NEW: Central US Winter Storms February 2021 UPDATED: Arctic Amplification UPDATED: Winter Storm Risk Increase Top Ten Climate Change Signals in 2017 ...Top Ten Climate Change Signals in 2017: USA From floods and hurricanes to droughts and wildfires, climate change set the stage for numerous natural disasters across the U.S. in 2017. In this inaugural list, we rank ten of the year’s most noteworthy events by their “climate buzz,” as measured by the volume of climate change-related discussion they generated on Twitter and in the news. We identify the trends and physical processes behind each event fueled by climate change. For more details on these events, follow the links or visit Climate Signals, a digital platform that identifies the long-term climate change trends behind extreme events as they unfold in real time. The platform hosts a database of climate change impacts organized as trends (the “signals”) and individual events. Scroll down and hover over each image to find out which event’s climate connections sparked the most conversation in the news and Twitterverse. *For this exercise, we utilized social media analytics platform Crimson Hexagon’s buzz monitor tool, w#10 Summer in WinterIn a stable climate, the ratio of days that are record hot to days that are record cold is approximately even. However, in our warming climate, record highs have begun to outpace record lows, with the imbalance growing for the past three decades.originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMwidth 1200height 811#9 Pre-Monsoon Extreme HeatDuring the pre-monsoon season, the southwestern U.S. experienced record-breaking heat, a classic signal of climate change. June temperatures soared 15 to 30°F above normal from California’s Central Valley, to Las Vegas, and down to Phoenix. More than 40 flights out of Phoenix were delayed or canceled when temperatures exceeded the maximum operating temperatures of the planes.focallength 200flash 16cameramake Canonheight 3576fnumber 8exposuretime 0.002orientation 1camerasoftware Adobe Photoshop CS5.originaldate 6/16/2017 10:25:31 AMwidth 5076cameramodel Canon EOS-1D X Mark #8 Plains on FireExtreme fire conditions in early March fueled major blazes in Kansas, Oklahoma, Colorado, and Texas. These fires are consistent with the long-term increasing wildfire activity observed in the western U.S. grasslands, activity driven by climate change trends in the Great Plains region.originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMwidth 2048height 1506#7 California Bakes and BurnsAfter a record warm June through August, California experienced “the greatest statewide heat wave ever recorded” from late August through early September. A few weeks after the record September heat wave, major fires in California wine country exploded in October 2017. Higher temperatures and extreme variability between wet and dry seasons has elevated wildfire risk.originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMwidth 2048height 1366#6 High Plains Flash DroughtIn early May, the U.S. Drought Monitor classified neither the Dakotas or Montana as being in a drought. By July, and with the arrival of a major, slow-moving heat dome, flash drought gripped all three states. Climate change amplifies the intensity, duration and frequency of extreme heat events that can exacerbate drought conditions. originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMwidth 1200height 765#5 Spring Snow/Rainfall and FloodsWinter Storm Stella brought snowfall totals of up to 42 inches and snowfall rates up to an “incredible” 7 inches per hour to the U.S. Northeast in mid-March. Beginning in late-April, heavy rainfall of up to 15 inches over a multi-state region in the Midwest caused historic levels of flooding along many rivers. Increasing extreme precipitation is firmly attributed to climate change.originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMwidth 1200height 630#4 California DelugeThe wet winter season of 2017 was noteworthy for the large number of extreme atmospheric rivers that produced record rainfall and flooding in the state. The recently released U.S. National Climate Assessment notes that the severity of landfalling atmospheric river storms on the U.S. West Coast increases with increasing temperatures.originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMwidth 1024height 682#3 Hurricane MariaThe Category 4 winds that leveled Puerto Rico during Hurricane Maria reflect the ongoing trend in the intensification of hurricanes driven, at least in part, if not largely, by global warming. Warming seas are increasing the potential energy available to passing storms, effectively increasing the power ceiling or speed limit for these cyclones.originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMwidth 2405height 1603#2 Hurricane HarveyThe historic floods driven by Hurricane Harvey were fueled by record-breaking rainfall. A warmer atmosphere is now holding and dumping more water when it rains and warming seas are evaporating more readily, offering up more moisture to passing storms. As Harvey approached the coast of Texas, temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico were up to 7°F warmer than the average over 1961-1990.originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMwidth 1200height 800#1 Hurricane IrmaHurricane Irma drove record-breaking “compound” coastal flooding in Jacksonville and Savannah. In these events, rainfall runoff met storm surge that rode in on waters elevated by sea level rise over the last 100 years, creating devastating flooding. Sea level rise is now dramatically amplifying the damage done when tropical cyclones make landfall along low-lying coastlines.originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMwidth 1140height 712
