Is this weird weather we've been having since the beginning of January merely some kind of local variation, or is this evidence of climate change? Would particularly like to hear from Mike4g_air, who seems to keep track of these things over time.

It sucks thats for sure. This is the first year in My 11 years here that the weather has been so crazy.

Predicting long-term weather patterns is akin to horse racing or other games of chance - in my opinion. It makes sense statistically, that after several years of drought - we'd eventually have a weather reversal - but that's pure speculation. I suspect climate change "analysts" and "scientists" tend to "fit data" to support their hypotheses - as the earth is an incredibly complex ecosystem - and I can't even pretend to understand weather metrics and their complicated inter-relationships.

On that note - I'm still pro-environmentally responsible management and the somewhat dubious goals of zero carbon footprints.

I wonder if dude knows what 'concern trolling' is. It's where you say "yeah, I'm on your side, but I just have a few doubts about this..." aka industry-sponsored bullshit.

I'm an environmental scientist AMA. More than 95% of the world's climate scientists agree that human activity is causing climate change. However while it's fairly easy to demonstrate the human effect on the global climate over the long-term, seasonal weather is another matter.

Don't forget, last year was a HUGE El Niño year. This contributed to record ice melt in the Arctic Ocean over the past year, and this year we also reached a record low for global ice coverage. It has been unseasonably warm in the Arctic Ocean for most of the winter, but meanwhile Siberia has been very cold.

While I am a scientist I'm not a meteorologist so I can't really comment with expertise on Kunming's weather. I do think it probably has to do with the Arctic weather and El Niño. Actually there was recently an article I saw calling the Himalayas 'the third pole' because there is so much ice and snow there. Interesting.

*Edit: by the way does anyone know of a good weather prediction website or app that doesn't require VPN? It seems like the official services here are not really that accurate from what I can see, and at more than three days out they just tends towards '100% clear and sunny' when it's dry season and '100% cloudy/raining' the rest of the time. I guess April is a tossup?

Still waiting for the Breitbart croud to come and troll this thread like they did on last years tree dying thread.

Try:
www.windy.com/?temp,24.959,102.677,11

Wunderground
www.wunderground.com/global/stations/56778.html?MR=1
I find often very unacurate. Looks like they throw in long year everages as predictions.
Funny enough they still report the Kunming weather station as Wujiaba which was closed years ago. Resently they even moved Wujiaba to Anning.
Main data here for Kunming is coming from Changshui airport which can be quite different to what the situation is in downtown Kunming.

I tried 'Dark Sky' darksky.net/forecast/25.0515,102.7018/si24/en and eventually bought the iOS app. Here it can't provide reports based on radar cover, but it has been accurate enough to send me an alert that rain was imminent - within fifteen minutes a light shower started. The phone apps are also nice and easy to use and the UV index are real time, unlike the less frequent update on the website.

Hi Alien and all.

2017 Mid March into April was

very wet which is the peak of the dry season.
Keeping in mind since 2007 to 2013(4?) parts of Yunnan was officially in a drought.. so i'm gathering opinions if this is wet is normal..??...

Yunnan gets influenced by 3 air masses( winds).
North from Tibet plateau,

West from Indian ocean(bay of bengal)
East from the Pacific...

These 3 air masses meet / converge over Yunnan...so, climate change may drastically influence yunnan..

roll the dice..

My experience goes back to 2003, and it seems to me this wet is not normal - I've certainly not experienced this here before - but I haven't checked weather reports over a longer period of time.

Nice weather today. Theyve managed to get the size of the hole in the ozone layer just right.

@viborg: What is "an environmental scientist AMA."?

Do you have a source for "More than 95% of the world's climate scientists agree that human activity is causing climate change."?