Climate Change Impacts Inventory

Extreme heat wave in Africa and Asia continues to set all-time high temperature recordsA withering heat wave of unprecedented intensity and areal covered continues to smash all-time high temperatures Asia and Africa. As I reported earlier this week, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Chad, Niger, Pakistan, and Myanmar have all set new records for their hottest temperatures of all time over the past six weeks. The remarkable heat continued over Africa and Asia late this week. The Asian portion of Russia recorded its highest temperate in history yesterday, when the mercury hit 42.3°C (108.1°F) at Belogorsk, near the Amur River border with China. The previous record was 41.7°C (107.1°F) at nearby Aksha on July 21, 2004. (The record for European Russia is 43.8°C--110.8°F--set on August 6, 1940, at Alexandrov Gaj near the border with Kazakhstan.) Also, on Thursday, Sudan recorded its hottest temperature in its history when the mercury rose to 49.6°C (121.3°F) at Dongola. The previous record was 49.5°C (121.1°F) set in July 1987 in Aba Hamed.We've now had seven countries in Asia and Africa, plus the Asian portion of Russia, that have beaten their all-time hottest temperature record during the past two months. This includes Asia's hottest temperature of all-time, the astonishing 53.5°C (128.3°F) mark set on May 26 in Pakistan. All of these records are unofficial, and will need to be certified by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). According to Chris Burt, author of Extreme Weather, setting six national heat records in one month is eight in one summer is unprecedented. The only year which can compare is 2003, when five countries (the UK, France, Portugal, Germany, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein) all broke their all-time heat records during that year's notorious summer heat wave. Fortunately, the residents of the countries affected by this summer's heat wave in Asia and Africa are more adapted to extreme high temperatures, and we are not seeing the kind of death tolls experienced during the 2003 European heat wave (30,000 killed.) This week's heat wave in Africa and the Middle East is partially a consequence of the fact that Earth has now seen three straight months with its warmest temperatures on record, according to NOAA's National Climatic Data Center. It will be interesting to see if the demise of El Niño in May will keep June from becoming the globe's fourth straight warmest month on record.

The study, which looked at the number of very hot days in 53 U.S. metro area between 1956 and 2005, says the number of very hot days is on the rise globally, but the rate of increase is more than double in the most sprawling regions compared with more compact cities. This was true regardless of the urban regions’ climate zone, population size or rate of growth. The annual number of very hot days increased by 14.8 days on average in the regions with the most sprawl and by 5.6 days in the least sprawling cities, according to the study.

Between 1992 and 2001, the rate of deforestation in the most sprawling regions was more than double that of compact regions, the study noted. Other studies have shown that the loss of vegetative cover is one of the main reasons that cities become much hotter than surrounding areas.

Venezuelan Health Minister, Eugenia Sader stated that the dengue epidemic covers almost half the world and the spike in the disease is owing to climate change. Speaking on State VTV channel, the Minister confirmed a 88% increase of dengue in the Americas. In Venezuela, she admitted, the increase in dengue cases is 69% as of May but Venezuela has the lowest death rate from the disease in the region, standing at 0.7%. The population has an important role to play in eliminating the threat of dengue transmitted by the the white-legged mosquito. People, she urged, must eliminate stagnant pools of water left in tins or in old tires and start using mosquito nets.

Sader said the effect of climate on spreading the disease is clear in Venezuela because Andean States have started reporting cases of dengue for the first time.

while weather patterns are some of the most visible indicators of climate change, we are able to look at other patterns in the ecosystem as equally important measurements.  Among these patterns are jellyfish blooms, which are proliferating at an incredible pace. 

There are a number of factors contributing to the increase of jellyfish blooms, most of which are linked to global warming.  Jellyfish are thriving due to warmer and saltier waters as well as an increase in plankton growth.  In addition, overfishing has created a niche for jellyfish to exploit.  In years before predators were consuming much more of the ocean’s nutrients.  Now however, there is less competition leaving more for jellyfish.  This is also the case with agricultural runoff, where jellyfish are able to capitalize on the organisms feeding on the bacteria.  The current trend in climate change shows that the ice cover is melting much later in the spring, spawning more rapid and increased amounts of plankton growth.  There are various theories based on this evidence, but perhaps the strongest supports the idea that increased sunlight is favorable for the plankton.  This is especially true in colder regions such as the Bearing Sea, where scientists and fisherman alike have noticed drastic increases in jellyfish blooms.  But despite recent awareness, population control will only be a reality once the global climate patterns stabilize. For most, summer draughts mean hot days and dry gardens.  For jellyfish, however, it means saltier waters.  As rain becomes less frequent there is less fresh water entering the ocean.  Although it’s not the case with all jellyfish, most will benefit from a higher salt content.  This also relates to other predators and fish species, which are less tolerant of the salt increase and will often move from the coast into deeper, less salty waters.  As the ocean gets warmer and the water level rises, the jellyfish survival rate also goes up.  It creates the right conditions for jellyfish blooms to prosper, which results in a longer span of migration.  Now there are jellyfish species that are being labeled invasive.  Beachgoers have to swim with a new element of caution, unable to know which new species has moved in, and which has left. 

