Warm weather makes the starlings happy in Rome.

Rome has one of the milder winter climates in Europe and this makes a great place for the migrating starlings to call home for the season. But it doesn't make the Romans happy. The birds are noisy, and their droppings are causing a strong stench and slippery conditions. Walkers carry umbrellas to protect themselves from the droppings. 

http://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2015/12/14/458917484/dodging-droppings-romans-cope-with-massive-influx-of-starlings

Most Recent El Nino Predictions

This is the latest in the prediction for El-Nino. As you can see, it doesn't look like we will be getting too much of a winter here. May have to go to the high country to get some snow time in. You can watch the video with info at http://www.weather.com/news/climate/news/strong-el-nino-december-2015

This is one of the top 3 El Ninos. And all 3 of those has been in my lifetime. Yeah, folks, we are warming up.

Year	Sep-Nov ONI (degrees C)
1) 1997	+2.18
2) 2015	+2.04
3) 1982	+1.86

Year	Peak ONI (degrees C)
1) 1997-1998	+2.26 (Oct-Dec)
2) 1982-1983	+2.12 (Nov-Jan)
3) 2015-2016	+2.04 (Sep-Nov)

Stormy Northwest

The Northwest area is being bombarded with crazy weather. There was a tornado that touched down in the state of Washington, waves were hitting 35-40 ft on the coast of Oregon and Washington, and floods and wind damage are devastating people out there. We all know that we are only going to see more of this with the El Nino season, and the warming temperatures on Earth. Even though I feel that we are pretty safe in the Ohio Valley in WV from most of the crazy disasters like this, we will feel the effects as well when insurances start to raise premiums to cover costs, supplies increase in price, etc., etc.
Check out the link with more on the Northwest:
http://www.weather.com/storms/severe/news/pacific-northwest-storm-impacts

EPA and Climate Change

Climate change is happening

I was checking out the EPA Website and I found this article on climate change.


Our Earth is warming. Earth's average temperature has risen by 1.5°F over the past century, and is projected to rise another 0.5 to 8.6°F over the next hundred years. Small changes in the average temperature of the planet can translate to large and potentially dangerous shifts in climate and weather.

The evidence is clear. Rising global temperatures have been accompanied by changes in weather and climate. Many places have seen changes in rainfall, resulting in more floods, droughts, or intense rain, as well as more frequent and severe heat waves. The planet's oceans and glaciers have also experienced some big changes - oceans are warming and becoming more acidic, ice caps are melting, and sea levels are rising. As these and other changes become more pronounced in the coming decades, they will likely present challenges to our society and our environment.

http://www3.epa.gov/climatechange/basics/

Questions about climate change

I found this article that answers hard questions about climate change. I thought it was a pretty good article. Its easy to read and may be a good classroom resource for discussions on the subject.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/11/28/science/100000004063352.app.html?nytapp=iphone&_r=0

Hurricane Season Has Ended

The 2015 hurricane season has ended with activity in the Atlantic below average.  Out of only 11 named storms this year, only four developed into hurricanes, none of which made landfall.  Unfortunately, Texas and South Carolina were both struck by damaging tropical storms (Ana and Bill), resulting in billions of dollars in damage, and at least one death.  Overall though, the season was very quiet compared with typical years.  The same cannot be said for the Pacific, with El Nino causing record setting conditions in the Eastern and Central Pacific regions. The Eastern Pacific saw 18 named storms, 13 of which developed into hurricanes.  This included Hurricane Patricia off of Mexico, the strongest hurricane on record. Luckily that storm produced far less damage than was expected due to striking in a relatively unpopulated area and quickly losing power over the mountains.  The Central Pacific had 14 named storms, 8 of which became hurricanes, with 5 of those being major.

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2015/120115-below-normal-atlantic-hurricane-season-ends-active-eastern-and-central-pacific-seasons-shatter-records.html

100 year record broken in Buffalo

In Buffalo, a record that has stood for over a hundred years has been broken! Its December and it still HAS NOT SNOWED! Usually by the beginning of December upstate NY has seen a large snow. The last time Buffalo had no significant snow before December 3rd was in 1899. The lake effect usually has much to do with bringing the snow to Buffalo. The record has been broken and the bar may be set quite high as warm weather looks to keep Buffalo dry for some time.

El Nino is the main corporate on why snow has not been laid in Buffalo. During November only 7 days were below freezing temperatures. In looking forward to the future it may be disappointing to those who like a white Christmas. Predictions show that this warm, dry weather will continue in Buffalo!