WEEKLY CLIMATE NEWS

DataStreme ECS WEEK ONE: 7-11 September 2009

ITEMS OF INTEREST --

Floods in the Sahel -- Images obtained from the MODIS sensor on NASA's Terra satellite shows some of the effects of the flooding that occurred across the western sections of the Sahel in western Africa because of recent torrential rain. [NASA Earth Observatory]
A catalog of satellite orbits around Earth -- The NASA Earth Observatory has prepared a well illustrated overview of the three classes of orbits that satellites are place in to observe environmental conditions in the Earth-atmosphere planetary system. [NASA Earth Observatory]

CURRENT CLIMATE MONITORING

Monitoring the wildfires in southwestern California from space -- A satellite image obtained from the MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) instrument on NASA's Aqua satellite shows smoke and clouds found across the Los Angeles (CA) metropolitan area last week due to the large and deadly Station Fire that was burning in the mountainous Angeles National Forest to the north of the city. [NASA Earth Observatory] An animation produced by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory using the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument onboard NASA's Aqua satellite shows the spread of atmospheric carbon monoxide across North America and the North Pacific from the Station Fire. [NASA JPL]
Satellites and submarines monitor sea ice thickness -- Researchers from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the University of Washington have been assembling observations of the ice thickness of ice covering the Arctic Ocean from submarine and recent satellite observations to produce a record that extends back nearly 50 years. They note that sea ice thickness, which influences the Arctic basin's climate and ecosystems, had declined by over 50 percent from a peak back in 1980. [NASA Earth Science News Team]
Summer's sea level anomaly along the US Atlantic Coast explained -- A new technical report entitled "Elevated East Coast Sea Level Anomaly: June-July 2009" produced by NOAA scientists explains that the observed higher than normal sea levels along the nation's Atlantic coast during this past summer has been caused by steady and persistent winds from the northeast along the weakening of the Florida Current Transport, an ocean current that feeds into the Gulf Stream. [NOAA News]
An All-Hazards Monitor -- This Web portal provides the user information from NOAA on current environmental events that may pose as hazards such as tropical weather, fire weather, marine weather, severe weather, drought and floods. [NOAAWatch]
Global and US Hazards/Climate Extremes -- A review and analysis of the global impacts of various weather-related events, including drought, floods and storms during the current month. [NCDC]

CLIMATE FORCING

Explaining the increase in Antarctic sea ice -- Scientists from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Goddard and the University of Washington have explained the observed increases in sea ice on the Southern Ocean around Antarctica with three theories — ozone depletion, changing ocean dynamics, and the flooding of sea ice. [NASA Earth Science News Team]
Early warning signals can indicate critical change thresholds ahead -- A group of scientists from the Wageningen University in The Netherlands, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Scripps Institution of Oceanography warn that certain signals can become apparent that would provide warnings of impeding abrupt changes in the planetary climate and ocean circulation as many of these systems approach a critical state of transition or tipping point, when a sudden shift to new conditions would occur. [EurekAlert!]
Erosion caused by humans comparable to large natural agents -- Researchers at the University of British Columbia and the University of Washington claim that many areas of the world with high rates of erosion are being caused by changes in climate and human activity, with large-scale farming projects capable of eroding the Earth's surface at rates comparable to those of the world's largest rivers and glaciers. [EurekAlert!]
Oceanic methane gas likely exits through seafloor vents--Engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology claim that methane trapped under the oceans may be escaping into the oceans and then the atmosphere through vents in the sea floor at rates faster than previously thought. [MIT Civil & Environmental Engineering Dept.]

CLIMATE AND THE BIOSPHERE

Desertification in Spain reflected by vegetation -- Scientists from Spain's Rey Juan Carlos University report that perennial vegetation cover in esparto or "needle grass" fields appear to be an efficient early warning system of the appearance of desertification within the Iberian Peninsula. [EurekAlert!]

PALEOCLIMATE RECONSTRUCTION

Arctic warms to highest levels in more than two millennia -- Researchers at Northern Arizona University and the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) have produced a long term reconstruction of the temperatures across the Arctic basin and have determined that the long-term cooling trend during the last 2000 years has ended and rapid warming has begun during recent decades, with Arctic temperatures reaching the highest levels in these recent two millennia. [UCAR/NCAR] Some of the data used for this study was obtained from sediment taken from Arctic lakes by an international team of scientists, including those from Northern Arizona University. [EurekAlert!]

CLIMATE AND SOCIETY

Website for human dimensions of climate change -- An interagency effort within the US federal government that included NOAA, the Bureau of Land Management and the US Forest Service, has resulted in a website called HD.gov (for HumanDimensions.gov) that provides users, such as natural resource managers, with information on the human dimensions on a variety of topics of interest such as climate change. [HD.gov]
Global and US Hazards/Climate Extremes -- A review and analysis of the global impacts of various weather-related events, including drought, floods and storms during the current month. [NCDC]
Earthweek -- Diary of the Planet [earthweek.com] Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Concept of the Week: An Introduction to Course Structure

NOTE: This Concept for the Week is a repeat of that which appeared in last week's Weekly Climate News.

Welcome to DataStreme ECS (Earth's Climate System)! You are embarking on a unique teacher-enhancement experience that focuses on climate and climate change from an Earth system perspective. Throughout this learning experience, you will be accessing the DataStreme ECS website frequently to acquire learning files and to obtain and interpret a variety of environmental information, including the latest observational data.

