On Tuesday, the mountain town of Vicuna in central Chile hit 37 degrees Celsius (almost 99 degrees Fahrenheit). Meanwhile in Buenos Aires, the temperature exceeded 30˚C (86˚F) on Tuesday,…Continue readingSouth America sweats under high temps—in the middle of winter
Tag: impact
Ongoing droughts and an over-exploitation of land for both agriculture and industry have stoked fears in Spain over the creeping spread of “sterile soil” which could devastate Europe’s kitchen…Continue readingSpain worries over ‘lifeless land’ amid creeping desertification
Millions of people have been hit by extreme weather events and prolonged heatwaves around the globe in recent weeks, events that scientists say are being exacerbated by climate change.…Continue readingStreets become rivers as Beijing records heaviest rain in 140 years
Iran on Tuesday declared a two-day holiday for government workers and banks nationwide as searing temperatures sweep across the country, state media reported. The decision came after the meteorological…Continue readingTwo-day holiday in Iran over extreme heat
For centuries, wolves have roamed the mountain ranges of Andalucía in southern Spain, but after years of decline the creature has been officially declared extinct in the region. “This…Continue reading‘Shameful loss’: wolves declared extinct in Andalucía
A massive fire burning through the desert in California and southern Nevada has scorched tens of thousands of acres in a biodiverse national preserve and torched its iconic Joshua…Continue readingHuge wildfire explodes in southern California and spreads into Nevada
The Colorado River Basin provides freshwater to more than 40 million people within the semi-arid southwestern United States, including major cities such as Las Vegas and Los Angeles. However,…Continue readingColorado River Basin megadrought caused by massive 86% decline in snowpack runoff
Shallow waters off south Florida topped 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8˚C) for several hours on Monday, potentially setting a new world record with temperatures more commonly associated with hot tubs.…Continue readingFlorida ocean temperature topped 100˚F, setting potential record
The UK’s hottest year of 2022 — when temperatures rose to a record 40˚C in the summer — will be considered “average” by about 2060 if the world keeps…Continue readingUK’s record heatwave will be seen as ‘cool’ by 2100, Met Office warns
Algeria: At least 34 people were killed, where 8,000 firefighters battled blazes across the tinder-dry north. Fires burned in a total of 15 provinces, leading to the evacuation of…Continue readingMediterranean on fire as blazes spread across nine countries
Temperatures have consistently topped 40 degrees Celsius this week across southern and eastern European countries, and for some areas like Sicily there remains no respite. The Italian island was…Continue readingFrom scorching heat to deadly storms, Europe has no rest from ‘summer of hell’
A blistering heatwave that has engulfed the southern US over the past four weeks has spread to the Great Plains, midwest, mid-Atlantic and north-eastern regions, placing about 190 million…Continue readingBlistering US heatwave spreads from south and scorches 190m Americans
At least 97% of the blood samples contained a type of PFAS known as PFOS, associated with multiple serious health problems.Continue readingResearchers find evidence of ‘forever chemicals’ in blood of pregnant women
Beijing broke a 23-year-old record on Tuesday with 27 consecutive days of temperatures above 35˚C, the China Meteorological Administration said. The temperature recorded by Beijing’s benchmark weather station in…Continue readingBeijing swelters under record-breaking run of extreme heat
The world is shifting towards a superheated climate not seen in the past 1m years, prior to human existence, because “we are damned fools” for not acting upon warnings…Continue reading‘We are damned fools’: scientist who sounded climate alarm in 80s warns of worse to come
China Tourists flocked to a giant thermometer in China showing surface temperatures of 80 degrees Celsius (176 degress Fahrenheit) on Wednesday, the latest extreme weather sparking havoc and curiosity…Continue readingHeatwaves set more records across Europe, Asia and US
Algeria In Algeria, five states were listed as places with the highest temperatures in the world in recent days, according to El Dorado Weather, which keeps a log of…Continue readingFrom Algeria to Syria, heatwaves scorch Middle East, North Africa
A total of 130,000 healthy years of life are lost to noise pollution in the UK each year alone, according to data from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA),…Continue readingLight and noise pollution are neglected hazards
The Murray Darling Basin Plan is an historic deal between state and federal governments to save Australia’s most important river system. The A$13 billion plan, inked over a decade…Continue readingWith less than a year to go, the Murray-Darling Basin Plan is in a dreadful mess
The wetlands system processes about 60 percent of Kolkata’s sewage free of charge, saving the city over $64 million a year. Farms in the wetlands provide about 150 tons…Continue readingThe ‘kidneys of Kolkata’: Indian wetlands under threat
