Summer in Advance 2
When summer is defined, not as an astronomical event (the solstice) but as a climate event, the beginning of reliably summer-like weather, this is what some British researches found:
Records show that in the period 1954-1963, the average date for the third such day was 25 May. By the 1990s, it had shifted forwards to 14 May. By 1998-2007, on average, summer arrived on 7 May. The shift is consistent with global warming, Bigg said. “It’s always very difficult to make direct attributions but scientists say global warming is very likely driven by human activity and I think we can say the same thing.” The researchers saw a similar, though smaller, pattern with summer plant flowering. On average, the first flowering date for 1954-1963 was 29 May. By 1991-2000 it was 26 May.
May 6, 2010 at 7:36 pm
Is this Brit THAT DUMB? I agree with the point of the article, but we DO have formulas, computer widgets, or just plain side-by-side thermometer scales. 20C =68F, NOT 64, 14C=58F, NOT 54…goober…
May 7, 2010 at 9:13 pm
The arithmetic was mine.