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Showing posts with label Weather/Climate Forecast. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Weather/Climate Forecast. Show all posts

1/31/2014

US: Extreme Weather a Result of Unusual Dip in the Jet Stream

The unusually sharp kink in the jet stream that has brought extreme weather to nearly the entire U.S. in January is finally beginning to straighten out, and a return to more normal winter conditions will begin today and extend into next week. After a morning low of 14°, Atlanta's temperature is expected to rebound into the upper 30s under sunny skies on Thursday afternoon, helping to melt out the hundreds of miles of ice-covered roads left by Winter Storm Leon on Tuesday. A state of emergency remains in effect for all of Georgia until at least noon Thursday due to icy roads. Atlanta, Birmingham, Alabama, and many other cities in the Southeast U.S. suffered their worst traffic days in history on Tuesday, after sleet and snows of 1 - 3" compacted into ice on area roads, resulting in travel chaos. Temperatures will fall into the teens again on Thursday night, allowing those roads that do thaw out to re-freeze. The Southeast will not fully thaw out until Friday afternoon, under sunny skies and temperatures in the 50s.  Image Above:
Abandoned cars litter the roadway Cobb Parkway (US 41) between Cumberland Pkwy and W. Paces Ferry Road. Image credit: Michael King @mhking

Top snowfall amounts from Leon, by state
VIRGINIA: 10.0” at 5 locations in the Norfolk-Virginia News area; Park Manor, Suffolk, Stone Bridge, Deep Creek, and Willoughby Spit (8.5” officially at Norfolk NWS site)
NORTH CAROLINA: 9.0” Gliden
NEW JERSEY: 7.7” Estell Manor (7.3" in Atlantic City)
MARYLAND: 6.7” Ridge
MASSACHUSETTS: 5.5" East Sandwich, West Tisbury
DELAWARE: 5.4” Dover, Harrington, Ellendale
NEW YORK: 4.9" Theresa
MISSISSIPPI: 3.0” at 5 sites, including Cato
SOUTH CAROLINA: 4.0” Bennetstsville
GEORGIA: 4.0” White
LOUISIANA: 4.0” Jena
ALABAMA: 3.0” numerous locations
WEST VIRGINIA: 3.0" Gary
TENNESSEE: 2.0" Maryville
PENNSYLVANIA: 1.0” 5 NE Philadelphia
FLORIDA: no official snow reports, but 0.5" of sleet at Freeport

Image Above: Snowfall in Florida. Is this the new norm?

Rain in California!
"Ahhh, rain!" Those are words that undoubtedly arose from the lips of a great number of upturned faces in California on Wednesday, as heaven-sent drops of water splashed down from above. The first significant rain storm of 2014 moved through the northern half of the state on Wednesday, bringing some welcome relief from the record dry conditions that have parched the state this winter. In the Sierra Mountains, snows of up to 12 inches fell, and up to 2 feet of snow may accumulate above 8,000 feet, adding a modest boost to a snowpack that was the lowest on record in many locations. As of 7 am PST on January 30, the Sierra Snow Survey found a snow pack that was only 7% of normal for this time of year. Sacramento recorded 0.03" of rain on Wednesday, ending a string of 52 consecutive days without rain. It was their longest streak of dry days during the rainy season ever recorded, smashing the previous record of 46 days set in 1884. According to wunderground's weather historian Christopher C. Burt, Wednesday's rains in downtown San Francisco and Oakland ended their longest winter rain-free periods on record, since at least 1850 (though San Francisco did get 0.03" of drizzle earlier this month.) The last actual rainfall in the city was on December 6th. That’s 53 days during what normally should be the wettest period of the year, when at least 8” would normally fall. Yesterday's rains also brought an exceptional dry streak to an end in Reno, Nevada--the 0.10" of rain that fell was its first precipitation since December 19.


