Latest news with #climatescience
Bloomberg
2 days ago
- Science
- Bloomberg
Chris Wright Touts Energy Department Report's Misleading Climate Claims
While promoting his agency's recently released climate report, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright has said that climate change is not making extreme weather more intense and more common. That's counter to authoritative climate science research. His statements come amid a push by the Trump administration to eliminate climate programs and scientist positions and to reduce access to past US-produced scientific reports, while issuing new material that goes against mainstream findings.
CNN
14-07-2025
- Climate
- CNN
The next ‘Storm of the Century' could be even stronger, new study shows
People in entertainment Climate changeFacebookTweetLink Follow The strongest nor'easters — destructive and often deadly storms that slap the US East Coast with paralyzing rain, snow and flooding — are being supercharged by the effects of climate pollution, a new study found. Nor'easters, which typically form between September and April, are fueled by the temperature contrast between cold Arctic air from the north and warmer, moist air from the Atlantic Ocean. They are a huge threat to densely populated cities along the East Coast. The past decades have been peppered with nor'easters so devastating, some are now known by nicknames which sound like disaster movie titles. The 'Storm of the Century' in March 1993 was one of the deadliest and costliest ever recorded. It packed more than 100 mph winds, dumped almost 60 inches of snow in some places and killed more than 200 people. 'Snowmageddon' in 2010 unleashed more than 20 inches of snow on parts of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia, killing 41 people and leaving hundreds of thousands without power. Michael Mann, a climate scientist at the University of Pennsylvania and an author of the study, was trapped in a Philadelphia hotel room for three days during Snowmageddon. It was this experience that first sparked his curiosity about how these storms might be affected by global warming. Fifteen years later he believes he has some answers. There is a general consensus there will be fewer nor'easters in a warmer world, because the Arctic is heating up faster than the rest of the Northern Hemisphere meaning there is less of a temperature contrast to fuel the storms. But what has been unclear is what will happen to the intensity of these storms, which have tended to be understudied, Mann said. To answer this question, the scientists used historical data and a cyclone tracking algorithm to analyze nor'easters between 1940 and 2025, pulling together a digital atlas of these storms. They analyzed 900 in total and found the maximum windspeed of the most intense nor'easters increased by around 6% since 1940, according to the study published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. This may sound small but it vastly increases the damage a storm can wreak. A 6% boost in wind speed equates to a 20% increase in the storm's destructive potential, Mann said. 'That's substantial.' The rates of rain and snow dumped by these storms have also increased by about 10%, according to the analysis. The reason nor'easters are intensifying is 'basic physics,' Mann said. Warmer oceans and air mean more evaporation and more moisture in the atmosphere, which gets wrung out in the form of more intense rain or snow. The level of damage these storms can inflict make it vital to better understand how they'll change in a hotter world, Mann added. The 'Ash Wednesday' storm in 1962, for example, caused huge devastation along the East Coast, inflicting a total economic loss equivalent to tens of billions of dollars in today's money. It did 'as much damage as a major landfalling hurricane,' he said. The results also suggest the flooding risk in many East Coast cities may be underestimated, the study noted. 'Nor'easters have been neglected, and that's another contribution to increased coastal risk that we haven't really been focusing on enough,' Mann added. Jennifer Francis, a senior scientist at Woodwell Climate Research Center who was not involved in the study, said the findings highlight the need for better preparedness. 'Coastal communities in the Northeast where nor'easters strike should sit up and take notice… proactive preparation is less costly than post-storm recovery,' she told CNN. The findings are also important because they shine a light on the different ways the climate crisis plays out, said Judah Cohen, an MIT climatologist who was also not involved in the study. The effects 'can be counter-intuitive, including the idea that climate change can result in episodic increases in severe winter weather,' he told CNN. Even as the world warms, and the snow season shortens in many parts of the US, there will still be periods of heavy snowfall and intense cold, Mann said. 'Individual events may pack a bigger punch.'
E&E News
10-07-2025
- Politics
- E&E News
Researchers who question mainstream climate science join DOE
Three researchers who have challenged mainstream scientific views of climate change have joined Energy Secretary Chris Wright's office, according to the Department of Energy's internal registry. Among the new additions is Steve Koonin, an Obama-era DOE undersecretary who helped develop President Donald Trump's plan to challenge climate science during his first stint in the White House. Koonin is listed as a special government employee. Koonin, who is also a professor at New York University and former top scientist at BP, has long pushed to conduct a 'red team, blue team' review of climate science, pitting two groups of researchers against each other to debate scientific reports such as the National Climate Assessment. Advertisement DOE did not immediately respond when asked for comment. The New York Times first reported the staffing changes.
