Electric Cars: Ready to plug in, Knowledge is Power

Environmental impactThe Union of Concerned Scientists, a nonprofit advocacy group founded in 1969 at MIT, uses scientific analysis to address social issues such as climate change, energy, transportation, sustainable agriculture and scientific integrity. According to a study released last month by the group, the impact of driving a Nissan Leaf in Hampton Roads or Northeast North Carolina on global warming is at the same level as that of driving a gas-powered vehicle that returns 55 mpg in combined city/highway driving. For the Mitsubishi i, the gas-powered car would have to return 63 mpg to match the i's impact. According to the EPA figures, not a single car meets these standards.

• Related
• Electric vehicles: Electric car buying guide
• Video: Chevy Volt at 18,000 miles

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This is despite electric utilities' reliance on coal.

Even when coal's dominance as an electric power source is considered, gas vehicles contribute more to global warming than EVs. The UCS study cites not just vehicle emissions, but the "wells to wheels" emissions generated by extracting, refining and delivering petroleum to the vehicle. By contrast, electric cars have no emissions; the only emissions come from power plants.

And, if a power plant increases its use of renewable energy, such as wind or solar, the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions can be significant. Considering that the average gas-powered compact car in the United States returns 27 mpg, charging an electric car on average has a greenhouse gas impact of 30 mpg nationwide, according to the UCS. But, if the power plant is fired by natural gas, that score would be 54 mpg; wind, 3,900 mpg.

How efficient?

Just like some gas cars travel further on a gallon of gas, some electric cars go farther off a kilowatt-hour of electricity. The Mitsubishi i is the most efficient, using 0.3 kWh/mile or the equivalent of 112 mpg, according to the EPA. The Leaf rates 0.34 kWh/mile or 99 mpg-e, while the Volt measures 0.36 kWh/mile or 94 mpg-e.

The cost

Electric vehicles, such as the Nissan Leaf and Mitsubishi i, and gas-electric hybrids cost more than your typical vehicle. The Leaf starts at $35,200, the i at $29,125 and the Volt at $39,145. All of them are eligible for a $7,500 federal tax credit.

Assuming these vehicles are driven 11,000 miles annually - or 30 miles a day - the Leaf driver would save $1,180 a year in Hampton Roads; the i driver, $1,210, according to UCS analysis. This assumes a gas price of $3.50 a gallon.

According to an analysis by the Society of Automotive Engineers, Chevrolet Volt drivers use electricity for 64 percent of their travel. Assuming that, you'd save $857 annually, assuming a premium gas price of $3.70.

If you drive more than 11,000 miles a year, the savings will be greater.

Or, put another way, the Leaf and i drivers save 400 gallons of gas annually, the Volt driver 260 gallons vs. your average gas car, which returns 27 mpg in combined city/highway driving.

Still, there's one more cost to consider: battery replacement. According to Consumer Reports, the Volt's batteries are estimated to cost $8,000, the Leaf's approximately $18,000. Thankfully, both EVs have 8-year/100,000-mile warranties on their battery packs and related components.

Final thoughts

Given the positive environmental impact and the savings versus conventionally powered vehicles, an electric car is a viable solution for those who can live with its limited driving range. And the costs reported by the UCS show that while recharging an EV will raise your electric bill, it's still less than the price paid at the pump, in the air and overseas.

Arctic sea ice thaw may be accelerated by oil, shipping

Arctic sea ice thaw may be accelerated by oil, shipping

September 18, 2012|Alister Doyle | Reuters

• 

(LUCAS JACKSON, REUTERS)

OSLO (Reuters) - Local pollution in the Arctic from shipping and oil and gas industries, which have expanded in the region due to a thawing of sea ice caused by global warming, could further accelerate that thaw, experts say.

The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) said there was an urgent need to calculate risks of local pollutants such as soot, or "black carbon", in the Arctic. Soot darkens ice, making it soak up more of the sun's heat and quickening a melt.

 

Companies such as Shell, which this week gave up a push to find oil this year in the Chukchi Sea as the winter closed in, Exxon or Statoil say they are using the cleanest available technologies.

But the risks of even small amounts of pollution on the Arctic Ocean, emitted near ice with little dispersal by winds, have not been fully assessed.