Drought situation in California still dire despite today's rains
While yesterday's and today's rains and snow in California are a welcome respite, they will put only a minor dent in what is one of the worst droughts in California history. Today's U.S. Drought Monitor update put 9% of the state into "Exceptional Drought"--the worst category. This is the first time since the Drought Monitor product began in 2000 that a portion of California was put into "Exceptional Drought". California's area experiencing extreme to exceptional drought remained at 63%, making it one of the three worst winter droughts in state history. To break the drought, much of the state needs more than 12" of precipitation. Sacramento has received about 2" of rain since July 1, 2013, which is 8" below normal, and most of the southern half of the state needs more than a year of rainfall to fall in one month to break the drought. The stubborn ridge of high pressure responsible for the drought is forecast to build back over California during the first ten days of February, and the state will receive little or no rain during that period. However, the ridge will not be as intense, increasing the odds that a low pressure system will be able to break the ridge by mid-February and bring more rain to the state. Image Above:

The January 29 U.S. Drought Monitor showed 94% of California in drought, with 9% of the state in the highest level of drought, "Exceptional." Image credit: U.S. Drought Monitor.
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10/16/2012

World record matched for hottest September since 2005

An aerial view of New Yorkers taking in the sun on a beach at Coney Island. The past year has been the hottest since modern record-keeping started in 1895. AFP
SOMETHING about September keeps bringing out the record heat in the world.
 
The globe last month matched a record for the hottest September, set in 2005.
It was the third time since 2000 that the world set or tied a heat record for September. In addition to 2012 and 2005, previous hot September records were set in 2003. And these records go back to 1880.

Last month's average temperature was 60.2 degrees Fahrenheit (15.6 degrees Celsius) worldwide, which is 1.2 degrees above normal, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said yesterday.

NOAA climate monitoring chief Deke Arndt said it may be worth studying why September, more than other months, keeps setting world records. It might be the lengthening of the Northern Hemisphere summer as a result of man-made global warming and continual loss of Arctic sea ice that indirectly helps cool other parts of the world, said University of Victoria climate scientist Andrew Weaver.

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8/03/2008

Gloomy summer headed toward infamy

Alaska, USA

Right now the so-called summer of '08 is on pace to produce the fewest days ever recorded in which the temperature in Anchorage managed to reach 65 degrees.

That unhappy record was set in 1970, when we only made it to the 65-degree mark, which many Alaskans consider a nice temperature, 16 days out of 365.

This year, however -- with the summer more than half over -- there have been only seven 65-degree days so far. And that's with just a month of potential "balmy" days remaining and the forecast looking gloomy.

In the Matanuska Valley on Wednesday snow dusted the Chugach. On the Kenai Peninsula, rain was raising Six-Mile River to flood levels and rafting trips had to be canceled.

So if the cold and drizzle are going to continue anyway, why not shoot for a record? The mark is well within reach, Albanese said:

"It's probably going to go down as the summer with the least number of 65-degree days."

read more...

6/22/2008

Rare' gales set to hit Britain

Britain
People across the UK are being warned to brace themselves for UNUSUALLY stormy weather as high winds and heavy rain are forecast for today. The storms - with winds which could reach 65mph across parts of Britain - are expected to peak at about midday. The worst affected areas are expected to be north Wales and northern England, but Northern Ireland and southern Scotland may also be affected. The weather was ABNORMAL for June. It is more likely to be the sort of weather that is seen in the autumn. "Although it's not unusual to have this kind of weather during the winter it's RARE to see this kind of gale this time of year. The vicious gusts of wind will not only be reserved to coastal districts but may happen further inland too. Cities such as Manchester and Leeds are in the path of the heavy weather. Irish Sea coasts will be affected with heavy waves." Strong gusts are also expected as far south as the Bristol channel, Wales, the Midlands and parts of East Anglia.
read more...

6/08/2008

Experts warn Canadians to prepare for tornadoes

Canada
Image:
This image taken from footage captured by KWTV/News 9 via CNN, shows a tornado moving through Oklahoma on Saturday May 24, 2008.

Story: Experts warn Canadians to prepare for tornadoes - For much of this year, Canadians have looked on as tornado after tornado has hit the U.S. But now, weather experts say residents here may need to prepare for twisters as well. South of the border, the U.S. already appears to be on track to set an unwanted record. If current trends hold, an unprecedented number of tornados will have touched down in the country - 1,300 tornadoes this year alone and that's before the U.S. has even reached its peak season for twisters. The latest twister hit Friday in Minnesota, making its way through the Midwest. No deaths or injuries were reported. But the twister cut a nearly-kilometre-wide path of destruction in the northwestern part of the state, destroying homes, toppling trees, and cutting power to thousands of residents. While American residents appear to be getting the worst of this season's twister season, weather experts say Canadians may not necessarily escape unscathed. Tornadoes have already hit Manitoba five times this year. One barely swept past a small community near Winnipeg. "(The region is) tapping into the high humidity that fuels these storms, and the particular jet stream and wind pattern that causes the tornadoes." Part of the problem in the U.S. may have to do with what's happening in Canada. Experts say UNUSUAL cold fronts from north of the U.S. border are flowing southwards. There they disrupt masses of moist, warm air - and that sends clouds swirling and tornadoes on their furious paths.

