Just as the Weather and Climate Livestream moved into its 30th hour, massive wildfires burned out of control in western and central Canada, forcing thousands to flee as dire forecasts for the country’s fire season came to fruition.
As of Friday, May 30th (NZT), some 160 fires burned across Canada, with only “about half” under control according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre. The country raised its National Preparedness Level to level 5 of 5 on Thursday, which is unusually high for this early in the fire season. Last year, Canada didn’t reach that level until July 15.
The Manitoba government declared a State of Emergency on May 28 (PT). With multiple fires already burning, 17,000 residents across the province, including those from the mining city of Flin Flon.
“This is the largest evacuation in many Manitobans’ living memory, and it will require significant resources and co-operation from all levels of government,” Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew, told media.
Somewhat ironically, perhaps, and as the smoke drifted towards major American cities, all this was taking place against a background of online ‘protest’ by US climate scientists over funding cuts that dramatically impact US climate and weather prediction services.
Weather scientists from all over the country gathered for a continuous online presentation of their work, accompanied by explanations of how their efforts impacted everything from sea level rise to wind direction at airports and, oh, guess what, wildfires.
The US has long been a world centre for climate and weather prediction. It has pushed the scientific bounds of what humanity thought possible by pioneering computerised weather and climate forecasts, furthering our understanding of the physics of our world, and deploying an unparalleled observational network.
Because of this work, weather scientists can now predict weather conditions days (sometimes weeks) in advance, along with the impact of carbon pollution over the coming decades. Space research might capture media attention more, but the progress that’s been made in weather science is nothing less than a quiet revolution.
While many scientists in other countries have also contributed significantly, the current position owes much of its origins to decades of investment by the American public, benefiting everyone from farmers to city planners, from first responders to businesses, and many more.
Glacier collapse climate connected
Another strange twist on the subject of climate change occurred in Switzerland late this week when the Birch Glaciers finally gave way, and in spectacular fashion.
Matthias Huss, head of Glacier Monitoring in Switzerland, pointed to the likely influence of climate change in loosening the rock mass among the permafrost, which triggered the collapse. For years, the glacier has been creeping down the mountainside, pressured by shifting debris near the summit.
The mountainside of the glacier had been unstable since last week, when millions of pounds of rock debris fell onto the glacier surface, Bethan Davies, a professor of glaciology at Newcastle University in the U.K., told ABC News.
The load, along with warm temperatures on Monday, accelerated the glacier’s collapse, Swiss Radio and Television reported.
