TOMapleLaughs Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 El Nino set to be strongest ever The most powerful weather pattern of its type in the past 65 years will have huge impacts on weather around the globe. The developing El Nino is stronger than the last major event of its type in 1997. According to the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the UK Met Office, this El Nino is shaping up to be the strongest since records began in 1950. El Nino is a natural phenomenon which occurs every two to seven years and lasts between six and 18 months. It manifests as a warming of the surface waters of the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. The current El Nino is so strong that in some areas sea surface temperatures (SSTs) are more than 2 degrees Celsius above the long-term average. Aside from the devastating effect that El Nino has on the Peruvian fishing industry, the real significance lies in the change in weather patterns that it produces around the globe. In the Pacific, the warmer waters in the eastern part of the ocean have spawned more typhoons, super typhoons and hurricanes than usual, with the tracks of those storm systems also being altered considerably. Severe weather conditions have been experienced around the Asia-Pacific region. Changes in the weather around the Pacific region are hardly surprising, but almost every continent is impacted by a strong El Nino. In Australia, many parts of the country have had an exceptionally hot summer with temperatures regularly exceeding 40C. Severe flooding In South America's Atacama Desert, one of the driest regions on earth, the heaviest rain in 80 years resulted in severe flooding and the deaths of more than 20 people. In North America, where much of the south and west has been experiencing the worst drought in a century, El Nino could bring the benefit of rain, although if the El Nino of 1997-98 is anything to go by, that rain could result in severe flooding and deaths. In the Caribbean, the developing El Nino has already had the opposite effect to the one experienced in the Pacific: namely, it has reduced hurricane frequency by causing an increase in wind shear. This is a change of wind direction and speed with height that can disrupt hurricane formation. In Africa, El Ninos are associated with drought across southern portions of the continent, and drought in countries such as Zimbabwe, Botswana and South Africa is causing a looming food crisis. Even Europe is not immune from the effects of an El Nino. If this year's event follows the pattern of previous ones, then winter weather here could be colder and drier than average and last well into spring. No two El Ninos are the same. There are lots of other short and long-term variables in the global weather patterns, but the coming months could see some unusual and spectacular weather in many parts of the world. http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/09/el-nino-set-strongest-150913093902800.html?1998 Quebec Ice StormThe thickening ice downed power lines, forcing 100 000 people to seek refuge in hotels, private homes or hastily assembled shelters. Several thousand kilometres of power lines and telephone cables became useless. Personnel from 14 utility companies from 6 provinces and 8 American states worked to restore service. A state of emergency was declared. The Canadian Forces deployed nearly 16 000 troops in "Operation Recuperation," the largest-ever peacetime deployment. By comparison, the 1997 Red River and 1996 Saguenay flood relief efforts involved 8700 and 450 troops respectively.The economic impact of the ice storm was estimated at over $1 billion. The Insurance Bureau of Canada reported 535 200 insurance claims after the storm, totalling approximately $790 million damage to homes, cars and other property. Canada's economic output declined by 0.7% in January, as business fell off in many industries. The combined changes in electric power and construction industries accounted for nearly 1/3 of January's overall drop in the GDP. Electric power systems alone dropped 14.2%. Overall, goods-producing industries fell 1.4%. http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/ice-storm-1998/ Yikes! So hopefully the weatherman is wrong. Could be an expensive winter for eastern Canada. In BC we can be impacted by high winds as we've just gone through. Snowstorms are harder to predict. Climate change is starting to get pricey. So who's going to flip the bill? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inane Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 Just a liberal plot to send us back to the stone age. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Armada Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 This is apparently bad news for us skiers and snowboarders here on the Pacific Northwest. A 3rd bad season would be catastrophic for the North Shore mountains. The interior won't be as badly as affected. I really hope this prediction is wrong and it actually snows like 1997. Looks like it might bring that rain to California, which they desperately need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thejazz97 Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 I was born in winter of 97. I turn 18 this winter. The weather is just celebrating my coming-of-age. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Money Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Money Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 The obvious way to keep El Nino from disrupting our economy is to build a wall... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tortorella's Rant Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 Just a liberal plot to send us back to the stone age. We need to march on Washington with our guns before its too late Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Ambien Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 omggg El Nino is a natural phenomenon which occurs every two to seven years and lasts between six and 18 months. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heretic Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 Has to be the Patriots fault - they made it rain harder whenever the Steelers had the ball so they must have some sort of control over the weather. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kragar Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 Looks like it might bring that rain to California, which they desperately need. It will definitely help, but not enough to "fix" the drought from what I heard on the news. Too much rain over a short period of time on dry ground, so too much of the water will just be runoff. Maybe it depends on whether this will be a 6-month or 18-month El Nino. Orange County is in the mix for getting a desalination plant. Looking forward to that, someday. The legal process is extremely long though, as it was approved years ago by the voters, and we're still waiting for ground to be broken. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Ambien Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 Has to be the Patriots fault - they made it rain harder whenever the Steelers had the ball so they must have some sort of control over the weather. #elninogate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canucks_fo_life Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 Hopefully there's a crapload of rain, need some sort of a winter after this crappy summer full of too much heat, preferably I want lots of snow but that doesn't look like its gonna happen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GLASSJAW Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 Hopefully there's a crapload of rain, need some sort of a winter after this crappy summer full of too much heat, preferably I want lots of snow but that doesn't look like its gonna happen crapload of rain down south dry for us Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Realtor Rod Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 Cyclical weather patterns are cyclical Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ManUtd Posted September 15, 2015 Share Posted September 15, 2015 I was born in winter of 97. I turn 18 this winter. The weather is just celebrating my coming-of-age. Good lord. I still remember the blizzard of '96 like it was yesterday. Thanks for making me feel really old when I'm way too young to feel that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thejazz97 Posted September 15, 2015 Share Posted September 15, 2015 Good lord. I still remember the blizzard of '96 like it was yesterday. Thanks for making me feel really old when I'm way too young to feel that way. Anytime Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monty Posted September 15, 2015 Share Posted September 15, 2015 Came in here to post the exact same thing. If anyone was to post it other than me, glad it was you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted September 15, 2015 Share Posted September 15, 2015 This is apparently bad news for us skiers and snowboarders here on the Pacific Northwest. A 3rd bad season would be catastrophic for the North Shore mountains. The interior won't be as badly as affected. I really hope this prediction is wrong and it actually snows like 1997. Looks like it might bring that rain to California, which they desperately need. Hopefully good news for surfers though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted September 15, 2015 Share Posted September 15, 2015 It will definitely help, but not enough to "fix" the drought from what I heard on the news. Too much rain over a short period of time on dry ground, so too much of the water will just be runoff. Maybe it depends on whether this will be a 6-month or 18-month El Nino. Orange County is in the mix for getting a desalination plant. Looking forward to that, someday. The legal process is extremely long though, as it was approved years ago by the voters, and we're still waiting for ground to be broken. The drought in cali is a deeply complex issue. Just ask the folks in the lodi-bakersfield area Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Ambien Posted September 15, 2015 Share Posted September 15, 2015 The drought in cali is a deeply complex issue. Just ask the folks in the lodi-bakersfield area I don't think it needs to be complex. I know we don't truly ever understand climate, but in terms of living in California, it's simple.. there has to be perpetual water conservation until desal becomes more efficient and less costly. In the 20 years I lived in California, it seemed like there were 4 or so droughts. Then there was El Nino which flooded the Central Valley. What's changed over the years is the diversion of water. Rather than reduce consumption as the climate naturally changes, their thought process is "we can just divert it from the North/other states". Totally stupid way of living, especially as millions of illegals flood into that state and consume water, never mind all the agriculture that demands it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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