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 temperatures as ETs (not extraterrestrials).😉
Main Topic: Looking for Major Heatwave Exxon to Build Northward into the U.S.
Dear Diary. Folks, it’s that time of the year being May 15th, which marks May’s midpoint, that we need to be on the lookout for dangerous heat, particularly across the southern U.S. The last few years we have seen heatwaves start across the United States in the middle of May, well ahead of what is typical. Most dangerous heatwaves usually start in June, climatologically. So far, so good. Except for extreme heat briefly affecting the Rio Grande area of Texas and South Florida, the U.S. has mostly had delightful spring temperatures.
Not so for our next-door neighbor to the south, Mexico. That country has been broiling in a historic heatwave that has been made worse by climate change from April into May. As many know, I have been naming heatwaves that affect the U.S. after oil companies. This heatwave briefly affected the Rio Grande area and extended into Florida looking at 500 millibar and lower in the atmosphere charts, so let’s call the thing Heatwave Exxon, which was where we left off on my list from 2023.
Currently the 500 millibar pattern has several cool disturbances moving through the CONUS. The heat dome in association with Heatwave Exxon remains simmering over Mexico and the remainder of Central America:
The weather pattern as denoted by the above Pivotal Weather chart will slowly change such that record heat will begin to move northward back into the southern U.S. in earnest in a few days:
Once again, Texas and Florida will be under the gun for dangerous heat by Sunday, if not before then. We can see high temperature forecast values in Texas and Florida valid for Sunday on the chart below:
I suspect that extreme heat won’t be confined to just south Texas and Florida this time. Models build the heat dome more with time across the southern United States:
Unfortunately for Mexico, the heat dome will get more intense as we move towards late May.
Here is a summary from Reuters on what has transpired (or perspired) across Central America in association with Heatwave Exxon so far:
Mexico heat wave melts temperature records in ten cities, including Mexico City | Reuters
Mexico heat wave melts temperature records in ten cities, including Mexico City
By Reuters
May 10, 20246:11 PM EDT Updated 5 days ago
MEXICO CITY, May 10 (Reuters) – Ten cities in Mexico registered record-high temperatures in 10 cities, including the capital, authorities said on Friday, amid a searing heat wave that has prompted blackouts nationwide and pushed the power grid to the brink.
In the normally temperate high-altitude capital of Mexico City, North America’s largest metropolis, thermometers on Thursday peaked at 34.3 degrees Celsius (93.7 degrees Fahrenheit), a tenth of a degree higher than the record hit just a month earlier.
Neighboring Puebla broke its previous record of 34.3 C – set in 1947 – when it reached 35.2 C on Thursday.
In Ciudad Victoria, in the northern border state Tamaulipas, across from Texas in the United States, the temperature hit a sweltering 47.4 C on Thursday, breaking the previous high set in 1998.
The intense heat caused blackouts lasting several hours in some areas of Mexico this week, mainly in the north, and caused classes to be suspended in the central state of San Luis Potosi, which this week reached 50 C.
In a weekly report published on Thursday, Mexico’s health ministry reported seven heat-related deaths this heat season between its start on March 17 and May 4, a tally that could rise after this week’s brutal heat.
Human-caused climate change and El Nino have been pushing up temperatures worldwide and causing deadly heat waves.
Mexico’s electricity system regulator issued several alerts this week as demand in some parts of the country exceeded supply.
Business chambers and sector analysts criticized the blackouts, accusing the government of not investing in energy transmission networks or in sufficient generation to cover demand.
President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who leaves office in October, described the blackouts as “exceptional” and assured that Mexico has sufficient generation capacity.
The heat wave comes amid a severe nationwide drought that has caused a worsening water crisis in much of Mexico, making water a key issue in June general elections.
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Reporting by Raul Cortes Fernandez; Writing by Brendan O’Boyle; Editing by Josie Kao
Here are more “ETs” 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 some more April 2024 climatology (Prior reports are listed on older daily diary blogs for each calendar day.):
Here is More Climate 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.)