comments

Northeast Ohio gets another day of sunshine before chilly weather, rain moves in

U.S. 150 near the intersection with U.S. 6 was closed Monday in Moline, Ill., by flooding from the Rock River. (Todd Mizener, Columbus Dispatch via AP)

By Plain Dealer staff 
on April 23, 2013 at 7:15 AM, updated April 23, 2013 at 7:20 AM

Email

CLEVELAND, Ohio — After a very pleasant Monday, Northeast Ohio residents are in for even better weather today.
It will be mostly sunny today and high temperatures will approach 70 degrees in the Greater Cleveland region.
It will take a turn toward the dreary tonight. Rain and thunderstorms are expected as a cold front moves into the area. It's setting up a damp and chilly Wednesday, bringing rain and high temperatures stuck in the 40s.
For once the dreary weather won't stick around. Partly sunny skies are predicted for Thursday, and by Friday it will be mostly sunny again, although it will be cool thanks to high temperatures in the mid-50s.
Midwestern states continue to struggle with flooding from the Illinois River and Mississippi River. NBC News reports it could get worse because of another storm systemmoving in, bringing rain and snow.

Full Story: http://www.cleveland.com/weather/blog/index.ssf/2013/04/northeast_ohio_gets_another_da.html

Study Charts 2,000 Years of Continental Climate Changes

A comprehensive new analysis of temperature changes over the continents through 2,000 years has found that a long slide in temperatures in most regions preceded the unusual global warming of recent decades, but with a lot of regional variability and other fascinating details. A National Science Foundation news release has ample background.

The 78-author paper, published Sunday in Nature Geoscience, used a variety of indirect indicators of temperature, from tree rings to pollen grains, to build on other work charting temperature shifts since the end of the last ice age — including the recent Marcott et al paper, explored here, which used seabed sediments to chart 11,000 years of temperatures.

The new paper drew no conclusions about Africa (you’ll see it’s missing from the chart above) because there are too few spots where long climate records accumulate in lakes or caves. (In most other populated regions, instrumental records have covered the last 100 years, but much of Africa remains a data-free zone even now.)

But along with supporting the general picture of a long temperature slide until the modern era’s warming, the analysis reveals fascinating regional variations, including these:

The Arctic was also warmest during the twentieth century, although warmer during 1941–1970 than 1971–2000 according to our reconstruction….

Full Story: http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/22/study-charts-2000-years-of-continental-climate-changes/

Cold air barrels through Plains, Midwest

Temperatures were -15 to -25 degrees colder than normal over the northern plains delaying fieldwork and planting while it was normal to +20 degrees warmer than normal across the dry southwestern plains. A frontal boundary was becoming stationary from the eastern corn belt states to southern Ok setting up a large temperature contrast from north to south. 

Freezing precipitation continued over northern Co, and western Ne, north of this frontal boundary while heavy rainshowers were overrunning this frontal boundary over parts of north central Mo, Il, In and Mi, early today. Columbia, Mo reports 1.15" of rain, St Louis, Mo, .81", Bloomington, Il, 1.97" and South Bend, In 1.20", Grand Rapids, Mi, 0.98". Rains were delaying fieldwork but also moistening soils and encouraging early growth across the southern corn belt where Monday's crop progress report says that Il has planted 38% of its corn, In, 21% and Mo, 37% by this time last year. 

Cold damp weather further north has prevented corn planting across Ia and Ne. Il's winter wheat has improved 5% with 77% in good to excellent condition. 

Source: http://www.agriculture.com/news/crops/cold-air-barrels-through-plains-midwest_2-ar31019

Climate models fail to ‘predict’ US droughts

This would be a fine country if it only had water,” observes a settler looking at the barren west Texas plains. “So would Hell,” replies a despairing farmer.

That old Texas joke probably originated in the 1950s, when the state was baked by its most relentless drought in recorded history. Last year, rain kept clear of the region again, and scientists predict that the entire North American southwest will become increasingly drought-prone as climate change proceeds¹.

