Scientists discover early heat warning

WASHINGTON - Meteorologists potentially have found a way to predict some killer heat waves up to three weeks in advance, a new study says. The best they can do now is about 10 days.

An earlier warning would help cities prepare for the heat wave, arrange to open up cooling centers and check on the elderly, said Gerald Meehl, co-author of a study that describes the forecasting clue. “It gives you a little bit of a heads up of what’s coming,” he said.

The key may be a certain pattern of high- and low-pressure spots across the globe high in the sky. When that pattern shows up, the chances double for a prolonged and intense heat wave in the eastern two-thirds of the United States, according to the study published Sunday in the journal Nature Geoscience.

This could predict some types of heat waves but not all, meteorologists said.

The researchers at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colo., looked at heat waves that lasted at least a week and were about 5 to 8 degrees warmer than normal.

Front Section, Pages 2 on 10/28/2013

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