RELATED NEWS
Drivers in northwestern Ontario are being asked to stay off the roads following a near-record rainfall that caused flooding. The Ministry of Transportation issued the travel advisory Friday, asking people to delay or cancel their travel plans over the next couple of days after the area was hit with up to 80 millimetres of rain in a span of a few hours. The same storm system dumped heavy rain on Manitoba and spawned tornadoes in Minnesota. Several townships in the Thunder Bay area as well as the Fort William First Nation declared a state of emergency, and some residents of the village of Hymers, near Thunder Bay, were moved from their homes as a precaution. At least one major highway has been closed because of a washout, and several secondary roads have been damaged. Residents in Laird Township east of Sault Ste. Marie spent Saturday assessing the damage after being hit by what they believe was a tornado on Friday. Witnesses said the twister cut a path through a forest and the storm that accompanied it brought near golf ball-sized hail that sounded like gunfire when it hit cars and homes.

Rainy, windy weather
that knocked down power lines and led to an unusual rescue attempt was expected to set a RECORD FOR RAINFALL Friday in Winnipeg. About 35 mm of rain fell in Winnipeg between 4 a.m. and 10 a.m. - that amount matched the previous record for June 6, set back in 1982. A rainfall warning was later issued for Winnipeg with another 15 mm of rain anticipated, bringing the expected total for the day to about 50 mm. The rain caused the deaths of three peregrine falcon chicks believed to have drowned on the Radisson Hotel's 13th-storey ledge. An elite fire department team was dispatched to try to save the endangered falcons. "Unfortunately, the birds had drowned."
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4/07/2008

Spring Flooding In Mid-Western US Forecast,

USA
Image:
Swirling water destroys this levee surrounding the Clarence Cannon National Wildlife Refuge in Missouri during the flood of 1993. Robert Criss, Ph.D., WUSTL professor of earth and planetary sciences, says that levees are not infallible, and he cites a number of reasons why they are problematic to communities. (Credit: Photo courtesy of USGS)

Patterns in the Midwest this spring are eerily reminiscent of 1993 and 1994, back-to-back years of serious flooding. The great flood of 1993 caused nearly $20 billion of economic damage, damaging or destroying more than 50,000 homes and killing at least 38 people. Parallels this year include abnormally high levels of precipitation in late winter and early spring, and early flooding in various regions. In March, Missouri, Arkansas and Illinois and the Ohio River experienced flooding. A still-unknown factor is the effect of the snow melt from upstream states on river systems this spring and summer. Wisconsin, for example, had record amounts of snow this winter. Despite the similarity in conditions and periods of flooding nearly every year after those flood years more than a decade ago, one thing Midwesterners have not learned is "geologic reality". "When people build commercial or residential real estate in flood plains, when they build on sink holes, when they build on fault lines, when they build on the hillsides in L.A. that are going to burn and burn, over and over again, they're ignoring geologic reality." "Building a levee for a community simply 'certifies' that this is a great place to build more things. The Corps of Engineers will come in and claim it's a 500-year levee, which is a claim they cannot make, yet routinely do. That just encourages more infrastructure to move into these areas." Levees cause water to rise instead of spread out, and that the cumulative effect of levees and wing dykes on the large rivers north of St. Louis is beginning to manifest itself in flooding.
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4/04/2008

British summer 2008 to be warmer and wetter

Breaking Earth News
UK
Britain faces a more tropical-style summer this year, with both temperatures and rainfall predicted to be above average.

After a heatwave and drought two years ago and then record rainfall and widespread flooding last year, this summer is predicted to return to a pattern of sunny spells then rain.

However with overall temperatures and rainfall expected to be higher than average, sunny days may be warmer than usual and rainy days wetter.

Dr Brian Golding, head of forecasting, said: “We think it’s likely to be a case of a few fine days and then there’s a band of rain, perhaps some thunderstorms and then it warms up again.

