22-26 February 2010

ITEMS OF INTEREST

• New hurricane wind scale will be used -- Officials with NOAA's National Weather Service recently announced that beginning this upcoming hurricane season, the agency will use a new hurricane scale called the "Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale," which differs slightly from the familiar Saffir-Simpson Scale used for more than 30 years. The new scale will keep the same wind speed ranges as the original scale for each of the five hurricane categories, but will no longer tie specific storm surge and flooding effects to each category. [NOAA News]
• More snow can occur with a warming planet --
The recent record snowstorms that affected the Northeast has made the public unsure of global warming, but several climate scientists, including the noted Kevin Trenberth at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, do not see a contradiction, as warmer oceans could result in more water vapor that would be available for snow. [NPR]
• Recent satellite images of note --
Satellite images obtained from the MODIS sensors onboard NASA's Aqua and Terra satellites and the Advanced Land Imager (ALI) aboard NASA’s Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite during the last two weeks show some interesting earth processes from the space perspective. These images include:
• Volcanoes seen from space:
  
The Soufriere Hills Volcano on the Caribbean island of Montserrat. [NASA Earth Observatory]
Two volcanoes on Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula. [NASA Earth Observatory]
Southern Japan [NASA Earth Observatory]
• Fire watch from space:
In Cambodia [NASA Earth Observatory] and in Western Australia [NASA Earth Observatory]

CURRENT CLIMATE STATUS

• National drought picture improves considerably -- Scientists with NOAA and several other federal agencies such as the US Department of Agriculture recently noted that more than 90 percent of the nation could be considered drought-free, the best soil moisture conditions since 1999. The turn-around from significant drought conditions, when approximately half of the nation was in a drought, occurred within two years. [USA Today] In a related development, the Texas State Climatologist, Dr. John Nielsen-Gammon, recently declared the drought across the Lone Star State to be officially ended. [Texas A&M News]

CURRENT CLIMATE MONITORING

• Recession of permafrost line documented -- Researchers from Quebec's Université Laval recently reported that their field studies show the southern limit of permafrost (permanently frozen ground) in central Canada's James Bay region is now 130 kilometers farther north than it was 50 years ago. They also predict that if the present trend continues, the permafrost could disappear from the region in the near future. [EurekAlert!]
• 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

• A warmer planet could produce more stagnant weather patterns -- Researchers at the University of Missouri along with colleagues from the Russian Academy of Sciences are assessing whether increased global temperatures could cause the development of longer-lasting stagnant weather patterns, which are often called "atmospheric blocking" patterns. Such blocking patterns, which would last for at least one week, could result in heat waves or episodes of winter storms. [EurekAlert!]
• Lack of "ice arches" contributed to recent Arctic ice loss --
Using high-resolution radar images collected from the Canadian RADARSAT and European Envisat satellites, researchers from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory conclude that the record loss of Arctic sea ice during 2007 could be attributed in part to the lack of "ice arches", or curved ice structures that form naturally across openings between two land points. [NASA JPL]
• Warmer oceans appear to speed Greenland glacier melt --
Researchers from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the University of California-Irvine and the University of British Columbia who measured the submarine melting rates of four west Greenland glaciers from their network of oceanographic instruments in the glacier fjords claim the underwater edges of these west Greenland glaciers are melting nearly one hundred times faster than the their surfaces. They attribute this increased glacial melt to higher ocean temperatures. [NASA JPL]
• Subtropical waters flush through Greenland fjord--
Oceanographers from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the University of Maine and colleagues from Canada and Greenland have found that recent changes in the ocean circulation in the North Atlantic have permitted subtropical waters to be flushed into several of Greenland's fjords. This intrusion of war subtropical water appears to contribute to glacial melting, with the melt waters adding more fresh water into the ocean, which could disrupt the global system of currents known as the Ocean Conveyor. [Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution]
• Urban "green spaces" could lead to increased temperatures --
Researchers at the University of California-Irvine have found that while the urban "green spaces" across southern California remove atmospheric carbon dioxide through photosynthesis, the maintenance of the turf-grass lawns ultimately contributes more total greenhouse gas emissions than if they did not exist. The researchers included the contributions to the emissions from fertilizer production and lawn management. [University of California-Irvine]

CLIMATE IMPACTS ON THE BIOSPHERE

• Decline in California's coast fog could threaten redwoods -- Scientists at the University of California-Berkeley have found that the average number of hours of summer fog along the northern California coast has decreased by nearly half during the last 100 years, at the same time as the temperature difference between coast and the interior has declined. They warn that this decline in the fog and the cool coastal conditions could threaten the entire redwood ecosystem along the coast. [EurekAlert!]

