Dear Diary. The lower 48 states so far this warm season have fortunately been affected by one major heatwave that I dubbed “Amoco” back in May. Heat domes have been surprised to the south over the Gulf and Carribean, but it’s somewhat surprising to see what one has done to the territory of Puerto Rico. That large island has had its fair share of climate crisis problems, most notably being Hurricane Maria back in 2018. During 2023 their problem is high heat. The surrounding Atlantic is at record warmth due to climate change, so it’s no wonder that day after day stations in Puerto Rico are setting records:
An extraordinarily strong high pressure zone – or heat dome, record-warm ocean temps and other factors have contributed to the Puerto Rico heat wave which extends over large parts of the Caribbean, where records have fallen. 2/2 pic.twitter.com/fspop5t9w6
— Capital Weather Gang (@capitalweather) June 7, 2023
I invite all to click onto the above link to read the Washington Post’s take on this Carribean heatwave.
Here is a nice Twitter thread written by Jeff Berardelli on Puerto Rico’s hot situation:
A pocket of Saharan dust is right over the island, leading to clear weather, helping boost temperatures. But there's a lot more…. pic.twitter.com/phfhTTGEkP
— Jeff Berardelli (@WeatherProf) June 6, 2023
Zoom out and we see a culprit. A large/ intense high (heat dome) forming just east of Puerto Rico, unusually far south, leading to a SE flow and drawing up high humidity. But also record warm Tropical Atlantic water temperatures helping boost dewpoints… pic.twitter.com/FtHspHGljs
— Jeff Berardelli (@WeatherProf) June 6, 2023
Yes the warm water is partially due to climate change, so it is a factor. Tropical ocean temps have warmed by ~2F. Also the natural distribution of "anomalously" warm water this year favors the tropics. Last summer it favored the North Atlantic… but there's more…
— Jeff Berardelli (@WeatherProf) June 6, 2023
Now we arrive at the Wavy jet stream. The pattern right now is ludicrous in/ around North America. Blocky is an understatement. Some may be due to Typhoon Mawar's added wave breaking energy. But we are seeing these blocks more often especially during spring/ summer… pic.twitter.com/ROxjOiyAMM
— Jeff Berardelli (@WeatherProf) June 6, 2023
There's a lot of work being done to figure out the link between climate change, blocks and the wavy jet. The loss of sea ice and uneven heating at the poles is likely a factor in high latitude blocks. This leads to a very amplified pattern, big blocky lows and heat domes…
— Jeff Berardelli (@WeatherProf) June 6, 2023
Next, we have a developing El Nino adding tons of energy to the mix. The subtropical jet is screaming, but that is more of a winter time phenomena than summertime for El Nino. With that said, when you overlay that on the prevailing pattern I can only surmise it amplifies…
— Jeff Berardelli (@WeatherProf) June 6, 2023
The bottom line: As we go deeper into 2023 and El Nino intensifies, we should expect a stunning year of global extremes which boggle the meteorological mind. The base climate has heated due to greenhouse warming and a strong El Nino will push us to limits we have yet to observe.
— Jeff Berardelli (@WeatherProf) June 6, 2023
Much More:
Scientists have long warned that global warming will increase the chance of severe wildfires like those burning across Canada and heat waves like the one smothering Puerto Rico. @nytimes https://t.co/W4z9GwU2cH
— Daily Climate (@TheDailyClimate) June 9, 2023
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:
Record heat is manifesting everywhere at once:
— Leon Simons (@LeonSimons8) June 8, 2023
🌎🌡️📈Earth's hemispheres are simultaneously showing record daily Surface Air Temperatures.
🌊🌡️📈Sea Surface Temperatures are record high.
🧊➡️🌊Global Sea Ice extent is record low.
And El Niño is just getting started.. pic.twitter.com/nKWVXdYJJv
Lytton 38.5C / 101.3F was hotter than every US station (NWS/COOP/DCP) except Rio Grande Village, on the Mexican border.
— Extreme Temperatures Around The World (@extremetemps) June 9, 2023
99.9% of USA yesterday had a lower Tmax than Lytton, Canada.
Exceptional warmth in Argentina winter
— Extreme Temperatures Around The World (@extremetemps) June 9, 2023
Temperatures well above 25C in Patagonia and above 30C in Central/Northern areas in the core of June
33.0C Jachal altitude 1200m
Warmest June day on records at
27.5 San anotnio Oeste
26.4 Viedma
28.2 Rosario Aero
More records coming pic.twitter.com/UJl5fXWU2g
🌡️37.3°C in San Jorge, in the canton of Los Chiles (Alajuela Province), in north-central Costa Rica 🇨🇷.
