
7: Future Climate: Projected Extremes
Future Climate: Projected Extremes summarizes the current scientific understanding about how weather and climate extremes in the Southwest are expected to change as global and regional temperatures increase, examining heat waves, cold snaps, drought, floods, and possible changes in weather related to wildland fires and to such phenomena as atmospheric “rivers” and Santa Ana winds.
Citation:
Gershunov, A., B. Rajagopalan, J. Overpeck, K. Guirguis, D. Cayan, M. Hughes, M. Dettinger, C. Castro, R. E. Schwartz, M. Anderson, A. J. Ray, J. Barsugli, T. Cavazos, and M. Alexander. 2013. “Future Climate: Projected Extremes.” In Assessment of Climate Change in the Southwest United States: A Report Prepared for the National Climate Assessment, edited by G. Garfin, A. Jardine, R. Merideth, M. Black, and S. LeRoy, 126–147. A report by the Southwest Climate Alliance. Washington, DC: Island Press.

Several key weather phenomena lead to extreme and flooding precipitation across the Southwest, while also contributing to water supplies.

Heat waves are projected to become more humid and therefore expressed relatively more strongly in nighttime rather than daytime temperatures.

Extreme precipitation associated with atmospheric rivers (seen here from space hitting the California coast), is projected to increase.
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