- Currently Minneapolis / Saint Paul
- Posts
- Currently in the Twin Cities — September 28, 2023: Clearing off in the afternoon
Currently in the Twin Cities — September 28, 2023: Clearing off in the afternoon
Plus, a new warning that climate change is accelerating.
Sven Sundgaard & Eric Holthaus
September 27, 2023
The weather, currently.
Clearing off in the afternoon
Clouds continue to dominate and linger in the region, wrapping around the weekend storm system which has only moved about 300 miles southeast of Minnesota since the weekend.
We should finally see a bit more sun in the afternoon and evening hours Thursday and that will help us warm into the low 70s, which is above normal actually. Friday into the weekend and early next week is still set to bring us July like temps in the 80s along with muggy dew points in the 60s. In fact, as the warmth surges north it could touch off some storms late Friday into Friday night.
What you need to know, currently.
James Hansen, the climate scientist whose 1988 testimony to Congress first made global warming an issue of national concern, has a new warning: Global warming is accelerating.
We’ve all seen the scary charts and maps of this summer of climate extremes. According to data from the first three weeks of September, it’s on track to be the most anomalously warm month we’ve ever measured as a species.
This means that September 2023 will be the most anomalous month in the entire record, building off an already extremely anomalous July and August:
— Zeke Hausfather (@hausfath)
1:53 PM • Sep 25, 2023
No climate scientist can honestly say they predicted this much warming this quickly, which is why all of us have been reduced to jaw-agape tweeting and comparing notes to figure out what’s happening.
Hansen believes he has narrowed it down to a change in the reflectiveness of clouds, one of the least-known parts of the climate system. Clouds are affected by all sorts of things, including particulate matter and aerosols from the burning of fossil fuels. What’s clear is that the Earth’s Energy Imbalance (EEI) is increasing. The Earth system has little choice but to warm at a faster rate.
“We predict at least a 50 percent increase of the post-2010 global warming rate, compared to the 1970-2010 rate of 0.18°C/decade. This is a partial payment in return for the Faustian bargain that humanity made when it chose to build its economies on fossil fuel energy.”
According to Hansen’s calculations, he concludes "it is now almost certain that the 12-month running mean temperature will exceed 1.5°C by May 2024 or earlier."
We are in a climate emergency.
What you can do, currently.
Currently Sponsorships are short messages we co-write with you to plug your org, event, or climate-friendly business with Currently subscribers. It’s a chance to boost your visibility with Currently — one of the world’s largest daily climate newsletters — and support independent climate journalism, all at the same time. Starting at just $105.
One of my favorite organizations, Mutual Aid Disaster Relief, serves as a hub of mutual aid efforts focused on climate action in emergencies — like hurricane season. Find mutual aid network near you and join, or donate to support existing networks:
