We have a new official “climate normal”—and its getting warmer
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has released updated “climate normals.” Here’s what they are, how they’ve changed, and how you can best make sense of them.
Anyone who listens to weather reports has heard meteorologists comment that yesterday’s temperature was 3 degrees above normal, or last month was much drier than normal. But what does “normal” mean in this context—and in a world in which the climate is changing?