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The havoc has brought total economic losses in the nine provinces to 14.5 billion yuan (€1.7 billion), and affected 535,500 hectares of crops, further blighting food supply in the region. The conditions have also led to the collapse of 68,000 houses.

The meteorological bureau was forecasting more thunderstorms overnight and it was expecting rainfall of 100-180 millimetres in many areas, rising to over 200 millimetres in others.

“The scope and intensity of the rain have increased,” the office said on its website yesterday.This is effectively three times the usual level of rain in the region.Climate change has meant that each year the flooding gets worse, while the droughts are also worsening.

Large-scale storm systems are the dominant weather phenomenon during the cold season in the United States. Although the analysis of these storms is complicated by a relatively short length of most observational records and by the highly variable nature of strong storms, some clear patterns have emerged.112 [Kunkel et al., 2008] Storm tracks have shifted northward over the last 50 years as evidenced by a decrease in the frequency of storms in mid-latitude areas of the Northern Hemisphere, while high-latitude activity has increased. There is also evidence of an increase in the intensity of storms in both the mid- and high-latitude areas of the Northern Hemisphere, with greater confidence in the increases occurring in high latitudes.112 [Kunkel et al., 2008] The northward shift is projected to continue, and strong cold season storms are likely to become stronger and more frequent, with greater wind speeds and more extreme wave heights.68 [Gutowski et al, 2008]

The northward shift in storm tracks is reflected in regional changes in the frequency of snowstorms. The South and lower Midwest saw reduced snowstorm frequency during the last century. In contrast, the Northeast and upper Midwest saw increases in snowstorms, although considerable decade-to-decade variations were present in all regions, influenced, for example, by the frequency of El Niño events.112 [Kunkel et al., 2008]

Then we have this apparently as yet unpublished research presented by Dr James Overland of the NOAA/Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory at the recent International Polar Year Oslo Science Conference (IPY-OSC) where he was chairing “a session on polar climate feedbacks, amplification and teleconnections, including impacts on mid-latitudes.” “Cold and snowy winters will be the rule, rather than the exception,” says Dr James Overland…. Continued rapid loss of sea ice will be an important driver of major change in the world’s climate system in the years to come…. “While the emerging impact of greenhouse gases is an important factor in the changing Arctic, what was not fully recognised until now is that a combination of an unusual warm period due to natural variability, loss of sea ice reflectivity, ocean heat storage and changing wind patterns working together has disrupted the memory and stability of the Arctic climate system, resulting in greater ice loss than earlier climate models predicted,” says Dr Overland. “The exceptional cold and snowy winter of 2009-2010 in Europe, eastern Asia and eastern North America is connected to unique physical processes in the Arctic,” he says.

Even though these storms occurred during warmest winter on record, I think the best way to talk about it until Overland publishes his work is the way NCAR’s Kevin Trenberth did on NPR (audio here): RENEE MONTAGNE, host:  With snow blanketing much of the country, the topic of global warming has become the butt of jokes. Climate skeptics built an igloo in Washington, D.C. during last weeks storm and dedicated it to former Vice President Al Gore, who’s become the public face of climate change. There was also a YouTube video called “12 Inches of Global Warming” that showed snowplows driving through a blizzard.For scientists who study the climate, it’s all a bit much. As NPRs Christopher Joyce reports, they’re trying to dig out. CHRISTOPHER JOYCE: Snowed-in Washington is where much of the political debate over climate change happens. So it did not go unnoticed when a Washington think-tank that advocates climate action had to postpone a climate meeting last week because of inclement weather. That kind of irony isnt lost on climate scientists. Most don’t see a contradiction between a warming world and lots of snow. Heres Kevin Trenberth, a prominent climate scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado. Mr. KEVIN TRENBERTH (Scientist, National Center for Atmospheric Research): The fact that the oceans are warmer now than they were, say, 30 years ago, means there’s about, on average, 4 percent more water vapor lurking around over the oceans than there was, say, in the 1970s. JOYCE: Warmer water means more water vapor rises up into the air. And what goes up, must come down. Mr. TRENBERTH: So one of the consequences of a warming ocean near a coastline like the East Coast and Washington, D.C., for instance, is that you can get dumped on with more snow, partly as a consequence of global warming. JOYCE: And Trenberth notes that you don’t need very cold temperatures to get big snow. In fact, when the mercury drops too low, it may be too cold to snow. There’s something else fiddling with the weather this year: a strong El Nino. That’s the weather pattern that, every few years, raises itself up out of the western Pacific Ocean and blows east to the Americas. It brings heavy rains and storms to California and the South and Southeast. It also pushes high-altitude jet streams farther south, which brings colder air with them. Trenberth also says El Nino can lock in weather patterns like a meteorological highway, so that storms keep coming down the same track. True, those storms have been big ones – record breakers. But meteorologist Jeff Masters, with the Web site Weather Underground, says it’s average temperatures — not snowfall — that really measure climate change. There’s more water vapor lurking around the oceans, and whatever the proximate cause of any one snow storm, there is little doubt that global warming means the overwhelming majority of East Coast storms will be sweeping in more moisture and dumping it on the ground.

an accelerated rate of sea-level rise could be "the critical environmental threat to the small island nations," with "a very rapid rate of island destruction" possible from a water depth beyond a certain threshold. That threshold is unknown.