Reliable forecasts of future ‘megadroughts’ would be a boon to farmers and water managers. But results presented last week at the annual assembly of the European Geosciences Union in Vienna suggest that such forecasts are still beyond the reach of current climate models.

Full Story:http://www.nature.com/news/climate-models-fail-to-predict-us-droughts-1.12810

Wild April storm brings heavy snow and tornado threat

A ferocious storm is dumping heavy snow across portions of the Rockies and northern Plains on Tuesday. Winter storm warnings are in effect from New Mexico to Wisconsin, while a few portions of Colorado and Utah are under blizzard warnings.

Meanwhile, the same storm could bring severe weather and tornadoes to portions of the central and southern Plains this afternoon and evening.

The Storm Prediction Center reports that Oklahoma City and.Wichita Falls are under the greatest threat for tornadoes and big hailstorms later Tuesday, while cities such as Dallas, Kansas City, Tulsa and Wichita could also see severe weather.

Full Story:http://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2013/04/09/winter-storm-blizzard-tornadoes/2066639/

Turbulence ahead as climate changes

Get ready for more choppy, nerve-fraying transatlantic flights.

New research shows that climate change will cause more turbulence for transatlantic fliers by the middle of this century, and possibly lead to higher costs for airlines and passengers.

According to a paper published in the scientific journal, Nature, climate change will significantly increase turbulence over the North Atlantic, a popular route between North America and Europe.

The report concluded that "journey times may lengthen and fuel consumption and emissions may increase" as a result.

This increase in emissions could then intensify global warming problems, causing a vicious circle for pilots, fliers and the environment.

Full Story: http://money.cnn.com/2013/04/09/news/climate-change-turbulence/

Canada’s Latest Climate Change

Just days after World Water Day, the Canadian government quietly acknowledged last week that it had dropped out of the United Nations anti-drought convention. The move reportedly makes Canada the only nation in the world not party to United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, or Unccd.

Despite the ruling Conservative government’s claim that it had opted out because too little of its contribution was going toward actual anti-drought programming — branding the U.N. convention a “talkfest” in the process — many critics were quick to say the move fits a patten of a conservative party that has opposed environmental regulation.

“It’s just another step Canada moves away from protecting the environment and towards the oil industry,” said John Bennett, executive director of Sierra Club Canada.

The pullout became public during the official question period in Parliament on Thursday, just before the long Easter weekend break.

“The Conservatives are doing tremendous damage to our international reputation,” said Paul Dewar, an M.P. from the New Democratic Party, the official opposition, during the question period.

The reaction to the news in Canada, where many fear the government of Prime Minster Stephen J. Harper is undoing Canada’s reputation for both environmentalism and international cooperation, was as swift as it was damming.

Full Story: http://rendezvous.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/01/canadas-latest-climate-change/

Weather Affecting Spring Water Flush

If you think this year’s annualspring water system flush is giving Arlington’s water a stronger than usual taste or smell, you’re right — and officials say the weather is actually playing a factor.

Just like every year since 2000, there are about six weeks in the spring when Arlington’s water is purified with chlorine instead of chloramine. In 2011, the chlorine level was downgraded from 3.7 parts per million to 3.0 parts per million because of a number of resident and staff concerns.

This year, however, some people have mentioned what they believe to be a stronger taste or smell to the water. Although the number of formal complaints so far hasn’t exceeded other years, ARLnow.com readers started a forum thread on the topic. One reader posted: “It’s overpowering and sickening. We’ve been clearing out the shelves of those 3-gallon jugs of water at Giant.”

Although the amount of chlorine has not changed, the cold weather appears to accentuate the taste and smell of chlorine.

Full Story: http://www.arlnow.com/2013/04/02/weather-affecting-spring-water-flush/

Private firm could fill weather satellite gap

The looming gap in satellite coverage later this decade due to aging weather satellites has the federal government worried.

