.

Friday, January 3, 2014

WUWT Weather Games: Coldest day since 1974 vs hottest several days since 1906.

Sou | 5:00 AM Go to the first of 47 comments. Add a comment

Anthony Watts has just posted an article (archived here) with the headline:

New record low set in the coldest city in the continental USA – much of the country headed for a deep freeze

Oh boy! We're heading for an ice age.

Thing is, his NEW RECORD LOW is for International Falls, Minnesota, USA.  Guess how long they've been keeping records - a whole forty years.  Yes, that's right.  According to this weather website:
This report describes the typical weather at the International Fa (International Falls, Minnesota, United States) weather station over the course of an average year. It is based on the historical records from 1974 to 2012. Earlier records are either unavailable or unreliable.
Over the course of a year, the temperature typically varies from -21°C to 25°C and is rarely below -33°C or above 30°C.

So what was the "record low" that was recorded?  It was cold.  Very cold.  It was -42ºF, breaking the previous cold record of -37ºF.  I'll translate for most of my readers - that's -41ºC with the previous record a well-below freezing cold of -38ºC.

Now while Anthony has in his hand a single town in the USA that had the coldest morning in forty years, in winter time, I'll raise him two countries including an entire continent with extremely hot temperatures, not just for a day - but for days on end.

Argentina


Argentina is only now experiencing relief after some areas have had the worst heat wave since records began.  When did the records begin, you ask?  They began not forty years ago, not fifty years ago, not one hundred years ago but one hundred and eight years ago - back in 1906.

And this isn't a single town we're talking about with a few hours of record heat.  This heat wave affected the large part of a nation and lasted more than a fortnight.  Okay, it might not seem that hot to some people with temperatures in the high thirties but in some parts it got into the mid-forties.  Argentina isn't used to these sort of temperatures and its power grid can't cope with the demand.

What happens in record heat waves?  Well it happened here too so I relate to the people of Argentina who can't use their air conditioners because of power cuts.  It's causing all sorts of problems for the nation, exacerbating political problems as well as daily living.  The power cuts have made people angry, stopped shops that should have benefited from the hot weather, like ice cream parlours, from being able to earn a crust.  Yep, expect more civil unrest in various parts of the world over coming decades. 


Australia 


Australia is reporting massive areas only now getting relief from a wave of heat that emerged in the west on Boxing day and shifted across the continent.  It brought temperatures in the low to high forties (102ºF to 114ºF) to large parts of Australia sparing only Victoria and Tasmania.  This is what it's been like - not from latte-sipping city slickers in air-conditioned luxury, but from tough people who live in the bush and have lived through all sorts of weather extremes.  (Australians tend toward understatement not exaggeration or over-exuberance.)

Queensland isn't out of the woods yet - it's still in the grip of the heat wave.  They aren't used to temperatures that high in the tropics.

This after Australia's Angry Summer last year, various "hottest days" on record and the hottest year on record - with no El Nino.


USA


I wonder why Anthony didn't report this hot spell last month, a bit closer to his home.


From the WUWT comments


Okay, let me have my fun.  Sometimes I get the impression that WUWT readers think that the USA is the entire world - except for Alaska which is sometimes hot when the rest of the country gets chilly and maybe Florida which has been warm and toasty.


John Eggert doesn't remember even a month ago, when the whole world had the hottest November on record. Or 2012 when the USA had its hottest year on record - and says:
January 2, 2014 at 7:50 am
This brings to mind a question to add to Bob Tisdale’s list. For 25 . . . years we’ve been promised . . . global warming. Where . . . is it? I want a refund. Profanity free, but can be added for effect. -35C this morning. “Normal” minimum is -17C. Wind chill is cheating and isn’t included in that.


IIRC it was only yesterday that it was pointed out that the "CAGW crowd" = deniers.  They are the only people who use the acronym.  I've never tried to measure the thickness of their skulls with a ruler. physics geek says:
January 2, 2014 at 8:52 am
2014 is setting out to be another inconvenient year for the CAGW crowd.
That presupposes that a) the weather and temperature will be honestly reported and b) that reality will somehow penetrate the overly thick skulls of the CAGW crowd. I would opine that no evidence exists for the latter supposition.

