The main purpose of this ongoing blog will be to track planetary extreme, or record temperatures related to climate change. Any reports I see of ETs will be listed below the main topic of the day. I’ll refer to extreme or record Main Topic: Canada Is Burning This Week Due to Climate Change as ETs (not extraterrestrials).😉
Main Topic: Awful Air Quality Over Northeast Due to Canadian Fires
Dear Diary. Over the last month I’ve reported on a heatwave leading to what will probably be the worst wildfire season in Canadian history.
Smoke from these fires is now making top news across most of the eastern U.S. A dry weather pattern with the jet steering smoke into the Northeast with winds from the northwest has led to this problem:
Here are other notes from meteorologists:
As a sufferer of asthma, I really feel for everyone in the Northeast. People could die from this dense smoke due to wildfires residing well to the north in Canada resulting from our long-term carbon pollution. If we stop the noxious fumes from the burning of fossil fuels we will stop at least some of this wildfire smoke pollution. Enough said.
I invite all to read this New York Times report. I’ve reposted the first part of it here:
Wildfire SmokeLarge Swaths of North America Are Shrouded Under Unhealthy Air
Smoke from Canadian wildfires triggered air pollution warnings. Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York called the worsening air quality “an emergency crisis.”
June 7, 2023, 2:17 p.m. ET
Mike Ives and Liam Stack
Here’s the latest on the worsening air quality in the U.S.
The sky in New York City rapidly darkened on Wednesday afternoon, as a plume of smoke from Canadian wildfires that blotted out the sun in upstate New York approached the nation’s largest city, plunging Midtown Manhattan into a deep hazy orange, worsening air quality across the five boroughs and canceling some flights.
Earlier in the day, commuters donned Covid masks to walk the streets, children were kept indoors at recess and officials warned millions of people to avoid going outside.
June 7, 2023, 2:44 p.m.
Asmaa Elkeurti
At 2 p.m., the air quality index in the New York City region was 324 – the worst since the Environmental Protection Agency began recording air quality measurements in 1999. It shattered the previous record of 174, set on Tuesday. The region’s previous highest reading, 167, was recorded on July 7, 2002, as smoke from another rash of Canadian wildfires drifted south over the area.
June 7, 2023, 2:43 p.m. ET
Jeff Mays
With less than two weeks left until the June 27 primary election in New York City, candidates are out trying to meet as many voters as possible. In Harlem, Yusef Salaam, who is running for a seat on the City Council, canceled an outdoor endorsement news conference and a couple of planned subway canvassing events because of the heavy smoke. “Today was one of those days where we said health is wealth,” said Salaam. “In a community with high rates of asthma, you don’t want to get anyone sick.” Instead, he visited a community center for older adults in East Harlem where many of the visitors wore masks and said they planned to spend most of the day indoors.
Orange area shows smoke at 1 p.m. Eastern on June 7.
Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Notes: Data is from NOAA’s Rapid Refresh modeling system and may underestimate smoke due to cloud cover or other obstructions. Contours show estimated concentrations of wildfire smoke near the surface. By Madison Dong and Bea Malsky
Public officials across the region warned schools and families to keep children indoors as smoke from Canadian fires worsened air quality. Credit…Alyssa Goodman/Associated Press
In New York City and several large cities across the state, all outdoor activities and field trips were canceled for students on Wednesday as Gov. Kathy Hochul strongly urged districts “who have not yet done so to follow suit.”
In New Jersey, some districts devised plans to dismiss students several hours early, while calling off after-school programs and outdoor sporting competitions.
Much more here:
Much More:
Here are some “ET’s” recorded from around the planet the last couple of days, their consequences, and some extreme temperature outlooks, as well as any extreme precipitation reports:
Here is more new May 2023 climatology:
Here is more climate and weather news from Wednesday:
(As usual, this will be a fluid post in which more information gets added during the day as it crosses my radar, crediting all who have put it on-line. Items will be archived on this site for posterity. In most instances click on the pictures of each tweet to see each article. The most noteworthy items will be listed first.)