Is the Polar Vortex evidence of global warming? Actually, yes it is

America is about to be plunged into a deep freeze this week with the return of the dreaded "polar vortex." As many people don heavy coats and take up snow shovels, they grumble "what global warming?" It's an understandable sentiment, but it's also misplaced. The unwelcome cold may actually be striking evidence of global warming.

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LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - As cold creeps into the Midwestern states and will move east over the next couple days, many Americans are being caught barely prepared for an early cold snap that could create a lot of problems. Snarled traffic, power outages, and icy roads will be among the hazards that nearly two-thirds of all Americans will face this week.

With cold temperatures so extreme and so early, it is difficult to talk about global warming. The logical conclusions is that the weather is growing colder, not hotter. You could be forgiven for thinking this. Yet, the polar vortex, dipping into the lower 48, is a result of global warming, not in spite of it.

Aid the poor and hungry whose condition is exacerbated by climate change.

Over sixty years ago, scientists identified the "polar vortex" as a mass of frigid air that typically circulates around the North Pole, constrained by the jet stream. South of the jet stream is warmer air, to which we are accustomed.

However, global warming has reduced sea ice across the arctic to some of the lowest levels seen in 1,000 years, and likely much longer. As all that ice melts, it leaves dark seawater in its place. The darker water absorbs heat, creating a feedback loop where more ice melts exposing even more water and so on. The ice begins to return in winter, however less ice is returning in many years.

You can see the disturbing trend for yourself by exploring this telling infographic from the National Snow and Ice Data Center. Click the years on and off starting in 1979 (the first year for which there is comprehensive data) all the way to 2014. It is easy to see that the overall trend is towards less ice with most years falling within the average. However, in the last decade, sea ice began doing something it has never been observed doing before - it has dropped below all averages. That means more sea water, more heat, and ergo, more polar vortexes dipping south into the USA.

The 10 hottest years on record since 1880 have all occurred since 1998.

Temperature data from the Arctic shows the sea is warming much faster there than in other regions. This warms the Arctic, meaning the temperature difference between the Arctic and the temperate weather below the jet stream is reduced. The temperature difference between the two air masses matters because that's what keeps the jet stream blowing strongly in place. When that difference becomes less, the jet stream meanders and forms kinks. When one of those kinks drops low towards the south, a polar vortex is formed, bringing frigid arctic air south.

As the Arctic oceans lose their sea ice, more polar vortexes can be expected.

Interestingly, as the eastern USA freezes, the western states experience warming, as does much of the rest of the globe. It is simply a quirk of geography that the eastern USA cools while the rest of the world warms.

California is experiencing unusual warmth and even the oceans off the coast are much hotter than normal. Tuna have been caught as far north as Alaska and fishermen off the coast of central California have made headlines by reeling in tropical fish, normally found much farther south.

Is global warming happening? Yes, it is. Despite what some staunch conservatives claim, the scientific data is clear. The planet is absorbing more radiation than it is losing into space and that means the biosphere is warming with quasi-predictable effects. These effects are disruptive to both nature and civilization and should be regarded with all seriousness.

It is incumbent upon us to find solutions to the causes and impacts of anthropogenic climate change before untold devastation is done to the world and its people. And if you don't think it's causing devastation, perhaps you need only to look outside your window this mid-week to see for yourself.

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