47 comments:

  1. I invoke International Falls into AGW conversations all the time. The place is an icebox. When it was say-32F in South Dakota we would say, "Lucky we aren't in International Falls. It's -35F there."

    GISS and NOAA November was the hottest evah. Imagine the agony if December has also been among the warmest ever. It looks like it was to me.

    JCH

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I looked on the map and it's just below Winnipeg Ontario - I had a feeling it would be a bit chilly. I lived in Edmonton Alberta during one of the longest coldest winters ever in the early 1970s. I thought my eyeballs were going to fall out when it got to 40 below :)

      Delete
    2. I grew up in the Dakotas. Left in 1975. I think I know exactly which winter you are referring to. It stayed below zero for a very long period of time. City water mains froze. Buried at 6', or more, and they froze.

      JCH


      Delete
    3. Sou, not to nitpick but it is Winnipeg, Manitoba or as we like to call it Winterpeg, Manisnowba. Other than that another great article...

      Mike

      Delete
    4. Oops, that's a big mistake, sorry about that. I thought it sounded wrong as soon as I posted it. Should have checked. I spent some time in Toronto, too, would you believe :(

      Delete
    5. No problem, you provide a great service to the rest of us in reading WTFUWT so we don't have to. I read the lords post on chrismas and afterwards had to lay down because of the headache it gave me. Many thanks,


      Mike from Wpg

      Delete
  2. There's a rather severe cold front headed across much of the USA for the rest of the week. Already it's pretty bad in the Midwest and the Northeast is expected to get significant snowfall on top of very cold temperatures. In Washington, DC (where I live) it is not expected to get above freezing all day tomorrow. In other words, this is when the USA-based deniers (like Watts) start posting nonsense like mad. However, they were silent about the November aerages or (more visibly) when people were wearing T-shirts and shorts around here just before Christmas.

    I enjoy your blog; it saves me from having to go to WUWT to keep tabs on these morons. Keep up the good work.

    -- Dennis

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hey Sou, get with it, Honest ol'Tony is using International records, while you just focus on individual countries.

    ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. "Argentina is only now experiencing relief after some areas have had the worst heat wave since records began. "

    Sou you forgot to mention that it was actually hotter in Argentina 108 years ago.

    South America: Highest Temperature, Record Value 48.9°C (120°F)

    Geospatial Location Rivadavia, Argentina [33°11'S, 68°12'W, elevation: 668m (2192ft)]

    I'm not sure whether this link fits into your denier links category so I'll paste it anyway and let you deal with it, http://wmo.asu.edu/south-america-highest-temperature

    The only unprecedented warming Australia has seen is actually only in the demented mind of barnturd j...lol... chicken little

    Karen

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you're going to troll, you might try some arguments that aren't demonstrably false right off the bat, as per the Berkeley Earth records for South America and the Australian government records.

      Making **** up is a pretty sad show on your part.

      KR

      Delete
    2. KR...............lets go a bit further back sweetie :)

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uif1NwcUgMU

      Delete
    3. In 2009 I was in Melbourne northern suburbs stuck on the freeway in temperatures of 47 degrees - with a busted air conditioner. I was lucky to make it to where I was heading without passing out. That week many records were broken in what was probably the worst heat wave Victoria has ever had in the modern record and definitely the highest temps - which preceded the horrific fires that killed so many people.

      Last summer broke numerous records in Australia. This past year and more numerous "hot" records have been broken - hottest calendar year, hottest 13 consecutive months etc etc.

      Karen tell me, I'm curious - for what reason do you tell lies? Why do you act so aggressively while you tell lies, calling other regulars nasty and/or derogatory names - baiting the comment policy?

      Why can you not contribute like a courteous human being? Is it because you know you are wrong so you lash out with nervous false bravado?

      Not a good look.

      If you didn't mix facts with lies people might even start to take you seriously and treat you with respect, even if they didn't agree with the points you make. (I'm not sure if you want to risk that or not. Maybe your whole strategy is to be treated as a joke so you can talk about the nasty warmists.)