"A lot of the concerns need urgent evaluation," said Nick Nuttall, spokesman of Naibori-based UNEP, referring to issues such as flaring of gas or fuels used by vessels in the Arctic.

"There is a grim irony here that as the ice melts...humanity is going for more of the natural resources fuelling this meltdown," he said. Large amounts of soot in the Arctic come from more distant sources such as forest fires or industry.

The extent of sea ice on the Arctic Ocean has shrunk this summer to the smallest since satellite records began in the 1970s, eclipsing a 2007 low. The melt is part of a long-term retreat blamed by a U.N. panel on man-made global warming, caused by use of fossil fuels.

"We're working to get a better documentation of the risks of black carbon in the Arctic," said Lars-Otto Reiersen, head of the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP), part of the Arctic Council.

An AMAP report last year said that "regulation of black carbon production from all sources, especially those resulting locally from activities in the Arctic, is required at all scales."

400 FIELDS

More than 400 oil and gas fields within the Arctic region were developed by 2007, according to AMAP, mostly in West Siberia in Russia and in Alaska. Most of the undiscovered oil and gas is now estimated to be offshore.

Soot is an extra problem for planners, adding to risks such as of an oil blowout or a shipwreck. The U.N.'s International Maritime Organization is trying to work out a new "Polar Code" that might tighten everything from emissions to hull standards.

Still, for shipping, use of the Arctic route may be less damaging overall in terms of global warming, including soot, since it is a short-cut between some Atlantic and Pacific ports. That means ships burn much less fuel on the route.

"We are working on the net effect of the Arctic route compared to the Suez Canal," said Jan Fuglestvedt, of the Center for International Climate and Environmental Research in Oslo.

In 2009, the Bremen-based Beluga Group sailed from South Korea to Rotterdam across the Arctic, cutting 4,000 nautical miles off the route via Suez. This year, for instance, an icebreaker became the first Chinese vessel to cross the ocean.

One study indicated that increased use of the Arctic route might limit carbon dioxide emissions for global shipping by 2.9 million tons a year by 2050, or 0.1 percent, compared to use of the Suez Canal.

"If the Arctic route is really open by then it may reduce carbon emissions a bit on the global scale," said Leif Ingolf Eide, an author of the study at Norwegian-based risk management group DnV. The study did not assess soot, he said.

In a 2011 report, UNEP estimated that a global crackdown on soot, methane and ozone could slow global warming by 0.5 degree Celsius (0.9F). It would also protect human health and promote crop growth.

Almost 200 nations have agreed to limit climate change to below 2 degrees C (3.6F) above pre-industrial times, seeing it as a threshold to dangerous changes such as more droughts, floods or rising sea levels.

(Reporting By Alister Doyle; Editing by Rosalind Russell)

Floods from Spain to Morroco

Citizens Flee homes in Spain in wake of Flooding.

Climate Change And Drinking Water: Report Indicates Hurricane Irene Polluted New York's Catskills Watershed

Over one year later, parts of the East Coast are still recovering from Hurricane Irene, the Category 1 hurricane that first hit the outer banks of North Carolina and made its way up the coast, tempering into a tropical storm by the time it reached New York. Forty-nine people died as a direct result of the hurricane, which racked up anestimated $15.8 billion in total damage.But truly lasting devastation could come from the effects of hurricanes like Irene on watersheds which contribute to drinking water supplies.

A recent study from Yale University, published in Geophysical Research Letters, indicates that the water quality of lakes and coastal systems "would be altered if hurricanes intensify in a warming world," according to a press release. Co-authors Bryan Yoon, a doctoral student, and Peter A. Raymond, an ecosystem ecology professor, recorded amounts of dissolved organic matter in the Catskill watershed, which provides the majority of New York City's drinking water.

While dissolved organic matter is not necessarily a bad thing, it can be detrimental to the aquatic environment in excessive amounts, the study found. The matter can bind to metal pollutants and carry them, interfere with ultraviolet processes and aquatic metabolism and can even lead to the formation of carcinogenic disinfection by-products in chlorination.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/26/climate-change-drinking-water-irene_n_1917117.html?utm_hp_ref=extreme-weather

Weather Channel heads to swing states for election

NEW YORK (AP) — Snowstorms, hurricanes and tornados are what usually put The Weather Channel’s news team in motion. This November it will mobilize for the election.

