Emergency measures initiate as Typhoon Hagibis approaches China

China initiated emergency response measures on Sunday as Hagibis, the first typhoon this year, is expected to make landfall on the country’s east coast within a few hours.

The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters asked local authorities in Fujian, Guangdong, Zhejiang and Hainan provinces to step up their monitoring efforts, and call ships and offshore workers to return to port.

The country’s meteorological authorities forecast the typhon will hit south and east China’s Guangdong and Fujian provinces between Sunday afternoon and Sunday evening. 


Torrential rain and storms are expected to inundate a wide area over the next three days, with precipitation up to 170 milimeters.
http://english.cntv.cn/2014/06/15/VIDE1402832765713751.shtml
15/6/14
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• Hagibis Makes Landfall in Southeast China

By Courtney Spamer, Meteorologist 

Tropical Storm Hagibis, that has been churning in northern parts of the South China Sea, made landfall near Shantou, China on Sunday evening, local time.

Heavy rain fell mainly over far eastern Guangdong province, with over 2 inches in Shantou as of Sunday night. Another 1-3 inches is likely in the area as the storm moves slowly inland, with total rainfall storm amounts of 3-6 inches likely.

Some sporadic power outages are possible where the strongest wind gusts reach up to 60 mph near the coast, but winds will likely diminish rapidly inland.

Flooding will also be a concern, particularly along fast-responding waterways and in areas of poor drainage. Thunderstorms in outer bands may also lead to an isolated tornado across Fujian.

Hagibis will continue to weaken as it heads further inland Monday, but heavy rain and potential flooding problems will still accompany it across Fujian province into Monday night.
http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/tropical-hagibis-china-storm-t/28652857
15/6/14

 

China will destroy 5,000,000 cars this year to battle air pollution (Polluting vehicles to be scrapped)

China is going to make air cleaner by taking 5.33 million ageing cars off its roads, according to a government document. The move is part of a broader campaign for battling deep environmental crisis that’s gripped world’s second-biggest economy.
The vehicles in question are so-called ‘yellow label’ cars that do not meet Chinese fuel standards and are thus meant to be ‘eliminated’ this year, the Chinese State Council document published on Monday and cited by Reuters, says.
Chinese authorities, spurred by overwhelming public outcry, have lately boosted efforts for tackling the growing ecological crisis, a byproduct of decades of massive economic growth amid neglect for environmental protection.

The plan for cutting the number of old vehicles is part of a broader action plan to cut emissions over the next two years. Chinese authorities say the country had not been able to catch up with its pollution reduction plan for 2011-2013 period and now had to come up with some tougher measures. 

In Beijing, 330,000 cars will be disposed of, while 660,000 will be taken off the streets of the neighboring Hebei province, home to seven of China's smoggiest cities in 2013.
The document does not specify how exactly the process of getting rid of old cars is going to be implemented. Car owners who agree to have their old cars scrapped could be getting subsidies, as was earlier done by Beijing municipal government, which offered sums between 2,500-14,500 yuan (US$400-2,300) to those ready to say goodbye to their ageing vehicles.
The level of the hazardous airborne particles known PM 2.5 in Beijing air is over four times the daily level recommended by the World Health Organization. A third of all PM 2.5 in the air of the Chinese capital comes from vehicle emissions, according to Beijing’s environmental watchdog.
"Many vehicles have problems and many didn't even meet the standards when they came out of the factory, and fining them on the streets isn't the way to solve this problem," Li Kunsheng, director of the Vehicle Emissions Center of the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau, told Reuters......http://rt.com/news/161528-china-destroy-millions-cars/
26/5/14
---------------------------------- 

• Measures taken to tackle heavy air pollution in N. China

• Beijing issues rare air pollution alert

• Air pollution champion: China burns more coal than rest of world combined

• Heavy smog shrouds Beijing for 3rd day

• Air pollution in Beijing reaches 'health hazard' levels (VIDEO, PHOTOS RT)

----------------------------------

• Polluting vehicles to be scrapped...

The Chinese government announced on Monday that the country will pull 6 million highly polluting vehicles off the roads and scrap them before the end of 2014.

The rule applies to vehicles that do not meet exhaust emissions standards. Of the vehicles to be scrapped this year, 20 percent are in the municipalities of Beijing and Tianjin, as well as Hebei Province, all northern regions frequently troubled by smog in recent years.

