I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.
Severe flash floods struck the Atlantic coastal city of Safi, western Morocco, on Sunday, December 14, 2025, killing at least 21 people and injuring 32 others after an hour of intense rainfall inundated urban areas. Homes, shops, and roads were flooded, and multiple vehicles were swept away.
Historic flooding caused by a major atmospheric river earlier this week impacted large parts of western Washington state, prompting evacuations, emergency declarations, and record river levels. As impacts from that event persist, another strong atmospheric river is forecast to reach the Pacific Northwest on Sunday, December 14, 2025, bringing a prolonged period of precipitation to Washington, Oregon, and northern California through mid-week.
A strong and shallow earthquake registered by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) as M6.7 hit off the coast of Honshu, Japan, at 02:44 UTC (11:44 JST) on December 12, 2025. USGS is reporting M6.7 at a depth of 20 km (12.4 miles).
New activity/unrest was reported for 7 volcanoes from December 3 to 9, 2025. During the same period, ongoing activity was reported for 21 volcanoes.
A major atmospheric river is producing very heavy precipitation across western Washington today into early December 11, 2025, triggering widespread and potentially historic riverine flooding, according to the Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes (CW3E). Forecasts indicate 130–200 mm (5–8 inches) of rain over the central and northern Washington Cascades and 75–130 mm (3–5 inches) over the Olympic Peninsula through 04:00 PST (12:00 UTC) on December 12. CW3E modeling shows 15 river gauges expected to exceed major flood stage and four to surpass record levels within 48 hours.
A bright meteor streaked across the sky over Brazil’s Northeast region at nightfall on December 8, 2025, captured by Clima ao Vivo monitoring cameras in Pernambuco, Paraíba, and Ceará. Preliminary analysis by the Brazilian Meteor Observation Network (BRAMON) indicates the object entered the atmosphere at a speed of around 180 000 km/h (112 000 mph). The event coincided with the active Geminid meteor shower period, one of the most intense annual meteor streams visible from Earth.
A powerful wave struck the Isla Cangrejo natural pool in the coastal area of Los Gigantes, Tenerife, at around midday on December 7, 2025, sweeping swimmers into the ocean. Four tourists died, several others were injured, and one person remains missing. A coastal pre-alert for rough seas was in effect at the time of the incident.
A glacial outburst flood in Iceland’s Skaftá River, first detected on December 8, 2025, has been confirmed to originate from the Vestari-Skaftár caldera beneath Vatnajökull ice cap. Flow at the Sveinstind station has decreased to just over 120 m³/s, down from 200 m³/s earlier in the week. Conductivity remains high and hydrogen sulfide continues to be detected along the river, but no impacts on major roads have been reported.
Subseasonal forecasts by CW3E show strong multi-model agreement on above-normal atmospheric river activity across the U.S. West Coast during mid- to late December, with the strongest signals over Northern California. Forecast regime tools indicate a transition from a West Coast Ridge to a Pacific Ridge during this period, altering temperature and precipitation patterns across the region.
Two successive atmospheric river pulses are affecting the Pacific Northwest this week, delivering multi-day heavy rainfall and flooding risk across western Washington and northwestern Oregon. The first made landfall early December 9, and a stronger second pulse is forecast to arrive late December 9–early December 10, maintaining high integrated vapor transport and major flood potential through December 11.
