Read

User menu

Search form

Surprise: It's Hot As Hell Outside

Surprise: It's Hot As Hell Outside
Wed, 8/8/2012 - by Stephen Lacey
This article originally appeared on Think Progress

The twelve states that make up the Northeastern U.S. are experiencing their hottest year on record, according to data from the Northeast Regional Climate Center at Cornell University.

From January to July, average temperatures in the Northeast were 49.9 degrees Fahrenheit — the warmest such seven month period since record keeping started in 1895.

The Center also released data on the 12-month period from August of 2011 to July of this year, showing that it was the warmest 12-month period on record for the Northeast.

Here are some data points released by the Northeast Regional Climate Center:

It was the seventh warmest July since 1895 in the Northeast. The average temperature was 72.8 degrees, which was 2.9 degrees above normal. Each of the 12 states in the region averaged warmer than normal, with departures that ranged from +1.5 degrees in Rhode Island to +4 degrees in Delaware. It was the second warmest July since 1895 in Delaware and the third warmest in Maryland. All 12 states in the region ranked within the top 24 warmest since record keeping began in 1895. With a regional precipitation total of 3.7 inches, the Northeast averaged 87 percent of normal in July. The year-to-date totals averaged 88 percent of normal in the Northeast. Three states, Pennsylvania, (107 percent), Rhode Island (116 percent) and West Virginia (125 percent) had totals that were wetter than normal. It was the driest January through June since 1895 in Delaware and the fifth driest in Maryland.

This isn’t just unique to the Northeastern region. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the rest of the U.S. also saw its warmest period on record from June of 2011 to June of 2012 — with each of the consecutive months ranking among the warmest third of their historical distribution for the first time since record keeping began. NOAA estimates that the odds of this occurring randomly are 1 in 1,594,323.

Meteorologist Dr. Jeff Masters put those odds into context: “Thus, we should only see one more 13-month period so warm between now and 124,652 AD–assuming the climate is staying the same as it did during the past 118 years. These are ridiculously long odds, and it is highly unlikely that the extremity of the heat during the past 13 months could have occurred without a warming climate.”

Throughout the U.S. in 2012, more than 27,042 high temperature records were broken or tied as of August 5.

Meanwhile, 64 percent of the U.S. is facing drought conditions.

3 WAYS TO SHOW YOUR SUPPORT

ONE-TIME DONATION

Just use the simple form below to make a single direct donation.

DONATE NOW

MONTHLY DONATION

Be a sustaining sponsor. Give a reacurring monthly donation at any level.

GET SOME MERCH!

Now you can wear your support too! From T-Shirts to tote bags.

SHOP TODAY

Sign Up

Article Tabs

One pressing question is how the worldwide outrage might, and could, spread to his other business interests, not least his largest interest: SpaceX.

There is a real human cost behind cold, calculated “efficiency.”

Musk's unelected role at the forefront of U.S. government, and his company's near monopolisation of satellite internet communications, increases his global political and economic power grab, and attacks on democracy.

Yarvin saw the “red pill” as the realization that the Enlightenment ideals he came to associate with “the cathedral” and democracy are actually a poison leading to societal decadence and decline.

One pressing question is how the worldwide outrage might, and could, spread to his other business interests, not least his largest interest: SpaceX.

There is a real human cost behind cold, calculated “efficiency.”

Musk's unelected role at the forefront of U.S. government, and his company's near monopolisation of satellite internet communications, increases his global political and economic power grab, and attacks on democracy.

Yarvin saw the “red pill” as the realization that the Enlightenment ideals he came to associate with “the cathedral” and democracy are actually a poison leading to societal decadence and decline.

The burgeoning pro-democracy, anti-Trump movement known as 50501 expects to drive tens and possibly hundreds of thousands to protest in 1,000 cities and towns on Saturday.

Posted 2 months 17 hours ago

In many European countries, the far right holds or shares power. Democracy is in crisis.

Posted 1 month 3 weeks ago

If Trump indeed tanks your 401(k) to make himself and his friends even richer, the opposition party should make that the centerpiece of their attack heading into next year’s election.

Posted 1 month 3 weeks ago

The only thing overshadowing the evil of the regime is its incompetence. And the people are only just beginning to realize the power we have.

Posted 2 months 18 hours ago

Yarvin saw the “red pill” as the realization that the Enlightenment ideals he came to associate with “the cathedral” and democracy are actually a poison leading to societal decadence and decline.

Posted 1 month 2 days ago

There is a real human cost behind cold, calculated “efficiency.”

Musk's unelected role at the forefront of U.S. government, and his company's near monopolisation of satellite internet communications, increases his global political and economic power grab, and attacks on democracy.