^ Yes, joking aside, it sounds pretty ominous. The destabilisation of these climatic systems is v alarming because any one of them could become a point of no return. After all, who amongst us can put a polar vortex back together again?
Quote:
During the past 2 weeks, a sudden stratospheric warming event has taken place, showing up first in the Siberian Arctic, and then spreading over the North Pole.
Such events occur when large atmospheric waves surge beyond the troposphere and into the layer of air above it. Such a vertical transport of energy can rapidly warm the stratosphere, and set in motion a chain reaction that disrupts the stratospheric polar vortex.
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^ Another downside to this likely to be the optics: more people will notice the unusually cold weather than will understand that the cause of it is global warming. I can imagine Trump and other anti-science politicians once again tweeting about a global warming hoax when the first snow flurry hits Boston.