The Southeast, South and Central regions experienced their second, fifth and seventh warmest June on record, respectively.

Record-warm June temperatures were observed in Delaware, New Jersey and North Carolina (tied), where each had average temperatures 5 to 6 degrees F above the long-term mean. Many other states ranked in their top ten based on 116 years of data.

Midway through 2010, four New England states (Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and Rhode Island) have experienced their warmest January-June period on record. Eight other states in the Northeast and Great Lakes areas had a top-ten warm such period.

Persistent warmth made the year's second quarter (April-June) much warmer than normal for every state east of the Mississippi River, and several to its west. Louisiana and ten Atlantic Seaboard states (Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Delaware, Rhode Island, Connecticut [tied], New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina) had a record-warm second quarter. In all, twenty states had their warmest or second-warmest such period on record. The warmth in these areas contributed to both the Northeast and Southeast climate regions' warmest April-June period.

Many fishermen switched to lobster as winter flounder, a cold-water fish once abundant in fishing boat holds, declined. But lobster stocks are stressed in some areas now. Biologists on a multi-state Fisheries Commission committee have found that warmer waters, disease and fishing have depleted lobster stocks, and they recently recommended a five-year ban on lobstering from Cape Cod to Virginia.

"One of the grim realities of global warming is that it is bringing change to fisheries. There are going to be regime changes in the oceans and management is going to have to adapt to that,"

Greg Walinski believes he has seen first-hand the workings of warmer waters on fish stock. The 53-year-old Cape Cod fisherman used to hunt for large bluefin tuna. "In the '80s and '90s we would get 60 to 80 giant bluefin in a season," he said. "But we started to see less and less. It got to a point where it wasn't even worth going out. Most of the big fish are up in Canada," he said. "We get the little bluefin that used to be further south."

He switched to cod, but in what seems to be a repeat of the pattern, Walinski said he finds himself chasing the fish further and further out. He now travels 120 miles in a 35-foot boat - an arduous and somewhat dangerous commute - to reach Georges Bank for codfish.

regulators say they have seen little evidence of a similar rebound in cod on the George's Bank, and some other cold-water species, like winter flounder and pollock, remain low.

Scattered power outages affected customers up and down the coast and usage approached record

levels. In the Washington, D.C., area, nearly 1,000 customers were without power Wednesday, while New Jersey's largest utility, Public Service Electric & Gas, reported about 6,300 customers without power. Consolidated Edison in New York said it was working to restore power to about 6,300 customers, down from outages to 18,700 customers Tuesday.

The heat also forced nursing homes with power problems to evacuate and buckled highways near Albany and in the Philadelphia area. On New York's Long Island, a radio station was distributing free bottled water to day laborers, while human services workers in Pittsburgh were doing the same for the homeless there.

Transportation officials cut the speed of commuter trains in suburban Washington, D.C., and New York when the tracks got too hot. Extreme heat can cause welded rails to bend under pressure. Some New Jersey trains were canceled and rail-riders were advised to expect delays.

In Park Ridge, N.J., police evacuated a nursing home and rehabilitation center after an electrical line burned out Tuesday evening. In Maryland, health officials moved all 150 residents out of a Baltimore nursing home whose operators didn't report a broken air conditioner. The state learned of the home's troubles when a resident called 911 Tuesday

Residents of two Rhode Island beach towns, Narragansett and South Kingstown, were hit with an added layer of inconvenience: They were banned from using water outdoors and were asked to boil and cool their water before using it. The high temperatures combined with the busy holiday weekend for tourists created higher-than-expected demand, causing water pressure to drop and increasing the chance of contamination.

With people cranking up their air conditioners Wednesday, Valley Forge, Pa.-based PJM Interconnection — which operates the largest electrical grid in the U.S. — urged users to conserve electricity as much as possible, especially in the peak afternoon hours. PJM's grid covers about 51 million people in 13 states and the District of Columbia.

Meteorologists in some places began calling the current hot stretch a heat wave, defined in the Northeast as three consecutive days of temperatures of 90 or above.

