I am an Assistant Editor and Severe Weather & Science Journalist at The Watchers, specializing in real-time severe weather coverage, geophysical event reporting, and research-driven scientific analysis. You can reach me at rishav(at)watchers(.)news.

  • Schools closed across Ukraine as power outages worsen extreme cold outbreak in Kyiv

    ByRishav Kothari

    An intense Arctic cold wave gripped Kyiv, Ukraine, in mid-January 2026, driving temperatures to -20°C (-4°F) amid an ongoing energy crisis. Large sections of the capital were left without heating or electricity after continued Russian strikes on the power grid, prompting some residents to temporarily leave unheated apartments and seek shelter in emergency warming centers. Schools across the country have been shut until February 1, due to the extreme conditions.

  • Snow squalls create hazardous travel conditions across Ohio and Pennsylvania

    ByRishav Kothari

    Snow squalls continued through the Saturday afternoon, January 17, 2026, across parts of Ohio and Pennsylvania as an Arctic cold front advanced eastward from the Midwest into the Interior Northeast. The National Weather Service warned of sudden whiteout conditions, gusty winds, and rapidly deteriorating visibility, creating dangerous travel for motorists.

  • Major polar vortex disruption brings Arctic surges across North America and Europe through January and early February

    ByRishav Kothari

    A major polar vortex disruption has begun and is forecast to send Arctic air into much of North America and Europe through mid and late January 2026. The event will bring freezing temperatures and winter weather as the vortex weakens following a stratospheric warming episode. A second, stronger outbreak is forecast to occur during the last part of January as the core of the vortex splits into two halves, each driving cold Arctic air into Europe and North America in February.

  • Freeze warnings issued across Florida Panhandle and parts of the southeast U.S.

    ByRishav Kothari

    Freeze warnings are in effect across the Florida Panhandle, northern and central counties, and parts of southeast Georgia from 23:00 EST Thursday, January 15, 2026, through 09:00 EST Friday, January 16. Temperatures are forecast to drop as low as −6°C (22°F) in inland areas, producing frost capable of damaging unprotected crops and causing water pipes to freeze and burst.

  • Study shows Main Marmara Fault is rupturing eastward toward Istanbul

    ByRishav Kothari

    Researchers revealed that the Main Marmara fault in northwestern Türkiye has been rupturing progressively eastward for more than a decade, culminating into the strongest earthquake in over 60 years beneath the Sea of Marmara, a MW 6.2 quake on April 23, 2025. New findings raise concern that a locked fault segment south of Istanbul could generate a M7.0 earthquake in the future, rattling the city of 18 million people.