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4/01/2008

Provinces brace for unusual weather patterns through 2008

Vietnam
Southern provinces this year are expected to be hit with UNUSUAL rains, storms and big floods, according to weather officials. The rainy season this year will face ABNORMAL CHANGES as a result of La Nina and El Nino meteorological phenomena. The rainy season is forecast to come 10 days earlier than the last few years, beginning in early May. The number of storms from the East Sea to coastal Vietnam could increase, especially in the southeast and Mekong River Delta provinces. In the southeastern provinces, the water level of Dong Nai, Sai Gon and Be rivers are forecast to rise rapidly between July and September, triggering submersion in some surrounding areas. The heavy rains will coincide with strong sea tides, which could lead to increased flooding. In the Mekong River Delta, floods are expected to occur from July to September as the river water will rise to the third warning level.
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1/14/2008

Gales and flash floods predicted for the UK

Breaking Earth News
United Kingdom
The UK faces flash floods and travel chaos as heavy rain and gale-force winds start to take effect, the BBC weather service has warned.

The storms are expected to drive in from the west to southern England and Wales during Tuesday.

Rain and gale-force winds are predicted to hit the rest of England, Northern Ireland and Scotland later on.

Roads and train tracks, even in city centres, face the prospect of being swamped, the BBC said.

Tomasz Schafernaker, a BBC weather forecaster, said that flash floods could be expected, even in London's underpasses, due to the volume of rain overwhelming drainage systems.

read more...

1/02/2008

Snow and ice, gales from Siberia and temperatures of -17C


At the start of the Pleistocene Period, 1.5 millions years ago, the climate of the Northern Hemisphere began to deteriorate and the Polar ice caps gradually spread southward over Europe, The Great Ice Age had begun.

Why the earth's climate should change so dramatically has been the subject of intense research and the generally accepted theories attribute these changes to variations in the earth's orbital geometry.


Great Britain
Forecasters are predicting that temperatures will drop well below freezing this week, after the spell of mild weather over the holiday period comes to an abrupt end. Snow and icy Siberian winds are forecast to hit Britain today and Thursday, causing chaos and congestion on the roads as millions return to work. The Met Office forecasts an average temperature of just 2.5C (36.5F), although it says that there will be a severe wind chill factor. The average temperature for last January was 6C. Any part of Britain could potentially wake up to snow on Thursday morning. No more than 1cm of snow is expected, although forecasters say that this could increase to 10cm (4 inches) in hilly and mountainous areas. Experts disagree on the course of the weather after this cold snap. The Met Office says that January and February look set to be unseasonably mild. A spokesman said: “The evidence we have at the moment suggests that January and February will be milder than we would normally expect at this time of year.” However, Piers Corbyn, from the long-range forecaster Weatheraction, predicted that temperatures would fall as low as minus 17C (1.5F) in mid-January, with heavy snow in the South East. “This could make this January the coldest since 1987.” A senior meteorologist at MeteoGroup, the weather division of the Press Association, said: “Apocalyptic predictions verging on prophecies of a new Ice Age need to be put into perspective. There is no doubt at all that it will feel bitterly cold, especially on Thursday and particularly in the eastern half of Britain. Strong, raw winds from the east will bring a significant wind chill and showers of sleet and snow. In the middle of winter such conditions are hardly unknown though, and in fact could be far, far worse. Indeed, some people in the western half of the country might be left wondering what all the fuss is about.”
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Record-breaking temperatures expected

Breaking Earth News
Florida, USA
Hard Freeze Warning: Protect your Plants and Animals

RECORD-BREAKING LOW TEMPERATURES expected.
Low temperatures before dawn Thursday in Daytona Beach could be a record-breaker. "We're forecasting 27 degrees. In 1979 the record low was 28 degrees for that day." This time of year often brings freezing weather to Florida. What is UNUSUAL is just how cold forecasters expect this week to get and how far south.

Forget a sweater; dig out the parka

The forecast
calls for the 1st freeze since 2005 in Pinellas County. The freeze could endanger strawberry crops and possibly citrus as well.
read more...

12/28/2007

Australian coast set for weekend of big weather

Australia
Image:
Brian Harvey surveys a storm brewing over the highway between Dubbo and Wellington in central NSW. Picture: Amos Aikman

Residents along the Queensland coast are bracing for a fierce and volatile weather system this weekend with the bureau warning of gale-force winds, dangerous surf and abnormally high tides. The Bureau of Meteorology has advised coastal communities from Bowen in north Queensland to the Gold Coast to prepare for the intense low-pressure system. Severe thunderstorms hit NSW yesterday afternoon, with heavy rains and flash flooding in the Hunter and Central Tablelands, Illawarra and western parts of Sydney. Three people were rescued yesterday after they abandoned their 10m yacht in heavy seas north of Fraser Island. Huge waves whipped up by the system will coincide with king tides and are likely to cause the biggest tides this year. The bureau is also closely watching a low-pressure system in the Gulf of Carpentaria that has the potential to develop into a cyclone early next week. Meanwhile, South Australian fire fighters are on standby over the coming days with the bureau forecasting extreme heatwave conditions throughout the state.
read more...

