![s4-1024[1]](http://wattsupwiththat.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/s4-10241.jpg?quality=83)
A persistent pattern of winds spins high above the Arctic in winter. The winds, known as the polar vortex, typically blow in a fairly tight circular formation. But in late December 2013 and early January 2014, the winds loosened and frigid Arctic air spilled farther south than usual, deep into the continental United States. Animated video follows.
On Jan. 6, 2014, alone, approximately 50 daily record low temperatures were set, from Colorado to Alabama to New York, according to the National Weather Service. In some places temperatures were 40 degrees Fahrenheit colder than average. Now, an animation created from NASA satellite data shows just how the Arctic air brought a deep chill to the U.S this winter.
Watch the video for a guided tour of the event.
From: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Video and images courtesy of NASA/JPL
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Blocking polar vortex also occurs in the south. You can see the polar vortex shifted at a height of 30 km due to changes in the ozone.
http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/stratosphere/strat_a_f/gif_files/gfs_z10_sh_f00.gif
http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/stratosphere/strat_a_f/gif_files/gfs_o3mr_10_sh_f00.gif
The reason is the high level of of the galactic radiation clustered by the Earth’s magnetic field.
Weak vortex longer causes the block at 500 hPa.
http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/precip/CWlink/blocking/real_time_sh/500gz_anomalies_sh.gif
Reply to Alan Robertson says:
April 7, 2014 at 3:27 pm
If Chris Turney wants to make another trip South I have a canoe and some sunscreen I can lend him.
This is how looks like visualization.
http://earth.nullschool.net/jp/#current/wind/isobaric/10hPa/orthographic=-349.02,-93.89,300
Looking at that graphic, one wonders what would have happened had it been over Europe. French vineyards would have suffered (but that’s ok as their wine has long since been good!), but maybe Spanish olive groves would have been hit. It could well have hit Spain hard in other ways too. In Britain, the BBC would have said it was the coldest winter “evah”. It’s funny how weather plays politics. Had it hit Europe, we probably wouldn’t be seeing the current situation in the Ukraine!
Ghost Of Big Jim Cooley :100%.
It’s like a big duster polishing the heat off the US.
A similar shift of the polar vortex (and weakness) is visible at a height of 17 km.
http://earth.nullschool.net/jp/#current/wind/isobaric/70hPa/orthographic=-349.02,-93.89,345
Let’s see an increase in cosmic radiation from March 9.
http://cosmicrays.oulu.fi/webform/query.cgi?startday=01&startmonth=03&startyear=2014&starttime=00%3A00&endday=08&endmonth=04&endyear=2014&endtime=00%3A00&resolution=Automatic+choice&picture=on
Magma says:
April 7, 2014 at 8:37 pm
Moving the goalposts already? How sadly predictable.
Thats rich, coming from the side that INVENTED goalpost-moving and cherry-picking, in addition to changing the rules and even threatening to just take the ball and run home to mummy (a la Weepy McKibben).
What’s really predictable will be the public hand-wringing and cries of doom coming from the Warmists, whilst privately they cheer and high-five one another in glee with a one-season downward tick in arctic sea ice.
Because, I guess, if some ice melts somewhere, then the Halt in warming (let alone cooling) doesn’t exist. Or something.
Peter White says: April 7, 2014 at 3:31 pm
Anthony,
Yes, of course it was cold in the USA this winter. But it was rather warm in Europe. This really hasn’t got much of anything to do with anything.
*******************
Absolutely true, considering simultaneous offsetting experience on a global scale. And those publishing repeated head posts about the bitter cold in the USofA due to vortex activity are now fretting about the MSM’s coverage of potential further down-trending of Arctic ice and potential increases in the global temperature measurement driven by ENSO events. There’s a word for that mindset and behavior.
Regarding “moving the goalposts”: I was going to submit a rebuttal comment to Magma, but decided instead to adopt a new policy of no longer arguing with liberals and alarmists; they’re remarkably impervious to both logic and truth, so it’s always a complete waste of time. Yes, “always.”
(This new policy of mine could save me upwards of 30 minutes a day, if I’m able to sustain it.)
Pachygrapsus says:
April 7, 2014 at 6:33 pm
That was very excellent. +42 Rep points.
Lawrence Todd says:
April 7, 2014 at 3:30 pm
I would not pay too much attention to the DNMI polar temperatures since historically they are very unstable and only reach/exceed the lower limits on rare occasions.
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In other words, the Arctic has warmed up since the ERA40 (1957-2002) average temp. Not the fault of the people taking the measurements. Stop blaming the messenger and start wondering why the Arctic is so much warmer.
