“Barely two weeks after a prolific ocean-effect snowstorm dropped seven feet of snow and stranded thousands of motorists, the new year in Japan kicked off with another severe snowstorm. Up to another 85 inches fell through Saturday amid strong winds and record cold temperatures.
“The mind-boggling snowfall is linked to a pair of record-breaking weather systems… Mountainous areas of Japan are bracing for yet another dump of heavy snow over the next five days.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2021/01/04/japan-ocean-effect-snow/
“Over 4,200 people are still living in temporary housing in Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan, about six months after a deadly rain disaster mainly hit the southern part of the prefecture…
“In Kumamoto, 65 people died due to the flooding of the Kuma River and landslides, while two remain missing.”
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2021/01/04/national/temporary-housing-kumamoto-rain/
“Two cold fronts are forecast to sweep across northern and eastern parts of China this week, bringing gales and low temperatures, the country’s meteorological authority said on Monday…
“Temperatures in parts of northern China are likely to reach record lows over the next few days, according to the National Meteorological Center.”
https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202101/1211758.shtml
“As we all know it was a wet December in Juneau and Southeast Alaska…
“Meteorologist Kayla Tinker says widespread record rainfall paired with warmer than normal temperatures caused numerous landslides across Southeast Alaska. On December 1, Juneau recorded the largest 24-hour rainfall recorded since records began in 1936…”
https://www.kinyradio.com/news/news-of-the-north/december-was-wet-in-juneau-and-southeast-alaska/
“Two rare tornadoes hit Northern California:
“Two tornadoes touched down in Tehama County on Monday afternoon, causing tree and power line damage but no fatalities, according to the National Weather Service.”
https://www.sfchronicle.com/news/article/Two-rare-tornadoes-hit-Northern-California-15846176.php
“Last year ended up as Phoenix’s second warmest year since record-keeping began in 1896. The city’s average daily temperature was 77.2 degrees for 2020, only one-tenth of a degree behind the record-holding year of 2017.
“Although 2020 barely missed out on that title of hottest-ever year, July and August 2020 will go down as the two hottest months in Phoenix history.”
https://fronterasdesk.org/content/1647719/dozens-weather-records-fall-hot-dry-year-phoenix
“The National Weather Service says 2020 was the warmest year on record for Portland, Maine. The average temperature for the year was 49.4 degrees Fahrenheit (9.7 Celsius), breaking the previous records set in 2010 and 2012. Records go back to 1940.”
“Bolivia’s Tuni glacier is disappearing, and so is the water it supplies:
“Bolivia’s Tuni glacier is disappearing faster than initially anticipated, according to scientists in the Andean nation, a predicament that will likely make worse water shortages already plaguing the capital La Paz, just 60 km away.”
https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-bolivia-environment-glacier-idUKKBN29929U
“Video obtained by Reuters showed flooding along the Guillermo Loayza, a street close to the Mercado Campesino, the Sucre’s largest market [Bolivia].
“At least four were killed in the flash flood, police said, which occurred after torrential rain and hail hit the city. Local media reported that the storm lasted about 30 minutes.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5VCzXz3SPc
“Bolsonaro sent soldiers to the Amazon to curb deforestation. Here’s how the effort failed.
“…Now, with Brazil consumed by the coronavirus, the Amazon is inching closer to what scientists warn is a tipping point, when large swaths of rainforest transform into arid savanna.”
“France’s largest glacier is sliding down due to global warming:
“Today, the Mer de Glace remains the biggest glacier in France, and the second largest in the Alps. But it’s also become a symbol of the rapid pace of global warming. Mont Blanc is heating up more than twice as fast as the rest of the world.”
“The year 2020 was the hottest year in France since records began in 1900, state weather forecaster Meteo France said, in a new sign of the warming of the planet.
“It said that the average temperature across France in 2020 was 14 degrees Celsius (57.2 degrees Fahrenheit), beating the 13.9C (57 Fahrenheit) recorded in 2018, it wrote on Twitter.”
“2020 warmest year in Estonian climate history:
“Last year, the average air temperature in Estonia was 8.4 degrees Celsius [47.1F], which is 2.4 degrees Celsius higher than the long-term average and 0.8 degrees Celsius higher than the previous record. 2020 can be considered the warmest year in Estonian climate history so far.”
https://news.err.ee/1227505/2020-warmest-year-in-estonian-climate-history
“Some Kenyan students in Kisumu county, close to the overflowing Lake Victoria, are forced to take a boat to school, only to find waterlogged classrooms and no teachers on site.
