NASA and NOAA have both observed that 2022 was one of the hottest years in records till date with soaring temperatures bringing in heat waves in several affected areas. This was confirmed simultaneously by both federal agencies on January 12. Though the reports by these two organizations brought forth slightly differing ranking in their evaluation of the heat quotient, both affirmed that the warming reality is very much here and needs to be taken into serious consideration.
NASA confirms the warming effects
The past year 2022 was ranked the fifth hottest year in records by NASA in a recent announcement. Global temperatures in the past year were 1.6 degrees Fahrenheit above the average for NASA’s baseline period (1951-1980), scientists from NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York reported.
“This warming trend is alarming,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson at the official release. He further added on that “our warming climate is already making a mark: Forest fires are intensifying; hurricanes are getting stronger; droughts are wreaking havoc and sea levels are rising. NASA is deepening our commitment to do our part in addressing climate change. Our Earth System Observatory will provide state-of-the-art data to support our climate modeling, analysis and predictions to help humanity confront our planet’s changing climate.”
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Unfortunately human actions themselves are undoubtedly defining these abnormal temperature conditions in spite of such widely proclaimed recognitions of this challenge and also humans themselves being victims of the disasters unfolding as a consequence.
“The reason for the warming trend is that human activities continue to pump enormous amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, and the long-term planetary impacts will also continue,” said Gavin Schmidt, director of GISS, NASA’s leading center for climate modeling at the announcement of this report by NASA.
NOAA’s assessment of the global heat impacts
The global surface temperature for last year was the sixth highest since record keeping began in 1880 according to the scientists at NOAA. December 2022 witnessed global surface temperature as the eighth highest in the 143-year record, according to NOAA reports.
This report outlined that the 2022 average temperature across global surfaces was 1.55°F (0.86°C) above the 20th-century average of 57.0°F (13.9°C) – the sixth highest among all years in the 1880-2022 record. This was also the 46th-consecutive year (since 1977) with global temperatures, at least nominally, above the 20th-century average. The 10-warmest years on record have all occurred since 2010, with the last nine years (2014-2022) among the 10-warmest years.
NOAA’s analysis also sounded the alarm over the health of the world’s oceans as the ocean heat content also hit a record high in 2022.
What a worrying observation indeed!
Capturing heating trends through a Climate Portal
On July 26th 2022, the Biden Administration through the interagency National Integrated Heat Health Information System (NIHHIS) launched Heat.gov, a new website which included interactive maps, data and other information to assist the communities and concerned authorities prepare for heat waves, understand the health risks, and identify who and also where the most vulnerable are.
The information provided by this new website was aimed at various actual applications for decisions like temperature safety checks for road workers, cultivation decisions for farmers or even parents planning outdoor versus indoor activities for their children. Authorities could use the information from this portal to plan for advance protection measures for people at high risk by setting up cooling centers and providing water and similar actions.
This portal was launched at the right time as extreme heatwaves were sweeping across the US during the summer of 2022 unleashing their destructive impacts all around. Several US cities had experienced “urban heat island” syndrome leading to dangerous mid-afternoon temperatures that were 15°F to 20°F warmer than surrounding, vegetated areas. The extreme heat, exacerbated by human-caused climate change, had shown little sign of relenting.
Now with the official confirmation of 2022 indeed being one of the hottest years, the launch of this portal and its aid to the common man certainly affirms the timeliness of this action. The report also encourages more such initiatives to be introduced to introduce mitigating effects to combat this rising heat effect on communities.
Also Read: Heat.Gov – A Portal to Combat the Scourges of Heat Wave
Satellite imageries capture the global warming trends
The advancements in geospatial technologies and the various geo-usages available today have provided a great opportunity to steadily enhance the monitoring and evaluation of global environmental trends. Geospatial technology solutions have become integral in this realm as it is an undisputed fact that they can play a critical role in global warming research by helping to establish a strong link between climate change realities and individual people.
Satellite imageries provide the holistic inputs in this context which give way to effective maps which visually capture and display the real world impact of climate change at the ground level. These maps become an excellent reference material for the common man to become aware of these alarming environmental realities.
Geospatial involvement always reaps great benefits as they provide all concerned stakeholders ranging from resource managers right up to the general public, with the insight and ability to meaningfully react to climate change. For example with GIS, the global temperature pattern may be mapped and shared among users and so on. Geo-tools are helpful in so many relevant realms revealing changing weather patterns, sea level rise and growing risk to human health in informative visualizations which can help researchers, government stakeholders, nonprofits and other organizations for making strategized decisions.
Mapping global warming trends and fostering mitigation efforts
A major report from the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change had estimated that global warming could surpass 1.5 degrees Celsius by around 2040. The consequences of such warming have already being felt around the world, ranging from 2022 headlines announcing the catastrophic floods in Pakistan to sweltering heat waves scorching several parts of the globe and so on.
The reports are here now for all to see. So it’s time for everyone to shoulder their individual responsibilities in curbing the human induced heat catalyst effects. The geospatial ecosystem would also be an integral component of all strategic initiatives to be more effective and useful in the days to come.
