Is Global Warming becoming unstoppable?

[Telamelo]

A horror map has shown Europe engulfed in “unbearable” red hot heat as the continent battles a deadly heatwave.

Parts of southern Europe and northwest Africa are set to swelter through record-breaking temperatures forecast in the coming days. Temperatures are set to surpass 48C in parts of Spain, France, Greece, Croatia and Turkey as residents are urged to take steps to stay cool.

One map, a satellite image recorded by a European Union satellite, showed land temperatures that were coloured red but then turned even darker — to black.

The map showed a land temperature — the temperature of the soil, rather than of the air — in the Extremadura region in Spain’s inner southwest hit a staggering 60C on Tuesday.

Huge swathes of Spain sweltered this week with air temperatures climbing as high as 45C, while overnight temperatures in much of the country did not drop below 25C. Temperatures in Majorca, an island off Spain’s coast, were as high as 37C at 4am on Wednesday.

In Italy, meteorologists have warned temperatures could climb as high as 48.8C. A red alert warning has been issued for 10 cities, including Rome, Bologna and Florence.

https://www.news.com.au/national/weather/unbearable-horror-map-shows-continent-on-fire/news-story/2ba6aa430666cae1c3b8a94816089c84

 

[basilio]

A horror map has shown Europe engulfed in “unbearable” red hot heat as the continent battles a deadly heatwave.

Parts of southern Europe and northwest Africa are set to swelter through record-breaking temperatures forecast in the coming days. Temperatures are set to surpass 48C in parts of Spain, France, Greece, Croatia and Turkey as residents are urged to take steps to stay cool.

One map, a satellite image recorded by a European Union satellite, showed land temperatures that were coloured red but then turned even darker — to black.

The map showed a land temperature — the temperature of the soil, rather than of the air — in the Extremadura region in Spain’s inner southwest hit a staggering 60C on Tuesday.

Huge swathes of Spain sweltered this week with air temperatures climbing as high as 45C, while overnight temperatures in much of the country did not drop below 25C. Temperatures in Majorca, an island off Spain’s coast, were as high as 37C at 4am on Wednesday.

In Italy, meteorologists have warned temperatures could climb as high as 48.8C. A red alert warning has been issued for 10 cities, including Rome, Bologna and Florence.

https://www.news.com.au/national/weather/unbearable-horror-map-shows-continent-on-fire/news-story/2ba6aa430666cae1c3b8a94816089c84

Grim story. The scary part is that this what we are seeing with average global temperatures around 1C higher than historical figures. Unless there are massive reductions in Greenhouse Gases average global temperatures will be from 2-5C . In that climate extreme weather events like the current heatwave in Europe will be reaching even more dangerous levels.

World of Change: Global Temperatures

The average global temperature has increased by a little more than 1° Celsius (2° Fahrenheit) since 1880. Two-thirds of the warming has occurred since 1975.

earthobservatory.nasa.gov

 

[basilio]

The heat wave in the US has broken records across the country. Detailed story of how Phoenix in Arizona is dealing with the current challenge.

‘Hell on earth’: Phoenix’s extreme heatwave tests the limits of survival​

Residents of Arizona’s capital are used to scorching heat, but the summer’s unyielding sizzle is making harder to live there

Gabrielle Canon in Phoenix, Arizona

@GabrielleCanon
Sat 15 Jul 2023 00.00 AESTLast modified on Sat 15 Jul 2023 07.58 AES


It’s Wednesday morning in Phoenix and even under thick clouds, the thermometer is hovering above 100F (37.7C).


Floods, tornadoes, heat: more extreme weather predicted across US

Read more

Arizona’s capital city is nicknamed “Valley of the Sun”, and residents are used to scorching heat. But by day 12 of a vicious heatwave that’s sent temperatures soaring into triple digits, with little relief overnight, limits are being tested – and it’s only going to get hotter.

The city is on track to break a grim milestone. If the heatwave continues as predicted, Phoenix will have endured an 18-day stretch of temperatures above 110F (43.3C) by Tuesday.