More vehicles will be scrapped next year, including up to 5 million in the nation's economically developed regions such as the Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei regions, according to an action plan published by the State Council.

"Strengthening control on vehicle emissions will be a major item on the agenda for the country's energy savings, emissions reductions, and low-carbon development during the next two years," said the action plan.

A report from environmental authorities showed that 31.1 percent of air pollution in Beijing comes from vehicle exhaust.

In addition to eliminating polluting vehicles, experts are calling for the development of less polluting fuel.

According to the action plan, accelerating the elimination of highly polluting vehicles will help China hit several of its green targets for the next two years, including annual reductions of 3.9 percent in energy consumption per unit of economic output, 2 percent in emissions of sulfur dioxide and 5 percent in emissions of nitrogen oxides.

To achieve these goals, the government will also push forward other work such as slashing outdated production capacities, reducing coal consumption, and introducing green technologies that are conducive to emissions control and energy savings.
[globaltimes.cn]
26/5/14

Global food prices hit 10 month high due to weather, Crimea tensions

UN, 3 April 2014 – The cost of food worldwide has surged in March to its highest peak in 10 months, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reported today.
In a news release, agency said that its most recent Food Price Index, which measures the monthly change in international prices of a basket of 55 food commodities, including meat, dairy, sugar, and cereals, went up 4.8 points or 2.3 per cent, averaging now 212.8 points. This is the highest it has been since May 2013.
"The Index was influenced, as expected, by unfavourable weather conditions in the US and Brazil and geopolitical tensions in the Black Sea region," said Abdolreza Abbassian, FAO Senior Economist.

"The Food Price Index looks at March trends. Since then, the initial fear over disruptions in grain shipments from Ukraine has subsided. Also, markets have started to discard any negative impacts that the current difficult domestic economic conditions may bear on plantings or harvests in 2014," Mr. Abbassian said. 

The report indicated an increase in all commodity groups except dairy, which fell 2.5 per cent for the first time in four months, averaging 268.5 points, as purchases by China declined, and amid uncertainty over trade with the Russian Federation. Good production in New Zealand and the northern hemisphere also influenced prices.
The greatest gain was seen in sugar, which rose 7.9 per cent, to a 253.9 point average. Concerns of declining availability from Brazil and Thailand, due respectively to drought and reduced sugarcane output and the expected impact of El Niño conditions later this year contributed to the price surge. 

Concerns over the effects of dry weather conditions on winter wheat in the United States, unfavourable weather in Brazil, and tensions in the Black Sea region, caused a 5.2 per cent surge in cereal prices, bringing the average to 205.8 points. While in March the Index rose to its highest value since August 2013, it remained well below (34.6 points or 14.4 per cent) its March 2013 value. Rice prices were generally stable. 

The vegetable oil price index, at its highest since 18 months, averages 204.8 points in March, up another 7 points from February. The rise in the index mainly reflected a surge in palm oil, on continued concerns over the impact of protracted dry weather in Southeast Asia.
As for the meat index, once again, the weather came into play as higher beef prices were associated with dry weather conditions affecting production in both Australia and the United States. Pork also rose, in part on concerns over the effect of the Porcine Epidemic Diarrhoea virus on export supplies in the United States. The meat index is now at an average of 185 points, up 2.7 points.
 un.org
3/4/14

FAO: 'Revolution' in Agriculture Vital to Meet Food Targets

BANGKOK — The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization [FAO] says the world needs to boost agriculture production by 60 percent to meet its estimated food needs over the coming decades. The FAO says declining amounts of arable land and fresh water resources, however, create challenges.

The FAO says improving food security levels by 2050 may require a second "Green Revolution" to boost agricultural yields and feed the world’s expected nine billion people.

The so-called "Green Revolution" of the 1960s came with the introduction of industrial farming practices and high-yielding plant varieties, which helped farmers stay ahead of fast-growing populations.


Targeting devloping countries

Since then in Asia and the Pacific, food production has risen by 300 percent, although it has come at an environmental cost.

Hiroyuki Konuma, FAO assistant director general and Asia Pacific regional representative, said the challenge of lifting food production further will be especially acute for developing countries.