CLIMATE FORECASTS

• New Seasonal Climate Outlooks released -- Forecasters at NOAA's Climate Prediction Center recently released their Seasonal Climate Outlooks for the three-months running from March through May, which indicates a high chance of above average temperatures across the Northwest and the northern Great Lakes, while a good chance for below average temperatures across the southern Plains, the Mid-South and the Southeast. Elsewhere, near equal chances of warmer or cooler than normal conditions were foreseen. The forecasters also indicated that the Pacific Northwest and the northern Lakes should have a better than even chance for drier than average conditions in the next three months, while Florida plus the Southwest, centered upon west Texas, could experience a good chance of having wetter conditions in March, April and May. [NOAA Climate Prediction Center] Outlooks for March are also available.

• Seasonal Drought Outlook released --
The forecasters at NOAA's Climate Prediction Center also released their Seasonal Drought Outlook that would run from March through May 2010 in which improvement in the drought conditions were anticipated across the Southwest. However, drought should persist across sections of the Upper Midwest and the interior Northwest, where drought conditions could expand into regions not currently considered to be in a drought.
• A warmer climate could increase Midwestern water woes --
An agricultural researcher at Purdue University claims that simulation models run to study the future climate across the Upper Midwest using the projections made by IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) would indicate that increased winter and spring precipitation by 2070 would lead to spring flooding, yet drier summer and fall seasons would occur due to increased global temperatures. [Purdue University]

PALEOCLIMATE RECONSTRUCTION

• Fossil reefs help record past sea level changes -- An international team of researchers associated with the European Consortium for Ocean Research Drilling recently concluded an ocean research cruise in which they collected samples of fossilized coral from the Great Barrier Reef that will help in the reconstruction of the changes in sea level that have occurred over the last 20,000 years. Analysis of the coral seasonal growth rings could also help develop a chronology of past ocean temperatures and salinity. [BBC News]

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

Concept of the Week: Climate and Architecture

Humans have been constructing houses and other buildings for thousands of years not only to protect themselves from the weather and other environmental factors, but also to create a comfortable indoor environment that would exhibit energy efficiency, especially in harsh climates. For centuries, natural or primitive housing reflected an adaptation to the climate of the locale and the availability of local building materials.

In order to maintain a tolerable level of comfort within a building, attention must be paid to thermal effects, ventilation, illumination and atmospheric humidity.

The indoor thermal state ultimately depends upon the building's energy budget involving incoming and outgoing radiation, latent and sensible heat loss and by interior heat sources or sinks. The indoor thermal level is mainly associated with the external energy load on the building. The external energy load on the building depends upon the latitude of the building, season of the year and time of day.

In tropical latitudes and during midday hours in summer, the sun's path across the local sky increases the solar radiation incident upon the roof and walls of the building. In polar latitudes, or during the winter or the amount of available sunlight is significantly lower, with the loss of infrared radiation causing a net cooling from the building. Changes in the color of the roof and the outer walls can affect the amount of incoming sunlight absorbed. Building orientation and the effective use of overhangs can also affect the amount of sunlight absorbed. Furthermore, the amount of insulation, often related to the thickness of the walls, reduces the conduction of heat into or out of the building. Thick adobe walls have been used effectively in the Southwest to moderate indoor temperature. These walls reduce the heat flow into the building during the daytime and in summer and out from the building at night or during winter.

The size and placement of windows also affects the energy balance. Large windows on the side of the building facing the sun's path tend to permit large amounts of sunlight to penetrate into the building. However, large windows on the side facing away from the sun can cause for heat loss due to conduction, as many types of window panes are not energy efficient.

Effective landscaping can reduce energy demands upon a dwelling: Deciduous trees planted on the south and west sides of the home provide cooling shade during the summer, keeping sunlight from entering the windows. These trees will lose their foliage in fall and allow the sun to shine through in winter, and warm south facing rooms. Evergreen trees or dense shrubbery on the north side can serve as a windbreak, which reduce the cold northerly winds from striking the house in winter.