In their overview of shifting climate in the region, Overpeck and Udall cite published findings of prevalent signs of change: rising temperatures, earlier snowmelt, northward-shifting winter storms, increasing precipitation intensity and flooding, record-setting drought, plummeting Colorado River reservoir storage, widespread vegetation mortality and more large wildfires. "The West, and especially the Southwest, is leading the nation in climate change – warming, drying, less late-winter snowpack and drought – as well as the impacts of this change," said Overpeck, a UA professor of geosciences and atmospheric sciences and co-director of the Institute of the Environment. In the past 10 years, temperatures in almost all areas in western North America have surpassed the 20th century average, many by more than 1 or even 2 degrees Fahrenheit. The warming has decreased late-season snowpack, which serves as a water reservoir, as well as the annual flow of the Colorado River, the researchers said.

Those reductions, combined with the worst drought observed since 1900, haven't helped matters; water storage in Lakes Powell and Mead, the largest southwestern water reservoirs, fell nearly 50 percent between 1999 and 2004 and has not risen significantly since.

In addition to water, vegetation is feeling the effects of climate change. Work by UA's David Breshears and colleagues have already showed that more than 1 million hectares of piñon pine have died in the Southwest in the last few decades from a lethal combination of record-high temperatures and uncommonly severe drought. In addition, the frequency of large wildfires has increased as snowpack has decreased.

The changes in bloom times are glaring in Inouye's Rocky Mountain plots. "Just 10 years ago, this project was perfectly timed with the academic calendar," he explains. In mid-May, as soon as Inouye wound up his teaching duties at the University of Maryland, he would head out to his beloved mountains just in time to track wildflower blooms. But now some of the flowers he studies begin blooming by mid-April. To continue his research, Inouye has had to pay assistants to track flowering that occurs before he is able to arrive on site.

The careful tracking of bloom times over many years provides an important indicator of climate change. But Inouye's research also shows that bloom times are part of an intricate and often delicate natural dance that is in many cases disrupted by climate change. Inouye is an expert on pollinators like bees and butterflies, and his research has shed light on a growing problem known as "phenological mismatches," in which plants and pollinators adapt at different rates to a changing climate.

In the case of the Aspen sunflower (Helianthella quinquenervis), for instance, global warming has led to smaller snow packs in the mountains, which means earlier snow melts -- an important cue for wildflower blooms. Paradoxically, as the Aspen sunflowers are triggered to bloom earlier each year, it becomes more likely that they will be damaged by exposure to late spring frost. Inouye's research shows that from 1992 to 1998, such frosts on average killed about a third of the Aspen sunflower buds in his plots. Between 1999 and 2006, however, the typical percentage doubled, with nearly three-quarters of all buds being killed by frost in an average year. Inouye says he has seen whole fields of this particular flower (shown in the photograph) decimated by frost. "Given the rate of global warming, we'll see some wildflower extinctions," he says. "There is little doubt about that."

long-term monitoring has shown that animal communities living at great depth on the seafloor can change radically over remarkably short periods, and that these events are ultimately driven by climate. Such faunal changes are exemplified by the 'Amperima Event' – the sudden mass occurrence of the sea cucumber (holothurian) Amperima rosea recorded on the Porcupine Abyssal Plain (PAP) situated off the southwest coast of Ireland in the northeast Atlantic. Communities of animals living on the seabed there at depths of nearly 5000 metres have been monitored from 1989 to the present day. A major change occurred in the PAP community between 1996 and 1999 involving a number of animal groups, including sea anemones, segmented worms, sea spiders, sea squirts, brittle stars, and sea cucumbers, all of which increased in abundance. However, the population explosion in the sea cucumber Amperima rosea (hereafter Amperima) was particularly striking – thus the 'Amperima Event'. Before 1996 the sea cucumber was found in only ones or twos. They were very rare. But by 1999, the sea cucumber reached such high densities that if you were able to walk on the deep seafloor, you would have difficulty in avoiding squashing them flat. Dr David Billet and his colleagues showed that the increase abundance and dominance of Amperima occurred over a very wide area, greater than the size of the UK. Changes are also apparent in the abundance of other animals living in the seabed, including the single-celled creatures inhabiting the sediments. The whole deep-sea world had been turned on its head. "What this strongly suggested," says Dr Billett, "is that the 'Amperima Event' did not simply reflect localised, chance changes in the abundances of one or two species. Instead, changes in the whole deep-sea animal community were driven by environmental factors."

