| This NASA temperature anomaly map says it all. During July, Moscow was burning up, as well as a major portion of the U.S. This is clear evidence of what the last three decades of massive human CO2 emissions has done to the global climate. |
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| Oooops, we bad - OMG, the above image isn't for July 2010, it's for July 1936! Below is the temperature anomaly map for July 2010. |
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Hmmm...wait a second....it seems the July 2010 warming is not as global as the 1936 warming. Go figure. |
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The dams are in Kano state, but about 5,000 villages in neighbouring Jigawa state have been affected, he added.
Several states in northern Nigeria have been hit by floods this year.
It is not yet clear whether residents received a warning or if anyone was injured or went missing in the flooding, reported the Associated Press news agency.
The floodgates are normally opened every year during the rainy season.
Nigeria's meteorological agency had previously forecast low rainfall in the north, warning that more than 12 million people could face food shortages as a result, according to the AFP news agency.
In a normal year, the water released from the dams flows into fields, irrigating crops of corn, rice and vegetables during the brief growing season.
Jigawa and Kano are part of the Sahel region, a belt of semi-arid land south of the Sahara desert.
In neighbouring Niger, millions are facing food shortages after a prolonged drought caused crops to fail. That was followed by severe flooding last month. Millions are now facing food shortages.
Threat levels in Northern Ireland remain 'severe'
It was the first time this threat level had been published, the Home Office confirmed.
The head of security service MI5 warned last week that dissident republicans opposed to British rule in Northern Ireland could strike mainland Britain.
Mrs May said: "The director-general of the security service has informed me that he has raised the threat to Great Britain from Irish-related terrorism from moderate to substantial, meaning that an attack is a strong possibility.
"Judgements are based on a broad range of factors, including the intent and capabilities of terrorist groups."
She said the information was being released to encourage people to remain vigilant, and a balance needed to be struck between keeping people alert and not alarming them.
One of the lessons of Irish history is that when one group of militant republicans lays down its weapons, another faction emerges - even more hardline than the last one. As republicans like to put it, "there will always be an IRA".
Three years ago, MI5 concluded that the threat from terrorism in Northern Ireland was low and likely to decline further. They had not read the history books.
Dissident republicans are trying to copy the Provisional IRA, by broadening their attacks to the UK mainland. Although they are growing in strength, there is no firm evidence yet that they would be capable of doing so.
Groups like the Real IRA have said that they intend to hit political and economic targets in England. As always, actions will speak louder than words.
Dissident republicans were responsible for more than 30 attacks or attempted attacks on national security targets since the start of the year, compared to about 20 for the whole of last year, he said.
The Real IRA recently hit out at Britain's "colonial and capitalist" system, threatening to target the City of London's financial institutions.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson said: "Clearly we have got to be concerned by what Jonathan Evans said."
'Unaccountable agencies' BBC Belfast correspondent Andy Martin said: "There is no indication that there is a specific target or indeed that there is capability of dissident republicans to mount an attack, but there is no doubt a desire to mount an attack on Britain."
A spokesman for the Police Federation in Northern Ireland said its chairman, Terry Spence, had predicted that the threat would move to Britain.
He said Mr Spence had pointed out that the terrorist threat historically moved to Britain to attack political and economic targets because of the impact it made.
While a series of attacks on the security forces in Northern Ireland had failed, two soldiers and a policeman had been shot dead, he added.
Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson said the upgraded terror threat was a worrying sign which underlined the need for adequate police resources to "stamp it out".
Shadow Northern Ireland secretary Shaun Woodward said however serious the threat posed to Britain, we should recognise that the peace process has changed Northern Ireland forever.
"Now our task is to ensure that those who wish to use violence to destroy not only the politics, but the peace, will never succeed," he said.
Nationalist SDLP leader Margaret Ritchie claimed MI5 was not sufficiently in control of the threat.
"The threat on this side of the Irish Sea is far too severe for us to leave it to unaccountable agencies with a shady past in the north," she said.
Central America braces for Tropical Storm Matthew 
Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega has ordered the evacuation of hundreds of people living in the storm's path.
Central America has been battered by months of heavy rain, which began in May with Tropical Storm Agatha.
