The planet’s skies and seas have seen much more than any of us combined, more than the average weather forecast can predict. These rare, questionable phenomena leave not just us baffled, but also meteorologists questioning what is real and what is magic. Let us explore just what more nature is capable of showing us.

False sunrises and sunsets

Mother Nature often likes to play pranks on us, and she does so with her fake sunrises and sunsets. A fake sunset happens when: (1) the Sun appears to be setting into or to have set below the horizon while it is still some height above the horizon, or (2) the Sun has already set below the horizon, but still appears to be on or above the horizon.

Similarly, a fake sunrise occurs when the Sun appears to have risen, but is still a little below the horizon. Atmospheric circumstances like the reflection of the sunlight from the bottom of the clouds, or a simple mirage, could cause these false sunsets and sunrises.

Moonbows

If you thought rainbows could only be seen during the daytime, you thought wrong. Moonbows or lunar rainbows are rainbows produced by moonlight rather than sunlight. It forms the same way as a rainbow in the daylight does: sunlight refracting through droplets of water. It is positioned opposite the Moon.

Moonbows are fainter than solar rainbows because the Moon can reflect only a small amount of light from the Sun. They are usually visible during the brightest full moon. For the most perfect moonbow, the Moon must be low in the sky (usually 42 degrees or lower) and must not be obscured by clouds. Additionally, the night sky must be exceptionally dark.

Moonbows can be found across the U.S., in places like the Niagara Falls, New York, and in some regions of Hawaii. The cloud forests of Costa Rica are also known for moonbows.

Animal rain

You may be familiar with the saying “raining cats and dogs”, but we all know that cannot happen in a literal way… or can it? In fact, what if you were told that there have been instances where it actually rained animals recorded since ancient history? It’s true!

Back in the first Century A.D., Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder documented a storm of frogs and fish. Years later, in 1794, French soldiers saw it rain toads near the city of Lille.

Some people see this phenomenon regularly. Rural inhabitants in Yoro, Honduras, claim that every summer, it rains fish in a phenomenon they call Lluvia de Peces (transl. “Rain of fish”).

Now, let’s revolve around a theory that explains why this could happen. One hypothesis suggests that natural phenomena like tornadoes and waterspouts often tend to carry birds and animals for several miles due to their high-speed winds. Although this theory has not been confirmed. Some cases could also be caused by birds dropping fish mid-flight.

Volcanic lightning

What do you get when you cross lightning with a volcanic eruption? The coolest thing anyone can ever see. Unlike common lightning, it occurs when particles of ash, rock, and ice collide violently during eruption. These collisions strip electrons from some particles and add them to others, creating an enormous electrical charge separation within the cloud. Once the imbalance grows too large, the energy is released as lightning.

It can be a tricky thing to study, but it’s not rare to see. The first studies of volcanic lightning were conducted at Mount Vesuvius during the eruptions of 1858, 1861, 1868, and 1872. Cases were also reported at Mount Etna in Sicily, Italy, Alaska’s Mount Augustine volcano, and the Volcán de Fuego in Guatemala.

Sprites

At first glance, it may look like an alien invasion with the red glow and the tentacle-looking figures. But that’s actually just a very rare type of lightning called a sprite.

Sprites are flashes of bright red light that occur above storm systems. It is named after the mischievous sprites in Shakespearean literature, i.e, Ariel or Puck, and is also an acronym for Stratospheric Perturbations Resulting from Intense Thunderstorm Electrification.

They are normally reddish-orange or greenish-blue, with hanging tendrils below and arcing branches above, and are preceded by a reddish halo, known as the sprite halo.

They were first captured when scientists from the University of Minnesota accidentally caught an image of what would be called a sprite. This was 1989. Since then, they have become a subject of intense investigations. They were also seen during Hurricane Matthew’s passing through the Caribbean in 2016.

Light pillar

You may have heard of the famous northern lights, but there are more light shows where that comes from.

Light pillars or ice pillars are an atmospheric optical phenomenon in which a vertical beam appears to extend beyond a light source.

The effect is created by the reflection of light from tiny ice crystals that are suspended in the atmosphere or those that form high-altitude clouds. Light pillars can also be caused by the Moon, or even man-made sources like streetlights.

There have been reports of this phenomenon in Central Alberta, Canada, and even in Alaska. These places are usually snowy and hence frequently have this kind of a light show.

