Tag: Extreme Weather
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BOM Christmas Weather: West Heat, East Cool Across Australia
Australia’s Christmas Weather Snapshot Australians are bracing for a dynamic and at times volatile Christmas week as the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) maps out a smorgasbord of weather across the country. The west is set to endure a heat wave with high humidity, while the eastern states can expect cooler and more unsettled conditions. The…
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Wildfire Smoke Lofting Miles High Could Reshape Earth’s Climate
Introduction: When Wildfires Create Their Own Weather Wildfires go beyond burning forests and homes. In extreme cases, they can generate their own weather systems, including pyrocumulonimbus storms that lift smoke and fire gases high into the sky. These towering plumes can reach the upper troposphere and even the lower stratosphere, as high as 10 miles…
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Xcel Likely to Cut Power to Front Range Communities Amid Dry Conditions and High Winds
Overview: Planned Outages and What They Mean Colorado’s Front Range faces a critical period of fire risk as unseasonably dry conditions collide with strong winds. Xcel Energy is expected to shut off power to a number of Front Range communities starting at noon on Wednesday to reduce the chances of electric equipment sparking wildfires. The…
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California Atmospheric River Intensifies: Latest Forecast and Impacts
Overview: A Powerful Atmospheric River Hits California Storm systems rolling in from the Pacific have intensified into a strong atmospheric river along the California coast. Forecasters warn that the surge of moisture could bring heavy rainfall, dangerous flooding, and landslides, particularly in recently burned areas where vegetation has not yet stabilized soil. The event is…
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Fast Facts: What science says about Super Typhoon Uwan
Understanding Uwan’s Record Size Super Typhoon Uwan dwarfed many storms this year in sheer width, with a diameter surpassing 1,800 kilometers at its peak. In meteorological terms, size refers to the extent of cloud cover and the gale- or cyclone-force wind field, not just the strongest winds near the center. When a storm’s circulation spans…
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Deadly Tornado Rips Through Brazil’s Parana State, Leaving Six Dead and Hundreds Injured
Overview of the Tragic Event A powerful tornado tore through parts of Brazil’s southern Parana state late Friday night, leaving a trail of devastation across several communities. Local authorities reported at least six fatalities and hundreds of injuries as emergency crews continue to assess the damage and search for those still missing. Dozens of residences…
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Megawaves from Space: Satellite-recorded Ocean Swells Reach Five-Giraffe Heights
Introduction: A Breakthrough View from Space Satellite observations have unveiled a striking fact about storms: they can generate mega ocean waves that look like they reach the height of five giraffes stacked on top of each other. In late December 2024, during Storm Eddie, the French-US SWOT satellite captured measurements showing waves averaging nearly 20…
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Australia Faces Soaring Extreme Weather Losses: Why Insurance and Resilience Must Evolve
Australia’s rising climate bill: a global pattern with local consequences New data from the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) show that Australia sits near the top of the world for per‑capita losses from extreme weather. Over the past five decades, inflation‑adjusted costs from floods, bushfires, storms and extreme cold have climbed dramatically, positioning Australia behind…
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Australia’s Extreme Weather Losses Rise: What It Means for Insurance and Resilience
Australia’s Extreme Weather Losses Are Rising New data from the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) shows that Australia has some of the highest per‑capita losses from natural catastrophes in the world. Compared with five other developed nations over the past five decades, Australia’s inflation-adjusted costs from floods, bushfires, storms and extreme cold are climbing, driven…
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Mount Everest Rescue Under Way After Snowstorm Traps Hikers
Overview: Everest rescue efforts amid a severe snowstorm Rescue operations are ongoing on Mount Everest after a blizzard trapped hundreds, potentially close to a thousand, trekkers in camps along the eastern side of the mountain in Tibet. State media reports indicate that heavy precipitation, including rain and snowfall, has disrupted access to several valleys leading…