THE NEXT ICE AGE - NOW!

Chilean volcano stirs to life after thousands of years - 3 May 08 - The Chaiten volcano spewed light ash on a nearly deserted village Saturday, two days after its first eruption in thousands of years.  The volcano, 750 miles (1,200 km) south of Santiago, belched fat smoke plumes that at times rose as high as 12 miles (20 km) into the air. 

Winds carried the ash to other towns in the region and across the Andes mountains to Argentina, where two airlines suspended flights due to poor visibility.
http://www.newsmax.com/international/chile_volcano_eruption/2008/05/03/93183.html

Cyclone toll could hit 10,000 in Myanmar - 5 May 08 - The death toll from the cyclone that ripped through Myanmar could reach 10,000, a top government minister said Monday.

Tropical Cyclone Nargis hit the Southeast Asian country, also known as Burma, early Saturday with winds of up to 120 mph, blowing roofs off hospitals and schools and cutting electricity in Myanmar's largest city, Yangon.

As many as 2,879 people were unaccounted for in a single town in the low-lying Irrawaddy River delta area where the storm wreaked the most havoc. The situation in the countryside remained unclear because of poor communications and roads left impassable by the storm.

"What is clear at this point is that there are several hundred thousands of people in dire need of shelter and clean drinking water," said Richard Horsey, a spokesman in Bangkok, Thailand for United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Older citizens said they had never seen Yangon, a city of some 6.5 million, so devastated in their lifetimes. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24459578?GT1=43001

Record cold in Australia - 29 Apr 08 – “We received 25 centimetres of snow on the ski resorts down south five weeks ahead of season opening and here in sunny Queensland, very cold. June and July should be fun,” says Mike Cantwell in Brisbane. 

Last night, temperatures plummeted below freezing on the Darling Downs. Mitchell got down to -1, its coldest recorded April night, and Brisbane possibly recorded its coldest April night with a minimum of just 10 degrees early this morning.

Perth has received more than three times its normal April rainfall.
http://www.eldersweather.com.au/breakingweather.jsp

Blizzard takes Edmonton by storm - 22 April 08 - Spring turned into a cruel joke in Alberta, where a late-season blizzard dumped heavy snow on much of the province on Sunday and created near-whiteout conditions on highways in the province's northeast.

The Edmonton region has been struck with its worst April snowstorm in almost 20 years. One of the hardest-hit areas in Alberta was near Wainwright, about 200 kilometres east of Edmonton, which received about 36 cm of snow, Environment Canada said yesterday.

 Lloydminster,  about 250 km east of Edmonton, received 30 cm. Pam Larocque of the Husky Lloydminster Travel Centre said travellers were stunned by the ferocity of the storm, with drifts building along roads and wind gusting to 60 km an hour.

 "It's a total aberration," said city transportation spokesman Randy Kilburn. "I have basically lived here my whole life and I can't remember it being this heavy this late."

 The road clearing is costing the city about $100,000 a day, he said. Environment Canada meteorologist David Wray said another 10 to 15 cm could fall on Edmonton before snow tapers off this morning.
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/canada/story.html?id=461919
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link 

Australia: Early snow lifts hopes of best ski season for years - 28 Apr 08 - A cold snap across Victoria's alpine region dumped a heavy layer of snow over the weekend in an encouraging sign that the coming ski season could begin early.  

Weather experts predict bigger than expected snowfalls in Victoria this season, and resort operators hope the colder-than-normal weather could result in the best conditions on the slopes in several years.

About 15cm of snow fell on Falls Creek and Mount Hotham yesterday and forecasters expect more over the next 24 hours.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23607836-11949,00.html
Thanks to Hans Schreuder for this link

Heavy Snow Blankets Alps - 23 Apr 08 - Far from the tropics, heavy snow blanked the Alps of Europe during the first half of this week. At Zugspitze, Germany, at least 22 inches of snow fell from Monday to Wednesday.
http://premiuma.accuweather.com/adcbin/premium/news-regional.asp?region=worldnews
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link

Latest April snowfall ever in Vancouver, BC - 19 Apr 08 - Nanaimo and the rest of Vancouver Island is still digging out from a huge storm that dumped over a foot of snow in the area. Roads were impassible early this morning, and some sixteen thousand people in Nanaimo and Ladysmith were left without power. http://www.cknw.com/Channels/Reg/NewsLocal/Story.aspx?ID=1004915
Thanks to Alan Stover for this link

The storm had already dumped 15 cms by 10 a.m. The sun peeked through for a few hours just after noon, and then the snow returned in full force by late afternoon. All of it caught residents and forecasters off-guard.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/calgary/story/2008/04/10/spring-snow.html
Thanks to Andrew Grosset for this link

