Latest news with #rainfall
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Officials celebrate as key reservoir fills up for first time in years — here's what's happening
A key reservoir in southern India is now at full capacity after a spell of badly needed heavy rainfall in the area. As Social News XYZ reports, Veeranam Lake reached a level of 47.5 feet, its highest level in years. The lake is a key water source for the city of Chennai and irrigation for the region's farmland. Veeranam is a man-made lake that was carved out of the land in the 10th century and takes its name from the title of a past ruler. The rise was attributed to unseasonal rainfall in the Tamil Nadu area. According to the India Meteorological Department, May 2025 was the wettest on record since 1901. The average rainfall across India was 126.7 mm (almost 5 inches), which is more than twice the historical average (61.4 mm, or 2.4 inches). The biggest departure from the norm was in central India, while the south received almost triple the usual level for that time of year. While this has been a welcome development for the south, the northeast has suffered from flooding, which has resulted in 34 fatalities so far, according to Reuters. For the Tamil Nadu region, the unseasonal rainfall will be a welcome boon for residents and farmers. Last year, the lake ran dry amid record-breaking heat waves, per Down to Earth. The additional water reserves will help sustain the area during the drier seasons, where temperatures can often top 100 degrees Fahrenheit. However, this relief is only temporary and symptomatic of the increased instances of unusual weather. While India has made significant strides in clean energy in recent years, it remains overly dependent on coal, the dirtiest of all energy sources, to meet its needs. The planet-heating pollution from sources like coal is contributing to more frequent and severe extreme weather events. Ultimately, a lake filling back up is a heartening development and a clarion call to build on that good fortune with practical local action and raising awareness of climate issues. Do you think America has a plastic waste problem? Definitely Only in some areas Not really I'm not sure Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Mississippi's crops struggle with rainfall challenges
STARKVILLE, Miss. (WJTV) – Rainfall at well above normal accumulations is impacting the state's row crops, according to officials. Mike Brown, state climatologist with the Mississippi State University (MSU) Department of Geosciences, said many areas of the state have had one and a half times the typical amount of rain for this time of year. 'Annually, we generally see around 58 inches of rain in our coastal counties, 52 in our northern counties, and around 55 inches through the central portion of the state,' Brown said. 'Mid-August through mid-October tends to be our driest period. Many portions of the Delta began the year well above normal for precipitation, but those areas have seen a drier end of May and have remained at or just below average for June.' As of late June, officials said Starkville, Greenville, Tupelo and Southaven have about 50% more rain than usual since the planting and growing season began. Meridian and Greenwood are just above normal levels, while Jackson, Biloxi and McComb have seen about one-third more rain than normal. What is the impact of the blueberry industry in Mississippi? Dave Spencer, an Extension pivot irrigation specialist with the MSU Extension Service, said frequent rains limit farmers' ability to manage their crops. 'In many areas, fieldwork has been delayed, especially on clay-textured soils,' he said. Rice, cotton, soybeans and sweet potatoes all suffered from frequent rains that kept fields too wet to plant in the ideal planting windows. About half the rice crop was planted rapidly from mid- to late-April, but officials said crop progress was delayed as weeds began to crop up, levee construction was delayed and nitrogen applications were pushed back. Brian Pieralisi, Extension cotton specialist, said he will be surprised if Mississippi growers were able to plant more than half of the 360,000 acres they intended to plant in 2025. Soybeans have the advantage of a planting window that extends to early July, so as growers are forced to give up planting the intended crop such as cotton or rice, many have switched to late-planted soybeans. Sweet potatoes are mostly grown in a small area of north Mississippi around Calhoun County, and officials said this crop is about 30% behind schedule after challenges increased in early May. Mississippi growers planted 490,000 acres of corn in 2024, but experts anticipate that acreage is up significantly this year. Officials said the rains did not hamper corn planting as much as other crops. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
News.com.au
a day ago
- Climate
- News.com.au
‘Unseasonable': Cold snap sets stage for wild bout of wet weather in Qld, NSW Cold snap sets stage for ‘unseasonably' wild weather