"We estimate that by 2050 the world needs to increase food production by 60 percent that will meet the demand at that time," said Konuma. "This is worldwide. But when we look at only developing countries, we estimate a 77 percent increase is needed -- it's a more important fear because 98 percent of worldwide population increase will be happening in developing countries."

Konuma said access to arable land is a key problem. In the Asia Pacific, most land is already fully exploited, while in regions such as China, land for agriculture is already on the decline. Also, regional and global water resources are declining amid signs of increasing water scarcity.

But Konuma is optimistic the food production target could be reached given the gains made in the Asia Pacific since the 1960s.

"The FAO estimates theoretically we can meet this food production by increasing yield per acre [hectare], productivity growth, by agriculture research. Rice and wheat alone there are still yield gap that can be narrowed from the potential. We are now looking at only 60 percent in a 40-year time frame to 2050," said Konuma.

Agriculture production

At the same time climate change is already affecting agricultural production in landlocked Asian nations and rising sea levels for Pacific island states.

The most vulnerable land locked nations are Afghanistan, Bhutan, Laos, Mongolia and Nepal. Among the 15 island states at risk, the Maldives in the Indian Ocean was the most susceptible to climate change.

The FAO says 840 million people globally, or one person in eight, still suffer from chronic hunger. More than 30 percent, or more than two billion people, suffer from other nutrient deficiencies.

FAO's Konuma said the poor are especially vulnerable.

"It's not really a matter of production or supply sides - it's access issues - poor people in particular, and those who are disadvantaged living at the bottom of society," he said. "They do not have enough access to purchase food that they need or even farmers who do not have enough land to grow food for their own consumption."

At the same time, some 1.5 billion people globally are seen as overweight, with 500 million individuals suffering from obesity, and more than 40 million children under the age of five years faced with weight problems. Changing dietary habits has also led to a rise in chronic diseases such as diabetes and cancers. 

FAO officials say a massive effort is required to end hunger in the Asia and Pacific, despite gains in nations such as Thailand, Vietnam and China. 
voanews.com
18/3/14
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-

• Weather, increased demand pushes global food prices to highest level in months

• Global food prices expected to remain volatile in coming years, warns UN official.

• ‘Shameful’: World loses up to third of produced food, World Bank says

• Water scarcity among critical food security issues in Near East and North Africa. – United Nations, FAO

 -----------

• Is the world heading towards another food crisis?

  • Land sold off and used for biofuels could have fed 1 billion people – report

    • US and EU must change biofuel targets to avert food crisis, says Nestlé chief

  ------

• FAO: Αύξηση 6% στις τιμές των τροφίμων παγκοσμίως τον Ιούλιο

• Η κλιματική αλλαγή αυξάνει τις τιμές των τροφίμων

• FAO: Ο κόσμος μπορεί να τραφεί και με λιγότερα

----

• Στα σκουπίδια καταλήγει το 50% των τροφίμων / La moitié de la nourriture produite dans le monde gaspillée

Turkish ship that ran aground in Aegean Sea may cause ‘catastrophe’

A Turkish cargo ship that ran aground off the Greek island of Mykonos may lead to an “environmental catastrophe,” officials have warned.

The vessel, named the Yusuf Çepnioğlu, had been anchored at a port in the western province of Izmir en route to Tunisia. It was abandoned by its crew after it ran into rocks off the coast of Mykonos and began taking in water on March 7. The ship was carrying 200 tons of fuel.


The container ship remains pinned to the rocks, coast guard authorities. There are concerns that strong winds and waves may cause some of its cargo to come loose and cause a spill near the island.

Responding to a distress call on March 8, a U.S. ship sent a search and rescue helicopter to the location where the vessel had run aground. The Bataan is in the Aegean Sea on a regular deployment in the 6th Fleet area of operations.

Officials said a joint operation to tow the ship to safety and ensure that there was no leakage was currently underway.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-ship-that-ran-aground-in-aegean-sea-may-cause-catastrophe.aspx?pageID=238&nID=63399&NewsCatID=340
10/3/14
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Related:

• Turkish container ship runs aground off Greek island of Mykonos. -Marine pollution near the shore?

