Many of us went through a winter that seemed nonexistent. There were no major blizzards or numbing arctic outbreaks. And it looks as if spring continued much of the same weather pattern throughout the United States.
After reviewing the past several months, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said that May 2012 will end as the second warmest on record in the United States. It also said that the spring period of March through May will go down as the warmest on record since record keeping began in 1895.
The average temperature in May over the contiguous United States was 64.3 degrees, or 3.3 degrees above normal. For spring, the average was 57.1 degrees, 5.2 degree above normal. The previous record for warmest spring was set in 1910; this spring beat that year by 2 degrees.
If you look back over the last 12 months from June 2011 to May 2012, it is the warmest 12-month period of any 12 months on record, according to NOAA.
The warm temperatures were not tied to any one particular part of the country. In the contiguous United States, only Oregon and Washington had spring temperatures near normal.
Data starting on January 1 through the end of May show many cities are off to their warmest start since record keeping began at the location:
Chicago – Warmest in 54 years
New York City (Central Park) – Warmest in 137 years
New York City (JFK) – Warmest in 55 years
Philadelphia – Warmest in 72 years
Washington (Dulles) – Warmest in 50 years
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Not here! It's been cold and wet here which is unusual. Which leads me to believe there is just no predicting the impact of climate change on local weather systems.
Thats why it is called Global Climate change. We need to take action and protect our planet from the Republicans who could care less about the Earth or the people on it.
"leads me to believe there is just no predicting the impact of climate change on local weather systems."
Correct.
UHhello, I can promise you that the answer to global warming does not involve transferring hundreds of billions of dollars to the federal govt each year. That is the democrats' solution.
@Julnor – my statement had nothing to do with the solution politically or economically. The fact is Republicans have fought the concept of Global Warming since day one, then they accepted "climate change" after 15 yrs of denial and eventually they will accept it being human caused. It may be too late working at the GOP rate of getting real work done in Washington. Regarding your other statement about throwing Billions of dollars at government while I did not suggest anykind of solution I can garantee you WE all have started to pay far more and will continue to pay a LOT more more than billions more than trillions to deal with the result of GOP inaction on the subject.
that is the ignorance of it. Climate change does not mean.... its hot here so it will get cold! its a change in weather patterns. and just like u cant predict 100% what the weather will be tomorrow u cant predict how the WHOLE EARTHS weather pattern will change. which is affected by Ocean currents and their temperatures. but hey what I just said is so confusing therefore I will say it means if its hot here then it will be cold and since it isnt I will declare through sheer ignorance the whole thing is baloney. cuz that is how the ignorant roll, dont take the time to learn just walk around oblivious.
Bu bu bu but, The Heartland Institute says this is all false?!?! Would they LIE!?!?
Someone explain to me again how human-induced climate change is a big hoax.
It is a hoax only to people with a political bias against science. Everyone knows who they are and what motivates their misinformed world view. (believing in many lies for decades)
To this day I just don't get why the debate is focused on climate change. Even if we've induced changes to the climate, that won't be our biggest concern in the next few decades. We'll have much more significant issues as a direct result of pollution. One example of this is the rising acidity and mercury levels of the oceans. There's no debate that its happening and getting worse. Yet, here are people arguing about climate change and whether its a myth.
Who caused global warming in 1910?
Vivek, you're not supposed to ask that question.
The folks in eastern Europe had a bitterly cold winter. Ask them.
Right now we're having one of the coolest June's that I can remember.
Well, let's not get too over-confident about anything regards the weather! I'd like to see what sort of summer we have and more importantly what next winter brings! The fact that it happpened in 1910 suggests it may be only a periodic event of some sort but...who knows for sure.
and how were the worlds glaciers then. the water on this earth dictates how the weather will be.
I live in Toronto – Spring? please tell me when winter is coming.
We have had a very nice cool spring in NC. Its 77 for the high temp today.
But globally, 2012 started off well below average and the 2012 average so far has been cooler than 2011. The global temperature has been fairly stable (i.e. not warming) for about 10-12 years now.
Right, because we all know that the NOAA DIDNT say it was one of the warmest winters on record for most of the country as well...
