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Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
For Eastern US, temperatures swing high, then swing low. They'll soon go back up
After days of blistering heat, the nation's sweaty East Coast got to open windows, step outside and get temporary relief on Friday as temperatures plummeted as much as 40 degrees and humidity dropped alongside. At least 68 record highs were set and more than 20 places logged triple-digit heat from Sunday through Wednesday before a cold front from the north broke a heat dome's grip on the region Friday. Boston, which hit a record 102 Fahrenheit (about 39 Celsius) on Tuesday, was at 61 (about 16 Celsius) on Friday. That blast of cool comfort brought temperatures as much as 10 to 15 degrees below normal but didn't come close to breaking cold records, said Frank Pereira, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center. About the only place that could break a cool record of any kind Friday is one tiny station in Philadelphia, at the Franklin Institute, where the lowest recorded high for the day is 75 (about 24 Celsius). It was expected to get up to only about 72 (about 22 Celsius), Pereira said. But records don't go back very far at that site and meteorologists in Philadelphia don't consider it representative of the area, which is unlikely to get a record for cool, said meteorologist Ray Martin in the local weather forecast office in Mount Holly, New Jersey. That's what's so telling about this weather whiplash from hot to cool — and soon to go back to hot — said Climate Central chief meteorologist Bernadette Woods Placky. 'We've had so many record highs, not only our daytime maximum temperatures, but our overnight low temperatures throughout a widespread region of the country, so this massive shift feels great and it's giving everyone a break, which is nice,' Woods Placky said. 'But it's not necessarily coming with record lows on the other side.' That's a signature of human-caused climate change from the burning of fossil fuels, she said: 'We're getting so many record highs any more that it doesn't feel like it's big news because it's happening so often. But we just don't get as many record lows as frequently.' Climate Central's record tracker shows 68 high temperature marks set since Sunday and only three low ones: Billings, Montana; Casper, Wyoming; and Jackson, Idaho — all recorded on Sunday. For the first five months of this year, there have been nearly twice as many daily high records — 14,863 — set in the United States as low records — 7,855 — according to records compiled by meteorologist Guy Walton, who tracks NWS records. For the 2020s as a whole it's well over double with 221,971 daily high records set and 93,429 daily low records set. Except for the Dust Bowl era — which the ratio of highs to lows still don't come close to doubling — the number of record daily highs and lows were within 20% of each other from the 1920s to the 1980s, but since then the ratio of record heat to record cold has taken off. This Eastern cooling won't last, the weather service's Pereira said. Soon the heat will be back and temperatures in the East will once again be above normal, even for summer. But, he said, 'We're not looking at temperatures that are as oppressive as they were earlier in the week.' Weather whiplash from one extreme to another is often a sign of human-caused climate change because the jet stream — the river of air high above us that moves weather systems along generally from west to east — is weakening, getting wavier and getting stuck more because of global warming, Woods Placky and other scientists said. When that happens, it means more extremes such as a heat wave or a drought or downpours. And then when the stuck jet stream moves on, it sometimes results in opposite extreme weather. ___ Isabella O'Malley contributed from Philadelphia. ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at Seth Borenstein, The Associated Press
Hamilton Spectator
14 hours ago
- Climate
- Hamilton Spectator
For Eastern US, temperatures swing high, then swing low. They'll soon go back up
