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‘Less Snow’: Warm January Weather Breaks Records in Moscow

A woman walks with a stroller near a pond during warm weather in Moscow, Russia, 28 January 2025. (EPA)
A woman walks with a stroller near a pond during warm weather in Moscow, Russia, 28 January 2025. (EPA)
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‘Less Snow’: Warm January Weather Breaks Records in Moscow

A woman walks with a stroller near a pond during warm weather in Moscow, Russia, 28 January 2025. (EPA)
A woman walks with a stroller near a pond during warm weather in Moscow, Russia, 28 January 2025. (EPA)

January 2025 is on track to be one of the warmest in Moscow on record, meteorologists reported on Wednesday, with two of the past days breaking all-time daily temperature highs.

Thermometer readings on Wednesday have not dipped below an "April-like" 3.8 degrees Celsius (38.8 Fahrenheit), much higher than the historical average below freezing, according to Russia's Phobos weather center.

Residents in the capital told AFP there was less snow for children to play with, and that there was "mud everywhere", making dog walks more challenging.

Experts warn more temperature records will be broken in the future as human-driven climate change disrupts global weather patterns.

"Of course, we don't like winter like this... Everything should be in moderation," 68-year-old pensioner Galina Kazakova told AFP in central Moscow.

"It is very bad for nature, because the snow should lie on the fields, so that it melts, so that everything grows well," she added.

Monday and Tuesday were the warmest of those dates since records started, while Wednesday is also set to beat its historical high, Russia's RBK news outlet reported, citing meteorologists.

"January, which is approaching a heat record, continues to surprise," meteorologist Mikhail Leus said on Telegram, posting a video of chanterelle mushrooms poking through patches of snow in the forest.

Central Russia's state meteorological service said Moscow was on track for its "second warmest January" since records began, beaten only by January 2020.

Russian state media reported January 2025 could be warmer than even that year.

Climatologist Alexey Karnaukhov was uncertain about whether this January would be the warmest.

"It's hard to say whether there will be a record. In 2020, there was no stable snow cover in Russia's midland either, and this year is not unique," Karnaukhov told AFP.

"We live in an era of global warming, warm years will become more and more frequent. Even if the current values turn out to be a record, it will definitely not be the last," he told AFP.

On the streets of the capital, residents expressed both joy and concern at the unseasonably warm weather.

"I like it all. It is very pleasant to walk," said 19-year-old student Olga Medvedeva.

"I like winter better the way it was," said Elena Aleksandrova, 73.

"We take the dog for walks, he likes to play in the snow too. Now where can you walk? There is mud everywhere."

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Venezuela Says Oil Spill from Trinidad and Tobago Could Hurt Fishing, Environment

An Indian fisherman washes his hands in the waters of Ennore Creek covered with an oil spill after Cyclone Michaung, in Chennai, India, 11 December 2023. (EPA)
An Indian fisherman washes his hands in the waters of Ennore Creek covered with an oil spill after Cyclone Michaung, in Chennai, India, 11 December 2023. (EPA)
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Venezuela Says Oil Spill from Trinidad and Tobago Could Hurt Fishing, Environment

An Indian fisherman washes his hands in the waters of Ennore Creek covered with an oil spill after Cyclone Michaung, in Chennai, India, 11 December 2023. (EPA)
An Indian fisherman washes his hands in the waters of Ennore Creek covered with an oil spill after Cyclone Michaung, in Chennai, India, 11 December 2023. (EPA)

Venezuela's government said on Friday that an oil spill originating from Trinidad and Tobago is putting at risk fishing in the region, ‌as well ‌as the environment.

"This event ‌exceeds in ⁠magnitude the one ⁠that occurred in May and confirms the drift of pollutants toward Venezuelan waters," the government said in a statement, without providing further details ⁠on the extent of ‌the spill, ‌which it said was confirmed by ‌satellite imagery.

Trinidad and Tobago's government ‌did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

In the statement, Venezuela's foreign ministry asked Trinidad ‌and Tobago to take measures to “prevent further incidents”, adding ⁠that ⁠it "reserves the right to take appropriate action before the competent international bodies to determine liability."

In May, Foreign Minister Yvan Gil asked Trinidad and Tobago for compensation for another oil spill that had affected areas in the far east of the country.