Rod Everson says:
Regarding “moving the goalposts”: I was going to submit a rebuttal comment to Magma, but decided instead to adopt a new policy of no longer arguing with liberals and alarmists; they’re remarkably impervious to both logic and truth, so it’s always a complete waste of time. Yes, “always.”
My wife shared a story from here recently on FB and a commenter replied that WUWT was “not a credible source”, quoting The Grauniad as evidence. My comment to her was “it must be nice to have other people do your thinking for you”. I learned some time ago the same thing – there is no point in debate when someone’s mind is already made up. Personally, I determine credibility of ANY source based on looking at the source and comparing what it claims with reality. I find that to be much better than relying on the opinions of others.
Much better is the (rare) case when you find someone actually willing to entertain facts that may differ from their preconceptions. We know a college student like this – and she has come to realize that much of her prior knowledge is questionable at best. THAT’S when someone starts learning to think for themselves.
Slingo says its global warming!
Hmmmn. OK, so the Arctic has warmed the past years.
1) I presume you means according to some “annual average”, right? After all, those DMI 80 north average daily temperatures since 1959 for the summer months have NOT changed even 1/10 of one degree since 1959! Further, those DMI 80 north air temperatures – up where the Arctic ocean actually is located – have been decreasing since early 2000 at ever-increasing rates.
Now, you are correct, the DMI 80 north winter temperatures – those when average air temperatures are below 0.0 C – and when the sun is below the horizon for most of every day – are unstable and fluctuate very widely. They are higher than the average, and their do have a large standard deviation of daily temperatures. But, when the sun is shining?
The high northern arctic air is NOT increasing!
2) So what? Does a loss of Arctic ocean sea ice extents trouble you? It does me: Every square millions kilometers of lost sea ice between late August and the first of April each winter means that the planet loses even more heat than the exposed arctic ocean absorbs through increased long wave radiation losses, increased convective and conduction losses, and increased evaporation losses. But, every square kilometer of “excess” antarctic sea ice DOES reflect much more energy from the planet than the exposed arctic ocean can absorb – reducing the global heat budget even more.
3. By the way. Today, with an Antarctic sea ice area anomaly of 1.28 Mkm^2, that little bit of “excess” Antarctic sea ice you are busily ignoring at 60 south latitude is now larger than the entire Hudson’s Bay up at latitude 60 north. Don’t like that comparison?
That “excess” Antarctic sea ice area is now slightly larger than half of Greenland!
“This investigation showed that Forbush decreases of GCR and solar proton events may influence the duration of elementary synoptic processes by changing the intensity of cyclonic and anticyclonic activity over the North Atlantic, Europe and Scandinavia. The results obtained are in good agreement with the variations of zonal pressure at middle and subpolar latitudes [Pudovkin and Babushkina, 1992] as well as with the variations of zonal circulation intensity during Forbush decreases and solar proton events [Veretenenko and Pudovkin, 1993].
It should be noted that cyclonic and anticyclonic activity at middle latitudes, i.e., formation,
development and movement of extratropical baric systems (cyclones and anticyclones) are closely related to the structure of the thermo-baric field of the troposphere (divergence or convergence of isohypses) and the temperature contrasts in the frontal zones [Matveev, 2005]. Thus, an intensification of cyclonic/anticyclonic activity suggests changes of these factors associated with cosmic ray variations under study and these changes, in turn, create more favorable conditions for the development of cyclones/anticyclones in the North Atlantic region. A possible mechanism of the effects observed in the evolution of mid-latitudinal baric systems may involve radiative forcing of cloudiness changes as well as latent heat release [Tinsley, 2008] with the consequent effects in the troposphere temperature field and, then, in the atmospheric circulation.
Conclusions
Investigation of durations of elementary synoptic processes according to the classification by
Vangengeim was carried out taking into account an influence of solar proton events and Forbush decreases of galactic cosmic rays on the baric system dynamics at high and middle latitudes. An increase in the ESP duration for the western and meridional circulation forms were detected on the days following the onsets of solar proton events with energy of particles Ep > 90 MeV. During Forbush decreases of GCR with the amplitude δN/N > 2,5 % an increase in the ESP duration for the meridional form and a reduction in the ESP duration for the western and eastern circulation forms were detected. It was shown that the detected changes in the ESP durations are caused by the influence of cosmic ray variations under study on the development of North-Atlantic baric systems. These changes of ESPs result from an intensification of stationary blocking anticyclones over the East Atlantic, Europe and Scandinavia during Forbush decreases of GCR and of cyclone regeneration near Greenland after solar proton events. The results obtained seem to be of importance for meteorological forecasts based on the analysis of the type and duration of elementary synoptic processes.”
http://geo.phys.spbu.ru/materials_of_a_conference_2010/STP2010/Artamonova_2010.pdf
David vun Kannon says:
April 8, 2014 at 8:48 am
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There is no mystery as to why the Arctic has warmed.