Morning Glory clouds

Clouds that are close to the ground? And that are the size of the Loch Ness monster? Yes, people! These exist. The Morning Glory cloud is a rare phenomenon which involves a low-level atmospheric wave and an associated cloud. The wave occurs as a series of waves forming roll ball clouds. Sometimes there is only one cloud, sometimes there are up to ten consecutive roll clouds.

The average Morning Glory cloud can be up to 1,000 kilometres long, 1 to 2 kilometres high, and only 100 to 200 metres above the ground, which means if you’re tall enough, you’ll LITERALLY have your head in the clouds!

Published – October 07, 2025 05:30 pm IST

US President Donald Trump, on the very first day of assuming office, laid out a sweeping plan to maximise oil and gas production, including declaring a national energy emergency to speed the permitting of projects, rolling back environmental protections, suspending new federal offshore wind leasing proposals pending an environmental and economic review, and withdrawing the US from the Paris climate pact. He also signed an executive order reversing efforts by former President Joe Biden to restrict oil and gas drilling in the Arctic and large areas of the US coastline. This is a dramatic U-turn in Washington’s energy policy after former President Joe Biden during his four years in office encouraged a transition away from fossil fuels to clean energy in the world’s largest economy.

President Trump said in his inaugural address, “America will be a manufacturing nation
once again, and we have something that no other manufacturing nation will ever have — the largest amount of oil and gas of any country on earth — and we are going to use it. We will bring prices down, fill our strategic reserves up again right to the top, and export American energy all over the world.”

Crude oil is produced in 32 states in the US and its coastal waters. Texas is by far the largest oil-producing state in the country. In 2023, it produced a total of over 2 billion barrels. Its $172-billion energy sector employed more than 9 lakh energy workers as of 2022. President Trump has already started pushing for an increase in oil and gas production to lower energy costs and drive prices down.

Is it all as simple as it sounds?

Price Is King

The biggest incentive for oil and gas firms to either stimulate oil production or curtail it is usually price. In general, high oil prices push oil companies to produce more, while low prices lead them to pull back. The government has limited power to affect the price of oil as it is controlled by market dynamics. Higher prices may lead to more production, but they also upset consumers who will be forced to pay more at the pump, which will make not only gas but other commodities costlier. In recent years, oil companies have resisted the temptation to significantly invest in expanding drilling when prices rise, embracing instead the ability to sell their oil for a high price. Not all oil reserves can be exploited profitably. Instead of drilling at new locations, many oil companies have focused on extracting every dollar from existing wells.

What could be a solution then?

India Is An Attractive Destination

The answer may lie in the export of products such as Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG). President Trump understands this well, and has thus lifted the previous administration’s freeze on export permits. The decision could lead to almost 100 million metric tonnes per annum (MTPA) of additional LNG being exported by 2031 by projects that are significantly advanced, further cementing the US as the world’s largest exporter of the fuel.

US Senator Ted Cruz has also already introduced legislation to repeal the Biden administration’s Natural Gas Tax in the Inflation Reduction Act. Rolling it back it is an important step towards ensuring affordable, reliable energy for all.

According to Shell’s LNG Outlook 2024, global demand for LNG is expected to increase by more than 50% by 2040. This will be driven largely by the move away from higher-emission fossil fuels, a shift underway in a large country such as India and further along in other emerging markets.

In 2020, China was the United States’ largest oil export destination, while India stood fifth. A year later, the roles had reversed, with India taking the top spot and China going down to fifth. Various factors were responsible, including China imposing tariffs on US imports, the American ban on investments in Chinese energy firms, and the growing demand for LNG in India. A long-term contract worth $10 billion was signed between India and two LNG export terminals in Texas and Louisiana. There are more in the works, with Corpus Christi and Freeport in Texas, along with other Gulf Coast towns.

Why A Complete Repeal Is Not Feasible

In an executive order last week, Trump suspended funding disbursements under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), a step part of a sweeping set of directives to begin setting the new administration’s energy agenda. While it is not uncommon for new governments to pause funding for evaluation, federal agencies have 90 days to submit their review and spending recommendations to the Office of Management and Budget and the National Economic Council. The IRA contains key tax subsidies that foster energy production from renewable sources such as solar, hydrogen, wind and others. It also bolsters manufacturers in the supply chain with incentives and investments. Renewable energy manufacturers are eligible for two federal tax credits under the IRA. In addition, the IRA provides support for emerging capabilities, like carbon capture and technologies that facilitate the production, storage and utilisation of hydrogen energy.

