Having been awarded a $100 000 grant by the international Million Cool Roofs Challenge last year to deploy solar-reflective roof coatings, the South African National Energy Development Institute (SANEDI) is now underway rolling out this low-tech cooling solution to communities across the country. This initiative is driven by the Kigali Cooling Efficiency Program (K-CEP) with … [Read more...]
Cape Town museum depicts global water story
Water is the most vital resource for life on Earth and no living thing exists without it. The global water story exhibition, H2O Today, examines the diversity and challenges of water sources worldwide and promote conversation, creativity and innovation through art, science and technology. The exhibition is now on at the Iziko South African Museum in Cape Town. An … [Read more...]
Paris climate talks: what difference will temperature rises really make?
Without action, climate scientists have warned that temperatures could rise by nearly 5C above pre-industrial levels by 2100. World leaders meeting in Paris hope to keep average global surface temperature rises below 2C – but their pledges to cut emissions could still see up to 3C according to analyses. While it is very hard to make firm predictions, here are some of the … [Read more...]
WEERHAAN voorspel reen oor die Overberg
Dit reën steeds dat die byle huil sowat 45 grade suidwes van ons, net-net buite bereik van die Atlantiese hoogdruk, wat vir bietjie klammigheid wag om na ons dorstige Swartland en die Wes-Kaap te versprei. Ons kan vorentoe baie wolke verwag en as die Indiese hoogdruk dit regkry om van die vog wat in sy rigting beweeg, vir die Atlantiese hoogdruk terug te druk , kan ons … [Read more...]
Arctic sea ice reaches lowest annual maximum on record
This year's maximum Arctic sea ice extent was the lowest in the satellite record and occurred 15 days earlier than the average date for the period from 1981 to 2010, reported NASA and NSIDC. The sea ice cap of the Arctic appeared to reach its annual maximum winter extent on Feb. 25, according to data from the NASA-supported National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) at the … [Read more...]
Soweto is mopped up after floods
Reconstruction is moving swiftly ahead in part of Soweto damaged by flash floods last week, while relief aid is being given to families whose homes were washed away. AN estimated R350-million will be spent by the City in "cleaning up and reconstructing" those parts of Soweto that were wrecked by flash floods last week. Gabu Tugwana, the City's director of communications, … [Read more...]
Al Gore: ‘extreme weather has made people wake up to climate change’
Extreme weather events including typhoon Haiyan and superstorm Sandy are proving a "gamechanger" for public awareness of the threat posed by climate change, Al Gore said on Friday. The former US vice-president, speaking to delegates at the World Economic Forum in Davos, said: "I think that these extreme weather events which are now a hundred times more common than 30 … [Read more...]
Western Cape anticipates heavy rain
Heavy rain is expected in places over West Coast District, Cape Winelands and parts of the Eden District. Heavy rainfall raises the water level. When the water level is higher than the river banks or the dams, water comes out from the river and flooding occurs. Preventive measures: Construct proper drainage system – Shallow drains due to silts must be cleaned constantly … [Read more...]
Thinking ahead for a future worth living
“Ask yourself: Are you thinking of now, or are you thinking of your grandchild’s future?” This was the question posed by climate scientist Inez Fung, a professor of Atmospheric Science at the University of California and co-director of the Berkeley Institute of the Environment. Prof Fung was giving a lecture entitled ‘Climate Math,’ which was hosted by the African Institute … [Read more...]
The sun’s impending temper tantrum
In late January and again in the second week of March, the sun lashed out in a bit of a temper tantrum, on both occasions sending out a powerful interplanetary coronal mass ejection whose full effects reached Earth in a few days. We got lucky: Nothing much happened, and the resulting space weather storm didn’t pack as big a punch as expected. This won’t always be the … [Read more...]
Communities deal with aftermath of heavy rain and floods
The worst might be over, but now reality strikes. Hundreds of people in Mozambique, Limpopo and Mpumalanga must now pick up the pieces of their already difficult lives after heavy rain and floods left them destitute and the community in shambles. It might no longer be front page news, but have you given a thought the terrible trauma of piecing a life together after such … [Read more...]
Keeping cool in the Boland summer
Just when we thought our computers, and brains, would melt into a puddle in the sweltering Boland summer, our office was saved by our own white ice cap. I have been preaching the gospel of passive insulation and temperature regulation for a long time. So to live my talk we have avoided air-conditioning in spite of ever hotter summers. If you think we're just being wimps, a … [Read more...]
365 ways to change our world
Everyone is talking about greening their lives, the state of the planet and global warming, but most people don't know how to get involved. Going Green: 365 Ways To Change Our World, written by South Africa's most popular weather man and climatologist Simon Gear, will help readers 'go green' one day at a time. Filled with simple and easy-to-implement tips and steps on how to … [Read more...]