“In Colorado, we get our wind from the west,” he explained. “Canada gets its wind from the east. Where the wind belts rub against each other – it causes friction. As friction occurs, it creates waves in the atmosphere. Waves create frontal systems. These frontal systems are most noticeable during the change of seasons, which is also when we get our biggest storms, particularly in spring and fall.” Fox concluded that climate change is tipping the balance toward a battle of heat and cold. “Storms, created when frontal systems collide, are the atmosphere’s way of dealing with differences in temperature,” he said. “The atmosphere is attempting to balance the energy and equalize the temperature with the air going from high pressure to low pressure.” Fox added that cold air is now coming further south than it used to and warm air is going further north than usual. “Wind is air trying to equalize pressure,” he said. The scientist then used the analogy of a runner eating a big bowl of pasta. “If he then downs a Red Bull, there is more energy in the system to fuel his run,” he said. This pasta analogy goes beyond the college classroom and has a practical and local effect as well. It can be applied to the recent wind and dust storms that have wreaked havoc on Durango locals and tourists alike. Bayfield motorcyclist Jeff Gilmore had his windshield sandblasted as he headed into Flagstaff recently. “Semis were lined up on the side of the road,” he said. “Foot high sand drifts progressed across I-89 from Page to Flagstaff.” Although he pulled down his full-face helmet and shut all the vents, Gilmore was still pounded. “Sand stuck to my chapstick and the fine grit got in my mouth,” he said.

Carlotta Haber and her daughter were sent 100 miles out of their way while driving from Durango to Sedona a few weeks ago. Just before Holbrook, Ariz., on I-40 West, a sign read, “Highway closed 43 miles ahead due to dust storm.” “I couldn’t see the car in front of me and big tumbleweeds were rolling at the car,” she said. These anecdotes are directly in line with scientific findings. In fact, the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder has formulated global climate models forecasting that “all weather will get more extreme.” Storms are stronger than 20 years ago, according to NCAR, as the research center is predicting more precipitation per storm event, despite its forecast for fewer overall storms. Tim Foresman, former director of the United Nations Environmental program, explained, “These conditions are exactly what caused this past winter’s heavy snows in the East and the recent flooding in Tennessee. One was an extraordinary winter precipitation event and the other was a spring precipitation event.”

While these conditions may feel like an anomaly, research indicates that they are the logical result of changing conditions. National Climatic Data Center statistics reveal that in the last 30 years, the temperature has risen an average of 2 degrees in the United States. Since 1975, the average temperature in Colorado has increased by 2.28 degrees. The only two states whose temperatures have risen more are Utah, with a 2.43 degree increase, and Arizon,a with 2.79 degrees. A NASA report corroborates these findings. The report states that the last 12 months have been the warmest in at least 1,000 years. Foresman added, “The meteorological forecasts are based on prior weather patterns and may not be accurate without considering changes under way due to a warming climate. Forecasts are based on seasonal models from the immediate past and may not be a good indicator of the future due to changing climatic conditions.” His expertise has been extremely valuable to his sister-in-law, who just purchased property and is building a home in Durango. Counseling her on what to expect in the near future due to the changing patterns, she modified her construction plans.

Having recently experienced a blizzard in May in Santa Fe, Foresman stated the obvious. “The systems are all out of whack,” he said. “We’re going to be in for some interesting times. We can put our heads in the sand, or we can prepare.” In closing, Foresman remarked that the windiest days could be ahead for the Four Corners and Southwest and offered local residents a piece of advice. “If you have shutters on your windows, I suggest you make sure they’re functional and not decorative,” he said. “The winds aren’t going to go away until you turn the heat down.” •

The BMC data was also corroborated by a paper presented on ‘Mumbai’s urban flooding vulnerability: preparedness and mitigation’ by IIT scientist Kapil Gupta.In his paper, Gupta said that 50% of the annual rains was received in 2-3 events

More southerly parts of the Gulf have been feeling the heat too. An official at Bahrain¡¯s ministry of health said Salami Medical Complex¡¯s accident and emergency department has admitted between five and 15 cases of heat exhaustion every day since last week. ¡°Normally, we¡¯d have one to two cases every day. Bahrain is overheated and the humidity is very high,¡± the official said.

The forecaster on duty at Dubai International Airport said the maximum temperatures of up to 45¢ªC that were recorded yesterday were ¡°quite common¡±, but the minimum temperature of 35.9¢ªC that was recorded at 6am was the highest on record.

The heat wave has put intense pressure on the Gulf¡¯s electricity networks as residents crank up their air conditioners for relief. Kuwait¡¯s power consumption peaked at 10,921 megawatts on Tuesday, close to the network¡¯s maximum capacity of around 11,200MW. If demand outstripped supply, the national control centre would begin cutting off sections of the city.

Scientists see a fingerprint of climate change in the denuded branches, and a pattern of things to come. The effects of climate change, they say, are unlikely to be gradual or predictable. Warming winters will throw into confusion old orders of species, nurturing unexpected predators and weakening age-old relationships that helped form forests.

