Hotter than ever, they say
May 18, 2012 (Friday)
The experts predicted this week that this summer will be warmer than last summer, which was the hottest summer on record since 1895, the year we began keeping such records.
We hear talk about the Tropical Pacific warming up, cooling off, or maintaining neutral temperatures, all of which affect the weather around the world. Since most of the surface of the earth is made up of water, and some parts of the ocean are unbelievably deep, it stands to reason that whatever happens in the oceans will affect weather in the land areas.
Predictions would be easy if El Niño and La Niña were the only factors, but they are not. Our technology today has let us in on many of nature’s secrets but there is still much we do not know. The old saying, “Everyone talks about the weather, but no one does anything about it,” is still true, even though we know a lot more about it.
What can we do? Well, a lot of people are studying that very problem as we continue to think about it day by day. The current stalemate that prevents action is due to disagreement among ourselves about what’s actually happening. Experts assess the facts and come up with differing interpretations.
What can average people do about it? Well, we can most certainly do our human duty by “talking about it” and we will. The daily mantra for Texans in the summertime is and always has been, “Hot ‘nuf fer ya?” I can hardly wait.