Temperature Record of the Week
This issue's Temperature Record of the Week is from Safford, Arizona. Visit our U.S. Climate Data section to plot and view these data for yourself.
Current Editorial
The Bankrupt World of Carbon Currency: It's Closer Than You Think: As the opportunity to make a buck (or, even better, get one from the government) begins to blind us to the truth of things climatic, we find ourselves on the verge of embracing onerous energy regulations that will benefit neither the economy nor the environment.
Subject Index Summaries
Carbon Sequestration (Grasslands): A number of recent experiments have revealed that the ongoing rise in the air's CO2 content should enable grassland ecosystems to sequester ever greater amounts of carbon, even in the face of potential global warming.
Ocean Productivity: Recent studies reveal trends of increasing biological productivity - and, hence, carbon sequestration - in the North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans that may be driven by concomitant increases in the burning of fossil fuels.
Current Journal Reviews
Extreme Temperature Days: Changes in Frequency of Occurrence: In a study of weather extremes in six states of the south-central United States, researchers find that "since 1901 the overall temperature trend appears to be downward with more frequent cold days and less frequent warm days at most stations in all seasons."
El Niņo Effects on Fatalities from Natural Disasters in Australia: A study of flood, bushfire and heatwave fatality data for eastern Australia over the period 1876-1991 reveals that hazardous weather events that produce fatalities are less likely to occur during El Niņo, as opposed to La Niņa, conditions.
Effects of Elevated CO2 and Soil Nitrogen on Regenerating Aspen Cuttings: In a two-year open-top chamber experiment, elevated CO2 increased the biomass of regenerating aspen cuttings and belowground microbial organisms at both high and low levels of soil nitrogen.
Increasing CO2 Increases C and N Contents in a Grassland Gley Soil in New Zealand: Elevated atmospheric CO2 concentrations, originating from a natural CO2 spring in New Zealand, increased carbon and nitrogen concentrations in a natural gley soil supporting a natural grassland ecosystem.
Elevated CO2 Increases Douglas Fir Root-Tip Colonization by Ectomycorrhizas: During a four-year study, atmospheric CO2 enrichment significantly increased root tip colonization of Douglas fir seedlings by beneficial ectomycorrhizal fungi in a season-dependent manner without adversely impacting ectomycorrhizal diversity.