Category Archives: Weather!

Desperately seeking swelter

Posted on by
1

“Desperately seeking swelter“. Anthony Watts has found a Telegraph column by denialist pontificator Christopher Booker that pulls the old “black is white” trick. Somehow the record hot weather across the northern hemisphere is “risibly desperate” effort by “believers in global warming to hold the line for their religion”. Sure it’s hot now, but apparently any hot weather at any time in the past is unshakeable proof that hot weather now can’t be due to Global Warming. You’ll have to talk me through that one, Chris.

What does Booker offer in support of his shifty argument? Well he does mention “expert analysis on Watts Up With That, the US science blog”.

ROTFLMAO (for libertarian retirees hunched over their 286’s, that’s txt for “rolling on the floor laughing my ass off”).

Oh, by the way Booker in the past has been delighted to claim that cold winter weather is proof that there’s no Global Warming…

Arctic Ocean ice retreating at 30-year record pace

Posted on by
17

“Arctic Ocean ice retreating at 30-year record pace“. Steven Mosher is suddenly sniffing that short-term Arctic Sea Ice trends don’t mean anything. I guess short-term climate trends are only legitimate if they can be used to ‘prove’ that Global Warming is either non-existent or natural. They’re definitely not legitimate evidence that Global Warming is real or man-made. Ah, the hypocrisy.

His understandable indignation was triggered by an article about declining Arctic Sea Ice in The Montreal Gazette that was based on such wild sources as… the measurements of the National Snow and Ice Data Center and the research of University of Manitoba polar scientist David Barber.

Actually, short-term trends aren’t very meaningful for climate prediction. But you can be sure the denialists will swing back to touting them as soon as they can find one that suits them.

Art Horn: a remarkable statement from NOAA

Posted on by
2

“Art Horn: a remarkable statement from NOAA“. Anthony Watts wants us to know that right-wing partisan website Pajamas Media’s meteorologist, Art Horn, shares his obsession, and outrage, over weather station trivia.

The following remarkable statement now appears on the NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) site:

For detecting climate change, the concern is not the absolute temperature — whether a station is reading warmer or cooler than a nearby station placed on grass — but how that temperature changes over time.

Welcome to 1950, Art! You too Anthony. This has always been true. That’s the difference between studying weather and studying climate.

Sigh. One day the penny will drop. And rattle around for hours.

P.S. Why do I keep looking at “Art Horn” and seeing “ad hom”?

October Through March Was the Snowiest On Record In The Northern Hemisphere

Posted on by
3

“October Through March Was the Snowiest On Record In The Northern Hemisphere“. Steven Goddard pretends once again that regional weather is the same as global climate while making snide remarks about Nobel laureates. This is B.S. to fool the gullible and Steven probably knows it.

But I have to ask; is his “no Global Warming” argument getting so weak that cherry-picking locations is no longer enough? Does he also have to pretend that higher snowfall is an indicator of cold temperatures? Since when does “more snow” = “colder”? Snow volumes depend on air moisture, which drops with temperature. So more winter snow actually means warmer winter conditions.

Maybe no-one will notice the logic disconnect, Steven.

By the way, I love how the numbers from the meteorological offices that suit Steven are gobbled up eagerly, but the ones that don’t suit him are (very) darkly questioned. Are the Met offices liars or aren’t they?

An aside, since I’m covering this WUWT post late and there are lots of comments over there. Steven is getting more and more juvenile in his response to critical comments and Anthony has contributed this revealing editorial remark:

REPLY: Phil, I’ll explain it for you. As a publicly funded professor at a major university who is too timid to put his name to his words, who uses a university email address and IP infrasturcture, and often posts inflammatory comments, all your posts automatically go to the penalty box along with SPAM for examination. When they are examined they get released.

Want more respect? Want to get out of the penalty box reserved for weasels on the public dole that are always critical but too cowardly to criticize on the same open level? Then have the courage to put you name to your words like I do every day and I’ll elevate you. Otherwise stop your whining. – Anthony Watts

That’s a pretty shocking display of prejudice against presumed public employees, proof of willingness to impede critical comments, and an unethical willingness to try to intimidate opponents by revealing personal information. So much for Anthony’s vaunted “open forum”. It goes further downhill from there. Disgusting.

