How not to measure temperature

As shown as Watt's up with that,

I'm surveying climate stations of record around California and documenting their condition as part of a larger project I'm doing. You'll see more about it here in the near future.

Today I visited Marysville's Fire Station, just off Hwy 70 at 9th and B Street, where they have the station of record for the city using the MMTS electronic sensor installed by the National Weather Service. The data from this station is part of the USHCN (US Historical Climatological Network) and is used in the computer modeling used to predict climate change.

The Marysville station is located behind the fire department building on a patio and is probably the worst site visited so far. In addition to the sensor being surrounded by asphalt and concrete, its also within 10 feet of buildings, and within 8 feet of a large metal cell tower that could be felt reflecting sunlight/heat. And worst of all, air conditioning units on the cell tower electronics buildings vent warm air within 10 feet of the sensor. Oh and lets not forget the portable BBQ the firefighters use a "couple times a week." The area has been constantly added to, what was once a grass rear yard was turned to a parking lot, then more buildings added, then a cell tower with one, then two electronics buildings and the air conditioners...no report on how long the firefighters were BBQ'ing back there, when they figured out why I was asking all the questions they clammed up.

I can tell you with certainty, the temperature data from this station is useless. Look at the pictures to see why, and is it any wonder the trend for temperature is upward?

Above: Vehicles with hot radiators park within 6 feet of the temperature sensor!

Now compare Marysville to Orland, just 50 miles away, where there's not been any significant change in the last 100 years at the measuring location. Its obvious that Marysville is measuring UHI (Urban Heat Island) effects.

So the question is, how does bad data like this slip into the NASA GISS model database?

Weather Normal

As Tim Blair reports

Reports last month suggested Britain would melt during summer:

It could be time to say goodbye to defining features of British life, like rainy picnics and cloudy sunbathing …

Not quite yet:

A diligent BBC researcher has discovered that yesterday was the coldest on record for a Test match in England. Temperatures dropped to 7.4C (45F), but it felt colder.

Meanwhile, Australia’s allegedly endangered ski fields seem to be doing just fine:

Victoria’s Alpine region is experiencing the best lead-up to the ski season since 2004, with heavy falls overnight …

"This is great considering it’s two weeks away from opening weekend,” [Mount Buller Resort marketing manager Amber]



Gardner said.

Remember, our planet is just five years away from climate change catastrophe.

Greenpeace cold on warming debate

Greenpeace announces its new policy on debating man-made global warming:

We have a policy at Greenpeace that we no longer debate people who don’t accept the scientific reality of anthropogenic climate change.

Nothing strange in that. The Age has had this policy for years. ABC staff would like it, too.

Iain Murray explains what the eco-censors aren’t debating about.

Vermont bans idling by schoolbuses to slow global warming

As hot air reports:

Thereby reducing greenhouse gas omissions by .000000000000000000001% or some number thereabouts.

They believe the children are our future. They’ve taught them well, and now they’re letting them lead the way:

Gov. Jim Douglas used six pens Friday to sign his name to a bill that will ban school buses from running their engines while parked on school grounds, except under special circumstances.

Seated in the library at Browns River Middle School, Douglas rewarded a seventh-grade social studies class for its efforts on behalf of the bill by coming to the students to transform the legislation into law. He handed the pens he used to five students who led the lobbying effort and their teacher, Patty Brushett.

“This is a great step forward for our state,” Douglas said, listing benefits such as fuel conservation, improved air quality and reduction in greenhouse gases…

George Crombie, secretary of the Agency of Natural Resources, joined Douglas for the ceremony and presented the school with a sign to post by the driveway.

“These signs will go to every single school,” Crombie said. The red sign reads, “Please turn off your engines for our health.”

I guess they don't know how a diesel engine works.

West Queensland

Not a lot of good data in West Queensland, however we will analyse temperatures at BOULIA AIRPORT and CAMOOWEAL TOWNSHIP.

Max/min/9am and 3pm temperatures go back to 1910, whilst all other times only go back 15 years.

Maximum temperatures showed a significant increase (p<0.01), as did minimum temperatures (p<0.01). Similarly temperatures at 3pm showed a significant increase in temperature (p<0.01), however temperatures at 9am showed a significant decrease in temperature (p=0.02).

On closer look, since the 1940's temperatures at 9am have been increasing, so a similar pattern does exist.

Minimum temperature anomalies were found to be around 0.5 to 1 degree warmer than temperature anomalies at 3am and 6am, and as normal, we found that 9am temperature anomalies were significantly higher than 6am, and 6pm temperature anomalies were significantly lower than temperature anomalies at 3pm, which indicates that we are warming up during the heat of the day more so than in yesteryear, but not having any increase in heat during the day.

