Storms
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Cloud Lightning

Hilary weakens some, drops to Category 3 hurricane


Kansas City Star
Sat, 24 Sep 2011 11:12 UTC
hurricane, hillary
This NOAA satellite image taken Friday, September 23, 2011 at 1:45 PM EDT shows Tropical Storm Ophelia located about 635 miles east-southeast of the Leeward Islands. The system remains at tropical storm strength with maximum sustained winds up to 40 mph. The forecast storm track takes the system northward through the Atlantic Ocean, and is not a threat to the Gulf of Mexico or the East Coast of the U.S.
Forecasters say Hilary has weakened overnight from a Category 4 hurricane to a still-dangerous Category 3 storm as it churns up heavy surf along Mexico's Pacific coast.

Hilary was a Category 4 storm late Saturday evening, with maximum sustained winds near 135 mph (217 kph). But the National Hurricane Center reported at 5 a.m. EDT (0900 GMT) Sunday that the winds had decreased to near 125 mph (205 kph).

The center says Hilary is a small hurricane centered about 420 miles (675 kilometers) south-southeast of the southern tip of Baja California. Forecasters say the storm was moving west at 9 mph (15 kph).

The hurricane is not forecast to make landfall as it slowly weakens, but Mexico's southwestern coast continues to be affected by heavy surf from Hilary.
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Bizarro Earth

Two million sick from Pakistan floods


Agence France-Presse
Thu, 22 Sep 2011 15:10 UTC
Image
© AFP, Rizwan TabassumA Pakistani youth carries a water pot through floodwaters in Mirpur Khas district
Two million Pakistanis have fallen ill from diseases since monsoon rains left the southern region under several feet of water, the country's disaster authority said Thursday.

More than 350 people have been killed and over eight million people have been affected this year by floods that officials say are worse in parts of Sindh province than last year, when the country saw its worst ever disaster.

Malaria, diarrhoea, skin disease and snake bites were among the health problems facing two million people across 23 Sindh districts, said Irshad Bhatti, spokesman of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).

"In some areas, diseases also spread out because of dead animals but there is no major break-out of any epidemic," Bhatti added, calling for the donation of mosquito nets and medicines to help the aid effort.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has said there is a desperate shortage of clean drinking water in the south which has also triggered outbreaks of acute diarrhoea and other waterborne diseases.
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Info

US: Record Hailstone Found Via Social Media


OurAmazingPlanet
Thu, 22 Sep 2011 11:09 UTC
Hailstone
© NWS, courtesy of Melissa McCarterThe largest hailstone ever found in Kansas.
After a huge hailstorm on Sept. 15, 2010, a Topeka, Kansas, meteorologist took to social media to read what people were saying about the severe weather. What he found would go into the city's weather record books.

Scott Blair found photos of one massive hailstone after the other, including one whose diameter was more than 2 inches (5 centimeters) larger than the largest ever found in the state, reported the Wichita Eagle.

The finding highlights a new trend in weather reports on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter that is helping meteorologists better document everything from tornadoes to lightning. Five of the largest hailstones on record in the United States have been found since 2003, due in part to the rise in social media, the Eagle reported.

"If social media didn't exist . . . it's possible that we would have never known about any of these stones that exceeded the state hailstone record size," Blair told the Eagle.
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Cloud Lightning

Typhoon Roke Passes Japan Tsunami Zone, Heads North

Yuri Kageyama
Houston Chronicle
Wed, 21 Sep 2011 00:23 UTC
Local residents wade through a flooded street
© Kyodo News / APLocal residents wade through a flooded street caused by approaching typhoon in Nagoya, central Japan, Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2011. Thousands of people in central Japan have been advised to evacuate as the powerful typhoon approaches. The storm system has already triggered floods that have left two people missing.
A powerful typhoon that left at least 13 people dead or missing, paralyzed commuter trains and dumped rain on tsunami-ravaged northeastern Japan was headed to the major northern island of Hokkaido on Thursday.

Typhoon Roke caused no immediate problems other than broken security cameras at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant, which had been in its path overnight. The plant had been sent into meltdown by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, and efforts are still under way to bring the reactors under control.

Hiroki Kawamata, spokesman for plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co., said several cameras set up to monitor the plant were damaged, but that there had been no further leaks of radioactive water or material into the environment.

"We are seeing no problems so far," he said.

The storm passed just west of the plant on its way north late Wednesday. The typhoon brought new misery to the northeastern region, dumping up to 17 inches (42 centimeters) of rain in some areas.
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Bizarro Earth

Rare tornado, storms cause havoc in Italy


The Gazette / Agence-France Presse
Tue, 20 Sep 2011 16:47 UTC
Violent storms across Italy that led to four deaths over the weekend caused damage and disruption on air, port and city transport systems on Monday, officials said.

Six underground subway stations in the capital Rome that were closed due to flooding overnight disrupting the morning rush hour reopened in the early afternoon. Buses took travellers between stops.

