EDF making bogus comparisons to the Dust bowl
It is becoming increasingly difficult to understand the disconnect between Oklahoma Senator James Inhofe and the threat of rising temperatures to his own constituents. Last year, Oklahoma endured the hottest summer ever recorded in U.S. history. According to the National Climatic Data Center, Oklahoma’s average temperature last summer was 86.9 degrees.
The previous record for the hottest summer was set in the midst of the Dust Bowl, again in Oklahoma. The Dust Bowl literally blew Oklahoma’s farmers off their land, along with their topsoil. No one wants a repeat of that.
What’s alarming is that the previous record of 85.2 degrees, set in Oklahoma in 1934, was almost two degrees cooler than summer 2011!
Yet another attempt to rewrite history. The Dust Bowl years were much hotter and much drier in Oklahoma. Oklahoma City had 55 days last year over 100 degrees, compared to 72 days in 1936, 68 days during 1913, and 58 days during 1934.
Three summers have had maximum temperatures averaging over 100 degrees, but 2011 was not one of them. June through August maximum temperatures averaged 102.2 degrees in 1936, 101.7 degrees in 1913, 100.5 degrees in 1934, and 99.3 degrees in 2011.
But what really stands out is the number of very hot days over 110 degrees. Almost all of Oklahoma City’s 110 degree days occurred before 1960.
Here is the real kicker. The summer of 1913 had twenty-two days over 110 degrees, compared to two days during the summer of 2011 – which NOAA says was the hottest summer.
U.S. Historical Climatology Network
The hottest month was August 1913. July 2011 afternoon temperatures were almost five degrees cooler than 1913.
Meeker Oklahoma USHCN Temperatures Month Year Average Max Mean Average Min August 1913 106.4 89.5 72.2 August 1936 105.8 90.1 73.7 July 2011 101.9 89.0 75.6
NOAA tampers with the data, and fails to account for major UHI nighttime temperature effects. Then they release selective misinformation to be used by propagandists like EDF.