A trove of weather records from the early 20th century has been discovered revealing the climate history of Puerto Madryn, a city on the east coast of Patagonia, Argentina. These records offer a rare glimpse into the past, detailing daily temperatures, atmospheric pressure and humidity levels. This discovery sheds light on how weather patterns have evolved over a century, providing valuable insights into understanding current and future climate trends.
A recent study has unearthed valuable historical meteorological data from Puerto Madryn, Patagonia, Argentina, spanning over a decade. This research was led by Dr. Susan Lakkis of the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina, together with Dr. Pablo Canziani and Professor Adrián Yuchechen of the National Technological University, Argentina. Published in the journal Climate, the study meticulously recovered and validated daily measurements of maximum, minimum and average temperatures, atmospheric pressure and relative humidity from this period.
The main motivation behind this research was to improve our understanding of historical climate variability and its long-term trends. Historical meteorological data are crucial for climate science, as they provide a basis for contextualizing and validating future climate projections. Puerto Madryn, located on the eastern coast of Patagonia, is a region significantly influenced by mid-latitude westerly winds, making it an essential site for studying climate patterns.
Dr Lakkis and his team conducted a thorough assessment of data quality using tests for internal consistency, tolerance and temporal consistency. They found that while temperature measurements showed high agreement with reanalysis values, there were some discontinuities in pressure and relative humidity data. The study highlighted the importance of integrating historical observations with modern reanalysis products to improve the reliability of climate data.
One of the most important findings of this study was the strong correlation between historical temperature data and the 20th century reanalysis series, which shows a high degree of agreement. This indicates that the recovered temperature data accurately reflect the climatic conditions of the early 20th century. However, the correlation was lower for pressure and relative humidity, suggesting some inconsistencies in these measurements.
The research also used the Mann-Kendall test to assess trends in the data. The results showed no significant trends in the annual series of the variables studied, which is consistent with the lack of observed impacts of climate change during the early 20th century. The research also analyzed the relationship between relative humidity and other variables, confirming an inverse correlation with temperature, but without a significant dependence on pressure.
In summary, this study has provided fundamental insights into the region’s climate in the early 20th century. These findings contribute to our understanding of historical climate variability and offer a robust dataset for future climate studies. Dr. Lakkis noted, “Our work underscores the importance of historical meteorological data in improving our understanding of climate variability and long-term trends. By integrating these observations with modern reanalysis products, we can improve the accuracy of climate projections.” This research demonstrates the potential of historical meteorological data to inform contemporary climate science and emphasizes the need for continued efforts in data rescue and validation.
Journal reference
Lakkis, S.G., Canziani, P.O., and Yuchechen, A.E. Unlocking meteorological observations in Puerto Madryn-Patagonia, Argentina, 1902–1915. Clima, 2024. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/cli12040052
About the authors
Dr. Susan Lakkis She holds a PhD in Physics from the University of Buenos Aires (2009) and is a senior researcher at the National Technological University (UTN), Buenos Aires Regional Faculty (FRBA), working at the Engineering Research and Development Unit (UIDI) since 2015. She also carries out research activities at the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina (UCA), since 2006. Her research work is framed in the areas of climatology and dynamics of the troposphere / stratosphere, cloud dynamics, particularly cirrus clouds, detection and monitoring of cyclonic systems in the southern hemisphere, application of climatic studies to climate adaptation processes, variability and climate change, extreme events and recovery of historical climate data. She has published more than 30 research articles in international peer-reviewed journals and actively participates in teaching and training of human resources as well as in various jury committees for master's and doctoral degrees.
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