Average Temps In Great Falls, MT Up 1.5F Since 2000 - Great Falls Tribune

[hatrack]

Temperatures in the Electric City are rising, and a report released Thursday points the finger at climate change. The average temperature in Great Falls is up 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit since 2000 compared with the previous three decades, according to a report by MontPIRG.

Montana Public Interest Research Group, or MontPIRG, researchers examined climate data from 1971 to 2000, concluding that Montana is following the national trend of rising temperatures.

Although a degree or two might not sound like a lot, there are ecological consequences to consider. In Montana the glaciers in Glacier National Park are rapidly declining, said MontPIRG executive director Matt Leow. Estimates show the glaciers will be gone by 2030. Since 1900, Glacier National Park's average summer temperatures increased by about 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit. "A couple degrees can make a huge difference," Leow said.

The MontPIRG report falls in line with other climate research taking place in Montana. Steve Running, an ecology professor at the University of Montana School of Forestry, is analyzing climate trends for all of Montana. This year UM was authorized as the official state "climatology office." Running analyzed 50 years of data for Great Falls, Billings, Bozeman, Missoula and Kalispell. Now he is looking at two dozen more Montana cities.

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http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060929/NEWS01/609290318/1002

[havocmom]

1. VERY harsh summer up here. We topped temps in Tucson many days

Spring came early too. Bird migration pattern DEFINATELY different. We had Snowy Owls all over and all summer. I had never seen one in the wild before. Havocdad (wildlife biologist) says he hadn't seen any in over 40 years.

Lots of birds we don't usually see here this year. All the migrating birds were WEEKS early.

Incredible increase in bugs too, both in numbers and variety. Again, we saw bugs this summer we have NEVER seen in Montana.

Even the good ol boys are nodding that 'this global warming thing is gettin scary'.

The times, they are a-changing. Weather is too.

[greendog]

3. Over in Kalispell, this summer was fairly mild...

...I thought. We got up to the high 90's a few times but never topped 100. High 80's to low 90's through most of the summer. Could have used more rain though.

The Snowy Owl incursion was due to a crash of the vole population north of the border and an abundance of the same down here. One potato field south of Polson was home to 20 Snowy Owls through most of the winter. We had 5 or 6 hanging out just north of Flathead Lake.

[havocmom]

4. Knew the vole and/or lemmings must have had a bid die off

to bring the owls here. Now, what caused the die off? And yes, we are overrun with them here in eastern MT too.

And EVERYBODY is fighting invasions of mice. I heard bats the other night. They are usually gone from here by now.

Saw marmots for the first time in this area too. And swift fox have shown up. They are not common in these parts.

Hell, there were some moose caught on video! Moose in Eastern MT... little strange. We don't know if Fish & Game brought them in from points west where numbers are too high or if it was a family of tourist moose from MN ;)

Moose. In the badlands. Strange year.

[Warren DeMontague]

2. Yeah, next you'll be telling us about dinosaurs, evolution, and

a supposedly 4.7 Billion Year old Earth!

Poppycock! Science is just French for "Satan".