Storms
S


Windsock

Unusual wind storm hits Vermont, New York

Ryan Hanrahan
NBC Connecticut
Sat, 06 May 2017 08:29 UTC
Vermont wind storm
© Green Mountain Power
An unusual "gravity wave" induced wind storm produced wind gusts of hurricane force in parts of western Vermont and eastern New York Friday afternoon. The unusual wind storm occurred suddenly in the late afternoon and appears to be driven by what is known as a gravity wave.

A gravity wave is a wave (think just like the ocean) that occurs in a stable atmosphere. This vertical wave pushes the air up and down just like a ripple in a pond after you toss a rock into it. We can see this perturbation in the atmosphere by looking at the surface pressure on a barometer.

These two pressure traces from Williamstown, MA and Stockbridge, MA in the Berkshires show a sharp drop and rise in the atmospheric pressure just after 4:00 p.m. This happened as the gravity wave moved over Massachusetts - the ripple overhead in the atmosphere produced a quick drop and rise in the pressure.

gravity wave air pressure
Pressure trace from a home weather station in Stockbridge, MA (above) Williamstown, MA (below) showing a sharp drop in pressure as the gravity wave passed.
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Question

Egyptair crash: No trace of explosives on victims, says French newspaper


UK Guardian
Sat, 06 May 2017 18:32 UTC
Egyptair crash 2016
Le Figaro says French investigators have ruled out theory that bomb was responsible for disaster last May that killed 66 people

French investigators have found no traces of explosives on the bodies of French victims of Egyptair flight MS804 that crashed into the Mediterranean last year en route from Paris to Cairo, a newspaper has reported.

Le Figaro's report, which a source with knowledge of the matter confirmed to Reuters, contradicts Egyptian investigators who said in December that traces of explosives were found in the remains of victims of the flight.

Comment: Chances are this was yet another commercial plane 'taken out' by the increasingly extreme weather on our planet, or, as a result of one of the many exploding space rocks that have been seen in our skies.

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Cloud Lightning

Lightning strikes kill 3 people in Bangladesh


en.prothom-alo.com
Fri, 05 May 2017 08:45 UTC
LIGHTNING
Three people, including a farmer, were killed in lightning strikes in Jessore and Gopalganj districts on Friday, reports UNB.

In Jessore, two people and a cow were killed at Nishchintpur village of Jhikargachha upazila after being struck by a thunderbolt.

The deceased are Yunus Ali, 25, son of Akbar Ali, and Jasimuddin, son of Tajuddin.

Masud Karim, officer-in-charge of Jhikargachha police station, said the lightning struck them while they were going to a field in the morning.
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Cloud Lightning

Seven killed and two injured by lightning strikes in Bangladesh


Dhaka Tribune
Fri, 05 May 2017 18:11 UTC
LIGHTNING
Two bullocks that farmer Younus were taking to the field also died when struck by lightning.

Seven people, including five farmers, died in lightning strikes in five districts on Friday.

Our Jessore correspondent reported that lightning strikes accompanied by thundershowers claimed the lives of two men in the district.

Farmer Younus Ali and Jashimuddin were heading to the field when they were struck.

Two bullocks that Younus was taking to the field also died in the same strike.

In Gopalganj, one farmer died and two others were injured when struck by lightning.

Comment: Elsewhere in Asia there were 2 fatalities due to lightning recently in Cambodia with another one in Nepal.

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Cloud Precipitation

Heavy rain and gales damage crops in Andhra Pradesh, India


The New Indian Express.
Tue, 02 May 2017 19:12 UTC
Damaged maize
Damaged maize
Heavy rain and gales lashed the upland areas of West Godavari district on Monday, causing extensive damage to horticulture crops. Chintalapudi, Lingapalem, T Narasapuram and Kamavarapukota mandals experienced rainfall. Eluru, the district headquarters, also witnessed rainfall, which brought respite to people from heat wave conditions.

Maize crop which came to harvest was badly damaged. The untimely rain also caused extensive damage to mango and banana crops.

