“Amount of ocean heat found to be accelerating and fuelling extreme weather events [picture from Sunday’s flooding in Crete]…
“The amount of heat accumulating in the ocean is accelerating and penetrating ever deeper, with widespread effects on extreme weather events and marine life, according to a new scientific review…
“More than 90% of the heat caused by adding greenhouse gases to the atmosphere through burning fossil fuels is taken up by the ocean. The rate of warming in the top 2km has doubled from levels in the 1960s, the article in the journal Nature Reviews: Earth and Environment said.”
“Significant warming heads into Greenland this week…
“”Extreme dynamism will characterize the Northern Hemisphere weather next week… “Temperature anomalies are forecasted to exceed +20°C over much of Greenland where warming will be significant.”
“Cold blast to bring record-breaking temperatures to large part of U.S. this week.
“Freeze watches and warnings are in effect as far west as Colorado, into the Northeast and south to Florida, according to the National Weather Service. Temperatures of 35 degrees and colder are expected to affect all but a handful of states throughout the week.”
“The Mississippi River reached a record low Monday afternoon, the National Weather Service in Memphis said. The previous record was set in 1988.
“The new low, -10.71 feet, was measured at the meter just southwest of the I-55 “Old Bridge,” and had gone even lower, down to -10.75 feet, by 2 p.m. Meteorologist Sheana Walsh said… although the river has reached a new low, the river should continue to get lower…”
“The Platte River is almost entirely dry downstream of Kearney, NE. Almost all of Nebraska is in drought with over a third in extreme or worse condition.”
Photo by UNL photographer, Craig Chandler.
https://twitter.com/DroughtCenter/status/1582005283353923584
“U.S. winter wheat farmers plant into dust as Plains drought persists.
“With planting roughly halfway complete, the 2023 U.S. hard red winter wheat crop is already being hobbled by drought in the heart of the southern Plains, wheat experts said. Planting plans may be scaled back in the U.S. breadbasket despite historically high prices for this time of year…”
“How the Great Plains Dust Bowl drought spread heat extremes around the Northern Hemisphere…
“A climate model sensitivity experiment is used to identify a new mechanism involving a warm season circumglobal atmospheric teleconnection pattern that spread heat extremes over far-flung areas of the Northern Hemisphere arising from the intense heating over the desiccated Great Plains themselves.”
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-22262-5
“Wildfires in US west fueling extreme weather in other states, study finds.
“The new study, published by the department’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, for the first time links extreme hail, dangerous deluges, and the growing risk of flash floods in states like Colorado, Wyoming, Oklahoma and Nebraska to the growing intensity of wildfires in the west.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/oct/17/wildfires-us-west-extreme-weather-central-states
“2020 wildfire season in California wiped away 16 years of climate gains…
“California’s wildfires in 2020 caused twice the amount of greenhouse gas emissions that the state successfully cut between 2003 and 2019. In other words, 2020’s wildfire season, which set a record for the number of acres burned in the state, essentially wiped out 16 years of progress…”
“State of emergency declared on B.C.’s Sunshine Coast because of drought.
“A state of local emergency declared on the Sunshine Coast because of drought includes an order for breweries, water bottlers and non-medical cannabis growers to shut down water use starting at 11:59 p.m. PT on Tuesday.”
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/sunshine-coast-state-of-emergency-1.6619595
“We’ve had the driest 90-day period ever recorded in Greater Victoria — and for major cities in Canada…
“The federal Gonzales station opened in 1914, but data for the area goes back to 1898, when weather patterns were collected at a former station on Cook Street. It is considered one of the longest-running set of measurements on the Pacific coast of North America.”
“Extreme weather pattern in Canada today. Alberta had up to 28.3°C in Glenwood (1,074 m!). Also 25.8°C [78.4F] in Calgary. These are record levels for this time of year.
“Meanwhile, Winnipeg had a min of -10.3°C (near record for mid-October) and the Midwest had up to 30 cm of snow!”
https://twitter.com/ThierryGooseBC/status/1582181418536701952
“Florida flesh-eating illness cases spike after Hurricane Ian…
“Vibrio vulnificus infections can be caused after bacteria enters the body through open cuts. The bacteria lives in warm brackish water, like standing floodwaters… According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, around one in five Vibrio vulnificus patients dies, sometimes within only a day or two of becoming ill.”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-63309246
“Puerto Rico struggles to recover after hurricane razed crops.
