climate variability

The new Winter Outlook from NOAA predicts La Niña to gradually strengthen and continue through the winter, resulting in warmer and drier conditions for the Southwest.

According to the newest State of the Climate by NOAA, September was 1.5°F warmer than average across the U.S. Average precipitation, on the other hand, was near normal with most of the eastern half of the U.S.

Posted by Zack Guido | on September 21, 2011
Raging fires, mile-high walls of dust, bone-dry drought, and pipe-bursting freezes wreaked havoc across the Southwest this year. By the end of August, drought and fires alone cost New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, and other western states more than $5 billion, which does not include the recent blazes that destroyed more than 1,000 of houses in Texas. Ten disasters across the country have cost more than $1 billion already this year, breaking the previous record of nine set in 2008, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). In fact, CNN dubbed 2011 the year of billion-dollar disasters (August 20).

NOAA and the National Climatic Data Center recently released the State of the Climate overview for August and the entire summer, and the verdict is in: this was the second warmest summer on record for the U.S. It was also dry, with precipitation averaging 1.0 inch below the long-term average.

El Niño and La Niña events have an enormous impact on climate around the world, and now, researchers have found evidence that these interannual climate events can also influence human conflict.

Dominguez, F, Canon J, Valdes J.  2010.  IPCC-AR4 climate simulations for the Southwestern US: the importance of future ENSO projections. Climatic Change. 99:499-514.

October 2, 2009 - October 5, 2009 | Boulder, CO | Event Web site

The NGWA Theis Conference, taking place October 2-5, 2009, in Boulder, Colorado, will focus on how climate change impacts ground water resources. NGWA is seeking participants who are prepared to discuss their research and applications in a highly intense and interactive format.

By participating in this dynamic conference you will:

June 14, 2009 - June 16, 2009 | Park City, Utah | Event Web site

This year's meeting will focus on developing regional and global strategies for addressing the intertwined issues of energy, climate change and water. Join us and officials from the Obama Administration, international dignitaries and a host of private and public-sector leaders from around the West.