Climate Change Impacts and Mitigation

1. The IPCC predicts that over the next century, central and south america are going to warm. They predicted that the southern section of South America will be relatively similar to the rest of the globe. The rest of the region, however, is predicted to warm more than the average amount seen in other places on the globe. What I found interesting was that Central America was predicted to be rainier while South America was not. I also found it interesting that the spring in Central America would be drier than usual. 2. South America could see some hard times over the next century, the IPCC predicts that: "In drier areas, climate change is expected to lead to salinisation and desertification of agricultural land. Productivity of some important crops is projected to decrease and livestock productivity to decline, with adverse consequences for food security. In temperate zones soybean yields are projected to increase." This would not be good for S America, but the news isn't all bad. Certain crop yields like soybeans are predicted to increase, but other important crop yields and livestock are predicted to decrease. Also, coastal areas could run into problems with flooding, the IPCC predicts that low lying areas will be subject to flooding and could be damaged due to sea level rise. 3. Like I said in the previous question, the next century isn't looking to bright for south america. The IPCC is predicting "Climatic variability and extreme events have been severely affecting the Latin America region over recent years (high confidence)," and "Land-use changes have intensified the use of natural resources and exacerbated many of the processes of land degradation (high confidence)." Basically, the weather is getting more and more extreme for S America, and the natural resources are being used up quickly. Some serious changes need to be made quickly for the continent. 4. I think the most interesting threat to Brazil/South America is the sea level rise and flooding. As with most places in the world, most of the population lives in coastal areas, and if the warming continues, the sea level will rise and greatly affect these coastal regions. With a lot of the population near the coast, many homes/infrastructure would be damaged and possibly even kill people. The threat is actually a huge problem all over the world, as so many people live near the coasts and the sea level rise would really mess up a lot of communities. 5. Image showing the drought Brazil is in and how climate change will affect poverty

Severe Weather in Brazil

A tornado starts due to vertical air (mesocyclone) and wind shear. In the US, tornadoes usually move SW to NE. This is because tornadoes move in the same direction as the thunderstorms that start them, and SW to NE is the direction of most storms in the US. Tornadoes do happen in Brazil, but mainly in the southern section of the country. An average of 1,253 tornadoes happen per year in the U.S. (NOAA). I couldn't find a number for Brazil as they are just barely in the South American "Hall of Tornadoes," but Argentina which is near there has the second highest number per year behind the U.S. with about 300 (Wikipedia). The attached map shows the Hall of Tornadoes in South America, and Brazil is just barely inside the medium risk zone. The statistics on the graph may not be true, it may be a possibilitiy that over the past 30 years we have just gotten better at documenting them which would make it seem as if there were more. The three main requirements for hurricanes are: warm ocean temps (>80 degees), deep warm ocean layer (200m) in depth, and coriolis force is needed to initiate the spinning. The three main regions are: Hurricanes = atlantic and E pacific, Cyclones = Indian Ocean near Australia, Typhoons = China or Indonesia. In the U.S. hurricanes generally move from E to W because of the Bermuda High and the Trade Winds. Brazil has only been hit by one tropical cyclone of hurricane force in recorded history. I could only find hurricane numbers by decaded but the U.S. usually sees 17.7 hurricanes per decade (cat 1-5) so that would be 1.7 per year. (Wikipedia)

Daily Weather in Brasilia

My country's capital city is Brazilia. My forecast will cover March 20th-24th. The first day high is 86 and the low is 66 with a 20% chance of precipitation. The second day high is 84 and the low is 66 with a 90% chance of precipitation. The third day high is 83 with a low of 66 and a 90% chance of precipitation. The fourth day has a high of 83 with a low of 66 and an 80% chance of precipitation. The fifth and final day has a high of 78 and a low of 65 with an 80% chance of precipitation. The current weather radar shows lots of clouds over Brasilia. The colors are mainly blue and yellow which means mainly high cold clouds. The local terrain can't be seen because of the current heavy cloud cover.

The zoomed out map of South America shows a lot going on. First thing that catches my eye is 2 H pressure systems and 2 L pressure systems. There are also numerous warm and cold fronts approaching South America.The highest pressure is 1028 mb, and the lowest can't be seen because the numbers are covered by the letters.