“Hurricane Fiona destroyed $159 million worth of crops in Puerto Rico when it hit a month ago, decimating fields of plantains, bananas and other crops, the island’s agriculture minister said Tuesday.”
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/ap-puerto-rico-dominican-republic-mexico-b2205588.html
“At least three people have been killed in northern Venezuela after another landslide swept away vehicles, trees and huge boulders, destroying everything in its path.
“The landslide in El Castano, a neighbourhood in the town of Maracay, about 120km (75 miles) west of the capital Caracas, was caused by intense rain and flooding and came about a week after more than 50 people died in a similar incident…”
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/10/18/at-least-3-dead-in-another-landslide-in-venezuela
“Beef is still coming from protected areas in the Amazon, study shows…
““Lack of animal traceability allows ranchers to use legalized farms to conceal sales of cattle raised in illegal areas through false declarations of origin,” a practice some call “cattle washing,” as Repórter Brasil reported.”
“Scarce rains in Argentina pile on trouble for grain crops…
“The dry weather comes just as wheat farmers approach the crucial wheat harvest months of November through January, when the 2022/23 crop is gathered. Argentina is a top global grains supplier, and farm exports also supply crucial revenue for the country’s cash-strapped government.”
“Glaciers in the Alps are melting faster than ever – and 2022 was their worst summer yet…
“By July, the Alps looked like they normally look in September: snow free, with snow and ice-fed rivers flowing at their peak. This was not normal… for the first time ever, Zermatt closed its summer skiing. Guides stopped leading high mountain expeditions as permafrost – the frozen ground that binds rocks together – was thawing and causing almost constant rockfalls. Mont Blanc was closed.”
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/glaciers-alps-melting-faster-ever-163755534.html
“Today 18 October is another incredibly hot day in Spain and France.
“SPAIN: 35.8C at Loja [96.4F], 35.1C Granada Airport (new monthly record); FRANCE: 33.8C at Orthez and Navarrenx; 9 stations >32C, 29 >31C, 51 station >= 30C! It’s just mind blowing for an Oct 18th. 38C also in Morocco.”
https://twitter.com/extremetemps/status/1582407270868344834
“Yesterday it was a very hot day in Algeria even on the coast. Some October records were broken: the airport of Oran rose to 40.4C [104.7F], Relizane 38.2C, Ghazaouet 36.3C and Oran Port 34.2C.
“Up north in the Italian Alps,Plateau Rosa (3400m asl) broke its monthly record with 7.9C.”
https://twitter.com/extremetemps/status/1582280331708678147
“‘It’s never been this bad’: Floods in Nigeria submerge entire communities…
“We have experienced floods before but it has never been this bad. You can’t use a vehicle anymore, you have to use boats to come and go. It’s very dangerous. I even knew someone who tried it and the floods took her away and she is dead now. When you’re in a canoe you see a lot of death on the water.”
https://observers.france24.com/en/africa/20221018-nigeria-floods-submerge-entire-communities
“Drought and floods leave Chad herders without food, milk…
“The nomads depend on the milk for their livelihood. Like nearly 5 million in the country of 16.4 million, they face acute hunger… their situation is barely sustainable. The scrubland where they stopped has no pasture and water for their tired, ailing herd.”
https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/drought-floods-leave-chad-herders-without-food-milk-2022-10-17/
“Tea volumes at Mombasa [Kenya] auction dip as drought ravages the region.
“The volume of tea auctioned at the Mombasa bourse has gone down significantly, with officials warning the trend may worsen in the next decade due to erratic weather… EATTA managing director Edward Mudibo said the decline in volume of tea offered for sale at the Mombasa auction was as a result of ongoing drought.”
https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/business/tea-volumes-at-mombasa-auction-dip-3989062
“Northern Cape farmers suffer devastating losses in wildfires.
“Many farmers in the Northern Cape have been left in dire straits following wildfires that have devasted more than 300 000ha since August… This was according to Nicol Jansen, president of Agri Northern Cape, who said wildfires had been reported across a widespread area, including the Van Zylsrus, Danielskuil, Kuruman, Carnavon and Mier districts.”