Energy losses from buildings at this time of year in northern latitudes can be seen readily by how quickly snow melts from roofs and by how big the icicles form. Heat losses from buildings occur with larger negative energy budgets, which are reflected also in higher heating bills during the winter season. However, the heating bills also depend upon the severity of the winter season that can be ascertained from the number of accumulated heating degree-day units. Check this week's Supplemental Information...In Greater Depth for how you can monitor the number of heating degree-day units in your state for the heating season to date.

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.)

1. The thicker the outdoor walls, the [(greater),(less)] the heat flow into a building.
2. Planting [(evergreen),(deciduous)] vegetation on the south side of a home in New England will help reduce winter heating and summer cooling bills.

Historical Events:

• 22 February 1936...Although heat and dust prevailed in the spring and summer, early 1936 brought record cold to parts of the U.S. Sioux Center, IA reported 42 inches of snow on the ground, a state record. (20^th-22^nd) (The Weather Channel)
• 22 February 1996...Record heat continued over the south-central states. All-time February high temperatures were set at San Angelo, TX (97 degrees), Wichita Falls, TX (93 degrees), Oklahoma City, OK (92 degrees), and Wichita, KS (87 degrees). (Intellicast)
• 23 February 1998...Otis, OR recorded its 79 straight day of rain, the longest in the contiguous US. The streak began on 7 December 1997 (The Weather Doctor)
• 24 February 1905...The temperature at Valley Head, AL fell to 18 degrees below zero, which was the lowest temperature ever recorded in Alabama until January 1966. (Intellicast)
• 24-26 February 1910...Parts of Washington State were in the midst of a storm that produced 129 inches of snow at Laconia between the 24^th and the 26^th, a single storm record for the state. A series of storms, which began on the 23^rd, led to a deadly avalanche on the first of March. By late on the 28^th, the snow had changed to rain, setting the stage for disaster. (The Weather Channel)
• 24 February 1994...The Crystal Mountain ski resort in Washington State recorded 65 inches of snow in a 24 hour period, the state record for 24 hour snowfall. (Intellicast)
• 25 February 1914...South Carolina had its biggest snowstorm in modern history, as 18 inches fell at Society Hill. (Intellicast)
• 25 February 1922...The temperature at Los Angeles, CA soared to 92 degrees to establish a record for the month of February. (David Ludlum)
• 26 February 1969...Both Portsmouth, NH and Portland, ME set new single storm snowfall records with 33.8 inches and 26.9 inches, respectively. (Intellicast)
• 27 February 1717...What was perhaps the greatest snow in New England history commenced on this date. During a ten-day period, a series of four snowstorms dumped three feet of snow upon Boston, and the city was snowbound for two weeks. Up to six feet of snow was reported farther to the north, and drifts covered many one-story homes. (David Ludlum)
• 27 February 1988...Rapid City, SD established a February record with an afternoon high of 75 degrees. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 28 February 1900...A massive storm spread record snows from Kansas to New York State. The 18.7 inches of snow measured at Topeka, KS in 24 hours was the city's greatest 24-hour snowfall on record. (David Ludlum) (Intellicast)
• 28-29 February 1964...A world 12-hour rainfall record was set at Belouve, La Reunion Island in the western Indian Ocean when 52.76 inches of rain fell. World records for 9 hours and 18.5 hours were also set with 42.79 and 66.49 inches, respectively. (Accord's Weather Calendar) (The Weather Doctor)
• 28 February 1972...Unseasonably mild weather prevailed throughout the central US. Temperatures soared to 83 degrees in Kansas City, MO, setting an all-time high record for the month of February. (Intellicast)
• 28 February 1988...Unseasonably mild weather prevailed in the northwestern U.S. The afternoon high of 71 degrees at Portland, OR was a February record. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 29 February 1964...Thompson Pass, AK finished the month with 346.1 inches of snow, a record monthly total for the state of Alaska. (The Weather Channel)

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Prepared by Edward J. Hopkins, Ph.D., email hopkins@meteor.wisc.edu
© Copyright, 2010, The American Meteorological Society.