“Phoenix has always been hot,” said Michelle Litwin, the city’s heat response program manager. But this is something else.

Litwin and her team are tasked with aiding the city’s most vulnerable during the city’s brutally hot months, a season that now stretches from April to September. On Wednesday, she and a crew of city workers and volunteers set up a booth at a sprawling homeless encampment to hand out cold water bottles, hygiene kits and other resources that, for those living on the streets, could potentially mean the difference between life and death.

“This is Arizona’s natural disaster,” Litwin said. “We might have flash floods but heat is our issue.”

‘Hell on earth’: Phoenix’s extreme heatwave tests the limits of survival

Residents of Arizona’s capital are used to scorching heat, but the summer’s unyielding sizzle is making it harder to live there

www.theguardian.com

 

[basilio]

Other extreme weather events currently creating severe carnage around he world.
All happening now. All supercharged by global heating.

Hundreds killed as monsoon rain causes flooding and landslides across Asia

Hundreds of thousands of people are forced to evacuate amid intense monsoon rains that have killed more than 200 people across Asia.

www.abc.net.au

US west braces for fiercest temperatures yet as ‘supercharged’ heatwave arrives

Hottest weather of the year just beginning, warns National Weather Service, as authorities prepare to protect most vulnerable

www.theguardian.com

Europe heatwave - latest: Tourists stretchered away and major attraction shut down; 'extreme risk' of fires in Spain

The Cerberus heatwave is gripping Europe, with reports of tourists collapsing across the continent and a man dying in northern Italy. Temperatures could exceed the record 48.8C noted in Sicily in August 2021, with peaks expected today.

news.sky.com

Extreme weather in Latin America unlocks vicious cycle that further fuels climate dangers

Extreme weather is wreaking havoc across Latin America, racking up billions worth of damage and unleashing a vicious cycle that leads to higher demand for fossil fuels and more climate change, the World Meteorological Organization said on Wednesday.

www.reuters.com

 

[basilio]

So why are billions of people not "doing anything" ? This story examines the issue.

As heat records break, the climate movement has the right answers – but the words are all wrong | Jonathan Freedland

The fossil fuel industry has spent billions on winning over the public. Green activists must learn from its tactics, says Guardian columnist Jonathan Freedland

www.theguardian.com

 

[Knobby22]

Did you see the latest Antatrtic figure/graph?.Bit of a worry.
II don't think most scientists thought this would happen till at least 2030.

Open and click on Antarctic.

Charctic Interactive Sea Ice Graph

How to use CharcticDeveloped at NSIDC with support from NASA, the Charctic Interactive Sea Ice Graph enables users to more easily access and explore the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad

nsidc.org

 

[basilio]

Did you see the latest Antatrtic figure/graph?.Bit of a worry.
II don't think most scientists thought this would happen till at least 2030.

Open and click on Antarctic.

Charctic Interactive Sea Ice Graph

How to use CharcticDeveloped at NSIDC with support from NASA, the Charctic Interactive Sea Ice Graph enables users to more easily access and explore the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad

nsidc.org

Yeah . Bloody terrifying actually.

 

[basilio]

Many countries are currently facing catastrophic fires and floods. This blog at The Guardian offers the major highlights.
One thing for certain. Insurance companies are going to make big decisions about how they do business when the full effects of the current crisis are bought to book.

Extreme heatwave live: Texas city confirms first heat death; northern hemisphere boils in severe weather – as it happened

Man in Houston died in house without air conditioning; mercury in parts of Italy is close to hitting 45C as wildfires ravage Greece and Spain

www.theguardian.com

 

[sptrawler]

Did you see the latest Antatrtic figure/graph?.Bit of a worry.
II don't think most scientists thought this would happen till at least 2030.

Open and click on Antarctic.

Charctic Interactive Sea Ice Graph

How to use CharcticDeveloped at NSIDC with support from NASA, the Charctic Interactive Sea Ice Graph enables users to more easily access and explore the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad

nsidc.org

Good link Knobby, definitely interesting stuff, it will be interesting to see if it diverges much from the 2005 graph. September will be the interesting one.

