Weather Tracker: Record rainfall in California, Siberia -62C | World News

EuropeOver the past few weeks, California has seen the effects of a persistent atmospheric river that has been delivering rain across the state from the Pacific Ocean. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Weather Service (NWS) have released rainfall totals for parts of California for the 16-day period from December 26, 2022 to January 11, 2023. Central San Francisco received 345mm over 16 days, while nearby Oakland broke their 16-day rainfall record with a total of 327.7mm. Adding to the importance of the flooding was a severe drought experienced throughout the summer and autumn with extremely dry soils, thus preventing the soil from easily absorbing the heavy rainfall that has occurred in recent weeks.

Tropical Cyclone Hale affected New Zealand’s North Island from 9 to 12 January. Severe thunderstorms brought 156.5mm of rain to Gisborne’s Hikuwai in 12 hours and more than 100mm to other locations around Gisborne. Over the course of 18 hours, 219mm of rain was recorded at Pinnacles in the Coromandel Ranges and Whitianga Airport on 10 January, making it the fifth wettest January day on record.

Meanwhile, extreme cold gripped Russia, with the remote Siberian town of Dzhalinda recording an unseasonably cold -62.1C on Tuesday, January 10. This is the first time since 2002 that the temperature in Siberia has dropped to -62 degrees Celsius. Reaching such low temperatures has become less frequent over the decades, but that doesn’t mean it’s no longer possible. In 1933, the coldest temperature ever recorded in Russia was -67.8C.

Extremely cold weather will continue into next week across eastern Russia. More records are possible if temperatures remain around 15-20C below the seasonal average. Some parts of central and southwestern Asia also saw unseasonably cold weather last week. A monthly low temperature record was broken in Naruta, Uzbekistan, reaching -29.2C on Thursday 12 January. The cold will also continue to affect Southwest Asia in the week ahead, but it looks likely to become less intense.