• Μύκονος: Μετά τη βελτίωση του καιρού η επιχείρηση απομάκρυνσης του τουρκικού κοντέινερ (VIDEO)

 ------------------------

Weather, increased demand pushes global food prices to highest level in months

 6 March 2014 – Global food prices in February rose to their highest level since mid-2012 as a result of unfavourable weather and increased demand, the United Nations food agency today reported.

In a news release, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said its most recent Food Price Index, which measures the monthly change in international prices of a basket of 55 food commodities, including meat, dairy, sugar, and cereals, averaged 208.1 points. That is about 5.2 points, or 2.6 per cent, higher than the slightly revised index for January.

“This month's increase follows a long period of declining food prices in general. But it’s too early to say if this is a true reversal of the trend,” said Concepción Calpe, FAO Senior Economist.

“The weather is probably a major force driving up prices for certain commodities like sugar or wheat, but brisk demand is also an important factor underpinning maize, dairy and oil prices,” Mr. Calpe added.

The Rome-based agency also noted a spike in wheat and corn prices which it attributed to recent developments in Ukraine, “though the February increase in the Index cannot be entirely attributed to those events.”

Cereals averaged 195.8 points last month, up 6.8 points or 3.6 per cent from the previous month.

With some winter wheat crops already developing, FAO’s first forecast for world wheat production in 2014 stands at 704 million tonnes. This is a 1.7 per cent drop from the 2013 record but still the second largest crop ever, according to the ‘Cereal Supply and Demand Brief.’

The latest estimate for world cereal production for 2013 stands at a record 2.5 billion tonnes, an increase of 13 million from the February forecast and 9 per cent more than the 2012 level.

The rise is due to a significant revision in the estimates for Australia and also upward revisions to the figures for wheat and coarse grains in China.

Vegetable oils rose 9.2 points to an average of 197.8 points in February, amid concerns over unfavourable weather in Southeast Asia and South America, and buoyant demand worldwide, including demand for palm oil from biodiesel producers.

Dairy’s average of 275.4 points in February is 7.7 points higher over January. Meat averaged 182.6 points in February, up less than a point since the revised January level.

Following a three-month decline, sugar prices recovered, prompted by concerns of dry weather in Brazil and recent forecasts pointing to a potential drop of output in India. The FAO Sugar Price Index averaged 235.4 points last month, up 13.7 points, or 6.2 per cent, from January.
un.org
6/3/14
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-
Related:

• Global food prices expected to remain volatile in coming years, warns UN official.

• ‘Shameful’: World loses up to third of produced food, World Bank says

• Water scarcity among critical food security issues in Near East and North Africa. – United Nations, FAO

 -----------

• Is the world heading towards another food crisis?

  • Land sold off and used for biofuels could have fed 1 billion people – report

    • US and EU must change biofuel targets to avert food crisis, says Nestlé chief

  ------

• FAO: Αύξηση 6% στις τιμές των τροφίμων παγκοσμίως τον Ιούλιο

• Η κλιματική αλλαγή αυξάνει τις τιμές των τροφίμων

• FAO: Ο κόσμος μπορεί να τραφεί και με λιγότερα

----

• Στα σκουπίδια καταλήγει το 50% των τροφίμων / La moitié de la nourriture produite dans le monde gaspillée

 

Measures taken to tackle heavy air pollution in N. China

Efforts are being made in northern China to tackle the dense smog affecting the region, after weather authorities issued a yellow air pollution alert on Saturday.

Beijing, Tianjin Municipalities and parts of Hebei province have been choking under a blanket of heavy air pollution since Thursday. To curb emissions, Hebei has slowed down certain projects under construction, while all surface mines and open quarries have been closed. The province also plans to tear down a number of steel and iron production facilities.

In the capital Beijing, the construction of new metro line has been halted. According to weather authorities, this round of heavy pollution will last until next Thursday.
 http://english.cntv.cn
22/2/14
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Related:

• Beijing issues rare air pollution alert

• Air pollution champion: China burns more coal than rest of world combined

• Heavy smog shrouds Beijing for 3rd day

• Air pollution in Beijing reaches 'health hazard' levels (VIDEO, PHOTOS RT)

Tokyo records heaviest snowfall in 45 years (video)

At least 11 people are dead and more than a thousand injured in accidents after heavy snow hit eastern Japan. 

Japan’s weather agency says 27 centimeters of snow fell in Tokyo on Saturday, the heaviest in the capital in 45 years. 