Forecasters say Matthew will strike southern Belize by Saturday evening before crossing into Guatemala by Sunday.
Its predicted path then heads north into Mexico's Yucatan peninsula.
"Matthew is heading toward Central America in a hurry," said the Miami-based National Hurricane Center.
It warned that the storm system could bring "life-threatening flash floods and mudslides".
In Nicaragua, military spokesman Lt Col Freddy Herrera said people had been evacuated from from the region of Cabo Gracias a Dios and the Miskito Cays.
Honduras has declared a state of preventive alert throughout the country.
Tropical Storm Matthew has made landfall in Honduras and Nicaragua with winds of 75km/h (45mph).
Matthew is expected to bring up to 10in (25cm) of rain, with a risk of flooding and landslides. Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega has ordered the evacuation of hundreds of people living in the storm's path.
Central America has been battered by months of heavy rain, which began in May with Tropical Storm Agatha.
Forecasters say Matthew will strike southern Belize by Saturday evening before crossing into Guatemala by Sunday.
Its predicted path then heads north into Mexico's Yucatan peninsula.
"Matthew is heading toward Central America in a hurry," said the Miami-based National Hurricane Center.
It warned that the storm system could bring "life-threatening flash floods and mudslides".
In Nicaragua, military spokesman Lt Col Freddy Herrera said people had been evacuated from from the region of Cabo Gracias a Dios and the Miskito Cays.
Honduras has declared a state of preventive alert throughout the country.
Northern Nigeria flooding 'displaces two million'link
About two million people in northern Nigeria have been displaced after authorities opened the floodgates on two dams, an official says.
The flooding began suddenly when the gates on the Challawa and Tiga dams were opened, a spokesman for the Jigawa governor said.The dams are in Kano state, but about 5,000 villages in neighbouring Jigawa state have been affected, he added.
Several states in northern Nigeria have been hit by floods this year.
It is not yet clear whether residents received a warning or if anyone was injured or went missing in the flooding, reported the Associated Press news agency.
The floodgates are normally opened every year during the rainy season.
Nigeria's meteorological agency had previously forecast low rainfall in the north, warning that more than 12 million people could face food shortages as a result, according to the AFP news agency.
In a normal year, the water released from the dams flows into fields, irrigating crops of corn, rice and vegetables during the brief growing season.
Jigawa and Kano are part of the Sahel region, a belt of semi-arid land south of the Sahara desert.
In neighbouring Niger, millions are facing food shortages after a prolonged drought caused crops to fail. That was followed by severe flooding last month. Millions are now facing food shortages.
Irish terror attack a 'strong possibility'link
Threat levels in Northern Ireland remain 'severe' The threat level to Britain from Irish-related terrorism has been raised from moderate to substantial.
Home Secretary Theresa May said it meant an attack was a "strong possibility". It was the first time this threat level had been published, the Home Office confirmed.
The head of security service MI5 warned last week that dissident republicans opposed to British rule in Northern Ireland could strike mainland Britain.
The threat from Irish-related terrorism to Britain is still lower than the overall threat from international terrorism, which remains unchanged at "severe".
'Persistent rise' The new category of threat from Ireland applies to England, Wales and Scotland but not Northern Ireland, where the level also remains "severe".Mrs May said: "The director-general of the security service has informed me that he has raised the threat to Great Britain from Irish-related terrorism from moderate to substantial, meaning that an attack is a strong possibility.
"Judgements are based on a broad range of factors, including the intent and capabilities of terrorist groups."
She said the information was being released to encourage people to remain vigilant, and a balance needed to be struck between keeping people alert and not alarming them.
Analysis
Three years ago, MI5 concluded that the threat from terrorism in Northern Ireland was low and likely to decline further. They had not read the history books.
Dissident republicans are trying to copy the Provisional IRA, by broadening their attacks to the UK mainland. Although they are growing in strength, there is no firm evidence yet that they would be capable of doing so.
Groups like the Real IRA have said that they intend to hit political and economic targets in England. As always, actions will speak louder than words.
MI5 Director-General Jonathan Evans said last week there had been a "persistent rise" in activity and ambition by dissidents in Northern Ireland over the past three years.