“Madagascar region faces food, water scarcity.
“The area’s worst drought in decades has left residents of the Toliara region in dire need of food and water. The region in the southern part of the island is bracing for difficult times due to anticipated low rainfall.”
“Pakistan’s 5,000-year-old ‘Mound of Dead’ in peril after floods.
“After massive rains wreaked havoc across Pakistan, researchers are working hard to save the last surviving remnants of the 5,000-year-old Indus Valley Civilization in Mohenjo-daro, which has been badly affected by the recent rains and flooding in the nation.”
https://www.dailysabah.com/life/history/pakistans-5000-year-old-mound-of-dead-in-peril-after-floods
“Karachi’s Heat Wave Continues This Week…
“The temperature was reportedly felt even higher due to the 79 percent humidity in the city. It is expected to remain between 36°C and 38°C [100.4F] in the afternoon for the following three days.”
https://propakistani.pk/2022/10/17/karachis-heat-wave-continues-this-week/
“Disaster relief sought as Cambodian floods recede.
“Cambodians were mopping-up with floods starting to recede after a three-day respite in heavy monsoon rains that have destroyed crops, led to forced evacuations and were partially blamed for the deaths of 11 school children who drowned after their small ferry sank.”
https://www.ucanews.com/news/disaster-relief-sought-as-cambodian-floods-recede/99106
“Extremely heavy rain alert issued for north Taiwan, more rain Tuesday…
“From early Saturday morning (Oct. 15) to 6 a.m. this morning, the accumulated rainfall at the Qingtiangang Grassland on Yangmingshan exceeded 1,300 mm [51.2 inches]. Datong Township in Yilan County reported 1,000 mm of rain during this period.”
https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4688705
“Floods threaten thousands homes in Australia as rainfall forecast to be record-breaking.
“Around 34,000 homes may be inundated because of extreme flooding in southeast Australia, according to an official comment made on Monday… In the past week, two people have drowned and two were reported missing in Victoria and New South Wales.”
“‘We’ve done what we can’: Echuca bands together as Victorian town braces for record flood.
“The Murray is expected to exceed major flood levels of 94.4 metres AHD from Wednesday and could reach as high as 95.9 metres AHD on Friday. If that forecast proves correct, it would be the highest recorded water level in more than 150 years…”
“Floods expected to cause widespread damage to winter crops in ‘another blow’ to Australian farmers.
“Widespread damage to winter cereal crops such as wheat, barley and canola is expected as ongoing flooding threatens farms and regional businesses across some of the nation’s major agricultural regions.”
“Surging methane…
“A mysterious uptick in atmospheric methane (CH4) was first detected 15 years ago. Of major concern, CH4 is a potent greenhouse gas that’s ~80 times greater than CO2… “In the past few years, however, that uptick has accelerated into a surge. The implications for global warming are immense.””
https://www.counterpunch.org/2022/10/17/surging-methane/
“Next pandemic may come from melting glaciers, new data shows.
“Genetic analysis of soil and lake sediments from Lake Hazen, the largest high Arctic freshwater lake in the world, suggests the risk of viral spillover – where a virus infects a new host for the first time – may be higher close to melting glaciers.”
You can read the previous “Climate” thread here. I’ll be back tomorrow with an “Economic” thread.
If you found value in this content, please help me continue this work by becoming a patron of my work via Patreon. And if you are already a subscriber or have donated – thank you! It is an enormous help as the cost-of-living crisis ratchets up here in the UK.
Harry,
It must be enormously stressful for you parsing through all this increasingly bad news. My heart just breaks when I see the ongoing devastation around the world. Unfortunately, I doubt you are going to have less of the same to deal with in the months ahead.
I appreciate that you take a global view of things. I’ll try to send an additional 25 pounds at the start of November when my retirement funds arrive.
Shawn, bless you for the kind words and the offer of a donation. Re the latter, only if it does not put you in a situation of hardship, and that goes for any readers. However, if you are reading this and happen to have some surplus cash, particularly in mighty US dollars, then now might not be a bad time to donate.
As far as parsing the news goes, it actually does not entail a huge amount of emotional engagement, at least at the time. I’m too caught up in the doing. It’s usually only later when a random article sinks in and upsets me.