Australia's east coast is gearing up for a bout of 'unseasonable' wet conditions, as a new surface trough threatens to dump rainfall totals up to 300mm over the next week. A new surface trough forming in Far North Queensland is forecast to bring wet weather through the Sunshine State over Saturday, building through the day all the way from the Gulf Coast, according to the Bureau of Meteorology. BOM Meteorologist Jonathan How said this was 'unseasonable' due to Far North Queensland being in the dry season. 'As we head into Sunday, we see showers and areas of rain building all the way down the coast towards Mackay and Rockhampton,' he said. Cloud cover and rain systems are expected to remain in the area as the system heads further south, with some areas likely to experience between 10-25mm on Monday night and in the early hours of Tuesday morning. Over Monday, the rain system is expected to creep into southeast Queensland and then northeast NSW. Weatherzone states rainfall accumulations of 100-200mm are possible over a period of 36-48 hours to Thursday next week, across parts of the Mid North Coast and Hunter, possibly extending as far south as the South Coast. 'The deep feed of moisture coming off the Tasman Sea could interact with local topography around the Mid North Coast, Hunter and Central Coast, with rainfall totals reaching 300mm possible in some parts,' a Weatherzone spokesman said. The low pressure system is forecast to move down past the New South Wales Central Coast on Tuesday, bringing heavy rain to parts of the Hunter, the Illawarra and Sydney. The system is also expected to intensify as it makes its way past Sydney, so damaging winds and lashing coastal wave patterns can be expected until Wednesday at the earliest and possibly even Thursday. It is understood the NSW State Emergency Service is currently engaged with the Bureau of Meteorology to make sure its various branches, particularly those along coastal NSW, are appropriately informed, equipped and prepared to tackle any situations which would be most likely to arise late on Tuesday or throughout Wednesday. An SES spokesperson said the organisation was 'encouraging residents to stay informed about possible severe weather next week'. 'The Bureau of Meteorology advises a low-pressure system might develop off the NSW Coast, which could impact NSW from as early as next Monday through to Thursday, depending on where it forms,' the spokesperson said. 'Potential impacts include widespread moderate to heavy rainfall, thunderstorms, damaging winds along the NSW Coast and large powerful surf. Coastal riverine and flash flooding may occur.' 'We do not know exactly where or if it will, but we are preparing SES personnel and assets right along the NSW Coast. There is a high degree of uncertainty as to whether the low will form close to the coast or further offshore.' An operational update published on Thursday said the SES had received more than 1,400 calls and responded to several hundred incidents 'as damaging winds lashed the Illawarra South Coast, Snowy Mountains, Blue Mountains, Sydney Metro and parts of the Central Coast and Hunter'.
The Guardian
a day ago
- Climate
- The Guardian
The green drought: June rainfall has come too late to offer relief to farmers in southern Australia
How often do you mow your lawn in winter? It may seem like an odd way to start a conversation about drought, but the answer helps explain why our current drought has not broken, despite recent rain – and why spring lamb may be more expensive this year. Southern Australia has been short of rain for 16 months. Western Victoria, the agricultural regions of South Australia (including Adelaide) and even parts of western Tasmania are suffering record dry conditions. Those rainfall measurements began in 1900 – 126 years ago. Fewer and less intense rain-bearing weather systems have been crossing the southern coastline since February 2024 compared with normal. Put simply: the land has not received enough big dumps of rain. But June has finally brought rain to some drought-affected regions; there's even an emerald green tinge to the fields in certain agricultural areas. But it's now too cold for plants to really grow fast, meaning farmers will be carting hay and buying extra feed for livestock until the weather warms in spring. This month, some areas received good rainfall, including places near Melbourne and, to a lesser degree, Adelaide. City people may be forgiven for thinking the drought has broken and farmers are rejoicing. But drought is not that simple. Unfortunately, the rainfall was inconsistent, especially farther inland. The coastal deluge in parts of southern Australia in early June didn't extend far north. Traditionally, the start of the winter crop-growing season is marked by 25mm of rain over three days – a so-called 'autumn break'. But many areas didn't receive the break this year. The lack of rain (meteorological drought) compounded the lack of water in the soil for crops and pasture (agricultural drought). Parts of Western Australia, SA, Victoria, Tasmania and southern New South Wales had little moisture left in their soils. So some rain is quickly soaked