Extreme rainfall accompanied by deadly flooding hit the United States and several other countries over the weekend and last week. In the U.S., flooding claimed five lives in Upper…Continue readingDeadly flooding hit several countries at once. Scientists say this will only be more common
Swaths of the United States home to more than 80 million people were under heat warnings or advisories Sunday, as relentless, record-breaking temperatures continued to bake western and southern…Continue readingUS West and South bake under extended heat wave
Schools in Delhi closed after monsoon rains caused landslides and flash floods on Monday. More than 50 people died across northern India, including in the Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand…Continue readingGlobal warming is supercharging weather events, say scientists
A team of scientists has completed the most comprehensive study of (macro)plastic waste in the Kuril-Kamchatka Trench, a 2,250-kilometer-long deep-sea trench in the northwestern part of the Pacific Ocean.…Continue readingJourney to the deep: Plastic pollution in the Pacific Kuril-Kamchatka Deep-Sea Trench
According to analysis of seabed ecology undertaken after drilling tests in 2020 in Japan – the country’s first successful extraction of cobalt crusts from deep-sea mountains – there was…Continue readingDeep-sea mining causes huge decreases in sealife across wide region, says study
Tourists collapse in Greece and Italy and worker killed near Milan amid heatwave worsened by carbon pollution.Continue readingHealth alerts issued as blistering heat scorches southern Europe
Arizona’s capital city is nicknamed “Valley of the Sun”, and residents are used to scorching heat. But by day 12 of a vicious heatwave that’s sent temperatures soaring into…Continue reading‘Hell on earth’: Phoenix’s extreme heatwave tests the limits of survival
Global warming and drastic deforestation could dry out the Amazon rainforest faster and enforce the risk of keeping it downright fire-trapped. A new study published in Communications Earth &…Continue readingAmazon in the firetrap: Deforestation and warming lock rainforest in dry and damaged grassland state
Published in Science of The Total Environment, the researchers collected and filtered samples of air from seven indoor environments on the Gold Coast where people spend most of their…Continue readingResearchers evaluate levels of indoor microplastics in Australia
In what is considered to be the nation’s first large-scale analysis of PFAS in tap water from private wells and public water supplies, researchers estimated that at least 45%…Continue readingRisk of tap water exposure to toxic PFAS chemicals higher in Southern California
PFAS is used in almost all industries and is found in many products such as textiles, carpets, shoes, food packaging, cosmetics, fire foam and pesticides. The hunting community in…Continue readingAlarmingly high PFAS levels found in the populations of Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Denmark and the UK
The beginning of July marked the planet’s hottest week in recorded history. Last month was the warmest-ever June. The arrival of a strong El Niño is likely to push…Continue readingScientists are freaking out about surging temperatures. Why aren’t politicians?
The water off South Florida is over 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) in mid-July, and scientists are already seeing signs of coral bleaching off Central and South America. Particularly…Continue readingCorals are starting to bleach as global ocean temperatures hit record highs
Phoenix will record its 15th straight day above 109 degrees Fahrenheit (43 degrees Celsius) on Friday, according to the National Weather Services (NWS). In Texas, the city of El…Continue readingSouthwest US roasts in devastating heat wave
Approximately 40% [25%] of the global ocean is currently experiencing MHWs, which ranks 1st [14th] among all months since 1991. Values include the effects of long-term warming. Values with…Continue readingCurrent marine heatwave (MHW) conditions
Mud engulfs houses and cars as island of Kyushu bears brunt of annual rainy season that is worsening with climate change. Six people died and three others were missing…Continue reading‘Heaviest rain ever’ causes deadly floods and landslides in Japan
Volume of debris in the unexplored twilight zone is an ‘emerging threat’ to reefs already stressed by climate crisis, say scientists. The researchers noted that plastic can spread coral…Continue readingPlastic pollution on coral reefs gets worse the deeper you go, study finds
Agricultural pesticides leach far from their original sources into the world’s waterways, according to new research which finds pesticides exceed safe levels in 13,000km of rivers globally. Analysing 92…Continue readingPesticides from farming leach into world’s waterways at rate of 710 tonnes a year, UN research shows
Research shows 176 bird species have been found to build nests with human litter, including items that hurt them and their offspring. The scientists highlighted ways birds are at…Continue readingSafety concerns for chicks grow as birds build nests with rubbish, study shows
Seabirds are one of the world’s most threatened animal groups. They already contend with multiple issues, including climate change, accidental capture in fishing gear and being eaten by invasive…Continue readingPlastic pollution threatens birds far out at sea, according to new research