Within the next few years, some of the USA's aging weather satellites are predicted to deteriorate or fail, which could leave a gap in the data that forecasters use to predict weather.

But now, a private company — Bethesda, Md.-based PlanetIQ — is proposing to bridge that gap: PlanetIQ's solution includes launching a constellation of 12 small satellites in low-Earth orbit to collect weather data, which PlanetIQ says the federal government could access at less cost and risk than current government-funded efforts.

Anne Hale Miglarese, CEO of PlanetIQ, made this case before the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies last Thursday. She said that using PlanetIQ's proposal would:

• Improve weather forecast accuracy and warning lead times.
• Mitigate the risk of harmful gaps in satellite data.
• Relieve pressure on existing government satellite programs that are over-budget and behind schedule

Full Story : http://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2013/03/25/weather-satellite-gap-private-company-planetiq/2018047/

Late-winter snowstorm batters northwest Europe

A heavy late-winter snowstorm battered northwestern Europe on Tuesday, causing massive disruptions including the closure of Frankfurt airport and the suspension of trains between Paris and London.

The unseasonable snowfall -- coming only eight days before the official start of spring -- also knocked out power to thousands of people in France and left hundreds of motorists stranded in their cars.

France was worst affected but Germany, Britain, Belgium and The Netherlands also reported major disruptions.

Frankfurt airport, Europe's third-busiest hub, announced it had been forced to close due to heavy snow, with more than 200 flights scrapped by late morning. An airport spokesman was unable to say when it would be able to re-open.

The Eurostar high-speed train between London and Paris was also suspended after heavy snowfall on the tracks in northern France and Belgium. Eurostar said it expected services to resume on Wednesday.

Full Story: http://www.france24.com/en/20130312-late-winter-snowstorm-batters-northwest-europe

Dry conditions spread as warm spell lingers

Late February rainfall has eased dry conditions in some parts of south-eastern Australia but large areas remain parched as farmers prepare the next season’s crops, the weather bureau said.

In its latest rainfall deficiencies report, the bureau noted cropping regions in south-eastern South Australia and south-western Victoria had had rainfall “in the lowest 5 per cent of records” over  spring and summer.

“It’s getting close to record dries in (South Australia), western Victoria, western NSW and western Queensland,” said Darren Ray, senior climatologist at the bureau in Adelaide.

Dry conditions in many areas have been exacerbated by the hottest summer on record for Australia, with the heat continuing over South Australia and Victoria.


Source: http://www.smh.com.au/environment/weather/dry-conditions-spread-as-warm-spell-lingers-20130307-2foj2.html

Late winter storm hits weather-weary N.J., causing wind damage and flooding

The aging beach patrol building on the Atlantic City boardwalk withstood Hurricane Sandy’s epic storm surge last fall.

It survived last month’s snowy nor’easter and held together during the succession of other winter storms that battered New Jersey this winter.

But the start of today’s wet and windy nor’easter proved too much for the structure as gusts nearing 60 mph ripped off the roof and sent the walls tumbling into the dunes near States Street.

The building was one of the first casualties of a large and perplexing late winter storm that brought flooding, power outages, snow and freezing rain to swaths of weather-weary New Jersey while leaving other parts of the state largely untouched.

Forecasters, who have had a hard time predicting the massive storm, warn the worst may not be over. There is another chance of snow Thursday night and minor and moderate flooding could continue at high tide through Saturday morning if the storm stalls over the Atlantic Coast.

Source: http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2013/03/late_winter_storm_hits_weather.html

Sequester could ultimately affect severe-weather forecasting

The nation’s weather service and emergency response agencies won’t feel the immediate sting of the automatic spending cuts that hit the federal government last week, but officials have said it’s just a matter of time.

The National Weather Service will still be able to forecast severe weather events such as the late-winter storm set to hit the Mid-Atlantic region Wednesday, but there’s a chance those forecasts may not be as accurate.

National Weather Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, has said that the reductions will negatively affect weather forecasting.

