The Arizona Republic’s Phil Boas attempts to give a dose of reality while still pushing the climate cult line
Why is it so hot in Phoenix this year? Climate change may not be the only explanation
This year’s summer heat wave in Arizona has already killed 59 people with 345 deaths now under investigation.
Our July set a new record for the most consecutive days (31) with high temperatures at or above 110 degrees, reports The Arizona Republic’s Fernando Cervantes Jr.
That we know.
What we don’t know is why.
Why are we seeing these record-smashing temperatures this year in metro Phoenix and across the globe?
I’ve been reliably informed that this is solely your fault. You could have given up your use of fossil fuels, stopped eating meat, moved into a tiny home, and given your money and freedom to government. But, no, you didn’t
Some will scoff at the question. But it’s actually a mystery that will take time to study and understand.
Yes, climate change undoubtedly played a roll.
I’m sure it did. The Earth goes through warm and cool cycles, as it’s done numerous times throughout the Holocene. Mankind does play a part, as I’ve always maintained. How much is the question. Certainly, land use and the Urban Heat Island effect plays a part, as does the release of greenhouse gas from more humans, agriculture, landfills, and ocean pollution (messes with the plankton, the number one converter of CO2 to oxygen). Yes, and fossil fuels. Certainly, air pollution traps heat, especially at night. Lower radiative cooling. So, how much is local from Man, how much is global from Man, and how much is natural?
One of those factors was a massive underwater earthquake near the island nation of Tonga more than a year and a half ago.
On Jan. 15, 2022, the Hunga Tonga–Hunga Ha’apai underwater volcano erupted.
A year later, January 2023, scientists mostly from Oxford University published a study in the peer-reviewed Nature Climate Change that noted the Tonga-Hunga volcanic eruption was extraordinary in that it pushed an enormous amount of water into the atmosphere.
Most volcanic eruptions spew large amounts of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere that form particles that can actually reflect the sun and cool the planet.
This one did that as well, but was offset and exceeded by the amount of moisture it sent skyward — roughly the equivalent of 58,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools, according to separate research done by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Because water vapor is a greenhouse gas, “it is possible that over a multiyear period Hunga Tonga–Hunga Ha’apai will cause a temporary increase in global surface temperatures,” the Oxford group noted.
Oops?
Of course, the climate cult will say that the loss of glaciers because Other People drive fossil fueled vehicles and have gas stoves is messing with tectonics and caused this. Because cult.
Anyhow, Mr. Boas also mentions the El Nino conditions and pollution control. Yes, that last one is Man-induced: we created the pollution, and removing it can also let in more sunlight to heat up the buildings and roadways. But, that’s localized.
Read: Why Is It So Hot? Well, Your Fault, Plus Natural Processes Like A Volcano »
Lawyers for former President Donald Trump responded after midnight Tuesday morning to the late-night indictment in Fulton County, Georgia, by District Attorney Fani Willis, calling it “as flawed and unconstitutional as this entire process.”
A Montana judge on Monday sided with young environmental activists who said state agencies were violating their constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment by permitting fossil fuel development without considering its effect on the climate.
Earth’s climate is changing rapidly. In some areas, escalating temperatures are increasing the frequency and likelihood of 
Colorado is implementing a groundbreaking plan to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in an often overlooked but critical economic sector— industry. The state is the first to propose such ambitious plans to cut carbon pollution from industry, which includes processes like cement, steel, and chemical production.
