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Michael Rubinkam / AP
Debris from flooding caused by Tropical Storm Lee sits on a sidewalk in West Pittston, Pa., on Dec. 21 -- more than three months after the storm hit. Some locals were still not back in their homes for Christmas.
Last year's status as "extreme" in terms of weather was elevated further on Thursday, when government scientists announced that two more disasters topped the $1 billion mark and noted that, had it not been for La Nina's cooling effect, 2011 would have been much warmer.
Tropical Storm Lee in September and severe weather in the Rockies and Midwest in mid-July were added to a list that now has 14 disasters with economic losses of $1 billion or more for a total of $55 billion, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced.
The previous record was set in 2008 with 9 disasters over $1 billion.
The year tied with 1997 as the 11th warmest since records were started in 1880, and it would have been much warmer had it not been for two La Nina cycles, one that ended in early 2011 and another that started up later in the year and is still impacting weather. La Nina cools Pacific Ocean waters and affects weather worldwide.
La Nina years have been trending upward as far as temperatures go and 2011 was "the warmest 'La Nina year' on record for the land, the ocean and the combined temperatures," NOAA stated.
"It's an impressive upward trend," Thomas Karl, director of NOAA's National Climatic Data Center, told reporters, adding that while it is premature to tie 2011's weather events to global warming, "it fits the pattern."
noaa.gov
NOAA released this map showing the 14 disasters that topped $1 billion in 2011.
Record drought in the South and wetness records set in the Northeast last year also fit the La Nina pattern, Karl said.
NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, which tracks surface temperatures using slightly different tools, issued its own findings Thursday, saying that 2011 was the ninth warmest on record.
"We know the planet is absorbing more energy than it is emitting," GISS Director James Hansen, who has become an activist in clamoring for tougher curbs on warming gases, said in a statement. "So we are continuing to see a trend toward higher temperatures. Even with the cooling effects of a strong La Nina influence and low solar activity for the past several years, 2011 was one of the 10 warmest years on record."
noaa.gov
NOAA mapped areas that saw records for drought or precipitation in 2011.
The years 2005 and 2010 remain tied for the warmest on record.
With solar activity rising and an El Nino, the counterpart to La Nina, expected to raise sea temperatures, global average temperatures should rise in the next two to three years, Hansen added.
"It's always dangerous to make predictions about El Nino, but it's safe to say we'll see one in the next three years," Hansen said. "It won't take a very strong El Nino to push temperatures above 2010."
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You know what is a Trillion dollar disaster? The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
And that has to do with US weather events how, exactly?
The wars are supported the most by the same people who would tell us that there is no such thing as man-made climate change. But you do get points for a nice avatar.
The quackery of Anthropomorphic global warming is settled. Those that support their case for this hoax with measurement statistics that only go back 130 odd years for temperatures and 60 odd years for El Nina and El Nino cannot be taken seriously. For any other statistical analysis a sampling this small with the certitude and legitimacy that is given to global warming would be considered redonkulous. That's not even taking into account the outside influences of Solar activity, suspended particulate, volcanic activity, etc.. into the chaos that is global temperature and climate. The ego of those individuals that are the true believers is astounding. As the saying goes; those that can do, those that can't teach, those that can do neither figure out how to scam the masses out of research grants.
"trillion dollar disaster- war in iraq"??? funny you should mention that. back in the beginning i got into a big arguement at work with one of my ultra conservative coworkers as i claimed it would cost at least a trillion dollars- i was laughed at over and over. they sided with rumsfeld- "the oil will pay for the war" and "the war will be over in 6 months" ha ha ha... i was wrong but they werent right. this will cost at least 2 or 3 trillion dollars after the war is over and the veterans are cared for the rest of their lives. very very sad indeed since it was a war of choice.
right on, bill!
Yes, they stress-out over some natural disasters that cost billions yet ignore the man-made disasters such as Afghanistan that are going to cost into the trillions. Imagine that!
ffeineandsugar, If I recall, the wars were approved by a Democrat Congress and a Republican President.
I do give them kudo's for keep us off cap-and-tax and the U.N scam to rob us of trillions in tax payer dollars.
Really? How and when did that happen?? You say the research only goes back some "130 odd years" for temps and only "60 odd years" for El Nino and La Nina. Yet, genetic research is much younger than either of those but you trust your doctor when he tells you that you have 'x' type of ailment and need 'y' and 'z' types of meds for it. Huh, interesting.
Do you seriously think climate scientists don't take these factors into consideration when making their forecasts or predictions?? I understand there are MANY variables that go into climate study, but to say they don't consider them is preposterous.
Again, preposterous.
lourdesmanos , I came to comment and once I read yours.....you nailed it.......good one......
Here is something that is receiving almost no coverage.
NASA's satellites have revealed an 800 square mile area in Yellowstone where ground thermal imaging is showing large increases of heat. Geologists have revealed that the molten core beneath Yellowstone is rising.
Oh. Shiite. That's not good. I read once that if the caldera there goes, nature will take care of our global warming problems in a most definitive way. Can you post a link, Barry? Thanks!
I didn't find any new info on the Yellowstone caldera. Latest news of an uplift was back in 2006. They had an increase in quake activity back in 2009 but that's it.
barry, where did you hear about this? Alarming news indeed!
NASA weather satellite links.
No expert on the subject, but I know there a few super volcanoes out there and Yellowstone is WAY over
due for a rumble. I guess we'll be nothing more than a footnote to the few survivors.
Look on Youtube.com for a History Channel show called 'How the Earth is Made' for information on the Yellowstone 'super volcano'. Pretty interesting and explains how the volcano is over a 'hot spot', the same as Hawaii. If I remember correctly, if it were to blow it could cover the US in up to 3" of ash and alter Earths climate for decades if not longer.
so what they're saying in if we get some good solar flares to hit us and El Nino flares up we could steam to death this year?? HA HA. ok before everyone jumps on that the wrong way, i was joking. i'll just remember to keep a look out for some crazy weather this year.
solar flare set to hit us on Saturday... get ready for the sauna.../
Compensating and including inflation, more people moving to the coasts, and population growth, the cost of disasters has stayed RELATIVELY constant over the past hundred years in the U.S. Read Richard A. Mueller's book and other publications which delve deeply into the subject and it is easy to see this.
Yes, global warming is real, yes we are pumping CO2 into the atmosphere, but disaster costs have stayed pretty steady.
It's called inflation. And more people living in more places. It has absolutely nothing with the size or strength of storms.
But no mention that it is because of La Nina that there was the tornado outbreak. 1974 had the super outbreak of tornadoes. There was a La Nina that year. 1974 was also when everyone was screaming about global cooling and the next ice age.
It is the interaction between cold dry air and warm moist air that fuels storms. It appears that the Earth is entering a natural cooling period. Storms should increase. But idiots will try to blame global warming for the storms. Fact is that during the past thirty years of the Earth's natural warming period tropical cyclone numbers went down. The US just set a record (that is growing every day) for the longest period of time without a major hurricane hitting the US. The old record went back to the civil war.
The worst disaster this country has ever seen was manmade and created by Goldman Sachs!
It was man-made alright, but a long time ago - when the first "white man" set foot on this land
Really?, I thought it was the election in '08
I think you meant the elections of 1980 and 2000.