35 centimeters fell in Sendai and 44 centimeters in Fukushima on Sunday morning. The weather cleared in Tokyo on Sunday, but transport systems continued to be disrupted.

More than 100 domestic flights and 219 international flights were cancelled in Haneda airport, and a number of train services were also cancelled. The weather system is moving to northeastern Japan and dumping snow on the region’s Pacific side. Forecasters warn of heavy snow in Tohoku, and very strong winds in the Kanto and Tohoku regions.
 cntv.cn
10/2/14
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• 5 die, over 600 injured as heavy snow hits eastern Japan. -Issued the first heavy snowfall warning for central Tokyo in 13 years(video)

5 die, over 600 injured as heavy snow hits eastern Japan. -Issued the first heavy snowfall warning for central Tokyo in 13 years(video)

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Heavy snow hit eastern Japan on Saturday, disrupting transportation systems and leaving five people dead and over 600 people injured in snow-related accidents, a Kyodo News tally showed.
The Japan Meteorological Agency issued the first heavy snowfall warning for central Tokyo in 13 years. Snow accumulation reached 26 centimeters there, the heaviest snow in the Japanese capital since February 1994 and the fourth largest snowfall since World War II, the agency said.
Several universities in Tokyo delayed the starting times of their entrance examinations for the new academic year that begins in April.

• Snowfall marked a record 30 cm in Chiba and 16 cm in Yokohama.

Temperatures in many cities in the Kanto region centering on Tokyo stayed below zero during the day and the agency issued a blizzard warning for Chiba Prefecture and parts of Kanagawa Prefecture.
At Tokyo's Haneda airport, Japan Airlines Co. and All Nippon Airways Co. suspended all domestic flights from noon and 3 p.m., respectively, affecting about 98,000 people.
The Tokaido and Sanyo bullet trains operating in central and western Japan fell behind schedule as they operated at reduced speed, affecting about 180,000 travelers, the operators said.
Sections of expressways, including the Shin-Tomei and Chuo expressways, were also closed due to the snow. Tokyo Electric Power Co. said 48,000 households in the Kanto region were without power Saturday night due to heavy snow.
Tokyo Skytree, the world's tallest broadcasting tower at 634 meters, was closed from 11 a.m. due to strong winds, its operator said.

February 08, 2014(Mainichi Japan)

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Climate catastrophe? Weather anomalies to double in 20 years – expert

Both experts and residents of various continents are surprised at the twists and turns of this winter’s weather. Christmas thaw was something the residents of many Central Russian cities have never seen. The coldest temperature of the century left the Niagara Falls icebound. A persistent heat wave in Australia with temperatures reaching 42 degrees above zero Celsius prompted the organizers to cancel the prestigious Australia Open tennis tournament.


Director of the Climate and Energy Programme of the World Wildlife Fund, Alexei Kokorin, believes that weather extremes will grow increasingly frequent in the next few decades due to the ongoing climate change. Weather freaks on all continents stem from one process and are related to atmospheric and ocean physics.
"Meridional air mass circulation has gained in intensity, so instead of enjoying the same usual kind of weather during summer or winter we have to endure, for example, a month of very cold weather followed by a month-long heat wave".

Kokorin points out that some weather extremes may be prompted by the planet’s natural climate fluctuations. But the anthropogenic factor, of human influence, plays the key role in atmospheric pollution and in boosting the greenhouse effect. According to weather forecasts, we shall see and have to cope with the effects of natural disasters increasingly often in the next few years.

"The number of natural disasters has doubled over the past 15 years. 2012 saw a record high number of natural calamities, while the number of those in 2013 was only slightly lower. But in 2011, natural disasters were at a record low in recent years. We should realize, of course, that the number of dangerous phenomena will most likely double in a matter of 20 years".

The expert feels, however, that one need expect no global climate catastrophe in the coming centuries and should concentrate instead on some burning problems, of which the gravest is the continuing sea level rise, making prospects for littoral areas look bleak. Fresh water shortages are likely to become another global problem. Countries from Portugal to China’s western border, as well as some areas of Africa, South and North America, and Australia may suffer water shortages. Water resources deficit may result in a forced migration of up to one billion people worldwide and consequently in a major change in the economy of regions.