Sunshine Village in Banff, Alta., reported more than 50 cm of snow on Friday. Last week, a surprise storm dumped 23 cm of snow on Calgary.
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/cbc/080419/canada/calgary_sat_snow
Thanks to Lisa Soulliere for this link

In B.C., unseasonably cold weather has fruit growers in the Okanagan Valley worried about the fate of their spring crops. 
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/080419/national/spring_weather
Thanks to Lisa Soulliere for this link

And the best part, over 7 meters of snow since the beginning of the season that guarantee exceptional snow conditions across 100% of our terrain!

http://www.mont-sainte-anne.com/1/Aproposdenous/Nouvelles/tabid/263/language/en-US/news/557/Default.aspx
http://www.mont-sainte-anne.com/1/
webcam:
http://www.mont-sainte-anne.com/1/Multimedia/webcam/tabid/310/Default.aspx
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link

This winter was a bit of a throwback to the winters of the past - with near-record snowfalls in the east. Phillips said Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa could still set records. They have until July to do so under the record-keeping rules.

The Montreal and Ottawa records were set in the winter of 1970-71. Montreal has received 357 cm of snow and needs to reach 383 to break the record, while Ottawa has had 419 cm - the second snowiest winter on the books - and needs to hit 444.6 cm for bragging rights.

Toronto - already in its fifth snowiest winter - has had 187 cm and needs 20 more to break the 1938-39 record.
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/spring_arrives

Scotland and northeast and eastern England were likely to be hit with snow tomorrow night. The snow could spread to the south-east by the weekend.Advisory notes have been issued, warning of snowfall of up to 10cm in some places in the north.

Temperatures were expected to hover between 4C and 8C during the day and drop as low as ––3C at night.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar/19/easter.weather?gusrc=rss&feed=networkfront
Thanks to Jimmy Walter for this link

And if Canadians think they deserve a break from this brutal winter, Environment Canada's senior climatologist is cautioning those weary of winter not to put their parkas in mothballs any time soon.

"It really is the winter from hell," said Dave Phillips. Even the official arrival of spring on March 20 doesn't guarantee relief, Phillips added, citing Environment Canada projections.

"We're showing colder-than-normal conditions for the spring period," he said. "I'm probably not going to put away my snow shovel until the long weekend in May."
http://www.ottawasun.com/News/OttawaAndRegion/2008/03/06/4922826-sun.html
Thanks to Albert Carriere for this link

A light dusting of snow blanketed the NSW ski resorts overnight as temperatures dropped to a low of minus 3.8 degrees Celcius at Perisher and minus 3 degrees at Thredbo.

Intermittent light snow flurries continued to fall into the morning on Mount Perisher.

Weather forecasters are already predicting a bumper snow season for 2008, according to resort management. Temperatures are expected to remain low with persistent precipitation throughout winter.

"We have barely had a summer this year," said Gary Grant, Perisher Blue's general manager of marketing. "It's felt as though it's remained cold since the end of the 2007 season, apart from a few warm days, there air has always had a nip in it." http://www.news.com.au/travel/story/0,26058,23295798-5014090,00.html
Thanks to Hans Schreuder for this link

Spain meanwhile issued a "red" warning, with waves reaching a height of nine meters (29.5 feet) in the northwestern Coruna regions due to strong winds.

Britain has already been badly hit by the storms, which have caused massive travel disruption and left thousands of homes without power.
http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Western_Europe_warned_fresh_storms_on_the_way_999.html
Thanks to Thomas Morstad for this link

Recent Canadian winters have been mild but this one looks set to break all-time records for snow. One storm last weekend dumped 23 inches on Ottawa and 19 inches on Quebec City, which has already received 210 inches this year. The drifts outside some houses are 12 feet and higher.

Environment Canada says there is no sign winter is about to end. Snow fell again on Quebec City and Ottawa on Wednesday.

One massive snow mound in Montreal is around 80-feet high (eight stories!) and officials told reporters that unless steps were taken to dismantle the pile, much of it would still be there when next winter started. 
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/rtrs/20080312/twl-uk-snowrage-bd5ae06.html
Thanks to Steven Woodcock and Jimmy Walter for this link

David Rodgers, a senior meteorologist for Environment Canada, said Sunday more snow is coming this way tomorrow and Wednesday, with only a few centimeters expected.

The sheer amount of snow and sleet - 32.5 cm - that fell on Brockville over the weekend is taking its tolls on residents ready to retire their shovels. The northern parts of Leeds and Grenville received 40 to 50 cm.

