Archive - Aug 2005

Warm ocean temperatures are a key ingredient for monster hurricanes, prompting some scientists to believe that global warming is exacerbating our storm troubles

By JEFFREY KLUGER, Time Magazine

August 29, 2005
The people of New Orleans are surely not thinking about wind vortices, the coriolis effect or the dampness of the troposphere as they hunker down during hurricane Katrina this morning. They're mostly thinking about the savage rains and 140 mph winds that have driven them from their homes. But it's that meteorological arcana that's made such a mess of the bayou, and to hear a lot of people tell it, we have only ourselves-and our global-warming ways-to blame.

Oil, gas prices both jump to new records

High Smart sales surprise even its parent company

August 8, 2005 -- Things got even hotter on the energy market Monday as oil and gas prices both rose to record highs, driven at least in part by jitters over political conditions in the Middle East.

Crude oil jumped nearly 3 percent on global markets, hitting a peak of almost $64 a barrel as investors worried about threats in Saudi Arabia and tension over Iran's nuclear ambitions. Oil for September delivery ended with a gain of $1.63 at $63.94 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest close recorded since trading began on the exchange in 1983.