sunshine hours

Antarctic Sea Ice Extent Set A 2nd Daily Record in a row on May 21

sunshinehours1 — Wed, 22 May 2013 14:21:05 +0000

Antarctic Sea Ice Extent set a 2nd daily record in a row on May 22 (day 141 of 2013).

That is the 10th daily record for the year.

Year	No of Records
2010	129
2008	126
2006	29
2012	24
2007	21
2013	10
2009	8
2000	5
2004	5
1998	4
2005	3
1979	2
1980	1

Antarctic Sea Ice Extent Set A New Daily Record on May 20

sunshinehours1 — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:04:41 +0000

After setting 8 daily Antarctic Sea Ice Extent records earlier in the year, 2013 stayed near the top in 2nd, 3rd and 4th place until day 140 (May 20).

Another daily record was set yesterday breaking the old record set in 2000 by 66,000 sq km. 2013 is now in 6th place for daily records set.

Year	No of Records
2010	129
2008	126
2006	29
2012	24
2007	21
2013	9
2009	8
2000	5
2004	5
1998	4
2005	3
1979	2
1980	1

UAH says Australia Cooling at -.927C per decade for last 5 years

sunshinehours1 — Fri, 17 May 2013 18:07:05 +0000

UAH is a satellite temperature dataset, developed at the University of Alabama in Huntsville.

Last month UAH added AUST to its satellite data temperature set. AUST is Australia.

According to UAH, Australia is cooling at -.927C per decade over the last 5 years and cooling at -.291C per decade over the last 10 years.

Arctic Sea Ice Extent 1.3% Below Average

sunshinehours1 — Fri, 17 May 2013 14:10:11 +0000

Arctic Sea Ice Extent is 13.09 million sq km on day 136.

Which makes it 170,000 sq km below the average (13.26 million sq km) for the day.

Which means it is a minuscule 1.3% below average.

12 other years on this day had less ice: 2004, 2006, 2011, 2007, 2010, 2005, 2003, 1989, 1996, 2002, 2008, 1995

Coldest April Ever in North Dakota – NOAA USA April 2013 (updated ranking table)

sunshinehours1 — Wed, 15 May 2013 20:47:14 +0000

After looking at the national ranking (23rd coldest) it is time to look at the State data:

In the last 119 Aprils, it was the coldest April ever in North Dakota. 2nd coldest ever in South Dakota. 3rd coldest ever in Minnesota, 4th coldest ever in Nebraska, 7th coldest ever in Oklahoma, 8th coldest ever in Wisconsin.

North Dakota was 18.5F colder than the warmest April (which occurred in 1915).

26 out of 48 states had an April ranked below 60. Which means they were ranked in the bottom half of the 119 Aprils measured by the NOAA.

Only one state (California) had an April in the top 20.

State	Apr 2013 Avg F	Apr Rank (1=Coldest)	Coldest Apr	Coldest Apr F
North Dakota	31	1	2013	31
South Dakota	36.7	2	1920	35.6
Minnesota	33.9	3	1950	32.5
Nebraska	42.3	4	1920	38.9
Oklahoma	54.6	5	1983	53.2
Kansas	48.3	7	1983	46.9
Wisconsin	37.6	8	1950	35.2
Montana	37.7	11	1975	33.7
Wyoming	35.8	12	1920	32.2
Iowa	43.7	13	1907	40.1
Michigan	39.1	16	1907	35
Arkansas	58.4	18	1907	54.1
Missouri	51.8	19	1907	47.6
Texas	63.1	20	1997	59.7
Colorado	40.4	21	1920	34.3
Louisiana	64.5	23	1983	61.4
Illinois	49.8	29	1907	43.2
Mississippi	62.2	35	1983	58.4
Tennessee	56.9	42	1907	50.6
Utah	45.6	44	1975	39.9
Alabama	62.1	48	1901	57.4
Washington	46.7	50	1955	41.5
Idaho	42.5	52	1975	36.5
Indiana	50.7	53	1907	42.2
Kentucky	54.9	53	1907	46.9
Georgia	63.1	57	1901	57.4
New York	43.5	59	1943	36.8
Maine	39.3	60	1926	33.2
South Carolina	62.1	60	1901	55.1
Oregon	46.3	61	1975	40.1
Oregon	46.3	61	1967	40.1
North Carolina	58.5	63	1907	51
Vermont	41.9	66	1926	33.3
Connecticut	47	68	1943	40
New Mexico	52.3	68	1973	45.8
Ohio	50.4	71	1907	41.3
Massachusetts	46.2	75	1943	40.3
Rhode Island	47.1	79	1907	40.9
Nevada	48.5	80	1967	38.6
Pennsylvania	49	80	1943	41.6
Maryland	53.7	82	1907	45.9
New Jersey	51.5	83	1907	44.5
West Virginia	52.9	83	1907	44.4
New Hampshire	43.3	87	1926	34.6
Arizona	59.7	89	1975	50.6
Virginia	56.2	89	1907	47.1
Delaware	54.5	90	1907	46.4
Florida	71.4	97	1987	65.1
Florida	71.4	97	1901	65.1
California	59.9	108	1967	46.5

Coldest April Ever in North Dakota – NOAA USA April 2013

sunshinehours1 — Wed, 15 May 2013 18:11:28 +0000

After looking at the national ranking (23rd coldest) it is time to look at the State data:

North Dakota was 18.5F colder than the warmest April (which occurred in 1915).

26 out of 48 states had an April ranked below 60. Which means they were ranked in the bottom half of the 119 Aprils measured by the NOAA.

Only one state (California) had an April in the top 20.

My rankings are below. You may ask yourself why the table rank doesn’t match the above map from the NOAA?