12/03/2007

Traders suffer as stormy weather hits

Breaking Earth News
Great Britain

CHRISTMAS shoppers abandoned high streets across the country as Wales was battered by high winds and wintry downpours.

Winds of 60mph and torrential rain and hail meant many Welsh towns and cities were far quieter than would normally be expected for the first weekend of December.

As shown in our picture above, Cardiff’s Queen Street was far from its usual logjammed state yesterday afternoon, while traders in the city’s Christmas market said footfall was down on what had been anticipated.

Meanwhile, shopkeepers in Swansea spoke of their fears about the damaging effect of a potentially disappointing Christmas period on top of a rain-ruined summer.

Forecasters last night predicted more unpleasant weather later this week, with a large depression over the Atlantic due to settle over Wales by tomorrow.

A storm front which moved in over the weekend, bringing hailstorms and high winds, led to the Severn Bridge being closed to high-sided vehicles and saw the coast of South Wales battered by huge waves.

read more...

11/30/2007

Major storm expected Sunday

Coos-Bay, Oregon
An UNUSUALLY STRONG high wind and seas event is forecast to develop along the Oregon Coast Sunday and Monday. This storm will coincide with the early days of crab season, posing a significant and dangerous impact to mariners,” and will bring with it 30-plus-foot seas. It’s no Pineapple Express, the kind that brings warm southerly winds after gathering energy in the tropics. It’s no pure Arctic blow coming down from the north, either. This storm could be considered more like a combination of the two. Two National Weather Service computer models showed a low-pressure system developing about 1,000 miles offshore on Wednesday that could bring storm-force winds of more than 55 mph and 32-foot combined seas to the coast on Sunday and Monday. It likely will track north and cross Canada. Usually, a storm prediction of that magnitude more than five days out still has some uncertainty attached to it, but this one seems especially strong for at least two reasons: computer model agreement and its low — really low — pressure. One computer model showed the system measuring 946 millibars of atmospheric pressure and another model showed it at 949 millibars. “That is EXTREMELY UNUSUAL.” High-pressure systems that bring fair weather usually measure about 1,000 millibars. The computer models differ on the speed and specific track of the storm, but its expected impact at a time when the West Coast crab fleet will be at sea has forecasters on alert. Because the system is developing so far offshore, it likely will have an occluded front — so the air won’t be that cold, but it won’t be that warm, either. Before the ocean swells hit, southerly winds will pick up and continue through the weekend, but eventually, there is the potential for a large northwest swell combined with southwest winds over some of the ocean waters. “That’s ugly.” “Gusts of 60 to 80 mph along the coast are possible with even higher gusts along the coastal headlands. Dangerous seas of 25 to 35 feet are forecast to develop. Details are not certain this early, but confidence is high that a significant event will occur. Mariners and residents along the south Oregon Coast are advised to stay informed of this developing storm.”
read more...

11/06/2007

El Nino's 'evil twin' to disrupt weather patterns worldwide

A Climate Warning From the United Nations
The weather paths caused by the phenomenon know as La Nina - the opposite of El Nino - straddle the globe.

She is capable of causing extreme weather around the world, as Atlantic Canada discovered this weekend at the hands of Noel, a storm that packed winds of 135 kilometres an hour and waves as high as 15 metres.

And there's more to come. The United Nations weather agency warns that this little girl is going to be with us for the next five months, and that could mean a bigger finish for the last month of Atlantic hurricane season, as well as heavy rain, a colder winter and more snowfall.

"These conditions can cause unusual and sometimes severe weather events ... in the immediate area of the Pacific basin but also around the world," Leslie Malone, a scientist with the World Meteorological Organization, said last week.

read more...

