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While we have all been watching the current strong El Nino for signs of weakening and swinging to La Nina, that is not the only factor that will impact the weather across the United States this summer. This year another big factor will be the sea surface temperatures in the Atlantic, which are currently far…
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Earlier this week, NOAA provided the global monthly climate summary for January 2024. It showed that this January had record warmth again this year, the latest in a string of record-breaking months. It was also the second wettest January on record. Temperatures were above average over much of the globe, but the eastern United States,…
Posted in: Climate summaries -
Chill hours are generally low in Florida because it is so far south that it does not often experience temperatures below 45 F. But in the past few years, the chill accumulation has been even lower than average, resulting in challenges to peach producers there. That does not mean they can’t be grown, but the…
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The latest Drought Monitor, released earlier today, shows that nearly all drought has been removed from the Southeast. There is still a small area of moderate (D1) drought near Tampa, but only a few patches of abnormally dry (D0) conditions remain over most of the area due to the recent rain. Drought was also reduced…
Posted in: Drought -
According to NOAA’s new Polar Vortex blog, after a brief respite, the stratospheric polar vortex is expected to weaken again with potentially another major sudden stratospheric warming forecast to occur in the next week. But didn’t we just have a sudden stratospheric warming event?? Their blog post discusses how this new weakening of the polar vortex…
Posted in: Climate science -
The latest monthly summary for January 2024 was released by NOAA on February 8. It shows that the country as a whole was the 10th wettest on record, with extraordinary rain and flooding in parts of the South, especially Texas and Louisiana. Because of the rain, drought conditions improved across a lot of the US…
Posted in: Climate summaries -
Weather can change rapidly from one set of conditions to another after the passage of a strong front or other event. We can also see relatively rapid changes of weather patterns at times leading to very quick changes in the local temperature, wind, and humidity. On longer time scales, a drought can end quickly if…