lee wrote on Dec 20^th, 2015 at 2:08pm:


While lee is scratching his head the rest of us are burning up.

Your answer:

Quote:

ARCTIC TEMPERATURE REACHES RECORD HIGH

KIAH FIELDS  DECEMBER 20, 2015
The Arctic recently received its annual check up by an international team of scientists and the results were not positive. It appears that the region continues to be one of the fast warming regions on the globe.

From October 2014 to September 2015, the Arctic has had its highest recorded average temperature since 1900, as the planet as a whole approaches its warmest year on record. This accelerated heating can result in downward spiraling of sea ice coverage, melting of Greenland’s Ice Sheet and reduced summer snow coverage. This change has a devastating effect on some species in this region and will most likely lead to more shipping and oil searching in the Arctic. Outside of the Arctic, this natural phenomenon can lead to raised water levels and unusual weather patterns.

Kit Kovacs of the Biodiversity Research Program of the Norwegian Polar Institute states that,

“The impact of the persistent warming trend of over 30 years are clearly evident in land and ocean environments”.

Given projections of further warming, the Earth is expected to experience major changes in the Arctic over the next decade. The Arctic has been warming at a rate twice the speed of that of the entire planet. This change has effected the sea ice coverage this year which was lower than ever before. This warming and melting of sea ice is caused by the greenhouse gases that are trapped in the atmosphere. In the video below, you can see the effects of global warming and that it is much more than a myth.

We all should have taken Al Gore and his advice a little more seriously at the turn of the millennium.

An unusual, long-lasting weather pattern will lead to the warmest Christmas Eve on record for many locations east of the Mississippi River on Thursday, as the planet as a whole barrels toward the milestone of its warmest year on record. By the end of this week, it's likely that hundreds more warm temperature records will have fallen across the United States, adding to December's already impressive tally of about 6,000 warm temperature records (record highs and record warm lows).

In Washington, D.C., the high temperature may exceed 70 degrees Fahrenheit on Christmas Eve — about 30 degrees Fahrenheit above average for the date. Mild temperatures in the mid-to-upper 60s could make it all the way north to upstate New York and northern Michigan before a cold front causes temperatures to fall off toward more seasonable levels by late on Friday.

In addition to these locations, Atlanta, Raleigh and Tampa are likely to set new temperature milestones on Christmas Eve, according to Weather Underground.

Christmas Day looks to be warmest across the Southeast, with records falling in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and other locations, while the Northeast cools off compared to Christmas Eve's balminess, but remains warmer-than-average.

Many cities are on pace to have their warmest December on record, including Boston, Burlington, Vermont, New York City and Portland, Maine. A map showing the departures from average of temperatures so far this month shows-off-the-charts warmth has enveloped much of the eastern tier of the country, with average temperature anomalies exceeding 9 degrees Fahrenheit. (The anomalies on the map only go up to 8 degrees Fahrenheit, since monthly anomalies rarely exceed that margin.)

In another sign of the mild start to the winter, some cities have set records for their latest first measurable snowfall. In Buffalo, New York, where it usually starts snowing by late October to early November, the first measurable snow of this winter did not arrive until Dec. 18. In Buffalo, New York, where it usually starts snowing by late October to early November, the first measurable snow of this winter did not arrive until Dec. 18. Before this, the latest first snow in Buffalo was on Dec. 3, 1899.

Even more locations, including Albany, New York, and Worcester, Massachusetts, are likely to set similar records, assuming it does not snow prior to Dec. 24, Weather.com reported.

According to preliminary data from the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) in Asheville, North Carolina, 2,643 record daily highs were tied or broken across the U.S. through Dec. 19. In addition, 3,720 record-warm daily low temperatures have been set or tied during the same period. Adding those two figures together for an overall warm temperature records total means there have already been 6,363 warm temperature records so far this month.

It's conceivable that this will climb by at least another 1,000 warm temperature records by the end of the holiday week.

Two scorchers here then it's back to the trackies... and we were hotter for those two days than up the coast....

More than a hundred houses have been confirmed destroyed have been lost in the fires that has swept through the popular Surf Coast holiday towns of Wye River and Separation Creek in Victoria, Australia.

Eighty-five homes were burnt down in Wye River and a further 18 were destroyed in Separation Creek, bringing the total to 103, nearly twice the number originally feared..

"Our thoughts go out to the people who have lost homes in Separation Creek and Wye River and our personnel are working around the clock to bring this fire under control," Victoria's Emergency Management Commissioner Craig Lapsley said.

Lorne was evacuated on Christmas Day, amid fears a south-westerly wind change would turn the fire front on the town on Christmas night.

On Boxing Day, the evacuation order for Lorne was lifted and the Great Ocean Road was reopened between the town and Torquay, allowing thousands of holidaymakers and residents to return to the Surf Coast over the holiday season. 

Lapsley said the immediate fire threat had eased, but the fire would continue to burn "for weeks".

WA was the hottest place on Earth yesterday, as Perth recorded its warmest December day for three years — and Geraldton Airport topped the global temperature scale when it reached a blazing 45.1C.

As towns all over the State broke the 40C mark, sweltering holidaymakers made a beeline for beaches and cinemas — while backyard pools were also popular — in a bid for any relief from the heat.