      BTW - I think this video shows up how deniers view global warming even more clearly.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jStvNO1dxsI

      Delete
    4. PS My latter comments aren't "tone trolling" - I'm the boss and I make the rules <:|

      And on a more serious note, I want to keep HW a place where people enjoy spending time and where they feel welcome to post comments. Strongly worded correction of disinformation is fine, but the childish behaviour of Karen is not something to be encouraged. Save it for WUWT.

      Delete
    5. As Sou and I both note, your posts are complete fabrications, and the youtube link you gave is just more of the same (misrepresentation, cherry-picking, claiming that a single location is representative of global trends, much as you did with your South American single data point). See the video Sou linked for details, although I suspect you are already aware of just how ludicrous your link is.

      And if you want to go YouTube, 'sweetie', your song is here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_eNQcdwDo8; the Denial Tango...

      KR.

      Delete
    6. "The only unprecedented warming Australia has seen is actually only in the demented mind of barnturd j"

      Really?

      More fool* you:

      http://www.bom.gov.au/announcements/media_releases/ho/20140103.shtml


      Bernard J.


      [* Not that you could have reached the 'more' level without extreme exertion... 10 points for the effort to break your own records in incompetence.]

      Delete
    7. Sou, I don't mind in the least that KarenMackSunspot* has a potty-mouth. It's simply a matter of sticks and stones vs the reflection on himself, so I come out ahead - by furlongs and indeed by leagues.


      Bernard J.


      [* For this readers here who are not familiar with the history of the Deltoid blog, 'Karen' manifested after his original 'Sunspot' persona was banned for bad behaviour. The puppeteer has the 'Mack' sock as well, and there are a few others that have been outed over the years - the numpty has tells that he can't keep hidden for too long.]

      Delete
  5. "Sou you forgot to mention that it was actually hotter in Argentina 108 years ago."

    Apparently, you suffer from a lack of reading comprehension. Nowhere did Sou claim that it hadn't been hotter before. Sou referred to a Heat Wave ('a prolonged period of excessively hot weather') and not individual heat records.


    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Make a map of temperature trends back to 1900 (tinyurl.com/kunest4) and see what central South America looks like.

      Karen apparently believes he is fighting the good fight. Instead, poor reading skills and an unwillingness to address the issues make him look a bit thick. The whole point of this post is about *not* using one-day, single-point records to comment on *climate* change. So what does Karen do?

      PL

      Delete
  6. "It's not a high-brow blog, it's rife with bad puns and sarcasm and snark."
    Your words Sou ?

    "But the science it refers to is solid." ok.......so you constantly refer to WUWT.

    "Karen tell me, I'm curious - for what reason do you tell lies?".......????

    "Why do you act so aggressively while you tell lies,"......?????

    "calling other regulars nasty and/or derogatory names - baiting the comment policy?"

    I assume you are referring there to me calling barnturd 'chicken little' ?

    Sou, I presume that your comment policy rules apply also to barnturd eg http://blog.hotwhopper.com/2013/12/vessel-trapped-off-antarctica-its.html?showComment=1388566918923#c1307334587810486622

    and

    http://blog.hotwhopper.com/2013/12/vessel-trapped-off-antarctica-its.html?showComment=1388576102450#c6922614533208030143

    Karen

    ps. my house was surrounded on 3 sides by the 2009 fires, my husband and I spent
    many hours into the night putting out embers and spot fires and the next 3 weeks worrying that the wind would change and blow the fire back us through the unburnt bush and dried out tree tops. Did CO2 cause these fires? No, it was high winds and sparks from power lines.
    Have you worked out the carbon footprint of your car air conditioner? Quite high I believe.

    Karen

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. KarenMackSunspot.

      You're just a bloke pretending to be a female so the first link is simple truth - referring to your 'husband' in the post where you take umbrage at being outed for your online transvestism doesn't change the fact. Any sufficiently-interested reader who studies your history knows that Sunspot was an acknowledged male, and a consideration of your misogynistic commentary would certainly permit anyone to recognise that you are either masquerading as a femaile or have a self-gender loathing of a rather pathological sort. And quite aside from your demonstrated misogyny your style and the subject matter of your commentary is very much male.

