in his 50s - who were all said to be skiing off designated ski trails when avalanches hit - were also found dead.

In Switzerland, a 56-year-old woman and 52-year-old man were also killed by unstable snow in the south-east canton of Graubuenden on Saturday morning. Swiss police said a third member of their group managed to escape unharmed.

Avalanches are common in both countries. According to Austria's APA news agency, 30 avalanches were reported in the Tyrol region on Saturday alone - 11 of these involving people.

Austria's level four alert level means "very large avalanches are likely" - it advises inexperienced skiers to remain on open ski runs and trails and for experienced skiers to stay away from very steep terrain.


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Snowflake Cold

Arctic blast sweeps through US north-east with record-breaking temperatures

Maya Yang
Guardian
Sat, 04 Feb 2023 14:09 UTC
Steam rises from Boston Harbor as
© Joseph Prezioso
Steam rises from Boston Harbor as temperatures reach -7F (-14C) in Massachusetts, on 4 February.
An Arctic blast has swept through numerous parts of the north-east, leaving millions of people under wind chill warnings and cities and states issuing emergency warnings.

Record-breaking temperatures will be 10 to 30 degrees below average over parts of the north-east and into the coastal mid-Atlantic, the National Weather Service announced on Saturday, with wind gusts potentially reaching up to 40 to 55mph (64 to 88km/h).

The wind chills from the blast have the potential to be once-in-a-generation cold, the agency added.

The cold, which is expected to last throughout the weekend, has prompted officials across multiple states to issue emergency orders and warnings that urge residents to remain indoors.

      Read More...
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