Harvested paddy crop left in the fields was also damaged. Banana farmers of Mudicharla, Vemulapalli and Badarala villages were affected as the strong gales ravaged the plantations.

In Rangapuram, papaya crop was damaged. The untimely rain also affected mango orchards in Bogolu, Mulagalampadu, Tochilakarayudu Palem, Singagudem, Lingapalem and Malleswaram.
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Windsock

Sandstorm leaves Beijing with yellow skies and 'beyond index' pollution


RT
Thu, 04 May 2017 17:57 UTC
The Forbidden City is seen during a dust storm in Beijing
© ReutersThe Forbidden City is seen during a dust storm in Beijing, China May 4, 2017.
A sandstorm blowing into China has shrouded Beijing in smog and pushed its pollution to even more dangerous levels than usual. Children and elderly people have been advised to stay indoors, and dozens of flights have been canceled.

Sand and dust began blowing into Beijing from Mongolia and Inner Mongolia on Wednesday afternoon. It has since affected an area of up to 1.63 million sq km, according to China's National Meteorological Center.

By Thursday afternoon, the city's air quality index (AQI) jumped from under 100 to 621 - from "moderate" to "beyond index." It went down slightly in the evening, but remained at "beyond index" levels.
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Cloud Precipitation

Record hailstorm strikes Nakhon Phanom, Thailand


Thai Visa
Thu, 04 May 2017 14:04 UTC
hail Thailand
Record hailstorm in 30 years hit Renoo Nakhon district of Nakhon Phanom province yesterday pummeling ping-pong ball size hailstones on a hundred of houses and vehicles for hours, causing damages in the areas.

Residents staying outdoor were forced to take under cover as the ping-pong sized hailstones falling as the storms lavashing several vilages in the district late afternoon.

They said that they have never experienced such big size hailstones before in the past 30 years, and it was the worst hailstorm.
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Cloud Precipitation

Unprecedented hailstorm strikes Sanandaj, Iran


Press TV
Wed, 03 May 2017 13:53 UTC
hailstorm
An unprecedented spring hailstorm has hit the northwestern Iranian city of Sanandaj, taking the residents by surprise.

While hailstorms are common in Sanandaj in spring time, the ferocious hailstorm, which started on Wednesday morning, left the capital city of Sanandaj in Kordestan Province like snow-covered cities, with tractors sent out to clear ice from streets.

The hailstorm also inflicted damage on vehicles, disrupted traffic for several hours and caused flash floods.

Several other cities and villages across the province were also hit by hailstorms and flash flooding.

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Cloud Lightning

Deaths from lightning triple in the first quarter for Cambodia compared to 2016

Khouth Sophak Chakrya
The Phnom Penh Post
Tue, 02 May 2017 19:23 UTC
LIGHTNING
Lighting deaths nearly tripled in Cambodia during the first quarter of 2017, compared to the same period in 2016, an official at the National Committee for Disaster Management said yesterday.

Keo Vy, spokesman at the National Committee for Disaster Management, said during the first four months of this year, a total of 21 people were struck and killed by lightning, up from eight people during the same period the previous year.

The number of injured due to lightning also increased to 26, up from 15 last year, he said. Additionally, 30 cows were killed and three buildings were damaged by lightning.
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Cloud Lightning

Farmer and four of his camels killed by lightning in Oman


The National
Tue, 02 May 2017 19:13 UTC
LIGHTNING
An Omani farmer and four of his camels were struck and killed by lightning in central Oman on Tuesday morning during unseasonably stormy weather.

Hamed Al Adhubi, 58, was working on his family's farm in the village of Maadh when he was hit by intermittent lightning. The dead camels were found about 50 metres from his body, witnesses said.

"It was raining heavily for most of the night. It stopped in the morning but there was lightning every now and then," Amjad Mushtaq, a farm labourer who found Al Adhubi's body, told The National. "Part of the farm's fence was burnt and a few of the fruit trees were also felled by lightning."

Stormy weather is uncommon at this time of year in Oman, where heavy rain usually occurs between the months of November and March.
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