Hmm...what could cause us to heat up more so in the middle of the day of late?

Climate Change Myths

Professor Bob Carter has published The Myth of Dangerous Human-Caused Climate Change.

interesting read. Not everything i agree with him on, however i note that he does mention:

"the temperature at each site is constructed using the statistically
doubtful historic method of averaging the maximum and
minimum temperatures measured once each day at the site."

statistically doubtful? statistically very doubtful.

Central Queensland

Central Queensland includes data form Richmond, Barcaldine and Longreach airports. Maximum and minimum temperatures as well as temperatures at 9am and 3pm reach back to 1910. Most other times have limited data going back to the mid 1970s with midnight and 9pm only having 15 years of data. Hence analysis into this area is a little limited but still worthwhile taking.

Maximum temperatures showed no significant increase (t =1.5, p = 0.12) despite the fact that the last 6 years and 14 of the last 16 years have had higher than the norm. Minimum temperatures increased highly significantly (t = 6.07, p<0.01) with 10 of the last 23 years having a minimum temperature at more than 1 degree greater than the norm.

With limited time based data, it was hard to find any significant increases or decreases in temperature, however, looking at temperatures at 9am we saw higher than normal temperatures pre 1940, and then a sudden decrease followed by an increasing temperature trend until today. Temperatures at 3pm saw no significant difference despite the last 6 years showing above average temperatures.

With limited time based temperatures, most changes in temperature anomalies between neighbouring times were found non significant leading up to the heat of the day. However, temperatures anomalies at 6pm were found to be significant lower than at 3pm (p < 0.05).

The minimum temperature anomaly was found to be around 0.5 to 1.0 degrees above the temperature anomalies at 3am and 6am, thus once again highlighting the suns effect on global warming in the aptly named sunshine state.

Scientific Consensus?

I received a pamphlet in the mail from the labour party that started by saying that

"the debate is now over. we've reached scientific consensus, it's time to act"

of course this is far from true, but maybe it's also becoming less and less true?

The sunshine state: North Queensland

Now, onto Queensland, often called the sunshine state, so it will be interesting to see what effect the sun has on this state’s temperatures. To start off with we will go to the far north. Data comes from several stations including Cooktown and Cairns airport. The data also is pretty good, with maximum and minimum temperatures spanning back to 1910, and all time based weather readings back to 1943, with the exception of midnight (which seems to be a regular case) only back to 1993.

Maximum temperatures saw a significant raise (t = 4, p<0.01) largely to a significant lower than normal maximum temperatures between 1910 and 1920. Minimum temperatures also saw a significant increase (t = 6, p <0.01).

However surprisingly, 9am was the only time based temperature that saw a significant increase in temperature (t = 3.8, p < 0.01). Temperatures at 3pm saw no increase in temperature (t = -0.5, p = 0.6). This ties in with the fact that the only reasons why we saw a maximum temperature increase was because of very early low maximum temperatures which are not accounted for in the time based temperatures.

However the usual pattern was found when looking at the rate of change of temperatures between adjoining times. 9am recorded a significantly higher temperature anomaly than 6am (p<0.01) and 6pm showed a significant lower temperature anomaly than at 3pm (p<0.05), despite the last few years being positive. Hence indicating that all recent warming in north Queensland is due to the suns output.

Temperature analysis between 3am,6am and the minimum temperature, saw the minimum temperature increasing significantly at a rate of up to 1.7 degrees per 100 years in comparison to overnight temperatures. This once again indicates that temperatures at night are not warming up in northern Queensland and that the minimum is only increasing due to the influence of the sun.

South East Australian drought over

well it looks as though the drought that has inflicted south eastern Australia is now over. Well at least according to the stats. It naturally doesn't stop politicians claiming global warming as the reason behind this. But lets look at the stats shall we?

Given below is the expected and actual rainfall in south eastern Australia

Expected Actual
Jan 45.0 41.6
Feb 40.8 41.4
Mar 38.3 37.3
Apr 39.9 52.0
Total 164.0 172.4


So we have a 5.1% increase in rainfall than the norm.

Also in Victoria:

Expected Actual
Jan 37.0 55.7
Feb 36.6 31.1
Mar 40.2 38.5
Apr 46.5 42.4
Total 160.3 167.7

A 4.6% increase in rainfall since the start of the year.

So can we please stop all this worst drought in 1000 or 100 years crap? Currently, as proven from the above statistics given from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, there is no drought.