Thursday, January 13, 2011

La Nina blamed for Australia's floods

Terra Daily via UPI: The La Nina weather phenomenon is to blame for Australia's floods, experts say. Northern Australia was hit by what was referred to as an "inland tsunami" Tuesday night. In Brisbane, Australia's third largest city and the capital of Queensland, the Brisbane River could reach a record crest of 18 feet Thursday. Of the 2 million people living there, one-third were told to leave their homes.

"The Queensland floods are caused by what is one of the strongest -- if not the strongest -- La Nina events since our records began in the late 19th century," said Monash University Professor Neville Nicholls, who is president of the Australian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society, The Guardian newspaper reports.

La Nina conditions form when cold water in the South Pacific pushes warm waters hard against the east coast of Australia. As a result of the weather patterns, December was the wettest recorded in Queensland and the country experienced its third wettest year….

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