According to newly released figures from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, more than 15,000 weather records were set in the United States last month. John Harold, a farmer in Olathe, Colorado, says it's been hard not to notice the strange weather fluctuations. Andrew Revkin, who writes the "Dot Earth" blog for The New York Times Op-Ed section, says this year's records are an indication of what to expect in the future.

It was a long two weeks with plenty of drama, but UN delegates from around the globe agreed on Sunday in Durban, South Africa to forge a new deal to combat climate change. For the first time, the Durban Platform will force all the biggest polluters to limit greenhouse gas emissions, including emerging economies like China and India.

Texas is in the middle of the worst drought on record in the state's history. Farm crops have been hit hard, and valuable grazing land has dried out, leading to heavy losses in the state’s valuable cattle industry. In total, Texas has suffered more than $5 billion in agricultural losses since the drought began.

The U.N.’s climate talks in Cancún moved into their second week on Monday. The agenda is dominated by future cuts in carbon emissions and keeping countries honest about their actions to control global warming. Expectations, however, remain low following last year’s talks in Copenhagen, which resulted in no binding agreement to manage the world's carbon emissions.

Yesterday, a Time Magazine article suggested the damage from the Gulf oil spill may have been exaggerated, and that some of the marsh areas important to the Gulf's life cycle may have escaped disaster. But can we know the full extent of the damage caused by the spill, just two weeks after the leak has been capped? The impact of the sheer volume of oil – which on its long journey to shore from the spill site loses some of its toxic qualities in the ocean – has yet to be determined. How can we better understand the complexity of the spill, and the road to recovery?

• Washington Takeout:  Takeaway Washington Correspondent Todd Zwillich explains how the oil spill that threatens the business and environment of the Gulf Coast region is also threatening Congressional Democrats who hoped to pass a sweeping energy and climate reform bill. 
• Listener Responses: We hear what you had to say about the Times Square bomb attempt and what you think about surveillance cameras in public places in the wake of the incident.

Inspired by the blizzards hitting much of the country, we’re dedicating this week's tech segment to a timely topic: the weather. Scientists are developing new and innovative ways to predict it... and one of the tools they’re enlisting is your car.

Reihan Salam, fellow at the New America Foundation; and Adam Mynott, BBC world affairs correspondent, look at the week's agenda: what to look for from Copenhagen as international climate talks kicks off; what's ahead for health care in the Senate; what President Obama could say in his new-jobs speech on Tuesday, and what's in store for an overhaul of America's financial system.

Takeaway Washington correspondent Todd Zwillich joins us to talk about a new climate bill introduced by two Democratic Senators: Barbara Boxer, of California; and John Kerry, of Massachusetts.

Seattle, known for its London-like weather, rainy and cool, has been hit with a record breaking heat wave. Many people not accustomed or prepared for temperatures like this are trying to find ways to stay cool. Joelle Ligon, a Seattle resident and Parks Department employee, joins The Takeaway.

It was down to the wire on Friday night when the House passed a bill to curb global warming. It took eight Republicans to tip the balance in the Democrats’ favor. One report said Capitol phones were at capacity with so much last-minute jockeying between Congress members. Joining the show is The Takeaway's Washington Correspondent Todd Zwillich to explain details of the bill.

The beleaguered Kyoto Protocol, enacted in 1992 to limit global greenhouse gas emissions, but was never ratified by the United States, is back up for negotiations this year. Will the U.S. be a real partner to the cap-and-trade agreement? In advance of the new Kyoto discussions, President Obama is meeting with the representatives of 17 governments at the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate in Washington D.C. The governments will be looking for indications of how others will navigate the Kyoto Protocol negotiations. For more The Takeaway turns to Andrew Revkin, New York Times environmental reporter.

When we use the metaphor of things moving at a glacial pace, our intention is to describe something progressing very slowly. Well if you were familiar with James Balog and his nature photography, chances are you’d never use that phrase that way again. James Balog is the founder and director of the Extreme Ice Survey. With the use of 26 time-lapse cameras, Balog and his colleagues document the rapid changes on glaciers across the Northern Hemisphere. You can see Balog in action, trekking through treacherous terrain, in a new NOVA and National Geographic documentary, Extreme Ice. You can also check out Balog's photography in his latest book, Extreme Ice Now: Vanishing Glaciers and Changing Climate: A Progress Report.

But will the economic slowdown hamper environmental progress?