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Most Of The Northern Hemisphere Has Been Cooling Since 2001

November 16, 2013
tags: ,

By Paul Homewood

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GISS Surface Temperature Analysis

http://data.giss.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/gistemp/nmaps.cgi?year_last=2013&month_last=10&sat=4&sst=3&type=trends&mean_gen=1212&year1=2001&year2=2012&base1=1951&base2=1980&radius=1200&pol=reg

 

Since 2001, there has been effectively no change in global temperatures according to GISS. But as the map shows, there has been considerable warming in the Arctic.

This, of course, means that the rest of the planet has got colder on average. So let’s take a look at the Northern Hemisphere. GISS split their numbers into three NH zones, plus the equatorial zone. The graphs below plot the annual anomalies from 2001 –2012.

 

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We find that outside of the Arctic, two zones have cooled since 2001, whilst the 24N – 44N zone shows no significant change.

What is the significance of this? Kinetic energy.

Because the air is so dry at the poles, it takes much less kinetic energy to raise temperatures by one degree, than it would at lower latitudes. This is because the heat capacity of water is much greater than air. (Think about trying to boil a pan of water with a hairdryer).

In terms of total heat budgets, therefore, this would suggest that there has been a net loss of heat energy.

Food for thought!

 

 

For more on heat energy, there is a useful primer here.

from → Climate Change
2 Comments
  1. Brian H permalink
    November 17, 2013 8:02 am

    What is the area of each of those “slices” above? The high latitudes must be significantly smaller. It’s the way globes are built.

  2. A C Osborn permalink
    November 17, 2013 12:12 pm

    The higher latitude temperatures are nor real though, they are just in the mangling that GISS do to the real temperature values.
    They should therefore be totally ignored, so that is 3 out of 4 of a totally adjusted data set.
    It makes you wonder just how bad the drop in real temperatures are.

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