"They were gross," recalled Barbara Hoffman, 53, with a visible shudder. "You could hear them munching. I said spray 'em." Most trees recovered in the first year; fewer survived the second. But as the bugs struck again in late 2007, an accomplice drought hit the weakened trees, leaving the island now with swaths of stark, barren and lifeless branches.

The islanders fought through clouds of drifting filaments with brooms, brushed off the showers of excrement after they walked under trees, and tiptoed through a maze of half-inch worms on the sidewalks. The local newspapers ran pictures of building sides covered with caterpillars, looking like horror-movie outtakes.

"You can get unexpected dynamics in nature as we generate new combinations with climate change," said David Foster, director of the Harvard Forest, who heads a research group financed by the National Science Foundation to study the Martha's Vineyard die-off

In New England, the majestic hemlocks that were grist for Longfellow and Frost are doomed by the steady advance of a pest in warmer winters. "To see hundreds of acres of dead forest like this in New England is remarkable," said Foster.

Farther north and west in Massachusetts, Foster and others are studying the devastation of the stately hemlocks.  An insect brought from Japan, called the hemlock woolly adelgid, is moving steadily northward into New England. It already has infested much of the US South, bringing what forestry officials call "an ecological disaster" to the iconic Great Smokey Mountains and Blue Ridge Parkway. With warmer temperatures in New England-some studies put the average winter increase at 4 degrees in 40 years-the pest is advancing. "The northward spread is being kept in check by cold winters. As winters warm, which is what is projected, that all falls apart," said Wyatt Oswald, an assistant professor of science at Emerson college who is studying the hemlocks. "At some point, climate change will allow all these hemlock to be wiped out."

Certainly the residents here were perplexed at the caterpillar outbreaks from 2004 to 2007. Although several insects were at work, the prime culprit was eventually identified as a fall cankerworm, a long-time resident of the island that no one recalled having done more than minimal damage. This outbreak was a full-fledged invasion.

"It was disgusting," said Jason Gale, 39. He recalls glancing back at the island from his lobster boat, and being shocked by the stretches of dead trees.

The storms even afflict patrol officers. The DPS spent $3,800 on goggles for officers because of the stinging sand; some reported workplace injuries from irritated contact lenses, said DPS Sgt. Gary Phelps, who has patrolled northern Arizona for most of his 23-year career. "This is a new phenomenon. We have never had these conditions," Phelps said. "As far as visibility, this is the worst I've ever seen. I've been in blowing snow, but I'd take a snowstorm over a dust storm any day. It's awful."

Drivers must sit in 10-mile backups in both directions, the DPS and ADOT report. Many get frustrated and try to make sometimes dangerous U-turns across the freeway median. Some tourists rely on GPS systems to navigate detours. Often, they get stuck in the same brown cloud, lost on an unfamiliar rural road. Some dust storms can be 20 miles wide.

From 2000 through 2008, the state Department of Public Safety logged no dust-related collisions between Milepost 215, east of Flagstaff, and Milepost 260, just east of Winslow. Last year, Highway Patrol cars responded to 11 such accidents, and so far this year, five. Unlike the sudden, short dust storms that strike Interstate 10 south of the Valley, the recent I-40 closures typically last five hours and have dragged on for eight.

ADOT says that, before spring 2009, it had never closed I-40 because of dust storms. At the beginning of that particularly windy season, officials had to close the stretch of interstate between Flagstaff and Winslow because of a bad accident caused by blinding dust. That's when authorities began to close the highway as a precaution. They watched the weather forecast for high winds and sent spotters into the dust to gauge visibility.

From 1997 to 2008, the area recorded winds of more than 35 mph an average 12 times from March through May, Weather Service forecaster Ken Daniel said. Last year, that happened 14 times, and so far this year, 15 times. Winds above 45 mph had occurred an average 1.5 days during those spring months, but last year, they happened six times, and this year, four. "The springs of 2009 and 2010 have been windier than normal, but these winds we have been recently experiencing are not unprecedented," Daniel said.

Theories vary as to why the winds are thick with dust: Historical flooding of the nearby Little Colorado River left a lake bed that steadily dried out into fine sand. The nearby area has been overgrazed. A decade of drought has dried the soil into dust. "It could be global warming, for all I know," said Phelps, of the DPS.

ADOT says I-40 is the most heavily trucked highway in Arizona. Most are taking freight between Los Angeles and the Midwest. "Any time you have to disrupt the schedule of a delivery, it's not just a financial cost, it disrupts the entire supply chain," said Karen Rasmussen, president of the Arizona Trucking Association. "A truck has to arrive within a specific time slot for delivery." If the schedule is missed, manufacturers may have to shut down a plant because they don't have enough inventory. Grocers may not have enough produce, or perishables may start going bad. Trucks usually have return deliveries to make, and those get delayed. Northern Arizona's dust storms have become a national concern for the trucking industry, Rasmussen said.