Severe Weather

South American Cold Wave: Brazil Looks for Crop Damage 

craigm350 Agriculture, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Climate Always Changes, New Cold Records, Severe Weather, Snow, South America

This time last year South America felt the damage, not from heat as the media so intently focusses on but ice;

Photo: Mycchel Hudsonn Legnaghi / São Joaquim Online, São Joaquim / SC 19-7-17-Frost

“Brazilian Arabica Coffee Crop 36% Loss from Cold, Bananas 70%, Argentina 30% Raisin Losses (193)”

As any one who grows anything knows frost is a killer and is not what the world’s largest producer of Arabica coffee needs;

[…]Unexpected moderate frost hits Brazil central coffee belt

The media will continue to focus on heat and ignore the cold. It wasn’t heat in 1994 that raised coffee prices

It’s not exactly been a good year for Chile either;

Fresh Fruit Portal

Although the uncertain at this point the initial prospects look okay, in part due to previous severe frosts changing behaviour – something those of us told to plant with the Mediterranean in mind would do well to follow [my emphasis];

Citrus Committee president Juan Enrique Ortúzar told Fresh Fruit Portal there had been no initial reports of major damage to crops.

“A big help was that the soil was damp as there’s been a lot of rain recently, and that functioned as a preventative measure,” he said.

He added that many growers had invested heavily in wind machines, which also helped to avoid frost damage.

Another point he mentioned was that over the years growers had been changing the crops they grow in the areas that were more exposed to the cold, planting more resistant crops like peaches and walnuts.

…as a result of many years of severe frosts, the industry had also been relocating avocado orchards away from the higher risk areas.

Chile: No major avocado, citrus damage reported due to cold snap

As reported on Weather Action News Sunday this current wave of cold is “atypically intense”

South America faces Record Breaking Cold Wave

How this pans out in Brazil is yet to be seen and winter is not done yet in the southern hemisphere;

Reuters

SugarCoffeeReuters

Via Google Translate

Frost damages pastures, vegetables and fruit

18/07/2017 at 17:04
by Marco Antônio Santos / Agrometeorologist

Tuesday (17) dawned with thermometers marking negative temperatures in several municipalities in the Southern Region and also in southern Mato Grosso do Sul. The National Meteorological Institute (INMET) registered negative temperature in at least 40 cities. There has been frost formation in wide areas.

Frosts reached sugarcane plantations in Mato Grosso do Sul, as well as wheat crops in western Paraná. However, it is still early to evaluate the real losses that this cold caused in these crops. In addition to wheat and sugar cane, pastures, vegetables and some fruit were also hampered by these record temperatures.

Frost damages pastures, vegetables and fruit

At dawn only the stations on the coast of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina had a positive temperature, according to INMET data. From southern Mato Grosso do Sul to Campo Grande, from Foz do Iguaçu to Londrina, temperatures were below 4ºC. 

That is, it may have frosted throughout this large area and the risk continues in the next 4 days.
[…]
Of course it will warm up during the day, what will remain as a souvenir of this cold is dry air, which must mistreat the pasture a lot and increase the risk of fire in the field, whether intentional or not.

[Geada is freeze, alto is high]

The Size of the Damage

South America faces Record Breaking Cold Wave

craigm350 Antarctic, Brazil, Climate Always Changes, Extreme Weather, Mini Ice Age, New Cold Records, Severe Weather, Snow, South America

by Josélia Pegorim Updated 7/15/2017 

Throughout the week, snow-specific weather simulations by supercomputers have indicated the possibility of snowing in southern Brazil next Monday, July 17. The possibility of snow is being considered because of a mass of air of extremely strong polar origin that advances over the center-south of South America in the coming days.

During the week, the area with a greater chance of snow has increased and is being indicated not only for cities in Santa Catarina where the phenomenon usually occurs, such as São Joaquim, Urubici and Urupema, but also for lower altitude cities in the highlands and highlands of Rio Grande do Sul and Regions of the plateau in the south and in the north of Santa Catarina. The chance of snow in cities like Palmas and União da Vitória in southern Paraná can not be completely ruled out. In addition to the snow there is also chance of phenomena like frozen rain and icicle.
[…]
Day 17 is “the” day of snow because it is on this day that the center of the strong air mass of polar origin will be in the north of Argentina, and begins to inject the intense cold on the South of Brazil, and it is when we will have much humidity in the region. It is not enough to be very cold. It takes moisture to form the clouds.

The center of a polar mass is the coldest region. On the 17th, the intense cold will be the ball on the penalty mark, the South of Brazil the goal and the goalkeeper will be out of position to try to defend. On July 18, the ball enters with everything and over 100 on the South of Brazil. Cold indefensible, that will make the South Region freeze! On the 18th we will have strong frost and negative temperatures in the South and no longer the conditions to snow.

Snow in the province of Buenos Aires

Before arriving in Brazil, this strong wave of cold puts most of the areas of Argentina inside the freezer. On July 16 and the dawn of July 17, the icy air will be passing over the province of Buenos Aires and also enters Uruguay. Argentina’s national meteorological service issued a special warning on Friday, 14, warning of the possibility of snow in higher areas of the province of Buenos Aires that are in the south / southwest of the region. The region of the city of Buenos Aires should not be able to snow. 

For Uruguay, atmospheric simulations specific to snow indicate the possibility of occurrence of the phenomenon between dawn and morning of July 17.

Snow in Santiago, Chilean capital, records historical snow

The mass of polar air has already changed the weather in Chile. It snowed in areas of Santiago where it was not seen for more than 40 years. The last time the phenomenon was registered in the municipality of Maipú, one of the 32 communes that make up the city of Santiago, was July 21, 1971. The local press affirms that there was not a phenomenon of this magnitude 10 years ago.

ClimateTempo

SANTIAGO, July 15 (Xinhua) — Strong rains, electric storms, big waves and snowfalls affected 14 of 15 regions in Chile on Saturday, with the country’s National Emergency Office (ONEMI) issuing an alert.
Magallanes, at Chile’s southern tip, was the only part of the country that was not under a weather alert.

From early Saturday, strong waves hit the coast of the regions of Arica and Parinacota. A weather system formed over the southern region of Bio Bio, which saw electric storms, especially along the coast.

Chile’s meteorological direction issued an alert for electric storms in the regions of La Araucania and the coast of Aysen, while strong rains battered Maule.

Santiago and other towns around the capital reported snowfalls, while the provinces of San Felipe, Los Andes and Valparaiso are under a weather alert for sleet and frost.
[…]
Santiago also saw strong snowfalls for several hours, with temperatures dropping to minus three centigrade, leading to power cuts for 280,000 people.

Xinhuanet

rare snowfall in the Chilean capital Santiago has caused disruption and blackouts, leaving thousands of residents shivering in the dark.

About 250,000 people were hit by power cuts, officials said, mostly caused by snow-laden trees falling on cables.

One death was reported – of a worker trying to clear ice – and two other people were injured by a fallen power line, Chilean media said.

Meteorologists say it was the heaviest snowfall in Santiago since 2007.

It came as the city and surrounding region were enduring an unusually cold snap.

As well as the power cuts, the weather has caused traffic disruption in the capital and several sporting fixtures have been postponed.

The big freeze was not bad news for everyone, however, and thousands of children headed outdoors to build snowmen and throw snowballs.

BBC