Monthly Archives: August 2020

California is again struggling with too much heat and not enough rainfall, spelled out in the form of major wildfires. The warm anomaly, up to about 10C or 18F in places—as Death Valley reached a potentially world record high of … Continue reading →

I learned something today that is worth knowing about by anyone who has decided to pursue a close study of high-altitude vapor stream movement. When you find a warm anomaly and the corresponding batch of water vapor serving as the … Continue reading →

For over seven years this Climate Letter was primarily a newsletter devoted to passing on credible reports about the causes and effects of climate change, and what the future might hold. I was also trying to learn all I could … Continue reading →

In terms of extremes, the most interesting temperature anomalies on the planet these days are always the ones found over Antarctica, where you can see maximums of plus and minus 20C almost all the time, and then watch them switch … Continue reading →

The jetstream study we did yesterday has important practical applications for anyone interested in knowing how temperature anomalies are formed.  Today I will offer an example, with reference to a major warm anomaly that has appeared in central Russia.  The … Continue reading →

This is a perfect day to do a jetstream exercise, especially for those who have not done this before, and also because it includes a new discovery.  The main purpose is to provide a graphic demonstration of the location of … Continue reading →

Yesterday’s study had some remarkable features that prompted me to take another look at the same scene today. There have been some changes worthy of comment, including a flaw in the presentation. What I am going to do today is … Continue reading →

Today we will head down to South America for map reading, where I see some things of interest. We may even spot the hottest anomaly on the globe for this day. First off, the precipitable water image, where there are … Continue reading →

A look at today’s most significant high temperature anomaly. It covers most of Siberia, and more, which means it is quite large in area. Most of it has temperature increases of about 5C compared to averages from three decades in … Continue reading →

Sea surface temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere are almost certainly setting modern records this summer.  Their anomaly over 3 1/2 decades is a full 1.0C, which seems exorbitant compared with any other major index you can find for such a … Continue reading →