Crazy Weather

[SageBrush]

Two days ago it was peaking at 95F during the day and it was difficult to keep the house below 80F without A/C
Today it is close to freezing outside and the house is dropping below 60F

Not as impressive as Denver that went from 95F to snow but quite enough for me. The LEAF is happy to get out of the summer

 

[LeftieBiker]

Generally, we get one or two tornadoes a year, some years none at all. This Summer, we had two tornadoes touch down more or less at the same time, less then two miles apart. One of them was less than a mile from us at one point. Our house was constructed for a climate that no longer exists here, and the now-frequent torrential downpours overwhelm the roofs and the gutters.

 

[salyavin]

Up here in Denver we are happy about the snow to help with the fires and dirty air. Our air quality is good for now.
I suspect farmers did not have fun.

 

[goldbrick]

The air quality is much improved for sure but we lost quite a few tree limbs here in Boulder. This happens every 5 - 10 years or so but usually in May and I've certainly seen more damaging storms than this last one.

 

[alozzy]

If it's easy, could this topic be moved to Environmental Issues, or Off Topic?

 

[LeftieBiker]

Done. One of the few really easy tasks here.

 

[alozzy]

I'm sure some will see my request as petty but it's nice, as a frequent visitor, to quickly view just those topics that I find of interest. So, your efforts are appreciated Leftie - thanks!

 

[Oilpan4]

It is wild, I lit the coal furnace just to burn trash a full month early.
The leaf in the garage stayed at 5 temperature bars when it was 38F out. Left outside it would be 4 bars and had sluggish brake regen and further reduced range.

 

[Oilpan4]

Well walmart here got its first shipment of wood pellets in last week and it sold out that day.
Only reason I know is because I asked when the wood pellets are coming in.
Normally they don't get wood pellets here till the very end of September or first of October and they sit until it starts getting cold the first or second week of October.

 

[LeftieBiker]

It will be interesting to see which aspect of AGW wins out this Winter (and where): the tendency of larger storms to pull frigid air down here from the Arctic, or the increased heat in the atmosphere just making the weather warmer overall.

 

[Oilpan4]

That's not global warming. That's obsolete thinking from the 1990s.
It has been well documented that the jet stream wanders around drunkenly during years of low solar activity. Warm air ends up in places that are usually cold and artic air ends up in places like new mexico where you don't expect it.
Years of high solar activity the jet streams generally stay where they're supposed to and then "it's too hot" in places are supposed to be warm.

 

[fester]

A bit late to this one since I've only had my SV+ since the first of this year, but as to the Jet Streams, its the difference in temperature between the Poles and the Equator that primarily drives them. We have now entered the "Abrupt" phase of planetary warming and the most current data indicates that the Arctic regions are now warming at 4 times greater rate than the rest of the planet. With significantly lower temperature gradient between the Arctic and Equator, the Jet streams are slowing and also becoming more chaotic in their flow patterns. The Jet Streams serve to "steer" storms particularly in the mid-latitudes and the Polar Jets serve to confine the lower temps at the Poles. However, with the disruption in patterns due to warming in the last few years, the Polar Jets can break down and allow Arctic air masses to move southward well into the continental U.S. and at the same time allows warm air to move into the Arctic regions which further accelerates melting of the Arctic Ice. The number of Record Temps both in the north and south latitudes have also been increasing.

The above isn't just my opinion, but can be checked against peer reviewed scientific data. The the effects of dumping large amounts of Carbon into the atmosphere, was experimentally proved in 1856 and warnings were given by subsequent Scientists in the next few years before 1900 that the result would be warming of the planet. At this stage even the most conservative of estimates ( i.e the IPCC) have admitted that warming is now irreversible and is accelerating exponentially.

Its been quite the party since the start of the Industrial Revolution around 1750, and I'm not bemoaning the standard of living its given us, but as been said..."The Piper will be paid".

 

[SageBrush]

^^ Well said

 

[user 24513]

Its been quite the party since the start of the Industrial Revolution around 1750, and I'm not bemoaning the standard of living its given us, but as been said..."The Piper will be paid".

I suspect that most of us here on this forum are part of the choir and that your post is appreciated. I am always struck by the fact that the "choir" is trying to live lightly on this Earth which has the effect, slight as it is, of supporting the beliefs of those who do not believe in global warming (i.e. that climate is NOT changing), while the people passing us in the F-350s at 80 MPH are making my projections come true more quickly. We are each trying to prove, through our actions, that the other one is right about the future of the human race.

 

[frontrangeleaf]

I'm more sanguine about AGW and our prospects than I used to be. Yes, we're in for some difficult times ahead, I don't doubt that, but frankly, the folks who are in denial about it are in for a big surprise, and there is a lot of movement.

Turns out the sun does rise in the East, regardless of what you choose to believe about it. Huh! Who knew?

At some point, the oil and gas industries are going to have to shift from digging up ancient carbon to extracting the carbon we've already released into the atmosphere and oceans. We certainly have the skills and tech to build global scale industrial plant to do that.

In summary, yes there's tons of work to do, but no, all is not lost in my view.