How to use the Prairie Climate Atlas

How to use the Prairie Climate Atlas

Reading Time: < 1 minute To use the atlas, go to climateatlas.ca and once the intro is done, click on the thermometer icon on the left-hand side of the page to bring up a map of the Prairies. Then click on Communities at the top of the page; select Municipal Zones from the drop-down menu; and use your cursor and […] Read more

If these climate change predictions come true, massive heat waves will be the norm. The map on the left shows the current situation: Most of the Prairies is shaded blue (meaning 10 or fewer days when the temperature tops 30 C) with only Palliser’s Triangle in the light-green or yellow zones (20 to 25 days of +30 C). On the right is the prediction for the years after 2050 if there isn’t a reduction in greenhouse gases — with 30 to 45 days of scorching hot weather in a typical summer.

Southern Alberta could soon have Texas weather

Want to see the climate projections for your county? 
New online atlas predicts a sweltering future

Reading Time: 5 minutes Western Canada is on an “inevitable” march towards hot, dry summers and mild winters that will make southern Alberta feel like northern Texas, according to a new climate change mapping program. “One of the big, striking conclusions of the atlas is that, even if we reduce emissions, we still see substantial changes to our climate,” […] Read more


Models cause for less hail, but less rain, too

Reading Time: < 1 minute Alberta has the dubious distinction of having the most — and biggest — hail in the world. “We’re very famous for that,” said University of Alberta meteorologist Gerhard Reuter. And you can blame it on the Rocky Mountains, which affect airflows to create ‘hail alley’ — a corridor stretching from Rocky Mountain House to Red […] Read more