      Oh, and even after all these years you haven't learned to hide your tells. There are indeed three of them in your above post - the elongated ellipses, the excessively multiple exclamation and question marks, and the spaces that creep in immediately before those very same punctuation marks (you did it twice in this case).

      On the matter of your second link, your own claims have repeatedly indicated that you are not flying even in the middle of the IQ flock - you're a demonstrable straggler in fact - so it's also a simple reflection of fact.

      You can squawk all you like, but no-one who has a modicum of intellect and education is ever going to believe you. Still, it's good to see that I am still living rent-free in your head.


      Bernard J.

      Delete
    2. Not just that little snipe, Karen. You make a habit of deliberate baiting while posting nonsense. You did it again with your dig about WUWT. It's like it's so ingrained in your psyche that you can't help it. If you didn't make up stuff at the same time it wouldn't be quite so bad, but nearly as bad. It would be less bad if you had anything of substance to add to the discussion. But you act like a troll, posting childish inanities and parroting denier memes you picked up from who knows where, which you must know don't stand up to scrutiny. (You're not as bad as Janice Moore at WUWT, but heading that way.)

      If you just want to troll then HW isn't for you. If, as is almost hinted in the above post, you want to contribute to the discussion - then shape up. There are visitors here who know a helluva lot more about climate science than I do. They've been doing it for years. If you like it here, and you seem to have taken a shine to HW, then try reading what other people have to say before diving in head first with silly comments. You might learn something.

      As for who the comment policy applies to, it's everyone. Of the few posters whose comments I've deleted, it's about 50:50 fake sceptics and people who accept science on its merits. It's very very rare that I delete any comments and I've only ever banned two people.

      As for the fires - you have my sympathy. We lost family and my sister's school mates in the fires (Kinglake and Mudgegonga) and I've had to live through three major fires this past ten years or so and had some close shaves.

      Given you were there during the record heat wave and fires in 2009, why do you tell fibs about Australia's string of heat records? It comes across as a mindless reaction to unpleasant reality.

      Delete
    3. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

      Delete
    4. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

      Delete
    5. For the record, Karen is no longer welcome here for persistent and childish trolling, despite my best efforts to be accommodating.

      Delete
    6. Good riddance. Deltoid is one site I no longer visit because it has been destroyed by trolls like Karen. I don't want to see this blog go the same way.

      Delete
    7. I agree. Deltoid used to be a wonderful site; at one stage it was the first blog I looked at each morning. It has now been dragged into the gutter by the childish posts of the denialists, of which Karen (in his various guises) is the worst. I admire the tenacity of those who continue to rebut them there, but I'd really regret it of HW went the same way.

      GWB's Nemesis

      Delete
    8. Thanks to KarenMackSunspot (and was he/she also called _Jim yesterday?) for reminding us what climate change deniers are all about: delusions, lies, and a startling lack of intelligence.

      Delete
    9. I agree with the moderation, but not with the namecalling toward Karen (or whoever he/she is). Our "side" will look better if we take the high road and let the denialists revel in nastiness. There's no loss in politely ushering such people to the door.

      Delete
    10. Don,

      Agree in principle, and I try to stick to the facts. However, some of us have seen Karen and his ilk destroy Deltoid. Our antipathy to this character is not just based on HW posts.

      PL

      Delete
  7. "Given you were there during the record heat wave and fires in 2009, why do you tell fibs about Australia's string of heat records? It comes across as a mindless reaction to unpleasant reality."

    Sou the day that fire started was indeed a hot one, in the hottest part of the year, in a world that is still rebounding from the LIA.
    CO2 emissions may be a small factor in the temperature rising, but there is much evidence in the science that is contradictory to the fervent cultist meme.
    So many/all alarmist predictions have failed and the climate models are surely an embarrassment to the followers, so for the time being until there is definitive proof of a CO2 armageddon I will sit on the fence with my legs hanging on the opposite side to the cult science.

