London Times: Heatwave with a global grip

[DeepModem Mom]

Heatwave with a global grip
IT looks like being the hottest July on record but Britain is not alone in experiencing extreme conditions, write Jonathan Leake and Alex Delmar- Morgan.

....The phenomenon has surprised meteorologists who are used to seeing drought as a regional, not global, problem. This weekend they said early analysis of the hot weather, together with the size of the areas affected, suggested it was linked to global climate change....

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Data on the global heatwave have been collated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in America. Its maps show that most of the US is 3-7C above the average for the time of year and several western states have been more than 9C higher....

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In South America, mid-winter temperatures in Uruguay, Argentina, Chile and Brazil are up to 7C higher than average. The accompanying drought has reduced the giant Iguazu falls on the Brazil-Argentina border to a trickle.

Temperatures are averaging 7C higher than usual across southern England and Scotland....Even Mediterranean countries were caught unawares. Last week Spain and France, hit by temperatures 7-9C above average, had to shut down nuclear power stations as the rivers supplying water for cooling became too warm.

Pakistan, Bangladesh and southern India hit 3C above normal and much of central China was up by 5C. A drought, the worst for 60 years, is affecting the Chongqing region, leaving 2m short of water....

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-2291760,00.html