Everyone on campus is spending as much time as possible outdoors on this first day of February. I held my Spider Stretch class outside in the gym courtyard, my guitar lessons were hosted on the Westhampton Green, and tour groups are sitting around campus taking in this premature, beautiful weather. Even the plants and animals seem to think it is spring already–the bulbs in the dhall lot circle are already emerging as thick, forest green sprouts and the birds around the lake are more energetic than usual.
Since the strange weather is a widespread topic of conversation, I decided to do a bit of research as to why we are experiencing this high-pressure system, and if it is related to climate change. A very interesting article I stumbled upon came from the journal Tellas A, and was discussed by Science Daily.
The article describes how, though we are currently experiencing a mild winter, decreased levels of Arctic sea ice cover will lead to much colder winters in central Europe. The past two summers, we have observed increased rain fall and warmer temperatures which have melted the Arctic ice. Without this cover the heat from sunlight is maintained in the sea (due to its darker color), instead of reflecting off the ice. These warmer sea temperatures could explain why we are experiencing warmer fall and winter seasons, but the article warns that this may not be long lasting or beneficial.
In fact, the authors of the article predict that the warmer temperatures are disturbing pressure patterns in the winds which can cause the colder Arctic air to be directed to Europe. Ralf Jaiser says of his work, “Many other factors naturally play a role in the complex climate system of our Earth which overlap in part. Our results explain the mechanisms of how regional changes in the Arctic sea ice cover have a global impact and their effects over a period from late summer to winter.”
It amazes me how interconnected the world climate is, and days like this are perfect opportunities to learn more about it. For more information, visit: (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120201105126.htm)
Carolyn, this is so interesting. I’m really glad you posted about this because I was wondering the exact same thing. It’s amazing that some people just don’t care at all about climate change because they think it doesn’t affect them directly…but it affects all of us. People keep making jokes about how they approve of global warming because of the warm winter…I’m starting to feel like that joke is getting really old.