“Extraordinary heat wave in Northern Africa/Middle East:
“Chad: 45.8C [114.4F]; Senegal and Niger: 45.5C; Libya: 44.8C; (unprecedented for this time of the year); Algeria: 43.5C (record heat for this time of the year); Israel and Jordan: 42.0C (also record heat for this time of the year).”
https://twitter.com/extremetemps/status/1511780746704441351
“Tap dreams: rural arid Africa sits on water it cannot reach…
“Hydrogeologists trained at locating groundwater are in short supply, experts say. If water is found, some of the most reliable aquifers can be 400 metres down, ten times the depth of the Tata Bathily wells. Drilling a hole that deep costs about $20,000.”
“The perilous road to recovery in Madagascar’s cyclone-hit east.
“Al Jazeera travelled along Madagascar’s ravaged coast, where residents feel left behind weeks after the deadly storms… at least 46,000 residences have been destroyed or damaged across the island during this cyclone season.”
“Melting snow has caused severe flooding in several regions of Kazakhstan, forcing hundreds of people to flee their homes and killing livestock.
“Emergencies Minister Yury Ilyin said on April 6 that 185 residential buildings and 78 summer houses were affected by heavy flooding in the country.”
https://www.rferl.org/a/kazakhstan-flooding/31789035.html
“Climate Change Is Making Afghanistan’s Hunger Crisis Worse…
“The fallout from the Taliban’s takeover, coupled with the drought and soaring wheat prices thanks to Russia’s war with Ukraine, means that some 10 million people — more than a quarter of Afghanistan’s population — are near famine.”
“Global warming behind India’s hottest March on record, Minister informs Lok Sabha…
“At an average 33.1 degrees, the median maximum temperature of March was at an all-time high of about 1.8 degrees above normal when compared to the reference period of 1981-2010.”
“Indonesia’s Riau province declares state of emergency ahead of fire season…
“Even before the onset of the dry season — since the beginning of the year, in fact — fire hotspots and incidents have spread in the province, according to the provincial office of Indonesia’s weather and climatology agency, the BMKG.”
“How Orangutans Changed Their Behavior After Devastating Fires…
“A recent paper in the International Journal of Primatology documents these behavioral changes and shows, says study author and University of Zurich primatologist Maria van Noordwijk, “These fires really have a long-term effect.””
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/orangutan-borneo-fire
“Little more than three months into 2022, Sydney has already weathered its annual rainfall.
“This current deluge has added to a growing pool of evidence gathered by scientists showing that weather patterns are shifting as the climate warms, leaving Australia’s east coast generally hotter and dryer, at least until the rain sets in.”
“Sydney flooding: Evacuations as Australian city receives a month’s rain in one night.
“Residents in parts of Sydney in Australia were ordered to evacuate to safety on Thursday after torrential rains lashed the east coast. Sydney received nearly a month’s rain in just one night.”
“A seven-month-old baby and four women were charred to death in a forest fire that engulfed an indigenous Guatemalan town, authorities said on Monday.
“Firefighters said the blaze erupted in the San Pedro Jocopilas municipality of the Quiché province, about 150 km northwest of Guatemala City.”
https://www.laprensalatina.com/infant-among-five-charred-to-death-in-guatemala-forest-fire/
“Heat wave in Mexico 2022: These 14 states will have temperatures of up to 45 degrees [113F] this April 7.
“A very hot environment is expected …in the north and center of Campeche, north and northwest of Guerrero, the south of Jalisco, the west and south of Michoacán, south and southeast of Nayarit, north of Sinaloa, south of Sonora and the center and west of Yucatan.”
“Extreme heat wave in Mexico and Southern Texas. On 6th April 110F/43.3C was reached at Rio Grande and Falcon Lake in Texas.
“This should tie the earliest 110F ever recorded in the USA (=6 April 1989 at Mecca and Ontario AP, CA). Mc Allen with 108F broke its April heat record.”
https://twitter.com/extremetemps/status/1511828812719439883
“The Texas drought is the worst in years. Are we on the brink of widespread disaster?
“Texas is in the worst drought conditions since 2011, when 95% of the state was in drought. Eleven years ago, parched conditions caused over $7 billion in crop and livestock losses, sparked wildfires, pushed power grids to the limits… As of March 29, 88% of Texas was in drought conditions.”
https://www.star-telegram.com/news/state/texas/article260135445.html
“Developers are flooding Arizona with homes even as historic Western drought intensifies.