The network, which commissioned a study on how many people might be dissuaded from going to the polls by bad weather, said Wednesday it plans to send some of its meteorologists out into the field on Election Day to monitor the weather’s impact on voting.

The study, done in August, found that 25 percent of eligible voters said bad weather would have an impact on their ability or desire to get to the polls on Nov. 6. Among people who said they were undecided between President Barack Obama and challenger Mitt Romney, 35 percent said weather might make a difference in whether they vote.

http://www.boston.com/ae/tv/2012/09/26/weather-channel-heads-swing-states-for-election/oR6GZCNaCSZ07IWsS5VEcP/story.html

Norman a Heavy Rain Threat

Tropical Storm Norman formed near the Pacific coast of Mexico Friday morning and is headed inland soon.

Heavy rainfall on the order of 4-8 inches, with isolated amounts of 12 inches is likely to trigger flooding and mudslides in western Mexico into the weekend.  Also, remnant moisture and energy from Norman will enhance rainfall over parts of Texas this weekend.

Link to Article

Key US East Coast Weather Satellite GOES-13 Fails

A major weather satellite monitoring the U.S. East Coast has shut down, prompting officials to activate a spare satellite to take its place.

The GOES-13 satellite failed after days of erratic behavior, officials with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration officials said Monday (Sept. 24). The replacement, GOES-14, has already begun snapping pictures of Earth from space to monitor the U.S. eastern coast along with the continental U.S. and Atlantic basin, they added.

Link to Article

Why Politicians Need to Think Like Scientists

Global warming, counterterrorism efforts that profile Muslims, the shift to electronic voting machines — lawmakers grappling with these issues and others could benefit greatly from some scientific thinking, says a U.S. congressman and physicist.

While electing more scientists would address the problem, it is an unlikely solution, writes U.S. Rep. Rush Holt, a Democrat who represents a New Jersey district. Instead, he writes nonscientist legislators need to become more comfortable thinking like scientists.

Link to Article

Lightning Still Largely a Mystery

Some 44,000 thunderstorms rage worldwide each day, delivering as many as 100 lightning bolts to the ground every second. These dramatic, deafening flashes of electricity recharge the global battery by keeping the ground flush with negative electric charge and maintaining the ionosphere's positive charge. Lightning turns the Earth into an electric circuit, and it may have even delivered the spark that got life started in the primordial soup.

But for all we know, lightning might as well come from Zeus. Counting Ben Franklin's kite-and-key experiment as the starting point, 250 years of scientific investigation have yet to get to grips with how lightning works.

Link to Article

Flash Floods Hit Midland, Odessa

A rare steady rainfall has hit Western Texas. It has led to more than 100 high water rescues and the a city's school district had to close. About 120 people were rescued from vehicles, most of this happening overnight and into Friday morning. Fortunately no injuries have been reported. The Midland area received nearly 3 inches of rain over 18 hours, and forecaster issued a flash flood watch through Saturday morning. This region, known as the Permian Basin, is in severe or moderate drought, so the rainfall is also some needed moisture to the land. Because of the drought the ground is too hard to soak up the rain, therefore causing the water to run into the streets.

http://www.weather.com/news/flash-flooding-midland-odessa-storify-20120928

Flash Floods Hit Midland, Odessa

Tim Ballisty Updated 20 mins ago weather.com

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MIDLAND, Texas -- A rare steady rainfall in West Texas led to more than 100 high-water rescues and the closing of a city's school district, officials said Friday.

Officials say about 120 people were rescued from vehicles, mostly overnight and into Friday morning, with the total split almost evenly between Odessa and Midland. No injuries were reported, officials said.

The National Weather Service says the Midland area received nearly 3 inches of rain over 18 hours. Forecasters have issued a flash flood watch through Saturday morning.

http://www.weather.com/news/flash-flooding-midland-odessa-storify-20120928

Jelawat Aims for Okinawa

Nick Wiltgen Updated: Sep 28, 2012, 1:20 PM EDT weather.com

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Typhoon Moves Towards Japan

Do you want the video to start automatically?

