Climate security

Global warming gives U.S. nicer weather -- for now

Global warming has mostly made the weather more pleasant for Americans over the last 40 years, which may explain why much of the public doesn't rank climate change as big a threat as do scientists and the rest of the world, a new study suggests.

But that perceived benefit of global warming -- mostly milder winters -- will soon be outweighed by more oppressive summer heat, according to a study in the journal Nature that's dividing the scientific community.

"Americans are getting the wrong signal from year-round weather about whether they should be concerned about climate change," said study lead author Patrick Egan, a public policy professor at New York University. "They're getting the good parts and haven't had to pay the price of the bad part."