Serina Aridi 2/10/14
Earth Science—C-ODD Mrs. McClellan
Earth Science—C-ODD Mrs. McClellan
“Freezing
Out the Bigger Picture”
Gillis, Justin. “Freezing Out the Bigger Picture.” 10
Feb 2014. New York Times Science. Web. 10 February 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/11/science/freezing-out-the-bigger-picture.html?ref=science&_r=0>
Many
people have been blaming the recent weather changes on global warming; however
this is not the case. Because the
weather has been frigid on the east coast, we are left to wonder: if the world
is being affected by global warming, why is it so cold? The polar vortex, a
pattern that usually keeps cold air compact near the North Pole, has been
weakened. Scientists believe that the polar vortex was weakened by the decline
of sea ice in the Arctic. When this occurs, the jet stream is then altered. This
ultimately creates zones of extreme heat or cold. The west coast consequently
is suffering weathers of extreme heat while the east coast has been dealing
with snow storms consistently. Scientists have developed the conclusion that
the blast of cold weather on the east coast is the result of dips in the jet
stream that enabled the cold air to travel from Polar Regions into the east
coast. The severe cold weather, however, has not been affecting the whole country.
While the east coast has been facing frigid weather, the west coast has been
suffering heat extremities. Robert Henson of the National Center for
Atmospheric Research stated that the weather that we are experiencing now is
less than the severity of the weather conditions in the 1970s; however many are
reacting negatively towards to weather because winters have been mild for the
past 20-30 years.
Because
of the disruption to the polar vortex, humans are being affected through the
cold weather in the east coast and the hot weather in the west coast.
Consequently, cities in the north east do not have safe driving conditions due
to the icy roads and because towns do not have enough room to contain the snow.
The snow has not been sufficiently melting in various towns because recently it
has been snowing weekly in most places. The president addressed this issue and
as soon as he mentioned the snow, it started snowing in Washington D.C, says
Patrick J. Michaels, a meteorologist. Additionally, many people in Georgia have
been affected by the snow by not being able to leave their houses, as they were
snowed in. Conversely, people on the west coast have been suffering a drought
and are in fear that they will run out of water as they enter their third year
of this drought.
I
believe that this article was well written; however I think the article should
have displayed both sides—the east coast and the west coast—equally so that the
reader would be able to further understand that the entire country is being
affected by severe weather, and not just the east coast. This would also help
readers to understand that global warming is not just the cause of the heat in
the west coast, but also because of the polar vortex. The article mostly
focuses on frigid weather, yet I believe the readers should be further notified
by what is going on in the entire country. I would have also discussed global
warming more. Otherwise, the article was well written because it presented
statistics, and thus made statements that were backed up by facts that were
stated clearly.
What an amazing photo of Niagra falls! Did that draw you to read the article? Because it did for me!
ReplyDeleteInteresting choice of article. I had been wondering myself how global warming jived with our harsh-winter. It was interesting to read that polar vortexes had happened before and lasted much longer in the 70s and 80s, but that was before my time, or I was too young to remember it anyways! It was also interesting to note that the melting of the ice caps may be the very cause of the destabilizing vortex that is landing the East Coast in frigid weather, and the west coast in a drought. But how much of that is just speculation? Have climatologists really been able to prove this link?
I know climate scientists use complicated computer models to model the weather patterns and understand how things like polar vortexes, gulf streams, and El Nino events happen. This science is very complex and difficult to explain to the public, however, it would have been nice if the article had found a climatologist or specific study to support the idea that global warming is actually causing our winter to be more harsh! It would have made that connection more credible and not mere speculation.
Your report was very well written and I appreciate the appropriateness of this topic as we face another snow and ice storm tomorrow! Bundle up everyone!
This current event was extremely well written. Amazing job Serina! The general flow of this article was smooth and allowed me to easily read through it and really understand what the article was about. Also you went into great detail about the polar vortexes and what they had to do with the odd weather we are dealing with. Also the picture you incorporated was fantastic. It showed me just how cold it is all over the east coast. I cannot believe that that is Niagra Falls! I was not aware of what exactly polar vertexes were and how they were effecting us, but as I said before, your in depth details allowed me to understand them. I realized that they were being weakened by the lack of sea ice in the Arctic which then causes the jet stream to be altered. This explains why we are receiving such harsh weather. Also I was not aware that these polar vortexes were causing very high temperatures on the West coast. I only thought that they were causing cold weather on the east coast. What I also found interesting was that the president addressed this issue. I had no idea that the president was getting involved or that it snowed in Georgia! Also what was interesting was the fact that the people in Georgia were being snowed in while those on the west coast were dealing with a drought. The controversy between the two coasts is very interesting. However what I thought that could make the article better was if you talked a little more about the harsh conditions on the west coast. I would have learned more about just how bad things are getting. Overall it was a really good current event!
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