WEEKLY CLIMATE NEWS

PREVIEW WEEK: 20-24 January 2014

ITEMS OF INTEREST

Worldwide GLOBE at Night 2014 Campaign is underway -- The first of a series of GLOBE at Night citizen-science campaigns for 2014 will begin this Monday and run for 10 nights (20-29 January). GLOBE at Night is a worldwide, hands-on science and education program designed to encourage citizen-scientists worldwide to record the brightness of their night sky by matching the appearance of a constellation (Orion or Leo in the northern hemisphere, and Orion and Crux in the southern hemisphere) with seven star charts of progressively fainter stars. In addition to the 20-29 January campaign, the other four GLOBE at Night campaigns during the first five months of 2014 are on 19-28 February; 21-30 March; 20-29 April and 19-28 May. [GLOBE at Night]
End of a long polar night -- After being below the horizon for approximately 65 days, the Sun should rise at Barrow, the northernmost city in Alaska, for the first time this year on this coming Wednesday, 22 January 2014, at 1:28 PM Alaska Standard Time (AKST). However, the Sun will only remain above the horizon for only 23 minutes, as it will set again at 1:51 PM. Although the Sun set last fall at 1:39 PM AKST on 18 November 2013 , residents of Barrow had roughly three hours of some diffuse sunlight each day that is equivalent to civil twilight, provided the cloud cover was not too thick. To check the sunrise and sunset times of Barrow or any location in the United States go to the US Naval Observatory's on-line, interactive service for the entire year.
Accessing and interpreting climate data -- If you would like to obtain a variety of climate data for your home town or state that are available from the National Weather Service, please read this week's Supplemental Information...In Greater Depth. This Supplemental not only identifies some of the sites to find the data, but also provides you with a brief explanation of the terminology used to identify the climate data.

CURRENT CLIMATE STATUS

Review of national weather and climate for December 2013 and for the calendar year -- Scientists at NOAA's National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) have released reports based upon their preliminary analysis of temperature and precipitation data collected through the end of December 2013 from across the nation. Based upon the data processed through late last week, they report:

December 2013 was cold and slightly dry -- The nationwide average December temperature across the coterminous United States was 2.0 Fahrenheit degrees below the 20th-century (1901-2000) average, making this past month the 21st coldest December since a sufficiently dense national climate observing network was established in 1895. Nearly half the 48 coterminous states (22) reported statewide December temperatures that were either below or much below the long-term "normals." Most of these states were found across the West, the Plains and the Upper Midwest. The statewide December temperatures in Minnesota and North Dakota were within the 10 lowest in 119 years. On the other hand, eight Southeastern and Middle Atlantic States reported above average monthly temperatures, with Florida have the sixth warmest December on record.
The nationwide precipitation total for December across the country was approximately one-tenths of an inch below the 20th century average, placing this past month as the 51st driest November since 1895. The national precipitation total for autumn 2012 was 0.06 inches below the 20th century precipitation average. The states along the Pacific Coast were very dry, with California reporting its second driest December on record, Oregon its third driest and Washington its sixth driest. Several other states across the interior Northwest, the central Rockies and Plains and the lower Mississippi Valley also reported below average December precipitation totals. On the other hand, over 20 states across the northern Rockies, the northern Plains, the Midwest, the Midde-Atlantic and the Southeast had above to much above average December precipitation. States that had December precipitation totals in the top 10 on record were Alabama, Georgia, North Dakota, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia. [NOAA/NCDC State of the Climate]

Calendar year of 2013 was slightly warm but wet in some parts of the US -- The preliminary average temperature for the coterminous United States during the recently concluded 2013 was 52.4 degrees Fahrenheit, which was slightly (0.3 Fahrenheit degrees) above the 20th-century average. As the 37th warmest year since 1895, the calendar year of 2013 was relatively cool as compared with the previous year of 2012, which marked the warmest calendar year since relatively reliable climate records began. Many of the states across the Mississippi Valley and the Southeast experienced below average annual temperatures, while states across the West and in the Northeast had above average statewide temperatures. California tied for the 12th warmest year on record.
The nationwide average precipitation across the 48 coterminous states for 2013 was 31.17 inches, which was slightly more than two inches above the 20th century average, or equivalently, the 21st wettest year on record since 1895. While the majority of states to the east of the Rockies had above to much above annual precipitation totals, the five Western States had below to much below annual precipitation. North Dakota and Michigan had their wettest years on record, while California experienced its driest calendar year in 119 years. [NOAA/NCDC State of the Climate] Additional preliminary information concerning significant weather and climate events during 2013 are also available. [NOAA/NCDC 2013 US Annual Report]
NOTE: A description is provided of the climatological rankings employed by NCDC for their monthly, seasonal and annual maps. [NOAA/NCDC]

