While most of the photographs and videos illustrating Europe's brutal winter of snow and cold have been of London, Paris and Rome, the Eastern part of Europe has been slammed the hardest. Romanians literally had their houses and cars totally covered with snow. The Black Sea froze over. The Balkan countries were also hard hit with especially Bosnia coming to a complete stand still.
Below are two videos from highlighting the European storm.
Just when you believe this winter's weather can't get any more crazy, the National Hurricane Center has indicated that tropical storm formation is possible this week in the Gulf of Mexico. That's right, the Center is talking about a February tropical storm. Already labeled as Invest 90L the Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida says "this area is being closely monitored for possible further development." The Accuweather.com site writes of the potential storm:
"Some of those key ingredients needed for the development of at least a subtropical depression (a system with partial tropical characteristics) are currently trying to come together in the south-central Gulf of Mexico.
Water temperatures in the south-central Gulf of Mexico are near 80 degrees, the threshold for tropical development.
While not absent, the wind shear (disruptive winds high in the atmosphere) present is not strong enough to totally inhibit development.
If a subtropical depression or storm were to take shape (acquiring the name "Alberto" from the 2012 list), the AccuWeather.com Hurricane Center feels it would track into South Florida later Monday into Monday night.
Torrential rain causing flooding in low-lying and poor drainage areas would be the main concern, even if development fails to take place.
Evident by the radar from Key West, Fla., downpours will continue to get pushed into South Florida well ahead of the actual low's center."
Only one other time in history has a tropical storm formed in February. In 1950 there was the famous "Groundhog Day' storm. Ironically it formed in the same area and mostly likely will have a similar track.
Don't let the Republicans know but thousands of undocumented hunters are coming into the United States for the first time over the Canadian borders. This will drive the GOP nuts. They will be eating our food in impoverished regions and drinking our water in drought stricken areas.
They weren't invited and historically have never been seen in these kind of numbers in the United States. These interlopers can be found from Oregon to Maine and even are starting to penetrate the Southern States. In Hawaii, one was shot for fear they would menace our airport security.
American citizens most likely will hear of this illegal immigration in the next debates. What is all the fuss about? The stunningly beautiful Snowy Owl has for the first time appeared in the lover 48 states by the thousands. They stand two feel tall and have massive five foot wingspans.
MSNBC has given serious space to these undocumented birds. They write on their site:
A certain number of the iconic owls fly south from their Arctic breeding grounds each winter but rarely do so many venture so far away even amid large-scale, periodic southern migrations known as irruptions.
"What we're seeing now — it's unbelievable," said Denver Holt, head of the Owl Research Institute in Montana.
"This is the most significant wildlife event in decades," added Holt, who has studied snowy owls in their Arctic tundra ecosystem for two decades.
Holt and other owl experts say the phenomenon is likely linked to lemmings, a rodent that accounts for 90 percent of the diet of snowy owls during breeding months that stretch from May into September. The largely nocturnal birds also prey on a host of other animals, from voles to geese."
In a first ever effort, Global Journal has listed the Top 100 NGO's (non-governmental organizations) in the world. This was an ambitious undertaking for the Journal and sure to generate debate and maybe even some controversy. The methodology that they used to judge some of the world's most prominent organizations consisted of:
-Innovation
-Effectiveness
-Impact
-Efficiency/Value for Money
-Transparency and Accountability
-Sustainability
-Strategic and Financial Management -Peer Review
You see more on the methodology and the entire list of 100 organizations by clicking here but the top ten are:
3. Oxfam
4. BRAC
5. International Rescue Committee
6. PATH
10. Ushahidi
The last two decades have seen heats records fall one after another as the globe heats up from climate change. Last year was the 9th warmest year on record. This year the United States might have the 'year without winter' as there has been no major snows and record high temperatures. Buy in case you think this all is just flute, just read this paragraph from NASA:
Global surface temperatures in 2010 tied 2005 as the warmest on record, according to an analysis released Wednesday by researchers at NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York.
The two years differed by less than 0.018 degrees Fahrenheit. The difference is smaller than the uncertainty in comparing the temperatures of recent years, putting them into a statistical tie. In the new analysis, the next warmest years are 1998, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2007 and 2009, which are statistically tied for third warmest year. The GISS records begin in 1880.
Quite honestly, the following video I can not stop watching. It shows how the earth has gotten hotter over 130 years in just 30 seconds. The years are at the bottom of the video as the planet heads for a disaster unless the trend is turned around. (via Towleroad.com).