According to Russ Fraser, public works supervisor, that brings this winter's total to 286 cm, 200 of that since the start of the year.

Climatologists had predicted this would be the worst winter Canada has endured in 15 years. The level of snow is approaching record levels. Ottawa is approaching a record-breaking year with 410.7 centimeters compared to the previous record of 444.6 centimeters in the winter of 1970-71.

See entire story by Kim Lunman
http://www.recorder.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=936914
Thanks to Ian Kellman for this link

Freezing rain Wednesday made roads slick in parts of Nova Scotia despite the efforts of salt trucks. Elsewhere in the Maritimes, snow fell in parts of New Brunswick, with dozens of cancellations at Toronto's Pearson Airport.

"It's not really the worst (storm) of the season," Phillips admitted, "But it really is the straw that broke the camel's back, so to speak. There's a kind of weather rage, (with) a collective crying of 'uncle!'," he said.

"We're showing colder-than-normal conditions for the spring period," he explained, "It doesn't mean every day is going to be like that, but it means the flavour of the personality of the next three months should represent cooler conditions."

"I'm probably not going to put away my snow shovel until the long weekend in May," he said.

His words came as forecasts for central Ontario once again called for, what else, more snow for the coming weekend.

See entire article by Roger Ward, The Canadian Press
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/080305/national/wea_hellish_winter_2
Thanks to Lisa Soulliere for this link

"This event was the biggest one this year," said Dave Rodgers, senior meteorologist with Environment Canada. The forecast for this week showed more snow, but nowhere near the 80 cm the city was hit with throughout last week.

Even emergency vehicles were getting stuck trying to get to 911 calls. Ambulance crews were getting as close as they could to homes by parking on main streets that had been plowed. Paramedics then had to go on foot to the scene.
http://www.ottawasun.com/News/OttawaAndRegion/2008/03/10/4957566-sun.html
Thanks to Albert Carriere in Ottawa for this link

http://premiuma.accuweather.com/adcbin/premium/news-regional.asp?region=worldnews
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link

Since October last year, consecutive low temperature have gripped the province. The temperature plunged to minus 36.3 degrees centigrade, the record lowest in January in the province, said the provincial meteorological bureau.

In Yushu, Guoluo and Huangnan Tibet Autonomous Prefectures, most of the grassland was covered by snow, usually 16 to 32 cm thick, which brought great losses to local animal husbandry.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/02/content_7698015.htm
Thanks to Hans Schreuder and Jeff Reed for this link

If global warming gets any worse we'll all freeze to death.
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/global_warming_or_cooling/2008/02/19/73798.html?s=al&am p;promo_code=457E-1
Thanks to Hans Schreuder for this link

The ministry was concerned about the structural safety of schools in snow-stricken areas, said Jiang Peimin, director with the MOE. Storms "made 3.5 million square meters of school buildings unsafe for further use without repair," he said.

By February 23, more than 485,000 houses around the country had collapsed due to the heavy snow, which claimed 129 lives and caused 151.65 billion yuan in losses.
http://news.rednet.cn/c/2008/02/26/1447310.htm
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link

Snow started to blanket the eastern province of Shandong on Sunday. Some freeways were closed and thousands of vehicles were stranded.

In the Ili River Valley in the far western Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, blizzards raged from Thursday to Saturday. About 12,000 cattle were killed, causing losses of 18 million yuan (2.52 million U.S. dollars).

"The continuous heavy snow and wintry weather last week have sharply increased fatalities among ewes and lambs, as it is the breeding season," said Ma Cheng, director of the husbandry bureau of Ili Kazak Autonomous Prefecture.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-02/26/content_7669324.htm
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link

The Beirut-Damascus mountain highway linking Lebanon with Syria and the rest of the Arab world was blocked by snow, starting at about a 20-minute drive uphill from the Lebanese capital.

It was the second severe snowstorm to hit the region in three weeks, marking a particularly harsh winter in the usually temperate Mediterranean region. The snowstorm also hit Israel and the Palestinian territories, covering Jerusalem's holy shrines in white.
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/storms/winter/2008-02-19-snow-lebanon_N.htm
Thanks to Charles Patrick for this info

Or see Jerusalem turns white as more snow hits region - 19 Feb 08 - It was the second rare cold front in less than a month, officials said.Snow also fell in the West Bank towns of Hebron and Bethlehem on the West Bank, in northern Israel, and in some elevated areas of the Negev desert in the south of the country. The Gaza Strip, meanwhile, was hit by heavy rain.

