Weather

Here’s a Scary Metric

According to The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), October 2012 was the 332nd consecutive month of above-average temperatures.

The average temperature across land and ocean surfaces during October was 14.63°C (58.23°F). This is 0.63°C (1.13°F) above the 20th century average and ties with 2008 as the fifth warmest October on record. The record warmest October occurred in 2003 and the record coldest October occurred in 1912. This is the 332nd consecutive month with an above-average temperature.

Or as Grist put it:

If you were born in or after April 1985, if you are right now 27 years old or younger, you have never lived through a month that was colder than average. That’s beyond astonishing.

Astonishing is one way to put it. "Frightening" would be another.

I would also point out that last year House Republicans voted for significant cuts to NOAA's budget. And the budget that included said cuts was drafted by none other than Paul Ryan.

The good news (but not good enough) is that nearly half of all new energy generation capacity installed in the U.S. in 2012 was renewable energy according to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s Office of Energy Projects.

We have a very long way to go, but it's a start.

"It's snowing! In Winter! Where's the global warming?" -Sean Hannity