On May 11th, Nepali climber Apa Sherpa (a resident of Salt Lake City, Utah) made his 21st successful ascent of Mt. Everest, breaking his own record for the most such by any mountaineer. There is a small window of time used by most climbers for the ascent of the world’s tallest mountain (for now with an official elevation of 29,028’/8848 meters—but measured at 29,035’/8850 meters by the National Geographic Society in 1999). That window of opportunity is the month of May when the jet stream normally shifts to the north of the Himalayan Range and relaxes its icy blast on the summit. In fact, all but three of Apa’s successful climbs of the mountain were accomplished during May.
weatherhistorian, • 6:04 AM GMT on May 21, 2011
With the lower and middle Mississippi River having approached and, in some locations surpassed, its greatest flood stage on record I thought it timely to compare this spring’s event with those in the past from around the world. Aside from drought-induced famines no weather-related natural disaster has exacted the toll that massive regional floods have on the earth’s population.
weatherhistorian, • 8:19 PM GMT on May 14, 2011
Extreme weather highlights for this past April include the almost unbelievable tornado outbreak of April 25-28 in the Deep South of the U.S.A., wild fires in Texas, record warmth and drought in portions of Western Europe, and more flooding in Columbia.
weatherhistorian, • 7:24 PM GMT on May 06, 2011