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticleNew.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/
2008/February/middleeast_February224.xml&section=middleeast&col=
Thanks to Kate Salvati for this link

More than 160 villages were cut off by the snow, including 54 in the prefecture of Chania and 26 in Herakleion, both on the island of Crete, the General Secretariat for Civil Protection said by fax. Towns and villages in the wider Athens area and on the islands of Tinos, Naxos and Andros were also experiencing power supply problems, the agency said.

``The snowfall is unprecedented -- as much as two meters (6'7'') deep in the mountains,'' said Haralambos Koukianakis, civil protection officer at the Chania prefecture, Crete. Public buses stood at a standstill on Monday in the wider Athens area, while ships remained in ports, and public services remained closed.

Although the airport reopened at 3:00 a.m., snow plows were working continuously to keep runways open,.

Temperatures in Athens dropped to -6C before dawn, while temperatures in Kozani, Grevena, Kastoria and Florina plunged to -12C.

Heavy snow fell also fell over much of Turkey on Monday. Snow was 5 feet high in the province of Van in eastern Turkey, and thousands of village roads were blocked off in the region. In Istanbul, snow was 9 inches deep, while the Mediterranean resort of Antalya had its first snow in 15 years.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,331010,00.html
Thanks to Eric Skrzypczak for this link

Since late January, the interrupted roads have amounted to 14,000 km, including 265 km expressways and more than 5,000 km trunk roads.

The disaster left about 178,000 people and 20,000 motor vehicles stranded, and caused an economic loss of 154 million yuan (about 20.5 million U.S. dollars).

Snowy weather returned on Thursday. Qujing, the second largest city in Yunnan, closed six highways and cancelled 42 coach routes. Transport in other cities, including Zhaotong and Diqing, has also been affected by snows.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-02/17/content_7617704.htm
See also http://premiuma.accuweather.com/adcbin/premium/news-regional.asp?region=worldnews
Thanks  to Jeff Reed, Kenneth Lund for these links

"Man!," says reader Jeff Reed. "China is getting their butts kicked this year. I've heard reports that 14000 new cars join the roads every week in this country. Apparently they don't have sanding trucks yet....or snow plows."

By the end of Monday, the city had already been blanketed by 56 centimetres, and, given Environment Canada's snowfall warning of 15 to 20 cm for yesterday, the record of 66.6 cm set in 1950 seemed certain to fall.

As of 9:30 p.m., Environment Canada had recorded as much as 15 centimetres of snow downtown from the latest storm.

With 17 days left before March and another two snow systems set to hit the region by this weekend, the old record should be far surpassed..

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080213.wsnow13/BNStory/
National/?page=rss&id=RTGAM.20080213.wsnow13
Thanks to Dr. Ben for this link

Further south in Doda district, five women and a man from another family were killed when a snowslide flattened their house. Others killed included a woman, her teenaged son and daughter in northern Gurez district.

Kashmir has been blanketed by snow for the past six days, cutting off the region's main highway to the outside world. Hundreds of trucks carrying essential commodities for Kashmir valley were stranded but officials said there were enough stocks for the moment.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080209/wl_sthasia_afp/indiakashmirweather_080209181557
Thanks to Jimmy Walter for this link

More than half the country's provinces have been affected. In the worst-hit regions, nearly 90 percent of forests have been destroyed, according to the paper, levying a toll of 16.2 billion yuan (2.2 billion dollars) on China's forestry sector.

More misery could be in store, as the State Forest Administration has warned trees killed by winter frost could boost the amount of inflammable materials, raising the risk of forest fires.

The government has urged areas unaffected by the snow storms to expand seedling supply to secure spring reforestation efforts, according to the report.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080210/sc_afp/chinaweatherforests
Thanks to Jimmy Walter for this link

With more snow in the forecast, the city could surpass the second highest winter snowfall record of 176cm (69 inches) set in 1951-52. However, the all time record of 207.4cm (82 inches) set in 1937-38 looks likely to remain intact.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/news/10022008news.shtml

Tonga lies in the central Pacific Ocean, a third of the way between New Zealand and Hawaii.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/news/09022008news.shtml

The snow started in the afternoon of Jan. 17 and lasted until Jan. 27, with the depth exceeding four centimeters, according to the Tazhong Observatory based in the middle of the desert.

Continuous snow also caused the temperature to drop drastically to minus 32 degrees Celsius, a record low since meteorological observation began in the desert in 1996, said Wu Xinping, an expert with the observatory.

Wu said snow was rare in the desert that covered 337,600 square kilometers, and never before had the whole desert been covered.

In Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, about 300,000 people around the Taklamakan Desert had been affected and 44,600 livestock had died.

