image: Randy Cerveny, PhD is President's Professor in Geographical Sciences at Arizona State University. He has appeared on the Today show, CBS Morning Show, CNN, ABC News and the Weather Channel. His work has been featured in People magazine, USA Today, National Geographic, and the New York Times, among other publications. view more
Credit: Prometheus Books
Why did T-Rex become extinct? Why did the Mayan civilization disappear? If the ancient Israelis did indeed cross the Red Sea, as reported in the Bible, what weather phenomena might have produced the parting of the waters? Why was nearly all human life swept away 73,000 years ago? And what factors created the Great American Dustbowl of the 1930s?
Dr. Joe Schaefer, Past President, National Weather Association, calls WEATHER'S GREATEST MYSTERIES SOLVED!, "A fascinating collection of vignettes illustrating the dramatic impacts that short term 'natural' climate change has had on humanity. Reading these makes one re-evaluate the risk associated with anthropogenic climate change."
In a lively narrative full of intriguing facts, award-winning, internationally known climatologist Randy Cerveny takes the reader on a fascinating tour of some of the world's most perplexing and provocative climate mysteries, past and present. Cerveny explains the science of climate study—from digging ice cores in Antarctica to counting tree rings in Arizona—and the various specialists whose ingenious techniques help to sort out climate's intricate components.
Cerveny also delves into the human impact of weather through fictional introductions to each chapter that depict how climate change might have affected a typical inhabitant of the ancient Sahara or Indus Valley, a peasant during Europe's "Little Ice Age," or an aviation expert probing a deadly jet crash in New York City. Finally, he discusses research that attempts to forecast the weather of the next 10,000 years.
According to David S. Whitley, Ph.D., author of "Cave Paintings and the Human Spirit: The Origin of Creativity and Belief", this remarkable book—part detective story, part introduction to climate, part archaeological account of early civilizations—provides a rapid-paced overview of how weather has influenced human societies, and may continue to do so in the future.
"Essential reading for anyone interested in global warming, this is science writing at its best," Whitley said.
For devotees of the Weather Channel, readers of "An Inconvenient Truth", history buffs, popular science fans, or anyone who wonders what makes our weather tick—and how it will impact our future, this engaging book offers much to ponder and to enjoy. And with the onset of hurricane season this month, WEATHER'S GREATEST MYSTERIES SOLVED! is a timely resource for science journalists, teachers, students, or weather-buffs.
About the Author: Randy Cerveny, PhD (Tempe, AZ), is President's Professor in Geographical Sciences specializing in weather and climate at Arizona State University. He is the author of the highly acclaimed "Freaks of the Storm" and has appeared on the Today show, CBS Morning Show, CNN, Good Morning America, ABC News, NPR, the BBC, and the Weather Channel. His work has been featured in People magazine, USA Today, National Geographic, the New York Times, Science, and Nature, among other publications.