Sigh. The fog has taken a bite out of what would have been a pleasant spring day. Instead of sunny and 65 it is foggy and 48. With any luck the fog and clouds should be gone soon. The sun should be out by mid-afternoon, which doesn't leave much time for warming. Highs today might reach 60. Tomorrow should be warmer –at least until the showers arrive in the late-afternoon.
Enjoy the warm weather tomorrow as it looks like we will be in for a cold, wet week starting Wednesday. The high for Wednesday will be in the lower-50s. Beyond that we're looking at temperatures in the mid-40s, with a chance of rain, for several days as an upper-level trough of low pressure parks itself over the northeast.
One marker of a changing climate is the changing date of when plants and trees bud and flower. Different species respond uniquely to temperature trends in the spring –essentially they are natural "calendars" of the climate system. By studying these phenological characteristics over the long-term, scientists can get a better idea of the regional characteristics of climate change. That's where you and Gothamist come in! Project BudBurst, which is largely funded by the Bureau of Land Management and has a bunch of government agencies and universities participating, is having a pilot program that started yesterday, to have people around the country gather and report data. All you need to do is record when blooms and leaves emerge. The more participants the better the results, so get out there and start looking at trees!
Cherry blossoms at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden by neene on Flickr.
