Warmer than average seas continue to dominate Australian tropical waters. Here are two important datasets we need to keep our eye on as we go into summer.  The first shows positive anomalies (“HotSpot“) in sea surface temperature (SST) measured by NOAA satellites.  Basically anything over + 1°C to more than four weeks is likely [...]

BBC World News – 5 January 2011 Last updated at 19:42

Global food prices rose to a fresh high in December, according to the UN’s Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO).

Its Food Price Index went above the previous record of 2008 that saw prices spark riots in several countries.

Soaring sugar, cereal and oil prices had [...]

By Graham Readfearn (original title modified)

SO you’re the news producer on a prime time Australian television breakfast show that’s been breathlessly covering the devastating affects of the Queensland floods and you’re looking for a new angle. How about a crack at climate change?

For television, the floods are the epitome of the story [...]

Sydney Morning Herald, January 1, 2011

Climate scientists want us to understand the world is burning, writes Adam Morton.

THE climate scientist Neville Nichols has long believed his role was research, not advocacy. But when he woke on the morning following the Black Saturday bushfires in Victoria, turned on his TV and caught his breath [...]