He said they did not have the capacity to return to the levels of violence caused by the Provisional IRA in the Troubles, but presented a "real and rising" security challenge.Dissident republicans were responsible for more than 30 attacks or attempted attacks on national security targets since the start of the year, compared to about 20 for the whole of last year, he said.
The Real IRA recently hit out at Britain's "colonial and capitalist" system, threatening to target the City of London's financial institutions.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson said: "Clearly we have got to be concerned by what Jonathan Evans said."
'Unaccountable agencies' BBC Belfast correspondent Andy Martin said: "There is no indication that there is a specific target or indeed that there is capability of dissident republicans to mount an attack, but there is no doubt a desire to mount an attack on Britain."
A spokesman for the Police Federation in Northern Ireland said its chairman, Terry Spence, had predicted that the threat would move to Britain.
He said Mr Spence had pointed out that the terrorist threat historically moved to Britain to attack political and economic targets because of the impact it made.
While a series of attacks on the security forces in Northern Ireland had failed, two soldiers and a policeman had been shot dead, he added.
Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson said the upgraded terror threat was a worrying sign which underlined the need for adequate police resources to "stamp it out".
Shadow Northern Ireland secretary Shaun Woodward said however serious the threat posed to Britain, we should recognise that the peace process has changed Northern Ireland forever.
"Now our task is to ensure that those who wish to use violence to destroy not only the politics, but the peace, will never succeed," he said.
Nationalist SDLP leader Margaret Ritchie claimed MI5 was not sufficiently in control of the threat.
"The threat on this side of the Irish Sea is far too severe for us to leave it to unaccountable agencies with a shady past in the north," she said.
Locust bands found in northwest NSWlink
NSW Primary Industries Minister Steve Whan has released the footage of the locusts near Walgett, taken during the first aerial surveillance mission of the plague season.
Mr Whan said there were now 102 confirmed locust reports across NSW, with aircraft on Wednesday detecting the insects in 16 locations near Walgett.
"What we've seen from the footage is supersized bands of locusts, more than three kilometres long, eating fodder and crops in northern NSW," Mr Whan told reporters at NSW Parliament on Thursday.
"This has confirmed our prediction that the northwest will be the first front in the battle against the locust plague.
"It's critical that we actually get on top of those locusts and spray them while they're banding, before they actually take off."
Mr Whan said the government would target spraying on the locust bands, saying once the pests took to the wing spraying was much less effective.
The government has devoted $18.5 million to tackling what experts have warned could be the worst plague in 30 years.
Enough insecticide has been stocked to treat half a million hectares, while more than 50 aircraft will be on standby over the spring and summer.
Spraying in the state's northwest would begin in a couple of days, Mr Whan said.
"Locusts emerge from the ground (and) it takes two-and-a-half to three weeks before they start banding together," he said.
"Once they've banded, and they get a bit bigger, they then take to the wing, and that's when you get the swarms in the air.
"(When they're banded) we actually have the opportunity of a couple of weeks to spray them on the ground."
Known egg hatchings exist at Brewarrina, Bourke, Enngonia in the northwest, Nyngan in central NSW, and Wentworth in the southwest of the state, he said.
"It is vitally important that we keep getting the reports in from farmers when we see them hatching," Mr Whan said.
"That's when we know a couple of weeks later to start the surveillance."
Mr Whan said there were now 102 confirmed locust reports across NSW, with aircraft on Wednesday detecting the insects in 16 locations near Walgett.
"What we've seen from the footage is supersized bands of locusts, more than three kilometres long, eating fodder and crops in northern NSW," Mr Whan told reporters at NSW Parliament on Thursday.
"This has confirmed our prediction that the northwest will be the first front in the battle against the locust plague.
"It's critical that we actually get on top of those locusts and spray them while they're banding, before they actually take off."
Mr Whan said the government would target spraying on the locust bands, saying once the pests took to the wing spraying was much less effective.
The government has devoted $18.5 million to tackling what experts have warned could be the worst plague in 30 years.
Enough insecticide has been stocked to treat half a million hectares, while more than 50 aircraft will be on standby over the spring and summer.
Spraying in the state's northwest would begin in a couple of days, Mr Whan said.
