Physical desk · Morning edition · Friday, November 6, 2026
Queensland's coal basins still carry the worst fire heat on the map, 5.0 times norm, while no disaster anywhere is rated serious
Black Sea rainfall sat at the 100th percentile on October 31, against the same 30 days in earlier years. Argentine Pampas at the 33rd percentile was the furthest from the middle.
Drawn from the numbers stored with this edition; the same picture is on its share card.
The ground is busy but less severe than yesterday, and the pressure is back on the fires. Queensland's coal basins still carry the hottest satellite fire reading on the map, now rated high rather than severe. No disaster anywhere is rated serious or severe. All 86 active weather disasters are minor, and the one severe cyclone from the last edition no longer appears.
The Queensland Coal Basins around Bowen and Galilee read 5,256 MW a day of satellite fire heat over the last three observed days. That is 5.0 times the daily mean of the 30 days before, against 7.4 times in the last edition, so it is easing on the same measure. Heat is not damage by itself, since burning can be routine land clearing. Nothing given here says any mine or rail line has been touched, and coal is the market it sits near.
The Rhine at Kaub read 24 cm at noon, up 3 cm but still very low for barges, and the Mississippi at St. Louis read 5.9 ft. Black Sea rain near Odesa is the wettest in its 15-year record, though no reading shows its effect on wheat shipments. Watch the Punjab and Haryana fire belt and Australian wildfires. The Hormuz count is from 2026-10-25 and needs a fresh one.
Busy but easing: Queensland's coal basins carry the worst satellite fire heat, rated high, and no disaster anywhere is rated serious or severe.
- Queensland Coal Basins: satellite fire heat is 5,256 MW a day over three days, 5.0 times its 30-day norm, rated high. Last edition it was 7.4 times, so it is easing. Nothing given reports damage to mines or rail.
- Rhine at Kaub: noon level 24 cm, up 3 cm, with flow at 538 m3/s. Still too shallow for full barge loads, though the last two readings show a small rise.
- Australia wildfires: five separate forest fire alerts, all rated minor, began 2026-11-04 and 2026-11-05, in the same country as the Queensland and Pilbara fire readings.
- India Punjab and Haryana wheat belt: fire heat is 2.5 times its 30-day norm, rated elevated.
- Mississippi at St. Louis: 5.9 ft, up 0.7 ft, still low for barge traffic.
- Black Sea near Odesa: 120 mm of rain in 30 days to 2026-10-31, against a 28 mm median.
- Strait of Hormuz: last transit count is 2 vessels a day on 2026-10-25, too old to read today's lane.
Odesa 30-day rain in mm jumped to 120 in the latest week, far above any earlier value here; wetter ground is the flood direction.
Fire heat near tracked regions in FRP: the latest 159 reading sits far under prior days, probably a partial day, so a rise is the damaging direction.
US gas in storage in BCF has risen every week listed; a fall would be the direction that tightens winter supply.
Queensland coal basins lead on fire heat, with Australian wildfires nearby, while Black Sea rain is the wettest on record and every listed disaster is minor.
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Imagery: Esri. Land outline: Natural Earth. Fire: NASA FIRMS. Rainfall: Open-Meteo. Events: GDACS. Tags and caption are the desk's; places, positions and ratings are not.
The desk voices are written by AI, not by human reporters. Every figure is taken from the listed market, sensor and headline data, and an automated check flags any figure or quoted source that is not.