Image of the Day: Satellite view of smoke plumes towering over California, 6 August 2018

By Adam Voiland 9 August 2018 (NASA) – In July and August 2018, towering plumes of smoke have risen from several fires in northern California. Though heavy rains ended the lengthy drought that parched California, trees and vegetation killed during that dry spell still linger in California’s forests. With all that extra fuel priming the […]

Battling 18 blazes, California may face worst fire season on record – “Fires are burning much more intensely, much more quickly than they were before”

By Don Thompson, Lorin Eleni Gill, and Olga Rodriguez 8 August 2018 LAKEPORT, California (AP) – The largest wildfire ever recorded in California needed just 11 days to blacken an area nearly the size of Los Angeles — and it’s only one of many enormous blazes that could make this the worst fire season in […]

Record drought in northwestern British Columbia sparks nearly 500 wildfires – Fire crews from New Zealand and Australia brought in – “The drought codes are the highest they’ve ever been at this time of year”

5 August 2018 (The Weather Network) – With the number of fires burning across the province rapidly approaching the 500 mark, officials in British Columbia are recruiting help from out of the province – and even out of the country – as they do battle with 2018’s intense wildfire season. The more than 2,200 crew […]

California’s destructive summer brings blunt talk about global warming – “We are seeing the impacts of climate change now”

By Rong-Gong Lin II and Javier Panzar 5 August 2018 (Los Angeles Times) – At Scripps Pier in San Diego, the surface water reached the highest temperature in 102 years of records, 78.8 degrees.Palm Springs had its warmest July on record, with an average of 97.4 degrees. Death Valley experienced its hottest month on record, […]

Northern California wildfire now largest in state history – “I can remember a couple of years ago when we saw 10 to 12,000 firefighters in the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, and never the 14,000 we see now”

LAKEPORT, California, 7 August 2018 (AP) – Twin Northern California blazes fueled by dry vegetation and hot, windy weather grew Monday to become the largest wildfire in state history, becoming the norm as climate change makes the fire season longer and more severe. The two fires burning a few miles apart and known as the […]

Trump blames California water policies for wildfires – Firefighters and scientists push back – “He clearly doesn’t know what he’s talking about”

By Timothy Cama 6 August 2018 (The Hill) – President Trump doubled down on his criticism of California Gov. Jerry Brown (D), saying Monday that the state’s water management policies are responsible for deadly wildfires.“Governor Jerry Brown must allow the Free Flow of the vast amounts of water coming from the North and foolishly being […]

Heat wave smashes all-time heat records in Portugal and Spain – Portugal battles wildfires, and France nuclear reactors shut down due to heat – “We are facing a new reality”

Dr. Jeff Masters 5 August 2018 (Weather Underground) – The future-is-now Northern Hemisphere summer of 2018 roasted a new portion of Europe with all-time record heat over the weekend: Portugal and Spain. Portugal’s capital city Lisbon hit 111.2°F (44°C) on Saturday, its hottest temperature ever recorded. The previous record was 109.4°F (43°C) in 1981. Portugal’s […]

Video: California’s Carr Fire may have unleashed the most intense fire tornado ever observed in the U.S. – 143-mph vortex that cut a path of destruction is an ominous sign of the future

By Paul Elias 3 August 2018 SAN FRANCISCO (Associated Press) – A deadly Northern California wildfire burned so hot in dry and windy conditions that it birthed a record-breaking tornado of flame, officials said Friday. They also warned of worsening conditions throughout the region.Winds in the “fire whirl” created 26 July 2018 near Redding, California, […]

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. […]

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 […]

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