    Karen

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ther is certainly much evidence in the science contradictory to your cult, which I suspect is that of Sol Invictus ("the Unconquered Sun", give or take).

      Climate models have been remarkably successful, particularly in their uncertainty estimates. Contrary to your cult's tenets, model projections of surface temperatures have encompassed the actual outcome, despite the unusual preponderance of La Ninas so far in the 21stCE. That's not likely to continue but even if it done the impact is already factored in - 2011 was the warmest La Nina year on record.

      Your Sun gods are taking a snooze and that's not helping you at all. Better start praying to Vulcan if you're hoping for any relief from the predicted warming, and the predicted droughts, floods, heatwaves, wildfires and pest excursions.

      I don't doubt you'll continue to believe that climate models are a failure; that is, after all, a tenet of the denier cult, carved in stone at its very inception. A truth so true it existed before climate models themselves. Religions can do that sort of thing, apparently, it's kinda spooky.

      Delete
    2. I'm preparing an article on climate models, drawing on the IPCC report among other sources. There was an excellent article at ArsTechnica recently that I highly recommend for people like me who don't work with them and only know what we read about them.

      http://arstechnica.com/science/2013/09/why-trust-climate-models-its-a-matter-of-simple-science/

      Delete
    3. "... in a world that is still rebounding from the LIA." At best, this statement is effectively a model (shock! horror!) that is analogous to a spring pendulum cyclical return to some equilibrium position and, at worst, is non-scientific as it is an oversimplification. But it has given me food for thought as I sit here contemplating my champagne "rebounding from its own LIA" in the ice bucket - the consequence of energy transfer and not the result of the champagne's desire to recover from its cold temperature. And as I look out across the seascape, the ocean is still "rebounding" from the low tide. On a similar note, my bank balance fits the "still rebounding from the Christmas and New Year" genre. So the "rebounding" argument is facile without elaboration.
      Furthermore, there are basic flaws in the statement "… in a world that is still rebounding from the LIA." as it includes the assumptions that the LIA was (a) a globally synchronous event - which it wasn't and (b) had a well-defined ending date - which it doesn't. (Actually, Greg Hunt, Australian Minister for the Environment, would be able to confirm those last two points from his favourite reference source.) Therefore, the "rebounding" argument is vacuity personified as is the use of value-laden phrases such as "fervent cultist meme".

      Delete
    4. Actually, the LIA, such as it was, was at least partly caused by humans, i. e., the 50Mperson die-off in the Americas, that caused a massive reforestration and a unique CO2 drop ~1525-1600AD, as per Law Dome CO23. *after* that, Maunder Minimum and lower solar insolation.
      of course, given snow-albedo feedback, one would expect to see far more temperature drop in places like N. Europe than nearer the Equator.

      Of course, the Earth's CO2 levels have not been entirely natural 8,000 years. The Medieval Warming (such as it was) was human-caused, too, since CO2 levels would have been at least 20ppm lower without humans around, and CH4 would also have been.

      See great new book, Bill Ruddiman's Earrth Transformed.
      Sadly, his 2013 AGU Tyndall Lecture video on this is not easily available.


      Delete
  8. So now not only do we have "Look! A squirrel stuck in Antarctica!" we also have "Look! A squirrel shivering in Internation Falls!". It's a wonder WUWTers can contain their excitement.

    Oh look, they can't.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Buenos Aires smashed the December average record, was 25.5° C in 1994, with almost an sd to 26.6° C. Dec 2012 is now ex aequo with the hottest month measured there, January 1989.
    Records as of 1856.

    For every area with below average temps there is a ten times bigger area with extreme warmth.
    For every area skirting record cold, there is a ten times bigger area smashing their absolute heat records.

    ReplyDelete
  10. "While the impacts of the record-breaking heat are painfully apparent to Australians, since the election of Prime Minister Tony Abbott in September, those in power have chosen to pretend the problem doesn’t exist. As prime minister, Abbott has abandoned the country’s emissions target, made efforts to repeal Australia’s carbon emissions trading scheme and dissolved the country’s climate commission.