While the disbursements may be suspended, it is not prudent to repeal the law in its entirety for several reasons, including the fact that Red states, such as Texas, greatly benefit from it. In general, many renewable energy projects are in rural areas, which usually send Republicans to Congress. For example, Texas has 689 firms engaged in solar manufacturing and distribution, with a $45.2 billion investment as of September 2024, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association report. Thus, there must be a balance against the need to avoid rolling back the considerable stimulus the IRA provided to the economy. 

There is considerable foreign investment in the renewable energy sector in the US. Recently, an India-based solar panel maker established its first American solar module manufacturing and integrated US-made solar cell facility in Texas. The firm is planning to invest $1 billion in the state over the next four years and create over 1,500 jobs when at full capacity. There are several local firms engaged in the supply chain and manufacturing of components needed for renewable energy production on the Gulf Coast. Most of these firms rely on a few benefits provided by the IRA to be sustainable and profitable in the short term. Repealing it will discourage these firms, which have already invested or were planning to invest in renewables manufacturing.

A Need To Co-Exist

Electricity demand continues to soar in America. The accelerated pace of modernisation in all sectors, from technology to transportation to heavy industry, needs electricity as a source of power. Crypto miners and data centres, are all heavy power consumers, as is generative AI technology, which demands immense computational power and energy, often ten times more than standard operations.

Given renewable energy sources are cost-competitive vis a vis fossil fuels, local utility providers may increasingly rely on them to meet the increasing demand. Another factor is that the prices of renewable energy are much less volatile than those of fossil fuels, like natural gas.

All in all, even with the shift in the US political climate, companies, and tech companies especially, can’t completely abandon their commitment to all their stakeholders—employees, customers, and shareholders in the US and abroad—to make their operations sustainable. Currently, 38 states have regulations requiring utilities to obtain a certain percentage of their electricity from renewable sources. It is also important to note that companies are increasingly becoming direct purchasers of power from suppliers, bypassing intermediaries such as utility companies. This trend will support the demand for clean energy providers.

Bottom Line: FDI Is Key

There is a huge potential for foreign direct investment in renewable energy manufacturing in the US, as well as for the export of oil and gas to fast-growing countries such as India. It won’t be surprising if President Trump, being the business-savvy leader he is with his “America First” and “Make in America” vision, strikes a balance for the co-existence of both fossil fuels as well as renewable energy production.

(The author is CEO and founder of ǪuantAi, an investor in Private Equity and an advisory board member of several technology and non-profit firms in the US) 

A dangerous weather phenomenon called a bomb cyclone that occurs in mid-latitudes – between Earth’s tropics and the polar regions – can bring strong and damaging winds, torrential rains, heavy snowfall, flooding and frigid temperatures.

Paris:

Deforestation continued last year at a rate far beyond pledges to end the practice by 2030, according to a major study published Tuesday.

Forests nearly the size of Ireland were lost in 2023, according to two dozen research organisations, NGOs and advocacy groups, with 6.37 million hectares (15.7 million acres) of trees felled and burned.

This “significantly exceeded” levels that would have kept the world on track to eliminate deforestation by the end of the decade, a commitment made in 2021 by more than 140 leaders.

Forests are home to 80 percent of the world’s terrestrial plant and animal species and crucial for regulating water cycles and sequestering CO2, the main greenhouse gas responsible for global warming.

“Globally, deforestation has gotten worse, not better, since the beginning of the decade,” said Ivan Palmegiani, a biodiversity and land use consultant at Climate Focus and lead author of the “Forest Declaration Assessment” report.

“We’re only six years away from a critical global deadline to end deforestation, and forests continue to be chopped down, degraded, and set ablaze at alarming rates.”

In 2023, 3.7 million hectares of tropical primary forest — particularly carbon rich and ecologically biodiverse environments — disappeared, a figure that should have fallen significantly to meet the 2030 objective.

Soya and nickel

In high-risk regions, researchers pointed to backsliding in Bolivia and in Indonesia.~CHECK~

The report said there was an “alarming rise” in deforestation in Bolivia, which jumped 351 percent between 2015 and 2023.

