New El Nino may lead to increased drought in India

October 6th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A long-term study has shown that El Nino, a global climate pattern, drives Sulfur butterfly migrations across the Panama Canal. Climate change has been linked to changes in the migration of butterflies in North America and Europe but this is one of the first long-term studies of environmental factors driving long-distance migration of tropical butterflies.

October 1st, 2009 LONDON - India's meteorological department has said that rainfall this year has been 23 percent below average at the end of the monsoon season, making it the worst drought since 1972 in the country. India is the world's second biggest producer of rice, wheat and sugar and millions of farmers in rural India rely on the monsoon to grow their crops.

September 24th, 2009 WASHINGTON - In a new research, scientists have determined that El Nino, the periodic eastern Pacific phenomenon credited with shielding the US and Caribbean from severe hurricane seasons, may be overshadowed by its brother in the central Pacific due to global warming. "There are two El Ninos, or flavors of El Nino," said Ben Kirtman, co-author of the study and professor of meteorology and physical oceanography at the University of Miami's Rosentstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science.

September 22nd, 2009 WASHINGTON - Conservationists have announced that more than sixty African elephants and hundreds of other iconic animals have died so far in Kenya amid the worst drought to hit the country in over a decade. So-called "long rains" that usually fall in March and April failed this year, and some areas in Kenya have now been in drought conditions for almost three years.

September 15th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new research conducted at Texas A and M University, US, has shown evidence of a possible link between El Nino and a severe flu pandemic in 1918 that adversely affected India. The findings are based on analysis of the 1918 El Nino, which the new research shows to be one of the strongest of the 20th century.

August 14th, 2009 The latest data on industrial output, which shows a 7.8 percent growth in June, brings with it a silver lining to the spectre of drought, which looms large over the country because of the scanty June-September monsoon, so critical to the country's farm output. Little wonder the country's overall growth projections have now been pushed up once again to around 6.2-6.5 percent.

July 21st, 2009 Texas agriculture losses reach $3.6 billionLUBBOCK, Texas — Drought in Texas has led to an estimated $3.6 billion in crop and livestock losses, and without ample rains, the year's final tally could top the state record set in 2006, Texas agriculture officials say. Crops and rangeland are scorched from lack of rainfall and record triple-digit temperatures throughout parts of Texas — the nation's second-largest agriculture state behind California.

July 16th, 2009 CARACAS - Archaeologists have found evidence that a woman from the Chimu culture was buried alive in the 15th century at the Chan Chan archaeological complex in Peru to ameliorate the various effects of what we today call the El Nino weather phenomenon. "This is the first time that evidence has been found that some people from the epoch were buried alive to prevent, in this case, the actions of El Nino from having effects on the city of mud," said Cristobal Campana from Peru's National Institute of Culture (INC).

July 3rd, 2009 WASHINGTON - A study by climatologists at the Georgia Institute of Technology suggests that a new form of El Nino may be changing potentially causing not only a greater number of hurricanes than in average years, but also a greater chance of hurricanes making landfall. "Normally, El Nino results in diminished hurricanes in the Atlantic, but this new type is resulting in a greater number of hurricanes with greater frequency and more potential to make landfall," said Peter Webster, professor at Georgia Tech's School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences.

July 2nd, 2009 New form of El Nino may increase Atlantic stormsWASHINGTON — El Nino may have a split personality. The warming of the tropical Pacific Ocean has long been known to affect weather around the world, but researchers now say it may come in two forms with different impacts.

June 25th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study by researchers at the University of Georgia, US, has determined that global warming may mean dry autumns and winters that may lead to fewer tornadoes in the spring. The study pins down, possibly for the first time, how drought conditions in an area's fall and winter may affect tornado activity the following spring.

June 23rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - The government agency in charge of cyber security Tuesday signed an agreement with British IT and communication solutions provider BT for enhancing computer security and technology sharing. "This MoU (memorandum of understanding) will help in capacity development, particularly in training our manpower for implementing the best security practices," said Gulshan Rai, director of the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In).

May 31st, 2009 WASHINGTON - In a new research, it has been proven that the effects of a changing climate on a population of bighorn sheep can be mathematically predicted. Researchers from Germany, the US, and Mexico studied a population of bighorn sheep introduced to Tiburon island, Mexico, in 1975.

April 21st, 2009 Rivers shrinking: Flow of many rivers in declineWASHINGTON — The flow of water in the world's largest rivers has declined over the past half-century, with significant changes found in about a third of the big rivers. An analysis of 925 major rivers from 1948 to 2004 showed an overall decline in total discharge.

January 24th, 2009 LONDON - Hollywood actress Kate Hudson is disappointed over the dearth of female centric films in Hollywood. Contactmusic.com quoted her as saying: 'It is very hard to get female-driven movies made.