10/26/2007

After deadly floods, Burkina Faso faces 'wet' drought

Burkina Faso

OUAGADOUGOU (AFP)-After deadly floods that hit Burkina Faso weeks ago, the impoverished west African country faces a drought caused by an early and abrupt end to the rainy season. Fears run high that the weak rains will have a knock-on effect on food prices and would inevitably affect the next cotton harvests. The meteorological services bureau reported a "premature end" to the rains in September when crops were beginning to flower in the west, southwest and the south of the country and just before they matured in the northern parts of the country. "Starting from the second half of September, we have registered a drastic drop in the intensity of the rains.
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10/15/2007

Beware more weird weather

South Africa
Storms in South Africa are going to become more severe, an analyst at the South African Weather Service has warned. And while residents in Mamelodi, Soweto, were mopping up water and clearing up the damage to their houses this week, the weather man warned that people in low-lying areas could expect more flooding. “This year alone South Africa has seen MANY WEATHER RECORDS TUMBLING. South Africa will have to learn to cope with these extreme weather conditions. They are not going to stop.” Floods are becoming heavier and they will be a major problem in informal settlements. Climate experts have warned that there will be “an increase in severe storms, such as those associated with cut-off low-pressure systems”. “This will lead to more frequent flooding and consequent damage to farmlands, infrastructure and inhabitants of flood-prone areas." The weather service is concerned that the velocity of hailstorms on the Highveld could increase and it has detected much stronger and more damaging winds during the traditional thunderstorms that Gauteng is famous for. Last Saturday a man died in Lenasia when a tree uprooted by powerful winds fell on him. The storms also caused power failures and infrastructural damage in the south and west of Johannesburg. Several uprooted trees blocked the N12 highway. In addition, snowfalls in South Africa are increasing. Johannesburg had its first snowfall since 1981 and the weather man said that for the first time this winter snow had fallen as far north as Giyani in Limpopo. People up north are not used to the plummeting temperatures, exposing them to the dangers of hypothermia. In August the United Nations Weather Agency said that many parts of the world have experienced record extreme weather conditions since the beginning of the year, including unusual floods, heatwaves, storms and cold snaps. And the global land-surface temperatures in January and April reached the highest levels recorded for those months. Africa has had a particularly severe flooding season, affecting 22 countries including Ethiopia, Niger, Uganda and Sudan. Torrential rains uprooted the lives of more than 1.5-million people on the continent.
read more...

9/20/2007

Storm Enters Gulf of Mexico

Breaking Storm News
Gulf on High Alert

An area of low pressure has crossed the Florida Peninsula and entered the eastern Gulf of Mexico. The low is expected to develop into a tropical depression later today and will strike the Gulf Coast late this weekend.


The low could develop into the 10th tropical depression within the next 12-24 hours. It is expected to strengthen into a tropical storm on Friday before affecting the central Gulf Coast late Friday or early Saturday.

Image Above: All interests in the Gulf and along the Gulf Coast from Alabama to South Texas should closely monitor the storm's development. While it is still early to determine the exact path of the system, the majority of computer models show the system striking the Gulf Coast near the Mississippi - Louisiana state line.
read more...

9/19/2007

Trouble for the Gulf of Mexico this Weekend

Breaking Storm News Alert
Florida, USA

A low pressure system currently off the east coast of Florida by this weekend could become the next tropical system to develop in the Gulf of Mexico.

The South Regional News story reports that the low pressure system between Florida and the Bahamas will continue to soak the Florida peninsula and the Southeast coast through Thursday.




By Thursday, the storm will cross Florida and enter the Gulf of Mexico. As forecast in the accompanying video.
The low could develop tropical characteristics as it moves over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.



read more...

9/04/2007

NASA: Global warming to cause more severe storms in USA

A tornado roars across the Texas prairie

Breaking Earth News

USA

WASHINGTON — As the world warms, the USA will face more severe thunderstorms with deadly lightning, damaging hail and the potential for tornadoes, a trailblazing study by NASA scientists suggests.

While other research has warned of broad weather changes on a large scale, like more extreme hurricanes and droughts, the new study predicts even smaller events like thunderstorms will be more dangerous because of global warming.

The basic ingredients for whopper U.S. inland storms are likely to be more plentiful in a warmer, moister world, said lead author Tony Del Genio, a NASA research scientist.

And when that happens, watch out.

"The strongest thunderstorms, the strongest severe storms and tornadoes are likely to happen more often and be stronger," Del Genio said in an interview Thursday from his office at the Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York. The paper he co-authored was published online this month in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

ORIGINAL SOURCE: Read article abstract

RELATED VIDEO





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