 

[Knobby22]

Good link Knobby, definitely interesting stuff, it will be interesting to see if it diverges much from the 2005 graph. September will be the interesting one.

That's the Arctic sp. Click the link for Antarctic at the top to see what I mentioned. Might surprise you.

 

[sptrawler]

That's the Arctic sp. Click the link for Antarctic at the top to see what I mentioned. Might surprise you.

That is a much more marked difference, I wonder if the obvious difference between the Arctic and Antarctic, is due to the Antarctic being a land mass and the Arctic being a floating ice mass?

One would think the effect of sea water + air temperature rise, would be more pronounced on the volume of the floating ice mass, so maybe it is related to something else?

Earth's core temperature rise? Earth moving on it's axis causing pole shift? Shift in center of gravity causing a shift of the equator? change of orbit?

When you think about it, the Artic being a floating mass, can move it's position, the Antarctic being a fixed land mass can't, that gives rise to thought eh? Or maybe not, depending on how fixated a person is on the narrative.

Interesting subject, that's for sure, the climate is changing whether they have nailed what is causing it? Let's hope so, because if it is something else no one is looking, or someone is looking but they can't do anything about it. ?

The good thing about all this is, we now have the technology to move on from from fossil fuels, so why not do it, it will mean cleaner air and it is to a certain degree much more sustainable.

As we develop and improve technically as a species, we have to increase our sustainability, it really is our responsibility to do so and it also would be stupid not to.

 

[basilio]

Did you see the latest Antatrtic figure/graph?.Bit of a worry.
II don't think most scientists thought this would happen till at least 2030.

Open and click on Antarctic.

Charctic Interactive Sea Ice Graph

How to use CharcticDeveloped at NSIDC with support from NASA, the Charctic Interactive Sea Ice Graph enables users to more easily access and explore the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad

nsidc.org

I started playing with those graphs. Hells bells. This years figures look like a leap into a completely new picture.
Nothing gradual here. Possibly a step change. Like when ice goes from solid to liquid

 

[sptrawler]

I started playing with those graphs. Hells bells. This years figures look like a leap into a completely new picture.
Nothing gradual here. Possibly a step change. Like when ice goes from solid to liquid

And what would cause that?

 

[Knobby22]

I started playing with those graphs. Hells bells. This years figures look like a leap into a completely new picture.
Nothing gradual here. Possibly a step change. Like when ice goes from solid to liquid

It is like a step change. New heat records being broken yesterday in China. Well over 50C in both USA and China and according to the article, higher temperatures to follow. New European high record expected.

We live in interesting times.

https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-66207430

 

[basilio]

And what would cause that?

There are many geographical events that happen very quickly. Obvious one is a volcano, meteor strike, earthquake, Tsunami . However there are also many examples of other geographical events that undergo step change characteristics. This wiki article seems to cover the issue well.

Abrupt climate change - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Telamelo]

The southwestern city of Phoenix, Arizona hit 46C on Saturday, extending a record-breaking streak to 22 consecutive days of highs above 43C.

 

[basilio]

Another reality bite.

Antarctic sea ice levels dive in 'five-sigma event', as experts flag worsening consequences for planet​

By Alexandra Alvaro
Posted 4h ago4 hours ago, updated 5m ago5 minutes ago

Ice levels have not recovered in the Antarctic over winter — and experts are very concerned.
Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article

Link copied

• In short: Antarctic sea ice has usually been able to recover in winter. But this year ice levels are at the lowest point in observational history
• What's next? Experts say if the sea ice trend continues, it will accelerate the warming of the planet

This winter has confirmed what scientists had feared — the sea ice around Antarctica is in sharp decline, with experts now concerned it may not recover.
Earlier this year, scientists observed an all-time low in the amount of sea ice around the icy continent, following all-time lows in 2016, 2017 and 2022.
Usually, the ice has been able to recover in winter, when Antarctica is reliably dark and cold.
But this year is different. For the first time, the sea ice extent has been unable to substantially recover this winter, leaving scientists baffled.