In Kashgar, the worst hit Xinjiang area, more than 2,100 greenhouses collapsed under the weight of snow and ice. Many others were damaged, leading to price increases for vegetables.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-02/01/content_7544946.htm
Thanks to Anton Jaks for this link

The deteriorating food situation is part of the energy crisis which hit the mountainous nation in the middle of its coldest winter in five decades.

The cost of food has tripled in recent months, partially because of rising world prices. Some humanitarian agencies claim Central Asia's poorest nation is heading towards catastrophe.

It's well below zero in Tajikistan, but most people have no electricity, no heating and now, increasingly, many don't have enough food either.

One family in the village of Sagdyan, outside the capital Dushanbe, said their four children were surviving on milk and rice. Their next door neighbours could not afford even that.

"We are seeing more and more people who are eating just one meal a day," said Zlatan Milisic, the country director for the World Food Programme in Tajikistan. "And we only expect the food situation to deteriorate.""

The worst is still to come - Tajikistan is currently using up its last energy resources, and may face a total blackout.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7231528.stm
Thanks to Anton Jaks for this link

Communist Party official Chen Xiwen warned of a serious impact on crop production in the south of the country. "The impact on fresh vegetables and on fruit in some places has been catastrophic," he said. "If it heads northward, then the impact on the whole year's grain production will be noticeable."

In some areas, people are already experiencing shortages of food as the weather delays deliveries of key commodities.

More than a dozen provinces have also been hit by blackouts due to missed coal deliveries for power stations and rising demand amid the cold.

The snowstorms, which began on 10 January, have affected nearly 80 million people across 14 provinces in the center and south of the country.

By the end of Tuesday, at least 38 people had been killed in snow-related accidents such as house collapses and falls, the Ministry of Civil Affairs said, and more have died in traffic accidents.

The government is trying to convince people the situation is under control - praising officials and naming three men who died as "revolutionary martyrs". But forecasters are warning of more snow and urging people not to travel.

               As I've been saying for years, I fear that we'll be fighting in the 
               streets for food long before we're covered with ice.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7219092.stm
               "China today but will it be us tomorrow?", asks reader 
               John Brown of Ardrossan, Scotland.

The Israeli weather service said up to 8 inches of snow fell in Jerusalem. Forecasters said temperatures were expected to drop, and the snow would continue through Thursday morning.

Heavy snow also was reported in the Golan Heights and the northern Israeli town of Safed, and throughout the West Bank.

In Amman, where a foot of snow fell, children used inflatable tubes as sleds.

Snow covered most mountain villages and blocked roads in Lebanon. The storm disrupted power supplies in most Lebanese towns and villages, exacerbating existing power cuts. Parts of the Beirut-Damascus highway were closed.

Temperatures in Syria dipped below freezing and snow blanketed the hills overlooking the capital, Damascus.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080130/ap_on_re_mi_ea/mideast_snowstorm_1
Thanks to Jimmy Walter for this link

Higher elevations throughout the country are likely to be covered with snow over the next two days, according to Israel Meteorological Service forecaster Uri Batz. Jerusalem can expect about 10 cm. of snow by Wednesday night and another 10 by late Thursday.

Batz said the Carmel Hills, near Haifa, would probably get a light layer of snow, something that hasn't happened since 2000. Even Eilat residents will likely be able to enjoy the sight of snow on the tops of the Edom Mountains across the Jordanian border.

The forecaster said that with strong winds, the temperature in the capital could plummet to as low as -9º C, freezing any water on the roads and sidewalks.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1201523782656&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
Thanks to Robert Branch for this link
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7217429.stm
Thanks to Johnny Zornes for this link

The China Meteorological Administration issued a red alert warning of more snowstorms and blizzards in central and eastern China, particularly around Shanghai.

Among the worst-hit cities is southern Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province that borders Hong Kong. The province is one of China's most important manufacturing regions, with thousands of factories making everything from T-shirts to electronics staffed by millions of migrant workers from poorer inland provinces.

The freakish weather has already affected 67 million people and economic losses so far have been placed at 18.2 billion yuan (££1.3 billion).
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article3264827.ece
Thanks to Craig Adkins and Rhys Jagger for this link

At least 24 people have died in two weeks of accidents due to snow, sleet and freezing cold across central, eastern and southern China, regions used to milder winters, Xinhua news agency said.

Officials in Hunan, Jiangsu and other provinces calling the snow and cold the worst in decades.

The main Shanghai stock index plunged 7.19 percent, its fourth biggest drop this decade, as investors added the weather woes to gloom about inflation and the global economy.

By the end of Monday, a backlog of 600,000 stranded at the main rail station in Guangzhou - in the relatively warm commercial far south - was expected. Television showed green-uniformed anti-riot troops ready to keep order around the station.