Palermo airport on the island of Sicily was forced to close for 40 minutes after a tornado whipped a Falcon 2000 aircraft off the runway, throwing it against police and emergency vehicles.

The storm also ripped free the 'Suprema' ferry from its moorings at Palermo port, causing a small boat nearby to sink before running into an English destroyer, the Monmouth, which was undamaged.
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Life Preserver

China flood deaths rise to 57, thousands evacuated


The Times of India
Tue, 20 Sep 2011 15:48 UTC
China Flood
© The Times of IndiaUnprecedented rains over the past week have swamped parts of China.
Heavy rains and floods across China have left 57 people dead, dozens of others missing and hundreds injured, while more than a million residents have been evacuated from their homes, the government said.

Unprecedented rains over the past week have swamped parts of northern, central and southwest China, and although the affected region is breathing a tentative sigh of relief as the downpours pause, rivers continue to swell.

The ministry of civil affairs said in a statement that the rain had forced authorities to evacuate more than 1.2 million people from their homes.

"Constant strong rainfall has caused serious flood disasters in Sichuan (southwest), Shaanxi (north) and Henan (central China) -- 12.3 million people were affected, 57 died and 29 are missing," it said late on Monday.
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Igloo

Record Snowfall in Switzerland, 45 cm in St Moritz


Agence France-Presse
Mon, 19 Sep 2011 15:07 UTC
Record Snowfall
© Terra Daily
Snow fell in the Swiss Alps overnight Sunday to levels unseen for the month of September, Swiss weather agency Meteosuisse reported on Monday.

In the ski resort of St Moritz, in the southeast canton of Grison, a total of 45 centimetres (nearly 18 inches) of snow was recorded on Monday morning, it said. The weather agency said the high levels of precipitation were due to a cold front which lowered the snow line to 800 metres (2,600 feet).

Rainfall was also higher than usual, with around 100 liters per square meter measured in the town of Santa Maria, also in Grison, the highest level since records began in 1901, Meteosuisse said.

The snowfall also provoked traffic disturbances in the mountains, with the St Bernard, Flueela and Nufenen passes closed, according to ViaSuisse, which reports on the condition of Swiss roads.

The Gothard, Lukmanier and Oberalp passes are also covered in snow, it added.
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Cloud Lightning

1.3 million urged to evacuate as typhoon nears Japan


MSNBC
Tue, 20 Sep 2011 14:34 UTC
Image
© APResidents wade through a flooded street caused by an approaching typhoon in Nagoya, Japan, on Tuesday.
Heavy rains already trigger floods; at least 2 missing, roads damaged

A major hurricane that could hit Tokyo or Kyoto overnight has already triggered floods, left two people missing and forced officials to urge 1.3 million people in central Japan to evacuate.

Typhoon Roke could make landfall closer to Kyoto Tuesday night if it moves to the west of the forecast track, Rick Knabb, The Weather Channel's tropical weather expert, told NBC News.

"If it goes right at Tokyo, landfall near there might be roughly 2-4 a.m. ET," he added. "If it goes far enough right of track, the center could miss Japan altogether, but still with significant effects there."

Public broadcaster NHK said about 1.3 million people have been advised to leave their homes due to rising rivers. In the city of Moriyama, 80,000 residents were ordered to evacuate.

Heavy rains as the storm approached caused floods and road damage in dozens of locations in Nagoya and several other cities, the Aichi state government said.
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Snowman

Summer snow cripples Austria

Luboš Motl
The Reference Frame
Mon, 19 Sep 2011 12:15 UTC
Image
Two Austrian citizens relax at the snow-covered pastures above the Furggels Valley.
While global warming is threatening the life of our planet if not the Milky Way, Austria woke up to something that mavericks like to enjoy at the end of the summer: snow.

It's been pretty intense and some ski resorts (which were predicted not to see any snow again a few years ago) received as much as 50 centimeters of new snow. In the summer.

An unexpected summer snowstorm has covered pretty much all places of Tyrol that are above 700 meters above the sea level, including its capital Innsbruck which is just 574 meters above the sea level. Many children were made happy; many drivers were made unhappy. Children who like to drive had mixed feelings.

Much like all interesting and uninteresting weather events on Earth and beyond, this fun was brought to you by man-made global warming that was caused by CO2 emissions from industrial companies and viewers like you. Thank you. ;-)
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Cloud Lightning

Snow dumps in Europe... in September


skiclub.co.uk
Tue, 20 Sep 2011 12:10 UTC
Image
Filzmoos, Austria, 1000m, 19 September
Up to 40cm fell in Austrian resorts this weekend, bringing a snowy start to the winter season

With Hintertux reporting 40cm of fresh snow over the weekend and the Molltal Glacier in Austria reporting a further 50cm, it looks as though winter is well and truly on its way to the Alps.

For the latest snow conditions check out the Ski Club's Snow reports.

To take a look for yourself visit the Ski Club's webcam pages.

The view on the ground on Monday 19th September:
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