Is this an indication that our climate is becoming more constant?
I listen to my NOAA weather radio every morning, and it always gives the record highs and record lows for each day. I’ve noticed that with the exception of one day out of every 90 or so, the record highs and lows are generally before 1960. Could this be an indication that the climate is leveling out or becoming more constant?
No, it isn’t. Temperature trends need to be followed for as large an area over the longest time period possible to have any real meaning.
No. You’re talking about your local weather, which is about one-one millionth of the data used by groups like NASA to measure the changes in global temperature you see here:
http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/graphs/Fig.A2.lrg.gif
As you can see, the climate is not leveling out, it’s changing very rapidly.
Records are records for a reason. They’re not broken very frequently even when the planet is warming relatively rapidly. Remember, the planet has only warmed about 1°C over the past century. Global warming will cause records to be broken more frequently, but they’re still not going to be broken easily.
Since the beginning of man, we have complained about weather. Only recently did we figure out how to make it our fault.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Holocene_Temperature_Variations.png
Since we exited the last ice age, the temperature has fluctuated. The past 150 years is nothing special.
Ditto Dana’s answer.
Also, where you live is important as well. There are all sorts of weather events that can affect weather in one area for weeks or even months as a time.
Where I live has just had 56 rain-days in succession and at one point 6 months worth of rain fell in just one day. Normally we would have one rain-day out of 3. The reason was primarily because of the jet stream. Thankfully this has now moved northward and today was a fine, dry day.
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EDIT: TO JIM Z
The question is not about CO2 so quite obviously neither my answer or Dana’s mentions CO2. What we have done is something quite alien to many skeptics in that we have answered the question which was asked.
By the application of your form of logic I would dedce that you perceive the world to be flat. You haven’t stated that it’s round therefore you must believe it’s flat.
With increased greenhouse gases the climate is theoretically supposed to be more moderate or "constant". Even the most extreme alarmists (e.g Dana, Trevor) have not agreed that it is so CO2 must not be having the effect they claim. Extremist like Dana try to twist the reality to make the past more constant and to ensure the near past, present, and future become less constant. It is required to form a hockey stick which is crucial to their dogma. I would expect continued variability.
How can this be when CO2 levels continue to rise?
Dana’s data is dubious and typical of an alarmist. Typically no explanation about how they conduct the tests back in 1880 and managed consistency over that very long time period. The data even shows that the heating was almost flat for 40 years between 1940-1980 even although CO2 levels were rising very fast over that period!
This is why the ice core data id much more reliable goes back much further and shows no rise in temperature with CO2 levels.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:0Master_Past_20000yrs_temperatures_icecore_Vostok_150dpi.png
MiltonB
If it isn’t then pls explain why the ice core record goes back 20K years much further than Dana’s is accepted by all scientists and shows no rise in global temperatures due to CO2?