22nd January - Today's News: NASA Claim 2009 was 2nd Warmest year on Record

This doesn't happen everyday: Virginia doctor's office hit by meteorite - fortunately no-one injured. But I wonder if they're insured against cosmic impact?!

And this sounds pretty unusual too, even for a tornado: fierce wind tosses car into tree in California. Earlier, on wednesday, LA's latest storm brings heavy flooding and it'snot just humans suffering as pelicans treated for hypothermia from Calif. storm and yesterday, the California storm train roars on as snow heads east with a declaration of a state of emergency in Calif. storm areas.

Although already suggested by other sources, past decade warmest ever, NASA data shows - but more interestingly, NASA are also claiming in their news report issued yesterday that 2009 was the second warmest year on record. This is contrary to other sources who place it as the joint 5th warmest (with 2006). And the mystery deepens when I read that:
The past year was only a fraction of a degree cooler than 2005, the warmest year on record, and tied with a cluster of other years --1998, 2002, 2003, 2006 and 2007 1998 and 2007 -- as the second warmest year since recordkeeping began.
Now that's the first I've heard that all those years tied with the same temp, from any source. I suspect we'll hear a bit more about this over the coming days.

The anti-AGW mob will swarming all over it like flies! Indeed, there are already allegations of fraud and data manipulation ..... though of course there's no evidence of anything of the sort. However, as we all know, in climatology, if you say A - because that's what your informed evaluation of the data tells you - and someone wants you to say B - because their religious dogma tells them that must be the case, regardless of any evidence to the contrary - then they'll claim you're a lying fraudster involved in a multi billion scam to the day they die or until you repent and say B. Of course, it's quite possible your informed evaluation of the data is wrong, or maybe you missed something, but that's a different matter. And it's why we should always be sceptical, to some degree, about such claims. Scepticism is good. Denialism is what Gallileo faced and, sadly, science still faces to this day.

Incidently, NOAA's latest news release specifically confirms that:
For 2009, global temperatures tied with 2006 as the fifth-warmest on record. Also, the earth’s land surface for 2009 was seventh-warmest (tied with 2003) and the ocean surface was fourth-warmest (tied with 2002 and 2004.)
For the moment I will stick with NOAA and question the veracity of the NASA data.

Once again, fog engulfs north India, leaves 451 dead so far

World's glaciers melting at accelerated rate, leading scientists say
- however, climate change experts say sorry for the glaring error in the IPCC's AR4, suggesting Himalayan glaciers could retreat by 80% by 2035 (it should have been 2350).

Drought leaves 99% of Hawaii dry and in Seattle, this is turning out to be our warmest January on record

In Australia, Kimberley residents warned to brace for Cyclone Magda

As mentioned on Wednesday, here in Britain the latest snow brings traffic trouble and school closures again

Global warming increases flood risk in mountain areas

And there is fresh confirmation that it wasn't climate change (or cosmic rays) but instead humans caused demise of Australia's megafauna.


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