Ksenia Sakurova

 http://voiceofrussia.com/2014_01_18/Global-climate-catastrophe-Weather-anomalies-to-double-in-20-years-expert-7430/

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Related:

• Climat : le réchauffement serait plus grave que prévu

• Temperatura global de la tierra aumentará cuatro grados para el 2100

• VIDEO. Réchauffement climatique : la Laponie bientôt privée de neige à Noël ?

• Ban welcomes deal at UN-led climate change talks as step towards 2015 treaty

 

ΗΠΑ: Τα αιολικά κράτησαν όρθια τα δίκτυα ενέργειας εν μέσω πολικής δίνης

Το Τέξας είναι μια αμερικανική Πολιτεία που καταφέρνει να ξεπεράσει την “πράσινη” πρωτεύουσα των ΗΠΑ, Καλιφόρνια, σε έστω μια τεχνολογία καθαρής ενέργειας: τα αιολικά. 

Από 184 αιολικά Μεγαβάτ το 2000 το Τέξας έφτασε τα 12,2 Γιγαβάτ το 2012 και αναμένονται τα νούμερα των επιδόσεων το 2013, την ώρα που η Καλιφόρνια ακολουθεί “ασθμαίνοντας” στη δεύτερη θέση με 5,55 αιολικά Γιγαβάτ.

Αναλυτές αναφέρουν ότι η αιολική ενέργεια είναι αυτή που γλύτωσε το Τέξας από εκτεταμένα μπλακ-άουτ κατά τη διάρκεια της πολικής δίνης που έπληξε τις ΗΠΑ στις αρχές της εβδομάδας καθώς η ζήτηση ηλεκτρικής ενέργειας έφτασε στα πρωτοφανή επίπεδα των 57.277 Μεγαβάτ.

Ωστόσο, τα αιολικά πάρκα του δυτικού Τέξας κράτησαν όρθιο το δίκτυο ηλεκτρικής ενέργειας της Πολιτείας, όταν την προηγούμενη Τρίτη ο διαχειριστής του δικτύου κήρυξε κατάσταση συναγερμού εξαιτίας της διακοπής λειτουργίας αρκετών ηλεκτροπαραγωγικών μονάδων.

Το Τέξας δεν είναι όμως η μοναδική αμερικανική Πολιτεία που σώθηκε από τα αιολικά κατά τη διάρκεια της πολικής δίνης.

Σύμφωνα με την Αμερικανική Ένωση Αιολικής Ενέργειας (AWEA) οι θυελλώδεις άνεμοι που έπνεαν στις βόρειες κεντροδυτικές πολιτείες έδωσαν αιολική παραγωγή της τάξης των 8000 Μεγαβάτ, ικανή να ηλεκτροδοτήσει 6 εκατομμύρια νοικοκυριά.

Στις 6 Ιανουαρίου στη Νεμπράσκα η πρωτοφανής ζήτηση για ηλεκτρική ενέργεια καλύφθηκε από τα αιολικά που με 300 Μεγαβάτ παρείχαν το 13% της συνολικής ενέργειας που καταναλώθηκαν.

Αντίστοιχα, το βράδυ της προηγούμενης Δευτέρας η αιολική παραγωγή έφτασε τα 3000 Μεγαβάτ στις κεντροανατολικές και τις βόρειες Πολιτείες στην περιοχή των Μεγάλων Λιμνών την ώρα που αρκετές μονάδες άνθρακα και δύο πυρηνικά ηλεκτροπαραγωγικά εργοστάσια διέκοψαν τη λειτουργία τους στην Πεννσυλβάνια και το Ιλλινόις.

Τέλος, χθες Πέμπτη, η αιολική παραγωγή παρέσυρε προς τα κάτω τις αυξημένες τιμές ηλεκτρικής ενέργειας και φυσικού αερίου σε όλη τη Νέα Αγγλία στην ανατολική ακτή των ΗΠΑ.
http://www.econews.gr/2014/01/10/aiolika-usa-110267/
10/1/14

Xuelong to try and free itself from the ice

A Chinese icebreaker stuck in the Antarctic has cleared a path through the ice one kilometer in length.

The deputy director of the Xue Long, or Snow Dragon, says the vessel will use the channel to pick up as much speed as possible in order to free itself from the ice. 

