reader “agimarc” writes: As with the Lower 48 states, spring is late and cold here in central Alaska. Fairbanks reported a record low of 2 degrees F above zero Sunday, breaking the previous record of 8 from 1924.
Here in Anchorage, looks like we are around 3 – 4 weeks late with ice of local lakes and snow off the ground. Winter was not particularly hard, but it all changed with a very cold April. And at this point it does not appear things will be warming up soon. So much for manmade global warming due to carbon dioxide emissions.![usak_yestlows_i5_points[1]](http://wattsupwiththat.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/usak_yestlows_i5_points1.png?quality=75)
Story here: http://www.adn.com/2013/04/29/2883299/interior-alaska-sees-record-breaking.html
Yes, have a look at the image at right.
Here is a complete list of record lows for Alaska in the past 7 days, 996 new record lows were set (click low temp and details tab):
http://wx.hamweather.com/maps/climate/records/7day/usak.html?cat=maxtemp,mintemp,snow,lowmax,highmin,
And the cold is now creeping into the USA, look at the difference between Denver and Kansas City:
Expect a whole new crop of record lows for the USA, and some serious issues to develop with agriculture in the nation’s breadbasket as a result.
This in contrast to last year at this time of 49% of the corn crop planted and the five year average of 31%
The Weather Channel picked the wrong year to name winter storms, the snow and cold may be their Achilles Heel (h/t to Steve Goddard):
Winter Storm Achilles: Snow and Cold Kick Off May | Weather Underground
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Just a bit of balance.
Down here in Newcastle. Australia, we seem to be having a rather warm autumn. 28°C here yesterday. long term average is about 20°C for this time of year. Forecast is 24°C for the next several days. http://www.weatherzone.com.au/nsw/hunter/newcastle
Rather nice weather, I must say.. and I’m stuck inside working 🙁
steveta_uk:
32 F= 0 C ; 0 F = -20 C or thereabouts ; 1 degree C= 1.8 degrees F on the scale
steverichards1984 says:
May 1, 2013 at 11:07 am
You got it – 256.5 kelvins.
I do think this spring is turning out to be remarkable. But let us not fall into the same mode as the warming world crowd. Weather is just that. What I find amusing is that those who would use the weather as evidence for a global trend may find themselves having to question the theory that carbon dioxide is causing a warmer world. That is their problem.
As someone who likes weather, and I figure many visiting Anthony’s blog do, I have always taken note of historically special weather events. I too live in Colorado. I don’t think there is a better place in the world for seeing weather than Colorado.
One story that I took note of when I first moved here over twenty years ago was about a couple of bank robbers who were tracked down because they had the unfortunate coincidence of having to excape in a snow storm. The thirty inches of snow allowed the police to track them down quite easily. While it was difficult to imagine at the time, I remember pondering the possibility of another thirty inch storm in my life time. I didn’t have long to wait. I recorded twenty seven inches of snow on flat ground, in my driveway just a few years later. We call them “dump” storms and they can happen almost any time once summer is over but the memorable ones are usually either in October or March.
I am reminded of something one of my professors said: “under highly controlled conditions, children, wild animals, and the weather will do as they damn well please”. And so it is. If you aren’t humbled by it all, you aren’t paying attention.
This unseasonable cold weather will remind all of those who aren’t too dumb that there is something worse than global warming. The corn in South Texas was frost damaged last week. It was planted in early March, as usual. The global warmers are gnashing their teeth at this cold weather, while farmers are praying for more CO2- it saves their crops and increases the yield.
Many years ago I did a spectral analysis of annual temperature for the USGS, and using pre 1965 data (1950 to 1965 if I recall right) I found a large second harmonic of the annual signal, the phase of which might move quite a lot from year to year. A retarded phase, which we certainly saw this year in the moderate February/March period, often leads to a cold April/May. To some degree the impression of warming seasons, I think ,is actually a persistent change of phase of these harmonics.
I have no idea how much snow I’ve had here (SE Wyoming) in the past 20 hours, but though it is still snowing it isn’t getting deeper on the ground. We’ve got about 14 inches now.
Here in northern Alberta I still have snow and ice. My Harley is still in storage whereas five years ago I was riding long ago. The only Global Warming I’m getting is from my furnace still blasting central heat.
steveta_uk says:
“The linked article says “Sunday’s high temperature was 37″ and “it was just 2 degrees above zero” which seems to imply “zero” means freezing, i.e. 32F.”
Steveta,
The article says the “low” was 2F above zero which would be just 2F or about -17C rounded. The high was 37F or 3C rounded. Hope that helps.
Cheers,
William
As Real Science says:
“If the weather is hot, that proves global warming.
If the weather is cold, that also proves global warming, because global warming creates more extremes. An ice age would therefore be the ultimate proof of global warming.”
I live just outside of Anchorage. We got another inch of global warming yesterday.
April was the 6th coldest on record.
April was the 6th snowiest on record.
They just extended the deadline for removing studded tires. April 15 is the “normal” date. On the 6th of April it was extended to 1 May. This happens every once in a while.
On the 29th of April it was extended to 15 May. I cannot recall when it was EVER this late in the season before.
steverichards1984 says:
May 1, 2013 at 11:07 am
“It was just 2 degrees above zero at Fairbanks” is unintelligible to most people in the world.
