Climate Change

[xilman]

The storm which gave the NE of the US a dusting of snow recently has now arrived at the UK. It's warmed up substantially and picked up a lot more water during its journey over the Atlantic. So far the only evidence here in Cambridge is a stiff breeze (22 knots average, 44 knots gusts according to the DTG where I work but the west coast expects to get 50-100mm rain which, I believe, is equivalent to around 1/2 to 1m of snow.

For the curious users of SI units. 22 kt = 41 km/h, 44kt = 81km/h to 2-digit precision.

BTW, in the US, the storm went under the name Jonas. During its passage over the pond, it changed sex and now wishes to known as Gertrude.

[Dubslow]

I believe that's the same storm that caused this. Of course we only got 2-3 inches of snow, the large majority of which melted yesterday. Presumably it picked up its blizzardness from the lakes before dumping said lakes on the coast and wandering off across the pond to say hello.

[ewmayer]

Originally Posted by xilman

The storm which gave the NE of the US a dusting of snow recently has now arrived at the UK. It's warmed up substantially and picked up a lot more water during its journey over the Atlantic. So far the only evidence here in Cambridge is a stiff breeze (22 knots average, 44 knots gusts according to the DTG where I work but the west coast expects to get 50-100mm rain which, I believe, is equivalent to around 1/2 to 1m of snow.

For the curious users of SI units. 22 kt = 41 km/h, 44kt = 81km/h to 2-digit precision.

My mnemonic here (the [] notes are numbers-geek-oriented, nothing to do with the menmonic): 'knot' is a more-or-less abbreviation of 'nautical mph', and a nautical mile = 2025 [= 3^4.5^2] yards which is almost exactly 1.15 (=1+0.15) standard (statute) miles of 1760 [= 2^5.5.11] yards and almost exactly 1.85 (=2-0.15) km.

I.e. nautical mile can be very close approximated by adding 0.15 to a statute mile and subtracting the same fraction from 2 km.

Clear as mud, yes? [As my aide comes running up shouting "Sir! The lander appears to crashed into Mars!"]

BTW, in the US, the storm went under the name Jonas. During its passage over the pond, it changed sex and now wishes to known as Gertrude.

Does Gertie insist on the right to have babies, even if the resulting gestation would necessitate carrying the f(o)etus around in a box? :pythonmonty:

[chappy]

Originally Posted by ewmayer

Does Gertie insist on the right to have babies, even if the resulting gestation would necessitate carrying the f(o)etus around in a box? :pythonmonty:

Baked Beans

(what I really wanted was a smiley banging two coconuts together.)

[xilman]

Originally Posted by ewmayer

My mnemonic here (the [] notes are numbers-geek-oriented, nothing to do with the menmonic): 'knot' is a more-or-less abbreviation of 'nautical mph', and a nautical mile = 2025 [= 3^4.5^2] yards which is almost exactly 1.15 (=1+0.15) standard (statute) miles of 1760 [= 2^5.5.11] yards and almost exactly 1.85 (=2-0.15) km.

Another nice mnemonic: the nautical mile was defined to be the length of a minute of arc of latitude.

By a curious coincidence, a minute of arc on Mars is remarkably close to a kilometer.

[ewmayer]

Why planting some trees could make global warming worse - CSMonitor.com

[Xyzzy]

http://www.techtimes.com/articles/13...s-per-year.htm

A new study presented at the 2016 meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) showed that air pollution-related diseases such as stroke and cardiovascular diseases kill 5.5 million people globally per year making air pollution the number one environmental cause of diseases worldwide.

[ewmayer]

Utilities Getting Regulatory Support for Screwing Solar Customers | naked capitalism

Features one of our beloved "heroes of so-called free-market capitalism", Warren Buffett, mass-scale slumlord, oil-train-runner and professional government bailout whore. "But he's so charmingly avuncular..."

Florida's highly regressive policies get a special mention, too.

[kladner]

Methane Leaks Erase Climate Benefit Of Fracked Gas, Countless Studies Find
['Countless' is a bit hyperbolic, but there are many studies cited.]

New satellite data and surface observations analyzed by Harvard researchers confirm previous data and observations: U.S. methane emissions are considerably higher than the official numbers from the EPA. Significantly, the EPA numbers are mostly based on industry-provided estimates, not actual measurements.

While this new study doesn’t attribute a specific source to the remarkable 30 percent increase in U.S. methane emissions from 2002–2014, many other studies have identified the source of those emissions as leakage of methane from the natural gas production and delivery system.

Indeed, researchers confirmed in 2014 that — even if methane leakage were zero percent — “increased natural gas use for electricity will not substantially reduce US GHG [greenhouse gas] emissions, and by delaying deployment of renewable energy technologies, may actually exacerbate the climate change problem in the long term.”

Exactly. In fact, a study just last month found that natural gas and renewables are competing directly with each other to replace coal plants in this country.

[kladner]

Yeah, Right! Remember the Macondo blowout.

A leaking gas well near the US city of Los Angeles which has been polluting the air for four months has been "permanently sealed," officials say.

The Southern California Gas Company (SoCal Gas) had been pumping in heavy fluids and cement to seal the well.

The leak began in October in a vast underground storage field in Porter Ranch, on the outskirts of Los Angeles.

The gas leak, one of the largest in American history, has caused thousands to relocate to temporary housing.

'Permanent' and 'sealed' are questionable concepts, especially in the context of deep, pressurized structures.

In May 2010, BP admitted they had "discovered things that were broken in the sub-surface" during the "top kill" effort.[96]

[Xyzzy]

http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/...bio-at-debate/

With Bush since departing the race, it was left to Marco Rubio to field that request at last night's Republican debate in Florida. "Senator Rubio, the Miami mayor has endorsed you," moderator Jake Tapper noted. "Will you honor his request for a pledge and acknowledge the reality of the scientific consensus of climate change and pledge to do something about it?"