The Impact Of Climate Change On Tucson'S Monsoon Season
Presenter: Lauren Porter1
Co-Author(s): -
Advisor(s): Dr. Xiquan Dong
1Department of Hydrology and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Arizona
This project investigates the relationship between climate change and variations in the North American Monsoonal pattern. We investigated six variables based on existing databases: temperature, precipitation, precipitation intensity, and worldwide data on three gasses, methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (NO2), and carbon dioxide (CO2). These specific variables were chosen since, in conjunction, they provide several different opportunities for comparison that could demonstrate the impact climate change has on monsoonal patterns. We collected data from various organizations such as NOAA, Our World In Data, NWS and Mauna Loa Observatory in order to compile a dataset as far back as 1750. While some data were available online, others had to be calculated (precipitation intensity for each monsoon season). Our data was displayed on graphs and allowed for further comparison and interpretation. Specifically, we compared precipitation and temperature overtime, greenhouse gasses and rainfall overtime, and precipitation intensity overtime. From the graphs, it is evident that precipitation has a negative relationship with temperature. Greenhouse gasses also have a negative relationship with precipitation. Lastly, over the years, there seems to be an increase in precipitation intensity for the month of July but a slight decrease for the months of June, August and September . In conclusion, it is evident that climate change does have an impact on monsoonal patterns.