Drinking water from nearly half of U.S. faucets likely contains “forever chemicals” that may cause cancer and other health problems, according to a government study released Wednesday. The synthetic…Continue readingStudy says drinking water from nearly half of US faucets contains potentially harmful chemicals
The sea is becoming greener due to changes in plankton populations, analysis of Nasa images finds. When comparing these changes in colour with those hypothesised from a computer model…Continue readingWorld’s oceans changing colour due to climate breakdown, study suggests
Soaring greenhouse gases, ubiquitous microplastics, pervasive “forever chemicals”, the global upheaval of animals, even old mobile phones and chicken bones—all have been put forward as evidence that the world…Continue readingSigns of the human era, from nuclear fallout to microplastics
“The world just had the hottest week on record, according to preliminary data,” the WMO said in a statement, after climate change and the early stages of the El…Continue readingLast week the hottest worldwide on record: UN
Farmers Insurance became the latest property insurer to pull out of Florida on Tuesday despite repeated efforts by the state’s legislature and its Republican governor, Ron DeSantis, to try…Continue reading‘Cascading impacts’ warning as Farmers becomes latest insurer to quit Florida
Scientists say human activity has so fundamentally altered the geology, atmosphere and biology of the earth that it has entered a new geologic epoch known as the Anthropocene. On…Continue readingEvidence in Canada lake indicates start of new Anthropocene epoch
At least 50 people, including eight children, have been killed by floods and landslides triggered by monsoon rains that have lashed Pakistan since last month, officials said Friday. The…Continue readingAt least 50 dead in Pakistan monsoon floods
With nine million hectares (22.2 million acres) already gone up in smoke—11 times the average for the last decade—the absolute annual record set in 1989 has been surpassed. Authorities…Continue readingWildfires ‘off the charts’ in Canada as temperatures climb
A team of civil engineers, climate scientists and bioresource engineers has found that the number of people in the U.S. exposed to wildfires has doubled over the past 20…Continue readingStudy shows number of people in US exposed to wildfires over past 20 years has doubled
Extreme heat is fast becoming a public health crisis in India, with more than 150 people dying during the latest brutal heat wave in June. Prolonged heat waves, sometimes…Continue readingIn rural India, summer’s heat can be deadly. Ambulance crews see the toll up close.
As of Wednesday, more than eight million hectares (20 million acres) of forests and grasslands had burned across Canada, breaking an annual record of 7.3 million hectares set in…Continue readingCanada wildfire smoke chokes millions in North America
At least 13 people have died from the extreme heat wave that has been tormenting the southern United States for two weeks. In recent days, temperatures in some southern…Continue readingAt least 13 die in extreme heat wave in US
More than 2,000 people suffered heat stress during the hajj pilgrimage, Saudi officials said on Thursday, after temperatures soared to 48˚C (118˚F). Over 1.8 million Muslim worshippers performed the…Continue readingThousands suffer heat stress on hajj pilgrimage as temperatures reach 48˚C
Experts say the drought in the central U.S. is the worst since at least 2012, and in some areas, is drawing comparisons to the 1988 drought that devastated corn,…Continue readingCentral US is now getting worst of the drought. Corn crops are stressed, rivers are running low
France is being badly hit by climate change, is not prepared for its effects and is failing to sufficiently reduce its emissions, an independent climate body warned. The record…Continue readingFrance badly hit by climate change and ill-prepared
Earth lost an area of carbon-absorbing rainforest larger than Switzerland or the Netherlands in 2022, most of it destroyed to make way for cattle and commodity crops. That is…Continue readingFootball pitch of tropical forest lost every 5 seconds
After an estimated 20 elephant deaths and countless other wild animals perishing due to single-use plastics in the past decade, officials say a law banning many such items is…Continue readingJumbo problem: Sri Lanka’s battle with plastic pollution
Much of the ice lost in 2022 had been present since 2000, when high-quality records began. If this trend persists, the consequences for the climate and for Southern Ocean…Continue readingFractured foundations: How Antarctica’s ‘landfast’ ice is dwindling and why that’s bad news
Antarctic sea ice reached a record low for the month of June, increasing calls from scientists to intensify research and monitoring of the Earth’s polar ice caps. Since 2016,…Continue readingRecord low Antarctic sea ice levels worry scientists
China issued its highest-level heat alert for northern parts of the country on Friday as the capital baked in temperatures hovering around 40˚C (104˚F). A day earlier Beijing logged…Continue readingBeijing issues highest heat alert as north China swelters