The China Meteorological Administration said the cold snap showed no signs of lifting.

Cargo ships docked at Shanghai's Baoshan Port were also delayed by snow that has hampered operations.

Already the country is guessing the economic cost, especially from coal shipment delays that have intensified power shortfalls.

Residents in central and southwest China are also complaining of shortages of fresh foods and rocketing prices for rice, vegetables and eggs.

The government has not announced deaths due to freezing in homes. But homes south of the Yangtze River generally do not receive central heating and are not built for such icy weather.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080128/wl_nm/china_weather_dc;_ylt=AtUdgzlRoSEIGVPq5tmUPW2s0NUE
Thanks to Dean T. Haskell for this link

The rail backups were compounded by a slowdown in bus travel after thick sheets of ice forced the closure of several highways. Snow delayed numerous flights out of Shanghai.

Most of the delays were blamed on power cuts that stalled 136 electric passenger trains on the tracks in Hunan province between Beijing and Guangzhou, Xinhua said.

Hunan and many parts of central China have been hit in recent days by freakishly cold weather, icy rain and snow that has accumulated on power lines, causing some of the them to snap.

Some areas have received their heaviest snowfalls in over a decade. More bad weather is forecast for the coming days.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,325878,00.html
Thanks to Allie for this link

In January, the average daily high temperature is near 26 degrees below zero, while the normal low is about 40 degrees below.

Thus far, January 2008 has been harsh, even by local standards. The average temperature through the 23rd was 40.8 degrees below zero - 8.0 degrees below normal. If you take away the `spike` to 1 degree below zero on January 12th and 13th, average temperature would have been more than 10 degrees below normal. As of the 24th, there were six-straight days having lows in the 50s below zero.

And January is not the coldest month--February is. Even the first half of March is normally a bit colder than January as a whole.

See entire article at accuweather
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link

The unusually heavy snowfall claimed at least 17 lives across China, caused widespread traffic and power disruption.

The Guizhou Power Grid Company cut off electricity to seven high energy-consuming industries and imposed limits on other industries to ensure electricity for households, government buildings and hospitals, said Chao Jian, deputy general manager of the company.

In northwest China's Shaanxi province, heavy snow has affected most parts of the province. In Weinan and Yan'an, two cities near the provincial capital Xi'an, 147 houses collapsed under the weight of snow.

The snow also damaged 1,110 hectare of crops and killed more than 5,100 poultries and livestock. The total direct economic loss was reported to be 68 million yuan (about 9.4 million USD).

The snowfall topped the records since 1957, said Du Jiwen on Tuesday, deputy director of Shaanxi Provincial Meteorology Bureau. He said the snow will continue to 30th of this month.

Hubei experienced its longest low temperature period since 1969. It witnessed 10 continuous days with temperatures below 0.5 degrees centigrade during 11 days of snowfall from Jan. 11.

 The provincial meteorological bureau is forecasting further heavy snows or snowstorms from Jan. 25 to 28, with average temperatures below freezing. The low temperature will be the longest time since 1954 in the provincial capital Wuhan city if it continues to the end of the month.

In southwest Guizhou province, 13 districts and towns are still living without electricity after snow cut coal supplies by road to a power plant.

By Wednesday afternoon, 3,400 travelers were still stranded on roads in Guizhou.
www.chinaview.cn
Thanks to Charles Patrick for this link

In northern Kazakhstan, Atbasar was colder than usual by 13 degrees with the coldest night diving to 45 degrees below zero -- about 40 degrees below normal.

In Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, average temperatures were 10 to 18 degrees below normal during this same four-week stretch.

In Iran, the first three weeks of January was nearly 12 degrees below normal, though some areas in this vast land were substantially colder with respect to normal.

Story by AccuWeather.com Senior Forecaster Jim Andrews
http://premiuma.accuweather.com/adcbin/premium/news-regional.asp?region=worldnews
&month=01&year=2008&date=2008-01-22_1919
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link

Jordan, snow whitened Amman, the capital city, along with Irbid, before spreading eastward over the high desert into western Iraq. Water equivalent in the snow was enough for amounts of 4 to 8 inches.

Farther north, snow also fell upon Damascus, Syria. Even a bit farther north, snow blanketing An Nabk amounted to 8 inches deep as of Wednesday morning. Both Damascus and An Nabk are in the `rain shadow` east of the Lebanon Mountains; however, this storm brought easterly winds that negated the rain-shadow effect. In Iraq, enough snow to cover the ground fell from Tirbil, on the Jordan line, eastward to at least Ar Rutbah.