    While Australia is red hot going into the New Year, Abbott’s approval ratings are rock bottom. And with Abbott choosing to surround himself with people such as his top business adviser, Maurice Newman, who last week argued that Australia had fallen “hostage to climate change madness,” both trends are likely to continue."

    What a laugh. What electoral hypocrisy.
    Too late, Aussies, you pays your money and you takes your choice. Let Abott sit and your country burn.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Quote sourced from http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/01/02/3111171/australia-new-year-heat-wave/ .

      Delete
    2. Too true CCR. The climate change denialism is part of a decaying intellectual landscape.

      What we have in Australia is an intellectual decline and shut down in politics. Years of factional inbreeding, and outsourcing of policy to business lobbyists has left a void in the national conversation. Our politicians are nearly mute and distinctly uncomfortable in public. What 'communication' remains are orchestrated me-too attacks on public broadcasting, international co-operation through the UN and political refugees.

      There are no convincing communicators, no visionaries, no unifiers and explainers left, simply hacks mouthing the wretched vacuities amd sound-bites of cynical ex-journalists and right-wing interns.

      Abbott disappeared science, hiding the science ministry and encouraging uniformed business cronies to mutter crazily on climate matters. Abbott is a halting somewhat inept public performer, Science, the environment, sustainable economics are beyond his reach as a communicator..so out they go.

      Delete
  11. Hi Sou,

    Expect a blizzard of incoming "coldest ever" stories out of the US in the coming week. The polar vortex appears to be breaking down, a predicted consequence of Arctic amplification.

    See here for an accurate precis:

    http://www.climatecentral.org/news/arctic-outbreak-when-the-north-pole-came-to-ohio-16906

    idunno

    ReplyDelete
  12. “Australia is reporting massive areas only now getting relief from a wave of heat that emerged in the west on Boxing day and shifted across the continent. It brought temperatures in the low to high forties (102ºF to 114ºF) to large parts of Australia”

    Wow! Almost as hot as is was back in 1896 then!

    The Western Champion and General Advertiser for the Central-Western Districts
    Tuesday 28 January 1896
    Archived here:
    http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/79762915

    Isisford, Friday.
    Extreme heat has been recorded here this week. The thermometer on Monday rose to 114 degs., on Tuesday to 112 degs., on "Wednesday 115 degs., and to-day 118 degs. The country is very bare and the water is giving out fast.
    THARGOMINDAH, Thursday.
    Five sudden deaths have occurred in the district—all attributed to the severe heat.
    CUNNAMULLA, Friday.
    The heat has increased since Tuesday last, with unbearably hot nights. The official record showed a reading on Tuesday of 111 degs. in the shade, on Wednesday 116 degs., and today 117 degs
    CHARLEVILLE, Friday
    Observations taken at Grosvenor Bank, situated immediately over one of the main holes of the Warrego river, shows a shade maximum temperature of over 110 degrees daily since the 31st December, except on three days, when 105 degrees was touched or exceeded. Yesterday 120.5 degrees was reached and today 126 degrees. The average daily temperature from the 1st instant exceeded 114 degrees

    Launceston Examiner Saturday 25 January 1896
    Archived here:
    http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/39625389
    SYDNEY, FRIDAY.
    The heat continued unabated in all parts of the colony yesterday, and a large number of inland stations recorded up to 120 in the shade. This intense heat is due to the prevalence of a strong north-east and northerly wind. The ground is now so thoroughly heated that at midnight the thermometer in several towns registered up to 105deg. At Wilcannia last evening the thermometer recorded 123 in the shade,

    Telegrams received last night from the country districts show that the heat had been exceptional. Mildura reported 120 in the shade, Swan Hill 116, and over thirty other districts reported heat ranging from 104 to 115 in the shade.