After days of blistering heat, the nation's sweaty East Coast got to open windows, step outside and get temporary relief on Friday as temperatures plummeted as much as 40 degrees and humidity dropped alongside. At least 68 record highs were set and more than 20 places logged triple-digit heat from Sunday through Wednesday before a cold front from the north broke a heat dome's grip on the region Friday. Boston, which hit a record 102 Fahrenheit (about 39 Celsius) on Tuesday, was at 61 (about 16 Celsius) on Friday. That blast of cool comfort brought temperatures as much as 10 to 15 degrees below normal but didn't come close to breaking cold records, said Frank Pereira, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center. About the only place that could break a cool record of any kind Friday is one tiny station in Philadelphia, at the Franklin Institute, where the lowest recorded high for the day is 75 (about 24 Celsius). It was expected to get up to only about 72 (about 22 Celsius), Pereira said. But records don't go back very far at that site and meteorologists in Philadelphia don't consider it representative of the area, which is unlikely to get a record for cool, said meteorologist Ray Martin in the local weather forecast office in Mount Holly, New Jersey. That's what's so telling about this weather whiplash from hot to cool — and soon to go back to hot — said Climate Central chief meteorologist Bernadette Woods Placky. 'We've had so many record highs, not only our daytime maximum temperatures, but our overnight low temperatures throughout a widespread region of the country, so this massive shift feels great and it's giving everyone a break, which is nice,' Woods Placky said. 'But it's not necessarily coming with record lows on the other side.' That's a signature of human-caused climate change from the burning of fossil fuels, she said: 'We're getting so many record highs any more that it doesn't feel like it's big news because it's happening so often. But we just don't get as many record lows as frequently.' Climate Central's record tracker shows 68 high temperature marks set since Sunday and only three low ones: Billings, Montana; Casper, Wyoming; and Jackson, Idaho — all recorded on Sunday. For the first five months of this year, there have been nearly twice as many daily high records — 14,863 — set in the United States as low records — 7,855 — according to records compiled by meteorologist Guy Walton, who tracks NWS records. For the 2020s as a whole it's well over double with 221,971 daily high records set and 93,429 daily low records set. Except for the Dust Bowl era — which the ratio of highs to lows still don't come close to doubling — the number of record daily highs and lows were within 20% of each other from the 1920s to the 1980s, but since then the ratio of record heat to record cold has taken off. This Eastern cooling won't last, the weather service's Pereira said. Soon the heat will be back and temperatures in the East will once again be above normal, even for summer. But, he said, 'We're not looking at temperatures that are as oppressive as they were earlier in the week.' Weather whiplash from one extreme to another is often a sign of human-caused climate change because the jet stream — the river of air high above us that moves weather systems along generally from west to east — is weakening, getting wavier and getting stuck more because of global warming, Woods Placky and other scientists said. When that happens, it means more extremes such as a heat wave or a drought or downpours. And then when the stuck jet stream moves on, it sometimes results in opposite extreme weather. ___ Isabella O'Malley contributed from Philadelphia. ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at .
Winnipeg Free Press
14 hours ago
- Climate
- Winnipeg Free Press
For Eastern US, temperatures swing high, then swing low. They'll soon go back up
After days of blistering heat, the nation's sweaty East Coast got to open windows, step outside and get temporary relief on Friday as temperatures plummeted as much as 40 degrees and humidity dropped alongside. At least 68 record highs were set and more than 20 places logged triple-digit heat from Sunday through Wednesday before a cold front from the north broke a heat dome's grip on the region Friday. Boston, which hit a record 102 Fahrenheit (about 39 Celsius) on Tuesday, was at 61 (about 16 Celsius) on Friday. That blast of cool comfort brought temperatures as much as 10 to 15 degrees below normal but didn't come close to breaking cold records, said Frank Pereira, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center. About the only place that could break a cool record of any kind Friday is one tiny station in Philadelphia, at the Franklin Institute, where the lowest recorded high for the day is 75 (about 24 Celsius). It was expected to get up to only about 72 (about 22 Celsius), Pereira said. But records don't go back very far at that site and meteorologists in Philadelphia don't consider it representative of the area, which is unlikely to get a record for cool, said meteorologist Ray Martin in the local weather forecast office in Mount Holly, New Jersey. That's what's so telling about this weather whiplash from hot to cool — and soon to go back to hot — said Climate Central chief meteorologist Bernadette Woods Placky. 