"Whether it is the quality or the quality of the organic matter, or both, that matter," says Dr Billett, "it appears that changes in the density of animals such as Amperima are related to phytoplankton productivity in the overlying surface waters, which is affected by climate change."

AVAILABILITY of water in the country has been decreasing over the years due to a number of factors including increased demand. The Minister for Water and Irrigation, Prof Mark Mwandosya, said here on Wednesday that the shortage was also caused by climate change which led to a rise of temperatures, drought and decreased levels of lakes and rivers. He said according to studies, Tanzania's temperature has been rising by one degree for the past 60 years.

In Guatemala, the people first realized they were experiencing climate change after Hurricane Mitch left 12,000 people dead in 1998, says Naty Atz Sunc, the general co-ordinator for the Association of Community Development and Promotion (CEIBA). Since then Tropical Storm Stan in 2005 and Agatha in May have left thousands of people in temporary shelters. Although, there were storms before, what Guatemala is experiencing is much more extreme now, Sunc explained with Rachel Warden from Kairos translating. There has been devastating loss of crops, including grains and entire families have been displaced because of landslides. “For the first time, we’ve experienced hail in Guatemala,” she said.

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Extreme heat wave sets all-time high temperature records in Africa and Middle EastA withering heat wave of unprecedented intensity and areal covered has smashed all-time high temperatures in four nations in the Middle East and Africa over the past week. Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Chad, and Niger all set new records for their hottest temperatures of all time, and several other Middle East nations came within a degree of their hottest temperatures ever. The heat was the most intense in Iraq, which had its hottest day in history on June 14, 2010, when the mercury hit 52.0°C (125.6°F) in Basra. Iraq's previous record was 51.7°C (125.1°F) set August 8, 1937, in Ash Shu'aybah. It was also incredibly hot in Saudi Arabia, which had its hottest temperature ever on Tuesday (June 22): 52.0°C (125.6°F), measured in Jeddah, the second largest city in Saudi Arabia. The previous record was 51.7°C (125.1°F), at Abqaiq, date unknown. The record heat was accompanied by a sandstorm, which caused eight power plants to go offline, resulting in blackouts to several Saudi cities.In Africa, Chad had its hottest day in history on Tuesday (June 22), when the temperature reached 47.6°C (117.7°F) at Faya. The previous record was 47.4°C (117.3°F) at Faya on June 3 and June 9, 1961. Niger tied its record for hottest day in history on Tuesday (June 22), when the temperature reached 47.1°C (116.8°F) at Bilma. That record stood for just one day, as Bilma broke the record again on Wednesday (June 23), when the mercury topped out at 48.2°C (118.8°F). The previous record was 47.1°C on May 24, 1998, also at Bilma.Three countries came within a degree of their all time hottest temperature on record during the heat wave. Bahrain had its hottest June temperature ever, 46.9°C, on June 20, missing the all-time record of 47.5°C (117.5°F), set July 14, 2000. Temperatures in Quatar reached 48.8°C (119.8°F) on June 20. Quatar's all-time record hottest temperature was 49.6°C (121.3°F) set on July 9, 2000. It was also very hot in Kuwait, with temperatures reaching 51°C (123.8°F) in the capital on June 15. Kuwait's all-time hottest temperature was 51.9°C (125.4°F), on July 27,2007, at Abdaly. According to Essa Ramadan, a Kuwaiti meteorologist from Civil Aviation, Matrabah, Kuwait smashed this record and had Asia's hottest temperature in history on June 15 this year, when the mercury hit 54.0°C (129.2°F). However, data from this station is notoriously bad, and each year bogus record highs have to be corrected, according to an email I received from weather record researcher Maximiliano Herrera. Asia's hottest temperature in history will very likely remain the 53.5°C (128.3°F) recorded at MohenjuDaro, Pakistan on May 26 this year.

Once again, Philadelphia faces an especially hot summer

It has been hot for days, for weeks, and for that matter, remarkably often in the last 23 years. In the period of record dating to 1874, officially eight of the 10 warmest summers in Philadelphia have occurred since 1988.

