Hi! I’m a climate scientist trying to visualize the signal from a lot of noise. My research interests coincide with disentangling patterns of climate change from climate variability using data-driven methods, especially in the Arctic. I also spend a lot of time thinking about improving science communication and accessibility through storytelling with engaging visualizations.
Global average surface temperature anomalies for centered running 60-month periods. Monthly anomalies are calculated relative to pre-industrial levels (1850-1900 – outlined in the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C). Data is from Berkeley Earth Surface Temperatures (BEST; http://berkeleyearth.org/data/). Graphic updated using data through March 2023.Monthly global average surface temperature anomalies, which are calculated relative to pre-industrial levels (1850-1900 – outlined in the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C). Data is from Berkeley Earth Surface Temperatures (BEST; http://berkeleyearth.org/data/). Graphic updated using data through March 2023. Monthly temperature anomalies are now consistently at least 1°C above pre-industrial levels, which is why the annotation color is turned from blue to red. Carbon dioxide levels over the last 800,000 years, which are merged from ice cores (https://www.nature.com/articles/nature06949 & https://data.csiro.au/collection/csiro:37077) and recent Mauna Loa observations (starting in 1958). Updated 4/25/2023.Graphic showing CO2-equivalent (CO2-e) atmospheric abundance (left) and radiative forcing (right) from 1979 to 2022 using data from https://gml.noaa.gov/aggi/aggi.html. CO2-e is the amount of carbon dioxide that would be needed to be equivalent to the average radiative forcing from all of the greenhouse gases combined. The direct radiative forcing is calculated for nearly all greenhouse gases relative to a 1750 baseline period. Radiative forcing is a measure of the perturbation (warming) to the climate system from greenhouse gases (i.e., Earth’s energy imbalance in the atmosphere). For more information, see https://gml.noaa.gov/ccgg/ghgpower/.Decadal trends in annual mean surface air temperatures over land areas from 1900 to 2022, 1940 to 2022, 1980 to 2022, and 2000 to 2022. Data are from NASA GISS Surface Temperature Analysis (GISTEMPv4; https://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/).Global average surface temperature anomalies for centered running 60-month periods (white line) compared to global average surface temperature anomalies over only land areas for centered running 60-month periods (red line). Monthly anomalies are calculated relative to pre-industrial levels (1850-1900 – outlined in the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C). Data is from Berkeley Earth Surface Temperatures (BEST; http://berkeleyearth.org/data/). Graphic updated using data through March 2023.Global average surface temperature anomalies for centered running 60-month periods (white line) compared to global average surface temperature anomalies over only land areas for centered running 60-month periods (red line) and global average surface temperature anomalies over only ocean areas for centered running 60-month periods (blue line). Monthly anomalies are calculated relative to pre-industrial levels (1850-1900 – outlined in the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C). Data is from Berkeley Earth Surface Temperatures (BEST; http://berkeleyearth.org/data/). Graphic updated using data through March 2023.Monthly average surface temperature anomalies for only extratropical land areas (67°S to 67°N), which are calculated relative to pre-industrial levels (1850-1900 – outlined in the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C). Data is from Berkeley Earth Surface Temperatures (BEST; http://berkeleyearth.org/data/). Graphic updated using data through March 2023.Average surface temperature anomalies for extratropical land areas (67°S to 67°N) centered running 60-month periods (white line) compared to average surface temperature anomalies over only Northern Hemisphere land areas for centered running 60-month periods (orange line) and average surface temperature anomalies over only Southern Hemisphere land areas for centered running 60-month periods (purple line). Monthly anomalies are calculated relative to pre-industrial levels (1850-1900 – outlined in the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C). Data is from Berkeley Earth Surface Temperatures (BEST; http://berkeleyearth.org/data/). Graphic updated using data through March 2023.This graphic shows monthly data from January 1984 through January 2023/April 2023. The first graph is a 12-month running mean of global mean surface temperature anomalies using ERA5 data. Anomalies are computed relative to a 1991-2020. The other three graphs show carbon dioxide abundance, global methane abundance, and global nitrous oxide abundance (https://gml.noaa.gov/ccgg/trends/).Annual carbon dioxide levels from a merged ice-core record (Scripps CO2 program; https://scrippsco2.ucsd.edu/data/atmospheric_co2/icecore_merged_products.html) over the period of years 1600 to 2021.Globally averaged near-surface (2-m) air temperature for each year from 1940 to 2022. Data is from ERA5 reanalysis. The actual global temperature in 2022 was approximately 14.7°C (58.4°F). Updated 3/17/2023.Globally averaged near-surface (2-m) air