Guess we should all just dismiss the experts and listen to you...
Yes, there has been a recent flat-lining where the rate of increase has slowed globally, but the average is still above average. In other words, the global temps have "stabilized" (likely temporarily) above normal – so it is a mischaracterization of the science to say the Earth is no longer warming.
Since when is everybody more expert than science? We need to return to a rational country where science is viewed for what it is – the word we use to find the best answers we have to our questions. If you think politics or media are better sources of information than the National Academies of Science, then you are part of a big and growing problem.
Yes, we know that one warm spring doesn't mean anything. That's why we need to listen to the scientists. I wonder what they say?
The sun is in active phase, there are large solar flare in May. Don't you think trillions of tons of ionized particles could have something to do with affecting the weather on Earth??? May just a few degrees? I'm not convinced that CO2 at 360 parts per million is causing all the havok its claimed. 360 ppm means 99.96% of the atmosphere is NOT CO2. 71% is Nitrogen gas, 21% oxygen, everything else is 8%. CO2 is also captured by the ocean, and the hotter the ocean the more is captures. We need to look into the effects of the solar cycles on climate change. Climate change does exist
Climate change does not exist?Do you not believe their have been ice ages and warming periods before humans? You can make an argument about human contribution to climate change but how can you say that the Earth has never changed its climate?
Solar flares would not cause the Earth's temperature to increase by several degrees.
Wow!! So, global warming started before significant use of fossil fuels. Interesting.
Did you just say it was warmer back in 1910?
So stated another way, we've been cooling since 1910?
So much for global warming.
Wow Joe, good work! A two-point data set for an extremely complicated system.
Read some history...Please...Euroupe had a mini ice age when the Atlantic currents slowed down, too much freash water dilluted the salt water, and Britian and Northern Euroupe had their weather all messed up.for hundreds of years..Read about it..
Im reading all these Global warming nay sayers and here is what I reading " My state has been cool" or " so if 1910 is the warmest it's been cooling since then" , "XXXX city has had the coldest spring" and the comments go on and on like this. I have to say When using global climate change you cannot use looking out your window or looking at your city or even your state or Country for that matter as the benchmark. It is called "Global" because it is the WHOLE PLANET AVERAGE as recorded over the last 100+ yrs by instruments and clearly documented over 50000K yrs by CO2 readings which have been proven beyond a shadow of doubt to be accurately depicting weather from earlier times. Regarding statements like compairing the planet to the "warmest spring since 1910" does NOT mean it has been cooling since then if you look at the graph of each year since 1910 then average it since 1990 it has been on a steady rise which has NEVER happened in any period in earths history without resulting in catastrophic results for life on Earth. Last buy not least the 1910 refers to just one SEASON compared against another NOT a whole YEAR let alone 1000k yrs. So Im writing this for any Climate change folks that are open to learning to read and may be see how they may be looking at the statements in the wrong way.
NOAA Watch Out.... the GOP want to cut all your funding.....They do not believe in science...
I think everyone should just shut up about the weather – we can't change it – so deal with whatever you get and move on!
Jay but we can change it...that is the point..but you go ahead and put your head in the sand if you want to..
@Jay – Im not sure about you but I have young children who deserve the world the way we got it. We can make changes to stop global warming that will WORK just like we did with the Ozone layer. America lead that fight and guess what? the ozone came back over the poles. We can make a difference for our kids and their kids. One other point, what the heck is so good about supporting the creation of Co2 in the atmosphere? It is pollution, we don't need it at all for anyones health so even if global warming was wrong ( and it is NOT) we would still be taking the right action for the future.
Who knows what's happening weather or climate wise....but if you want definitive answers there are several non-governmental weather services out there that are employed by the insurance, the large farming interests and the major construction industries that are damn good at long range forecasting.
Portland tony
Yes and the Insurance companies are predicting more bad storms...the farming predictions noticed the changing crop cycles...the loss of bees...the changing zones for crops..the dead northern forests do to bugs that use to die off in the cold northern winters...The construction companies that see the up and coming water shortages, less yearly snow melts for the rivers....Yes they see it coming too...