Wild climate swings in the Amazon

Dantheman62 · 05-26-2009, 06:43 AM

Amazon hit by climate chaos of floods, drought.

SAO PAULO – Across the Amazon basin, river dwellers are adding new floors to their stilt houses, trying to stay above rising floodwaters that have killed 48 people and left 405,000 homeless.

Flooding is common in the world's largest remaining tropical wilderness, but this year the waters rose higher and stayed longer than they have in decades, leaving fruit trees entirely submerged. Only four years ago, the same communities suffered an unprecedented drought that ruined crops and left mounds of river fish flapping and rotting in the mud.

Experts suspect global warming may be driving wild climate swings that appear to be punishing the Amazon with increasing frequency.

It's "the $1 million dollar question," says Carlos Nobre, a climatologist with Brazil's National Institute for Space Research.

While a definitive answer will take years of careful study, climatologists say the world should expect more extreme weather in the years ahead. Already, what happens in the Amazon could be affecting rainfall elsewhere, from Brazil's agricultural heartland to the U.S. grainbelt, as rising ocean temperatures and rain forest destruction cause shifts in global climate patterns.

"It's important to note that it's likely that these types of record-breaking climate events will become more and more frequent in the near future," Nobre said. "So we all have to brace for more extreme climate in the near future: It's not for the next generation."

The immediate cause of the unusually heavy rains across northern Brazil is an Atlantic Ocean weather system that usually moves on in March, but stayed put until May this year.

Almost simultaneously, southern Brazilian states far from the Amazon have suffered from an extended drought, caused by La Nina — a periodic cooling of waters in the Pacific Ocean. And La Nina alternates with El Nino, a heating up of Pacific waters that is blamed for catastrophic forest fires plaguing the Amazon in recent years.

"Something is telling us to us to be more careful with the planet. Changes are happening around the world, and we're seeing them as well in Brazil," President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said this month on his radio program.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/lt_brazil_climate_chaos

avyaktam · 05-26-2009, 07:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dantheman62

"It's important to note that it's likely that these types of record-breaking climate events will become more and more frequent in the near future," Nobre said. "So we all have to brace for more extreme climate in the near future: It's not for the next generation."

~

"Something is telling us to us to be more careful with the planet. Changes are happening around the world, and we're seeing them as well in Brazil," President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said this month on his radio program.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/lt_brazil_climate_chaos

This concurs with Cliff High's computer prediction of "A summer of hell".
Reason to keep an eye on the weather.
Well I send the newshound. LOL

Dantheman62 · 05-26-2009, 08:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by avyaktam

This concurs with Cliff High's computer prediction of "A summer of hell".
Reason to keep an eye on the weather.
Well I send the newshound. LOL

LOL, Yeah lets send the newshound down to the Amazon!

giovonni · 05-26-2009, 10:35 AM

Note; Heavy rain this spring > is causing mounting problems in the Midwset > with serious delays in planting along with livestock in the fields > being plagued with havoc with fields of heavy mud!
Yes a summer of hell for many areas

Steve_A · 05-26-2009, 10:55 AM

Hi Dantheman62,

There is one discussion about 'global warming' which says that global warming as such does not exist. However what seems to be happening are more extreme weather conditions, making the summer hotter and the winters colder.

I remember seeing a global warming protest which was held under some of the worst snowstorms in the US. Go figure.

A friend of mine who is studying botany told me that the tropical belt is widening. His team and him have discovered plants that were typically tropical in areas outside the traditional belt, suggesting that the belt is widening. That could explain the increase of rainfall in the Amazon.

Flooding in Brazil is nothing new. It's almost becoming an annual ritual down here. The problem is that there is nowhere for the water to drain as the drainage system and infrastructure is extremely inadequate, due to political reasons - the politicains prefer to build bridges rather than drains, as the bridge will always be seen, being above ground. The drains will be hidden and forgotten in no time.

In the Northeast of Brazil, there has been a drought for years, but hardly anybody cares. Also the Federal Government decided to re-route the Sâo Francisco river, which will also change weather patterns (this was done also in Russia years ago).

I think the weather will become more extreme as time goes by, I don't think we will fry because the Earth will get too hot, it could well be that we need to move around more so that we don't suffer too much drought nor flooding in the future. That will create problems.

Best regards,

Steve

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dantheman62

Amazon hit by climate chaos of floods, drought.

SAO PAULO – Across the Amazon basin, river dwellers are adding new floors to their stilt houses, trying to stay above rising floodwaters that have killed 48 people and left 405,000 homeless.