temperature anomalies for each month from January 1979 to April 2023. Data is from ERA5 reanalysis using a 1981-2010 reference period and smoothed with a 12-month running mean. Updated 5/8/2023.Change in annual mean global ocean heat content (vertical integral between 0-2000 m) since 1955. Graphic is updated through 2022. The current rate of change is approximately 6.09 × 10²² joules per decade. Data are from https://www.data.jma.go.jp/gmd/kaiyou/english/ohc/ohc_global_en.html.Global mean sea level anomalies from 1993 to 2023 using satellite altimetry data from TOPEX/Poseidon, Jason-1, OSTM/Jason-2, Jason-3, and Sentinel-6. See more information from https://climate.nasa.gov/vital-signs/sea-level/. The baseline is 1996-2016. The current rate of change is approximately 3.27 mm per year. Graphic updated through 3 February 2023.Change in annual mean upper global ocean heat content (vertical integral between 0-700 m) since 1955. Graphic is updated through 2022. The current rate of change is approximately 6.09 × 10²² joules per decade in the 0-2000 m layer. Data are from https://www.data.jma.go.jp/gmd/kaiyou/english/ohc/ohc_global_en.html.Decadal trends in annual mean surface air temperatures over land areas from 1990 to 2022. Data are from NASA GISS Surface Temperature Analysis (GISTEMPv4; https://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/).Cumulative change in the mass balance of reference glaciers around the world. Change is measured relative to 1970 levels. More information on the details and methods can be found at https://wgms.ch/global-glacier-state/. The units are equivalent to tonnes per square meter (1,000 kg/m²). Graphic updated 2/2/2023.Change in land ice mass since 2002 (Right: Greenland, Left: Antarctica). Data is measured by NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE/GRACE-FO) satellites. Additional information can be found at https://climate.nasa.gov/vital-signs/land-ice/. Updated 6/2/2023.Zonal-mean vertical cross-section (latitude vs. height) of decadal trends in annual mean temperature (90°S-90°N). Trends are calculated using ERA5 reanalysis over the 1979 to 2022 period.Annual mean surface air temperature anomalies for the Arctic (67-90°N; white line), the global average over land areas (90°S-90°N; red line), and the global average over ocean areas (90°S-90°N; blue line) from 1900 to 2022. Linear trend lines (dashed) are also shown over the 1990 to 2022 period. GISS Surface Temperature Analysis (GISTEMPv4) is available from 1880 to 2022 at https://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/. Tools including the NOAA/ESRL Physical Sciences Division Web-based Reanalysis Intercomparison Tool: Monthly/Seasonal Time Series (WRIT) have been used for the construction of this plot. Analysis will updated as annual data becomes available.Monthly zonal mean (averaged over longitude) surface air temperature anomalies from 1880 to 2022. The y-axis is latitude, and the x-axis is time. The data are smoothed using a 12-month running mean from NASA GISS Surface Temperature Analysis (GISTEMPv4; https://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/) with a reference period of 1951-1980.Zonal-mean (averaged over longitude) temperature anomalies for each year from 1900 to 2022. The x-axis is latitude (not scaled by distance), and the y-axis is the temperature anomaly. Data is from Berkeley Earth Surface Temperatures (BEST; http://berkeleyearth.org/data/) using a reference period of 1951-1980.Animation of surface air temperature anomalies over only land areas for each year from 1922 to 2022. Data are from NASA GISS Surface Temperature Analysis (GISTEMPv4; https://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/) with a reference period of 1951-1980.Annual mean surface air temperature anomalies for the entire globe from 1880 through 2022. A 5-year lowess smoothing line is also shown for this time series. See more on this temperature variability in Labe and Barnes (2022) (https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL098173). GISS Surface Temperature Analysis (GISTEMPv4) is available from 1880 to 2022 at https://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/. Analysis will updated with each year.Reconstructed late-summer (August) Arctic sea ice extent during the last 1450 years. Sea ice extent data have been smoothed using a 40-year running mean (light blue). The shading shows the 95% confidence interval (dark blue). Smoothed observational data are compared using a dashed line (red). This figure is reproduced from Figure 3a in Kinnard et al. 2011 (Nature: https://www.nature.com/articles/nature10581).Surface air temperature anomalies over the Arctic during the satellite-era in boreal fall (October to December). This period coincides with the largest Arctic amplification trends. Data is from Berkeley Earth Surface Temperatures (BEST; http://berkeleyearth.org/data/) using a reference period of 1951-1980. Graphic updated from 1979 through 2022.Zonal-mean vertical cross-section (latitude vs. height) of decadal trends in annual mean geopotential heights (90°S-90°N). Trends are calculated using ERA5 reanalysis over the 1979 to 2022 period.Zonal-mean vertical cross-section (latitude vs. height) of decadal trends in annual zonal wind (90°S-90°N). Trends are calculated using ERA5 reanalysis over the 1979 to 2022 period. The climatological zonal-mean zonal wind is shown with gray contours.
