Climate change indices for Kenya
Volume 5:6
S. M. King’uyu, M. Kilavi, P. Omeny, E Muigai and A. K. Njogu
Kenya Meteorological Department,
Corresponding Author
S. M. King’uyu
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Abstract
Africa is among the regions that are most vulnerable to climate change due to its high dependency on rain-fed agriculture and lack of adap ng strategies. Studies indicate signals of climate change with varying impacts and intensi es over diff erent loca ons of the con nent. In Kenya, studies have indicated general warming over land sta ons with cooling over coastal loca ons and near large water bodies. A reduc on in cold extremes over the drier areas has also been observed. Rainfall trends show mixed signals with some loca ons indicating increasing trends in recent years, while majority do not show any signifi cant trends. Most of the studies on climate change are based on trends in the climatological data. This study used daily climatological data to defi ne thresholds for severe weather and extreme climate; and delineate climate change indices for Kenya. Results showed a general warming over land sta ons. Some sta ons indicated higher rates of night- me warming than those of day- me warming. These results generally agree with previous studies that indicated warming over most parts of the country. The results further indicated a general decreasing trend in rainfall, with a tendency towards increased frequencies of extreme rainfall events over some loca ons. The study recommends, among others, that the list of indices generated using RClimdex be ‘tropicalised’ to refl ect the reality of the hot tropical environment.
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