Heather from Hanover asked:

"Why is it that the summers seem to get hotter and hotter?" ... "If the temperature continues to rise how long will humans be able to survive in the heat?"


NWS Deputy Director replied:

"Heather, I'm not really a climate change expert, so I can't offer much insight here. I can tell you that under the President's leadership this week, more than 30 nations came together here in Washington, D.C. to establish an Earth observation system aimed at providing scientific data needed to understand our climate.

The observations made will provide scientists with better data, which are critical for improved models. These models should improve their ability to predict climate change."

www.whitehouse.gov/ask/20030801.html

NWS has over 5,000 meteorologists and hydrologists with education and outreach responsibility to the public on weather, water and climate. www.nws.noaa.gov/organization.php

For more than 10 years, NWS managers have said that climate change is too political or controversial for them to comment on, and said climate change was not part of their job.

But weather is being influenced by climate change already. Climate change should thus be taken into account in the research, modeling and predictions of weather and hydrology.

NWS managers and staff have been negligence in their duty to serve in the public interest on climate change. Their refusal to learn about and educate the public on climate change has been a disservice to the US and the world.

When will we understand climate change enough to try to safeguard the atmosphere and world without more delay?

Government managers and many scientists will say they need more data even though more data is not really needed.

I'm not really an expert in anything. Does that excuse me from being responsible for anything that I don't do?