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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 15 of 15. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Phillipa on March 24, 2008, at 16:23:48
Is this global warming as notice on news that some areas of country are very hot and now here in Carolinas freeze warning . Anyone else's weather systems seem out of wack for the time of year. Drought here too and floods other places. So strange. Phillipa but not letting cold keep me off the bike for a mile or so post op.
Posted by fleeting flutterby on March 24, 2008, at 17:33:29
In reply to So Many Weather Symtoms Hot and Cold in USA, posted by Phillipa on March 24, 2008, at 16:23:48
We must be lucky in the southwest, the weather has been near normal all winter(*crossing fingers for the future) and so far, these first few days of spring, we are still close to average.
*shrugs* guess it depends on where you live.i heard about the awful flooding, that's very sad.
Hope it warms up for you there!fl-flutterby
Posted by Larry Hoover on March 24, 2008, at 17:48:05
In reply to So Many Weather Symtoms Hot and Cold in USA, posted by Phillipa on March 24, 2008, at 16:23:48
It's confusing sometimes. Global warming is about climate change, whereas we're talking about weather. Climate is weather averaged over a number of years. There's nothing saying you can't have episodes of cooler than average temperatures during an upward trend in climate. One prediction of global warming is greater atmospheric turbulence, which would include Arctic air making more southward incursions than a more settled atmosphere would produce. Winter tornadoes in Wisconsin and the February series across the south could be turbulence related.
Anyway, I awoke to a new blanket of snow this morning. More tomorrow. Four separate snow events forecast in the next seven days. I'm sure sick of winter. But, we never had the severe cold snaps that I'm accustomed to seeing, so the average temp this winter might actually be above average. But that's weather.
Lar
Posted by Phillipa on March 24, 2008, at 18:59:10
In reply to Re: So Many Weather Symtoms Hot and Cold in USA » Phillipa, posted by Larry Hoover on March 24, 2008, at 17:48:05
Lar thanks for the explanation of the difference. Phillipa
Posted by cactus on March 25, 2008, at 5:40:33
In reply to Re: So Many Weather Symtoms Hot and Cold in USA » Phillipa, posted by Larry Hoover on March 24, 2008, at 16:48:05
we just came out of a shocking heatwave in the Southern parts of Australia, severe drought, etc.... in late march????? over 100f for over 15 days in some parts which is not normal in southern Australia at this time of year. Yet the east coast has been mild and has had massive amounts of rain. It's crazy everywhere. My friends in London are wading through snow which is very strange for them too at this time of year. I think the planet is just weird at the moment and I'm not even going to open the global warming can of worms. Thank god it's finally cooled down. I think it's going to get keep getting worse in both directions. Extreme heat and cold, more extremes in both directions which is a new spin to these crazy weather patterns. It's world wide at the moment
Posted by Sigismund on March 25, 2008, at 16:02:30
In reply to Re: So Many Weather Symtoms Hot and Cold in USA, posted by cactus on March 25, 2008, at 5:40:33
Yes, the south of Australia has been really hot, but the east coast has had its coolest summer for 55 years, Sydney at least, and here it's the coolest summer of my lifetime.
Posted by caraher on March 25, 2008, at 17:56:20
In reply to Re: So Many Weather Symtoms Hot and Cold in USA » Phillipa, posted by Larry Hoover on March 24, 2008, at 16:48:05
And to add to the complications, there can be local changes to a cooler climate as a result of overall warming. Part of what keeps western Europe reasonably warm is the "Gulf Stream" ocean current. Warm water crosses the Atlantic from west to east, where it cools, sinks deep and returns. The salinity of salt water apparently helps keep this "conveyor belt" running.
One result of the melting of Arctic ice might be to interrupt this process. Europe could then cool considerably. (A simple and instructive exercise is to compare the latitudes of North American cities you would consider "cold" and find European cities at similar latitudes. I was startled when I first noticed that Detroit is at roughly the same latitude as Rome!)
Posted by cactus on March 26, 2008, at 6:59:15
In reply to Re: So Many Weather Symtoms Hot and Cold in USA, posted by caraher on March 25, 2008, at 18:56:20
> And to add to the complications, there can be local changes to a cooler climate as a result of overall warming. Part of what keeps western Europe reasonably warm is the "Gulf Stream" ocean current. Warm water crosses the Atlantic from west to east, where it cools, sinks deep and returns. The salinity of salt water apparently helps keep this "conveyor belt" running.
