World warming despite cool Pacific and Baghdad snow

OSLO (Reuters) - Climate change is still nudging up temperatures in the long term even though the warmest year was back in 1998 and 2008 has begun with unusual weather such as a cool Pacific and Baghdad's first snow in memory, experts said.

"Global warming has not stopped," said Amir Delju, senior scientific coordinator of the World Meteorological Organization's (WMO) climate program.

Last year was among the six warmest years since records began in the 1850s and the British Met Office said last week that 2008 will be the coolest year since 2000, partly because of a La Nina event that cuts water temperatures in the Pacific.

"We are in a minor La Nina period which shows a little cooling in the Pacific Ocean," Delju told Reuters. "The decade from 1998 to 2007 is the warmest on record and the whole trend is still continuing."

This year has started with odd weather including the first snows in Baghdad in memory on Friday and a New Year cold snap in India that killed more than 20 people. Frost hit some areas of Florida last week but orange groves escaped mostly unscathed.

Iraqis welcomed snow as an omen of peace. "It's the first time we've seen snow in Baghdad," said 60-year-old Hassan Zahar. "I looked at the faces of all the people, they were astonished."

Last year, parts of the northern hemisphere were having a record mild winter with even Alpine ski resorts starved of snow.

Delju said climate change, blamed mainly on human emissions of greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels, would bring bigger swings in the weather alongside a warming trend that will mean more heatwaves, droughts, floods and rising seas

Baghdad Snow

Winter Bites in SW Asia

Bitter cold, snow (be it unusually heavy or merely to have happened at all) and wetting rain have all marked the stormy winter weather that has dominated the first half of January from central Asia to the Red Sea. Tales of immobilizing snow and harsh cold in Iran as well as rare snow from Baghdad to Arar, northern KSA, have found their way onto the world`s newswires, as has the flash flooding that swept Makkah, KSA.
A thinning out of snow late last week raised bitter cold to fore as the prominent weather aspect Monday. Here are a few highlights:

Turkey: Erzurum...-25 F/-31.8 C; Kars...-26 F/-32.2 C
Iran: Quchan...-7 f/-21.4 C; Tehran...16 F/-9 C
Kazakhstan: Atbasar...-37 F/-38.1 C
Uzbekistan: Buzaubay...-23 F/-30.3 C
Turkmenistan: Ekezhe...-20 F/-28.8 C; Turkmenbashy...-5 f/-20.6
Iraq: Baghdad...28-30 F/-2 to -1 C; Basrah...30 F/-1 C
KSA: Guriat...20 F/-6.8 C (Turayf also -20 F)
Jordan: Ma`an...17 F/-8.4 C

Rainfall was nearly 2 inches (about 4 cms) on the island of Abu Musa, between Iran and UAE

Happy pongal 2008

Lasting for over four days Pongal, a harvest festival is celebrated in the month of Shravan. Pongal literally means, "boiling over". The Tamil harvest festival is celebrated with decorated cows, processions and decorative Rangoli. Pongal is a sweet porridge made from newly harvested rice and eaten by all, even the animals. Each day of this festival has a special significance, however, it is celebrated more grandly in the villages, while the city folk mainly celebrate on the second day only. It is widely celebrated in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

The festival is celebrated for four days. On, the first day, Bhogi, the old clothes and materials are thrown away and fired, marking the beginning of a new life. The second day, the Pongal day, is celebrated by boiling fresh milk early in the morning and allowing it to boil over the vessel - a tradition that is the literal translation for Pongal (in Tamil). People also prepare savories and sweets, visit each other's homes, and exchange greetings.

The third day, Mattu Pongal, is meant to offer thanks to the cows and buffaloes, as they are used to plough the lands. Jallikattu, a violent taming the bull contest, marks this day. On the last day, Kanum Pongal, people go out to picnic. During the Pongal season, people eat sugar canes and decorate the houses with Kolam.

Even though Pongal was originally a festival for the farming community, today it is celebrated by all. Coinciding with Makara Sankranti and Lohri of the north, it is also called Pongal Sankranti and thus celebrated in some form in various parts of India.

Heavy Snow Kills Dozens in Asia

Iranian Red Crescent aid workers help motorists stuck in snow on the Zanjan-Qazvin highway northwest of Tehran, Iran, January 8, 2008.

An Afghan walks through snow in the capital city of Kabol (Kabul) on January 5, 2008. At least 34 people have died due to heavy snowfall in the strife-prone country, according to the news agency AFP.