The more zoomed in map of Brazil shows a lot less going on. There is a low pressure system south of brazil. The highest pressure I can read is 1012 mb. The only front I can see is a stationary front to the SE.

Global and Local Winds in Brazil

The latitude and longitude of Brazil are: 10.6500° S, 52.9500° W. It's located in the Southern Hemisphere in the Hadley Cell. It's located in the trade wind belt with the prevailing wind direction being SE trades. It's located near the equatorial low pressure belt. It's also located near the doldrums. I speculate that because it's located in the Hadley cell near the doldrums, the climate is humid and the trades aren't as strong in the northern end of the country that's closer to the equator. The southern end of the country probably has a less humid climate because of the prevailing SE trades. The trades also make day to day weather change more, similar to Hawaii. Brazil has some small mountains in the center, but nothing major like neighboring country Chile. 5 breezes or winds associated with mountains are: mountain breeze, chinook winds, santa ana winds, katabatic winds, and valley breezes. Brazil can experience mountain and valley breezes, as well as katabatic winds. Brazil does have coastline. Two winds associated with coasts are land breezes and sea breezes. Yes, Brazil can experience both land and sea breezes.

Typical Weather and Tourism in Brazil

The winter solstice for Brazil is June 21st. (A slight portion of Brazil is in the N hemisphere but I am going with the majority of the country).The average high for June in Brasilia is 77.4 degrees, while the average low for Brasilia in June is 55.9 degrees. Rain is the most likely precipitation for the Winter solstice, although chances are pretty low. The Summer solstice for Brazil is on December 21st. The average high in December is 79.2 degrees while the average low is 56.3 degrees. Rain is pretty likely on the Summer solstice as this is during the wet season. The Spring Equinox for Brazil is September 20th because it's in the Southern Hemisphere. The average high for Brasilia in September is 82.9 while the average low is 60.8 degrees. Rain would occur on the spring equinox but not extremely likely in this month. The Autumnal Equinox for Brazil is March 20th. The average high in March is 80.8 while the average low is 63.5 degrees. If precipitation were to fall on the Autumnal equinox it would be rain. If I were a travel agent I would recommend you travel to Brazil during the winter season. There aren't too many hazards in terms of weather in the Winter, maybe the occasional unlikely downpour, that'd be about it. It is so good to travel here in winter because this is their dry season and they don't receive much precipitation. Image of Brazil: http://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&docid=8anxa0DksZbwsM&tbnid=1xKEY5kjvYB20M:&ved=0CAUQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.travelpulse.com%2Fnews%2Ffeatures%2Fbrazil-launches-new-global-tourism-advertising-campaign.html&ei=bAIQU9r3DIODogTwk4D4AQ&bvm=bv.62286460,d.cGU&psig=AFQjCNEcyupSEw-RwfoP8JhWuyXtwanfLA&ust=1393644501446791 Advertisement: "Brazil: land of beautiful women, weather, and beaches."

Temperature controls in the city of Brasilia in Brazil

Brasilia is the capital of the country Brazil, and in this post I will be writing about the temperature controls that affect Brasilia. Brasilia is the capital city of Brazil, and the longitude and latitude are: 15.7989° S, 47.8667° W. The warmest month in Brasilia is September with an average temperature of 82.9 degrees. The coldest month in Brasilia is July with an average temperature of 55.2 degrees. The annual temperature range for Brasilia is 27.7 degrees. (I found this information on Wikipedia). One temperature control that affects Brasilia is the convergence of the trade winds that cause the climate to be more humid than it otherwise would be. (http://www.brcactaceae.org/climate.html) One temperature control that doesn't affect Brasilia is the Brazil current. The Brazil current is a warm water current that helps keep coastal brazil temperate and mild but doesn't affect Brasilia as much. In the future, I don't see Brasilia's climate changing too much. Sea level rise would possibly affect the coastal cities of Brazil but Brasilia is further inland. The trade winds that cause the humidity wouldn't change too much but may be the only thing that could potentially change. Global warming could potentially influence the winds by changing the heating of the earth's surface which causes the winds in the first place. Other than that, I don't see it changing too drastically.