For the first time in 15 years, we had three consecutive "super typhoons" in the western Pacific Ocean.

Jelawat became a super typhoon on Sunday (U.S. time) and remained one through much of Thursday. By Friday morning, Jelawat had weakened and was no longer a super typhoon.

The U.S. Joint Typhoon Warning Center, which tracks tropical cyclones in the Western Pacific, uses the term "super typhoon" for a tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of at least 150 miles per hour, the equivalent of a high-end Category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.

A "typhoon" is simply a different name for a "hurricane"; the sustained wind criteria for both are identical, at 74 miles per hour.

http://www.weather.com/news/pacific-super-typhoon-jelawat-20120925

New Clues About Ancient Water Cycles Shed Light On U.S. Deserts- Alexis Brunson

The deserts of Utah and Nevada have not always been dry. Between 14,000 and 20,000 years ago, when large ice caps covered Canada during the last glacial cooling, valleys throughout the desert southwest filled with water to become large lakes, scientists have long surmised. At their maximum size, the desert lakes covered about a quarter of both Nevada and Utah. Now a team led by a Texas A&M University researcher has found a new water cycle connection between the U.S. southwest and the tropics, and understanding the processes that have brought precipitation to the western U.S. will help scientists better understand how the water cycle might be perturbed in the future.

What we need to do now is look at all of this on a finer scale," Lyle points out. "We need to understand better the processes that directed the storms thousands of years ago, and to predict better what changes might occur in the future

Drought

Stubborn Drought Maintains Grip on Lower 48 States

The U.S. Drought Monitor's new map shows the drought has worsened in a week

Related:Drought

• By Associated Press
  
  This Sept. 20, 2012 photo shows corn being harvested at Duane Braesch's farm in Bennington, Neb. Braesch's cornfields are prime evidence of how unforgiving the elements have been for him and so many others across the Midwest this year. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
  
  ST. LOUIS (AP) - The nation's worst drought in decades consumed a larger portion of the lower 48 states last week with the Midwest corn harvest in full swing, according to the latest update by a drought-tracking consortium released Thursday.
  
  The U.S. Drought Monitor's new map shows 65.5 percent of the contiguous U.S. experiencing some form of drought as of Tuesday, creeping up from 64.8 percent a week earlier. The portion of the U.S. in extreme or exceptional drought - the two worst classifications - rose three-quarters of a percentage point to 21.5 percent.
  
  The latest update did not reflect storms that pounded portions of Missouri and Illinois this week, in some areas dumping as much as 7 inches of rain that growers embrace as potentially beneficial to soybean crops still in the fields. Farmers also welcome moisture in the fall and snow in the winter that softens the soil and provides needed saturation for the next planting season.
  
  Storms were expected in portions of the nation's midsection into the weekend, with some states needing the rain more than others.
  
  The latest map released by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln showed that the area of Iowa, the nation's biggest corn producer, deemed to be in exceptional drought rose from 2.4 percent last week to 2.5 percent. The area of land subject to that most severe classification increased 2.3 percentage points in Nebraska to 73.25 percent, while conditions in Kansas, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana did not change.
  
  Over the next few days, "unfortunately little if any rain is expected to fall across the hard-hit drought areas in the eastern Dakotas, eastern Nebraska and the Upper Mississippi Valley/Upper Great Lakes region," Anthony Artusa of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Climate Prediction Center wrote in Thursday's update.
  
  The forecast rain will have no impact on the already-matured corn crop currently being harvested.
• As of Monday, 39 percent of that crop had been brought in from the fields - three times more than by this date in the previous five years due to early planting, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported. More than 54 percent of the corn crop in Illinois has been harvested, while Iowa has harvested 37 percent and Missouri 80 percent.
  
  About 51 percent of the U.S. corn crop is classified as being in poor or very poor shape, essentially unchanged from a week earlier, the USDA said. A year ago, 20 percent of corn in the fields was listed that way.
  
  Twenty-two percent of the U.S. soybean crops have been harvested, with 34 percent considered poor or very poor, the USDA said.
  
