October 30, 2008 - 9:00 AM
Record snow storm triggers delays
Snow flurries throughout the night and early morning caused numerous delays for travellers using Switzerland's rail system on Thursday.
A heavy, wet snow snapped trees, which fell across tracks. The most affected regions included Zurich, Schaffhausen in the north and the areas around the Gotthard pass in central Switzerland.
Passengers moving between Spiez and Interlaken south of Bern were forced to take buses when rail service there was interrupted around 7am. Broken branches and trees blocked roads.
Farmers in the Bernese Oberland also awoke to snow-related problems. Damaged fences allowed their cows to wander freely.
According to MeteoNews, the Swiss lowlands received the most snow for any October since records began in 1931. Zurich received 20cm, beating a record of 14cm set in 1939.
Trains were largely running on time again by 9am.
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Per the idea that it's warm in the western U.S., well I live there and it isn't now. We briefly get warmer when the cold Canadian air falls down the center of the country and pushes warm air ahead of it (thus the offshore winds and fires in L.A. this past week). It's a matter of a time delay, not a different trend. The cold has gotten here now and several western ski resorts are quite happy with the snowfall. Per Moscow: just wait...
So record 'snow' in a couple of places means a cooling sun and AGW is hogwash? So why is it so unusually hot in the Western US and milder than usual in Moscow then?
The solar winds are at an 50 year low. Because the sun is at it's weakest point since beginning of space observations on the sun. Some scientist suggest that we maybe at the start of a 100 year mini ice age, with global colder weather to come.