Extreme weather/climate events in US during 2013 -- Last week NOAA's National Climatic Data Center reported that seven weather and climate disaster events occurred during 2013 that each produced at least $1 billion in losses. These events included five severe thunderstorm/tornado outbreaks, one major flood event and the major drought and heat wave across the Western United States. Furthermore, these seven events appear to have caused 109 deaths. Note that the seven "billion-dollar" events in 2013 were less than the 11 weather and climate extreme events that occurred during 2012 and claimed 349 lives. [NOAA NCDC News]
Annual national drought report for 2013 -- The National Climate Data Center has posted its 2013 annual drought report online. This report describes how the areas experiencing drought and wet conditions changed throughout the last calendar year. Using the Palmer Drought Severity Index (a commonly used indicator of drought conditions), approximately 61 percent of the area of the coterminous United States experienced moderate to exceptional drought conditions at the start of January 2013. By the end of December 2013, the size of the moderate to extreme drought was approximately 18 percent of the coterminous United States, while the area with severely to extremely wet conditions had shrunk to 18 percent of the area. Additional drought information is also available on the December 2013 online drought report.

CURRENT CLIMATE MONITORING

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]

CLIMATE FORCING

Cracks in Arctic sea ice leads to mercury contamination concerns -- Researchers participating in the Bromine, Ozone, and Mercury Experiment (BROMEX) in 2012 have measured increased concentrations of mercury near ground level after cracks formed in the Arctic sea ice off Barrow, AK. The scientists claim that the large leads or open seawater channels in the sea ice causes vigorous mixing of the air above these leads, which results in exposure of the relatively warm seawater to cold arctic air and the pumping of atmospheric mercury down to the surface. Consequently, more of the toxic mercury pollutant would enter the food chain and affect the health of fish, land animals and humans. The mercury, which is present in gaseous form, originated from subpolar latitudes. A warming Arctic has increased the leads in the sea ice and caused an increase in mercury pollution. [NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory]

CLIMATE FORECASTS

Long-range weather forecasts for Super Sunday challenging -- With the approach of "Super Sunday" in two weeks (Sunday, 2 February 2014), the first long-range weather forecasts for this day have been made. This day marks the National Football League's Super Bowl XLVII that will be held in East Rutherford, NJ. The long-range forecasts and outlooks have been made by meteorologists and climatologists more than two weeks ahead of game time. Comparisons were between local weather, seasonal outlooks and climatological guidance. The weather for this Super Bowl will be watched very carefully, as this National Football League's championship game will be the first played outdoors in a northern city where game time temperatures could be well below the previous 50-degree temperature threshold. Snow could also fall. [NCAR/UCAR AtmosNews] [Editor's note: The Office of the New Jersey State Climatologist has a useful "one-stop shop" for critical weather and climate information for "The Big Game." EJH]
Seasonal weather outlook released -- Late last week, forecasters at the NOAA Climate Prediction Center released their new national Seasonal Outlook for the next three months of 2014 (February-April) that includes the last month of meteorological winter (December-February) and the first two months of meteorological spring (March-May). Specific details of their outlooks include:
- Temperature and precipitation outlooks -- According to their temperature outlook, nearly the southern half of the nation (consisting of the 48 coterminous states) extending from the Pacific coast to the Atlantic Seaboard should experience a high chance of above average temperatures for these three upcoming months. The greatest probability of such an occurrence is to be found across the Southwest, centered over Arizona. Conversely, sections of the northern Plains and Upper Midwest, primarily across North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota, were considered to have a better than average chance of below average late winter-early spring temperatures. The outlook indicates that the remainder of the nation would have nearly equal chances of warmer or cooler than normal conditions.
  Their precipitation outlook calls for sections of the Southwest and the Southeast to have a better than even chance of below average precipitation for the upcoming three months of 2014. The regions that would have the largest chances of dry conditions are in the Southwest, extending across southern California, Arizona, New Mexico and west Texas, as well as across the Southeast, primarily over a large section of Florida and adjacent states. A small area of the nation that includes the lower Ohio and mid-Mississippi Valleys was considered to be under a better than even chance of above average precipitation. Elsewhere, a large area of the coterminous states should have essentially equal chances of below and above average precipitation for the end of winter and the first two months of meteorological spring.
  A summary of the prognostic discussion of the 3-month outlook for non-technical users is available from CPC. These forecasts were based in part that assuming that the current ENSO-neutral conditions (ENSO = El Niño/Southern Oscillation) should continue through the Northern Hemisphere's meteorological summer (June-August), where neither El Niño nor La Niña conditions should prevail. A description is also provided as how to read these 3-class, 3-month Outlook maps.
- Seasonal Drought Outlook -- The forecasters at NOAA's Climate Prediction Center also released their US Seasonal Drought Outlook last week that would run from mid-January through April 2014. Their outlook would call for persistence or the development of extensive drought conditions across the western third of the nation, along with sections of the Plains. Drought should also continue across sections of the Upper Midwest, while a few sections of the Midwest that are currently experiencing drought conditions could see sufficient improvement that they would possibly be removed from drought status. Note: a Seasonal Drought Outlook Discussion is included describing the forecasters' confidence.

