Breaking records seems to be a permanent game of double or quits, always seeming to double the time, effort and expense in order to get the record secured. So here we are once again, the solution is to double the standby time, both for ice and land record windows, arrive early, leave late, and this is what we will do in 2009.

Keep up the good work, and maybe see you in Montana!

However, to shed a little more light on the weather / climate change discussion, here is a little technical input;

Australia is an area of ‘Low rainfall’ and the definition of this says that the rains are irregular and often unpredictable, not the result of climate change. However, long term records suggest that the size and frequency of irregular events is increasing, which is an effect of long term climate change and the balance of evidence suggests a discernible human influence on global climate. Increases in atmospheric greenhouse gases, largely due to the burning of fossil fuels and land use changes, alter the earth’s natural balances and are leading to a global climate change.

So there we have it. Climate change may not be solely responsible for the poor weather conditions this year, but the conditions we experienced are certainly an example of the type of conditions that will become more frequent in the event of prolonged climate change.
Therefore, if by us highlighting this change in the global media, getting peoples attention and making them think about climate change and focusing more thought on renewable power, then we will have achieved our objective.

To go into it further, as well as the physical mechanisms of climate change, there are also random, unpredictable fluctuations within the climate system which account for a significant proportion of climate variability.

You are right Jonathan, that the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) has a big effect on Australian climate and the best known extremes of the SOI are El Nino events. However, in the South West region of Australia, it is believed that the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) has a more pronounced effect, especially on the rainfall patterns in the area. The IOD is defined by an index that is the SST (sea surface temperature anomalies in an area of the Indian ocean). Without wanting to go into too much technical detail, these are just some of the factors that effect the weather and although these influences and effects are useful for short term predictions, they are impossible to accurately forecast in the long term.

For me, more unusual than the rain we encountered was the lack of wind. If it had been windy, the water that was on the lake would have blown to one side and we could have still run the Greenbird. But, for
8 weeks we did not see one wind event, compared to last year when we had 4 ‘big’ wind events in a 6 day window. Maybe last year was unusually good, maybe this year was unusually bad, but no amount of debate here will solve that conundrum. All we can do is be on record ready standby, at the best locations worldwide, at the most likely time of year to encounter record setting weather conditions. If the conditions we experience are unfavourable and highlight a changing environment, then this story needs to be told.

I mean you are on a lake after all, be it a salt lake or otherwise. It should not be a surprise that occasionally you might get water in the lake.

To blame it on climate change is a little premature. The climate is in constant change. It always has been and always will be. I’m not questioning climate change but when certain patterns are active whether that be El Niño or La Niña which directly affects Australia and has known outcomes perhaps these should be observed before embarking on a project that requires certain conditions to prevail?

You should have a look at Lake Gairdner (South Australia) before you go home. Its a much bigger salt lake where they run the Australian Land Speed Record cars.
Cheers, MIke.