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Archive for December 9th, 2014
California drought: Natural patterns, not human-caused climate change, federal study finds
Posted by Mercury News: None Given on December 9th, 2014
Mercury News: Natural patterns, not human-caused climate change, produced one of California's worst droughts, researchers have concluded.
An atmospheric ridge over the North Pacific, which limited rain and snowfall over the past three years, was "due to natural variations of ocean systems, with sea surface temperatures largely responsible," said Richard Seager, lead author of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration-sponsored study, in a Monday news conference.
The conditions that led to the drought,...
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Study: Causes of California drought natural, not man-made
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on December 9th, 2014
USA Today: Natural weather patterns, not man-made global warming, are causing the historic drought parching California, says a study out Monday from federal scientists.
"It's important to note that California's drought, while extreme, is not an uncommon occurrence for the state," said Richard Seager, the report's lead author and professor with Columbia University's Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory. The report was sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The report did not appear...
Obama: Keystone XL contribute ‘disastrous’ climate change
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on December 9th, 2014
Washington Post: President Obama spoke in dismissive terms of the Keystone XL pipeline Monday during an interview on "The Colbert Report Monday, saying its modest benefits need to be weighed against its contribution to climate change, "which could be disastrous."
During an interview taped at George Washington University, the president did not explicitly say whether he would grant or deny a permit to the controversial project that would transport heavy crude from Hardisty, Alberta to the U.S. Gulf Coast. But he...
Indian anti-cyclone actions slash extreme-weather risks
Posted by SciDevNet: None Given on December 9th, 2014
SciDevNet: Developing nations should build resilience to extreme-weather events by learning from previous disasters and introducing technology such as early warning systems, says a report by UK-based scientific academy the Royal Society.
As an example, the researchers highlight Cyclone Phailin, which hit the east Indian state of Odisha in October 2013. It was the area's strongest storm since Cyclone 05B struck in 1999, killing almost 9,000 people and leaving more than 1.5 million homeless. Yet just 44 people...
California Drought Is Said to Have Natural Cause
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on December 9th, 2014
New York Times: Scientists who have analyzed California’s extreme drought have concluded that it is a result of natural climate variability over the past three years and that climate change caused by humans has played little role. The analysis, in a report prepared for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and released Monday, found that the main driver behind the drought was patterns of water temperatures in the Pacific Ocean. They increased the likelihood that ridges of high-pressure air would form...
Typhoon Hagupit weakens as Philippines clear up operation begins
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on December 9th, 2014
Reuters: Philippine emergency workers were struggling on Tuesday to reach coastal villages on an island hardest hit by a typhoon where thousands of homes have been wrecked, suggesting the Red Cross's estimated death toll of 27 may rise.
Nearly 13,000 houses were crushed and more than 22,300 damaged on the eastern island of Samar, where Typhoon Hagupit made landfall on Saturday and made slow progress across the country, officials said.
The storm, one of several typhoons to hit the tropical archipelago...