Story by AccuWeather.com Senior Forecaster Jim Andrews
http://premiuma.accuweather.com/adcbin/premium/news-regional.asp?region=worldnews
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link

'It will be as cold in Winnipeg as it is at the top of the world,' he said. 'You can go thousands of kilometres to the north and not find any colder temperatures.'

The cold yesterday was so severe it prompted Festival du Voyageur organizers to shut down events on the Assiniboine Credit Union river trail for the entire weekend.

The frigid weather also prompted Stony Mountain Ski Area north of Winnipeg to close down last night. http://winnipegsun.com/News/Winnipeg/2008/01/19/4781601-sun.html
Thanks to Charles Patrick for this link

"Bloomberg reports that worst hit will be the Siberian region of Evenkiya, while neighboring Georgia, whose climate is subtropical, already plunged to as low as minus 35C. Lake Paliastomi in the western Georgia froze for the first time in 50 years, reports Rustavi-2 television."

               (The Yahoo article yesterday left out the part about the cold in Georgia. 
               "Perhaps the editors thought that mentioning the record cold in usually 
               balmy, subtropical Georgia would not be helpful in promoting the Global 
               Warming agenda," says reader Michael Jenkins.)

http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7009739004
Thanks to Michael Jenkins and Steven Woodcock for this link

http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/news/18012008news.shtml
Thanks to John Brown in Ardrossan, Scotland, for this link

Farther east, Nokkundi, Pakistan, received 1.3 inches of rain, about 80% of the normal yearly rainfall. Soaking rain also pelted the northeastern United Arab Emirates and nearby northern Oman. Rainfall since the first of the week was 2.5 inches at Dubai, UAE--more than half the average yearly rainfall. And Khasab, Oman's 2.6 inches of rain made for a substantial fraction of the usual winter rainfall.
http://premiuma.accuweather.com/adcbin/premium/news-regional.asp?region=worldnews

Continual heavy snowfall has cut off thousands of people living in isolated communities in the mountainous country, making deliveries of medicine and essential goods almost impossible.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has ordered for troops to be sent to Ghorian, the hardest-hit province, where over 50 people have died in avalanches and freezing temperatures. Convoys of trucks carrying 20 metric tons of food and medicine, along with road-cleaning vehicles, a disaster recovery team, and doctors have also been sent to the area.

Meteorologists predict further snowfall in the provinces of Heart, Badghis, Ghor, Kabul and Ghazni.
http://en.rian.ru/world/20080114/96558553.html
Thanks to Anton Jaks for this link

"Icecap Note: This is even more unusual than a July snow in Denver, a mile high (5,278 feet) city at about the same latitude. Bariloche is at just 2,772 feet elevation."
http://icecap.us/index.php/go/joes-blog
Thanks to Matt Nicholson for this link

The oil-rich kingdom is being hit with subzero temperatures and snow storms with freezing winds of up to 50 km/h (30mp/h). Water pipes have frozen, and livestock has died from the cold.

Morning and afternoon prayers are being combined in many mosques because of the morning cold and some schools will reopen later than scheduled.
http://en.rian.ru/world/20080111/96210251.html
              "Too bad we have to get our news from Russia," says Mike Bryant.
               You're right, Mike. This probably won't be mentioned by the US media.

http://premiuma.accuweather.com/adcbin/premium/news-regional.asp?region=worldnews
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link

The streets of the capital were largely empty as big, thick, wet flakes fell on Friday morning, a weekend day in Iraq. The temperature hovered around freezing and the snow mostly melted into grey puddles when it hit the ground.

http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSL1146182220080111
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22608593/
Thanks to matt Nicholson, Jeff Reed, and Dr. John V. Kampen in Granada for this link. And thanks to so many others ... it's amazing how many people sent these links to me. Thank you all.

The high demand for gas, combined with a sudden halt in Turkmenistan's gas exports to Iran, has created a temporary shortage of gas. Iran has therefore suspended its own export of gas to Turkey, which relies heavily on Iranian gas.

In Shahre Kord in Western Iran, temperatures fell to minus 24C (- 11F). Tehran registered -7C (19 F), the state television reported.

The Iranian government announced that the "drop in temperatures and gas pressure" would force all state offices and schools to remain closed until Thursday, the state-run IRNA news agency reported.

Iin southwestern Iran, the dunes of the Kavir-e Lut desert were dusted with snow for the first time in living memory, IRNA added.
http://www.themedialine.org/news/news_detail.asp?NewsID=20162
Thanks to Anton Jaks for this link

Hamedan, southwest of Tehran, had 14 inches of snow. Even the desert hinterland of southern Iran was whitened by the storm. In the far north,3 feet of snow fell on Bandar-e-Anzali, usually a mild and damp spot in wintertime.