— Thierry Goose (@ThierryGooseBC) June 8, 2023
According to @extremetemps, this is a new June national record. The heat has been relentless for weeks in Central America. pic.twitter.com/voNNVt1uym
Record heat wave in Nepal, with 2 stations recording their hottest days in climatic history:
— Extreme Temperatures Around The World (@extremetemps) June 9, 2023
42.5C Janakpur (prev. 42.4C June 1998)
32.5C Okhaldhunga (1720m asl) (prev. 31.2C June 2015).
Many others are close. pic.twitter.com/hg0zq153kw
Record every day in #Oceania: Yesterday Tuvalu broke again its national record of the highest temperature in June with 34.2C at Funafuti, its capital after tying it few days earlier this month. pic.twitter.com/GgYaspmd42
— Extreme Temperatures Around The World (@extremetemps) June 9, 2023
CRP issues Record Event Report (RER) at Jun 9, 7:28 PM CDT …RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURE SET AT CORPUS CHRISTI TODAY… https://t.co/NYViII5coB
— NWS Record Event Reports (@iembot_rer) June 10, 2023
GSP issues Record Event Report (RER) at Jun 9, 4:35 PM EDT …RECORD DAILY LOW TEMPERATURE TIED AT ASHEVILLE… https://t.co/qCKhNWJyOG
— NWS Record Event Reports (@iembot_rer) June 9, 2023
PAH issues Record Event Report (RER) at Jun 9, 4:27 PM CDT …RECORD LOW TEMPERATURE SET AT PADUCAH KY… https://t.co/L93QDFuQbN
— NWS Record Event Reports (@iembot_rer) June 9, 2023
Here is more new May 2023 climatology:
May 2023 in the United Kingdom had an average temperature of 11.6C, which is 1.0C above normal.
— Extreme Temperatures Around The World (@extremetemps) June 9, 2023
Average rainfall was only 39.1mm which is 55% of the norm. See maps below.
Spring as a whole had an average temperature of 8.4C, +0.3C above normal and 106% of normal precipitations. pic.twitter.com/tGaSTyeKeh
May 2023 in #Portugal was hot and dry.
— Extreme Temperatures Around The World (@extremetemps) June 9, 2023
Average temperature was 18.19C which is .2,47C above the 1971-2000 (about +2C vs 1991-2020).
Average rainfall was 34.8mm, about half of average.
See temperatures and rainfalls anomalies maps by IPMA. pic.twitter.com/Jeq1r1nLzY
May 2023 in #India had an average temperature of 29.47C which is 0.27C below the 1981-2010 normal: cooler in the West but hot in the East.
— Extreme Temperatures Around The World (@extremetemps) June 9, 2023
Average rainfall was 67.5mm ,+10% above average:wetter in the West and drier in the East.
See rainfalls anomalies map by IMD: pic.twitter.com/0h7DUyf1JJ
May 2023 in #Pakistan was cooler and wetter than average
— Extreme Temperatures Around The World (@extremetemps) June 9, 2023
Average temperature was 28.23C which is 0.71C below the 1961-1990 norm (about -1.5C vs 1991-2020).
It was the second wettest May since 1960 after 1987.
Some records of rainfalls and low temperatures fell:
See table by PMD: pic.twitter.com/McMpynrlOm
May 2023 in #Bahrain was another warmer than average month with an anomaly of +0.6C above the 1991-2020 normal. https://t.co/XdXZ7JY3EN
— Extreme Temperatures Around The World (@extremetemps) June 9, 2023
Here is more climate and weather news from Friday:
(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.)
