After the unprecedented winter in the Northeast, best represented by Boston’s historic snow accumulation of 90 inches in less than a month, scientists and the public pose the question once again: Is climate change causing more extreme snowfall events?
To put this year’s winter in a large-scale perspective, the outlandish heaps of snow and piercing wind chills did not extend to the regions outside of the Northeast. On the other side of the United States, the cities of Salt Lake City, San Francisco and Seattle recorded their warmest winter months in history. Alarmingly, the Arctic region suffered temperatures of up to 11˚F above average in February. Most scientists relate these sporadic events to the effects of climate change.
The Northeast’s frigid winter has been blamed primarily on the “polar vortex,” which is a shifting of cold Arctic air southward. In the last few weeks, however, the latest research from Rutgers University and Wisconsin University provides the scientific community with new evidence of climate change.
Scientists have pinpointed jet streams, a belt of fast-moving winds that behave as a boundary between cooler northern air and warmer southern air, as the culprit. It is theorized that as this temperature difference narrows due to higher temperatures in the Arctic regions, the jet stream boundary weakens. Therefore, the dense, cold Arctic air is escaping from the jet stream boundary and traveling southward into the Northeastern region.
Although the hypothesis may seem somewhat farfetched, scientists have bolstered their theory by analyzing the mechanism behind warming Arctic temperatures. The increased emission of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping “greenhouse” gases in the atmosphere due to vehicles and factories results in dramatic rises of sea levels and more extreme storms– even of the snowy variety. These intense storms are most likely caused by the rising temperatures in the ocean, which allows for increased evaporation and larger amounts of precipitation.
The extreme winter patterns in the duration of past months brought out a wave of vocal climate change skeptics. During an address, Senator James Inhofe of Oklahoma threw a snowball at the floor in an attempt to emphasize that the cold weather outside proves that humans are not causing climate change. However, it is important to bear in mind that weather and climate are two different phenomena. With substantial scientific evidence of glacier samples, ice boundaries, as well as years of sea level observations and temperature records, it is safe to say that climate change is real with many growing threats.
Sofia Fuentes ‘16 expresses her concerns, stating that “the increasing annual changes in temperature reveal that climate change is an issue. We should learn to change our harmful ways and leave this topic out of political debates.”
Climate change is definitely a topic that has a broad spectrum of viewpoints which can be influenced by personal beliefs.
The recent news about climate change has also grabbed the attention of hibernating bears. Yellowstone National Park’s grizzly bears are out and about hunting, according to the National Park Service. The spokesman of the park informed media, “We’re getting 40-degree days in February, where we often see 20 below zero”. The first sightings this year were on February 9, which is two months earlier than the average time for first appearances. Clearly, the sudden changes in climate have disrupted the lifestyle of the grizzly bears and will pose major ramifications in the ecosystem.
Max Kusel ‘18 reflects, “It is unfortunate that many remain oblivious to how human activity can damage delicate life systems throughout the world. The prolonged drought in California, for example, must have permanent effects on the ecosystem.” Our planet is similar to a ticking clock, in which worsening conditions in the future will accumulate and prevail due to climate change.
Climate change is a complex and ongoing topic that leaves some questions unanswered. The good news is that the brutal winter is approaching a conclusion. The bad is that numerous citizens still remain blind to the long-term aspects of climate change and resist engaging in preventative actions.
Sources:
http://science.time.com/2014/01/06/climate-change-driving-cold-weather/
http://www.counterpunch.org/2015/03/06/more-cold-and-snow-thanks-to-global-warming/
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/summary-info/global/2015/1
http://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2015/03/13/arctic-sea-ice/70273850/