Climate and Ag in the news
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NASA reported this week that their calculated global temperature for February 2017 shows it as the second warmest on record, slightly below the record-setting year of 2016 (which had a strong El Niñ0). NOAA should be releasing their numbers in a few days. You can read about it at https://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/news/20170315/.
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The hard freeze the last two nights has had significant consequences for Georgia’s fruit crops. The Packer has done a good job of pulling together an overview of some of the consequences of the bitter temperatures on strawberries, peaches and blueberries. Fortunately, the Vidalia onion crop does not appear to be affected. You can read…
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This is the coolest graph I have seen today. Maybe this week. From retired UGA ag extension agent Rad Yager, who got this from a blueberry producer near Homerville GA. It shows temperature traces from two ambient air sensors plus one that was exposed to irrigation water used for frost protection last night. You can…
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The temperature at my house this morning got down to 23 F. My azaleas are toast. I’ve seen temperatures below the killing frost level of 28 F down as far south as Valdosta in Georgia and a number of locations in northern Florida also experienced freezing temperatures. I’m curious to hear how your flowering plants…
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Of all the places in the United States that are experiencing changes due to a warmer climate, Alaska is on the forefront. I thought this Bloomberg article on how Alaska is (and is not) handling the warmer climate was interesting. Their coastal cities are especially vulnerable to increased sea level and lower amounts of sea…
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The nor’easter which developed along the east coast today has really cranked up. Athensgaweather.com showed this great image of the circulation around the low pressure, which at the time I wrote this was just off the coast of Long Island. The image is from earth.nullschool.net, one of my favorite sites. Make sure to go there to…
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As I’ve been discussing recently, the next two nights are going to be critical for fruit farmers around the Southeast. Temperatures in the low to mid 20s could cause millions of dollars of damage to crops that are well ahead of normal in blooming this year due to the mild winter. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has…