Despite the presence of unseasonably low temperatures seen across the country over the course of March, Alaska has been hit with record-high temperatures, with 55 temperature records across the state being either met or broken, and at least one town marking the earliest 70-degree reading on record for the northernread more
Nearly two-thirds of the lower 48 states are facing an increased risk of flooding this spring, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, with 13 million people in 25 states facing the potential threat of “major or moderate flooding”. “The flooding this year could be worse than anything we’veread more
Efforts to supply arid regions with water have been undertaken ever since humanity began spreading into the world’s deserts, with ingenious methods being invented throughout history to hydrate populations and their agriculture in deserts and mountains. This problem is becoming more acute as the Earth’s climate shifts: while there are regions that are experiencing increased flooding, there are corresponding locations that suffer more frequent droughts, meaning we need to find new ways of providing the people there with a ready source of water. One engineering team with Ohio State University are now studying new water collection methods, inspired by desert plants and animals, to develop a new generation of simple devices that can literally pull water out of thin air.
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We often hear a great deal from weather experts about how extreme weather is being made all the more intense by the rise in climate change, especially when it comes to events such as hurricanes, but we’re rarely given the chance to see just how much global warming is actually contributing to any given weather event. However, using composite maps from resources such as nullschool.net, we’re presented with a visual representation of how storms such as Hurricane Florence can change the temperature of the ocean’s surface as it passes overhead, to give us an idea how much energy is imparted to the storm.read more