This latest heat surge continues an extraordinarily warm period that took hold in March, right after the historic snows disappeared. In New Jersey, the March 1-June 1 period - the meteorological spring - was the warmest statewide on record, said David Robinson, a Rutgers University professor who is the state climatologist.

ASTRONOMICAL SPRING FOR 2010...DEFINED AS MARCH 20 TO JUNE 20 IN THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE...WAS THE WARMEST ON RECORD AT BOTH WASHINGTON NATIONAL DC AND WASHINGTON DULLES. AT WASHINGTON DC...THE AVERAGE SPRING TEMPERATURE OF 66.7 DEGREES BROKE THE OLD RECORD OF 66.3 DEGREES SET IN 1991. AT DULLES...THE AVERAGE SPRING TEMPERATURE OF 64.5 DEGREES BROKE THE OLD RECORD OF 63.1 DEGREES SET IN 1991. OFFICIAL CLIMATE RECORDS DATE BACK TO 1871 FOR WASHINGTON DC AND 1962 FOR DULLES.

Science News

Warming temperatures could help explain why migration isn’t such a hot idea anymore for some elk living in and around Yellowstone National Park.

Migration supposedly lets animals follow the best food of the season, Middleton said. But the migratory elk are dwindling in number, while the stay-behind part of the herd grows.

Qatar's longest day in the year was also the hottest with experts agreeing that the unusually high temperatures experienced in Qatar and the Gulf region over the last five days indicate a significant shift in weather patterns. The temperatures recorded this year are 5-7 degrees Celsius higher than in the corresponding period last year, Qatari daily The Peninsula said. Maximum temperatures on June 18, 19 and 20, last year, were 44, 43 and 42 degrees Celsius respectively. However, this year, all the three days recorded a high of 49C. There was also a major shift in the minimum temperature recorded during the same period.

The weather should not have been so hot this month. But we have been receiving warm and humid south-westerly winds for the last four days [thus forcing temperatures up]. Normally, we receive this wind during the peak of summer," the official was quoted as saying.

Record high temepratures in Bahrain have forced several construction companies take the humanitarian decision of resting their labourers in the afternoon.

A picturesque Baja town has been hammered repeatedly by the escalating tempo of flooding from tropical storms.

Why the frequency of floods now after so many quiet years? “I think it’s global warming,” said Christopher.

“Before we got here in 1982, there had been two floods on record,” Christopher, a retired Californian and Rotary Club member, told me. “The floods of 1914 and 1955. Then since 2006, we had three floods — almost one every year! I’m starting to get tired of rebuilding the roof and everything else.”

In China, an estimated 200 million people are impacted by natural catastrophes every year. The rising number of severe weather-related natural catastrophes, also due to climate change, is increasing losses and impacting economic development.

“Due to its exposure to all weather-related perils, its large population and the fast growth in economic values, China is especially affected by climate change – and will be even more so in the future,” said Prof. Peter Höppe, Head of Geo Risks Research at Munich Re . “Over the last 30 years, Asia has been the continent with the largest increase in frequency of weather-related disasters. Loss-relevant events have tripled in number, which presents new challenges for all exposed economies.

Over the last century, with a rise of more than 1°C, Asia has been the continent with the largest temperature increase.

Mumbai has over the last four years seen a gradual decline in the number of rain days, states data compiled by the disaster management department of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). While it rained on 106 days during the monsoon season in 2006, it only rained on 92 days in 2008. The number further came down to 86 in 2009.

Interestingly, however, even as the number of rain days decreased by almost 19%, for the last year when rains were deficient, the total rainfall witnessed has not deviated much.

Extreme rain events have increased due to climatic changes and global warming, a senior civic official said.

The GCC region is undergoing a heat wave that is hospitalising labourers, breaking down electricity substations and pushing power stations to the limit, experts and officials from across the region say. ¡°It¡¯s a heat wave, it¡¯s unexpected, we are having extreme temperatures for this time of year,¡± said Essa Ramadan, the senior meteorologist at the Kuwait Meteorological Department. In Kuwait, ¡°it¡¯s seven to eight degrees [Celsius] above average¡±.

The highest temperature ever recorded at Kuwait International Airport since it started taking measurements in 1957 was 51.3¢ªC in August 1998. Even though June is usually a cooler month, that temperature was matched this week. Weather stations in other areas of the country recorded temperatures as high as 54¢ªC.

Mr Ramadan blames the high temperatures on global warming, which he said is changing the Earth¡¯s weather systems and has led to an average annual rise of between 0.5¢ªC and 0.8¢ªC in Kuwait over the last 53 years. He said Kuwait, the eastern coast of Saudi Arabia, the south of Iraq and west Iran are being hit the hardest.