Excerpts of the AAAS Fiscal Year 2009 Appropriations Summary

( www.aaas.org/spp/rd)

September 2008 summary:

Congress has made little progress on the federal government's budget for fiscal year (FY) 2009, ... To keep the government operating, lawmakers approved a continuing resolution (CR) extending funding for all programs in unsigned 2009 appropriations bills at 2008 funding levels through March 6. … In real terms, the federal investment in basic and applied research has already declined since 2004, and under the CR federal funding of research would decline again in 2009 for the fifth year in a row.

The global climate:

0.80 °C in 2008 (5th warmest, 1901-2000 mean); last 8 years exceptionally warm

Mean January through November 2008 temperature anomalies

Global mean: anomalies with respect to 1901-2000Land 0.80C 5th warmest in 129 years*Ocean 0.37C 10th warmestLand and Ocean 0.48C 9th warmestNorthern Hemisphere mean: Land 0.89C 4th warmestOcean 0.40C 8th warmestLand and Ocean 0.59C 8th warmestSouthern Hemisphere mean: Land 0.53C 6th warmestOcean 0.34C 12th warmestLand and Ocean 0.37C 11th warmest

* 2007 was the warmest

• Southern Australia drought continues• Wet Asia, dry western eq. Pacific typical of cold ENSO

• 2007, 2008 ice amounts are the smallest in 30 year record

U.S. climate: Temperature through November 2008 is 0.1C above the 1901-2000 mean

1895-2008

Southwest warmer than normal in Summer and Fall.Central midwest cooler than normal in all seasons.

1895-2008

Southwest normal last Winter; dry all other seasons,especially Spring.Midwest and New England wet all seasons.

2008:• Atlantic: 8 hurricanes, 5 major hurricanes (speeds>110mph), 3rd most costly• Other oceans near or below normal

U.S. Wildland Fires

number of fires acres burned

2008 77,772 5,159,907

2007 83,208 8,900,015

2006 61,964 9,589,836

2005 62,844 8,571,270

2004 64,488 8,077,514

2003 59,802 3,910,673

2002 71,981 7,137,004

2001 82,876 3,562,171

2000 91,610 7,314,822

2008:large number of fires,but fewer acres

• Last winter’s significant cold ENSO persisted in central eq. Pacific• Significant negative Pacific Decadal Oscillation all year (cold along west coast of North America; warmer than normal central north Pacific)

El Niño / Southern Oscillation (ENSO)

November and December values of -0.22 and -0.73 °C, respectively. Eq. Pacific SST anomalies became organized in last several months, and intensified from -0.5 to -1°C during December.

PDO < -1Standard Deviations sincelate 2007

Linear Inverse Modelforecasts continued negative PDO through

2009

Last year: October-November-December 2007 SST anomalies

This year: October-November-December 2008 SST anomalies

DJF and JFM Averages of -0.5C(NOAA definitionOf La Nina);Diminishing in the Spring