[Politics] 3rd July 2023 - Hottest day since records began - what to do about climate change?

[The aloof gatekeeper]

Things are really not looking good.

Climate records tumble, leaving Earth in uncharted territory - scientists

A series of records on temperature, ocean heat, and Antarctic sea ice are "unprecedented", some scientists say.

www.bbc.co.uk

I guess if an unprecedented amount of water vapour is suddenly pumped into the atmosphere it's bound to have an effect:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2022/08/05/volcano-eruption-tonga-record-climate/

 

[Kneon Light]

Yes 10% on this poll believe that climate change is a myth.

I find that fact really depressing

 

[beorhthelm]

I guess if an unprecedented amount of water vapour is suddenly pumped into the atmosphere it's bound to have an effect:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2022/08/05/volcano-eruption-tonga-record-climate/

interesting. reading further the scientists predicted a 1.5c short term increase in temperatures in 4-5 years following this. so this could be directly attributable to this years sudden increased heat. would explain why 100year old records getting smashed.

 

[nicko31]

Global warming of 2c above pre industrial levels breached 2 days running for the first time

More column inches in the UK press about Farage in the jungle than this …

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2023/11/19/climate-change-2c-temperature-heat-record/

 

[OzMike]

Hottest November on record here and in the middle of a heatwave now.
Summer has only just started too.
It usually gets hotter over the next 4 months or so, not good.

 

[Eeyore]

Hottest November on record here and in the middle of a heatwave now.
Summer has only just started too.
It usually gets hotter over the next 4 months or so, not good.

I remember working as a courier in Sydney when I was young. First day was in November and it was about 100f. That's pretty warm for those parts.

I played cricket for a team over there. For the most part the days of summer were just like they are at their best here. And I turned up after the hot summer of 1995. So I basically had a year and a half of summer in the end.

Mind you, when it rained it didn't 'alf pour.

 

[Mustafa II]

2023 confirmed as world's hottest year on record

Climate records tumbled "like dominoes" in 2023, with temperatures far above any recorded level.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Bakero]

Anyone in Dubai today?

 

[A1X]

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

I keep a record of my asparagus crop. Earliest spear since records began was 27 April. Today, 11 days early, I cut my first and there are tons maturing.

I put it down to no frost, absolutely tons of rain and tons of sunshine. I has been really cold here in north Kent this spring, but never horribly cold. Very windy. Every year is different.

But this is weather, not climate.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Anyone in Dubai today?

I lived in Dubai as a kid (1976 - 1981). Obviously a VERY different Dubai to that of nowadays (my Dad was a project manager on the building of the World Trade Centre - Dubai's very first 'sky scraper').

By my recollection, for Dubai to get ALL of it's annual rainfall in a very short period of time, was actually completely normal. There was no drop of rain all year round, until 'the monsoon' when it would absolutely hammer down for 2-3 days - then stop for the next 362.

So this out of the ordinary weather event - whilst spectacular - is possibly not QUITE as 'out of the ordinary' as it would seem to those used to the weather patterns here in the UK.

 

[hart's shirt]

I lived in Dubai as a kid (1976 - 1981). Obviously a VERY different Dubai to that of nowadays (my Dad was a project manager on the building of the World Trade Centre - Dubai's very first 'sky scraper').

By my recollection, for Dubai to get ALL of it's annual rainfall in a very short period of time, was actually completely normal. There was no drop of rain all year round, until 'the monsoon' when it would absolutely hammer down for 2-3 days - then stop for the next 362.

So this out of the ordinary weather event - whilst spectacular - is possibly not QUITE as 'out of the ordinary' as it would seem to those used to the weather patterns here in the UK.

True.

About 5 years ago, I helped to bail out a local villa which had flooded due to the 2-3 days of rain partly due to cloud seeding.

The fact that the storm drains aren't always able to cope also doesn't help.

A friend of mine lost his front number plate driving through the water yesterday. Annoying, but hardly life-threatening.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

True.

About 5 years ago, I helped to bail out a local villa which had flooded due to the 2-3 days of rain partly due to cloud seeding.

The fact that the storm drains aren't always able to cope also doesn't help.

A friend of mine lost his front number plate driving through the water yesterday. Annoying, but hardly life-threatening.

Back then a lot of the roads were far more rudimentary than nowadays, too. Stretches of road were regularly damaged / washed away by the annual monsoon.

One year, we couldn't get the the Ex-pat Country Club for WEEKS.

The HORROR.

 

[hart's shirt]

Back then a lot of the roads were far more rudimentary than nowadays, too. Stretches of road were regularly damaged / washed away by the annual monsoon.

One year, we couldn't get the the Ex-pat Country Club for WEEKS.

The HORROR.

If you pay for polo, you don't expect water polo.

I feel your pain.

 

[Bakero]

I lived in Dubai as a kid (1976 - 1981). Obviously a VERY different Dubai to that of nowadays (my Dad was a project manager on the building of the World Trade Centre - Dubai's very first 'sky scraper').

By my recollection, for Dubai to get ALL of it's annual rainfall in a very short period of time, was actually completely normal. There was no drop of rain all year round, until 'the monsoon' when it would absolutely hammer down for 2-3 days - then stop for the next 362.

So this out of the ordinary weather event - whilst spectacular - is possibly not QUITE as 'out of the ordinary' as it would seem to those used to the weather patterns here in the UK.

Of course in a place like Dubai the rain is going to be infrequent but heavy. This was different though. Apparently, the highest rainfall since records began, with Tuesday's total surpassing the average 18 months of rain

 

[Machiavelli]

And, to add for those that hadn't twigged, have their (bad) excuses, etc:

Climate crisis: average world incomes to drop by nearly a fifth by 2050

Cost of environmental damage will be six times higher than price of limiting global heating to 2C, study finds

www.theguardian.com

 

[Jackthelad]

Of course in a place like Dubai the rain is going to be infrequent but heavy. This was different though. Apparently, the highest rainfall since records began, with Tuesday's total surpassing the average 18 months of rain

UAE also does cloud seeding so it could be that also.

 

[Bakero]

UAE also does cloud seeding so it could be that also.

I don't think any credible source is suggesting that cloud seeding could be responsible though. Are they?

 

[Jackthelad]

I don't think any credible source is suggesting that cloud seeding could be responsible though. Are they?

No not that I know of, and I doubt that would ever get out in the media anyway. But as the pilot said in the video it's new tech to UAE and a challenge, you wonder if they could be over doing it or made a mistake somewhere.

 

[jcdenton08]

No not that I know of, and I doubt that would ever get out in the media anyway. But as the pilot said in the video it's new tech to UAE and a challenge, you wonder if they could be over doing it or made a mistake somewhere.

Front page of BBC news, second article down:

What is cloud seeding and did it cause Dubai flooding?

Dubai has been hit by record floods, sparking misleading speculation about cloud seeding.

www.bbc.co.uk

“Cloud seeding involves manipulating existing clouds to help produce more rain.
This can be done by using aircraft to drop small particles (like silver iodide) into clouds. Water vapour can then condense more easily and turn into rain.

The technique has been around for decades, and the UAE has used it in recent years to help address water shortages.

In the hours that followed the floods, some social media users were quick to wrongly attribute the extreme weather solely to recent cloud seeding operations in the country.

Earlier reports by Bloomberg suggested cloud seeding planes were deployed on Sunday and Monday, but not on Tuesday, when the flooding occurred.

While the BBC has been unable to independently verify when cloud seeding took place, experts say that at best it would have had a minor effect on the storm and that focusing on cloud seeding is "misleading".”