2013 in review: extreme weather – in pictures

On 7 November typhoon Haiyan made landfall in Guiuan, Eastern Samar, in the Philippines, with sustained winds of 145-195mph, by some measures the most powerful storm on record to strike land. This composite of satellite images shows the fearsome size of Haiyan as it headed towards the Philippines Photograph: Japan Meteorological Agency and EUMETSAT/Barcroft Media

10 November, Leyte Island, Philippines: Villagers look for belongings amid the destruction caused by typhoon Haiyan Photograph: Dennis M. Sabangan/EPA

4 January, Tasmania, Australia: In this photo provided by the Holmes family, Tammy Holmes and her grandchildren take refuge under a jetty as a wildfire rages nearby. There were record temperatures across southern Australia last summer Photograph: Tim Holmes/AP

15 January, Canudos, Brazil: A goat runs across the dry lakebed of the Cocorobo dam, down to 20% capacity, during a drought emergency. Brazil's north-east suffered its worst drought in decades, threatening hydro-power supplies, hurting corn and cotton crops, and leaving cattle and goats to starve to death in dry pastures Photograph: Lunae Parracho/Reuters

17 January, Jakarta, Indonesia: Vendors run their businesses as usual despite floodwaters that inundated the Cipulir textile market. Heavy rains displaced almost 10,000 people in the Indonesian capital Photograph: Adek Berry/AFP/Getty Images

14 March, Carterton, New Zealand: A sign warns about the risk of fire during a drought in New Zealand's North Island Photograph: Nick Perry/AP

16 March, Guizhou province, China: Lingering droughts in the spring affected large areas of western China. More than one million people in south-western Guizhou province and north-western Gansu province faced drinking water shortages as wells dried up Photograph: Rex Features

26 March, County Antrim, Northern Ireland: It was the coldest March since 1892 in parts of the UK. Farmer Donald O'Reilly searches for sheep and lambs trapped in a snowdrift in Aughafatten Photograph: Cathal Mcnaughton/Reuters

23 May, Moore, Oklahoma: Lightning strikes during a storm as people search for salvage three days after a deadly tornado destroyed their homes Photograph: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images

19 June, Villelongue, France: Following heavy rain the levels of the Gap de Pau river in some places broke 1897 records and the Catholic pilgrim town of Lourdes was flooded Photograph: Laurent Dard/AFP/Getty Images

22 June, Uttarakhand, India: Soldiers try to repair a temporary footbridge over the river Alaknanda after early monsoon rains swelled the Ganges, sweeping away houses and leaving tens of thousands of people stranded Photograph: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters

6–7 July, Beichuan, China: South-west China experienced what was described as its heaviest rainfall in 50 years. Qushan, the former county seat of Beichuan which was depopulated after the 2008 earthquake, was submerged in seven metres of water Photograph: AFP/AFP/Getty Images

8 July, Toronto, Canada: Passengers remained in good spirits while waiting to be rescued from a GO train stuck in floodwaters during a heavy rainstorm. Floods in June in southern Alberta were declared by insurers the costliest natural disaster in Canadian history, with property damage exceeding $1.7bn Photograph: Christopher Drost/Corbis

July, Svalbard, Greenland: A 16-year-old male polar bear that died of starvation resulting from a lack of ice. May 2013 broke temperature records around Finland's Lapland, with 30.5°C recorded in Utsjoki Photograph: Ashley Cooper/Global Warming Images

21 August, Buck Meadows, California: Fire consumes trees along highway 120. The amount of land in the US burned by wildfires during 2013 was much lower than the 10-year average, according to the National Interagency Fire Centre. Atypical weather patterns leading to substantial rainfall in portions of the western US may have contributed to the low amount of wildfire activity Photograph: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

4 September, Wichita Falls, Texas: The skeleton of a fish lies in the mud below a dock at Lake Arrowhead state park. The lake was close to six metres low due to a drought Photograph: Larry W. Smith/EPA

12 September, Lyons, Colorado: A section of highway 7 is destroyed by a torrent of water from St Vrain creek after heavy rain Photograph: Helen H. Richardson/Getty Images

3 December, Kenya: Wildebeest run across a plain in the Maasai Mara game reserve. Months after their annual migration south to Tanzania's Serengeti national park, thousands of wildebeest were spotted back in the Maasai Mara, a rare occurrence that wildlife officials said may be the result of drought and insufficient pastureland in Tanzania Photograph: Rebecca Blackwell/AP

5 December, Blackpool, UK: The main promenade under water following a tidal surge as gale-force winds hit many parts of the UK Photograph: John Giles/PA

15 December, Stockholm, Sweden: A skater on the rain-wet ice of Lake Orlangen. Meteorologists forecast temperatures of around 5C for southern Sweden Photograph: Tobias Rostlund/AFP/Getty Images