Friday, May 7, 2010
Woods Did Global Warming Cause Our Flood?
Posted by Jeff Woods on Fri, May 7, 2010 at 8:42 AM
Dr. Kevin Trenberth, head of the Climate Analysis Division at the National Center on Atmospheric Research, explained the phenomenon this way: A warmer climate means warmer oceans and moister air, which in turn intensifies storms. "Global warming contributes to higher air and sea temperatures," he said, "as a result you get increased moisture in the atmosphere and more intense rainfall events." He pointed to governmental data showing a 20 percent increase in heavy precipitation in the past 50 years throughout the Southeastern region of America.
To Little, this makes Nashville more than just another heartbreaking scene of destruction. We're a disaster with a purpose.
The city of Nashville is not just a federal disaster area, it is a federal opportunity. As we pump floodwaters from our submerged streets, we must also devise sweeping strategies to reduce our climate impact and create green jobs. Nashville can do more than recover from this tragedy — we can become a stronghold of new, green innovation.That will do more than prevent further disaster, it will create jobs, strengthen our economy — as a city, state and country — and build our national morale.
Comments (8)
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Does one's brain, exposed to global warming (wait, didn't we rename that to Climate Change so that we're covered whether it gets too cold or too warm!), turn to mush?
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Did we have Global warming 80 years ago as well? lol Sometimes there are big storms, sometimes there are damages. I don't think people driving suvs created this storm. lol Please tell Al to put away his hockey stick chart... thanks.
Combine a (thankfully) unusual but not unheard of rain event with the modification of the watershed and one can and should expect to see these type of floods. By modification of course I am speaking of the asphalting, home building, new businesses, etc. etc. that continue to crop up with little or no regard to their effect on the ability of the water courses to hold the increased runoff from such building. Perhaps Ms. Little would be more believable if she were to show how climate change was actually a factor above and beyond that caused by watershed alteration. But no, such an issue might confuse her and water down (pun intended) her assumptions born of zealotry for the global warming camp's case.
This is not "perhaps" climate change - Scientists predicted "increased precipitation" for the East Coast of the US due to climate change. It's one of the things in the last 2007 IPPC report and in the 2005 summary of knowledge so far. So it's hardly uncertain. Its 2010 now.
Increased precipitation means heavy snowfall, (check: Washington DC Jan) more frequent rain, dumping more rain per storm, and more intense flooding.
Dr. Kevin Trenberth, head of the Climate Analysis Division at the National Center on Atmospheric Research, explained the phenomenon this way: A warmer climate means warmer oceans and moister air, which in turn intensifies storms.
"Global warming contributes to higher air and sea temperatures," he said, "as a result you get increased moisture in the atmosphere and more intense rainfall events."
He pointed to governmental data showing a 20 percent increase in heavy precipitation in the past 50 years throughout the Southeastern region of America. And that's with just 1 degree increase so far for Tennessee.
If you want to check your future climate based on scientific measurements there's a lot of data crunched into very good maps at http://www.climatewizard.org/
The West and Southwest will dry up and get more drought, the East will be much wetter.
Spare me, "scientist". Let's look at the sst's from a few weeks back...
http://i41.tinypic.com/zyhkw7.png
Cool in both the Pacific and Atlantic leading up to this storm.
Trenberth can't account for half of the warming that should be showing up in the oceans right now...
http://pielkeclimatesci.wordpress.com/2010…
Let's take a look at one of Kevin's communications with the infamous Michael Mann revealed by the Climategate whistleblower...
From: Kevin Trenberth
To: Michael Mann
Subject: Re: BBC U-turn on climate
Date: Mon, 12 Oct 2009 08:57:37 -0600
Cc: Stephen H Schneider , Myles Allen , peter stott , “Philip D. Jones” , Benjamin Santer , Tom Wigley , Thomas R Karl , Gavin Schmidt , James Hansen , Michael Oppenheimer
Hi all
Well I have my own article on where the heck is global warming ? We are asking that here in Boulder where we have broken records the past two days for the coldest days on record. We had 4 inches of snow. The high the last 2 days was below 30F and the normal is 69F, and it smashed the previous records for these days by 10F. The low was about 18F and also a record low, well below the previous record low.
This is January weather (see the Rockies baseball playoff game was canceled on saturday and then played last night in below freezing weather).
Trenberth, K. E., 2009: An imperative for climate change planning: tracking Earth’s global energy. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 1, 19-27, doi:10.1016/j.cosust.2009.06.001. [1][PDF] (A PDF of the published version can be obtained from the author.)
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The fact is that we can’t account for the lack of warming at the moment and it is a travesty that we can’t. The CERES data published in the August BAMS 09 supplement on 2008 shows there should be even more warming: but the data are surely wrong. Our observing system is inadequate.***
This has to be a forgery, surely. Because if it isn’t, we’re about to see the unpicking of a huge scandal.
I mean, the media will follow this up, right? In the meantime, use with care."
Google nsid (national snow and ice data) and check out the current photos for polar ice. Makes algore a pretty sad prognosticator.
Climate scientists have been saying as Greenhouse gases increase in the atmosphere- they hold more warmth- and increase the amount of water vapor- causing some regions to experience increased precipitation and torrential or extreme precipitation events like Nashville.
Global worldwide temperatures are increasing- the data shows this- March 2010 was the warmest on record.
We had historic record breaking floods in New England this year- and then drought in April and thus far in May- Despite the record snow to the south of us in the mid Atlantic- New England had another milder then average winter- with below normal snowfall- 27"- compared to 80" in Washington- but the bizarre events in our nations capital shows what happens when increased moisture builds in the atmosphere from warmth.
The Co2 level at 391PPM is the highest in 650,000 years- it might be best to take the warning signs we have now- before we may be unable to stop more tragedies in the future not only for beautiful Tennessee - but for New England- where rising sea levels are changing our coastline now.
Sorry. No dice. http://hockeyschtick.blogspot.com/2010/05/…
It was just an unfortunate storm. Very unfortunate. Almost as unfortunate as those who would use it for a political agenda.
