Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Forecasters say there won’t be winds as strong as last week’s record-setting gusts, but LA’s dry season will get worse California wildfires – live updates When it comes to forecasting the conditions for catastrophic California wildfires, there are two main ingredients: fuels (think grasses, shrubs, trees – basically anything that’s available for fires to burn) and winds. When analyzing fuels, forecasters look mainly at the levels of drought, along with any recent rains that may help diminish the effect of longer-term drought. With winds, in southern California at least, it’s all about anticipating the Santa Anas – the fierce winds that blow offshore, from the deserts to the coast, bringing loads of dry air with them. Continue reading...

‘The animals that don’t die need total nursing care,’ wildlife rescuer says, ahead of a potential spike in cases in coming weeks Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Thousands of rainbow lorikeets and hundreds of flying foxes have been hospitalised in Queensland in the past year with a mysterious paralysis that can affect the animals’ ability to fly, swallow and even breathe. Lorikeet paralysis syndrome has struck birds in Queensland and New South Wales since at least 2012, and a similar syndrome was identified in flying foxes five years ago. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading...

My generation feels trapped in a political system not built for us. Why wouldn’t we be disillusioned? I’m scrolling on TikTok after work when I get a text that would have sent 12-year-old Anjali into a spiral, a frenzy of extreme climate anxiety. The text is from a friend letting me know that it’s official – 2024 is the hottest year on record. Not just that, it’s the first year to exceed 1.5C of warming over preindustrial levels. The news comes as my entire feed is flooded with images of an inferno of flames ripping through neighbourhoods in LA, in winter. Continue reading...

Getty team says no current plans to move prominent pieces from center deemed ‘marvel of anti-fire engineering’ It houses some of the richest treasures of the art world, such as Vincent van Gogh’s Irises, a popular Rembrandt and a priceless collection of paintings, portraits and other works spanning more than seven centuries. To protect them, the Getty Center in Los Angeles was built in 1997 as “a marvel of anti-fire engineering”, complete with fire-resistant stone and concrete, protected steel, and set in well-irrigated landscaping. Continue reading...