“California just experienced its driest January and February ever, and the snowpack is dangerously low. As the West enters its third year of drought, water sources are drying up, and restrictions on the Colorado River are now hitting all sectors of the Western economy, including homebuilding.”
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/04/05/developers-flood-arizona-with-homes-even-as-drought-intensifies.html
“Colorado’s top wind gusts were over 100 mph. How long will the wind stick around?
“The National Weather Service reported two gusts topping 100 mph Tuesday. A reporting station 8 miles south-southeast of Fraser recorded a gust of 116 mph, and one 7 miles southwest of Frisco reported 103 mph.”
“Two people killed as violent storms rip across Georgia and Texas.
“Violent storms killed at least two people, one in Georgia and another in Texas, on Tuesday as hail, strong winds and tornadoes tore across the south, where authorities warned a second day of dangerous weather of violent weather could follow.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/apr/06/two-killed-violent-storms-georgia-texas
“Hail the size of golf balls shatter car windows in Florida.
“Central Florida may be getting ready for some storms, but people in Sebring are already cleaning up. Hail the size of golf balls hit the area on Monday. Photos show the damage the hail caused, including smashing out the back window of cars!”
https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/hail-the-size-of-golf-balls-shatters-car-window-in-florida
“West London river ‘dries up’ completely in spring heatwave as wildlife struggles to survive.
“A river in West London has dried up completely and the wildlife has been left in danger due to the unprecedented amount of sunshine London has had at the start of spring. Environmental teams have battled hard over the last few days to refill the waterway…”
https://www.mylondon.news/news/west-london-news/west-london-river-dries-up-23617909
“North Italy suffers over 100 days of drought.
“Springtime brings the so-called ‘Caldaia di Maggio’ to Barolo, a noise similar to a kettle simmering that is caused by evaporating water in the soils. This year, however, it’s unlikely that this phenomenon will occur. Drought is affecting the entire north of Italy…”
https://www.decanter.com/wine-news/north-italy-suffers-over-100-days-of-drought-477652/
“A whopping [approx eight inches] of rain fell in the region [of Murcia, southern Spain] last month, the highest since records began in 1962, leading to landslides and widespread havoc.”
“Axarquia beaches destroyed during worst storm in 40 years on the Costa del Sol [Spain]…
“The waves have reached the promenades of Torrox, Algarrobo, Vélez-Málaga and Rincón de la Victoria, hitting numerous beach bars and washing away installations including showers, litter bins, parasols, sun loungers and children’s playgrounds.”
https://www.surinenglish.com/malaga/axarquia/axarquia-beaches-destroyed-20220405155455-nt.html
“Climate-warming microbes thrive in drying peatlands…
“During the study, a large amount of nitrifiers were found in both dry and wet peatlands. This is a sure sign of climate change that has temporarily drawn down the water table and introduced oxygen in wet peatlands.”
https://phys.org/news/2022-04-climate-warming-microbes-peatlands.html
“The world’s ‘plastic flood’ has reached the Arctic.
““All spheres” of the Arctic, from seafloors to rivers to remote areas of ice and snow, are now littered with “high concentrations” of waste plastics, scientists have said – and the situation is worsening.”
https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/plastic-waste-arctic-ocean-pollution-b2051099.html
“Disappearing Arctic Sea Ice Might Spell Doom for Plankton…
“Previous hypotheses stated that as the seas warmed, these organisms, which are dependent on the sun to survive, would become more numerous. However, a new study published in Nature Geoscience presents evidence that contradicts that widely held belief, making it clear there are other factors that will affect the plankton population…”
https://now.northropgrumman.com/disappearing-arctic-sea-ice-might-spell-doom-for-plankton/
“New link between greenhouse gasses and sea level rise.
“A new study provides the first evidence that rising greenhouse gases have a long-term warming effect on the Amundsen Sea in West Antarctica. Scientists from British Antarctic Survey (BAS) say that while others have proposed this link, no one has been able to demonstrate it.”
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/04/220406101737.htm
You can read the previous ‘Climate’ thread here. I’ll be back tomorrow with an ‘Economic’ thread…
And btw, a quick note on yesterday’s: some feedback re my lead story about the potentially disastrous, global effects of Western sanctions on Russia and China made me want to reaffirm that I post a patchwork quilt of articles in order to shed light on the totality of our situation; I am in no way endorsing the perspectives of individual journalists and articles.
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