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Category Archives: Climate
What is the status of the ozone hole?
The ozone hole occurs high in the stratosphere, about 18 miles high, and over the continent of Antarctica. It is not actually a hole, but the appearance of very low values of ozone in the stratosphere. Typically, the Antarctic ozone hole has its largest area in early September and lowest values in late September to early October. Continue reading
Was Superstorm Sandy a direct result of climate change?
As the one-year anniversary of Superstorm Sandy approaches, we have news to report regarding current understanding of that tremendous storm.
One of the major questions confronting atmospheric scientists in the face of that unusual event was whether Sandy was a direct result of a warmer climate. This is a difficult question because there are so many elements that conspire to produce major storms. Continue reading
What’s a 100-year flood?
It is wrong to think that a “100-year flood” happens only once every 100 years. The phrase “100-year flood” describes the estimated probability of a flood event happening in any given year.
A 100-year event has a 1 percent chance (or 1-in-100) of occurring in any given year. Continue reading
What’s happening to Arctic sea ice this summer?
During our mini heat wave of July 16-19, the Northern Hemisphere reached its warmest day of the year, by one measure, on July 17.
On that day, at about 1 mile above sea level, it was warmer than 23 degrees everywhere in the hemisphere. Just a day or two later, the buildup of cold air at that elevation in the atmosphere began again for the coming winter season. Continue reading
Was March colder than normal?
Nearly everyone is happy to see March 2013 end, as it was an unusually persistent cold month. In fact, Madison ended up 7.4 degrees below normal for March 2013 making it the 18th coldest March in the city’s history. Madison had only four days when the average temperature was at or above normal. Of course, March 2013 followed on the heels of the warmest March ever in March 2012 when the daily average temperature was 16.1 degrees above normal. Continue reading
