04 June, 2015

'Normal', it seems, is no longer normal



Normal” in relation to the climate is quickly losing it meaning.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) says there is an urgent need to incorporate global warming into decision making.

In a story published on June 1, the WMO said it will introduce a new a two-tier approach to the 30-year baselines for climate data to take into account the rapid pace of climate change as well as the operational needs for up to date climate information.

“Because the climate varies naturally from year to year, climatologists use standard 30-year averages of temperatures, precipitation and other variables to put, for example, the magnitude of a current heatwave or rainstorm into historical context.

“These 30-year historical averages are called “climate normals” and can be calculated at the local, national or global levels,” is reports.

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