Could all of us perhaps move to a standard temperature scale?
It would be extremely useful.
The thing is, all the world used to have a standard temperature scale. Then you metric nuts screwed it all up.
Don’t forget Oklahoma: Could be latest date for winter precipitation in some locations, and could break records for latest freeze ever in some areas, according to NOAA.
http://www.srh.noaa.gov/images/fxc/oun/graphicast/image_full3.jpg
and
http://www.srh.noaa.gov/images/fxc/oun/graphicast/image_full5.jpg
Still cold here in the UK. Spring is just limping over the line here in the south, but further north the trees are not really playing ball. Spring is definitely late……
steveta_uk says:
May 1, 2013 at 11:00 am
“Sunday’s high temperature was 37″
“The high temperature of 29 degrees at the Fairbanks airport”
“The temperature failed to climb out of the 20s across much of the Interior.”
“It was just 2 degrees above zero at Fairbanks International Airport on Sunday”
All the above are from the same report. Makes no sense to me.
Steve.
“Sunday’s high temperature was 37″ —> Yes
“The high temperature of 29 degrees at the Fairbanks airport” —> That was Saturdays high temp. It tied the record for coldest high temp.
“The temperature failed to climb out of the 20s across much of the Interior.” —> The normal high temp for the area is 53 degrees.
“It was just 2 degrees above zero at Fairbanks International Airport on Sunday” —> 2F is the new record low for last Sunday. The old record was 8F.
I hope that helps.
The -25 F at Umiat AK and -24 F at Deadhorse AK this morning (1 May 2013) may have established new monthly records for the coldest temperature recorded in Alaska during the month of May.
small town just south of Calgary, i recorded for Environment Canada, -9.5C. In the history for this town (which does lack a lot of records), the previous low was -9.4C set in 1913….
Fairbanks just experienced the coldest April in the 64-year historical record, beating the previous record by nearly -3 F:
Top five coldest Aprils in Fairbanks:
2013 18.0 F
1985 20.7
1972 20.8
1955 21.6
2002 23.2
MEAN 31.6 F (64 years)
Top five warmest Aprils in Fairbanks:
1990 38.1
1998 38.6
2010 39.4
1995 40.1
1993 41.1 F
Thanks for all the help. I think what threw me (and other non-Americans) is any reference to “zero”. Is seems completely redundant, so since it is used so often I assumed there must be a reason for it.
So “2F above zero” just means 2F, right?
I’m fully aware of C, F, or K conversion, thanks.
Pretty spectacular cold spell in central North America in the week of April 15-22 as recorded by the Modis satellites. Dark Blue is -12.0C
http://s1.postimg.org/nuok3m0lr/Apr15_22_land_temps_2013.jpg
Comes from here which has been a little more up-to-date lately. Daily, weekly, monthly land temp anomalies at the highest resolution available.
http://neo.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/Search.html?group=67
The record cold proves Global Warming.
steveta_uk (11:52 am) –
Yes, “2F above zero” is redundant. It means nothing more than 2 degrees Fahrenheit. Some people prefer to say “2 degrees above zero” and “2 degrees below zero” rather than “2 degrees Fahrenheit” and “-2 degrees Fahrenheit”.
Of course, most of us would prefer to express this as 461.67 degrees Rankine. 😉
Sure if FEELS cold but it’s a non-normalized cold. We’ll take care of that for you and then you’ll feel much warmer.. in retrospect anyway.
Fourteen day forecast for Toronto, YYZ.
May 2-May 15 High [°C] Low [°C] P.O.P ConditionsThursday, May 2 19 Feels like 19 13 10% Sunny
Friday, May 3 17 Feels like 17 11 20% Cloudy periods
Saturday, May 4 17 Feels like 17 12 10% Sunny
Sunday, May 5 17 Feels like 17 11 10% Sunny
Monday, May 6 16 Feels like 16 11 10% Sunny
Tuesday, May 7 16 Feels like 16 10 10% Sunny
Wednesday, May 8 18 Feels like 20 10 10% Sunny
Thursday, May 9 15 Feels like 14 12 10% Mainly sunny
Friday, May 10 15 Feels like 14 10 10% Sunny
Saturday, May 11 16 Feels like 15 9 70% Scattered showers
Sunday, May 12 14 Feels like 13 10 20% Isolated showers
Monday, May 13 13 Feels like 13 9 10% Sunny
Tuesday, May 14 13 Feels like 13 7 40% Isolated showers
Wednesday, May 15 15 Feels like 15 10 40% Isolated showers
http://www.theweathernetwork.com/14-day-weather-trend/canada/ontario/toronto
Agreed. But for over a decade they used a ‘lack’ of snow and cold in parts of the NH as proof of global warming. They also talked endlessly about Spring arriving earlier and earlier. The points may of us make is to put their feet to the fire and listen to what they have to say now. Now they say the cold and snow is proof of global warming. 😉
and here in Ireland the famine continues .. straw and fodder being imported from England with an emergency Govt. subsidy .. frost at night .. no grass growth .. ground cold and wet .. and the few fledglings seen so far have been solitary
and now the threat of Hekla erupting in Iceland .. anyone else expecting a ice-age ?