March 10, 2016 - UNITED STATES - The service issued wind advisories for several areas along Oregon and
Washington's coast and inlands, while saying hurricane force winds could
occur in coastal waters.
Forecasters expect peak winds of as much as 45 mph to hit the central
and northern Oregon coast about 5 p.m. Wednesday and last through 11
p.m. Coastal residents and travelers should expect wind gusts of up to
85 mph along beaches and headlands, the service said.
Warnings for hurricane-force means winds must surpass 64 knots, or about
74 mph, according to the weather service. "We only use the
hurricane-force terminology over the coastal waters," but equally strong
winds along the coastal beaches carry significant potential damage,
said Andy Bryant, a hydrologist with the weather service's Portland
office.
Vessels should remain in port or take shelter until winds and waves
subside. The winds are expected to be strong enough to damage trees,
disrupt power and damage property. Travel could be hazardous. "Based on
experience, we've anticipated and prepared for this weather and the
outages that could occur," said Curtis Mansfield, vice president of
operations for Pacific Power,
which serves parts of Oregon, Washington, Utah, Wyoming and Idaho. "Our
crews are prepared to respond, and so we encourage our customers to be
prepared as well."
WATCH: Wild winds and waves beat Oregon Coast.
Each home should have flashlights, battery-operated radio, extra batteries, non-perishable foods, bottled water and blankets.
Further inland, the Portland and Columbia River Gorge areas should see
winds peak from 8 p.m. Wednesday through 4 a.m. Thursday. South winds
should reach 30 mph with gusts up to 45 mph.
Elsewhere, a winter weather advisory remains in effect along the
Cascades through 4 p.m. Wednesday. Snow should fall at levels above
3,000 feet then rise to 5,000 later Wednesday. Drivers should be
prepared for icy or snow covered roads.
This post was corrected to reflect that hurricane force warning has
been issued six times for the Oregon coast since 2007. Early information
from the National Weather Service provided an incorrect figure.
March 10, 2016 - IRELAND - A bright full circle rainbow was seen over Northern Ireland on March 7, 2016.
A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured arc.
Rainbows caused by sunlight always appear in the section of sky directly opposite the sun. Rainbows can be full circles; however, the average observer sees only an arc formed by illuminated droplets above the ground, and centred on a line from the sun to the observer's eye.
In a primary rainbow, the arc shows red on the outer part and violet on the inner side. This rainbow is caused by light being refracted when entering a droplet of water, then reflected inside on the back of the droplet and refracted again when leaving it. In a double rainbow, a second arc is seen outside the primary arc, and has the order of its colours reversed, with red on the inner side of the arc.
March 10, 2016 - UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - When it rains, it pours, in the case of Abu Dhabi Airport, which on
Wednesday saw roofs collapse, small planes scatter, and debris smash
into terminal doors in a heavy storm.
The severe weather conditions forced the airport to suspend all flights and cancel the UAE Air Expo 2016.
Airport staff and passengers looked on as wind and rain battered the airport, causing further destruction.
In one video, a large piece of debris smashed into a set of glass doors, causing panic among bystanders.
A post on a frequent flyer site called Boarding Area criticized the
UAE's infrastructure, saying the Emirates are unequipped for severe
weather.
"Qatar and the UAE seem to have almost unlimited funds for
completely unnecessary construction, but can't even get basic things
right, like rain-proof buildings. Embarrassing...," it read.
Though the worst appears to be over, the bad weather is predicted to
continue over the next few days, though flights schedules are expected
to resume to normal. - RT.
March 10, 2016 - EARTH - The following articles constitutes several of the latest reports on heavy snowfall, low temperatures and snow storms as global cooling continues across the Earth.
White Spring? Significant snowfall closes roads in Mexico
Chihuahua, Sonora and Durango reported snowfall and road closures. In some municipalities the snowfall is "significant".
On 8 March 2016, the State Coordination of Civil Protection in Chihuahua reported snowfall in 17 municipalities:
- Uruachi 20 cm (8 inches),
- Ocampo, 18 cm;
- Maguarichi, 15 cm;
- Bocoyna, 12 cm
- Guerrero, 12 cm
The governor, Cesar Duarte, asked the public to exercise caution before the arrival of a new cold front.
Snowfall was reported in Madera, Buenaventura, Matachi, Temosachi,
Bachíniva, Farias, Ignacio Zaragoza, Ocampo, Bocoyna, Moris, Uruachi,
Guerrero, Carichi, Maguarichi, Guazapares, Guachochi and Chínipas.
It was a snowy weekend in Fort St. John and there's a new record to prove it.
According to Environment Canada, a total of 17 centimetres of the white stuff blanketed the city over the weekend, with a record 9.8 centimetres falling on Sunday on top of the seven centimetres that fell on Saturday.
Dawson Creek had only a light dusting of snow on Saturday, but saw 6.5 centimetres fall on Sunday.
"It was a good little Arctic front that passed over you guys," said Matt MacDonald, meteorologist with Environment Canada.
"It's been not the snowiest of winters up there, and, as I always
caution people, March typically comes in like a lion, and I think it was
a perfect example," he said.
The previous snowfall record for March 6 in Fort St. John was 6.6 centimetres in 1966.
El Nino Weakening, Expect La Nina Next year
Warmer temperatures are in the forecast for the rest of the week, with a
high temperature of 7 C predicted for Wednesday in Fort St. John. The
normal high for this time of year is -1 C, MacDonald said.
"So that's a good seven, eight degrees warmer than normal," he said.
It's typical of what we've seen this winter - "It's been very mild,
been one of the mildest winters on record, and that's all owing to good
old El Nino," he said.
El Nino, characterized by warmer than usual water temperatures
in the equatorial Pacific, peaked at the end of January and is now
decreasing in intensity, which is typical for the weather phenomenon.
"It usually reaches its strongest values towards the end of January, and
climate models have all been in really good agreement suggesting that
we return to neutral conditions by about May," MacDonald said.
In terms of what to expect for spring, the trend of warmer conditions
will continue, despite El Nino weakening - "It's still there,"
MacDonald said.
"The warm air is here to stay ... I think the beginning of summer we can
expect closer to normal conditions, so by the time El Nino fizzles out,
we could expect normal conditions for the month of May and June."
While we've appreciated a mild, low-snowfall winter in the Peace, we're
in store for a colder, snowier fall and winter next year with La Nina,
El Nino's opposite, making a comeback for winter 2016-17.
"Instead of the waters in the equatorial Pacific being warmer than
normal, they're going to now be colder than normal. Typically, La Nina
falls and winters mean colder than normal conditions and snowier than
usual," MacDonald explained. - Alaska Highway News.
Volcanic Aerosols Verify Imminent Global Cooling
Several studies show that when abundant aerosols from multiple or
volcanic eruptions they create a feedback loop of reflected radiation
and cooling commences. This is directly related to a weakened
magnetosphere due to the new grand solar minimum.
In the North-Kazakhstan region about 630 people have become hostages of bad weather, said the news agency Novosti-Kazakhstan.
Employees of emergency services evacuated 700 people and hundreds of cars on the Buran highways .
Rescue work is continuing on the roads of North Kazakhstan, Akmola and
Kostanay districts (oblasts), said an official from the Committee for
Emergency Situations.
Akmola evacuated 444 people, including 11 children, and towed 174 vehicles, where the snowstorm was raging.
- Ice Age Now.