Lorien · 05-26-2009, 01:56 PM

Excellent article. Though as usual they blame it instantly on global warming. Which in essence is not an incorrect statement, it's just not man made global warming.

If the tropical belt widening is in fact happening, that could cause some serious effects on global weather as a whole. Combined with the fact that we may be heading into a new ice age could mean serious changes to the way we all live on this planet. Imagine if the arctic regions increased by even 20 degrees toward the equator. We would see people being squeezed into the central regions of the globe making for some drastic population shifts.

Alternatively if the equatorial regions grow more intense in heat it may become too hot for most to sustain life do do inability to raise animals, or grow crops, or even just because of intense heat.

pyrangello · 05-26-2009, 03:39 PM

You know I was just listening to coast to coast radio and the one guy on there who does the weather watch around the world said that there is a glacier in alaska that is growing 7 feet a day, Yep it's growing . My girlfriend just smiled when I told her and I asked her what? She said its the progessive pole shift happening now.

And yes as far as this past winter here in michigan , in the month of january it never got over 32 degrees day or night for the entire month.

05-26-2009, 06:43 AM	#1
Dantheman62 Avalon Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: So. Cal. U.S. Posts: 4,205	Wild climate swings in the Amazon Amazon hit by climate chaos of floods, drought. SAO PAULO – Across the Amazon basin, river dwellers are adding new floors to their stilt houses, trying to stay above rising floodwaters that have killed 48 people and left 405,000 homeless. Flooding is common in the world's largest remaining tropical wilderness, but this year the waters rose higher and stayed longer than they have in decades, leaving fruit trees entirely submerged. Only four years ago, the same communities suffered an unprecedented drought that ruined crops and left mounds of river fish flapping and rotting in the mud. Experts suspect global warming may be driving wild climate swings that appear to be punishing the Amazon with increasing frequency. It's "the $1 million dollar question," says Carlos Nobre, a climatologist with Brazil's National Institute for Space Research. While a definitive answer will take years of careful study, climatologists say the world should expect more extreme weather in the years ahead. Already, what happens in the Amazon could be affecting rainfall elsewhere, from Brazil's agricultural heartland to the U.S. grainbelt, as rising ocean temperatures and rain forest destruction cause shifts in global climate patterns. "It's important to note that it's likely that these types of record-breaking climate events will become more and more frequent in the near future," Nobre said. "So we all have to brace for more extreme climate in the near future: It's not for the next generation." The immediate cause of the unusually heavy rains across northern Brazil is an Atlantic Ocean weather system that usually moves on in March, but stayed put until May this year. Almost simultaneously, southern Brazilian states far from the Amazon have suffered from an extended drought, caused by La Nina — a periodic cooling of waters in the Pacific Ocean. And La Nina alternates with El Nino, a heating up of Pacific waters that is blamed for catastrophic forest fires plaguing the Amazon in recent years. "Something is telling us to us to be more careful with the planet. Changes are happening around the world, and we're seeing them as well in Brazil," President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said this month on his radio program. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/lt_brazil_climate_chaos

05-26-2009, 10:35 AM	#4
giovonni Avalon Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: within my heart Posts: 1,209	Re: Wild climate swings in the Amazon Note; Heavy rain this spring > is causing mounting problems in the Midwset > with serious delays in planting along with livestock in the fields > being plagued with havoc with fields of heavy mud! Yes a summer of hell for many areas

05-26-2009, 01:56 PM	#6
Lorien Avalon Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Beyond the rim.... Posts: 412	Re: Wild climate swings in the Amazon Excellent article. Though as usual they blame it instantly on global warming. Which in essence is not an incorrect statement, it's just not man made global warming. If the tropical belt widening is in fact happening, that could cause some serious effects on global weather as a whole. Combined with the fact that we may be heading into a new ice age could mean serious changes to the way we all live on this planet. Imagine if the arctic regions increased by even 20 degrees toward the equator. We would see people being squeezed into the central regions of the globe making for some drastic population shifts. Alternatively if the equatorial regions grow more intense in heat it may become too hot for most to sustain life do do inability to raise animals, or grow crops, or even just because of intense heat.

05-26-2009, 03:39 PM	#7
pyrangello Avalon Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Northern Michigan Posts: 412	Re: Wild climate swings in the Amazon You know I was just listening to coast to coast radio and the one guy on there who does the weather watch around the world said that there is a glacier in alaska that is growing 7 feet a day, Yep it's growing . My girlfriend just smiled when I told her and I asked her what? She said its the progessive pole shift happening now. And yes as far as this past winter here in michigan , in the month of january it never got over 32 degrees day or night for the entire month.