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For the United States, the highest number of heat waves occurred in the 1930s, with the fewest in the 1960s. The 2001–10 decade was the second highest but well below the 1930s
Recent decades tend to show an increase in the number of heat waves but over the long term, the drought years of the 1930s stand out as having the most heat waves.
And maybe good to note that an alarmist put this together. So he's showing a peak in the 1930s.
One thing I've noticed is that over the past 120 years is that we've gone through 30 years go cold dry weather, 30 years of hot dry weather (including the 1930s), 30 years cold wet weather, and finally 30 years of hot wet weather. Not sure what this means though.
Wait..... we had droughts, floods, and so many heat waves in the 1930s?
I forgot to add that the 1930s also saw the most number of "cold waves" in recorded history. Imagine living in North Dakota in February of 1936 when the temperature was -26.0°F below the 1901-2000 average!
One thing I've noticed is that over the past 120 years is that we've gone through 30 years go cold dry weather, 30 years of hot dry weather (including the 1930s), 30 years cold wet weather, and finally 30 years of hot wet weather. Not sure what this means though.
Recent modeling work (Schubert et al. 2004a,b, Seager et al. 2005) has claimed that the Dust Bowl drought of the 1930s was forced by small changes in tropical SSTs, essentially several persistent years of La Niña-like conditions in the Pacific and a warm subtropical North Atlantic Ocean, both of which are assumed to have had natural origins. If this is so then it means that, had the SSTs been known in advance, it would have been possible to predict that the drought was to occur and, perhaps, the environmental and social catastrophe of the Dust Bowl could have been ameliorated.
Quote:
Summary
SSTs during the 1930s forced a severe multiyear drought in North America.
Both tropical Pacific and tropical North Atlantic SSTs were involved in forcing the model drought
The model drought is statistically significantly distinct from anything that can happen in the presence of climatological SSTs.
The modeled Dust Bowl drought was further south than that observed and was not accompanied by the near-continental scale warming of the observed drought
The observed drought had a pattern that has not been seen since Medieval times when three droughts with this pattern occurred.
The study that Cambium posted above also describes mega droughts during the middle ages
As Glacierx said, the 1930's saw ferocious summers and winters. Especially 1936.
Midway 1934
Here is data from our west suburban Aurora station. Unique as it's probably the longest continuously running station in Chicagoland. Check out 1936. Average low of 2.1F in February to an average max of 96.4F in July
Station closest to my suburb, actual report from July 1936
Last edited by chicagogeorge; 05-09-2014 at 07:35 PM..
The study that Cambium posted above also describes mega droughts during the middle ages
As Glacierx said, the 1930's saw ferocious summers and winters. Especially 1936.
Midway 1934
Here is data from our west suburban Aurora station. Unique as it's probably the longest continuously running station in Chicagoland. Check out 1936. Average low of 2.1F in February to an average max of 96.4F in July
Station closest to my suburb, actual report from July 1936
Wait.... so middle ages, 1930s, 1800s, 1700s, we saw heat waves, flooding, cooling, warming, droughts & extremes? That can't be.
I thought the 1930s was the decade of heat waves was mainly a US thing, was it anywhere else? Think it was mainly from the intense droughts in the middle of the country.
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