Key Facts Of The Day 12/7

Storms and Flooding

• As of Wednesday morning, a low-pressure area was located about 900 miles northeast of the northern Leeward Islands and was still producing a large area of showers and thunderstorms.
  • The National Hurricane Center still gives the system a 50% chance to form into a tropical or subtropical storm in the next two to five days.
• Severe beach erosion from two late-season hurricanes has helped uncover what appears to be a wooden ship dating from the 1800s that had been buried under the sand on Florida’s East Coast.
• In Martin County, the skeletal remains of six people were also unearthed by Hurricane Nicole’s wind and waves.

Wildfires

• As of November 11, there are currently 19 large active wildfires that have burned 11,358 across AZ, GA, KY, NC, OH, TN, TX, and VA. As of November 14, 61,390 wildfires have burned 7,251,835 acres across the country.
• In Arizona, 1 fire has burned 808 acres as of November 11.
• In Georgia, 1 fire has burned 115 acres as of November 11.
• In North Carolina, 1 fire has burned 105 acres as of November 11.
• In Texas, 1 fire has burned 1,500 acres as of November 11.

Extreme Heat

• On Sunday, the Arctic averaged 11.5 degrees warmer than the 1979-2000 average temperature.
  • At the northern tip of Alaska, the city of Utqiagvik on Monday reached 40 degrees. It’s the region’s warmest temperature ever observed between November and March, and 36 degrees above the norm.
  • On Sunday, Nome, Alaska, had unusual rain and record-breaking warmth.
  • Savoonga Creek was flooding and didn’t have snow cover.
  • Teller, Alaska, also didn’t have snow cover. Snow at this time of year is used for drinking water.
  • Sea ice in the Arctic is far below normal and is about the sixth lowest on record.
• Unusually warm temperatures probably enhanced vegetation growth in Southwest Alaska’s sparsely populated tundra, leading to a record-breaking 2022 wildfire season.
• Coastal flooding — exacerbated by rising seas and reduced ice coverage — has hit communities in northern and western Alaska hard in recent years.
• Facing shrinking supplies from the Colorado River, some Arizona water managers are debating whether to stop growing the thirsty alfalfa crop in the arid west.

New Reports and Data

• A December 2022 study found that a warming climate spurs harmful oxygen loss in lakes.
• A December 2022 study found that by 2050 climate change will significantly increase airborne pollen loads, with some of the largest surges occurring in areas where pollen is historically uncommon.
• A November 2022 study found that greater atmospheric demand for water means a dramatic increase in the risk of major fires in global forests unless we take urgent and effective climate action.