Forecast: Light snow, but no big storms

Issued Feb. 1, 2016, covering the period from Feb. 3, 2016 to Feb. 10, 2016

Last week’s forecast played out pretty close to what was predicted. Last Wednesday’s Alberta clipper tracked a little farther south and packed a bit of a stronger punch than anticipated, while the weekend system was weaker than expected. These two systems did bring some very mild weather with them, though, which helped to end the

U.S. winter weather to see El Niño’s influence

U.S. winter weather to see El Niño’s influence

Northern-tier states are expected to be warmer, drier than normal

Much of the U.S. South can expect a cooler and wetter winter, while warmer-than-usual temperatures are likely across many northern and western states, as a strong El Niño weather pattern shaped a government weather outlook issued Oct. 15. More rain and snow are likely across the nation’s southern regions, extending from central California to Texas


Editorial: The green world’s breadbasket?

Editorial: The green world’s breadbasket?

Jeff Rubin, the former chief economist for CIBC World Markets turned bestselling author, knows all about adaptation. His first book, Why Your World Is About To Get A Whole Lot Smaller grabbed international attention with predictions that world oil prices would climb to more than $200 a barrel by 2012, forcing a rethink of almost

smokestacks emitting CO2 emissions

Editorial: Canada’s GHG stance tarnishes our brand

Things aren’t going too well in the international trade agreement department. At the World Trade Organization (WTO) round, which has been dragging along since 1991, it’s come to the point where the director general is actually being honest about its prospects. “Taking an overview of all of these consultations it is hard to see a


wheat field

Plants may run out of time to grow under climate change

Canada is among the few regions that could see increased production under global warming

A key potential ‘benefit’ of global warming — namely, that plants at northern latitudes will thrive in a warmer world — is challenged by a new study released by University of Hawaii’s scientists. The prevailing assumption ignores the fact that plants in the North will remain limited by solar radiation, curbing positive effects of warming

Typical mid-winter weather

Issued: Monday, Feb. 9, 2015 – Covering: Feb. 11 – Feb. 18, 2015

It’s turning out to be quite the battle between cold air to our north and east and warm air to our west and south. Unfortunately, for those hoping for a return to mild melting weather, it looks like we stay on the cold side of things at least for the next week or two, as


Manitoba climatologist Danny Blair

Climate Atlas proposed as long-term planning tool

University of Winnipeg climatologist Danny Blair wants everyone to have accessible information through an easy-to-read mapping database called the Climate Atlas of Manitoba

A University of Winnipeg climatologist and a small team of researchers are working to develop high-quality maps they say will project what sort of climate agro-Manitoba is likely to have in the next half-century. The Climate Atlas of Manitoba will be a set of accessible, easy-to-understand data, based and calculated on past trends and future

cattle in a pasture

Lowering greenhouse gas emissions from cattle

Economic incentives are needed to get producers on board, according to ruminant research scientist

There would be both winners and losers if the world followed Tim McAllister’s advice on how to lower greenhouse gas emissions from methane-belching bovines. “If we really wanted to reduce emissions we should be looking at identifying which areas in the world can produce ruminant products with the least amount of emissions and focusing production


Wild weather puts climate back on global agenda

Kerry says climate change a ‘weapon of mass destruction’

Bitter cold in the United States might appear to contradict the notion of global warming, but with Britain’s wettest winter and Australia’s hottest summer, extreme weather events have pushed climate change back on the political agenda. A spluttering world economy had sapped political interest in the billion-dollar shifts from fossil fuels that scientists say are

Possible El Niño developing this summer

Any large-scale change in the state of the Pacific is bound to have an impact elsewhere

I received an email the other day asking about El Niño and what effect it might have on our part of the world, should one develop. For quite a while now the Pacific has been in a neutral El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phase, but there is some mention of an El Niño event possibly