More Pictures From The Weekend
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May 9, 2017 at 04:35AM
Month: May 2017
Trump Considers What Steps U.S. Should Take On Paris Climate Accord
via The Global Warming Policy Forum (GWPF)
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President Donald Trump is pressing to settle the U.S. position on the Paris Agreement on climate change before his first overseas trip later this month.
White House officials were expected to close an internal debate on whether the U.S. should withdraw or take more measured steps, but a key meeting on the matter scheduled for Tuesday was postponed at the request of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who would have been unable to attend, an administration official said.
Two weeks after his electoral victory in November, Mr. Trump said he had “an open mind” about the agreement by 190 countries aimed at combating climate change, reversing his campaign pledge to withdraw completely. But after softening campaign positions on China and NATO in recent weeks, the president may be looking to rebalance his approach on the world stage with a major move reaffirming his “America First” principles.
The faction for withdrawing completely is led by EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, senior adviser Steve Bannon and White House counsel Don McGahn, several officials said. They are eager for the decision to come ahead of the G-7 and G-20 summits later this month in Italy and Germany, respectively, where world leaders are likely to pressure Mr. Trump to stay in the agreement.
France’s president-elect, Emanuel Macron, urged Mr. Trump not to dismantle the Paris accord during a congratulatory phone call Monday, his spokesman told CNN.
But others inside and close to the administration are urging more tempered steps, such as paring the U.S. carbon-emission reduction targets.
In a recent Oval Office meeting, Condoleezza Rice, former secretary of state in the Bush administration, also implored the president to avoid the diplomatic backlash that could result from the U.S. fully withdrawing from the agreement, according to two White House officials.
Within his administration, Mr. Tillerson, Secretary of Energy Rick Perry and the president’s daughter Ivanka Trump are all pushing for a more measured response.
Mr. Pruitt and Ms. Trump are scheduled to meet at the White House on Tuesday to discuss the agreement, but that could also be postponed now that the second meeting of the principals committee of the National Security Council was delayed. A make-up date hasn’t been set.
Environmental groups, alarmed for weeks over the rising possibility that the administration may withdraw, have been preparing a response should that occur and simultaneously attempting to undercut the White House’s legal rationale for pulling out.
At the last principals committee meeting, Mr. McGahn took Mr. Pruitt’s side, arguing that remaining in the Paris Agreement could lead to litigation against the U.S. should the administration ratchet down its carbon-emission reduction limits, according to administration officials present. Mr. McGahn declined a request for comment.
Under the Paris Agreement, each participating country determines its own set of emissions targets and a plan to reach them. Mr. McGahn has pointed specifically to Article 4.11, which says that any nation “may at any time adjust its existing nationally determined contribution with a view to enhancing its level of ambition,” noting that lowering goals could prompt lawsuits, multiple administration officials said.
Advocates for the agreement disagree with that analysis.
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May 9, 2017 at 03:56AM
Northern Hemisphere Having A Tough Time Shaking Off Winter
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Europe had an extended period of colder-than-normal weather in April accompanied by lots of snow and now much of the US is experiencing an extended period of colder-than-normal weather as we transition from early-to-mid May.
Snowfall has been running at above normal levels this winter across the Northern Hemisphere and continues at those higher-than-normal levels as we heads towards the middle of May. In addition, temperatures in the Arctic region – which have been generally running at above-normal levels in recent weeks – have actually dropped to below-normal in recent days. One of the main factors contributing to this late season cold across much of the Northern Hemisphere is a blocking pattern in the upper part of the atmosphere centered over Greenland and Iceland and this tends to contribute to cold air outbreaks into the land mass areas on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.
Temperatures in the Arctic region (>80 degrees N) have fallen to below-normal levels (circled area) in recent days following several weeks at generally above-normal levels; map courtesy Weather Bell Analytics/Dr. Ryan Maue
Discussion
During the month of April, Europe experienced a persistent colder-than-normal pattern and significant snow piled up in the Alps across the central part of the continent. The air was so cold, in fact, that many vineyards from England-to-Italy suffered serious losses as the battle with freezing conditions was relentless in many areas. In the US, a colder-than-normal pattern has kicked in for much of the nation and should continue into the middle of the month and there has been some accumulating snow in the western US and across portions of the Northern Plains and interior Northeast. In fact, the next ten days or so will see more in the way of accumulating snow in the western US and many ski resorts in that part of the country will have good conditions right into the month of June. The Sierra Nevada Mountains of eastern California, for example, will get more substantial snowfall over the next ten days or so to add to the massive totals that they received this winter.
500 millibar height anomaly pattern with strong blocking (in red) over Greenland and Iceland and deep upper-level lows over the Northeast and Southwest US; map courtesy AER/Dr. Judah Cohen
The upper-level pattern across the Northern Hemisphere is playing a big role in this late season cold. This time of year, it is not too unusual to see deep upper-level lows scattered across the northern and middle latitudes and a blocking pattern would allow for persistent cold in areas situated under an upper-level low. Indeed, blocking is now well established over Greenland/Iceland as indicated by the latest 500 millibar height anomalies (red region) and this type of pattern can force cold air southward from northern latitudes into land mass areas on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.
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May 9, 2017 at 03:20AM
New hi-tech gadget promises power from polluted air
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From the “Chinese are already working on a copy” department:
Air pollution in Shanghai, China.
Researchers from the University of Antwerp and KU Leuven (University of Leuven), Belgium, have succeeded in developing a process that purifies air and, at the same time, generates power. The device need only be exposed to light in order to function.
“We use a small device with two rooms separated by a membrane”, explains professor Sammy Verbruggen (UAntwerp/KU Leuven). “Air is purified on one side, while on the other side hydrogen gas is produced from a part of the degradation products. This hydrogen gas can be stored and used later as fuel, as is already being done in some hydrogen buses, for example. “
In this way, the researchers respond to two major social needs: clean air and alternative energy production. The heart of the solution lies at the membrane level, where the researchers use specific nanomaterials.
“These catalysts are capable of producing hydrogen gas and breaking down air pollution”, explains professor Verbruggen. “In the past, these cells were mostly used to extract hydrogen from water. We have now discovered that this is also possible, and even more efficient, with polluted air.”
The researchers claim this new device needs only polluted air and light in order to purify air and generate power.
CREDIT UAntwerpen and KU Leuven
It seems to be a complex process, but it is not: the device must only be exposed to light. The researchers’ goal is to be able to use sunlight, as the processes underlying the technology are similar to those found in solar panels. The difference here is that electricity is not generated directly, but rather that air is purified while the generated power is stored as hydrogen gas.
“We are currently working on a scale of only a few square centimeters. At a later stage, we would like to scale up our technology to make the process industrially applicable. We are also working on improving our materials so we can use sunlight more efficiently to trigger the reactions. “
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May 9, 2017 at 02:09AM
Iowa Climate Science Education 