Daily Mail
02-07-2025
- Climate
- Daily Mail
Scientists blame climate change for UK heatwave: Met Office is ‘virtually certain' 35°C temperatures were caused by global warming
Scientists have blamed climate change for the UK heatwave. The Met Office says it is 'virtually certain' that this week's 35°C temperatures were caused by global warming. 'Past studies have shown it is virtually certain that human influence has increased the occurrence and intensity of extreme heat events such as this,' said Dr Amy Doherty, Met Office Climate Scientist. 'Numerous climate attribution studies have shown that human influence increased the chance that specific extreme heat events would occur, such as the summer of 2018 and July 2022. 'Our Met Office climate projections indicate that hot spells will become more frequent in our future climate, particularly over the southeast of the UK. 'Temperatures are projected to rise in all seasons, but the heat would be most intense in summer.' The warning comes as the Met Office confirmed that last month was England's hottest June on record. Average temperatures hit a balmy 16.9°C - the highest recorded since the series began in 1884. Last month was the second warmest on record for the UK, which saw an average temperature of 15.2°C. The east and southeast of England were especially hot last month, with East Anglia's average temperature hitting 3°C above its long-term average. Across June, two heatwaves were confirmed across England and Wales - one in the third week of the month, and the second closing out the month. This second heatwave has been more concentrated on the very far south and east of England, according to the Met Office. As for how this year compares to the infamous summer of 1976, the Met Office says that while last month was hotter, June 1976 remains more notable due to the longevity of the heat. 'During 1976, multiple locations across England recorded heatwave spells lasting over two weeks,' the Met Office explained. Looking ahead, the UK is likely to see more frequent and intense heatwaves, according to the Met Office. Just last month, the Met Office's research showed that the chances of hitting 40°C are climbing at pace. The study, published in the journal Weather, showed that there is now a 50/50 chance of the UK hitting 40°C again in the next 12 years. Worryingly, the researchers warn that even hotter temperatures are possible, with a maximum of 46.6°C (115.9°F) now 'plausible' in today's climate. Lead author Dr Gillian Kay, senior scientist at the Met Office, said: 'The chance of exceeding 40°C has been rapidly increasing, and it is now over 20 times more likely than it was in the 1960s. 'Because our climate continues to warm, we can expect the chance to keep rising. 'We also found that temperatures several degrees higher than we saw in July 2022 are possible in today's climate.' Dr Garyfallos Konstantinoudis, research fellow at the Grantham Institute, Imperial College London, called heatwaves 'silent killers'. 'Unlike floods or storms, their impact can be invisible,' he warned.
Daily Mail
01-07-2025
- Climate
- Daily Mail
Last month was England's hottest June on RECORD - with average temperatures hitting a balmy 16.9°C, Met Office confirms
In news that will come as no surprise to residents across England, the Met Office has confirmed that last month was England's hottest June on record. Average temperatures hit a balmy 16.9°C - the highest recorded since the series began in 1884. Last month was also the second warmest on record for the UK, which saw an average temperature of 15.2°C. The Met Office says it's 'virtually certain' that humans are at least partially to blame for the intense heat. 'Past studies have shown it is virtually certain that human influence has increased the occurrence and intensity of extreme heat events such as this,' said Dr Amy Doherty, Met Office Climate Scientist. 'Numerous climate attribution studies have shown that human influence increased the chance that specific extreme heat events would occur, such as the summer of 2018 and July 2022. 'Our Met Office climate projections indicate that hot spells will become more frequent in our future climate, particularly over the southeast of the UK. 'Temperatures are projected to rise in all seasons, but the heat would be most intense in summer.' The east and southeast of England were especially hot last month, with East Anglia's average temperature hitting 3°C above its long-term average. Across June, two heatwaves were confirmed across England and Wales - one in the third week of the month, and the second closing out the month. This second heatwave has been more concentrated on the very far south and east of England, according to the Met Office. As for how this year compares to the infamous summer of 1976, the Met Office says that while last month was hotter, June 1976 remains more notable due to the longevity of the heat. 'During 1976, multiple locations across England recorded heatwave spells lasting over two weeks,' the Met Office explained. Looking ahead, the UK is likely to see more frequent and intense heatwaves, according to the Met Office. Just last month, the Met Office's research showed that the chances of hitting 40°C are climbing at pace. The study, published in the journal Weather, showed that there is now a 50/50 chance of the UK hitting 40°C again in the next 12 years. Worryingly, the researchers warn that even hotter temperatures are possible, with a maximum of 46.6°C (115.9°F) now 'plausible' in today's climate. Lead author Dr Gillian Kay, senior scientist at the Met Office, said: 'The chance of exceeding 40°C has been rapidly increasing, and it is now over 20 times more likely than it was in the 1960s. 'Because our climate continues to warm, we can expect the chance to keep rising. 'We also found that temperatures several degrees higher than we saw in July 2022 are possible in today's climate.' Dr Garyfallos Konstantinoudis, research fellow at the Grantham Institute, Imperial College London, called heatwaves 'silent killers'. 'Unlike floods or storms, their impact can be invisible,' he warned. 'People who die during extreme heat usually have pre-existing health conditions, and heat is rarely recorded as a contributing cause of death.'
