Making Movies

After awaking from my unexpected nap this afternoon, I found an avalanche of interesting articles on Anthony Watts' Climate Blog. Taken together, these read like a Disaster Movie Script:

1) An El Niño may be building going into Winter 2009/2010
2) Russia's Shiveluch Volcano on the Kamchatka Peninsula has large eruption
3) Texas A&M Study cites Possible Linkage of 1918 El Niño with deadly 1918 Flu Pandemic
4) A Significant Sunspot may be growing on the far side of the Sun

Wow, that's a lot to digest so I looked at the Climate Prediction Center's Aug 20th Discussion to get a feel of what the weathermen were modeling. They're saying "weak to moderate El Niño" brewing, but no prediction of note yet. The next Seasonal Climate Outlook Discussion will post on September 17th, 2009. Interestingly, there doesn't seem to be an archive of previous Discussions as there are for Local Forecast Discussions.

One thing that perked me right up was the A&M Press Release saying:

"The research also raises questions about El Niño and mortality from the influenza pandemic of 1918. By mid-1918, a flu outbreak – which we now know was the H1N1 strain that is of great concern today – was sweeping the world, and the resulting fatalities were catastrophic: At least 25 million people died worldwide, with some estimates as high as 100 million deaths. India was particularly hard hit by the influenza." (Italics by CorduroyPlanet)

The Texas A&M News Release makes no attribution to the Author of the italicized above. The quotes are CorduroyPlanet's, so I think it's the uncredited writer of the release, not the Study's Author that made the assertion. Dynamite statement to be sure! We'll see if this item makes the News, and if a clarification is issued.

Back to our Disaster Movie Scenario...the dominoes are lining up:

1) Extra wet winter ala El Niño
2) Extra atmospheric particulates from Shiveluch eruptions provide extra nuclei for precipitation formation.
3) H1N1 Pandemic in waiting.
4) Late arriving Solar Cycle 24 provides Solar Flares sufficient to blind Weather Satellites.

So we have Biblical-Class rainfall, Apocalyptic Disease (haven't found my Pestilence yet, but I'm still looking) Mankind is helpless without StarWars Style Satellite Surveillance.

I think I've got the framework of a nice little B-Movie here! Pulled from Today's headlines, I've got the makings of a Mega Summer Blockbuster here...just add an A-List Director, Megan Fox, Fast Food Tie-Ins, and $100 Million in Computer Generated Images!

Let's do Lunch!

Have "Your People" call "My People"