As we have endured a very warm winter so far it is important to remember that February and March can hold some major surprises for us. Just eighteen years ago one of the great blizzards and storms ever to hit the Eastern United States happened on March 12,. The storm was so intense it was compared to a "hurricane blizzard' with devastating winds, storm surges, unbelivable snow amounts and a high death toll.
Over 300 people were killed in the two days storm that started in Florida and worked it way into Canada. Cities like New York, Washington and Atlanta had a foot of snow driven by 50 to 60 mph winds. In the Applachian Mountains it was common to find over three feet of snow in just two days. Seaside communities along the coast experienced hurricane force winds with high storm surges that caused massive damage. Locations in West Virginia had over 50 inches of snow.
The storm besides the high death toll caused over $6 billion in damage.
While different cities individually might have experienced worst blizzrds at different times, never has one blizzard affected such a wide area of the Eastern United States with one storm.
In the 1970's, only about thirty of the majestic Florida Panthers could be found in the entire state. In fact, just a few years ago there was a census count of only 70. Slowly but surely progress is being made in protecting this endangered species. Last year 10 more panthers were born than died making this one of the better years for the panther. It is estimated that the population is somewhere around 130 to 150 cats. Most of the panthers' deaths are caused by loss of habitat and encounters with cars.
At one time panther ranged over eight southern states but now they are confined to South Florida. The beautiful animal is far from out of danger but the good news gives a glimmer of hope.
Chris Bryan has given us a real gift of an extraordinary video and music. The video is of waves in slow motion. The result is a breath-taking work of art. Watching the forms and motion is mesmerizing. The beauty is so fresh and so new as we get to know the ocean up close and personal. Enjoy!
One of the grave consequences of having the GOP control the House of Representatives is that our environment, wildlife and natural resources are taking a beating. Digging in their heels, even when industry approves of the changes, the fringe in the Republican Party is blocking many actions that would protect our heritage. Even the President had to be pushed on the Tar Sands question and its huge environmental impact.
The National Wildlife Federation (NWF) has listed the "The Top 10 Dumbest Things Congress Did in 2011". Click on the article to see all ten but here are the top five from that list. Also if you go to the NWF website they will tell you actions you can take to help stop the insanity.
5. Gulf Coast: Still Not Made Whole
We’re just a few months from the 2nd anniversary of start of the Gulf oil disaster, yet Congress still has not acted on legislation to make sure BP’s fines and penalties are reinvested in Mississippi River Delta restoration.
4. War on Next-Generation Light Bulbs
Just a few years ago, President George W. Bush signed bipartisan legislation to encourage energy-efficient light bulbs. Industry gets certainty, consumers save money, America cuts its carbon footprint: Everybody wins! But extremists attacked the standards and when they couldn’t win votes, they snuck the Dim Bulb Act into must-pass budget legislation. “Big companies like General Electric, Philips and Osram Sylvania spent big bucks preparing for the standards, and the industry is fuming over the GOP bid to undercut them,” reported Politico. Everybody loses!
3. Push Pipeline First, Ask Safety Questions Later
Facing concerns from conservationists concerned about protecting critical wildlife habitat, landowners concerned about getting their land seized, and public health advocates worried about water supplies, the Obama administration delayed a decision on the proposed Keystone XL tar sands pipeline from the Canadian border to Texas. But before a revised route could even be drawn up, Big Oil’s Congressional allies tacked a political rider onto the payroll tax cut extension moving through Congress right now that would force a decision on the pipeline within 60 days.
2. Protecting Tax Giveaways for Big Oil
Big Oil has already banked a staggering $101 billion in profits in 2011, and as NWF detailed in Conservation Works, Congress can save more than $100 billion by closing tax loopholes for special interests like the oil and gas industries. But time after time, purported Congressional concern about the deficit came in a distant second to catering to Big Oil donors and lobbyists.
1. Fiddling While Our Climate Burns
Our world has now seen 321 consecutive months with a global temperature above the 20th century average, meaning we haven’t seen a below-average temperature month since before The Goonies came out in 1985. Extreme weather records fell, with NOAA reporting 12 disasters of at least $1 billion in damage here in the U.S. Through November, 2011 has been the 11th-hottest year on record. If the pace keeps up, it will mean each of the last 11 years (2001–2011) will have been one of the 12 hottest on record. The Arctic continues to warm, melting sea ice and pushing several polar bear populations to the brink
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