Acting Commerce Secretary Rebecca M. Blank said in a Feb. 8 report to Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) that the required cuts could delay the launch of new weather satellites in coming years, which would “increase the risk of a gap in satellite coverage and diminish the quality of weather forecasts and warnings.”

Full Story: http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/federal_government/sequester-could-ultimately-affect-severe-weather-forecasting/2013/03/05/b41555ee-850b-11e2-9d71-f0feafdd1394_story.html

Thursday’s Severe Weather Awareness Week Topic: River Flooding

Despite a midweek snowstorm, it’s still Severe Weather Awareness Week in the state of Pennsylvania.  It’s a time where meteorologists spread awareness of the different types of severe weather, and how you can prepare for them as the spring season begins.  Today’s topic touches upon River Flooding.

River Flooding is generally caused by prolonged periods of heavy rainfall.  These periods of heavy rain can cause river levels to rise above flood stage, and when levels reach a certain value, property and homes can be in trouble.  River flooding can occur at any time of year, but normally spring and summer are the most prone times.  For example, extensive snow melt during a period a heavy rainfall is a common setup for river flooding during the spring season.

When the National Weather Service sees the imminent threat for river flooding, a River Flood Warning is issued.  A warning means river levels are expected to exceed flood stage at certain points along the area’s larger rivers.  The warning includes the river(s) of concern, along with forecasted river levels at particular locations.  The impact is measured in stages: minor, moderate, and major.  These stages are determined by river levels, and the impacts those levels bring to surrounding areas.

Sources: http://fox43.com/2013/03/07/thursdays-severe-weather-awareness-week-topic-river-flooding/#axzz2MrvV1PBp

Blizzard blasts southern Plains

A ferocious blizzard blasted the southern Plains with heavy snow and high winds Monday, burying much of the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles under more than a foot of snow, wreaking travel havoc on the roads and in the air.

Overnight Monday and through the day Tuesday, the storm will slowly slog to the north and east, bringing a swath of snow across Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan, the National Weather Service reported.

"This storm will have a huge impact, with additional heavy snows likely over portions of eastern Kansas and northern Missouri which received very heavy snowfall amounts last week," weather service meteorologist Robert Oravec wrote in an online bulletin.

The storm is being blamed for two deaths on Monday. In northwest Kansas, a 21-year-old man's SUV hit an icy patch on Interstate 70 and overturned. And in the northwest town of Woodward, Okla., heavy snow caused a roof to collapse, killing one inside the home.

Full Story: http://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2013/02/24/2nd-blizzard-plains/1945161/

Worker Rest Breaks Double by 2050 as Climate Warms: NOAA

People working in jobs without air conditioning will need to take breaks twice as often by 2050 to avoid heat stress amid a warming climate, according to a study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Losses in labor capacity, or the ability to work safely in warm conditions, will double by mid-century assuming global temperatures rise by 1 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit), according to the study published yesterday in Nature Climate Change. Temperatures have risen 0.7 degrees since before the Industrial Revolution in the 1800s.“The planet will start experiencing heat stress that’s unlike anything experienced today,” Ronald Stouffer, a physical scientist at NOAA’s Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory in Princeton, New Jersey, and co-author of the report, said on a conference call with reporters. “The world is entering a very different environment and the impact on labor will be significant.”
The study, which covers work outdoors at night and in the shade and indoor work without air conditioning, uses guidelines set by industry and the military for a safe workplace in hot conditions. Today, people working when temperatures peak must rest about 10 percent of their working time. That will double to 20 percent by 2050, according to the study.

Full Story: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2013-02-24/worker-rest-breaks-double-by-2050-as-climate-warms-noaa

Climate contradiction: Less snow, more blizzards

WASHINGTON — With scant snowfall and barren ski slopes in parts of the Midwest and Northeast the past couple of years, some scientists have pointed to global warming as the culprit.

Then when a whopper of a blizzard smacked the Northeast with more than 2 feet of snow in some places earlier this month, some of the same people again blamed global warming.

