Future

Articles

How Canada's Wildfires Are Warming the Stratosphere 0823

As Simultaneous Crop Failures Threaten Food System Collapse, Plutocrats vs Us 0723 - Falling temperature contrast between the tropics and the polar region weakens and slows the "polar" jet stream (~40-55°N).  So meanders are larger and more frequent in the north polar jet stream, leading to longer and hotter droughts, as well as longer rains and floods.  These can decrease crop yields in North America, Europe and China simultaneously.  The threat is worldwide famine.

‘Virtually Certain’ Extreme Antarctic Events Will Get Worse without Drastic Action 0823  - Some of them will affect the south polar jet stream, in somewhat similar ways to the north polar jet stream.  Problem for crop yields in southern South America, and -somewhat less so - in Australia and New Zealand, south Africa, and temperate South America.

Pliocene-Like Monsoons Are Returning to the American Southwest 1122

Loss of Arctic Sea Ice to Give Rise to More of Strong El Niños 0922

A Michigan Summer Day Could Be as Hot as the Deep South by 2100 - 0822

Climate Change Threatens Europe with New Weather Extremes 0422

A Warming World Could Add More Fuel to Tornadoes 1221

Climate Change Makes Indian Monsoon Season Stronger and More Chaotic 0421

Projected Surge of Lightning Spells More Wildfire Trouble for the Arctic 0421

Climate Change to Shift Earth’s Tropical Rain Belt 0121

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Climate Change May Kickstart Dormant El Niño Weather System in Indian Ocean 0520

Super El Niño Events May Become More Frequent as the Climate Warms 1019

What an Ice-Free Arctic Really Means, and Why It Matters So Much 0919

Athletes Told Congress They Fear  Demise of Winter Sports from Global Warming 0919

Research over Millennia Links Shrinking Sea Ice to Less Rain in Central North America 0319

Extreme Weather Threatens African Society and Economy 1018

New El Niño Weather Event Likely This Winter, Says WMO 0918

Wind and Solar Farms Can Make Their Own Weather, with Extra Rain over Sahara 0918

Climate Change Will Make El Niño/La Niña Impacts Stronger 0918

The People Most Hurt by Climate Swings Did the Least to Cause Them 0518
    Climate variability (drought to flood and back, etc.), relative to local past norms, is gretest in the tropics.

California's Wild Extremes of Drought and Floods to Worsen as Climate Warms 0418

Climate Change May Mean More Spring Snowstorms in the Future 0318

El Niño Might Speed Up Climate Change 1217 - Tropical forests emit more carbon, absorb less.  Forest fires.

Even Minor Global Warming Could Worsen Super El Niños 0717

Shifting Storms under Climate Change to Worsen Coastal Perils 0717

Australia Could Suffer from Droughts, Heat Waves as the Tropical Zone Expands 0717

Warmth Will Worsen Wet and Dry Extremes 0617

'Alarming'- Keeping Warming to 1.5°C to Shield Australia from Big Extremes 0517

Tornado Deaths and Destruction to Triple in Coming Decades 0517 - more people and property in tornado paths

Severe Weather Changes Ahead, Warn Scientists at Climate Forum 0517

Extreme Storms Will Be a Lot More Frequent as Climate Warms 1216

Climate Change Warming Asian Waters, Altering Monsoon 0716

Arctic Warming Is Possibly Catastrophic for Planet, Climate Scientist Warns 0216

West Likely to Be Stormier with Climate Change 0216

Climate Scientists Fear ‘Day After Tomorrow’ Scenario 0915

Concerns Deepen about a Climate-Change ‘Wild Card’ 0915 - shutdown of ocean thermohaline circulation

Surge In ‘Danger Days’ Just around the Corner 0815

Climate Change Could Give San Francisco the Climate of San Diego 0815

The Deadly Combination of Heat and Humidity 0615

Sydney Storms Intensify as Engineers Begin to Adjust to Climate Change 0415

Welcome to the 'Double El Niño' — and More Extreme Weather 0315

Arctic Melt Brings More Persistent Heat Waves to U.S., Europe 0315

US 'at Risk of Mega-Drought Future’ 0215 - See Overviews page for maps of effects and PDF of study.