up as it drains into deeper soils. To make matters worse, autumn was the warmest on record for southern Australia, after its second-warmest summer on record. This can increase the 'thirst' of the atmosphere, meaning any water on the surface is more likely to evaporate. Recent thirsty droughts, such as the 2017–2019 Tinderbox Drought in NSW, were particularly hard-hitting. Some areas may have experienced 'flash drought', when the landscape and vegetation dry up far quicker than you would expect from the lack of rain alone. By May, areas of significantly elevated evaporative stress were present in south-eastern SA, Victoria, southern NSW and northern Tasmania. In late May and early June – and again this week – there have been winter dust storms in SA. Such dust storms are a bad sign of how dry the ground has become. Some regions no longer have enough water to fill rivers and dams (hydrological drought). Water restrictions have been introduced in parts of south-west Victoria and Tasmania. The bureau's streamflow forecast does not look promising. Remember that lawnmowing analogy? The winter chill has already set in across the south. This means it's simply too cold for any vigorous new grass growth and is why you are not mowing your lawn very often at the moment. Cool temperatures, rather than just low rainfall, also limit pasture growth. While from a distance the rain has added an emerald sheen to some of the landscape, it's often just a green tinge. Up close, it's clear there is very limited new growth; rather than abundant and vigorous new shoots, there's just a little bit of green returning to surviving grasses. This means very limited feed for livestock and, to make matters worse, sometimes the green comes from better-adapted winter weeds. There will be a lot of hay carting, regardless of rainfall, until spring, when the soils start to warm up once again and new growth returns. This all adds up to fewer stock kept in paddocks or a big extra cost in time and money for farmers – and, ultimately, a more expensive spring lamb barbecue. Southern Australia (southern WA, SA, Tasmania, Victoria and southern NSW) used to experience almost weekly rain events in autumn and early winter; cold fronts and deep low-pressure systems rolling in from the west brought the bulk of the rainfall. Now there is a far more sporadic pattern in these regions. Rainfall in the April to October crop and pasture growing season has declined by approximately 10% to 20% since the middle of last century. The strongest drying trend is evident during the crucial months between April and July. Further reductions in southern growing season rainfall are expected by the end of this century, especially in south-western Australia. South-eastern regions, including southern Victoria, parts of SA and northern Tasmania, also show a consistent drying trend, with a greater time spent in drought every decade. Drought is complex. Just because it's raining doesn't always mean it has rained enough, or at the right time, or in the right place. To make matters worse, a green drought can even deceive us into thinking everything is fine. Breaking the meteorological drought will require consistent rainfall over several months. Breaking the agricultural drought will also require more warmth in the soils. Outlooks suggest we may have to wait for spring. Andrew B. Watkins is an associate research scientist at the school of Earth, atmosphere and environment at Monash University Allie Gallant is an associate professor at the Australian Research Centre of excellent for weather of the 21st century at Monash University Pallavi Goswami is a postdoctoral research fellow in atmospheric science at Monash University This article includes scientific contributions from David Jones and Pandora Hope from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology. This article was originally published in the Conversation
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Montreal to face downpour, thunderstorms days after record-setting heat
After braving a record-setting heat wave days ago, Quebecers will be staring down a weekend of thunderstorms. Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) issued a special weather statement on Thursday, forecasting between 30 to 50 millimetres of rainfall in parts of western, southern and central Quebec from Friday to Sunday. The heaviest rain is expected to fall Friday evening to Saturday evening, according to ECCC. Montreal is expecting a downpour the same week the city's temperatures hit 35.6 C, breaking the all-time high for June set 61 years ago. The previous monthly high of 35 C was set on June 30, 1964, recorded at Montreal's Trudeau Airport, where records have been kept since 1942. ECCC says more rain from thunderstorms might lead to total rainfall amounts in the Montreal area exceeding 50 millimetres. "Some rivers may see an increased flow and higher water levels," reads the ECCC statement. Regions affected by the special weather statement include: Montreal. Montérégie. Eastern Townships. Bois-Francs. Lanaudière. Laurentians. Outaouais. Témiscamingue.
