Adventure Ausrama Blog

While a new very strong El Niño is on the way, fears of continuing La Niña are real as well. Although Australia is known as a drought country, severe floods are damaging. This is because the continent is flat with a few mountains in the east of the country. If the El Niño does not arrive flooding will continue. Furthermore, the drought in the US will cause further damage to their economy. The odd thing at the moment is that Australia has drought inland with flooding along the coast. This isn't s normal state of affairs. It could be due to global warning. We have had a very long intermediate period where La Niña persists and El Niño threatens. Research shows that La Niña will return every 13 years instead of 23 years. It seems to Australians that La Niña has been here for ever with the long intermediate period persisting. There are extreme El Niño and La Niña though. And it is these that do the most damage economically and socially. ✴ Science by Ty Buchanan ✴ ...

Water dousing is not a scientifically proven method of finding minerals.  CSIRO's chief executive officer has suggested that dousing be put to the test scientifically.  Over the years it has been put to the test and found wanting. Personal experience has highlighted this when a water bore contractor used the system and did not find water.  He said that he would have to drill deeper and I would pay for it.  I waved the contract at him and said there is no mention of a surcharge in this - you guaranteed to find water. The claim of 80 per cent accuracy is not true.  It is based on heresay and after the fact selection of results.  It is like ghosts and life after death.  There is no scientific proof that these are real. The main use of divining is to locate water.  As former chief of CSIRO Land and Water John Williams says, “We know where the water is. The trouble is there isn’t much of it."   Dr Larry Marshall is a trained sc...

Human beings may be having problems with variable weather in Australia, but animals are coping well. Zebra finches, pelicans and woodswallows seem to know when the weather changes. If the Spring comes early they nest early. If it is too dry to breed they hold off until times are better. They change their breeding point by months either way. When glaciation was at its peak the woodswallow population actually boomed. In boom times there is a larger pool of gene carriers ideal for genetic selection when times become harder. More of the birds die off. Yet, the survivors have traits that suite the changed environment. Australia has the harshest of climates with long periods of drought. Consequently, birds such as pelicans live a longtime on a meagre diet so they can wait for good times to breed. Zebra finches seem to do well even when times are very hard. http://www.adventure--australia.blogspot.com/ http://www.tysaustralia.blogspot.com/ http://adventure--australia.blogspot.com/atom.xml...

The world is in a crisis of bad weather. Extremes of climate are becoming regular phenomena. While coastal eastern Australia is getting unprecedented levels of rain. inland there is a drought. We have a drought even though El Niño has not been in effect for years. It could be said that the rain on the coast is caused by La Nina. This does not explain "the dry" inland. Where once weather could be clearly predicted by the El Niño/La Niña cycle, this is no longer the case. Improvement in weather forecasting now helps in knowing a year in advance whether El Niño or La Niña will be dominant. An El Niño is due. The US would be pleased to get some relief from damaging drought and fires. Australia's last drought was severe. The Queensland government invested heavily in water catchment and storage. When La Niña arrived the government was condemned and even ridiculed for "wasting" money. At the time the investment was deemed necessary by government and co...

Enjoy "cheap" food prices now, because they are going to rise and stay high long into the future. The world population is increasing and developing countries are developing Western tastes. Meat demand is increasing, particularly beef. When drought hits, like in Russia, the US, Ukraine and Kazakhstan at present, high demand pushes food prices up. Farmers reap the benefit. South Australian farmers are getting 30 per cent more for grain. Though Australia relies on the export of minerals for income, it is hoped that this country will be one of the world's future food baskets. Everyone concentrates on the mineral industry. Note that SA's agricultural income rose by at third from 2009-10 to 2010-11. This is a result of food being at record high prices over the last two months. When the US cannot supply Australia jumps in as provider. This has always been the case. The reverse is also true. Another factor in rising prices is that local consumers are moving to ch...

There is something strange going on with the weather. Despite reports telling us that Australia is becoming drier we are getting more rain than ever. They say that global warming will make it rain more but water will evaporate faster. In Britain they may have to set water restrictions because it is raining less. Holding water in dams in Australia at the moment is a silly idea. With La Nina seemingly fixed off Australia's coast more and more rain is predicted. Some east coast towns, many inland, have had three house-destroying floods in three years. The poles are melting. We know this. Yet long-term predictions about future weather for different countries is like water divining. It seems to be right, though the truth will be known only by what actually eventuates. If the sea does rise and Australia still gets flooding rains people will abandon low, flood-prone regions permanently. There are only so many times you can repair a house. Australia will become what it has be...

Ten years ago the ozone layer was a major topic. "The ozone is decreasing," headlines proclaimed. Then, it was just as quickly forgotten. It may not be growing so much but the ozone layer is still causing problems. The weather has been altered. Wet and dry extremes are the result. Desalination programs have been put on the backburner for now. They will be needed soon as the cycle swings back to dry. The ozone hole shifts high-altitude wind circulation southward. Most notable for Australia has been the movement of the Southern Hemisphere jet stream to the south. This has severe effects. For example, in the north Britain has got very cold winters in recent years due to blocking of the Northern stream. Estimates are that Australia's weather has changed by a magnitude of 35 per cent. More rain has been brought here. With the impact from greenhouse gases this water evaporates very quickly, so the overall impact is dryness. With the combination of ozone, greenhouse...

There is little to gain in reducing greenhouse gases if farmers are continually hammered by floods and cyclones, even if carbon output is the cause of these events. It might seem logical to lessen gas emissions thus eliminating some cyclones and floods, but with no profit not much can be done. Improving the digestion of cattle will help farmers generally, though such research by the Primary Industries Climate Challenges Centre seems to be not the ideal project to work on. Determining how high carbon levels impact on wheat quality is more relevant and could help if climate change becomes permanent. Bodies such as the Climate Challenges Centre can be useful if they are well targeted . It needs to get on with the job. Australia's economy cannot sustain continual buffering from climatic extremes. Furthermore, other countries will surely get bad weather as well without a worldwide change in the way we live. Even Russia is getting extreme summers and winters. No country can avoid damag...