  SEE ON SKYE: Dramatic Photos of America's Drought
  
• 
  

Science Daily (Sep. 19, 2012) — The frozen cap of the Arctic Ocean appears to have reached its annual summertime minimum extent and broken a new record low on Sept. 16, the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) has reported. Analysis of satellite data by NASA and the NASA-supported NSIDC at the University of Colorado in Boulder showed that the sea ice extent shrunk to 1.32 million square miles (3.41 million square kilometers). The new record minimum measures almost 300,000 square miles less than the previous lowest extent in the satellite record, set in mid-September 2007, of 1.61 million square miles (4.17 million square kilometers). For comparison, the state of Texas measures around 268,600 square miles The new record minimum measures almost 300,000 square miles less than the previous lowest extent in the satellite record, set in mid-September 2007, of 1.61 million square miles (4.17 million square kilometers). For comparison, the state of Texas measures around 268,600 square miles (Copied From Science Daily).

September Brings Dramatic Weather Turn in Indianapolis

Indianapolis made a dramatic turnaround in its weather this month.  September 2012 will go down in the record books as one of the wettest Septembers on record. This comes after the city recorded its driest June on record a few months ago.
"To go from a two-month period of less than 1" rain to almost 14" of rain the following two-months is nothing short of stunning," says weather.com Senior Meteorologist Jon Erdman.  

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"To be sure, the drought is not over in the Hoosier State," reports Erdman. "Almost 88% of Indiana remains in drought. Parts of the state still need up to 12" of additional rain to eliminate the drought."
Unfortunately, all this precipitation is likely too late for farmers in Indiana. The drought has devastated corn crops across the state. Indiana cattle farmers have had to ship in hay from Arizona, Utah, and even Canada to feed their livestock.

September Brings Dramatic Weather Turn in Indianapolis 

Nadine: A History-Making Storm?

We may be ready to chalk up another "oddity" to the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season.  Yet again, this one would be in the far northern and eastern Atlantic Ocean.

On September 11, Tropical Depression Fourteen later became Tropical Storm Nadine.  Fortunately, Nadine was expected to remain well east and northeast of the Lesser Antilles and east of Bermuda.
Nadine became a hurricane, as it turned east late on September 14 (EDT).  Then, things became interesting as its track resembled something your child might draw in pre-school.

Nadine's Path

Late last week, there was some question whether Nadine would survive as a tropical cyclone and whether it would get pulled east into the Iberian Peninsula or, even, northwest Africa!
However, an upper-level dip in the jet stream to the northeast of Nadine pulled away, while deep high pressure aloft replaced it.  Thus, Nadine turned back toward the west and persisted into this week.     
After briefly taking on the characteristics of a "subtropical" cyclone, the National Hurricane Center discontinued advisories late on Sep. 21, declaring Nadine a "post-tropical" cyclone due to a lack of deep convection near its center.  That convection returned on Sep. 23, and Nadine was reborn again as a tropical storm, where it continues now.

Now, some weather forecast guidance suggests we may be dealing with Nadine loafing and lollygagging in the central Atlantic into next week, if another dip in the jet stream, or upper-level trough, doesn't catch Nadine and carry it away as an extratropical storm.

Longest-lived Atlantic List

If Nadine can remain a tropical storm into mid-late next week, it would enter a rather exclusive club of Atlantic tropical cyclones.
In the period of record, there have been only 4 Atlantic named storms that have persisted as tropical cyclones for three weeks or longer.
Why is this so hard to accomplish?

• You need a tropical cyclone to move over an expansive swath of the ocean.  This doesn't sound that unusual, right?
• Once the storm gains latitude, it needs to be missed by one or more upper-level dips or troughs in the jet stream.  Instead of being sheared and carried away as a so-called "extratropical" storm, the tropical cyclone is left behind.  Typically, a tropical cyclone may miss one upper-level trough.  For a cyclone to miss two or more dips in the jet stream, however, is more unusual.
• Preferably, it stalls at least once, but not for so long that cooled ocean water from rain and upwelling doesn't significantly affect the storm's intake.  This can happen just after an upper-level trough misses picking up the cyclone, as mentioned above.

Nadine: A History-Making Storm?