"Welcome to the apocalyptic haze of the new abnormal. There is nowhere left to hide" | My op-ed with Susan Joy Hassol (@ClimateComms) in The @Independent: https://t.co/VIV1aOFuFt
— Prof Michael E. Mann (@MichaelEMann) June 9, 2023
"America sleepwalks through a climate crisis. Will this smoke alarm wake us up?" | A must-read from the great @Will_Bunch of the Philly @Inquirer: https://t.co/AD5AqYKosl
— Prof Michael E. Mann (@MichaelEMann) June 8, 2023
Proud to testify on behalf of future generations in the climate trial of the century
— Mark Z. Jacobson (@mzjacobson) June 9, 2023
Montana kids’ climate case set to make historyhttps://t.co/RkkQF4Jfvv @EENewsUpdates @youthvgov @stanforddoerr @StanfordEng @StanfordEnergy @cee_stanford @Stanford @StanfordWoods
Bob Henson and I had this to say about the wildfires: https://t.co/DIgXN0KpfK
— Jeff Masters (@DrJeffMasters) June 7, 2023
I spoke to The Daily about the East Coast’s unprecedented encounter with wildfire smoke, the global reach of toxic ash, Canada’s off-the-charts fire season and the hugely underappreciated impact of air pollution on human health and well-being. https://t.co/a9NX3Yephe
— David Wallace-Wells (@dwallacewells) June 9, 2023
In Smoke Emergency, Fossil Fuel "Expert" Insists Dirty Air is "no Health Risk" https://t.co/DGnp1mj5qd
— Peter Sinclair (@PeterWSinclair) June 9, 2023
“Everywhere needs to be prepared for everything. That’s another takeaway. The climate catastrophe is screwing with the weather and the seasons. It’s amplifying unpredictability—ginning up freak storms, early fires, unexpected mudslides, sudden heat waves.” https://t.co/ckerMiIfdJ
— David Wallace-Wells (@dwallacewells) June 9, 2023
Sea surface temperature on North Atlantic was 22.5°C on June 7, 2023 (black), 0.6°C higher than the 21.9°C on June 7, 2022 (orange). A record 24.9°C was reached Sept. 4, 2022, even during a strong La Niña. We're now in an El Niño, so the outlook is grim! https://t.co/TqyXrqqcQH pic.twitter.com/HmwnLVgFEP
— Sam Carana (@SamCarana) June 9, 2023
Wow – (SSTs) The sea surface temperatures off the west coast of Ireland are extremely high, surpassing any recorded levels – off the scale! – The North Atlantic is becoming the baño grande (big bath) – filling up from Greenland Ice melt – with the hot tap turned on max! pic.twitter.com/yrPvbBYski
— Peter Dynes (@PGDynes) June 9, 2023
#Arctic sea ice extent is currently the 11th lowest on record (JAXA data)
— Zack Labe (@ZLabe) June 9, 2023
• about 220,000 km² above the 2010s mean
• about 390,000 km² below the 2000s mean
• about 910,000 km² below the 1990s mean
• about 1,320,000 km² below the 1980s mean
Plots: https://t.co/tBkW5GBOxd pic.twitter.com/iD0zJ7lo9u
There is NO New Normal. We are on the cliff edge of a huge accelerating rise!!
— Paul Beckwith (@PaulHBeckwith) June 9, 2023
‘Our new normal’: As climate change exacerbates wildfires, Canada faces a fiery future – Toronto Star https://t.co/OH6ujfd5mu
Climate change has entered a period in which a series of doors close and lock behind us, with no possibility of a return to past normality.
— Prof Nick Cowern (@NickCowern) June 9, 2023
Those who are leading us through these doors are destroying our future. As are we by following.#JustStopOil #COP28https://t.co/RcmTEQqWU0
Incredible, sensitive reporting from @Songstress28 and photos by @photobracken.
— chrisaleen clara (@chrisaleen_ciro) June 9, 2023
On the ground with Indigenous communities fleeing a climate inferno – IndigiNews https://t.co/MqNrUI7jyh
‘No bullshit,’ Germany is failing on climate change, says vice chancellor https://t.co/Kj4kG2ASKa
— Svein Tveitdal (@tveitdal) June 9, 2023
“No bullshit: We are not on track, it has to be said quite clearly,” Habeck, of the Green Party that is a member of the governing coalition, said Wednesday at the re:publica…
Last year saw the collapse of the Bering Sea snow crab population. As temperatures rise, king crab, bairdi crab, and halibut are also in decline.
— Yale Environment 360 (@YaleE360) June 9, 2023
“When is it not a disaster anymore?" says a fishing trade group representative. "When is it just status quo?”https://t.co/ozOTllnq8o
Today’s News on Sustainable Energy:
Good morning with good news: someone got indicted. Now back to the sizzling clean energy transition. By 2026, EV sales will reach 52% in China: 42% in Europe, and 28% in US. Sales will be 30% globally, according to BNEF's just released EV report. Hooray! https://t.co/pfDWcbccoM pic.twitter.com/xMZgmCSkw2
— John Raymond Hanger (@johnrhanger) June 9, 2023
There's been a proliferation of net-zero plans from countries. Most of them aren't credible, because they aren't detailed enough and not set in policy.
— Akshat Rathi (@AkshatRathi) June 9, 2023
The least credible plans? Australia, Brazil, India, Indonesia, South Africa and UAE. https://t.co/IjHQmQxpGq
The South is building the most vibrant EV and battery hub in the US @CanaryMediaInc https://t.co/RdvH2T8u5B pic.twitter.com/il4BZUToEi
— Earth Accounting (@EarthAccounting) June 9, 2023
Only 10% of Egypt's electricity last year was renewable; 90% came from gas and oil.
