Canada is experiencing over 900 active wildfires, scorching 3 million hectares, with significant concerns in the Northwest Territories and Ontario, causing poor air quality extending to Europe. Concurrently, Salta, Argentina, recorded its warmest-ever winter night at 26C, driven by the Zonda wind and potentially influenced by El Niño.
Parts of the UK, particularly England and Wales, have experienced a prolonged dry spell since mid-June, leading to drought conditions and hosepipe bans. A shift in weather patterns, involving "retrogression" of high pressure, is expected to bring welcome rain across the UK this weekend, with western areas seeing more significant rainfall.
A prolonged dry spell has led to hosepipe bans in southern UK, with England and Wales experiencing minimal rain since mid-June. Northern Ireland and western Scotland were wetter in June but drier in July. A rare westward-moving high-pressure system is set to bring welcome rain across the UK this weekend, though some areas may receive less.
A new study warns that rising temperatures could lead to more frequent "hydroclimatic whiplash" events in UK rivers, causing rapid shifts between extreme droughts and heavy downpours. This phenomenon challenges traditional flood and drought planning, requiring new strategies to manage sequences of extremes.
Month was one of driest Aprils on record with rainfall 23% less than average, according to Met Office figuresOne of the driest Aprils on record for central and southern England has left river levels below normal, raising fears of drought in some areas over the summer.The latest UK hydrological survey – which tracks river and groundwater levels – suggests central and southern England and eastern Scotland will experience notably low river flows over the next three months, raising concerns about water shortages if dry weather persists. Continue reading...
Month was one of driest on record with rainfall 23% less than average, according to Met Office figuresOne of the driest Aprils on record for central and southern England has left river levels below normal, raising fears of drought in some areas over the summer.The latest UK hydrological survey – which tracks river and groundwater levels – suggests central and southern England and eastern Scotland will experience notably low river flows over the next three months, raising concerns about water shortages if dry weather persists. Continue reading...
Malaysia is resorting to cloud seeding to bring much-needed rain to the country’s “rice bowl” north, where a drought has delayed planting of the staple crop and raised supply fears. “This year ... has been affected by prolonged dry weather, low rainfall and reduced dam water levels,” said Malaysia’s Minister of Agriculture and Food Security Mohamad Sabu. The conditions mean farmers have missed two of the three usual planting phases for so-called “wet direct seeding” of rice, a technique that...
