When it comes to important stuff, we are told to follow the science. Doing so could be incredibly unsettling, especially when it comes to our weather.

It is no secret that the term “climate change” can trigger fierce debates between those who are concerned for the future of our planet and those who dismiss the notion that even though our globe is getting warmer, with weather extremes and many more catastrophic events, it’s nothing to be concerned about, because it’s cyclical and will all balance out at some point.

In our area, we, of course, can point anecdotally to major incidents such as the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, periodic tornadoes and multiple bouts of flash flooding in Schuylkill County and around other susceptible rivers and creeks throughout the five-county Times News area.

Now, we have the quantifying supporting data that give credence to the notion that our area is getting warmer and wetter, and, in a growing number of cases, wilder.

According to figures released last month by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the standard temperature deviation in our area was 3.1 degrees Fahrenheit warmer during the period between 1991-2020 compared to 1981-2010.

While you might be tempted to ask, “so, what’s the big deal; that doesn’t sound like much,” it is a lot by weather standards. Ours is not the only area where this hefty increase has been occurring; it is nationwide. In fact, aside from Fargo, North Dakota, and a few surrounding areas of the Northern Great Plains, temperatures, precipitation and weather extremes have increased in every region in the country.

These statistics put together by NOAA are critical because not only do they inform us of trends, but they also track the impact of climate on agriculture, electrical load planning, building heating requirements, construction scheduling and other sectors of the economy. The new data suggest a one-two punch, because accompanying the big run-up in temperatures was a significant increase in precipitation.

The normal rainfall for the most current 30-year period has ballooned from 40.01 inches to 47.36 inches, a startling 18.4% increase. Three of our last five wettest years during the three-decade stretch was since 2011. Not only is there much more rain, but an increasing number of the storms result in prodigious amounts of rainfall at once, triggering flash flooding.

According to NOAA, some of that wetness in the eastern United States is linked to the overall climate warming and “wetting” of the atmosphere that’s occurred as rising temperatures cause more water to evaporate from the ocean and land surface. More water vapor leads to more extreme downpours.

Breaking out the picture in Pennsylvania, the report estimates that the state’s average temperature will continue to rise up to 5.9 degrees higher on average by midcentury. That’s half a degree hotter than expected in a 2015 report.

The projections also show more frequent and intense storms and heat waves. The state could see more than a month’s worth of days 90 degrees or higher through the year, up from 5 days during a baseline period.

Total precipitation could increase by 8%, falling less frequently but in heavier rain events. Droughts are also expected to become more common.

If you had a nagging feeling that winters in our area are much warmer than they used to be, these official numbers show that you are not wrong. The three winter months of December, January and February are averaging 4.4 degrees warmer than those of the previous 30 years - 4, 4.5 and 4.8 degrees, respectively.

New warming normals are tied to the burning of fossil fuels, so the last decades have become much warmer for much of the globe, according to climate scientist Natalie Mahowald of Cornell University.

After one of the most devastating wildfires seasons in modern times out West last year, an intensifying drought across California and much of the West has many residents concerned that this season will be worse.

Nearly 10,000 wildfires last season resulted in the burning of 4 million acres of woodland, a modern record, 46 dead and the destruction of 14,000 homes

All is not bleak, however. NOAA tells us that although we have experienced warmer, wetter and wilder weather in eastern Pennsylvania, compared to many other parts of the country, the weather is much more benign than elsewhere.

In the transition to the new set of norms, NOAA’s report said, shifts in the relative frequency of above- and below-normal conditions will occur, most notably in the parts of the country undergoing substantial warming in the last decade and especially in the West and Florida.

Aside from Superstorm Sandy in 2012, there have not been any catastrophic storms of that magnitude in Pennsylvania, but there has been an accumulation of many significant events which have caused death, injuries and major property damage.

In the past 133 years, some of the major weather events which have plagued Pennsylvania were: The Great Blizzard of 1888 ($623 million in damage), the 1889 Johnstown Flood (159 dead and $71.5 billion in damage), the 1955 Diane and Connie flood (184 dead, including 37 at Camp Davis along the Brodhead Creek in Stroud Township in the Poconos and three in East Stroudsburg, and damage topping $1 billion), Hurricane Agnes in 1972 (128 deaths, 50 in Pennsylvania, with $2 billion damage), and Superstorm Sandy in 2012 (14 deaths and $71.5 billion in damage).

By Bruce Frassinelli | tneditor@tnonline.com

The foregoing opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or Times News LLC.