Warming signs from State of Climate report
Warming signs from State of Climate
report
Climate data from air, land,
sea and ice in 2013 'reflect trends of a warming planet' --
says the latest State of the Climate report, launched today
by U.S. and New Zealand scientists.
Increases
in temperature, sea level and CO2 were observed, while
Southern Hemisphere warmth and super typhoon Haiyan were
among year's most notable events. Other key findings
include:
• Climbing concentrations of greenhouse
gases, levels once again reach historic high
values
• Globally averaged sea surface
temperature for 2013 among the 10 warmest on
record
• Continued rise in sea
level
• Continued warming of the
Arctic
The full report,
highlights and visuals are available from the U.S. National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA) and the American
Meteorological Society.
The SMC NZ rounded up
the following comments from experts involved in the report.
Feel free to use these quotes directly, or for assistance
reaching these or other experts for follow up, contact the
SMC.
James Renwick, Assoc. Prof School of
Geography, Victoria University of Wellington and editor of
the report comments:
"The 2013 State of the
Climate Report demonstrates that the Earth continues to
warm, as greenhouse gas concentrations continue to rise.
"Southern Hemisphere countries felt this most clearly
in 2013, with Australia having its warmest year on record,
Argentina its 2nd warmest, and New Zealand its 3rd warmest
year on record. Extreme events with large human and economic
costs feature prominently in many parts of the globe
(including the summer 2012/13 drought in northern New
Zealand), underlining the rising frequency and cost
of extremes associated with a changing
climate.
"As climate change, sea level rise and ocean acidification pick up pace this century, the risks to humanity become enormous. It is still not too late to avoid catastrophic impacts, but the time for action is now."
Brett Mullan, Principal Scientist - Climate,
National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA)
comments:
"NOAA's State of the Climate
report gives a comprehensive picture of 2013 weather and
climate events. The year 2013 was the third warmest year on
record for New Zealand, with the winter of 2013 being the
warmest ever. The year as a whole was the warmest on record
for Australia, and tied at 6th warmest for the globe. June
2013 saw the hottest June temperature ever recorded on
Earth, of 54.0C in Death Valley, California; and July saw
the highest temperature ever recorded in Greenland of 25.9C.
"The recently released Fifth Assessment from the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicts that
increased strength of tropical cyclones is likely as the
globe warms. October 2013 saw cyclone Phailin, the
second-strongest cyclone to hit India since modern records
began; November 2013 saw super typhoon Haiyan, with the
strongest maximum winds of any tropical cyclone on record,
and the largest storm surge ever recorded in the
Philippines.
"These and many other statistics in the
NOAA Report, such as floods and widespread droughts, serve
as a timely reminder of extreme weather events that are
expected to become more frequent as the globe
warms."
ends