The Squelch Effect
by Jo Abbess
23rd December 2008
No, it’s true. Even to the most uninformed cursory observer of the records, 2008 has been a cooler year.
In parts, that is.
The overall averages for the year have shown the impact of the Squelch Effect from La Nina, an upwelling of cold waters in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.
We had some courageously cold months over Winter at the start of the year, and in some regions, like North Western Europe and the Eastern Seaboard of the United States, things have not been colder for decades.
But take a look at the monthly averages of global temperature for the year, and you will see that as the Squelch Effect has tailed off, there is an unmistakable upward trend :-
https://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/graphs/
https://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/graphs/2008+2005+2007.gif
This makes 2008, averaged January to November, the ninth warmest since records began, and November’s rating is halfway between the November temperature of the first and second hottest years ever overall.
The temperature has bounced back from La Nina and we can expect records to be shredded in 2009, sadly.
Don’t believe anyone who tells you Global Warming stopped in 1998. It was just taking a short rest, to catch its breath.
Anyone who disagrees with that is patently propagating fallacies.