The “trend shows no sign of abating”, it added, with forests largely cleared for agriculture, notably for soya but also beef and sugar.

In Indonesia, deforestation slumped between 2020-2022 but started rising sharply last year.

Ironically, that is partly down to demand for materials often seen as eco-friendly, such as viscose for clothing, and a surge in nickel mining for electric vehicle batteries and renewable energy technologies.

There was better news from Brazil.

While it remains the country with the highest deforestation rates in the world, it has made key progress.

The situation has significantly improved in the Amazon, which has benefited from protective measures put in place by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

However, in the Cerrado, a key tropical savannah below the Amazon, deforestation has increased.

Degraded forests

The report also highlights the role of logging, road building and fires in forest degradation, when land is damaged but not razed entirely.

In 2022, the last year data was available, a forest area twice the size of Germany was degraded.

Erin Matson, senior consultant at Climate Focus, and co-author of the report, said “strong policies and strong enforcement” were needed.

“To meet global forest protection targets, we must make forest protection immune to political and economic whims,” she said.

The report comes in the wake of the European Commission’s proposal last week to postpone by a year (to the end of 2025) the entry into force of its anti-deforestation law, despite protests from NGOs.

“We have to fundamentally rethink our relationship with consumption and our models of production to shift away from a reliance on over exploiting natural resources,” said Matson.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

The world just experienced its hottest April on record. File (Image used for representation purpose only)
| Photo Credit: Reuters

The world just experienced its hottest April on record, extending an 11-month streak in which every month set a temperature record, the European Union’s climate change monitoring service said on May 8.

Each month since June 2023 has ranked as the planet’s hottest on record, compared with the corresponding month in previous years, the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said in a monthly bulletin.

Including April, the world’s average temperature was the highest on record for a 12-month period – 1.61 degrees Celsius above the average in the 1850-1900 pre-industrial period.

Some of the extremes — including months of record breaking sea surface temperatures — have led scientists to investigate whether human activity has now triggered a tipping point in the climate system.

“I think many scientists have asked the question whether there could be a shift in the climate system,” said Julien Nicolas, C3S Senior Climate Scientist.

Greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels are the main cause of climate change. In recent months, the natural El Nino phenomenon, which warms the surface waters in the eastern Pacific Ocean, has also raised temperatures.

Scientists have already confirmed that climate change caused some specific weather extremes in April, including a heatwave in the Sahel linked to potentially thousands of deaths.

Ms. Hayley Fowler, a climate scientist at Newcastle University, said the data showed the world is perilously close to breaching the 2015 Paris Agreement’s goal to cap global warming at 1.5 degree Celsius.

“At what point do we declare we’ve lost the battle to keep temperatures below 1.5°C? My personal opinion is we’ve already lost that battle, and we really need to think very seriously about keeping below 2°C and reducing our emissions as fast as we can,” she said.

Countries agreed the 1.5°C goal at a U.N. climate summit in 2015. It is the level scientists say would avoid the most disastrous consequences of warming, like fatal heat, flooding and the irreversible loss of ecosystems.

Technically, the 1.5°C target has not yet been missed, as it refers to an average global temperature over decades. But some scientists have said the goal can no longer realistically be met, and have urged Governments to cut CO2 emissions faster to limit overshoot of the target.

C3S’ dataset goes back to 1940, which the scientists cross-checked with other data to confirm that last month was the hottest April since the pre-industrial period.

Watch | Earth Day: wake-up call on climate change

In this episode, we will be discussing Earth Day, which The Hindu covered with thematic articles on April 22.

We look at multiple dimensions of climate change, beginning with the most recent Supreme Court ruling on climate change in terms of the rights of us citizens of India to have protection from the deleterious impact of climate change.

We look at heatwave projections for the entire Asia region in terms of what impact it could have on livelihoods, employment etc. We will also look at how algorithms can be used to project future droughts and floods across the region. And finally, we touch on the critical issue of water management and why it matters in the context of water-food-land nexus which together has an enormous impact on the economy.

We are joined by Jacob Koshy, the Deputy Science Editor at The Hindu.

Host: Narayan Lakshman

Guest: Jacob Koshy

Production: Richard Kujur