    The West Australian Monday 6 January 1896
    Archived here:
    http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/3076152

    MULLEWA, January 5.
    During the past fortnight the hot weather has been very trying. On Thursday last the, thermometer rose to 121deg in the shade, and the temperature has daily averaged from 112deg to 118deg.
    CARNARVON, January 5.
    During the past fortnight most intense heat has been experienced here. The thermometer has ranged from 110 to 116 in the shade during that period, and at Brick house station it was 121 in the shade on Friday, last. It is farther reported that the mercury has been up as high as 125 in the shade there.
    GUILDFORD, January 5TH.
    The heat during the past few days, for its continuance, has been unprecedented. Thurs- day's heat was the most intense. The thermometer for that day, in the shade, registered 116. Friday's record was 118, Saturday 109 ;
    Barrier Miner Tuesday14January 1896
    Archived here:
    http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/44132383
    THE HEAT WAVE.
    A Sydney-side " Black Monday."
    " A Scorcher" Everywhere.
    Death and Distress.
    SYDNEY, Monday.
    January 13 will be long remembered as New South Wales' "Black
    Monday."

    The following list shows how wide- spread was the area of high temperature within this colony

    Kiama .. 117
    Mulgoa ... 113
    Moruya ... 110
    Nowra ... 114
    Nymagee .. 115
    Parramatta ... 111
    Penrith ... 112
    Quirindi ... 120
    Wollongong... 110
    Bega ... 110
    Condoblin ... 116

    Chronicle Saturday 25 January 1896
    Archived here:

    http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/87303529

    HEAT IN THE COUNTRY.
    Halbury, January 23.— The heat registered in the shade to-day was:— 9 a.m., 106°: 10 a.m., 110° ; and 2 p.m., 118°.

    There must have been lots of that nasty CO2 stuff in the atmosphere back then surely, or was that just weather?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I see you've done some research. CO2 wasn't as high then as it is now. I'm guessing that maybe what you're trying to say, but could have used fewer words, is that it was hot somewhere sometime in the past therefore global warming can't be caused by greenhouse gases - or something equally illogical.

      Come back when you've got a decade as hot globally as the last decade. Or even a year as hot globally as any of the past ten years.

      http://hotwhopper.com/Images/GISTemp.png

      Or you could show us your workings for why you think that there is no such thing as a greenhouse gas and then give us your explanation for why earth isn't a frozen wasteland.

      Delete
    2. “Or you could show us your workings for why you think that there is no such thing as a greenhouse gas and then give us your explanation for why earth isn't a frozen wasteland.”

      Did I say that there was no such thing as greenhouse gas? No I didn't, you added that bit, please don't try to attribute comments to me that I have not made, it is a dodgy and thoroughly transparent tactic. What I would prefer is your explanation as to why , given that we are constantly told that “greenhouse gas is the major driver of climate change” and that is a given fact that atmospheric CO2 has increased markedly over the past century, why were temperatures recorded over 100 years ago that were as hot if not hotter than the 102F-114F that you so alarmingly reported in your post.

      Delete
    3. You answered your own question in your article. It's weather. Global warming doesn't mean there has never been any hot weather before. What it means is that adding ever more greenhouse gases is heating up the entire world.

      I think I was on the money when I suggested what I did. Your question once again suggests you reject the greenhouse effect. Am I wrong?

      Delete
    4. Anonymous. It's a fair enough question.Just because it is almost as hot this week as way back in 1896 doesn't by itself prove anything as you seem to be suggesting. But there are lots of ways to measure if it is generally getting warmer and one-day heat records are far from the best.

      Consider national average temperature and trend, the number of heat waves per year, number of high temperature records set, number of days over 40º , plus other measures like sea surface temperatures, ocean heat content etc. etc. There's abundance evidence worldwide of gradually rising temperatures.

      As you note one hot week doesn't prove anything, but then again neither does one cold night in International Falls.

      Delete

Instead of commenting as "Anonymous", please comment using "Name/URL" and your name, initials or pseudonym or whatever. You can leave the "URL" box blank. This isn't mandatory. You can also sign in using your Google ID, Wordpress ID etc as indicated. NOTE: Some Wordpress users are having trouble signing in. If that's you, try signing in using Name/URL. Details here.

Click here to read the HotWhopper comment policy.