Just Released! Order “Waking Up to Climate Change” by George Ropes, and receive 25% Discount. Learn More

HOME          CATEGORIES          OUR TAKE

Utqiagvik, Alaska, Ground Zero for Climate Change

It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature, but a computer algorithm at a weather station in the northern Alaskan town that used to be known as Barrow and is now named Utiagvik, doesn’t seem to mind. A recent story on Huffingtonpost by Ryan Grenoble told how the  National Center for Environmental Information (NCEI) has been collecting weather data since the ‘twenties,” but equipment breaks down over time, so NCEI employs an algorithm to flag anomalous readings, and omit outliers from its reports. Recently NCEI noticed that data from Barrow was missing for over a year. Had their instruments broken down? Upon investigation NCEI scientists discovered that the temperatures had been recorded, but were so high that they weren’t reported. https://www.desmogblog.com/willfully-blind

Since 1979 when measurements began, average January-September temperatures in Barrow went up 1.9°F, about twice that in the rest of the U.S. But in October-December of this year, the temperature gain was 7.8, 6.9, and 4.7°F, so high the algorithm kicked in and withheld the data. Turns out the equipment wasn’t broken, the climate was. As the weather warmed up, more ice melted, which led to higher temperatures and still more ice melting, a cycle that led the Smithsonian to call Utiagvik (Barrow) “ground zero” for climate change. It’s a frightening glimpse into our future.

Comment on this article

ClimateYou moderates comments to facilitate an informed, substantive, civil conversation. Abusive, profane, self-promotional, misleading, incoherent or off-topic comments will be rejected. Moderators are staffed during regular business hours (New York time) and can only accept comments written in English.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE


More Posts Like This

CITY TECH BLOG

The Connection Between Climate Change and Intensifying Hurricanes

Climate change was once a topic that many underestimated, but today, it is an undeniable reality that shapes our world. Over the past two weeks, I learned about the ideal conditions of hurricane formation, and what I discovered has left me thinking about the impact of climate change.

CITY TECH BLOG

The Climate Change Catastrophe

The University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization recently released its third quarter forecast for 2023, the first since the Maui wildfires. According to  the report, after the fire Maui lost more than $13 million in visitor spending per day. According to the University of Hawaii’s Pacific Disaster Center,

CITY TECH BLOG

Climate Change & the Advancement of Humans

Change is a fact of life that effects everyone, and the universe is changing constantly. At the same time, climate change is occurring simultaneously with a rapid global change. Polar ice caps are melting, sea levels are increasing, weather patterns are changing, carbon emissions have increased by 90%