Anthony you are an unethical, unscientific, hypocritical, partisan dissembler. Steven, you’re just an enthusiastically blinkered denialist.

Seven Months of Winter at NCAR

Posted on by
1

“Seven Months of Winter at NCAR“. Steven Goddard once again shouts about local weather to conceal the truth about climate. Here’s his evidence. Real climatologist Kevin Trenberth idly mentions a Colorado October cold snap in one of the stolen “Climategate” e-mails! A Met Office press release from ten years ago wasn’t accurate enough! Scottish ski resorts had profitable seasons! Steve’s canceled his kid’s soccer practices due to poor weather!

Funny, the real data is pretty solidly against Steven’s deceptive posturing – NASA: Easily the hottest April — and hottest Jan-April — in temperature record – Plus a new record 12-month global temperature, as predicted.

From Murphy et al. 2009.

Steven also repeats the misrepresentation of Kevin Trenberth’s “travesty” comment. Hint: it wasn’t about deceiving the public or faulty climate models. It was about insufficient instrumentation.

Same old denialist lies from Steven Goddard.

WUWT Arctic Sea Ice News #4

Posted on by
Reply

“WUWT Arctic Sea Ice News #4“. Steve Goddard returns from Venus to make snide remarks about the Catlin Arctic Expedition before offering us his Arctic Sea Ice Extent analysis. Everything’s “normal” as far as Steve’s concerned, so there’s no Global Warming.

Except Arctic temperatures appear to actually be running several degrees C warmer than “normal”. Also the Arctic Sea Ice Extent is currently dropping about twice as fast as it did in 2009. Look for WUWT’s Arctic Sea Ice News updates to be quietly discontinued in a few weeks.

Another Arctic Sea Ice Milestone

Posted on by
1

“Another Arctic Sea Ice Milestone“. Anthony Watts is trying to milk the Arctic Sea Ice Extent blip (aka “weather”) for as long as possible. Of course this is only possible with the Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Center’s NORSEX estimate, which uses a slightly broader definition of sea ice. Anthony tells us about a sensational “milestone”:

Today it is encouraging to see the NANSEN is reporting that both Arctic Sea Ice area and extent are above the normal line.

Nansen Arctic Sea Ice Extent, 2010/04/29.

What’s actually happening is that the 2010 sea ice extent has tracked previous “low” years until an early March cold snap in the Bering Sea delayed the onset of retreat. After that delay, it’s right back on the same trajectory.

But keep sayin’ it, Anthony.

2010/04/30 Update: Good sea ice info from Dr. Ron Lindsay at the University of Washington has been pointed out in the comments:

Mar. 2010 sea ice extent prediction for Sept. 2010. After Ron Lindsay.

Cold from Seattle to Sao Paulo

Posted on by
2

“Cold from Seattle to Sao Paulo“. Steven Goddard makes an idiotic and irrelevant observation about the short-term weather forecast for North and South America and commenters talk sagely about how much snow fell in their backyard yesterday. Thus proving that Global Warming is a hoax.

Whatever.

WUWT Sea Ice News #2

Posted on by
2

““. Steven Goddard Photoshops some sea ice extent maps and enthusiastically declares “Arctic ice extent is normal.” Well, nearly. Naturally he only wants to talk about the one data series that briefly popped above “normal” and not about the others, which… don’t.

Steven’s also excited that Arctic weather patterns may produce an anomalous high sea ice extent next winter. I can see that he’s going to wear himself out thrashing wildly back and forth about weather. It’s irrelevant. Why was the record 2007 sea ice extent minimum a cause for concern? Because it was part of a climate trend.

Some other rhetorical master-strokes: mocking a 40 year-old old newspaper report, and embedding a juvenile YouTube clip from the film Airplane!

ENSO Update

Posted on by
5

“ENSO Update“. Weatherman Joseph D’Aleo tells us that the Pacific Ocean El Niño current will be fading soon. I suppose this means that any warming trend must be natural.