The answer is ties. NOAA (and I) are counting from 119 to 1 for data table. This is Nebraska (where the two months tied at 4th coldest are ranked 5th):

I try and keep my table in synch with NOAA’s table. But I will rethink that.

State	Apr 2013 Average F.	Apr Rank (Coldest = 1)	Warmest April	Warmest April Temp	Difference
North Dakota	31	1	1915	49.5	18.5
South Dakota	36.7	2	1915	52	15.3
Minnesota	33.9	3	1987	50.2	16.3
Nebraska	42.3	5	1946	55	12.7
Oklahoma	54.6	6	1981	65.4	10.8
Kansas	48.3	7	1948	59.8	11.5
Wisconsin	37.6	8	2010	49.8	12.2
Montana	37.7	11	1910	49.1	11.4
Wyoming	35.8	12	1930	46.5	10.7
Iowa	43.7	14	1955	55.2	11.5
Michigan	39.1	16	1955	49.1	10
Missouri	51.8	20	1954	61.2	9.4
Arkansas	58.4	21	1925	66.6	8.2
Colorado	40.4	21	1981	49.3	8.9
Texas	63.1	22	1967	70.8	7.7
Louisiana	64.5	24	1981	71.3	6.8
Illinois	49.8	34	1955	58.2	8.4
Mississippi	62.2	36	1981	68.9	6.7
Utah	45.6	44	1989	52.4	6.8
Tennessee	56.9	45	1954	63.3	6.4
Washington	46.7	50	1926	52.8	6.1
Alabama	62.1	51	1896	67.9	5.8
Idaho	42.5	53	1987	49.5	7
Indiana	50.7	53	2010	57.3	6.6
Kentucky	54.9	54	1954	61.1	6.2
Georgia	63.1	57	1908	67.8	4.7
Maine	39.3	61	1910	44.5	5.2
New York	43.5	61	2010	49.6	6.1
Oregon	46.3	61	1926	52.7	6.4
South Carolina	62.1	61	1896	66.5	4.4
North Carolina	58.5	64	1954	62.5	4
Vermont	41.9	67	1921	47.2	5.3
New Mexico	52.3	69	1946	57.1	4.8
Connecticut	47	70	1921	51.9	4.9
Ohio	50.4	72	1955	55.5	5.1
Massachusetts	46.2	75	2010	50.4	4.2
Rhode Island	47.1	79	1976	51.1	4
Nevada	48.5	81	1992	53.4	4.9
Pennsylvania	49	81	1941	53.3	4.3
Maryland	53.7	84	2010	57.3	3.6
New Jersey	51.5	84	1921	55.6	4.1
West Virginia	52.9	84	1896	56.5	3.6
New Hampshire	43.3	88	1945	46.8	3.5
Delaware	54.5	90	1994	57.9	3.4
Virginia	56.2	91	1994	58.6	2.4
Arizona	59.7	92	2002	63	3.3
Florida	71.4	97	1947	74	2.6
California	59.9	108	1989	62.1	2.2

NOAA April 2013 – 23rd Coldest April Since 1895

sunshinehours1 — Wed, 15 May 2013 16:07:53 +0000

According to the NOAA, April 2013 was the 23rd coldest April since 1895.

The following Aprils were warmer: 1895, 1896, 1897, 1898, 1899, 1900, 1902, 1903, 1905, 1906, 1908, 1910, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1914, 1915, 1916, 1919, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1943, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1951, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012

April’s have been cooling at -.21F per Decade since 1998

The January-April period has been cooling at -.74F/decade since 1998

Antarctic Sea Ice Extent Update – 870,000 sq km Above Average

sunshinehours1 — Tue, 14 May 2013 17:49:14 +0000

Antarctic Sea Ice Extent is 870,000 sq km above the 1981-2010 average. And only 43,000 sq km below the record for this day of the year.

Wind Farms Above The Law Eagle Killers

sunshinehours1 — Tue, 14 May 2013 14:30:36 +0000

“It happens about once a month here, on the barren foothills of one of America’s green-energy boomtowns: A soaring golden eagle slams into a wind farm’s spinning turbine and falls, mangled and lifeless, to the ground.

Killing these iconic birds is not just an irreplaceable loss for a vulnerable species. It’s also a federal crime, a charge that the Obama administration has used to prosecute oil companies when birds drown in their waste pits, and power companies when birds are electrocuted by their power lines.

But the administration has never fined or prosecuted a wind-energy company, even those that flout the law repeatedly. Instead, the government is shielding the industry from liability and helping keep the scope of the deaths secret.“

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/ap-impact-wind-farms-pass-eagle-deaths-19173724

CO2 increases of 80ppm to 100ppm are normal

sunshinehours1 — Sat, 11 May 2013 23:19:02 +0000

While CO2 has increased by 85 ppm from when measurements began in 1958 and are estimated to have risen by 120 ppm since 1750, we should also realize that increases of 80 ppm to 100 pm occurred during the last 3 glaciations without humans burning fossil fuels.

” Air trapped in bubbles in polar ice cores constitutes an archive for the reconstruction of the global carbon cycle and the relation between greenhouse gases and climate in the past. High-resolution records from Antarctic ice cores show that carbon dioxide concentrations increased by 80 to 100 parts per million by volume 600 ± 400 years after the warming of the last three deglaciations. Despite strongly decreasing temperatures, high carbon dioxide concentrations can be sustained for thousands of years during glaciations; the size of this phase lag is probably connected to the duration of the preceding warm period, which controls the change in land ice coverage and the buildup of the terrestrial biosphere.”

http://www.sciencemag.org/content/283/5408/1712.abstract