PALEOCLIMATE RECONSTRUCTION

Saving archaeological evidence in Florida from sea level rise -- A researcher from Florida State University and a National Park Service archaeologist are undertaking a project designed to help minimize the impact that rising sea levels would have upon Florida's cultural sites. The team is concerned that prehistoric shell mounds found on some of the Sunshine State's beaches, including those in the Canaveral National Seashore and Everglades National Park, that represent thousands of years of archaeological evidence could be obliterated by rising sea level. To date, they have been collecting and compiling atmospheric and oceanographic data from modern, colonial and pre-colonial times that can be used to assess the risks to irreplaceable cultural resource sites. [Florida State University 24/7]

CLIMATE AND SOCIETY

Earthweek -- Diary of the Planet [earthweek.com] Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.

REPORT FROM THE FIELD -- Dr. Steve LaDochy, a DataStreme LIT Leader and meteorology professor from Cal State University, Los Angeles, reported a large wildfire that developed in the San Gabriel Mountains to the east of downtown Los Angeles last week. The smoke from the fire turned the sunrise an eerie red. Strong Santa Ana winds that descended into the Los Angeles basin resulted in record high temperatures at Fullerton (90 degrees) and Downtown Los Angeles (85 degrees). Steve noted: "While great for tourism and recreation, our drought (3 years) is bad. Sierras are less than 20% normal, while our rainfall this water year is below 20%. 2013 calendar year was the driest-EVER in LA recorded history going back to 1887. And that was in several places around the state besides LA. My tomato plants don't know its winter."

Concept of the Week: Touring the DataStreme Earth's Climate System Website

Welcome to DataStreme Earth's Climate System (ECS)! The Earth's Climate System website is an integral component of the DataStreme ECS (Earth's Climate System) course. The website is intended to deliver a wealth of climate information that is both pertinent to the course as well as being a reference site for you as you study Earth's climate system. The webpage is arranged in several sections. 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 recent events related to climate), Concept of the Week (an in-depth analysis of some topic related to climate in the Earth system), and Historical Events (a list of past events important in the understanding of climatology). When appropriate, Supplemental Information...In Greater Depth will be provided on some topic related to the principal theme of the week.

You will use the DS Climate Studies website to access and download the "Current Climate Studies" that complement your Climate Studies Investigations Manual. These materials should also be available by noon (Eastern Time) on Monday. Click the appropriate links to download and print these electronic components of the investigations as well as your Chapter, Investigations and Current Climate Studies Response forms.

Beyond these course Learning Files, sections include Climate Information, Climate Variability, Climate Change, Societal Interactions and Climate Policy, and Extras. As the titles suggest, there are multiple uses for climate data and their interpretation. Here we explore some examples of the information provided in the various sections of the webpage.

The Climate Information section includes access to weather data, the raw material of climate synthesis, from the United States and the world under the heading "Observations and Data." Under this heading, click on "U.S. and World Weather Data." This National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) page first directs you to "United States Weather" and provides channels to current weather data as well as radar graphics, weather maps, and aviation and marine weather. It then leads you to International Weather Conditions.

The second major subdivision of the course website encompasses Climate Variability. Climatic variability refers to the fluctuations and oscillations that may occur within the climate system at temporal and spatial scales beyond that of individual weather events. Select the link, "NOAA El Niño Page". The page that appears provides access to a wealth of background and information on El Niño and La Niña, including the animation showing sea surface temperatures (SST) in the tropical Pacific during recent months. To the left of the animation, click on "What's happening today?" The page of current tropical Pacific conditions that appears shows a small map to the right. Click on that map and again anywhere on the subsequent set of map panels to get an enlarged view of the latest conditions of SST and anomalies.

The third major section of the course website is termed Climate Change. Here we provide links to information and analyses that primarily focus on anthropogenic (human-made) change processes and results in the climate system. That prominently includes the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's ("IPCC") latest classic report on atmospheric greenhouse gas emissions and their effects. Also linked are modeling results ("Models") based on those studies.