Drought Affecting Crops

In an article from the Associated Press on The Weather Channel, the topic of crops being affected by the drought is discussed.  They took a farm in Nebraska as an example, documenting the change in color from the heat in August and September.  It only rained significantly twice in 59 days, and the harvest was only about half of what it normally be.  The weather surely affected the crop on this particular farm, as well as many others.

http://www.weather.com/news/scenes-from-drought-20120926

Drought Makes Plants Bloom Early

In an article from Sangeeta Shastry from The Kansas City Star on The Weather Channel, the topic of the plants around Kansas blooming early due to to drought is discussed.  The author explains that the recent cool temperatures after a rough dry summer may have tricked the plants into blooming early.  The best way to deal with these planting issues is to constantly water the plants and keep them well and healthy.  Many haven't experienced the plants blooming so early, but they have good tips to keep them healthy.

http://www.weather.com/news/drought-tricks-plants-into-bloom-20120926

Tornadoes in Souhern Illinois

These tornadoes Appeared in Southern Illinois Yesterday.

Climate Extremes: Arctic Sea Ice Melts to Record Low

Arctic sea ice has melted to its lowest level since record-keeping began in 1979, the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) announced.
The total ice extent as of Aug. 31, 2012, 1.40 million square miles, is the smallest ice extent measured ever, surpassing the record low from 2007 of 1.54 million square miles.
According to the NSIDC, during August, the Arctic lost an average of 35,400 square miles of ice per day, the fastest observed loss for the month of August on record.
August 2012 marks the 16th consecutive August and the 135th consecutive month with below-average Arctic sea ice extent.

http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-blogs/climatechange/climate-extremes-arctic-sea-ic/79479

Sumatra Quake in April Tied to Sea Floor Changes

An April earthquake near the island of Sumatra resulted from as many as five faults in the tectonic plate that serves as the floor of the Indian Ocean, according to researchers that say the geologic event may show the massive slab of rock is splitting into two. A fault is a fracture that can push upward causing mountains, downward causing oceans or even side-to-side as the tectonic plate floats on a lower layer of molten rock. In the past, scientists didn’t know that a series of faults could act in concert, in this case sliding sideways, spurring a dangerous 8.7 magnitude quake, but no tsunami, the wall of ocean water that can result from such an occurrence.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-09-26/sumatra-quake-in-april-tied-to-sea-floor-changes

Consumer Two-Way Radios, with NOAA Weather Alerts, Keep Families Prepared During Severe Weather Situations

SCHAUMBURG, Ill., Sept. 24, 2012 — /PRNewswire/ -- The 2012 Atlantic hurricane season is in effect through Nov. 30, making it important for families to have an emergency preparedness plan and kit. Two-way radios from Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) are a must-have communication tool for use in severe weather situations and emergencies such as hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, wildfires, winter storms, emergency evacuations and Amber alerts by combining NOAA weather channels and alerts with powerful two-way communications and durable, weatherproof housing. The latest MT350R series of consumer Talkabout® two-way radios feature convenient emergency preparedness features and a weatherproof design.

http://www.heraldonline.com/2012/09/24/4285792/consumer-two-way-radios-with-noaa.html

Read more here: http://www.heraldonline.com/2012/09/24/4285792/consumer-two-way-radios-with-noaa.html#storylink=cpy
 

Several tornadoes spotted in Illinois

Damiansville, IL (KSDK) - The First Alert Weather Team has confirmed several tornadoes have been spotted on the ground in Illinois.
One touched down near Damiansville and is moving east at 25 miles per hour, headed toward New Minden and Centralia. Hail measured at 2.5 inches in diameter is also accompanying this storm.
Damiansville is around 37 miles east of St. Louis.
A tornado also touched down around 5:30 p.m. near Okawville moving east around 25 miles an hour. This storm is also producing golf ball sized hail.
A tractor-trailer was blown over on eastbound Interstate 64 at the Okawville exit. Two people were taken to a Washinton County, Illinois hospital. The extent of their injuries is unknown.

A tractor-trailer was blown over on eastbound Interstate 64 at the Okawville exit. Two people were taken to a Washinton County, Illinois hospital. The extent of their injuries is unknown.