'Five-sigma' event unfolding​

Physical oceanographer Edward Doddridge has been communicating with scientists and the community about the drastic changes happening around Antarctica.
He said vast regions of the Antarctic coastline were ice free for the first time in the observational record.
"To say unprecedented isn't strong enough," Dr Doddridge said.

"For those of you who are interested in statistics, this is a five-sigma event. So it's five standard deviations beyond the mean. Which means that if nothing had changed, we'd expect to see a winter like this about once every 7.5 million years.

"It's gobsmacking."

A once in every 7.5 million year event is unfolding in the Antarctic. And it has scientists scrambling for answers

Antarctic sea ice has usually been able to recover in winter. But this time it's different, with levels taking a sharp downward turn at a time of year when sea ice usually forms reliably — and experts are worried.

www.abc.net.au

 

[Knobby22]

A 5 sigma event is mathematically unbelievable however it isn't in reality as that assumes a steady state environment when we all know that it isn't.
Bit of warming going on.

Anyway let's not think about it. The Barbie movie is pretty woke hey!

 

[basilio]

A 5 sigma event is mathematically unbelievable however it isn't in reality as that assumes a steady state environment when we all know that it isn't.
Bit of warming going on.

Anyway let's not think about it. The Barbie movie is pretty woke hey!

Absolutely. We need a bit of balance in our lives don't we ? On the one hand we have an off the planet event that can only signal rapid imminent change in how our society works and may evolve.

And then we have some pointy heads pointing to clear water around the Antarctic as some sort of problem ? Crazy what ?

 

[basilio]

Some more "interesting" historical perspectives from the pointy heads. Fascinating stories actually. Both are well worth the read IMO.

After reading this I don't think we will be building any sea walls in near future. The boat sailed and sank years ago.

Ice core from secret US Army base reveals dramatic historical Greenland ice-sheet melting​

ABC Science
/
By environment reporter Nick Kilvert
Posted Fri 21 Jul 2023 at 5:00amFriday 21 Jul 2023 at 5:00am

The findings indicate that the Greenland ice sheet melted during a period of warming similar to today's climate.(Supplied: Paul Bierman/University of Vermont)
Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article

Link copied
Back in the early 1960s, the US Army conducted a secret Cold War operation beneath Greenland's frozen tundra.

Key points:​

• The US Army planned to hide nuclear weapons in ice tunnels in north-west Greenland in the 1960s
• An ice core taken during the operation was rediscovered in 2018
• Analysis of the core shows north-west Greenland was ice free around 400,000 years ago when temperatures were similar to today

Now a chance rediscovery from that operation could rewrite the history of the north-west Greenland ice sheet, and our understanding of its stability.

Published in Science today, the findings indicate a region of north-west Greenland was completely ice free 400,000 years ago when temperatures in the region were similar to global average temperatures today.

That has huge implications for our understanding of how the Greenland ice sheet will respond to climate change, said study co-author Paul Bierman, a geologist from the University of Vermont.

"We have fossils buried under almost a mile of ice.
"This is the evidence that Greenland can vanish. It's not a model. It's not a hypothetical. We know that the ice sheet vanished and it vanished under much less extreme conditions than we're forcing the climate to right now."

'Big-time bad news': what a secret Cold War project could tell us about the fate of Greenland's ice sheet

An ice core discovered at a secret US Army base may rewrite the history of Greenland ice sheet melting, pointing to rapid ice loss and sea level rise after relatively small historical warming.

www.abc.net.au

Greenland melted some 416,000 years ago, shows high risk of causing sea level rise today

During the Cold War, a secret U.S. Army mission, at Camp Century in northwestern Greenland, drilled down through 4,560 feet of ice on the frozen island—and then kept drilling to pull out a twelve-foot-long tube of soil and rock from below the ice. Then this icy sediment was lost in a freezer for...

phys.org