"Locusts emerge from the ground (and) it takes two-and-a-half to three weeks before they start banding together," he said.
"Once they've banded, and they get a bit bigger, they then take to the wing, and that's when you get the swarms in the air.
"(When they're banded) we actually have the opportunity of a couple of weeks to spray them on the ground."
Known egg hatchings exist at Brewarrina, Bourke, Enngonia in the northwest, Nyngan in central NSW, and Wentworth in the southwest of the state, he said.
"It is vitally important that we keep getting the reports in from farmers when we see them hatching," Mr Whan said.
"That's when we know a couple of weeks later to start the surveillance."
The dollar headed for a weekly drop against the euro on concern the Federal Reserve is moving closer to boosting debt purchases, while European equities declined. The metal, which usually moves inversely to the greenback, advanced to a record for the fourth day this week. Silver, also used in industrial applications, headed for a fifth weekly advance.
“Gold is showing there is no confidence in the dollar,” said Bernard Sin, head of currency and metal trading at bullion refiner MKS Finance SA in Geneva. Recent “data has been showing signs of a troubled economy. That’s why we’ve seen this huge buying for investors as a safe haven.”
Immediate-delivery bullion added as much as $5.90, or 0.5 percent, to $1,298.35 an ounce and traded at $1,296.95 at 9:32 a.m. in London. Gold for December delivery was 0.2 percent higher after reaching $1,299.70 an ounce on the Comex in New York.
Silver for immediate delivery in London climbed as much as 1.2 percent to $21.3875 an ounce, the highest price since October 1980.
Gold, up 18 percent this year, is heading for its 10th consecutive annual gain, the longest winning streak since at least 1920. Bullion has outperformed global equities, Treasuries and most industrial metals, prompting record investments in gold-backed exchange-traded products. The metal rallied as central banks and governments maintained low borrowing costs and spent trillions of dollars to stimulate their economies.
‘Every Opportunity’
The dollar slipped to a five-month low against the euro on Sept. 22 after the Fed left its benchmark interest-rate target at a record low and pledged to take more steps to spur growth if necessary. The greenback fell as much as 0.6 percent today.
Gold “is continuing to appreciate at every opportunity,” Darren Heathcote, head of trading at Investec Bank (Australia) Ltd. in Sydney, said today by phone. “We didn’t manage to break and test $1,300 but certainly it looks like it is still on the cards and could happen as soon as today, given the sentiment at the moment is still one of uncertainty.”
While a report yesterday showed U.S. home sales were slightly stronger than economists had forecast, the number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose in the week ended Sept. 18 and Europe’s services and manufacturing industries slowed this month more than economists forecast.
Gold, Inflation
Global holdings of gold by ETPs lost 1.41 metric tons to 2,088.32 tons yesterday, after reaching a record 2,089.74 tons on Sept. 22, according to Bloomberg data from 10 providers. Gold is also benefiting from central bank buying, World Gold Council Managing Director Marcus Grubb told Maryam Nemazee on Bloomberg Television’s “On the Move.”
Sixteen of 23 traders, investors and analysts surveyed by Bloomberg, or 70 percent, said the metal will increase next week. Six forecast lower prices for the metal and one was neutral.
Prices have gained this year even as U.S. inflation slowed. Bullion is traditionally bought as a hedge against rising consumer prices. Inflation expectations, based on the 10-year U.S. Treasury breakeven rate, have fallen to 1.81 percent from 2.25 percent six months ago.
Silver last traded up 1.1 percent at $21.3475 in London. The metal is up 27 percent this year. Silver futures added as much as 1 percent to $21.43 on the Comex in New York, the highest level since March 2008.
Silver ‘Undervalued’
“Silver is very much undervalued,” MKS Finance’s Sin said. “It’s trading on the back of gold.”
Holdings in the iShares Silver Trust, the biggest ETP backed by silver, jumped 73.04 tons to a record 9,582.59 tons yesterday, according to figures on the company’s website. The metal doubles as a store of value and as a raw material for industry.
Platinum added 0.2 percent to $1,643.25 an ounce. Prices reached $1,645.75 yesterday, the highest level since May 19. Palladium gained 1.5 percent to $559 an ounce.
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