Farther north, the Azerbaijan city of Baku was swept up in heavy `sea-effect` snows. Meantime, the leading edge of snow spread through Afghanistan to the rugged northeast of Pakistan. It also overspread southern Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan bound for Tajikistan and Kirgizstan.

Story by AccuWeather.com Senior Forecaster Jim Andrews
http://premiuma.accuweather.com/adcbin/premium/news-regional.asp?region=worldnews
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link

Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard said Thursday that the bodies of four people had been found on city streets since Wednesday, including one who died from pneumonia. Officials were investigating whether the other three deaths were also caused by the weather.

Temperatures dropped to 23 degrees in central Puebla state, where residents woke to snow-covered mountains. In the capital, residents accustomed to 80-degree afternoons bundled up in temperatures as low as 32.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hCHxKhIKuJHi3AXN1RdS_kjnbj7AD8TUN6HO2
Thanks to Brian J. King for this link

Temperatures in New Delhi on Wednesday dropped to 1.9C (36F), lowest of the season. On Tuesday night the temperature in Srinagar city plummeted to -7.4C (19F), five degrees below average and breaking a 20 year record.

In Jammu and Kashmir, police were warning people not to walk across the icy Dal Lake, which has slowly iced over to a depth of 10-15cm in places (4-6 inches). The world-famous lake has frozen several times in the past, but the most notable years were 1964 and 1986.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/news/03012008news.shtml

Bulgarian authorities called in the army to help clear roads and reach stranded motorists. The northern Danube municipality of Ruse declared a state of emergency after heavy snow blocked many roads.

In Romania, Bucharest's two main airports were closed due to heavy snowfall, which also blocked many roads in the south.

In Ankara, Turkey, snow caused traffic jams and accidents, while temperatures in northern Greece fell to 1 below zero and snow blanketed the roads.

Ice and snow also disrupted traffic in Western Europe.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22491652/

The nighttime temperature dipped to 34 degrees in the tourist city of Agra where the Taj Mahal is located, said a statement from the Meteorology Department of Uttar Pradesh state.

Most of 36 weather-related deaths reported in Uttar Pradesh since the cold snap began in December involved beggars or impoverished migrant workers who often sleep in the open, with only plastic sheets or jute cloth sacks for cover, said K.P. Kulshreshtha, a director of the department.

Homeless people huddled around fires in the chilly wind in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh. ''Without this bonfire we will die,'' said Sukhai Ram, a homeless laborer.

Winters are normally short and mild in South Asia.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-7191579,00.html
Thanks to Hans Schreuder for this link

http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Top_News/2008/01/02/heavy_snow_blankets_bulgaria/4481/
Thanks to Hans Schreuder for this link

See entire article by Elizabeth Saary
http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/news/01012008news.shtml

"We did set a record, but it's not entirely unprecedented," said Bryan Tugwood, a severe weather meteorologist with Environment Canada. 

               Uh huh. Are we in denial here? I had the impression that "setting a record" 
               implied that something unprecedented did indeed occur.

See entire article:
http://ottawasun.com/News/OttawaAndRegion/2007/12/30/4745545-sun.html
Thanks to Clay Olson for this link

Police say that one of the drivers managed to make a phone call from his mobile but after that all communication was lost. "There are still people under snow, we cannot say how many at the moment. The rescue operation continues," spokeswoman Munira Nazariyeva said.

There have been heavy snow storms all across this part of Central Asia.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7157118.stm
Thanks to Hans Schreuder for this link
               As Hans says, "It's hard to keep up with all of the snow news 
               these days. How true your forecasts!! But . . . who's listening?!" 

"It's a big one, a dangerous one," Environment Canada climatologist Dave Phillips told CTV, adding that more heavy snow was expected.

Parts of New York State received around 30cm (12 in) of snow, while 25cm (10 in) fell across Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. Forecasters said that parts of northern New England might receive 45cm (18 in) in total. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7146947.stm 
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link

Using figures dating back to 1940, the previous snowfall record for Dec. 16 in Windsor was 12.7 cm in 1970. The all-time one-day snowfall record for Windsor is 36.8 cm, set Feb. 25, 1965.

"I think chances are we're in for a white Christmas," said Environment Canada meteorologist Mark Alliksaar.

See entire article by Roberta Pennington, The Windsor Star
http://www.canada.com/windsorstar/news/story.html?id=2f5e96e2-99a1-4096-a7e8-23657da23b85
Thanks to Clay Olson