The last major section of the website is titled Societal Interactions and Climate Policy. This block contains information on the impacts of projected change on human societies around the world, beyond that listed in the IPCC report, and the international actions and debates regarding those issues. Select and click on "US Global Change Impacts Report" to the left in this section. This webpage introduces you to the latest comprehensive and authoritative report on climate change and its impacts in the United States, now and in the future. You will be directed to this report several times in this course.

Completing the course website is the Extras section of additional handy information for the course and individual study such as dictionaries of terms, maps and materials. Choose and examine one of the Climate Literacy links, either a PDF or the Word version. This document has recently been developed and released by NOAA to provide an overview of general concepts and information the general public and especially students should be aware of regarding the climate and the climate debate.

Concept of the Week: Questions

The first Climate Information link, "NOAA Climate Services", shows the Global Climate Dashboard where several graphs display Earth's temperature, atmospheric carbon dioxide level, spring snow cover, etc. with a time slider than can be set to display from [(1800)(1880)(1940)] to the latest data in 2010.
Under the Societal Interactions and Climate Policy section, click the "U.S. Global Change Research Program" link. On their page, click the Home tab of the Menu bar along the top. Midway down the resulting page are two selector bars that show the climate impacts in the report are categorized by [(only regional)(only sectoral)(both regional and sectoral)] climate information.

Historical Events:

20 January 1937...The record low temperature for the state of California was set at Boca when the thermometer dropped to 45 degrees below zero. (Intellicast)
20 January 1954...The temperature at Rogers Pass, MT plunged to 69.7 degrees below zero to establish a new low temperature record for the continental U.S. (David Ludlum)
20 January 1977...The barometric pressure at St. Anthony, Newfoundland dropped to 940.2 millibars (27.76 inches of mercury), the lowest sea level pressure ever recorded in Canada. (The Weather Doctor)
21 January 1985...An all-time record low temperature of 7 degrees was set on this day at Jacksonville, FL. The coldest day ever recorded at Macon, GA was recorded on this day when the mercury dropped to 6 degrees below zero. Records began at Macon in 1899. (Intellicast) The all-time record low temperature for North Carolina was set at Mt. Mitchell with a 34 degree below zero reading, while a 19 degree below zero reading at Caesars Head in South Carolina set that state's record low temperature. (National Climatic Data Center)
22 January 1930...The record low temperature for the state of Illinois was set at Mount Carroll as the mercury dipped to 35 degrees below zero. This state record has since been broken in 1999. (Intellicast)
22 January 1961...The all-time record low temperature for Connecticut was tied when the temperature fell to 32 degrees below zero at Coventry. (National Climate Data Center)
22 January 1943...Chinook winds during the early morning hours caused the temperature at Spearfish, SD to rise 49 Fahrenheit degrees from 4 degrees below zero to 45 degrees above zero in just two minutes (between 7:30 and 7:32 AM), the most dramatic temperature rise in world weather records. An hour and a half later the mercury plunged from 54 degrees above zero to 4 degrees below zero in twenty-seven minutes. Plate glass windows cracked as a result of the quick thermal expansion and contraction. (David Ludlum)
22-23 January 1943...Hoegees Camp, at an elevation of 2760 feet in the San Gabriel Mountains of southern California, received 26.12 inches of precipitation in a 24-hour span, setting the Golden State's 24-hour precipitation record. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
22 January 1985...Mountain Lake Biological Station in Virginia reported a temperature of 30 degrees below zero, which established the all-time record low temperature for the state. (National Climate Data Center)
24 January 1857...The coldest weather in pre-U.S. Weather Bureau history occurred with temperatures of 50 degrees below zero reported in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The temperature was 30 degrees below zero in Boston, MA and 11 degrees below zero on Nantucket Island. (Intellicast)
24 January 1916...The temperature at Browning, MT plunged 100 Fahrenheit degrees in just 24 hours, from 44 degrees above zero to 56 degrees below zero. It was a record 24-hour temperature drop for the U.S. (Weather Channel) (National Severe Storms Forecast Center)
24 January 1922...The all-time record low temperature for the state of Wisconsin was set at Danbury when the temperature dipped to 54 degrees below zero. (Intellicast) (This record has been broken by one degree in February, 1996)
24 January 1956...Thirty-eight inches of rain deluged the Kilauea Sugar Plantation of Hawaii in 24 hours, including twelve inches in just one hour. The 38.00 inches remains the Aloha State's 24-hour maximum precipitation record. (David Ludlum)
25 January 1965...Alta, UT was in the midst of a storm that left the town buried under 105 inches of snow establishing a record for the state. (David Ludlum)
26 January 1884...The coldest day on Canada's Prince Edward Island occurred when the temperature at Kilmahumaig, PEI fell to 35 degrees below zero. (The Weather Doctor)

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