Storms were locally heavy Thu. afternoon but very scattered. 1.7" of rain fell on the Southside at I-295 & Gate Parkway....a few miles north at the Action News studio, just a brief shower barely measurable. Afternoon storms will increase a little more Fri. afternoon again producing local downpours & sharp lightning. Rain & storms will increase much more Sat. as a cold front approaches from the northwest and tropical moisture streams east/northeast across the First Coast. The upper level disturbance that represents Isaac's "leftovers" will move into Fl. Sat. night-Sun. This feature -- while not likely to be well developed -- will enhance the heavy rain even more. Rainfall totals by Sun. night should average .5-1.5", locally 2-3" across SE Ga....1-2.5", locally 4"+ across NE Fl. Once past the weekend, we'll catch a nice break from the heavy rain & hot temps. early next week.
Global Temperature Report: August 2012
Global climate trend since Nov. 16, 1978: +0.14 C per decade
August temperatures (preliminary)
Global composite temp.: +0.34 C (about 0.61 degrees Fahrenheit) above 30-year average for August.
Northern Hemisphere: +0.38 C (about 0.68 degrees Fahrenheit) above 30-year average for August.
Southern Hemisphere: +0.31 C (about 0.56 degrees Fahrenheit) above 30-year average for August.
Tropics: +0.26 C (about 0.47 degrees Fahrenheit) above 30-year average for August.
July temperatures (revised):
Global Composite: +0.28 C above 30-year average
Northern Hemisphere: +0.45 C above 30-year average
Southern Hemisphere: +0.11 C above 30-year average
Tropics: +0.33 C above 30-year average
(All temperature anomalies are based on a 30-year average (1981-2010) for the month reported.)
Notes on data released Sept. 5, 2012:
Compared to global seasonal norms, August 2012 was the third hottest August in the 34-year satellite temperature record, according to Dr. John Christy, a professor of atmospheric science and director of the Earth System Science Center at The University of Alabama in Huntsville. The last three Augusts have been three of the four warmest in the past 34 years, trailing only August 1998 — which was during a major El Nino Pacific Ocean warming event.
An El Nino warming event is still evident in the global temperature maps, stretching out across the tropical and southern Pacific Ocean from the west coast of South America, with temperatures in the tropics warming slightly from July through August.
The coldest and hottest spots on the globe (compared to seasonal norms) weren’t all that far apart in August: The “warmest” area was in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Argentina, where temperatures were as much as 3.43 C (6.17 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than season norms. The Antarctic winter continues to run colder than normal. Compared to seasonal norms, the “coldest” spot on the globe in August was near the South Pole, with average temperatures as much as 3.38 C (6.08 F) colder than normal for the month.
Global August
Temperature
Anomalies
1. 1998 0.46
2. 2010 0.44
3. 2012 0.34
4. 2011 0.33
5. 2001 0.25
6. 1995 0.21
7. 2006 0.19
8. 2002 0.17
8. 2007 0.17
8. 2009 0.17
11. 1991 0.14
12. 2005 0.13
13. 2003 0.11
14. 1988 0.09
15. 1980 0.05
15. 1996 0.05
17. 1997 0.02
18. 1983 -0.01
19. 1981 -0.02
20. 1987 -0.04
21. 1990 -0.05
22. 2004 -0.06
22. 2008 -0.06
24. 1999 -0.12
24. 2000 -0.12
26. 1989 -0.13
26. 1994 -0.13
28. 1979 -0.24
29. 1993 -0.25
30. 1982 -0.26
31. 1985 -0.27
32. 1984 -0.28
33. 1986 -0.30
34. 1992 -0.47
A beautiful photo below from Patsy Lewis. Patsy visited Denali Nat. Park in Alaska in late Aug. -- vivid fall color already in place. And on this day -- Aug. 28th -- there was a 3 hour snowfall (notice the white visible in the photo). It won't be long & fall color will start to appear in the Northern U.S.