How can that be? It’s been a joke among skeptics, pointing to what seems to be a brazen contradiction.

But the answer lies in atmospheric physics. A warmer atmosphere can hold, and dump, more moisture, snow experts say. And two soon-to-be-published studies demonstrate how there can be more giant blizzards yet less snow overall each year. Projections are that that’s likely to continuewith man-made global warming.

Full Story: http://www.jamestownsun.com/event/article/id/180141/group/Weather/

Significant storm damage in Hattiesburg, Miss.

February 10, 2013 (HATTIESBURG, Miss.) -- An apparent tornado tore through Hattiesburg on Sunday as part of a wave of severe storms that downed trees, damaged buildings and caused at least several injuries.

The twister traveled down one of Hattiesburg's main streets and caused what officials described as major damage, officials said, hitting several buildings on the campus of the University of Southern Mississippi. Kyle Hopkins, emergency operations director for surrounding Forrest County, said officials hadn't confirmedinjuries. 

There were reports of several people hurt elsewhere in the state.

"We had a tornado touch down. We have a lot of damage," Hopkins said.

The university released a statement saying that several buildings had been damaged but that no injuries were reported. Campus police have declared a state of emergency and asked anyone not on campus to stay away.

The storm overturned and damaged vehicles and threw debris around parts of the campus.

Full Story: http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/national_world&id=8987974

Evaluating the February 2013 Blizzard with the Regional Snowfall Index

A massive blizzard hit the Northeast February 9–11, 2013 bringing more than 2.5 feet of snow to some areas, which left thousands of people without power and stranded countless airline passengers. This blizzard rated 3 out of 5 on the Regional Snowfall Index (RSI) scale according to preliminary observations through 7:00 AM Sunday. (We will continue to update these statistics as more station data become available.) While the area impacted by this storm was less than many other major storms, the heaviest snowfall landed in more densely populated areas, making it a “major “storm in the RSI categories. Over 49,000 people across 192 square miles saw 30 inches of snow or more as a result of this storm.

NCDC produces the RSI for significant snowstorms that impact the eastern two-thirds of the United States. The RSI uses the area and amount of snowfall from land-based stations combined with the population in the affected area to rank snowstorm impacts on a scale from 1 to 5, similar to the Fujita scale for tornadoes or the Saffir-Simpson scale for hurricanes.

NCDC has analyzed and assigned RSI values to over 560 storms as far back as 1900, and new storms are added as they occur. This range of values allows the RSI to put the regional impacts of snowstorms into a century-scale historical perspective. The index is useful for the media, emergency managers, the public, and others who wish to compare regional impacts between different snowstorms.

Full Story: http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/news/evaluating-february-2013-blizzard-regional-snowfall-index

Severe droughts in Amazon linked to climate change, says study

An area in the Amazon twice the size of California is experiencing what scientists call a "megadrought." The prolonged drought, which began in 2005, has caused widespread damage to the area and may possibly be a sign that the rainforest is showing the first signs of large-scale degradation due to climate change.

A research team, led by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, analyzed nearly a decade of satellite data over the Amazon. The team looked at rainfall measurements and the moisture content of the forest canopy.

The most striking data came from the summer of 2005, when 270,000 square miles of forest experienced a severe drought that caused widespread, observable damage to the canopy. The drought conditions were so severe that the rainforest was unable to fully recover before the next drought struck in 2010.

"The biggest surprise for us was that the effects appeared to persist for years after the 2005 drought," Yadvinder Malhi of Oxford University and co-author of the study said in a press release. "We had expected the forest canopy to bounce back after a year with a new flush of leaf growth, but the damage appeared to persist right up to the subsequent drought in 2010."

The two extensive droughts - called a "double whammy" by one researcher - could mean the region, known as Amazonia, will suffer long-lasting damage. It is also more evidence for the increasingly clear fact that the Amazon is receiving less and less rainfall per year.

Full Story: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-205_162-57564795/severe-droughts-in-amazon-linked-to-climate-change-says-study/