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Timmy, Germany's Humpback Whale, Likely Lived for Only 5 Days after Rescue Effort

FILED - 30 May 2026, Denmark, Anholt: Two people sit in the sand near the carcass of "Timmy," a famous humpback whale washed ashore on the Danish island of Anholt. Photo: Marcus Golejewski/dpa
FILED - 30 May 2026, Denmark, Anholt: Two people sit in the sand near the carcass of "Timmy," a famous humpback whale washed ashore on the Danish island of Anholt. Photo: Marcus Golejewski/dpa
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Timmy, Germany's Humpback Whale, Likely Lived for Only 5 Days after Rescue Effort

FILED - 30 May 2026, Denmark, Anholt: Two people sit in the sand near the carcass of "Timmy," a famous humpback whale washed ashore on the Danish island of Anholt. Photo: Marcus Golejewski/dpa
FILED - 30 May 2026, Denmark, Anholt: Two people sit in the sand near the carcass of "Timmy," a famous humpback whale washed ashore on the Danish island of Anholt. Photo: Marcus Golejewski/dpa

The humpback whale that kept Germany spellbound for months likely lived for roughly five days after the final controversial rescue attempt failed to guide it back to its natural habitat in the Atlantic Ocean, officials said Friday.

The whale, nicknamed “Timmy” and “Hope” by German media, was found dead on May 14, stranded just off the small island of Anholt in the Kattegat, the broad strait between Denmark and Sweden that connects the Baltic Sea to the North Sea.

The discovery of the body ended months of a spectacular and contentious rescue effort that culminated May 2, when the mammal was transported toward the North Sea in a barge in the final rescue attempt.

Scientists, government officials, the public and a private initiative sparred over whether it was more humane to let the weakened and sick animal die on its own or continue the rescue efforts.

Data from a tracking transmitter attached to its dorsal fin shows that the whale’s death likely occurred on May 6 or 7, according to Till Backhaus, the environment minister for the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

It had swum roughly 215 kilometers (134 miles) over the five days and was heading back toward the Baltic Sea, which is the wrong direction for it to reach the Atlantic Ocean.

The data shows that the whale likely drifted aimlessly after that — or the transmitter's signal was lost, Backhaus said Friday during a news conference.

Timmy was first spotted off the German coast on March 3, prompting a media frenzy that included push alerts and updated live blogs with the status of its health.

It’s not clear why it swam into the Baltic Sea, which it wasn’t suited to, although some experts said it may have lost its way while swimming after a shoal of herring or during migration, The Associated Press reported.

An autopsy of the carcass has not yet determined the cause of death, Backhaus said, though officials were able to figure out that “Timmy” was a female whale, after months of assumptions that it was male.

The minister said no serious injuries were discovered during the autopsy, as well as no indication of violence or any items that would have caused its death.

“Did it have any nets or other foreign objects on its body, in its mouth or on its body?” Backhaus said. "Nothing was found.”

Some of the remains will be turned into biodiesel in Denmark, according to German news agency dpa. Some of the bones will go to a Danish museum.

Varieties

Hong Kong Seizes Haul of World Cup Fakes Worth $20 Million

Hong Kong customs authorities showcase various types of fake goods they seized during a news conference at its headquarters in North Point, Hong Kong Thursday, June 11, 2026. (AP)
Hong Kong customs authorities showcase various types of fake goods they seized during a news conference at its headquarters in North Point, Hong Kong Thursday, June 11, 2026. (AP)
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Hong Kong Seizes Haul of World Cup Fakes Worth $20 Million

Hong Kong customs authorities showcase various types of fake goods they seized during a news conference at its headquarters in North Point, Hong Kong Thursday, June 11, 2026. (AP)
Hong Kong customs authorities showcase various types of fake goods they seized during a news conference at its headquarters in North Point, Hong Kong Thursday, June 11, 2026. (AP)

Authorities in Hong Kong have seized suspected counterfeit World Cup items including football jerseys and balls with an estimated value of HK$156 million ($19.91 million), officials said.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is running from ‌June 11 to ‌July 19, and ‌is ⁠being hosted jointly ⁠by the US, Canada and Mexico.

Wayne Chung, senior investigator at the city's Intellectual Property Investigation Bureau, told reporters on Thursday ⁠that 230,000 items had ‌been ‌seized.

Chung said the jerseys seized had ‌a close resemblance to ‌genuine football shirts.

"Many of the jerseys are uniforms of the participating countries. We noticed all ‌of these clothes are set to be exported ⁠to ⁠other countries, not for local market. At least 80% of them head to America," he said.

He said that this was due to high demand for jerseys during the World Cup, which got underway on Thursday.