51ºC – Hottest Day Ever in India

Life-threatening heat breaks temperature record in India 

City of Phalodi in Rajasthan state has broken the country’s temperature record after registering 51°C (123.8°F), the highest in India since records began, said the weather office.

The new record surpasses the previous record for the hottest temperature set at 50.6°C in 1956.

Much of northern India has been plagued by a lingering heatwave with temperatures exceeding 40°C for several weeks, while dozens, more likely hundreds, of people have died from extreme heat in the southern states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

The record [contested] for the highest air temperature in the world, 56.7°C (134°F), was  set on July 10, 1913 in Death Valley, California.

 

Massive Alberta Wildfire Enters Saskatchewan

Fort McMurray wildfire is almost the size of Delaware

The massive forest fire that devastated Fort McMurray, Alta., has now crossed the border into Saskatchewan, said Canadian officials.

The ferocious fire had devoured 505,645 hectares of forest as of Thursday morning local time, and expanded east of the border, burning 771 hectares in Saskatchewan, according to fire officials.

The fire is said to be about 30km from the nearest village, La Loche.

The latest Canadian Wildland Fire Information System map indicates the Fort McMurray fire has entered Saskatchewan at two points. However, the Saskatchewan government insists the southern part is actually a brand new, 40-hectare fire, said a report.

“One of the new fires, which covers 40 hectares, started close to the Fort McMurray fire on the Saskatchewan-Alberta border sometime during the evening on May 18.”

Two Volcanoes Erupt in Guatemala

HPV, PYM

Volcan de Fuego and Santa Maria Volcano erupt

Santa Maria volcano explodes at Santiaguito Dome Complex, sending a column of ash about 4,500 meters into the air. (Photo Credit: Prensa Libre/Carlos Ventura)

The 3,771-meter high Santa Maria, is a massive active volcano located in the western highlands of Guatemala.

The VEI 6 eruption of Santa Maria in 1902 was the third largest eruption of the 20th century, following the 1912 Novarupta and 1991 Pinatubo eruptions.

Volcano of Fire: The volcano that never sleeps

The ash column from eruption at Volcán de Fuego [the “Volcano of Fire”] reached a height of about 5,500 meters above sea level, with “moderate” lava flow from the summit.

The volcano that never sleeps. A new round of activity began at Volcán de Fuego, exactly four years ago on May 19, 2012. Photo credit: Ana Patricia Orizaba