Although California is expected to come up short on water this summer due to abnormally low rainfall, the extended forecast calls for climate cooling that could be harmful to California’s agriculture industry. NASA scientists, using a satellite, have measured the shape and temperature of the oceans’ surfaces to identify currents and calculate their impact on climate change. The data has revealed that a slow cycling long-term fluctuation in the Pacific called the Pacific Decadal Oscillation is entering its cool phase, and this translates into 20 to 30 years of cold weather. How this affects climate is by altering the course of the jet stream, driving it further north to bring more storms to the United States. This means shorter growing periods, and colder temperatures overall.1
Meteorologist Anthony Watts is warning the wine, fruit, and nuts industry to be on guard for threats of frost, and even the apples will not be safe.2
While it might be an appealing political solution for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to sponsor tax rebates for the purchase of Hummers and other large SUV’s, scientists say that CO2 emissions have absolutely no effect on such large natural climate changes. Ironically for the global warming theorists, this change in the PDO is from a previous warm cycle that accounted for, in part, warmer temperatures over the past two decades.
Notes:
1. Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Ocean Surface Topography From Space, Science – El Niño/La Niña & PDO: Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO).
http://topex-www.jpl.nasa.gov/science/pdo.html (Retrieved May 3, 2008).
2. Phil Brennan, “NASA Says Climate Shifting to Cooler Temperatures,” Newsmax.com, May 1, 2008.
http://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/NASA_Climate
_cooling/2008/05/01/92541.html
3. Graph: http://jisao.washington.edu/pdo/. Units are degrees Celsius.
