
2019 World Climate Data
Global atmospheric CO2 concentration: 410.07 ppm, +2.45 ppm from 2018
Surface air temperature anomaly: +0.95°C/1.71°F, 3rd all-time 1880-2021
Precipitation 22.5 (0.4 in) mm below 1961-1990 global average 1033 mm (40.7 in)
Global mean sea level 55.59 mm above 1993-2008 average, +7.07 mm from 2018
Antarctic ozone hole: max. area 16.4 million km2; minimum O3 120 DU (Dobson Units)
ENSO: Weak El Niño early, neutral the rest of the year
NAO: Positive (warmer in southeastern US and northern Europe; cooler in northeastern Canada and southern Europe)
Global Conditions
Above-average temperatures: The Caribbean; South America; eastern, central and southernAfrica; western Indian Ocean islands; Europe; the Middle East; Russia; Siberia; Mongolia; central China; Japan; Micronesia; Australia
Below-average temperatures: Northwestern Africa
Above-average precipitation: Peru; the Amazon Basin; central and eastern Africa; northwestern Russia; northwestern China; India; Pakistan; Iran; north central and northeastern Australia
Below-average precipitation: The Caribbean; eastern and southern South America; the Niger River delta region; southern Africa; western Indian Ocean islands; the Iberian Peninsula; the Middle East; southern Australia
Carbon occurs in permafrost in two main forms: methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2). Methane tends to occur as the result of the anoxic breakdown of organic material, while carbon dioxide occurs with the oxidation of organic materials. Those are two very different types of process but both have produced huge reserves of greenhouse gases now locked in the permafrost of the north. In the shallower soil zones, where oxygen reaches, both can reside but carbon dioxide fluxes are the main concern of researchers.
A recent estimate of the amount of carbon stored in the soil of the continents—not the Arctic Ocean floor—is 1460-1600 Pg (Petagram = 1015 grams = 1 million billion grams = 1 million metric tons). Of that, 50-75% is estimated to be within 3 m of the surface. (Soil in the top 3 m of the rest of the planet is estimated to store about 2050 Pg C.) Through NASA’s satellite monitoring program it has been estimated that the circumpolar permafrost region is now a net carbon source into the atmosphere, of 0.3 Pg C per year. Throughout recent geological history the Arctic has tended to be a carbon sink. According to NASA’s data, the threshold has been crossed in the Arctic, from sink to source.
Tomorrow: 2020 state of the climate, North America.
Be brave, and be well.
—
This post was previously published on Dailykos.com and is republished on Medium.
***
You Might Also Like These From The Good Men Project
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
Join The Good Men Project as a Premium Member today.
All Premium Members get to view The Good Men Project with NO ADS.
A $50 annual membership gives you an all access pass. You can be a part of every call, group, class and community.
A $25 annual membership gives you access to one class, one Social Interest group and our online communities.
A $12 annual membership gives you access to our Friday calls with the publisher, our online community.
Register New Account
Need more info? A complete list of benefits is here.
—
Photo credit: iStock




