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Record Warmth in Eastern U.S.; Temps Tumble in Alaska
Posted by Climate Central: Andrew Freedman on January 31st, 2012
Climate Central: While Alaska continues to to suffer from record cold and snow, much of the rest of the country continues to experience a year without winter.
This week, it's likely that warm temperature records will be broken throughout the eastern U.S., with forecast highs in New York City approaching 60°F on Tuesday and Wednesday, and reaching the mid-60s in Washington, D.C. According to the National Weather Service (NWS), record highs may also be set today in Islip, N.Y., and Bridgeport, CT.
Satellite image...
Drought May Cause Shutdown of Texas Rice Production
Posted by Climate Central: Andrew Freedman on January 31st, 2012
Climate Central: Although recent rains have put a dent in the Texas drought, a day of reckoning looms for the state's long-grain rice growers, who pump millions into the economy in Southeast Texas each year and account for about 5 percent of America's rice production. Come March 1, if there is less than 850,000 acre-feet of water in reservoirs along the Lower Colorado River, water managers will be forced to take the unprecedented step of withholding water from agricultural users, which will mean severe cuts to Texas...
United States: Southwest Turns Anxious Eye to Shrinking Lake Mead
Posted by Climate Central: Andrew Freedman on January 29th, 2012
Climate Central: In a dramatic reversal of fortune compared to last year, an unusually dry winter is causing the level of Lake Mead, Nevada, to decline, making water managers increasingly anxious about supplying water to the thirsty Southwest.
The latest U.S. Drought Outlook shows continued dry conditions in the Southwest are likely for the rest of the winter.
During the past three years, the level of Lake Mead has followed a boom and bust cycle, dropping to a record low in 2010 during an intense drought, then...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on United States: Southwest Turns Anxious Eye to Shrinking Lake MeadNASA Releases Stunning “Blue Marble” Image of Earth
Posted by Climate Central: Andrew Freedman on January 27th, 2012
Climate Central: NASA released a new, high-resolution "Blue Marble" image of Earth this week, taken from instruments aboard the recently launched Suomi NPP satellite. The image is actually a composite of many pictures from Jan. 4, 2012 that were stitched together, and shows North America in stunning detail. One feature that is notably absent from the picture is snow cover, which is confined to parts of the Rocky Mountains and Sierra Nevada.
In many parts of the country, snowfall has been running well below average...
Weird Winter Continues with Western Storms
Posted by Climate Central: Andrew Freedman on January 20th, 2012
Climate Central: If you're on the Left Coast and like snow, it may be time to rejoice. If you're on the East Coast, though, don't hold your breath.
The winter weather pattern is finally changing, steering long-awaited storms into California, Oregon, and Washington, while still failing to excite snow lovers along the East Coast. Aside from a light-to-moderate snow event on Saturday, the Washington-to-Boston corridor is likely to see milder than average conditions heading into early February, according to recently...
Breaking: White House Poised to Reject Keystone Pipeline
Posted by Climate Central: Andrew Freedman on January 18th, 2012
Climate Central: BAccording to news reports, the Obama administration is expected to announce today that it is rejecting the permit application for the controversial Keystone XL Pipeline. The pipeline would have been built by the Canadian firm TransCanada to transport oil from Canadian tar sands in Alberta to refineries in Texas. Congress had mandated that the White House determine the fate of the pipeline by February 21, and this decision is not completely unexpected, since it did not give the Obama administration...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Breaking: White House Poised to Reject Keystone PipelineCovering the Coverage: Scientists Propose Cuts in Methane, Soot Emissions
Posted by Climate Central: Andrew Freedman on January 13th, 2012
Climate Central: A paper published yesterday in the journal Science shows the tremendous climate change, public health, and crop yield benefits that could come from reducing emissions of soot and methane, both of which contribute to global warming but don't stay in the air nearly as long as carbon dioxide (CO2), the main climate change villain. As I reported yesterday, the proposals contained in the study could slash the rate of global warming nearly in half through 2050, while saving up to 4.7 million lives annually...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Covering the Coverage: Scientists Propose Cuts in Methane, Soot EmissionsHigh Temperature Records Set in the Plains
Posted by Climate Central: Andrew Freedman on January 6th, 2012
Climate Central: Longstanding high temperature records were annihilated yesterday in eight states, most especially in North and South Dakota, which are typically among the nation's coldest places at this time of year.
It was warmer in Rapid City, S.D., with a high of 73°F yesterday, than it was in Miami, where the temperature topped out at 69°F. Mitchell, S.D., reached 68°F, an all-time record high for the month of January (recordkeeping began there in 1896).
Aberdeen, S.D., reached 63°F, which was also the...
Snow Drought? Wimpy Winter Weather Across U.S.
Posted by Climate Central: Andrew Freedman on January 5th, 2012
Climate Central: The calendar may say January, but across much of the U.S., the ground is bare, with none of the epic snowstorms that were the hallmarks of the past few winters.
While some may be cheering the lack of snow as welcome relief, the widespread lack of it spells trouble for the ski industry, which pumps billions into the wintertime economy in states from California to Maine, and requires cooperation from Mother Nature to stay in business.
Ski area operators across the country are already reporting...
Taking it to the Extreme: 2011’s Off the Charts Weather and Climate Stats
Posted by Climate Central: Andrew Freedman on September 16th, 2011
Climate Central: There are the unusual weather events that strike the U.S. during a typical year, and then there are the extreme weather and climate events of 2011. This year so far, it seems that mother nature is taking her cue from the cult classic film "This Is Spinal Tap", and is ratcheting up the severity of heat, drought, floods, and other extremes "all the way to 11."
This year is shaping up to be one of the most extreme -- if not the most extreme -- years in the United States since instrument records began...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Taking it to the Extreme: 2011’s Off the Charts Weather and Climate Stats