Cold? Blame the warm Pacific Ocean

I have been following this phenomenon since it started, I did not find a good explanation until now, if anybody has more information, please post it here...

Warm water in the Pacific drives arctic blasts in Chicago. - chicagotribune.com

"The Pacific Ocean may be thousands of miles from Chicago, but higher temperatures in the gigantic body of water could still be partly to blame for the arctic air that has come carpetbagging into the Midwest this season, according to meteorologists.

Unusually warm conditions in the northern Pacific helped give rise this fall to a massive dome of mild air over western North America. Acting like a chute, that ridge has hurtled bitter blasts into the area since about November, sent temperatures plunging during the "polar vortex" earlier this month and is expected to keep the cold coming for the remainder of the winter.

That means that — at least for now — the pipe-freezing, frostbiting chill more normally associated with Alaska and Canada is here to stay.

"The problem is, a pattern like this feeds on itself," said WGN meteorologist Tom Skilling. "They keep coming at you in waves."

There will be intermittent respites. For instance, after the mercury falls below zero Tuesday, temperatures are expected to rise into the upper 20s by the end of the week. Yet in the coming month, weather forecast models hint at the probability of additional bitter flirtations.

The freeze has been fed, in part, by a cyclical warming pattern in the northern Pacific, which in some places has measured at least six degrees above normal. Average water temperatures near South America have added further dominance to that system, meteorologists said.

As the northern Pacific water warmed the atmosphere this fall, the jet stream along the west coast buckled northward, bringing air from the arctic into the Midwest while leaving coastal Alaska unseasonably mild and rainy and possibly contributing to the recent avalanche near Valdez.

The extreme temperature contrasts between the ocean air and the subfreezing air that builds around the North Pole this time of year due to lack of sunshine could keep the system in place through at least February, Skilling said.

"When you have warm ocean waters ... you have a driving force locked in place," he said. "And on the cold side, when you keep bringing these arctic blasts down, snow gets laid down and reflects the heat and therefore you reinforce that."

So far in Chicago, the conditions have made this month one of the snowiest on record, with 33.1 inches measured at O'Hare International Airport as of Monday. January 1918 holds the record at 42.5 inches.

In the last 50 days, however, there have been 27 days of measurable snowfall of at least a tenth of an inch.

"If folks feel like they have been shoveling frequently, they have," National Weather Service meteorologist Ed Fenelon said.

As of Monday, there had also been 14 days that fell below zero, driving even the hardiest indoors, canceling schools across the region and wreaking havoc on public transportation. The record-setting winter season was 1884-85, which recorded a total of 25 days below zero, Fenelon said.

Although the winter so far — measured from Dec. 1 through Jan. 25 — still ranks as only the 13th-coldest on record, the more mild recent winters have made it seem more brutal, Fenelon said.

Temperatures on Tuesday night were expected to fall to about 5 below in Chicago, with wind chills making it feel closer to minus 25.

"It is not anything you see like a thunderstorm, or lightening or a tornado, but it is the cold arctic air associated with the polar vortex that can still be very dangerous," Fenelon said.

During periods of extreme cold, people should try to minimize their time outside. If they have to venture outdoors, Felon recommended wearing layers, keeping dry and looking out for signs of developing frostbite.

At the same time, meteorologists said that beyond the biting winds, black ice and mounting snow, these conditions also can be perfect for a particular arctic optical phenomenon: sundogs.

Sundogs — the name given to the bright halos of light that sometimes appear around the sun and can look like small rainbows — are formed when light refracts off ice needles suspended in the atmosphere.

The name is of disputed origin, but one story harks back to Greek mythology, according to Skilling.

"The notion was that Zeus would take his dogs out for a walk and what you were seeing were his dogs out there walking on either side of the sun," Skilling said.

Meaning that, even in cold weather, the gods themselves had to go outside.

cdizikes@tribune.com

Copyright © 2014 Chicago Tribune Company, LLC"

 

Maybe you missed this one... The freeze has been fed, in part, by a cyclical warming pattern in the northern Pacific, which in some places has measured at least six (6°Fahrenheit) degrees above normal. Average water temperatures near South America have added further dominance to that system, meteorologists said."

The warmer ocean waters in the northern Pacific will help in building more powerful storms, not a good thing if you live in the Philippines...

 

Just got a reply from another Forum, mentioning an additional factor, very interesting stuff altogether...

"I think the jury is still out on that...some meteorologists think it may be due to the solar magnetic pole shift. Remember the polar jet streams don't just raise Hell in North America and then stop when they get to the Atlantic ocean. In addition, the Gulf Stream is a major influencing factor on Europe's weather patterns, and it, too, is effected by the jet streams. The link goes to Wikipedia's article on it. Also see the article on the North Atlantic Oscillation."

Sorry, links don't work because I pasted the text...

 

After reading about the last big typhoon, I'm skeptical that we know anything at all about how this planet works and how effective our tools are for measuring this stuff are.

There was so much crazy in the media about that typhoon. And then I saw that some of the comparisons they made were with typhoons of which their strength were estimated from observation. Even just going back to the 60's and 70's we didn't really have any good way to measure these things apart from flying right into them.

I don't doubt that we can cause climate change or the urgency to reduce our impact on this planet. I think we are just about arriving to the beginning of where we can effectively gather and analyze enough data to really get a pulse on the planet. But then we will only be measuring barely a blip on the timeline of the planet.

 

"Dude", thanks for your very good comments, I agree with you to the fullest, it's just amazing what we are now able to observe and watch and with the help of very powerful computers and sophisticated algorithms we believe we can actually "predict" the weather...

Here is some more information...

Polar Vortex to Reinforce Extremes: Frigid East, Dry West - SKYE on AOL

 

Anyone in denial of your opinion is in denial in your opinion.

 

To opinionated an opinion for my taste but it certainly would make the World look different for the ones left living...

 

Every week Worldwide our food suppliers throw away enough food to feed the World
Nearly every household in the Western World throws away 10-20% fresh goods they buy.
Does anybody really know the answers to the Worlds problems or do we need someone or something to blame?