— Dave Jones (@CleanPowerDave) June 8, 2023
Today's massive wind deal will help bring that up to 42% by 2030, saying they wil save $5b/year in gas costs 💪
This will be a cool transformation..https://t.co/qwxO41HMZV pic.twitter.com/ccIkJ2caHN
Good morning with good news: Reaching an historic milestone, wind & solar generated more electricity in the EU for an entire month than fossil fuels! That happened in May. Zero-carbon generated ~73% & fossil fuels just 27%. Coal fell to 10%, a record low.https://t.co/97n01ADswe pic.twitter.com/oFeB7kurqa
— John Raymond Hanger (@johnrhanger) June 8, 2023
The renewables revolution 🚀 https://t.co/45cmsRBQvk pic.twitter.com/MYyu8GwCtM
— Science Is Strategic (@scienceisstrat1) June 9, 2023
"Demand is growing for new textiles and materials that cool; personal technologies that measure and warn about heat; new building materials that reduce temperatures; heat-focused healthcare services; pay-as-you-cool models for markets and farmers & more." https://t.co/TEUMxQ23mW
— Jeff Goodell (@jeffgoodell) June 9, 2023
Can't see the without doors option being very good for UK weather but since much of London has a speed limit of 20mph this 28mph vehicle is perfectly suitable. https://t.co/8bUcytMsjB
— Paul Noël, Citizen of the pale blue dot, 🍃💚🍃 (@JunagarhMedia) June 9, 2023
Tesla stands to earn as much as $3 billion by 2030 thanks to deals with Ford and GM for their electric vehicles to use its charging network, according to Piper Sandler https://t.co/kMbz2vvuzA
— Bloomberg Green (@climate) June 9, 2023
More Environmental Stuff:
An important new paper on how to treat various sectors of the economy in a planned degrowth scenario. Basically: decommodify and improve essential production, shrink excess production, and democratize in-between production. https://t.co/4abL57NPBy
— Jason Hickel (@jasonhickel) June 9, 2023
US regulators are scrutinizing the health effects of gas stoves. Many US conservatives mock those efforts https://t.co/R0iYlOoTgc
— Bloomberg Green (@climate) June 9, 2023
Some firms are using a process called pyrolysis to turn hard-to-recycle plastics into usable goods.
— Yale Environment 360 (@YaleE360) June 9, 2023
But most are using pyrolysis to turn plastics back into oil.
One study finds making oil from plastic is worse for the climate than extracting new crude.https://t.co/AbuYSDJBTs
And from the Weather Department:
The climate analog signal for temperatures during the summer months of a (developing) El Nino is for slightly cooler than normal temps in most of N. America to be favored. [Not a forecast.] pic.twitter.com/TvoK5PI1uk
— Brian Brettschneider (@Climatologist49) June 9, 2023
The Storm Prediction Center issues Day 2 Convective Outlook at Jun 9, 5:00z https://t.co/I5Tn0sEXGS pic.twitter.com/CcOqkyGErI
— IEMBot SPC (@iembot_spc) June 9, 2023
Multiple clusters of strong/severe thunderstorms may develop across parts of the southern Great Plains, ArkLaTex, and lower Mississippi Valley on Saturday. Damaging wind gusts and isolated hail will be possible across the ArkLaTex into the lower Mississippi Valley, with some… pic.twitter.com/YkSGzwdEDm
— National Weather Service (@NWS) June 9, 2023
Air quality continues to improve… No code reds on this map. Trend is our friend. pic.twitter.com/HUfmOe9IhX
— Capital Weather Gang (@capitalweather) June 9, 2023
More on other science and the beauty of Earth and this universe:
Excellent new paper by my friend and colleague Chris Kilburn and others.
— Bill McGuire (@ProfBillMcGuire) June 9, 2023
An eruption is not imminent, but the conditions are now such that an eruption is possible at Naples' 'other volcano'.https://t.co/TlG94IQdG8
Look at those trajectories for clean air inequality and childhood survival inequality. https://t.co/l7JRe2wOOb pic.twitter.com/P2clf5h38D
— David Wallace-Wells (@dwallacewells) June 9, 2023
Astronauts Steve Bowen and Woody Hoburg installed and deployed a new roll-out solar array outside the International Space Station during a 6-hour, 3-minute spacewalk Friday.
— Spaceflight Now (@SpaceflightNow) June 10, 2023
The solar array deployment is shown here at 30x speed.https://t.co/CpmkVsRo48 pic.twitter.com/KJkBwIumQF
This is what the sky over Rome looked like on February 22, 2018: thousands and thousands of starlings turned the sky into the densest TV static
— Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) June 9, 2023
[source, read more: https://t.co/QGm2dOnopR] pic.twitter.com/rlbsYePhpX
Fact # 1⃣: Forests contribute to the livelihoods of an estimated one billion people globally.
— UN Biodiversity (@UNBiodiversity) June 9, 2023
Forests can provide:
🍏food
🌴fuel for cooking & heating
💊medicine
🏚️shelter
👗clothing
Find out more: https://t.co/RaYxx7wKo9
Via @UNUEHS pic.twitter.com/HLrzPJar8f