Another Smoky Summer in the Northwest

[Cougsfan]

Woke up this morning and the saw that the visibility outside is about 1/4 mile on an otherwise perfectly clear day. A little later I noticed my throat had developed a bad itch. The forest and brush fire season is starting early this year. Not too many years ago, a smoky day was a rarity. For the last several years it is a regular, long lasting summertime occurrence..... every single summer! A drive through the Cascade, Okanogan or Blue Mountains is impossible anymore without seeing charred tree skeletons. Makes one wonder about the direction we are headed.

 

[Roadworthy]

Well, I guess you could cruise the lower areas of southeastern Washington and observe the blackened ground and remains of charred sagebrush in your travels. Mountains and trees aren't the only victims. As far as where we're headed, I don't wonder at all. It's pretty obvious to me we'll be experiencing a hotter, drier climate for years to come. Global warming is real and it's here. The only question is whether it's part of the natural cycle or man made. Perhaps man did not create the hotter climate, maybe he only exacerbates it.

 

[ericm979]

It's very clear that our greenhouse gas emissions are causing the warming part of climate change. The mega-drought we may be entering is partly caused by human-caused climate change and partly a natural cycle that we don't fully understand (so when we understand it, that part may end up being climate change related too). The increase the number and intensity of fires is partly due to a build up of fuels caused by our 100+ year history of fire supression and lack of controlled burns, and partly due to climate change. Examples of the latter are a reduction in summer rain fall in the Sierras and higher night time temps allowing fires to burn for longer into the night or all night instead of laying down. Pyrocumulus clouds are larger and more common because air temps are higher to begin with, and we're seeing fire tornados now that didn't used to happen. Both of those make fire fighting harder and spread fire farther.

Of course even if you think the unprecedently fast global warming we're seeing is natural, we still have to adapt to it. Modern civilization expects things to be the same as they have been.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

The drought cycle will probably clear up in 500 years or so, after the oceans warm up and start evaporating more rapidly. Utah and Nevada will be tropical jungle and the Sahara will go back to being lush and green. Florida will be gone, but there will be new beach front property in Pine Bluff, Arkansas and on the Louisiana Peninsula. Hurricanes and typhoons will be epic.

https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q1eKUaV72b0/Um44ZZKj0NI/AAAAAAAADsw/jn_9nGfGKNk/s1600/north-america--sea-level-rise-map.jpg

 

[oosik]

Brownie and I were out early this am. Enjoying the cool - 58F - morning. I thought I smelled wiffs of smoke. An hour later - looking across the little lake, it was blue/grey with smoke. Winds changed and we are clear again.

 

[lman]

I just wish it would dry up here a little bit. It's hard to do anything in the garden when the mosquitos are trying to suck you dry.

 

[Cougsfan]

The wind came up and cleared things nicely, but it was a foreboding sign of things to come.

 

[oosik]

I think we might have a long, hot, smoky summer here also - Cougsfan.

 

[oosik]

My Vantage Pro 2 weather station keeps showing the rain symbol. One of these days it's - hopefully - going to be accurate.

It was a warm night - house will not cool off so much this morning.

 

[ponytug]

It is good to be an optimist. I wish my Vantage was so optimistic.

All the best,

Peter