Too hot to be this cold?
According to data from the U.S.-based National Centers for Environmental Information (NOAA), 2022 was the sixth warmest year since 1800 – that is, since we have had data on global temperatures. But, most significantly, the past nine years have been the warmest on record overall. Why then do we continue to observe extreme cold events such as frost waves? We ask this question especially during the winter. Let's clarify.
According to data from the U.S.-based National Centers for Environmental Information (NOAA), 2022 was the sixth warmest year since 1800 – that is, since we have had data on global temperatures. But, most significantly, the past nine years have been the warmest on record overall. Why then do we continue to observe extreme cold events such as frost waves? We ask this question especially during the winter. Let's clarify.
Global warming explained with physTo explain the meaning of global warming, let’s start with a simple classical physics problem. If you drive your car on the highway for a distance of 100 km at a constant speed of 100 km/h, it will take you 60 minutes. If, on the other hand, you drive the same route for 60 km at 120 km/h and for the last 40 km at 90 km/h, you will take less than 57 minutes. It is true that for a certain stretch your speed was very low, but on average your speed was above 100 km/h and therefore your travel time was reduced.
The same reasoning applies to the temperature of the Earth's atmosphere. Global warming is that climate phenomenon which, since the end of the 19th century, records a global increase in the average temperature on Earth.
The word "average" is very important because it means that global warming does not affect all areas of the Planet equally. Some areas are warming a lot, some less, and some may even experience a decrease in temperatures. But what does matter, and this is the point that scientists all agree on, is that globally the average temperature recorded each year is increasing, to the tune of almost one degree centigrade over the last century.
That global warming is taking place is confirmed by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in its latest report, which states, "It is virtually certain that there has been [...] a reduction in the number of cold days and nights globally since 1950. Both cold and warm extremes show a rise in temperatures."
But then, what are the frost waves due to?
The same reasoning applies to the temperature of the Earth's atmosphere. Global warming is that climate phenomenon which, since the end of the 19th century, records a global increase in the average temperature on Earth.
The word "average" is very important because it means that global warming does not affect all areas of the Planet equally. Some areas are warming a lot, some less, and some may even experience a decrease in temperatures. But what does matter, and this is the point that scientists all agree on, is that globally the average temperature recorded each year is increasing, to the tune of almost one degree centigrade over the last century.
That global warming is taking place is confirmed by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in its latest report, which states, "It is virtually certain that there has been [...] a reduction in the number of cold days and nights globally since 1950. Both cold and warm extremes show a rise in temperatures."
But then, what are the frost waves due to?
The polar vortex hypothesiThere is no doubt about it: extreme cold weather events continue to occur. The latest example is the winter storm that swept across much of the United States during Christmas 2022, with temperatures reaching minus 50 degrees Celsius, high winds, and heavy snowfall.
The scientific community attributes these sudden and intense waves of cold to ripples in the polar vortex, a current of cold air that generally rotates stably over the Earth's poles. It may happen that these eddies begin to undulate, bringing cold air even to mid-latitudes and thus causing the frost waves.
Again, however, the IPCC tells us that there is no scientific evidence linking climate change to an increase in polar vortex ripples. On the contrary, all the evidence indicates that the decrease in global cold extremes is also affecting the mid-latitudes.
So, in conclusion, while it is scientifically proven that episodes such as the Christmas 2022 winter storm are related to polar vortex ripples, we must consider that such events are to be regarded as exceptional episodes occurring within a rapidly warming global climate context.
Coldest March in Antartica 20th March 2020
the world’s southernmost continent is currently the coldest its ever been for the
time of year.
Last Friday, Antarctica set a record for its coldest March temp ever recorded,
not just for the day, but for the entire month.
The Vostok Station clocked a bone-chilling -75.3C (-103.54F) on the morning of
Friday, March 20, as spotted by @TempGlobal on Twitter:
The scientific community attributes these sudden and intense waves of cold to ripples in the polar vortex, a current of cold air that generally rotates stably over the Earth's poles. It may happen that these eddies begin to undulate, bringing cold air even to mid-latitudes and thus causing the frost waves.
Again, however, the IPCC tells us that there is no scientific evidence linking climate change to an increase in polar vortex ripples. On the contrary, all the evidence indicates that the decrease in global cold extremes is also affecting the mid-latitudes.
So, in conclusion, while it is scientifically proven that episodes such as the Christmas 2022 winter storm are related to polar vortex ripples, we must consider that such events are to be regarded as exceptional episodes occurring within a rapidly warming global climate context.
Coldest March in Antartica 20th March 2020
world so far.
every single day has been above the average. Thailand is warmin faster than any country, not sure why.
some might be related to the shallow waters of the gulf of thailand which don't mix much and get warmer and
warmer very fast.
Regards"
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25th February 2020
A heat wave melted 20% of an Antarctic island's
snow in only 9 day
Doyle Rice USA TODAY
- Snowpack on Eagle Island melted 4 inches in about a week.
- Such rapid melting is caused by sustained high temperatures significantly above freezing.
- Such persistent warmth was not typical in Antarctica until this century.
A heat wave this month in Antarctica sent temperatures soaring into the mid- to high-60s across northern portions of the normally frigid continent.
Surprisingly, the warmth melted about 20% of an Antarctic island's snow in only nine days, according to newly released images from NASA, leaving behind ponds of melted water where the snow had been.
"I haven’t seen melt ponds develop this quickly in Antarctica," said Mauri Pelto, a glaciologist at Nichols College in Massachusetts, in a statement. “You see these kinds of melt events in Alaska and Greenland, but not usually in Antarctica.”
Pelto said that during the heat wave, which peaked from Feb. 6 to 11, snowpack on Eagle Island melted 4 inches. This means that about 20% of seasonal snow in the region melted in this one event on Eagle Island, Pelto said.
The temperature peaked at 64.9 degrees Fahrenheit at Argentina’s Esperanza Base on Feb. 6, which was Antarctica's warmest temperature on record. A reading of 69.3 degrees was measured a few days later at a research station on Seymour Island, on Feb. 9, but that reading has not yet been officially verified.
- Snowpack on Eagle Island melted 4 inches in about a week.
- Such rapid melting is caused by sustained high temperatures significantly above freezing.
- Such persistent warmth was not typical in Antarctica until this century.
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