The team, which has enough water to last them a month, is now waiting for favorable weather conditions.


The Xue Long became trapped in ice after helping in the rescue of passengers of a Russian research ship. On Sunday morning, the US sent its own icebreaker, the Polar Star, to assist Xue Long and the Russian vessel.
 cntv.cn
6/1/14
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Related:

• U.S.icebreaker Polar Star to help vessels trapped in Antarctica: AMSA

• Το «Ακαδημαϊκός Σοκάλσκι» μπορεί να απεγκλωβιστεί από τους πάγους 

• Aurora Australis released from tasking in Antarctica....

• Australian Icebreaker Heads for Home with Rescued Passengers ....

• All Passengers Rescued From Russian Ship Stranded in Antarctic

 

U.S.icebreaker Polar Star to help vessels trapped in Antarctica: AMSA

SYDNEY, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has requested the U.S. Coast Guard's icebreaker Polar Star to assist the Russian vessel MV Akademik Shokalskiy and the Chinese vessel Xue Long (Snow Dragon)which are stuck by ice in Antarctica.

AMSA has identified the Polar Star as a vessel capable of assisting the trapped vessels.

The U.S. Coast Guard accepted this request on Saturday and will make Polar Star available for the rescue operation, AMSA said in the latest statement.

The Polar Star will leave Sydney on Sunday after taking on supplies prior to its voyage to Antarctica.

It is anticipated it will take about seven days for the Polar Star to reach the scene, dependent on weather and ice conditions.

The Polar Star has been en route to Antarctica since the end of last year, weeks before the MV Akademik Shokalskiy was trapped in Commonwealth Bay.

The intended mission of the Polar Star is to clear a navigable shipping channel in McMurdo Sound to the National Science Foundation's Scientific Research Station.

Resupply ships would use the channel to bring food, fuel and other goods to the station. The Polar Star will go on to undertake its mission once the search and rescue operation is completed, AMSA said. 
english.cntv.cn
5/1/14
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Related:

• Το «Ακαδημαϊκός Σοκάλσκι» μπορεί να απεγκλωβιστεί από τους πάγους 

• Aurora Australis released from tasking in Antarctica....

• Australian Icebreaker Heads for Home with Rescued Passengers ....

• All Passengers Rescued From Russian Ship Stranded in Antarctic

Turkey closes the Bosporus Strait for navigation due to bad weather

Turkish authorities have blocked the Bosphorus for ships heading north because of strong winds and snowfall, said Wednesday the GAC transport company.

According to the report, vessels lesser than 200 meters in length are only allowed to pass through the strait. Ferry services across the Bosphorus has also been cancelled due to the bad weather.


Turkish newspaper "Hurriyet" writes that heavy snowfall in Istanbul on Wednesday led to the cancellation of a number of flights.

According to another report, two aircraft flying from Istanbul to Kharkiv and Isfahan were forced to make an emergency landing after they were hit by lightning.
ruvr.ru
11/12/13
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• Turkey’s “new Bosporus”: risks and benefits / Ο νέος Βόσπορος ως κλειδί για την κυριαρχία των ΗΠΑ στη Μ.Θάλασσα.

• Πώς η Τουρκία Βαδίζει στο Δρόμο του... Μεταξιού

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Fast-moving storm, tornadoes threaten US Midwest.

CHICAGO: A fast-moving storm system that produced at least one tornado in Illinois threatened some 53 million people across 10 Midwestern states on Sunday, US weather officials said.

"A confirmed large and extremely dangerous tornado" was spotted near Washington, Illinois, located about 145 miles (233 kilometers) southwest of Chicago, the National Weather Service said.

Photos taken at the scene showed structures were reduced to rubble and houses ripped open in Washington, Illinois.


"There is a lot of debris," Sara Sparkman, a spokeswoman for the health department of Tazewell County, Illinois, where Washington is located, told The Weather Channel. "We do know that shelters are being set up in some of the communities because people are being displaced out of their homes because of the storms that hit."

Sparkman added that the storm had caused damage in Washington and Pekin, south of Peoria.

It came out of a fast-moving storm system that was headed toward Chicago and threatened a large swath of the Midwest with dangerous winds, thunderstorms and hail, U.S. weather officials said.