“Public schools have reopened in Kenya following a closure ordered by the government in March 2020 to curb the spread of Covid-19.”
https://www.africanews.com/2021/01/04/taking-the-boat-to-school-in-flooded-western-kenya/
“Depletion Of Mangroves [Pakistan]: Ecosystem Posing Threat To Sea Communities, Biodiversity:
“…a significant increase in marine water pollution, reduction in the river water supply, alarming overharvesting of the mangroves by the local communities in the Indus Delta, coastal erosion and sedimentation, are the major causes of this loss.”
https://www.urdupoint.com/en/blog/depletion-of-mangroves-ecosystem-posing-thre-1131490.html
“Delhi recorded 39.8mm [1.6 inches] rainfall in the past 48 hours (25mm + 14.8mm) to break 20 years record since 2000 of the highest rainfall in the month of January…
“This month also happens to be 3rd consecutive month to record above-normal rainfall for Delhi.”
“The number of people evacuated due to floods in Malaysia caused by monsoon rains exceeded 20,000 early Tuesday.
“A total of 20,838 people affected by the monsoon rains since Jan. 1 in the Pahang, Johor, Kelantan, Terengganu, Selangor, and Perak states were taken to safe places, Malaysian authorities said… the death toll due to the floods rose to three.”
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/over-20-000-evacuated-due-to-floods-in-malaysia/2098421
“At least five people were killed in floods that deluged south of Luzon island sitting at the northern end of the Philippines, officials said Tuesday…
“The region has been hit by heavy and torrential rains over the last few days, affecting dozens of families who were shifted to safer places.”
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/philippines-floods-kill-5-search-for-missing-ongoing/2098664
“Hundreds of people in Far North Queensland are set to spend a second night without power after Tropical Cyclone Imogen crossed the coast…
“Normanton Airport recorded 259 millimetres [10.2 inches], with 186mm [7.3 inches] of that falling in just three hours.”
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-01-04/tropical-cyclone-imogen-brings-rain-gulf-qld/13029072
“Australia has had a cooler December than November for the first time in 70 years and only the second time in more than a century.
“The Bureau of Meteorology’s climate team told Yahoo New Australia it was 1959 when Australia last had a warmer November than December.”
“A Far North kaitiaki [guardian] has described her horror after a historic fire on Manawatāwhi Island/Great Island [New Zealand] threatened the world’s rarest tree.
“Two Skyworks helicopters dropped 55,000 litres of water on the 15 by 25-metre blaze which was spotted on the island – about 60km northwest of Cape Rēinga – by a charter boat about 9.30pm on Saturday.”
“On his way out, Trump opens more Arctic land for US oil drilling:
“The Trump plan allows leasing in the largest lake in Arctic Alaska which has been off-limits since the Reagan era.”
“What is happening with Arctic weather? Moscow wants to know: The Russian government decides to upgrade 123 meteorological stations in the Arctic…
“The main motivation for the initiative is to provide safer shipping along the Northern Sea Route.”
https://thebarentsobserver.com/en/arctic/2021/01/what-happening-arctic-weather-moscow-wants-know
“The Arctic is in big trouble… 5 Infographics Showing the Alarming State of the Arctic.”
“The tiny zooplankton at the centre of the Arctic food web are being forced to end their winter ocean hibernation early in areas where the sea ice is melting – throwing the entire local eco-system into disarray, a team of scientists has found…
“It’s unclear exactly what the effect of their changing habits will be on the broader environment in which they live but since they lies at the centre of the eco-system it seems likely to be considerable.”
“Alongside a deadly pandemic, 2020 also delivered reminders of the severity of the climate crisis facing the world…
“Images of some of these climate events — visually stunning and sobering in equal measure — have been captured by NASA’s fleet of Earth-observing satellites and instruments found on the International Space Station.”
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/04/world/nasa-images-2020-climate-intl-scli/index.html
You can read the previous ‘Climate’ thread here. I’ll be back tomorrow with an ‘Economic’ thread.
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