Look south: study finds analogues for future climate of U.S., Canadian cities

In this Feb. 7, 2018, file photo, workers climb atop the roof of the Space Needle, where most of the top is surrounded by a massive work platform, scaffolding and protective covering, as work on a major remodel of the iconic observation tower continues in Seattle. Wondering what the climate in your city will be in a few decades? An unusual study published today suggests you look about 1,000 kilometres to the south. Vancouver will feel a lot like Seattle and Calgary's weather will resemble what folks in Spearfish, South Dakota, now experience. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/Elaine Thompson

Wondering what the climate in your city will be like in a few decades?

An unusual study published today suggests you should look about 1,000 kilometres to the south.

Matt Fitzpatrick of the University of Maryland says that’s the average distance between 540 cities in the U.S. and Canada and the closest place that resembles what their climate will become.

Fitzpatrick says if nothing changes, Montreal can expect a climate similar to that of Chester, Pennsylvania.

Vancouver will feel a lot like Seattle and Calgary’s weather will resemble what folks in Spearfish, South Dakota, now experience.

Fitzpatrick acknowledges his calculations are approximate.

They don’t take into account extreme weather, for example, and the climate in some cities won’t resemble anything that exists currently.

But Fitzpatrick says the idea of climate analogues is intended to help people understand how radically the world is changing.  

The Canadian Press