365 Days of Climate Awareness 160 – 2013 State of the World Climate

2013 World Climate Data

1. Global atmospheric CO₂ concentration: 395.4ppm, +2.75 ppm from 2012
2. Surface air temperature anomaly: +0.67°C/1.21°F, 10^th all-time 1880-2021
3. Precipitation near 1961-1990 global average
4. Global mean sea level 26.35 mm above 1993-2008 average, +2.42 mm from 2012
5. Antarctic ozone hole: max. area 24.0 million km²; minimum O₃ 116 DU (Dobson Units)
6. ENSO: Neutral
7. NAO: Strongly positive (large pressure difference north to south: warmer in eastern US & northern Europe, cooler in southern Europe)

Larger Version

Global Conditions

• Above-average temperatures: South America; east, south & horn of Africa; Europe; the Middle East; Russia; central Asia; China; Indian & western Pacific Ocean islands; Australia
• Above-average precipitation: African Sahel; western, central, southern & eastern Europe; India
• Below-average precipitation: Northwestern, eastern and southern South America; North & horn of Africa; UK & Ireland; Middle East; Iran

In November Super Typhoon Haiyan (locally named Yolanda) struck the Philippines with 195 mph sustained winds, the strongest Pacific cyclone on record at the time (now tied for third with 2016’s Meranti behind 2020’s Goni—also behind 2015’s Atlantic Hurricane Patricia, with peak wind speeds of 215 mph). It reached typhoon intensity on November 5 and struck first struck the Philippines—the first of its five landstrkes there—on November 8. The storm killed over 6,300 in the Philippines, primarily with the surge. It then moved through the South China Sea and on November 10 came ashore northern Vietnam as a tropical storm. It is estimated that the storm impacted more than 11 million people.

Aerosols are monitored globally, and their effects on climate are complex. Depending on the size of the particles, they can increase the planet’s albedo, reflecting incoming UV light back into space, creating a cooling effect. This typically happens after volcanic eruptions, with the suspended ash creating a regional or global cooling effect of one or more years (depending on the size and location of the eruption). Smaller aerosols can also become nuclei for water droplets, increasing cloud cover and likewise increasing planetary albedo.

Aerosols also provide surfaces for chemical reactions, and serve in many cases to remove ozone from the stratosphere. Some varieties of aerosols—namely black carbon, or soot—increase radiative forcing around the planet by reducing albedo, and continue to do so after being deposited on the earth surface, particularly when mixed with snow and ice. Sources of aerosols include industrial output, biomass burning, wildfires, volcanic activity and wind-blown terrigenous dust.

Tomorrow: 2014 State of the Climate, North America.

Be brave, and be well.