The National Weather Service is reporting tornado damage has been reported near Okawville just north of 177 where a farm roof is damaged with shingles blown off. A roof has also been twisted off a metal sheds.

http://www.ksdk.com/news/article/340205/3/Two-tornadoes-spotted-in-Illinois

Tornado Touches Down in Illinois

A confirmed tornado spun through Illinois Tuesday evening. Heavy thunderstorms with hail rolled through portions of the Midwest causing serious damage to several homes.
 http://www.weather.com/news/tuesday-severe-weather-20120925

Autumn weather early: flood warnings by area

Travel has been disrupted by flooding on railways and roads, with warnings of further floods as some regions have the prospect of up to three inches of rain in the next 24 hours.
Torrential rain overnight in the South West led to the flooding of about 15 properties in Somerset and chaos to train services between Exeter and Bristol, while flooding was slowing down trains between Chester and north Wales.
The Highways Agency also said surface water flooding was leading to delays on the A49 near Ludlow in Shropshire.
Motorists were being told to be careful on flooded roads in flood plains and in valleys.
The Met Office is forecasting that up to 100mm over three inches of rain may fall over some of northern England, the Midlands and north and east Wales over the next 24 hours, with some regions getting over the average for the whole month of September.
The Pennines are predicted to be worst hit, with an increased risk of flooding for areas near the rivers Aire and Calder.
Earlier there were 20 flood warnings for rivers in place in the South West, North East and Midlands and the Environment Agency is also warning of surface water flooding.


http://www.itv.com/news/2012-09-24/floods-cause-travel-chaos/

North-east hardest hit by another day of flooding

Hundreds of people face a night in temporary accommodation after a second day of heavy rain brought flooding and travel problems to parts of the UK.
More than 300 properties have flooded across the country since Sunday, including in Morpeth, Durham, Chester-le-Street and Stockton on Tees, the Environment Agency said.
Elderly residents at a council care home in North Yorkshire had to be carried to safety by firefighters after it became swamped by 3ft of water.
Roads and railways ground to a halt because of the rain and flooding, with the A1 and the East Coast Main Line among the routes hit by the conditions.

http://www.itv.com/news/2012-09-25/north-east-hardest-hit-by-another-day-of-flooding/

Illinois Storms Spawn Tornadoes, Hail

Tornadoes and golf ball-sized hail hit several small town Tuesday in the far southern parts of Illinois.
Dash cam video from a police squad car caught one funnel cloud as it rolled through Washington County.
The National Weather Service confirmed that at least three tornadoes touched down but the damage was not severe.
There are reports that a tractor-trailer was overturned and some roofs were damaged, but there were no injuries.
Five or six other funnel clouds were spotted but those never reached the ground.


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49173930/ns/local_news-chicago_il/

Parts of Nova Scotia surpass September rainfall average

 

Umbrellas and rubber boots have been a necessity for residents in parts of Nova Scotia this month.

On average, Halifax normally sees around 100 mm of rain in September. This year however, the city has already picked up close to 350 mm so far.

The latest bout of rain came from a low pressure system that stalled over the Maritimes for several days last week.

Before that, heavy rain from Tropical Storm Leslie brought between 50-100 mm of rain across the province.

Water levels in the North and Salmon Rivers began rising near Truro, flooding towns and communities in the area. Work is currently underway to repair the flood-damaged berm that was severely breached during the storms.

 

http://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/storm_watch_stories3&stormfile=Parts_of_Nova_Scotia_surpass_September_rainfall_average_25_09_2012?ref=ccbox_homepage_category1

Ontario's 9th tornado of the year confirmed

Environment Canada has confirmed Ontario's 9th tornado of the season.

At around 6:20 AM on Saturday, September 22, a line of showers and thundershowers moved through parts of eastern Ontario. Two properties were damaged in the town of Wellington, Prince Edward County.

Based on testimonial evidence, EC is confirming the damage as being caused by an F0 tornado, with wind speeds up to 110 km/h.

It touched down near the intersection of Highway 33 and Regional Road 2. The path of the damage was 60-70 metres long and 10-15 metres wide.

Damage included lawn furniture being tossed up to 50 metres away, a picnic table thrown across a property, and a heavy deck lifted off its foundation.

It is possible that the tornado formed originally as a waterspout over Lake Ontario.

