How record heat wreaked havoc on four continents – “This is not a future scenario. It is happening now.”

By Somini Sengupta, Tiffany May, and Zia ur-Rehman 30 July 2018 (The New York Times) – Expect more. That’s the verdict of climate scientists to the record-high temperatures this spring and summer in vastly different climate zones. The continental United States had its hottest month of May and the third-hottest month of June. Japan was […]

The common thread in California wildfires: heat like the state has never seen – “The temperatures have just been almost inexorably warmer all the time”

By Rong-Gong Lin II and Ruben Vives 31 July 2018 (Los Angeles Times) – The northern Sacramento Valley was well on its way to recording the hottest July on record when the Carr fire swept into town Thursday.It was 113 degrees, and months of above-average temperatures had left the land bone-dry and ready to explode. […]

Orca whale continues grieving ritual for a sixth day – “You can’t help see it as a message”

By Lynda V. Mapes 30 July 2018 SAN JUAN ISLANDS (The Seattle Times) – She carries it delicately, carefully, by the fin, or on her head, so as not to make a mark on the tiny body of her calf that lived only half an hour. J35, a mother orca in the southern-resident clan, was […]

Smoke from Siberia wildfires reaches Western Washington and New England – More than 1200 square miles of forest is on fire – “The taiga is burning”

By Cliff Mass 30 July 2018 (Cliff Mass Weather and Climate Blog) – The smoke is back over western Washington and it is about to get worse, as California wildfire smoke pushes northward over our area. This morning’s sunrise clearly showed a smoke layer, with the reddish glow so familiar from last summer’s sunrises and […]

Supreme Court denies Trump admin request to halt youth climate lawsuit – “This lawsuit becomes more urgent every day as climate change increasingly harms us”

By Dana Drugmand 30 July 2018 (Climate Liability News) – The Supreme Court denied the federal government’s request to halt discovery and the trial in the youth climate lawsuit Juliana v. United States. The court’s rejection on Monday of the defendants’ application for a stay means the case will likely proceed to trial as scheduled […]

Relentless heat to feed California firestorm as Carr Fire death toll reaches 5

By Renee Duff, AccuWeather meteorologist 29 July 2018 (AccuWeather) – The hot, dry weather that contributed to the deadly California firestorm shows no sign of letting up into the first part of August.“Unfortunately, not much is expected to change in regards to the weather pattern for a majority of the West, with hot, dry weather […]

Seabirds are pooping out plastic – Study shows seabirds may be transporting ocean microplastics to land – “Almost all of the birds had plastics in their stomachs”

By Cheryl Katz 25 July 2018 (Hakai Magazine) – Plastics, those indestructible relics of our throwaway culture, are omnipresent in the oceans, making their way into everything from sea salt to seabirds. Now, a new study finds seabirds may be giving back, shuttling particles from ocean garbage gyres back to shore in their poop. Around […]

The junk debt that tanked the economy? It’s back in a big way.

By Steven Pearlstein 27 July 2018(The Washington Post) – Like most people, you probably assume that the level of lending done by banks at any moment is largely driven by how much demand there is from borrowers. But in the world of modern finance, that’s only part of the story. For just as important is […]

In southeastern U.S., industrial-scale logging drives loss of forest cover – “A highly degraded ecosystem of forests that just get continuously logged over and over again”

By Christina Hoover Moorehead 25 July 2018 (ChavoBart Digital Media) – The southeastern United States is losing trees fast. Between 2000 and 2012, trees in the region were cut up to four times faster than in South American rainforests. Smith: “In the southeastern U.S., what’s driving the loss of forest cover is industrial-scale logging.”That’s Danna […]

Deadly Northern California wildfire grows by two-thirds overnight – “We’ve been experiencing more and more damaging wildfires, more fires that ignite rapidly”

By Alexandria Sage, with additional reporting by Bernie Woodall and Brendan O’Brien; Editing by Scott Malone and Matthew Lewis 28 July 2018 REDDING, California (Reuters) – Nine people were reportedly missing as a monster wildfire in Northern California grew by two-thirds overnight after killing two firefighters, destroying hundreds of buildings and sending thousands of frantic […]

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