>
> One result of the melting of Arctic ice might be to interrupt this process. Europe could then cool considerably. (A simple and instructive exercise is to compare the latitudes of North American cities you would consider "cold" and find European cities at similar latitudes. I was startled when I first noticed that Detroit is at roughly the same latitude as Rome!)I understand what you mean by that BUT Rome is on a thin peninsula surrounded by the warm mediterranean in Summer and oceans usually keeps places warmer during winter. The easiest way to explain this is a term called continentality, which means that detroit is landlocked. It has a massive expanse of land both north and south of it so you feel the seasons much more harshly, especially summer and winter, including the coasts because North America is so big. Hence Rome's mild winters and Detroit's freezing winter. Where I live in Australia I'm 38 degrees south of the equator which is the same as Athens and Washington DC in the northern hemisphere. I have no great land mass south of me so our winters compared to DC are a walk in the park. We might get a snow flurry once every 20 years where as Athens can get snow in winter but it's not common due to the mediterranean again, yet DC is freezing in winter.
You are so right about the gulf stream, look into what it does for the UK. London is 51 degrees north of the equator and compare it's it's climate to Kiev in former Russia and Edmonton in Canada. It's very interesting, I'm such a weather geek. If the gulf stream slows or even stops due to arctic ice melts messing up sea salinities there will be massive repercussions worldwide.
Posted by Sigismund on March 26, 2008, at 15:19:26
In reply to Re: So Many Weather Symtoms Hot and Cold in USA » caraher, posted by cactus on March 26, 2008, at 6:59:15
They were talking about Antarctic ice on the wireless yesterday.
I forget the name of the ice shelf.
The usual thing......they melt quicker than was realised, and it is happening faster than climate models have predicted.
Posted by cactus on March 26, 2008, at 17:19:52
In reply to Re: So Many Weather Symtoms Hot and Cold in USA, posted by Sigismund on March 26, 2008, at 15:19:26
> They were talking about Antarctic ice on the wireless yesterday.
>
> I forget the name of the ice shelf.
>
> The usual thing......they melt quicker than was realised, and it is happening faster than climate models have predicted.I saw that too, which is just as bad. The really dangerous one too watch out for in the northern hemisphere is Greenland. The Greenland ice mass is melting in exactly the same way that the antarctic ice shelves are. If that ice mass melts into the Atlantic, which might just be a matter of time, the experts think that it could stop the gulf stream or slow it enough to cause unknown effects, and that is not something anyone wants to happen. They also think that because it's melting from underneath it could literally slide off. Weather geek signing off.
Posted by cactus on March 28, 2008, at 16:47:24
In reply to Re: So Many Weather Symtoms Hot and Cold in USA » Sigismund, posted by cactus on March 26, 2008, at 17:19:52
we just had over 50mm (2") of rain in the last 2 days, I can't remember the last time that happened. We've been in drought for so long now. Shame the catchment areas missed out, typical. Maybe we will get a wet winter after all, finger crossed. Everyone is smiling it's great to see. Our local weather bureau said we are in officially in our 12th year straight of drought now.
Posted by Sigismund on March 28, 2008, at 17:43:13
In reply to Re: So Many Weather systems world wide, posted by cactus on March 28, 2008, at 16:47:24
"Romulus, My Father" is set, as I recall, in Maryborough, Victoria, not to be confused with Maryborough, Queensland.
Well, in the making of the film there was mention of a weir where they went boating in the very early 60s, and now the level of that dam is 30ft down or something.
I wouldn't want to be a dry land farmer in southern Australia.
Posted by cactus on April 3, 2008, at 3:06:36
In reply to Re: So Many Weather systems world wide » cactus, posted by Sigismund on March 28, 2008, at 17:43:13
> "Romulus, My Father" is set, as I recall, in Maryborough, Victoria, not to be confused with Maryborough, Queensland.
>
> Well, in the making of the film there was mention of a weir where they went boating in the very early 60s, and now the level of that dam is 30ft down or something.
>
> I wouldn't want to be a dry land farmer in southern Australia.Another one to add to the list we just got belted by 133km p/h winds (83 mph) or 72 knots. In a big city, it was chaos, dust storms, trees down everywhere 450,000 people without power. All the experts have told us it's just going to get worse over the years. blah, blah blah.
Posted by Sigismund on April 3, 2008, at 20:19:50
In reply to Re: So Many Weather systems world wide, posted by cactus on April 3, 2008, at 3:06:36
It sounded astonishing.
Brick walls being blown over!!!!
Posted by tealady on April 6, 2008, at 20:18:25
In reply to Re: So Many Weather systems world wide, posted by cactus on April 3, 2008, at 3:06:36
" Many weather systems world wide cactus" :-)
This is the end of the thread.
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