From Truth Out: http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/15394-how-global-warming-has-prevented-springs-arrival
By The Daily Take
Thursday, 28 March 2013
Last week, Butler County, Ohio prosecutor Mike Gmoser “indicted” famed weather-predicting groundhog Punxsutawney Phil, after the groundhog inaccurately predicted an early spring.
Gmoser filed the tongue-in-cheek indictment after snow was forecast to fall in Butler County after the official start of spring.
The halfhearted indictment was dropped Tuesday however, when Gmoser realized that good old Phil had a “defense with teeth in it.”
And, while this whole ordeal may seem quite silly, it did help to raise a very good point: How could Phil be so wrong about the arrival of spring, when he’s usually pretty accurate?
Typically around this time of year, we expect to see spring flowers beginning to bloom in gardens after sun-spotted rain showers because, after all, spring showers are supposed to bring May flowers.
Instead, east coast Americans are still dealing with the effects of an already nasty winter season that has brought unprecedented amounts of snow to just about every region of the United States.
As a result, people are scratching their heads, wondering when spring will really get here.
Well now, it turns out that spring’s slow arrival in the US is likely being driven by changes half a world way, in the Arctic.
Some of the nation’s most prominent climate researchers announced at a news conference on Tuesday that melting Arctic sea ice may actually be the culprit behind winter’s refusal to pack its bags and leave.
Scientists from NOAA and various university climatology departments said that melting Arctic sea ice may be weakening the planet’s jet stream currents, and causing extreme weather systems to linger in the United States.
But how can melting ice cause colder temperatures? After all, that seems somewhat contradictory.
First, it’s important to understand exactly what the jet stream is.
Continue reading at: http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/15394-how-global-warming-has-prevented-springs-arrival
See Also: Huffington Post: Doubling Down on Our Faustian Bargain