People walk through the snow in northern Istanbul, Turkey, on January 7, 2008.
The capital city of Ankara was beset by snow-caused traffic jams and accidents, according to the Associated Press

China Bans Free Plastic Bags

Declaring war on the "white pollution" choking its cities, farms, and waterways, China is banning free plastic shopping bags and calling for a return to the cloth bags of old—steps largely welcomed by merchants and shoppers on Wednesday.

The measure eliminates the flimsiest bags and forces stores to charge for others, making China the latest nation to target plastic bags in a bid to cut waste and conserve resources.

The ban takes effect June 1, barely two months before Beijing hosts the Summer Olympic Games, ahead of which it has been demolishing run-down neighborhoods and working to clear smog.

The games have added impetus to a number of policies and projects, likely boosting odds for the bag ban's implementation.

Under the new rules, businesses will be prohibited from manufacturing, selling, or using bags less than 0.025 millimeters (0.00098 inches) thick, according to the order issued by the State Council, China's Cabinet.

The council's orders constitute the highest level of administrative regulation and follow-through is carefully monitored.

More durable plastic bags still will be permitted for sale by markets and shops.

The regulation, dated December 31 and posted on a government Web site Tuesday, called for "a return to cloth bags and shopping baskets to reduce the use of plastic bags."

It also urged waste collectors to step up recycling efforts to reduce the amount of bags burned or buried. Finance authorities were told to consider tax measures to discourage plastic bag production and sale.

No significant change

For the past 10 days there's no significant change to temperatures.
Minimum is around 21 degrees and maximum around 29 degrees.
This is going to be the weather till 20-Jan-2007, after that the minimum temperature will go down a bit and the humidity will also go down.
Take a look at the past 5 day humidity chart... it shows sudden rise in humidity during the past 3 days, otherwise it's DRY.

Take a look at the latest satellite pic...
It suggests some showers OR drizzles might creep into south-south-tamilnadu during this weekend.

Automatic weather station

An automatic weather station, which could predict weather changes, has been installed at the TVS Agriculture Sciences Research Institute, about 120 km from Madurai.

The station, built at a cost of Rs 5 lakh, is capable of predicting 23 parameters of weather changes, an official of the institute said on January 2.

The station, run by solar power, would collect data every 10 minutes. It would include wind direction, solar radiation, air temperature, humidity, soil temperature and rainfall registered at the station, which would be sent to ICRISAT.

At first, the report would help farmers of Nanguneri taluk and Radhapuram, as it could forecast weather for a 6 km radius.

The service would be available to farmers in the two taluks shortly. It would be extended to the entire Tirunelveli, Kanyakumari and Thoothukudi districts later, the offiical said. (Agencies)

Oregon scientific - Weather Hub

A stylish and versatile weather product. Simple to use and easy to set up, the Weather Hub is an ideal weather accessory to any home, office or dorm. At a quick glance, know the indoor temperature and what the 12 to 24-hour weather forecasts will be. Besides the traditional desktop display and wall mount options, a magnet mount has been included for additional set-up convenience on metallic surfaces.

WEATHER:
Displays 12 to 24-hour weather forecasts with graphical icons (Sunny, Partially Cloudy, Cloudy, Rainy)

BAROMETRIC PRESSURE:

TEMPERATURE:
Displays indoor temperature in C° / F ° (user selectable)
Temperature measuring range: 23°F to +122°F (-5°C to +50°C)
Temperature resolution: 0.2°F (0.1°C)

HUMIDITY:

MISC:
Desk top display, wall, and magnet mount options
Low battery indicator

Winter storm sweeping northern tip of South-Asia

Here are some numbers. But first, the town is Kushka (also spelled Gushgy), which is set in Turkmenistan near the three-way border with Iran and Afghanistan. The big winter storm and cold has left a mark: 19 inches (one-half meter) of snow having water equivalent of 1.7 inches, or 43 mm. For Monday and Tuesday, respective highs of 9 and 11 degrees F (-11.5 and -12.6 degrees C); between them, a low of -8 degrees F (-22.1 degrees C). Normal January daily range is 52 F/11 C to 29 F/-2 C. Normal water equivalent of 1.1 inches (28 mm). Lowest temperature on record is -15 degrees F, or -26 deg C. This storm has, indeed, left its mark.

Elsewhere, I found -20 degrees F (-29 C) at Buzaubay, Uzbekistan; -16 F (-26.8 C) at Yerbent, Turkmenistan; -18 F (-27.6 C) at the notoriously cold Erzurum, Turkey; and at least 16 degrees below zero F (-27 C) at Shahr-e Kord (Zagros Mountains), Iran.