“March through May — spring in the Northern Hemisphere — was the second warmest such period in records dating back to 1880, according to a new analysis out today from NASA…
“…the high latitudes continue to warm more intensely than other regions, with Alaska, parts of Canada and northern Siberia standing out as being extremely warm. That’s clearly visible in the anomaly maps above.
“Most recently, torrid temperatures as much as 40 degrees above normal over Greenland caused about 45 percent of the island’s giant ice sheet to experience melting at the surface.
“The Arctic’s floating lid of sea ice is suffering as well…”
“In the Chesapeake Bay and along the Gulf Coast, people can contract a dangerous flesh-eating bacterial infection after eating or handling raw shellfish.
“Infections caused by Vibrio vulnificus can result in tissue death, and sometimes lead to limb amputations. Fortunately they’re also rare in the US.
“But a case report published today in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine suggests that rising ocean temperatures may lead the bacteria to spread to previously unaffected waters.”
“With the Arctic’s warming from climate change, Arctic ecosystems are changing, too. Boreal forests are moving northward into the tundra, and tundra is expanding into polar desert, bringing along new populations of animals and insects that can spread diseases from the south.
“But not only can a changing climate increase the range of disease vectors like mosquitoes, ticks, and rodents: it can also make it easier for them to survive.”
https://www.thearcticinstitute.org/climate-change-spread-infectious-diseases-arctic-infographic/
“Accelerating erosion is forcing villages in western Alaska to begin making plans to move. Alaska’s Energy Desk reported Monday that erosion caused by climate change threatens village infrastructure and could force the relocation of communities such as Quinhagak…
“Officials say erosion now threatens Quinhagak’s airstrip, water treatment plant and water and sewer system.”
““I’ve had three-tenths of an inch of rain since seeding, so [the crop] needs a drink of water,” Wellman said. Wellman is one of many farmers looking skyward as drought conditions take hold of the province [Saskatchewan, Canada].
“Saskatoon and Moose Jaw had the driest spring ever recorded for the cities.”
https://globalnews.ca/news/5400634/saskatchewan-farmers-rain-drought/
“Last month, Chicago recorded the wettest May in city history, according to the weather service.
“This year’s record-setting rainfall eclipsed Chicago’s previous record set just last year.”
“Corn prices are rising this spring as heavy rains across the Midwest lay waste to this year’s crop.
“On Monday, the corn futures price for July opened at $4.54 per bushel — the highest it’s been in five years, according to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
“The price leap comes as growers continue battling to get their corn in the ground.”
“Following clusters of severe thunderstorms that will unleash localized flooding through Tuesday, a more widespread severe weather episode that may unleash tornadoes is likely on Wednesday in part of the central United States. Into Tuesday night, the weather pattern will produce complexes of heavy, gusty and locally severe thunderstorms over parts of the Plains and the Mississippi, Ohio and Tennessee valleys.”
“Major landslides in central Colombia have destroyed the road that connects the eastern plains with the rest of the country.
“A number of landslides in Guayabetal, some 50 kilometers southeast of the capital Bogota, is severely complicating transport, the food supply and trade to the eight provinces that makes up the eastern plains.”
https://colombiareports.com/landslides-virtually-disconnect-one-third-of-colombia-from-civilization/
“The director of the National Emergency Committee [Uruguay], Juan Andrés Roballo, estimated that there are more than 3,000 people displaced by the flood of rivers and streams throughout the country.
“The number of displaced people could be further increased in the coming hours, taking into account the accumulated rainfall in the Yi River and the rainfall forecast for the region, said Roballo.”
https://www.subrayado.com.uy/mas-3000-personas-desplazadas-inundaciones-durazno-y-florida-n536540
“Sunday was the fifth-consecutive day a daily record high was set or tied in Honolulu. Numerous record highs have been set in Honolulu and other parts of Hawaii since mid-May.
“Warmer-than-average sea-surface temperatures are playing a role in the record-breaking temperatures.”
https://weather.com/safety/heat/news/2019-06-17-hawaii-record-highs-honolulu-june-may-2019
“A graph has revealed the frightening impact of climate change on New Zealand.
“Using data from Berkeley Earth, an independent scientific research organisation focused on climate change and global warming.”
“Australia on Tuesday lowered its forecast for wheat exports over the 2019/20 season by nearly 18% as a drought wilts crops in the world’s No.4 exporter of the grain.
“That comes after Australia’s chief commodity forecaster last week cut its production forecast for the 2019/20 harvest by more than 11% as the drought leaves crops struggling to survive.”
“At least five people died as of 5 a.m. Monday after rain-triggered floods and landslides hit southern China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, local authorities said Monday.
“Torrential rain swept Guangxi’s Lingyun County late Sunday and triggered landslides that killed two people. Multiple vehicles were carried by flash floods at a road section from Lingyun to Baise. Rescuers have found four vehicles and three people were confirmed dead.”
https://reliefweb.int/report/china/rain-triggered-flood-leaves-5-dead-south-chinas-guangxi
“As the impacts of climate change become more apparent worldwide, members of the public are connecting more weather events to the phenomenon. In March and April, for example, extreme heat baked mainland Southeast Asia.
“On April 20, Vietnam set an all-time observed record high temperature, 43 degrees Celsius (110 degrees Fahrenheit), and neighboring Cambodia suffered as well.
“This led to public criticism there that deforestation in the country has contributed to elevated temperatures.”
“In the age of borewells, the emphasis has to revert to traditional harvesting [in India]. Recharging the depleting groundwater in a sustainable manner is urgently required. But this cannot be in isolation.
“Destroying forests, water bodies, catchment areas in the name of development must cease. Otherwise, crossing the Rubicon may turn out to be catastrophic.”
https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/comment/india-is-drying-up-fast/789376.html
“A woman gets stabbed with a knife by a neighbour over a water dispute. No, this is not the imagery of the dystopian situation that awaits us in future. Instead, it is very much the reality of our times [Tamil Nadu, India].”
https://thelogicalindian.com/awareness/tamil-nadu-water-crisis/
“Torrential rains and widespread flooding across 12 governorates in Yemen in recent weeks have affected tens of thousands of people, leaving many in urgent need of emergency assistance.
“Humanitarian assessments are ongoing, but preliminary reports from local authorities indicate that more than 80,000 people have been impacted. Initial reports are that the floods have also claimed at least three lives, but the full extent of casualties is still not known.”
“A regional drought has reduced water levels at Kariba Dam, the main source of power for Zambia and Zimbabwe, to less than a third of its capacity. The dam is only 29% full, compared with 88% a year ago and 31% at the start of June, the Zambezi River Authority said in an emailed statement on Tuesday.
“Zimbabwean Energy Minister Fortune Chasi warned last month that Zimbabwe will suspend electricity production at Kariba in September if current rates of depletion continue.”
“This June, Russia has been experiencing well above normal temperatures. Moscow hit 32°C last week with thousands of residents evacuated from their homes, many of which lack air condition systems. The heat has been on during the final stretch of spring across many other areas of northern Europe, where daytime temperature records have been the norm.
“Now residents are especially concerned that this summer will be another scorcher in many areas of the continent.”
“The point is, the Northern Hemisphere is really, really hot right now and summer has barely begun.
“If it seems like these record heat waves are happening more often, that’s because they are — and, according to a new study published today (June 17) in the journal Nature Climate Change, this scorching trend will continue for most of the globe every single year…”
https://www.livescience.com/65721-climate-change-neverending-heat-wave.html
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