Browse Climate Stories - Page 3

December is the start of the three-month winter season here in the Northern Hemisphere. In 2021, December started out 4 to 6 degrees Fahrenheit (F) warmer than normal. Whether this is likely to last through the rest of the winter depends on two major weather patterns that are affecting the winter climate in Georgia.

A publicly commissioned sculpture at the new home of University of Georgia Cooperative Extension in Athens-Clarke County takes the age-old question of “Which came first, the chicken or the egg?” to new heights.

As climate issues capture governmental and public attention — from the effects of methane emissions to weather extremes — it is incumbent on the world to take action. Experts in UGA's College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences are focused on helping residents address climate challenges in ways that will benefit the environment and ensure both profitability and sustainability for industry.

The forces at work in a marsh require a delicate balancing act. Rising and falling tidewaters keep clumps of Spartina grasses from growing too dense. But too much water makes it difficult for them to survive. Tip this balance too far in either direction and the marsh ecosystem collapses, resulting in a population of different plants — or no plants at all.

On June 1, 1991, the first agricultural weather station operated by the University of Georgia began transmitting data from Griffin, Georgia. Since then, the UGA Weather Network has grown to include 87 stations scattered across the state, providing weather data to a variety of users. On June 1 this year, this 30-year record of continuous weather data makes the UGA Weather Network one of the oldest state weather networks in the country.

Day-to-day swings in temperature are an accepted part of the weather in many areas around the country. However, when 30-year averages of daily temperature fluctuations from thousands of stations around the country indicate a steady change in average temperatures over time, there are tangible implications for agriculture, energy consumption and many other aspects of daily life.

Climate is likely the biggest driver of butterfly abundance change, according to a new study by University of Georgia entomologists.

Georgia weather is predictably unpredictable, bitter cold one week and balmy the next. For that reason, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension experts urge Georgia growers to pay close attention to the weather over the coming months and be prepared to use irrigation for frost protection and potential dry conditions as we move into spring.

Despite fears of rising sea levels and violent storms, many people still dream of living on the water. It’s an idyllic life — until it isn’t.

October saw the easing of drought conditions across the state, but many producers reported that the months of dry conditions had already harmed their crops.