Heat from cities can have far-reaching effects, disrupting circulation patterns and changing surface air temperatures thousands of miles away, according to a new study published in Nature Climate Change. The authors used a global climate model to simulate the effects of energy consumption in...
In The News
Urban Heat Changes Temperatures Thousands of Miles Away
January 31, 2013 |
Nature Climate Change
Frigid Temperatures Chill AZ, NM While Drought Persists
January 25, 2013 |
CLIMAS
Drought conditions persist throughout almost all of Arizona and New Mexico, and if another dry winter emerges many of the regions’ reservoir volumes will continue to decline, posing serious water-supply challenges in several areas, according to the January Climate Outlook from CLIMAS. Over the past 30 days, most of...
CA Irrigation Increases Colorado River Streamflow
January 25, 2013 |
Geophysical Research Letters
Irrigation in the Central Valley of California may increase Colorado River streamflow by nearly 30 percent, according to a new study accepted for publication in Geophysical Research Letters. Using a global climate model and estimates of agricultural water use in the California’s Central Valley, the...
Interior Designates AZ Lands for Solar, Wind Development
January 25, 2013 |
U.S. Department of the Interior
As part of the U.S. government’s strategy to expand domestic energy production, the Department of the Interior has designated over 190,000 acres of “public land across Arizona as potentially suitable for utility-scale solar and wind...
Plants Adapt to Water Extremes
January 25, 2013 |
Nature
Plant communities from grasslands to forests contain an intrinsic system sensitivity to water availability, allowing them to adapt to extreme shifts such as drought and flooding, according to a recent study published in Nature. The authors analyzed how plants responded to wet and dry periods during...
January 18, 2013 |
U.S. Global Change Research Program
In the Southwest, climate-change-induced drought and warmer temperatures over the past decades have fostered wildfires and reduced the reliability of water supplies; these conditions are likely to continue and possibly intensify in the future, according to a draft of the Third National Climate Assessment, released for public review by a Federal Advisory Committee. The final report, the third...
January 18, 2013 |
NOAA/Climatic Change
Last year was the 10th warmest year for the globe since records began in 1880, making it the 36th consecutive year in which global temperatures were above average, according to a recent analysis by NOAA. What’s more, all 12 years in the 21st century have been among the 14 warmest years on record, with 2010 and 2005 ranking as warmest and second warmest, respectively. Many regions experienced...
January 18, 2013 |
GLOBE International
Despite a lack of national and international climate legislation to avoid dangerous climate change, a new report finds that many countries are taking steps in the right direction and “have progressed or are progressing significant climate and/or energy-related legislation.” Produced by GLOBE International, in partnership with the Grantham Research Institute at the London School of Economics,...
January 18, 2013 |
Journal of Geophysical Research-Atmospheres
Black carbon emissions from the burning of fossil fuels for transportation and industrial/residential uses and from fires are the second most important emission in forcing atmospheric warming, next to carbon dioxide, according to a recent study published in the Journal of Geophysical Research. The recent estimates are twice as high as past ones, reported BBC News. Reducing emissions from...
January 10, 2013 |
NOAA
The contiguous U.S. experienced its warmest year on record last year, with the average annual temperature 3.2 degrees F above average and—at 55.3 degrees F—a full degree warmer than the previous record set in 1998, according to the annual State of the Climate report from NOAA. Each of the lower 48 states had temperatures above average; 19 states—including Utah, New Mexico, and Texas—had record...