‘Pretty unusual': Melbourne to get a full week above 20 degrees

Melbourne is headed for a flash of sunshine with a week above 20 degrees as we head towards winter.

Rosa Sola Molina enjoys the sun at the Fitzroy pool.

Victoria woke up to a chilly morning on Friday, with temperatures down to -1.9 degrees in Omeo. Ballarat dropped to 0.2, while Coldstream was just 0.5 degrees.

But it was the start of what's looking like being an unseasonably warm week, with winter only a few short weeks away.

The mercury in Melbourne is expected to hit 20 on Saturday and stay at 20 or 21 degrees for at least seven days in a row until next Friday.

Read the story from The Age by Rachel Eddie - “‘Pretty unusual': Melbourne to get a full week above 20 degrees.”

How Britain kicked coal

Despite the chaos of Brexit and the difficulty of expanding renewable generation in a country where sunshine is notoriously scarce, and despite strong opposition to wind turbines, Britain has just about ended its use of coal-fired electricity. The last coal-fired power stations are set to close by 2025, but the process is almost complete already. How was this achieved?

The answer can be found in this graph released by Ofgem, the British electricity regulator. As it shows, coal (shown in orange) supplied around 40 per cent of British electricity in 2006, yet by 2018 its contribution was negligible. (The graph on Ofgem’s site is interactive, so you can see the actual numbers there.)

Read the story by John Quiggan from Inside Story - “How Britain kicked coal.”

Scientists to build GIANT SUNSHADE for the Earth in astonishing bid to stop global warming

SUNSHINE could be dimmed in an astonishing attempt by scientists to curb climate change. Then experts are hoping to discover if a man-made chemical sunshade would be less risky than a harmful rise in global temperatures.

The sunshade of ash will cool earth, say scientists.

Solar geo-engineering, which would mimic big volcanic eruptions that can cool the Earth by masking the sun with a veil of ash, is now dominated by rich nations and universities such as Harvard and Oxford.

Twelve scholars, from countries including Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Ethiopia, India, Jamaica and Thailand, wrote in the journal Nature on Wednesday the poor were most vulnerable to global warming and should be more involved.

Read Rob Virtue’s story from the Sunday Express - “Scientists to build GIANT SUNSHADE for the Earth in astonishing bid to stop global warming.”

Our electricity system is 'ageing, inefficent and unprepared'

Just today the Climate Council has reminded us that Australia is a serious “foot dragger” when it comes to electricity supplies.

The realities of climate change demand that we find some source other than coal to power our electricity generators, not only are our governments looking in the wrong direction, they are actively pursuing outmoded processes.

Australia has more sunshine than most countries making us the envy of the world and yet solar power is an idea, a technology that our governments are doing the utmost to avoid contemplating.

The Australian dilemma is clearly spelt out in a report from the Climate Commission headed: “Australia energy sector: ageing, inefficient and unprepared”.

The time is here for 'the punters' to take note

The Arctic ice sheet is
clearly melting.

A friend with influence over machinations in Shepparton has argued that “the punters” will take notice of climate change when they realise the Arctic ice sheet it truly melting, well, that time is here.

The ABC has reported that NASA has released maps showing sea ice coverage of the Artic in 1984 and 2012, after researched revealed that sea ice melted to its lowest level on record this year.

A story headed: “Before and after: Arctic sea ice in 1984 and 2012” points out that the minimum ice extent in 2012 was about half the average.

A graphic with the story shows the clear difference between what the ice was like in 1984 and how it appears today.

It is time “the punters” sat up, took notice, accepted the science that illustrates the globe is warming, and the ice, one of the key “reflectors” of sunshine, is melting.