• LibertyLizard@slrpnk.net
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    1 month ago

    Sort of, but not really. Some of the projected areas have dramatically different precipitation regimes for example. The article seems to imply that this is factored into the model but it must not be weighed very heavily based on the results. The headline comparison doesn’t account for the fact that LA has milder winters today than San Bernardino, and they will be milder still in the future.

    It’s difficult to point to direct analogs for Mediterranean climates because the climate changes dramatically in both temperature and precipitation as you move north and south. Climate change will cause large temperature differences but typically only small precipitation changes (though precipitation projections are highly uncertain). Because of this mismatch, unlike in temperate climates, you cannot merely move to a more southerly climate to find your analog. Areas south of California are extremely dry desert and won’t match our future climate well because we’ll most likely continue to experience substantial winter rainfall.