On Monday of each week of the course, we will post the current Weekly Climate News that includes Climate in the News (a summary listing of current events related to climate), Concept of the Week (an in-depth analysis of some topic related to climate), and Historical Events (a listing of past events). When appropriate, a feature called Supplemental Information-In Greater Depth will be provided on some topic related to the principal theme of the week.

A weekly Current Climate Studies file will be posted by Tuesday morning every week as the course progresses. This is to be completed by course participants each week in combination with Investigations A and B delivered via the Study Guide: Investigations Manual.

Course Conceptual Structure:

In this first Concept of the Week, our topic focuses on the themes underlying the AMS Education Program's approach to climate science. DataStreme ECS (Earth's Climate System) is organized conceptually along two strands (a strand being a pattern forming a unity within a larger structural whole) that are carried forward concurrently as the course of study proceeds. The primary strand is a systematic study of climate, climate variability, and climate change encompassing the fundamentals of modern climate science. These include the spatial variations in climate as a response to many interacting forcing agents or mechanisms both internal and external to the Earth system. The DataStreme ECS course textbook, printed study guide, and course website deliver primary-strand learning experiences.

The second strand focuses on climate change and impacts primarily based on findings by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP), and the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. DataStreme ECS shares a common goal with these entities of relying on the latest authoritative scientific information to inform decision making as society strives to develop effective policies in response to vulnerabilities arising from climate variability and climate change.

The main vehicle DataStreme ECS uses for treating the second strand is the series of Current Climate Studies which appear weekly on the course website as the course progresses. Delivery of the series in real time allows incorporation of the latest information about climate change and impacts.

Concept of the Week: Questions

(Each week you will be asked to respond to two questions relating to that week's Concept of the Week topic. Place your responses on the Chapter Progress Response Form provided in the Study Guide.)

The [(primary)(second)] conceptual strand of this course focuses on the systematic study of climate, climate variability, and climate change.
The [(primary)(second)] conceptual strand of this course focuses on climate change and impacts primarily based on findings by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP), and the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.

Historical Events:

6-7 September 1909...Topeka, KS was drenched with 8.08 inches of rain in 24 hours to establish a record for that location. (The Weather Channel)
8 September 1900...The greatest weather disaster in U.S. records occurred when a hurricane struck Galveston, TX. Waves fifteen feet high washed over the island demolishing or carrying away buildings, and drowning more than 6000 persons. The hurricane destroyed more than 3600 houses, and total damage was more than $30 million. Winds to 120 mph, and a twenty-foot storm surge accompanied the hurricane. Following the storm, the surf was three hundred feet inland from the former water line. The hurricane claimed another 1200 lives outside of the Galveston area. (8^th-9^th) (David Ludlum) (The Weather Channel)
8 September 1987...The afternoon high of 97 degrees at Miami, FL was a record for the month of September. (The National Weather Summary)
9 September 1921...A dying tropical depression unloaded 38.20 inches of rain upon the town of Thrall in southeastern Texas killing 224 persons. The 36.40 inches that fell in 18 hours represents a record for the United States. (David Ludlum) (The Weather Channel)
9 September 1971...Hurricane Ginger formed, and remained a hurricane until the 5th of October. The 27-day life span was the longest of record for any hurricane in the North Atlantic Ocean. (The Weather Channel)
9 September 1994...Hurricane John become an extratropical storm in the central north Pacific Ocean, ending a 29-day life as a hurricane, the longest lived hurricane on record. (The Weather Doctor)
9 September 2000...The Antarctic ozone hole extended to more than 11.4 million square miles over Antarctica, the single-day largest area of depletion ever measured. (The Weather Doctor)
10 September 1900...Elk Point, SD received 8.00 inches of rain that set a 24-hour maximum precipitation record for the state. (NCDC)
10-11 September 1963...A 24-hour rainfall record for the Northern Hemisphere was set at Paishih, Taiwan as 49.13 inches of rain fell as the result of Typhoon Gloria. (Accord Weather Guide Calendar)
11-12 September 1949...Early snowstorm dumped 7.5 inches on Helena, MT on the 11th, the earliest measurable snow for the city to date, then an additional 22 inches followed the next day. (The Weather Doctor)
11-12 September 1976...Japan's 24-hour rainfall record was set as 44.80 inches of rain fell at Hiso in Tokuhima Prefecture as a result of Typhoon Fran, which also was responsible for 167 deaths in Japan. (Accord Weather Guide Calendar)
11 September 1990...The high temperature at Phoenix, AZ reached 112, the highest ever for the date and for so late in the season. (Intellicast)
12 September 1987...Peak sustained winds in Hurricane Max reached 155 mph, the highest observed for an Eastern Pacific hurricane. (The Weather Doctor)
13 September 1922...The temperature at El Azizia in Libya soared to 136 degrees to establish a world record at a surface weather station. To make matters worse, a severe ghibi (dust storm) was in progress. (The Weather Channel) (NCDC)
13 September 1988...Hurricane Gilbert smashed into the Cayman Islands, and as it headed for the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico strengthened into a monster hurricane, packing winds of 175 mph. The barometric pressure at the center of Gilbert reached 26.13 inches (888 mb), an all-time record for any hurricane in the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, or the Atlantic Ocean. Gilbert covered much of the Gulf of Mexico, producing rain as far away as the Florida Keys. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)

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