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Virtual Climate Talk
Arizona Climate: Past, Present, and Future
Despite its notoriety as a dusty and dry place, Arizona possesses an exceptional diversity in landscapes and vegetation. Its dramatic topographic features and geographic position bring a range of temperatures and precipitation equivalent to the range experienced between Mexico and Canada. Topographic features create steep gradients in temperature and precipitation that support ecological community types from mixed conifer at high elevations to desert scrub at lowest elevations. Two 'wet' seasons can bring precipitation in torrential downpours (summer monsoon) or light snow showers (winter storms) with major implications on how and where water important to plants is stored in the soil. Longer-term cycles in Pacific Ocean temperatures can impact storm tracks across Arizona, bringing multi-year wet periods and long-term droughts. Major changes in the global climate system have been observed in recent decades that have directly impacted Arizona’s complex climate. This presentation will explore historical patterns and mechanisms driving climate variability across Arizona and how they may be impacted in a changing climate, including a look at climate projections for the region.
Presenter: Mike Crimmins is on the faculty of the Department of Environmental Science at the University of Arizona and is an Extension Specialist in Climate Science for University of Arizona Cooperative Extension. He has been in this role for 18 years working with ranchers, farmers and natural resource managers across Arizona to integrate climate information in their planning and decision making and assisting them in developing strategies to adapt to a changing climate.