Local Weather vs. Climate Change

Start Your Own Climate Campaign With Help From . . . StopGlobalWarming.org

From a Posting by Laurie David, StopGlobalWarming.org, January 28, 2014

Skeptics have been pointing to the very cold weather in parts of the United States as evidence that global warming doesn’t exist. As you know, local weather isn’t the same as climate, which is a long-term measure of the trajectory of the entire planet.

In spite of the recent cold days brought on by a polar vortex, winters are warming across the US (see the Climate Central map for the temperature trends).

But as Bryan Walsh writes in Time: “…Not only does the cold spell not disprove climate change, it may well be that global warming could be making the occasional bout of extreme cold weather in the U.S. even more likely.”

Some scientists think warmer temperatures in the Arctic due to climate change may weaken the jet stream, which makes it more likely that cold Arctic air will escape and move southward.

Visit Time for more on how climate change is driving cold spells.

Start Your Own Climate Campaign

Our friends at 350.org have developed 350 Campaigns, an open platform available to anyone who wants to start their own campaign to solve the climate crisis.

Start a petition. Send out an email blast. Build a local list of activists. 350 Campaigns will help with the digital tools to start and win your own campaign to protect our common future. Visit 350 Campaigns for more information.

Global Warming May Double Extreme El Nino Events

A study published last week in Nature Climate Change concluded that global warming could double the frequency of strong “super” El Niño events.

El Niño is a band of unusually warm ocean water that appears every 3-7 years in the Pacific Ocean, severely affecting worldwide weather patterns.

Extreme El Niño events cause devastating flooding, drought, and wildfires. The 1997-98 El Niño caused $35-45 billion in damage and 23,000 deaths worldwide.

Visit Climate Central for more on the study. Read the original study here.

There are many simple things you can do in your daily life to help stop global warming. Take Action Now!  Want to know more about global warming? Check out our recommended DVDs and books.

Laurie David, StopGlobalWarming.org, 15332 Antioch Street #168 Pacific Palisades, CA 90272