CNN vs. What the Science Says, Part 2


[Follow-up to https://wattsupwiththat.com/2019/09/01/cnn-vs-what-the-science-says/]

CNN's war with the facts continues in this Monday article, by CNN Chief Climate Correspondent, Bill Weir:
https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/09/weather/alaska-climate-crisis-summer-weir-wxc/index.html

The gist of the article is that Alaska was too hot this summer. How ridiculous is that?

If we can't even agree on something as obvious as the fact that Alaska is too darn cold, then is there any hope that we can ever agree on anything? It is a testament to the power of relentless propaganda that the Left has managed to convince even many shivering Alaskans and Canadians that a warmer climate above the 49th parallel would somehow be a bad thing.

I would not say that anthropogenic (manmade) global warming (AGW) is a myth. But the "climate crisis" is certainly a myth. In fact, the "climate problem" is a myth. Fear of AGW is based on confusion and superstition, not science.

There is convincing evidence that emissions of CO2 and other radiatively-active gases do have a warming effect. But there's no convincing evidence that it's at all harmful.

One of the nice things about "global" warming is that it isn't really very global. Rather, thanks to "Arctic amplification," and negative feedbacks that limit warming in the tropics, the warming is disproportionately in the far north, where it is a blessing.

As the great Svante Arrhenius wrote on p.63 of his book, Worlds in the Making (English, 1908) [or Världarnas utveckling (Swedish, 1906)], "By the influence of the increasing percentage of carbonic acid [CO2] in the atmosphere, we may hope to enjoy ages with more equable and better climates, especially as regards the colder regions of the earth, ages when the earth will bring forth much more abundant crops than at present, for the benefit of rapidly propagating mankind."

By the influence of the increasing percentage of carbonic acid in the atmosphere, we may hope to enjoy ages with more equable and better climates, especially as regards the colder regions of the earth, ages when the earth will bring forth much more abundant crops than at present, for the benefit of rapidly propagating mankind. -Svante Arrhenius, 1908

The best evidence is that AGW is real, but modest and benign, and CO2 emissions and consequent rising CO2 levels are beneficial, rather than harmful. (Here's a list of of good resources for people wanting to learn more about climate change.)

That CNN article is a mess. It's the nature of weather that you can always find somewhere which is experiencing record something. So what? Unusually mild weather in Alaska is something to celebrate, not fear!

One especially blatant bit of misinformation in that CNN article is the part about ticks. The article says:

Historically, that blood-sucking bug would not survive the Alaskan climate. Not anymore. "It's kind of like a Russian roulette," she says. "Eventually, a tick is going to come and it's going to be able to overwinter and then establish in our wildlife population up in Alaska."  

That's utter nonsense. Never in American history has the southern Alaskan climate been too harsh for ticks and tick-borne diseases, no more than California's climate is too harsh for medflies. The danger posed by those pests has nothing to do with climate change, and everything to do with people carelessly importing the pests.

Lyme is not a tropical disease. It was first discovered in chilly Lyme, Connecticut. (Likewise, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever was first discovered in chilly Idaho.)

Here's a map of Lyme risk in the lower-48 States (red is worst):
 click for article

As you can see, even Maine and northern Minnesota are not too cold for the deer ticks that carry Lyme disease.

Here are the climate norms for Anchorage, AK vs. a town in central Maine (where ticks carrying Lyme disease are endemic):

          Anchorage, AK           Dover-Foxcroft, ME   
Month     High / Low(°F) Precip   High / Low(°F) Precip
January    23° / 14°     4 days    24° /  3°     8 days
February   27° / 17°     4 days    28° /  5°     7 days
March      31° / 20°     3 days    37° / 16°     8 days
April      43° / 32°     2 days    50° / 28°     9 days
May        53° / 42°     3 days    64° / 40°    10 days
June       59° / 51°     4 days    73° / 49°    11 days
July       62° / 55°     7 days    78° / 55°    10 days
August     61° / 53°    10 days    77° / 53°     9 days
September  55° / 46°    10 days    69° / 44°     8 days
October    43° / 34°     8 days    55° / 34°     9 days
November   28° / 19°     5 days    42° / 25°     9 days
December   25° / 17°     5 days    30° / 12°    10 days


Notice how much colder the winter nights are in central Maine.

But CNN would have you believe that Alaska used to be too cold for ticks. It is complete poppycock.

Dave