'We've had so many record highs, not only our daytime maximum temperatures, but our overnight low temperatures throughout a widespread region of the country, so this massive shift feels great and it's giving everyone a break, which is nice,' Woods Placky said. 'But it's not necessarily coming with record lows on the other side.' That's a signature of human-caused climate change from the burning of fossil fuels, she said: 'We're getting so many record highs any more that it doesn't feel like it's big news because it's happening so often. But we just don't get as many record lows as frequently.' Climate Central's record tracker shows 68 high temperature marks set since Sunday and only three low ones: Billings, Montana; Casper, Wyoming; and Jackson, Idaho — all recorded on Sunday. For the first five months of this year, there have been nearly twice as many daily high records — 14,863 — set in the United States as low records — 7,855 — according to records compiled by meteorologist Guy Walton, who tracks NWS records. For the 2020s as a whole it's well over double with 221,971 daily high records set and 93,429 daily low records set. Except for the Dust Bowl era — which the ratio of highs to lows still don't come close to doubling — the number of record daily highs and lows were within 20% of each other from the 1920s to the 1980s, but since then the ratio of record heat to record cold has taken off. This Eastern cooling won't last, the weather service's Pereira said. Soon the heat will be back and temperatures in the East will once again be above normal, even for summer. But, he said, 'We're not looking at temperatures that are as oppressive as they were earlier in the week.' Weather whiplash from one extreme to another is often a sign of human-caused climate change because the jet stream — the river of air high above us that moves weather systems along generally from west to east — is weakening, getting wavier and getting stuck more because of global warming, Woods Placky and other scientists said. Wednesdays Columnist Jen Zoratti looks at what's next in arts, life and pop culture. When that happens, it means more extremes such as a heat wave or a drought or downpours. And then when the stuck jet stream moves on, it sometimes results in opposite extreme weather. ___ Isabella O'Malley contributed from Philadelphia. ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
Chicago Tribune
6 days ago
- General
- Chicago Tribune
Route 66: Hamburgers so savory, they can make you cry
EL RENO, Okla. — The air downtown smells of grilled onions, wafting from the flat tops of three Route 66 restaurants that have helped give this small town about 25 miles west of Oklahoma City a distinct culinary identity. They're called fried onion burgers. Plenty of places put onions on burgers. Few have been doing it as long, or as well, as they do here. 'They're not like any burger,' said Lyndsay Bayne, 48, the city's public information and marketing manager. 'It's hard to explain. You have to eat one.' A few years before the country plunged into the Great Depression and the nascent Route 66 ferried Dust Bowl refugees west, a man named Ross Davis needed a way to stretch the supply of expensive ground beef he had to serve customers at his Hamburger Inn in El Reno. Onions, he realized, were cheap. And so, the story goes, he decided to bolster each patty with shredded onions. Lots of them. Thus, the fried onion burger was born. After the stock market crash of 1929, its popularity grew and it took on a second name: 'the Depression burger.' The Hamburger Inn is no longer in El Reno, but the city's 19,000 residents have three options all within steps of each other on Route 66. Robert's Grill is the oldest, opened in 1926. Then there's Johnnie's Hamburgers & Coneys and Sid's Diner — a fourth, Jobe's Country Boy Drive-in, is about a mile west of downtown on Route 66. They all follow the same idea: A massive pile of thinly sliced white onions are deposited on top of the thinly pressed patty as it cooks on the flat top. Then, the entire thing is flipped on its other side, so the burger cooks on top of the onions, which caramelize and fuse with the meat. Follow our road trip: Route 66, 'The Main Street of America,' turns 100 The town has a festival every year where an 850-pound fried onion burger is cooked. Residents have their favorites among the pantheon of purveyors, and that seems to be largely based on tradition — they like best the place they went to in high school, or the place their grandparents took them as kids. There does not appear to be the same kind of fierce allegiance or rivalry seen with Italian beef in Chicago or with po'boys in New Orleans. But all are fairly united in the belief that the best fried onion burgers can only be found in El Reno. Of the burger joints selling them in places such as Oklahoma City, Bayne said: 'Bless their hearts.'
Time of India
15-06-2025
- General
- Time of India
8 worst environmental disasters on Earth that are caused by humans
Our planet has been shaped by various human activities that have largely contributed to make Earth a better planet for survival. But some human activities are the reason for environmental disasters that can be clearly seen today. Over the years, various human activities have led to environmental disasters that continue to impact not only the ecosystem but also our planet as a whole. Ranging from oil spills and nuclear accidents, these disasters highlight the results of neglecting environmental responsibility. Therefore, it is important to understand these events that can be a learning from our mistakes to stop the damage in to a report by Treehugger, here are the 10 worst environmental disasters caused by humans. From the Dust bowl to Flint water crisis: 8 major environmental disasters caused by humans The Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone The Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone is one of the largest human-caused environmental disasters which was primarily caused by excess of nitrogen and phosphorus from fertilizers, sewage and industrial runoff flowing to the Mississippi River where the nutrients trigger massive algae blooms which consume oxygen in the water and created 'dead zones' where the marine life cannot survive and it also disrupted the fisheries, damaged the ecosystem and threatened the local economies that were dependent on fishing and tourism. Thus, the Gulf Dead Zone is an example of how agricultural and industrial pollution can devastate our environment. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Memperdagangkan CFD Emas dengan salah satu spread terendah? IC Markets Mendaftar Undo Source: Treehugger The Great Pacific Garbage Patch The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is an accumulation of plastic waste which is floating in the North Pacific Ocean that was created entirely by the activities of humans. It was formed by ocean currents that we know as gyres and this patch contains an estimated 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic. It is a vast stock of plastic that harms marine life, disrupts the ecosystem and enters the food chain as well. The patch is growing larger each year due to global plastic consumption and poor waste management . Source: Treehugger The Dust Bowl The Dust Bowl was a devastating environmental disaster that happened in the central United States which was caused by poor farming practices and severe drought. When the drought struck, high winds swept up the dry topsoil that created massive dust storms which choked the sky, ruined crops and forced thousands of families to abandon their land and migrate to a new place for survival. This human-caused disaster has damaged ecosystems and has also triggered an economic and humanitarian crisis. Source: Treehugger Three Mile Island Accident The Three Mile Island accident which happened in 1979 was the worst nuclear power plant disaster in the history of the U.S. which was caused by a combination of mechanical failure and human error where a partial meltdown at the Pennsylvania plant released the radioactive gases into the atmosphere by sparking widespread public fear and raising serious concerns about nuclear safety. Though the radiation release was limited, the accident had lasting effects environmentally, politically and socially. Source: Treehugger Love Canal Disaster The Love Canal disaster in Niagara Falls is one of the most infamous examples of toxic waste mismanagement where a chemical company had buried over 20,000 tons of hazardous waste in the ground which was later covered and sold for residential development. Over a period of time, the toxic chemicals began seeping into basements and yards by causing severe health problems like birth defects, cancer and chronic illnesses. Source: Treehugger Tennessee Valley Authority Coal Ash Spill In December 2008, a containment wall at a TVA power plant in Kingston collapsed which released over 1 billion gallons of coal ash slurry that is a toxic mix of heavy metals and waste from coal-burning into nearby rivers, homes and land. It covered hundreds of acres, destroyed property and severely contaminated water sources. It was caused by poor waste storage practices and it became one of the worst industrial spills in U.S. history. Source: Treehugger 2017 California Wildfires California wildfires in the year 2017 were among the most destructive in the state's history which led to the burning over 1.3 million acres of land, destroying thousands of structures and claiming dozens of fires released massive amounts of carbon into the atmosphere and resulted in long-term damage to forests, air quality and communities. These disasters highlighted how climate change, poor land management and infrastructure issues can combine to affect the environment on a devastating scale. Source: Treehugger Flint Water Crisis The Flint Water Crisis is a major human-caused environmental disaster in Flint, Michigan. In a cost-cutting move, the officials switched the city's water source to the Flint River without proper treatment. Over 100,000 residents were affected with serious health issues. Though less explosive than Chernobyl or Bhopal, Flint's slow-burning impact marks it as one of the world's worst modern environmental injustices. Source: Wikipedia Also read: Global Warming vs. Climate Change: Know what is the real difference, causes and steps for controlling
