In the News
Record-breaking extreme heat and cold events may result from similar underlying mechanisms
The highest temperature ever verifiably recorded on Earth—54.4 degrees Celsius (130 degrees Fahrenheit) in Death Valley, California, on July 9, 2021—comes just months after record-low temperatures were recorded across Asia and the United States. In sweltering heat, the results of a rapidly warming Earth are clear. In a blizzard, it can be more difficult to understand how global warming can cause such freezing cold. An international research team examined three extreme events from the past winter to elucidate the mechanisms underlying such swings in temperature and weather. Jim Overland is q... more
As Arctic warms, scientists wrestle with its climate ‘tipping point’
For Arctic scientists, the summer of 2007 changed everything. That’s when, for the first time in history, record warmth melted the Northwest Passage, nearly opening it to shipping; turned a portion of the East Siberian Sea the size of Mexico into open ocean; and shrank the polar ice cap to a size never before reached so early in the March-to-September melt season, as documented by satellite since 1979. Jim Overland is interviewed.
Understanding the Arctic polar vortex
In late February, as the Southern Plains and Gulf Coast suffered through an unusually strong blast of wintry weather, weather talk turned to the polar vortex and the possibility that the extreme cold was yet another example of weather-gone-wild due to global warming. In this article, we’re talking to two NOAA experts, including PMEL's Jim Overland, about the devastating extreme cold event, the polar vortex, and the potential link to global warming.
The Arctic is getting hotter, greener and less icy much faster than expected, report finds
Bitterly cold, frozen and inhospitable to nearly all wildlife apart from polar bears. This is the image of the Arctic that comes to mind for many. But in a matter of decades -- a blink of an eye in the history of this planet -- human-caused global warming has transformed the Arctic into a place that scientists say is increasingly unrecognizable. Jim Overland is quoted.
‘Godzilla’ dust storm traced to shaky northern jet stream
The new findings identify yet another way in which a warming Arctic might disturb the weather half a world away. The root cause of the extra-wavy jet stream is under fierce debate, but some scientists believe Arctic warming and declining sea ice are to blame for Godzilla’s far-reaching effects. Jim Overland is quoted.