[18]Labe, Z.M., E.A. Barnes, and J.W. Hurrell (2023). Identifying the regional emergence of climate patterns in the ARISE-SAI-1.5 simulations. Environmental Research Letters, DOI:10.1088/1748-9326/acc81a [HTML][BibTeX][Code] [Plain Language Summary]
[17] Timmermans, M.-L. and Z.M. Labe (2022). Sea surface temperature [in “Arctic Report Card 2022”], NOAA, DOI:10.25923/p493-2548 [HTML][BibTeX][Code] [Press Release]
[16] Po-Chedley, S., J.T. Fasullo, N. Siler, Z.M. Labe, E.A. Barnes, C.J.W. Bonfils, and B.D. Santer (2022). Internal variability and forcing influence model-satellite differences in the rate of tropical tropospheric warming. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, DOI:10.1073/pnas.2209431119 [HTML][BibTeX][Code][Data] [Press Release]
[15] Timmermans, M.-L. and Z.M. Labe (2022). [The Arctic] Sea surface temperature [in “State of the Climate in 2021”]. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., DOI:10.1175/BAMS-D-22-0082.1 [HTML][BibTeX] [Press Release]
[14]Labe, Z.M. and E.A. Barnes (2022), Comparison of climate model large ensembles with observations in the Arctic using simple neural networks. Earth and Space Science, DOI:10.1029/2022EA002348 [HTML][BibTeX] [Plain Language Summary]
[12] Timmermans, M.-L. and Z.M. Labe (2021). Sea surface temperature [in “Arctic Report Card 2021”], NOAA, DOI:10.25923/2y8r-0e49 [HTML][BibTeX] [Press Release]
[11] Timmermans, M.-L. and Z.M. Labe (2021). [The Arctic] Sea surface temperature [in “State of the Climate in 2020”]. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., DOI:10.1175/BAMS-D-21-0086.1 [HTML][BibTeX] [Press Release]
[10]Labe, Z.M. and E.A. Barnes (2021), Detecting climate signals using explainable AI with single-forcing large ensembles. Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems, DOI:10.1029/2021MS002464 [HTML][BibTeX] [Plain Language Summary][Data Skeptic Podcast]
[9] Peings, Y., Z.M. Labe, and G. Magnusdottir (2021), Are 100 ensemble members enough to capture the remote atmospheric response to +2°C Arctic sea ice loss? Journal of Climate, DOI:10.1175/JCLI-D-20-0613.1 [HTML][BibTeX] [Plain Language Summary][CLIVAR Research Highlight]
[8] Timmermans, M.-L. and Z.M. Labe (2020). Sea surface temperature [in “Arctic Report Card 2020”], NOAA, DOI:10.25923/v0fs-m920 [HTML][BibTeX] [Press Release]
[7] Timmermans, M.-L., Z.M. Labe, and C. Ladd (2020). [The Arctic] Sea surface temperature [in “State of the Climate in 2019”], Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., DOI:10.1175/BAMS-D-20-0086.1 [HTML][BibTeX] [Press Release]
[5] Thoman, R.L., U. Bhatt, P. Bieniek, B. Brettschneider, M. Brubaker, S. Danielson, Z.M. Labe, R. Lader, W. Meier, G. Sheffield, and J. Walsh (2019): The record low Bering Sea ice extent in 2018: Context, impacts and an assessment of the role of anthropogenic climate change [in “Explaining Extreme Events of 2018 from a Climate Perspective”]. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc, DOI:10.1175/BAMS-D-19-0175.1 [HTML][BibTeX] [Press Release]
[4]Labe, Z.M., Y. Peings, and G. Magnusdottir (2019). The effect of QBO phase on the atmospheric response to projected Arctic sea ice loss in early winter, Geophysical Research Letters, DOI:10.1029/2019GL083095 [HTML][BibTeX] [Plain Language Summary]
[3]Labe, Z.M., Y. Peings, and G. Magnusdottir (2018), Contributions of ice thickness to the atmospheric response from projected Arctic sea ice loss, Geophysical Research Letters, DOI:10.1029/2018GL078158 [HTML][BibTeX] [Plain Language Summary][Arctic Today]
[2]Labe, Z.M., G. Magnusdottir, and H.S. Stern (2018), Variability of Arctic sea ice thickness using PIOMAS and the CESM Large Ensemble, Journal of Climate, DOI:10.1175/JCLI-D-17-0436.1 [HTML][BibTeX] [Plain Language Summary]
The views presented here only reflect my own. These figures may be freely distributed (with credit). Information about the data can be found on my references page and methods page.
