Extreme weather news and discussion

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US heat wave smothers Pacific Northwest, poses extreme risk in California and Arizona

Source: AP

By CEDAR ATTANASIO
Updated 6:24 PM CDT, August 23, 2025

SEATTLE (AP) — Residents of the Western U.S. sweltered in a heat wave Saturday that hospitalized some people, with temperatures forecast to hit dangerous levels throughout the weekend in Washington, Oregon, Southern California, Nevada and Arizona.

About 1.2 million people were under extreme heat risk, meaning temperatures were expected to stay dangerously high with no relief overnight. The largest area under the warning was around Tucson, Arizona, where the National Weather Service forecast highs between 102 and 107 degrees Fahrenheit (39 and 42 degrees Celsius). Areas of inland Southern California also faced extreme risk.

Another 18.6 million were under major heat risk nationwide, affecting workers and anyone without regular cooling and hydration, including in Miami.

Portland, Oregon, reported a record high for Aug. 22, according to preliminary data: 102 degrees (38.9 Celsius). If upheld it would break the 98-degree (36.7-degree Celsius) high for the date, set in 1942, according to the NWS.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/pacific-nort ... 7bfbe02308

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Towering wall of dust rolls through metro Phoenix, leaving thousands without power

Source: AP

By ROSS FRANKLIN and HALLIE GOLDEN
Updated 3:09 AM CDT, August 26, 2025

PHOENIX (AP) — A powerful storm kicked up a towering wall of dust that rolled through metro Phoenix on Monday, darkening the sky, blinding drivers, knocking out power and grounding flights at one of the nation’s busiest airports.

Bernae Boykin Hitesman was driving her son and daughter, ages 9 and 11, home from school when the storm, known as a haboob, arrived late in the afternoon in Arizona City, about 60 miles (95 kilometers) southeast of Phoenix.

She had to quickly pull over as the storm engulfed her car. “I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face if I put my hand outside,” she said.

Boykin Hitesman said she could taste the dust and feel the strong wind rattling her car until it finally passed about 15 minutes later.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/arizona-dust ... e3a736fdd9

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“Major Floods and Droughts Every 15 Years” for Pakistan... AI Forecasts a Crisis
September 2, 2025

Introduction:

(Eurekalert) A new study led by Professor Jonghun Kam's team at POSTECH(Pohang University of Science and Technology) has uncovered a shocking forecast for Pakistan's future. Using a cutting-edge AI model, the research predicts that the country will face unprecedented "super floods" and "extreme droughts" on a periodic basis. This dire prediction is a direct result of accelerating global warming, which is causing more frequent and severe extreme weather events around the world, particularly in vulnerable high-altitude regions where glaciers are melting.

The team focused on Pakistan because its major rivers, like the Indus, are the country’s lifeline, but climate change has made water resources management increasingly difficult. As a "Global South" nation, Pakistan is especially vulnerable to climate change and lacks the economic and technological infrastructure to conduct extensive research.

AI Tackles Inaccurate Climate Models

To overcome these challenges, Professor Kam's team turned to artificial intelligence. Traditional climate models often struggle with complex terrains like Pakistan's steep mountains and narrow valleys. They tend to underestimate changes in these areas or overestimate rainfall, which makes their predictions unreliable.

The researchers trained several AI models by comparing past river flow data with actual observations, which dramatically improved the accuracy of their predictions for past extreme weather events. This AI-corrected data proved to be far more reliable than existing models.

What Does the AI Forecast?

The analysis revealed a disturbing pattern. The upper Indus River could experience major floods and severe droughts approximately every 15 years. Surrounding rivers could face the same extreme events even more frequently, roughly every 11 years. This projection is a clear call to action, urging the Pakistani government to adopt tailored water management strategies for each river basin instead of relying on a one-size-fits-all approach. Professor Kam stated that this new AI technology will be crucial for producing reliable climate data not only for Pakistan but also for other climate-vulnerable and data-poor regions around the globe.

Read more of the Eurekalrt article here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1096796

For a presentation of study results as published by IOP Science: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10. ... 6/adf130