Strange Looking Skies: June 2 and May 2015

May 2015. In Northern Germany (Bützow) and in Southern Germany (Augsburg) there were two remarkable tornado events within a week and followed by more. Three tornados created a lot of damage and shocked people living in the track of the tornado.

On the North-side of the Alps in Bavaria there was a lot of rain, it rained also in Northern Germany.

In the middle of the country a drought raised concerns among farmers.

In the Berlin area there weren’t extreme weather patterns but the whole month felt more like autumn rather than spring.

It was cold most of the time and a feeling that the weather pattern repeated itself each day, with a few hours of sun and clouds and wind most of the time. Particularly at night it was still very cold.

There were also interesting cloud patterns in the sky, which looked a bit unusual. It might be these types of clouds which triggered also the “Chem-trails” conspiracy theory. These here certainly are natural phenomena, nevertheless it would be worth to learn more about these types of clouds. The sky looking like a “dirty window” happens more often over the last years and it would be good to know what that means.

Indeed it looks like the atmosphere is surfeited from something. This can be natural but there are still a lot of factors in the Earth’s atmosphere which needs further investigation and explanation. For example bacteria play a role in the development of clouds (and perhaps are also a factor in climate-development).

It’s remarkable that these type of clouds are not often to be seen on older photos – however we should keep in mind that today there’s much more awareness about weather phenomena and nearly anyone has a camera in his mobile.

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Arrival Of Storm Niklas Berlin, March 31 2015, Video

Tuesday, March 31, Germany and Middle Europe faced one of the strongest storms since years. The strength of the storm was unusual for the season. Some storms in late winter and early spring are normal but Niklas, which followed another storm in Germany, was very large, very strong and moved slowly. It did a lot of damage in Germany, eleven people were killed, trees felt onto cars and railways were stopped. In Berlin the “Fernsehturm”, the largest building in the city (over 370 metres) had to be closed. Visitors had to use the emergency stairs which is an exhausting way to get down. Trees felt on railway tracks and in a train not far from the street where this little video was taken passengers were trapped for six hours. Many flights were cancelled. In Munich the main hall of the main station had to be evacuated.

That day there were amazing weather patterns: After a noisy night when the previous storm shattered the windows, in the morning a little sheet of snow greeted commuters. The snow melted quickly and around noon it was unnaturally warm. It was windy in the morning and then it calmed down for some hours. It was literally “the calm before the storm”. In the afternoon the wind become stronger and stronger but then there were suddenly real strong wind gusts. The moment the video was taken the first strong winds of Niklas hit the town.

In the street no big trees were felt but in other places Niklas did a lot of damage. Nevertheless Berlin was lucky compared to other places and due to the fact that during the hours before the storm hit not much rain felt.

Even no big branches came down in the moment the video was taken it shows why storms can be dangerous. Forests are particularly a dangerous place not only during a storm but also in the days following the storm because there is still a chance big trees or branches could come down.

The storm lasted for hours til the late evening hours. Only in the night it slowly ceased down. The Berlin Fire Brigade had an endless number of emergency calls and also Brandenburg experienced many damage done by the storm.

Baltic Sea Storm And Kite Surfers

2014 ended with a few quiet and cold days but January 2015 began with a series of storms in Northern Germany and Middle-Europe. On Sunday, January 3 it wasn’t a real strong storm but a wind was still blowing constantly from North-West with gusts of Beaufort 8-9. It was dry and during the day the sky cleared up. Temperatures were slightly above zero first and rising later.

Even the days are very short it’s a good time for photography at the Baltic Sea. Colours can be very intense and sometimes unusual. In the late afternoon there was a beautiful strong blue colour in the sky, which was reflected by the water where it became more turquoise. Golden and yellow clouds could be seen during sunset. The sun still very low over the horizon during the whole day creates very interesting effects.

It was a good day for a walk along the broad beach of Warnemünde in Eastern-Germany. Warnemünde is near Rostock and a well known tourist spot with a big port where the ferries leave for Sweden and Denmark. A motorway ends directly at the ferry port. In the harbour of Rostock lots of big ships were built, it’s also an old trading spot (like Hamburg a “Hansestadt), and after the reunification the navy moved here. During summer big cruise ships visit Warnemünde, and the endless beach is crowded with people sunbathing, swimming and spending their holidays. Near the port a famous and big old lighthouse greets the ships. There are still living a lot of fishermen here, and in the heart of the village there are lovely restored little houses, which belonged originally to the fishermen. Today many sailors come in the summer and make a stop in the big marina.

On that day fewer tourists were walking along the beach or between some modern hotels and historical buildings and the beach. This day the sea belonged to special kind of sportsman. Kite surfers used the strong wind and waves. They came along with incredible speed and performed awesome jumps. Water temperatures are four degrees Celsius during this time of the year, thus they were all wearing special suits. Sometimes very close encounters between surfers could be seen and its obvious that kite surfing requires a lot of skills and quick reactions.

In former years the Baltic Sea was freezing sometimes for months during winter and there had been a lot of snow. There were even weather extremes with trains stopped by snowstorms in North East Germany. A few years ago tourists had to be evacuated with helicopters from Hiddensee an island not so far from Warnemünde near Rügen.

This year shows a different trend in weather extremes and these extremes fit more into the predicted changes due to global warming. The first days in 2015 continued a trend of temperatures higher than usual. Sometimes in winter there is a big and long lasting high-pressure system over Russia or Scandinavia, and then it gets really cold in this part of Germany. Like 2014 it seems instead that low-pressure systems coming in from the west dominate weather in Northern Germany. This can also be a typical weather pattern in winter here but what’s unusual is the whole series of very strong and long lasting storms with lots of rain. In the nearer neighbourhood, in Schleswig Holstein there had been problems due to flooding before Christmas. It’s already a bit similar to the series of storms, which hit the UK last year however the situation is muss less dramatic so far.

If strong winds blow from North-West or North-East the Baltic Sea looks more like the Northern Sea even there are no similar storm-floods or giant wave like in the Northern Sea. However the sea certainly requires a lot of respect. When also in last summer storms hit the Baltic Sea a couple of tragic accidents happened in Northern Germany with tourist underestimating the strong currents. Furthermore the winds are constantly changing the shoreline and make these waters unpredictable at certain spots.

Nevertheless the Baltic Sea at Warnemünde is a beautiful sight at every time of the year. The strong winds make a good and a heavier tripod necessary for photography and videography since there are no places or buildings, which could provide some shelter or protection from the wind. It’s also good to think about the sand flying around with theses winds, which can land everywhere in the equipment. The pictures taken on that day were mostly done with ISO 100/f13-f18.

Warnemünde and the Baltic Sea coastline is easy accessible both by car and by train in a few hours from Berlin and Hamburg. West of Warnemünde is the famous “ghost-wood” in Nienhagen, which is often portrayed by photographers. In less than an hour a national park can be reached or villages like Ahrenshoop, which is very popular among artists. The impressive scenery was always a strong attraction for painters. Today many photographers visit the long shores every day.

Baltic Sea Storm and Kite Surfers from Peter Engelmann on Vimeo.