The weather service warned residents of areas threatened by the storm "you are in a life-threatening situation .... take cover now."

At Chicago's Soldier Field, where the NFL's Bears were playing the Baltimore Ravens, officials halted play and told fans to seek shelter due to hazardous weather conditions.

"It does appear that the hardest hit part of the state was down south," Mike Masters, head of homeland security in Cook County, which includes Chicago, told Chicago's ABC-7 TV, cautioning that it was still "very, very early."

The Chicago Department of Aviation, which manages O'Hare International Airport and Midway International Airport, said that as of 1:15 p.m. Central Time (1915 GMT) both facilities were at a ground stop, meaning flights were neither arriving nor departing.

"We obviously have a very dangerous situation on our hands and it's just getting started," Laura Furgione, deputy director of the National Weather Service, told reporters on a conference call.

Tornado warnings were in effect for parts of Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri. Weather officials urged residents of areas with tornado warnings in place to take cover in interior, low-floor rooms of study buildings.

The NWS's Storm Prediction Center said the storm was moving dangerously fast, tracking eastward at 60 miles an hour (97 kph), meaning that just looking out at the storm will not be enough to let people know when to take cover.

"These storms will be moving very fast, approximately 60 miles an hour," said Russell Schneider of the Storm Prediction Center. "They will be at your location and on to the next location in a matter of minutes. As a result, people cannot wait for visual confirmation of the threat."

This storm system has some similarities to the fast-moving derecho that knocked out power to more than 4.2 million people and killed 22 in June 2012, according to Bill Bunting, forecast branch chief at the Storm Prediction Center.

"The line of storms today, we believe, when it's fully mature, will actually be larger than the areas that were affected by the derecho in June of 2012," Bunting said. "However, this will also be accompanied by a worse tornado threat in the areas that we've highlighted and large hail in Illinois and Wisconsin." 
timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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Photos:
 http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/midwest-storm-shocking-pictures-show-2802903
18/11/13
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Snow in June: Russia’s Siberian town in absolute anomaly (PHOTOS, VIDEO)

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A layer of snow on the second day of summer has put the citizens of the Russian city of Kemerovo completely out of humor.
Meteorologists say the anomaly occurred because a cyclone brought cold Arctic air from Kara Sea region into Siberia dropping, temperature to lows typical for summer north of the Arctic Circle.

Bloggers were at a loss when commenting the issue.
“Snow in Kemerovo TODAY? That’s hardcore. The weather must’ve forgot it’s June.”
“With a sense of terror has just learnt it’s been snowing in Kemerovo. What’s next?”
“Tornado in the US. Floods in Czech Republic. SNOW in Kemerovo!”
The city in South Siberia is situated on 55°22'17.58" north latitude but even for that region -2 Celsius on June 2 morning is over the top. The region has seasonal inland climate, which means really cold winters and very hot summers.
This spring has been sort of cold in the Kemerovo Region, which witnessed snow in early May and an emergency extension of the heating season. No wonder that people have been waiting for warm summer days just like for manna from heaven, but instead got snowflakes.
But the locals are full of determination to recalculate sowing season schedule and plant kitchen gardens as usual and against all odds, probably because over 70 percent of Russia’s territory is the area of risk farming and people are used to encounter hardships of the kind. 
http://rt.com
2/6/13

Image from vk.com/typical_kmr

Image from vk.com/typical_kmr

Image from vk.com/typical_kmr
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PHOTO:siberia-weather.blogspot.com

 

A future of extremes? | Greenpeace International

The world's journalists have been jostling and vying with each other to describe and witness the stunning, but also deadly, extreme weather that has gripped the planet in recent months.
The focus has often been the tumbling of records: 2012 was the hottest year on record in the United States, the UK had its second wettest year on record and Australia's Bureau of Meteorology added extra colour to its temperature maps.
This caused quite a stir – and rightly so. In fact, it's about time.

The U.N.'s climate panel, IPCC, has been fairly consistent since 1990 in describing the cause and risk of climate change and the need to respond. The scientific evidence since then, however, has often been shouted down by climate deniers.
But the record-breaking heatwave that has sparked Australia's bushfires should be seen as part of a global warming trend, IPCC head Rajendra Pachauri stresses......................A future of extremes? | Greenpeace International
16/1/13
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