The Northern Hemisphere noctilucent cloud (NLC) season has officially begun. The first cloud was detected by NASA's AIM spacecraft inside the Arctic Circle on May 17. The detection marks one of the earliest starts in the 14-year history of the spacecraft. ...
May 23, 2020
A large column of red sprites and airglow put on a fantastic display over West Texas on May 13, 2020. The phenomenon was captured by Stephen Hummel of the McDonald Observatory. A line of storms more than 161 km (100 miles) away generated the astonishing display in...
May 18, 2020
A huge load of Saharan dust is moving across the Mediterranean Sea into SE Europe on May 14, 2020, with additional deposits expected in the coming days. According to Severe Weather Europe (SWE) meteorologists, the dust may also reach the UK and Ireland over the...
May 14, 2020
Sunny morning skies went dark by noon as massive dust storm enveloped Delhi, India, in a sudden change of weather on Sunday, May 10, 2020. The storm came after the city recorded the season's second hottest temperature -- 40.9 °C (105.6 °F). "This...
May 11, 2020
Public interest for noctilucent clouds rose sharply in 2019 after record-setting outbreak across the northern hemisphere. The 2020 season is expected to start mid- to late-May or early June, but at the moment, it doesn't seem like 2020 will be a repeat of 2019....
May 11, 2020
A new study shows that natural hazards on Earth, specifically earthquakes and tsunamis, can create much more disturbances in the ionosphere than previously assumed. The researchers studied the catastrophic 2011 M9.0 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan, and found...
May 06, 2020
An analysis of satellite observations shows that ozone levels over the Arctic hit a record low for the month of March, NASA researchers reported on April 16, 2020. Ozone levels reached their lowest point on March 12 at 205 Dobson units. The depletion was caused by...
April 17, 2020
A huge ozone hole has opened this year over the Arctic. While ozone holes normally form in the Antarctic zone every year because winter temperatures drop to extremely low values, allowing high-altitude clouds to develop-- the Arctic has more varying temperatures and...
April 03, 2020
A huge area of sustained ozone depletion has developed over the Arctic-Canadian region -- too late for the winter season, too early for spring, and unusually strong for the northern hemisphere. The ozone layer is a natural layer of protective gas in the upper...
March 18, 2020
A massive sandstorm with winds up to 120 km/h (75 mph) hit the Canary Islands over the weekend and continued into Monday, February 24, 2020. The storm caused severe disruptions and exacerbated wildfires which forced about 2 000 residents to evacuate. The regional...
February 24, 2020
Air pressure over northern Norway dropped below 940 hPa on February 10, 2020, as Storm Ciara impacted much of northern Europe, leading to the cancelation of air traffic over the region for the first time ever due to low pressure. It also resulted in high water...
February 12, 2020
With 1 049.6 hPa registered at Heathrow Airport Sunday into Monday, January 19 to 20, 2020, London has set its new atmospheric pressure record -- the highest since records began in 1692. The barometer reached 1 049.6 hPa overnight, breaking the previous record of 1...
January 22, 2020
A spectacular outbreak of rare polar stratospheric clouds (PDCs) was reported around the Arctic Circle, starting December 30, 2019. The display lasted nearly an hour and was commonly regarded as the brightest display that any of the locals have ever seen. The...
January 02, 2020
The air quality in Sydney, Australia continued to worsen on Tuesday, December 10, 2019, as roughly 100 bushfires burned in New South Wales (NSW) and strong north winds brought further smoke into the city. The haze was so thick in some areas that it was 11 times more...
December 11, 2019
An atmospheric wave about half as wide as the Earth is supercharging noctilucent clouds (NLCs) in the southern hemisphere, with NASA's Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere (AIM) spacecraft detecting the phenomenon in this series of south polar images from November...
December 05, 2019
Denver residents woke up to 203 mm (8 inches) of snow on Thanksgiving morning, November 28, 2019, making it the most snow on the ground on the holiday since 1979, according to official statistics at Denver International Airport. Meanwhile, fog covered the city on...
November 29, 2019
Forecast models suggest a major stratospheric warming event might develop in December 2019, possibly initiating a collapse sequence of the polar vortex. Main cooling effects are expected across Eurasia and the United States. "This might have important...
November 22, 2019