Rod Everson says:
April 8, 2014 at 7:50 am
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I started doing similar about 18 months ago. I will rebut a climate related thought, but I will no longer respond to their meaningless drivel.
vukcevic says:
April 7, 2014 at 3:13 pm
Video Animation would give more complete picture if it did show polar view as here ( NASA 2009), but to be fair it did mention Hudson Bay, which simultaneous with the other usual location above the central Siberia marks for an intriguing ‘coincidence’ ,
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Yes, polar views Vuks. Have you used the Earth Wind Map http://earth.nullschool.net/#current/wind/surface/level/orthographic=-68.21,86.17,177 ? Click and hold left mouse key on map and pull the polar regions into view, then zoom, so cool to watch the vortex and temp this winter, at the different heights available with that tool.
Thanks for the link, http://www.vukcevic.talktalk.net/Arctic.htm to the geomagnetic link in the climate mess. Null points in the Earth’s field Vuks. Neutral points on the dayside..coupled with our nightside reconnection regime. There’s got to be horizontal components in here somewhere.
X marks the null (neutral) points..
http://images.tutorvista.com/content/magnetism/magnetic-neutral-points-nn.jpeg
http://images.tutorvista.com/content/magnetism/magnetic-neutral-points-ns.jpeg
As for neutral points in the solar field, that looks messy we need an expert for that interpretation..
Seems the missing heat in the Northern Atlantic and Pacific couldn’t bust that vortex up this past winter, though it appeared as though they had a good squeeze at it.
They’re still skiing Rib Mt. Wausau, WI until this weekend.. whoa..
Granite Peak Snow Report
REOPENING FOR OUR FINAL WEEKEND: April 11th – April 13th
Friday: 9-9 Saturday: 9-9 Sunday: 9-4
We have abundant snow and with several feet of base on the entire mountain!! The weather is perfect for spring skiing! We have so much snow that we will reopen for the weekend, Friday – Sunday, April 11th – 13th.
http://www.skigranitepeak.com/mountain/index.cfm?sub=liftStatus
Alarmists seem to be more interested in arguing for the sake of arguing. This blog contains some very informed people who have knowledge, degrees and experience, and don’t find Al Gore or the UNIPCC weak AGW hypothesis correct or anyone who supports their fruitless UNCCF. I spend hours on this blog, every day, and thank goodness Anthony closed comments to shut up Poptech et al, arguing about petty things such as putting ‘or’ in the text. Actually at my university and/or placed in text was frowned on as it was indecisive. Double dipping.
Anyway, enjoy your skiing season America.
RACookPE1978 says:
April 8, 2014 at 9:53 am
Hmmmn. OK, so the Arctic has warmed the past years.
1) I presume you means according to some “annual average”, right?
No, not right. I was referring to the same thing that Lawrence Todd was in his original comment. This year, the T1279 line has been above the ERA40 line for the first 100 days of the year. I agree that summer air temps above 80N are flat. The reason is that all the heat goes into raising the temperature of the ice or perhaps melting it. I would expect that we will only start to see significant rises in summer air temps after we see significant ice loss above 80N.
2) So what? Does a loss of Arctic ocean sea ice extents trouble you? It does me:
Well, I’m glad we agree on that!
3. By the way. Today, with an Antarctic sea ice area anomaly of 1.28 Mkm^2, that little bit of “excess” Antarctic sea ice you are busily ignoring at 60 south latitude is now larger than the entire Hudson’s Bay up at latitude 60 north. Don’t like that comparison?
Why wouldn’t I like that comparison? If it is cooling the planet, it is a good thing.
@ren says:
April 7, 2014 at 11:06 pm: Ren, would you please tell us what effects this has on weather around the Antarctic and southern temperate seas and lands? Also, what drives these effects, such as changes in cloudiness? Thanks, Brett Keane, NZ
Further to the above, Ren: So, are we Southerners looking at further multiple frigid bursts for a long time? I note the very rapid sea ice growth here. And the Arctic sea ice seems to have grown over the last 3 days – interesting, and not unexpected I thought? Brett Keane