If you still think global warming is a distant problem, think again. There’s a new tool that shows what climate change looks like in your own backyard.

The website, called Climate Explorer, was developed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, to translate abstract climate data into useful information.

Herring: “When people are thinking about climate change, they’re concerned about those things that they’re responsible for, such as human populations, such as their business operations, such as infrastructure or natural resources that they manage.”

That’s NOAA’s David Herring. He says after entering a ZIP code or city, the user gets a graph of local climate data – such as the number of extremely hot days in the past compared to what’s expected in the future.

The data can help users make decisions. For example, Utah’s skiing industry could prepare for warmer winters, or Houston could plan for more dangerously hot days.

Herring: “And so the purpose then, of the Explorer is to help them access and utilize climate science data in a decision-making context.”

Herring says that the Climate Explorer helps communities and businesses prepare for the impacts of global warming.

Reporting credit: Lauren Smith/ChavoBart Digital Media.
Image graphic: Created by David McCarthy.