Global debt soars to $169 trillion, along with fears of crisis ahead – “We were supposed to correct a debt bubble. What we did instead was create more debt.”

By David J. Lynch 3 September 2018 (The Washington Post) – Ten years after the worst financial panic since the 1930s, growing debt burdens in key developing economies are fueling fears of a new crisis that could spread far beyond the disruption sweeping Turkey. The loss of investor confidence in the Turkish lira, which has […]

Image of the Day: Satellite view of black carbon from North America wildfires and other aerosols, 23 August 2018

By Adam Voiland 24 August 2018 (NASA) – Take a deep breath. Even if the air looks clear, it is nearly certain that you will inhale millions of solid particles and liquid droplets. These ubiquitous specks of matter are known as aerosols, and they can be found in the air over oceans, deserts, mountains, forests, […]

UN experts cite “possible exploitation” of workers hired to clean up Fukushima nuclear plant

16 August 2018 (UN News) – A group of United Nations rights experts are urging the Japanese government to urgently protect tens of thousands or workers hired to help decontaminate the Fukushima nuclear plant, who are reportedly being exploited and exposed to toxic nuclear radiation.“Workers hired to decontaminate Fukushima reportedly include migrant workers, asylum seekers, […]

Air conditioning use emerges as one of the key drivers of global electricity-demand growth

15 May 2018 (IEA) – The growing use of air conditioners in homes and offices around the world will be one of the top drivers of global electricity demand over the next three decades, according to new analysis by the International Energy Agency that stresses the urgent need for policy action to improve cooling efficiency. […]

All-time heat records fall in Korea – Portugal temperature may hit 51°C (123.8°F) in some areas

Dr. Jeff Masters 1 August 2018 (Weather Underground) – Wednesday, 1 August 2018, was the hottest day in Korean history, as a withering heat wave toppled all-time heat records throughout the peninsula. South Korea set a new all-time heat record of 41.0°C (105.8°F) at Hongcheon, a town in South Korea’s northeastern province of Gangwon. This […]

Typhoon Jongdari makes landfall in Japan as nation reels from record floods and heat – Uda City gets 4.33 inches of rain in one hour

By Dennis Mersereau 28 July 2018 (Forbes) – Typhoon Jongdari made landfall east of Kyoto, Japan, just after midnight local time on Sunday, coming ashore as the latest in a long string of weather-related disasters to plague the Japanese archipelago. The weather has not been kind to Japan this month. The typhoon’s landfall comes after […]

Global warming is supercharging a hot and dangerous summer – “The old records belong to a world that no longer exists”

By Joel Achenbach and Angela Fritz 26 July 2018 (The Washington Post) – In the town of Sodankyla, Finland, the thermometer on July 17 registered a record-breaking 90 degrees, a remarkable figure given that Sodankyla is 59 miles north of the Arctic Circle, in a region known for winter snowmobiling and an abundance of reindeer.This […]

After floods and heatwave, Japan braces for Typhoon Jongdari – Government warns of rainfall up to 500 millimeters over 24 hours

By Shiho Takezawa 27 July 2018 (Bloomberg) – Typhoon Jongdari is set to make landfall on Japan’s mainland this weekend, bringing heavy rain and strong winds to much of a country hit in recent weeks by a deadly heatwave and historic flooding.The typhoon was located off Chichijima, an island in the Pacific about 1,000 kilometers […]

Japan heat wave drives up food prices, prison inmate dies – Heat wave declared “special disaster” in South Korea

TOKYO, 25 July 2018 (Reuters) – Vegetable prices in Japan are spiking as much as 65 percent in the grip of a grueling heat wave, which drove temperatures on Wednesday to records in some areas hit by flooding and landslides, hampering clean-up and recovery efforts. As many as 65 people died in the week to […]

Japan’s deadly heat wave declared a natural disaster as death toll continues to rise – Kyoto sees temps above 38 C for seven consecutive days, for the first time since records began

By Eric Leister 24 July 2018 (AccuWeather) – The deadly heat will continue across Japan through at least Thursday, following the hottest day on record in Japan. The highest temperature ever recorded by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) was reported on Monday when Kumagaya reached 41.1 C (106 F). The Greater Tokyo Area also set […]

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