‘Scientists say climate change increasing likelihood of lightning strikes’ in U.S. – But wait! ‘Scientists’ also predict ‘lightning strikes could drop’ as temps go up
Washington DC lightning strike that killed two offers climate warning https://t.co/o1X4WxMYEQ pic.twitter.com/lLHSU85lRs
— Reuters (@Reuters) August 5, 2022
Washington DC lightning strike that killed three offers climate warning
(Reuters) – Scientists say that climate change is increasing the likelihood of lightning strikes across the United States, after lightning struck at a square near the White House, leaving three people dead and one other in critical condition. …
More heat can draw more moisture into the atmosphere, while also encouraging rapid updraft – two key factors for charged particles, which lead to lightning. A key study released in 2014 in the journal Science warned that the number of lightning strikes could increase by 50% in this century in the United States, with each 1 C (1.8 F) of warming translating into a 12% rise in the number of lightning strikes. …
Beyond the United States, there is evidence that lightning strikes are also shooting up in India and Brazil. But even as lightning strikes increase, being hit by one is still extremely rare in the United States, experts say. Roughly 40 million lightning bolts touch down in the country every year, according to the Center for Disease Control – with the odds of being struck less than 1 in a million.
A lightning strike near the White House has killed two people and critically injured two others. Though the odds of being killed by lightning are still roughly 1 in a million, strikes are increasing under climate change. https://t.co/BEpkrssCZ7
— Gloria Dickie (@GloriaDickie) August 5, 2022
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But wait! How can fatal lightning strikes be a “climate warning” when fatal lightning strikes are dramatically declining?!
Source: Statista 2022: https://www.statista.com/statistics/203715/injuries-and-fatalities-caused-by-lightning-in-the-us/
Extreme weather expert Professor Roger Pielke Jr. comments by pointing out the dramatic drop in lightning strike deaths since 1900.:
Lightning deaths as a “climate warning” pic.twitter.com/WDZXVNWbXp
— The Honest Broker (@RogerPielkeJr) August 6, 2022
USA Today: U.S. lightning deaths hit record low in 2021 –
The sharp drop in lightning deaths over the past 75 years also “coincides with a shift in population from rural to urban regions,” wrote meteorologist Ron Holle, also with the safety council, in an article in the Journal of Applied Meteorology.
In the 1940s, “there were many, many more small farmers who were out working in fields,” which meant many more chances to be struck by lightning, Jensenius told USA TODAY in 2017.
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Climate Depot Response: But wait! Which is it?!
Predict both outcomes & you are never wrong! Climate studies predict LESS & MORE lightning strikes
Study: UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH: Lightning storms less likely in a warming planet
Via: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5381867/Global-warming-reduce-lightning-strikes.html
Lightning strikes could drop by 15% as climate change causes global temperatures to soar by 5°C in 2100
February 12, 2018
Flashback 2010: ‘Global Warming Could Lead to More Lightning Deaths’: ‘New research reveals that rising temperatures may increase the frequency of the sometimes fatal lightning strikes.’
Lightning deaths at all-time record low in 2017 – Despite Al Gore’s predictions
When the prophets say to "watch for the signs," people see the signs everywhere.
— Boomertarian Norm (@Timberati) August 6, 2022