Global Warming May Spawn More Southeast US Tornadoes 0215

Climate Change in Minnesota - More Heat, More Big Storms 0215

Climate Change Will Hit Australia Harder Than Rest of the World 0115

Global Warming Could Make Blizzards Worse 0115

Global Warming ‘Doubles Risk' of Extreme Weather 0115

With Climate Change, Himalayas' Future is Warmer, Not Necessarily Brighter 0115

Concern about Extremes, as Planet Gets Hotter and Colder 1214

Tropical Deforestation Could Disrupt Rainfall Globally 1214 -        take #1 on study

Tropical Deforestation Threatens Global Food Production 1214 -  take #2 on study

Weather Extremes Will Be the Norm as World Warms 1114

Risk from Extreme Weather Set to Rise 1114

Thunderstruck - Lightning Will Increase with Warming 1114

Every Other Summer Will Be a Heat Wave in Eastern China 1014

Storm Warning - the Winds of Climate Change 0714

What to Expect When You’re Expecting El Niño 0414

Big El Niño Coming? 0414

Thunderstorms Will Get Worse, Tornadoes Commoner, as Climate Warms 0813

Changes in Store as Ohio Warms 0813 - see also Food Impacts.  Based on changes observed in temperature and precipitation over the past century.

Can Extreme Weather Make Climate Change Worse? 0813  Droughts cut CO2 absorption.

North Carolina Forecast Calls for Heat, Drought, Storms 0713

Drought, Flood Signal Iowa's Future 0613

Intense Thunderstorms More Likely to Batter a Warming World 0613

Southwest US Monsoon Season May Heat Up with the Climate 0513

Warming Climate Likely Means More Floods, Droughts - NASA 0513

Hawaii Will Get Less Rain, Due To Global Warming 0413

Warming to Bring Lots More Severe Thunderstorms to Southeast 0413

Record Rain in Argentina Is Sign of Things to Come 0413

High Price of Melbourne's (Australia) Hot Weather, to Mid-Century 0113

India Could Face Crippling Heat Waves 1212

Megastorms (Atmospheric Rivers) Could Drown Much of California (More Often) 1112

Stronger Storms May Destroy Much of Stratospheric Ozone 0712

Tornadoes Will Come Earlier with Warming 0312

Heat Wave Temps to Soar 0708 - e.g., LA 117° F, KC 116, Chicago 115, Atlanta 110, Paris 109, Delhi 120, Belém (Brazil) 121, south of France 118°.  People will look back at 2008 as the good old cool days.

US 20-Year Rain & Heat Events to Become 8- & 3-Year Ones by 2050 and 2100 - 0608 

Tornados to Increase with Warming 1207 - esp. in FL & southern Plains in spring, then the whole eastern US in summer

Climate Change in the Midwest - UCS 0809 - PDF, 24 pages

Average summer temperatures and rainfall for 1961-90, 2010-39, 2040-69 & 2070-99.

Red is for the high emissions scenario, orange for the low emissions scenario.

Northeast

     Weather changes in other parts of the US (and the world) will be broadly similar to those projected for the Northeast.  By 2100, places in the Northeast would get 50-60 more days over 90°F and 3-20 more days 100°F.  A larger fraction of rain would come in intense events (days with more than 2 inches would rise 40-50%).  1-3 month droughts would double, 3-6 month droughts triple, and droughts longer than 6 months quadruple.  Winter days with snow on the ground would fall to 1/4 to 1/2 as many as now.

Migrating Climates in the Northeast & Their Impacts - UCS 0707 - PDF, 160 pages

The UCS maps of migrating climates show how the climate in states now will feel like states further south (& a little west) in mid-century, and much further late this century.  Averaged across all 15 states, in the high emissions case, it's like moving 330 miles SSW for 2040-69 and 660 miles SSW for 2070-99.

      For example, by the end of the century, New Hampshire would feel like the Piedmont today in North Carolina and Virginia, unless we cut carbon emissions deeply.  Rhode Island's climate would be like Savannah's.  Indiana's climate would resemble today's Virginia in winter and Oklahoma in summer.  Minnesota's summer climate would resemble the Kansas climate of today.  By 2100, absent steep carbon emission cuts, western Pennsylvania's climate would feel like Alabama's today.

See www.climatechoices.org/ne/impacts_ne/climates.html for maps of how climate would change for 9 Northeast states.  Similarly, see www.ucsusa.org/greatlakes/glimpactmigrating.html for maps of how climate would change for 9 Great Lakes states.

Projected Number of Droughts / 30 Years (short-, medium-, and long-term)

Projected Number of Snow-Covered Days per Month (Dec, Jan & Feb)

Section Map: Weather & Sea Level Rise