 

http://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/storm_watch_stories3&stormfile=Ontario_s_9th_tornado_of_the_year_confirmed_24_09_2012?ref=ccbox_weather_category1

The truth behind a weather forecast

Weather is the number one topic of conversation across the country and one that seems to strike a nerve among most Canadians.

Whether celebrating the beautiful conditions together or commiserating when the weather spells trouble, all eyes are on the forecast daily.

But what goes into creating that forecast and how are certain changes reflected?

Computer models are the main tools that meteorologists use.

"There are several computer models that we look at to come up with the forecast," says Gina Ressler, a meteorologist at The Weather Network. "Two Canadian models (run by the Canadian Meteorological Centre), two American models (run by the National Centers for Environmental Prediction), and two European models (run by the UK Met Office and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts)."

When new model data comes in, the meteorologists will compare the model fields against actual observations like radar, satellite and surface observations. That helps to decide which models are doing the best and identify any possible errors as well.

 

http://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/storm_watch_stories3&stormfile=The_truth_behind_a_weather_forecast_07_09_2012

Summer 2012: Calgary's hottest in 40 years

This past summer in Calgary was one for the record books.

The last time the city experienced a summer as hot as 2012's was back in 1970.

"The average temperatures in June, July and August of 2012 were about as hot as those in 2003 and 2006," says Rob Davis, a meteorologist at The Weather Network. "However, this past summer came out on top."

From June 1 to August 31, average daily temperatures observed at the Calgary International Airport were the highest they have been since 1970. If you just look at months of July, August and September, Calgary has experienced the warmest summer and early fall since record-keeping began in 1881.

The blast of warm weather began around the start of the Calgary Stampede, and hasn't let up since. From July 1 to now, the city has hit 25C or higher on 35 days. Normally, that would only happen on 23 days.

Conditions have also been drier than normal in Calgary. Only 29.8 mm of rain has fallen from August to September. Usually, about 100 mm would have fallen.

 

http://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/storm_watch_stories3&stormfile=Summer_2012__Calgary_s_hottest_in_40_years_24_09_2012?ref=ccbox_homepage_category1

August 2012 global temperatures were fourth highest on record

The globally-averaged temperature for August 2012 marked the fourth warmest August since record keeping began in 1880. August 2012 also marks the 36^th consecutive August and 330^th consecutive month with a global temperature above the 20^th century average.
Most areas of the world experienced much higher-than-average monthly temperatures, including far northeastern North America, central and Southern Europe, and east central Asia. Meanwhile, parts of Siberia were notably cooler than average. In the Arctic, sea ice extent averaged 1.82 million square miles, resulting in the all-time lowest August sea ice extent on record. On August 26^th, the Arctic dipped below the record smallest daily extent, previously set on September 18^th, 2007.

http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/

Storm Zone Stretches from the Heartland to Northeast

While it isn't an epic storm – or a drought-buster – an east-west oriented frontal zone is bringing the opportunity for welcome rainfall over parts of the nation's parched heartland this week.
The frontal zone will slowly sag southward from the Mid-Atlantic and Ohio Valley westward to the southern Plains through Friday. This front brought a renewed push of cool air behind it to the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes. Meanwhile, warm southerly winds are supplying a return flow of warmer, moister air northward.
The front will be the battleground area where air is forced to rise, leading to more showers and thunderstorms in areas that have already seen some activity since late Monday.
And not only will there be some modest Gulf of Mexico moisture coming up from the south in the lower atmosphere – but there may also be some moisture in the upper atmosphere coming from distant Miriam in the eastern Pacific, which could enhance some of the rainfall as early as Thursday.

Frontal Zone Impacts

As mentioned before, the front will make very little progress southward Wednesday through Friday. This should allow multiple rounds of showers and thunderstorms to affect the same areas from the Mid-Atlantic westward to the Ohio Valley and the southern Plains.Locally heavy rainfall amounts will continue to be possible and some locations could pick up one to three inches of rain the next few days. While the rain is beneficial for the drought areas, this will not be a drought-busting system. Much more rainfall is needed in the weeks and months ahead to provide extensive drought relief.In addition to the rain, isolated severe thunderstorms will be possible along the frontal zone like we saw on Tuesday. Locally damaging winds and hail are the main threats.

http://www.weather.com/news/weather-forecast/front-plains-midwest-rain-20120924