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.
A powerful windstorm with gusts reaching 232 km/h (144 mph) battered parts of the Pacific Northwest and Rockies this week, leaving one dead, two injured, and hundreds of thousands without power by December 18, 2025. The deep low-pressure system continues moving east toward the northern Plains and Midwest, sustaining severe winds and wildfire risks.
A strong M7.0 oblique-slip earthquake struck beneath the Hubbard Glacier in the St. Elias Mountains, about 89 km (55 miles) north of Yakutat, Alaska, at 11:40 AKST (20:40 UTC) on December 6, 2025. The quake triggered widespread ground failures, with over 700 landslides and snow avalanches identified across Alaska and Canada. The largest and most concentrated slope failures occurred within a 16 km (10 miles) wide band along the estimated fault rupture.
Comet 3I/ATLAS will make its closest approach to Earth on December 19, 2025, and can be watched via the Virtual Telescope Project live stream, scheduled to start at 04:00 UTC on December 19 (23:00 EST on December 18).
Blizzard Warnings are in effect across parts of Montana, North Dakota, and Minnesota through Thursday, December 18, 2025, due to a fast-moving winter storm producing widespread blizzard conditions and destructive winds across the region.
A fast-moving winter storm is forecast to bring widespread blizzard conditions and destructive winds across parts of Montana, North Dakota, and Minnesota through Wednesday night into Thursday, December 17 into 18, 2025. The system, driven a deep low-pressure trough, is generating gusts up to 110 km/h (70 mph) and localized peaks over 130 km/h (80 mph) in leeward mountain areas, potentially leading to whiteout conditions, road closures, and power outages across the region.
The Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes (CW3E) at UC San Diego forecasts above-normal precipitation for Northern and Central California between late December 2025 and early January 2026. The latest subseasonal outlook, issued on December 16, indicates high confidence in enhanced atmospheric river (AR) activity and persistent Pacific Ridge conditions during the period from December 22 to January 11, 2026.
A powerful windstorm left over 120 000 customers, an estimated 300 000 people, without power on Wednesday, December 17, 2025, after winds of up to 90 km/h (56 mph) hit parts of the Lower Mainland.
Forecast models suggest that El Niño conditions are likely to develop during 2026, marking a shift from the ongoing weak La Niña. The transition is expected to influence jet stream patterns and temperature anomalies across the United States, Canada, and Europe, potentially reshaping rainfall distribution and winter storm activity in the Northern Hemisphere.
A strong Alberta Clipper storm will move through northern Ontario on Thursday and Friday, December 18 and 19, 2025, dropping 20–30 cm (8–12 inches) of snow, gusts up to 80 km/h (50 mph), and a sharp temperature drop. The system will create blowing snow and flash-freeze conditions on major highways, including routes between Kenora and Thunder Bay.
High Wind Warnings have been issued across much of the western and central United States, effective from early Wednesday, December 17, 2025, through Thursday morning, December 18. Forecasts indicate a rapidly deepening low-pressure system developing east of the Canadian Rockies, producing winds of over 130 km/h (80 mph) in some areas. Power outages, tree damage, and hazardous travel conditions are expected from the Intermountain West to the Great Plains.
