Environment

A new long-range forecast system developed by Met Office scientists has delivered a potential advance in the skill of predictions for European and North American winters.

The system uses a next generation prediction system to give potentially more helpful guidance on winter weather patterns up to weeks ahead.

£4.3m pinch point improvement project to reduce congestion near Leeds and Wakefield, UK

A Highways Agency project to reduce congestion and improve access to Leeds and Wakefield will get underway on the M1 at junction 41, in West Yorkshire, UK, on 7 April).

The work will involve widening all of the approaches to the M1 junction 41 roundabout, from 2 lanes to 3 lanes, widening the roundabout to accommodate three lanes, improving lining and signing, refurbishing the traffic signals, improving lighting and providing improved facilities for pedestrians and cyclists.

Arctic sea ice at fifth lowest annual maximum

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Arctic sea ice extent for March 2014 was 14.80 million square kilometers (5.70 million square miles). The magenta line shows the 1981 to 2010 median extent for that month. The black cross indicates the geographic North Pole.

Air quality is continuing to improve across the UK

Changing air pollution levels prompts fresh advice from Public Health England.

In the last few days a combination of local emissions, light winds, pollution from the continent and dust blown over from the Sahara caused a spike in the UK Air Quality Index compiled by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

President Obama Forgoes Sanctions over Iceland Whaling

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In Brussels, Ban says ‘much heavy lifting’ required by all to curb impacts of climate change

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Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon travelled to Greenland at the end of March 2014 to see first-hand the impacts of climate change.

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=47496&Cr=climate+change&Cr1...

Bad news for Europe’s bumblebees

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Europe’s largest bumblebee, the Endangered Bombus fragrans, is seriously threatened by the intensification of agriculture

Powerful Aftershock Strikes Chile a Day After Deadly Quake

A powerful aftershock has struck off the northern coast of Chile, a day after the region was struck by an 8.2-magnitude quake that killed six people.

Arctic sea ice reaches maximum extent for 2014

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A NASA Blue Marble view of Arctic sea ice on March 21, 2014.

Five Dead as Magnitude 8.2 Earthquake Hits Northern Chile

A strong 8.2-magnitude earthquake has killed at least five people in Chile and set off a small tsunami that prompted evacuations along the country's Pacific coast.