This week, Houston hosted the national conference of the American Meteorological Society, welcoming more than 6,000 registered attendees from across the United States, along with several hundred international visitors.
With roughly 2,400 presentations on the schedule, it was an incredible week of science, collaboration, and conversation. I was honored to give the Welcome to Houston talk, where I shared the history of Houston weather and what makes forecasting here so uniquely challenging.
I was asked which presentation was my favorite. That’s a tough question, there were so many excellent talks but one in particular really stuck with me.
It focused on weather graphics: how to design them so they’re not just eye-catching, but also guide your eye to the most important message.
One of the images shown below is one I’d seen before, but seeing it again this week immediately made me think about our recent Arctic blast.
As cold as it felt, we did not set any record low temperatures this week.
Climate Central recently analyzed the frequency of daily record-high and record-low temperatures in 247 U.S. cities. What they found is striking: in recent decades, most locations are seeing far more record highs than record lows.
You can explore this data yourself using their interactive Graphics Dashboard, where you can select any city and see how temperatures have changed over the past 140 years.
To really drive this point home, take a look at January. We actually started the month with five record highs. And despite the cold this week, we didn’t break a single record low, though we came close one day:
- January 25: Low of 24° (record: 19° set in 1894)
- January 26: Low of 24° (record: 23° set in 1943 — missed it by one degree!)
- January 27: Low of 23° (record: 19° set in 1897)
With two days to go in the month we should still end January above average, despite another arctic blast.
Town Hall on Flooding extremes:
I also had the opportunity to serve as a guest panelist in a town hall discussion focused on lessons learned from extreme flooding events. Much of the conversation centered on the tragic flooding in Kerrville.
During the discussion, I shared what I believe is the most important part of any forecast. It’s not just about getting the numbers right, and it’s not only about having timely warnings, though both are critical. The most important piece is making sure people know what to do when a warning is issued.
Let me ask you this: if there were a flood emergency right now, would you know what actions to take? What’s your family plan? What happens if you’re at work and your kids are at school?
The decisions you make next are what save lives, yours and your loved ones’. I’ll dive deeper into this topic in a future newsletter, but one thing I’ll say now: whatever your family and workplace severe weather plan is, practice it.
Houston heat area workshop:
For the past several months, I’ve also been part of a small but incredibly talented group of meteorologists working on a workshop focused on extreme heat in Houston. We tackled complex topics like how heat is measured, how risk is communicated, and how communities can build resilience. The group included social scientists, academics, emergency managers, media members, and government officials.
We all know Houston summers are hot and humid, but in a warming world, they’re becoming more dangerous. How do we better protect outdoor workers, older adults, student athletes, football players, and band members who spend hours outside?
One major concern discussed was the upcoming FIFA World Cup. How do we keep fans from places like the Netherlands safe in June and July? Their average summer temperatures range from 68° to 75°. They’ll be visiting a city where temperatures routinely reach the 90s, with heat indices topping 100°!
Dutch fans are famous for their energetic “Orange Dance” celebrations. How do they do that safely in Houston’s heat without being acclimated to it?
These are the kinds of challenges we’re working through now and they’ll only become more important in the years ahead.