Extreme Freezing Weather Gets a Head Start in Early Fall

Posted: October 23, 2022 9:23 am

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The coldest air of the season swept down from Canada and resulted in freeze alerts being issued across the eastern United States. The cold weather spread to Florida, the southern state and the Gulf Coast as well as traditional states along the eastern seaboard. The surprising cold spell broke freezing records for many areas this early in the fall season.

Meteorologists predicted that as many as four dozen record lows might be broken on Wednesday, October 19, 2022. Two dozen records might be broken on Thursday. Climate change often includes surprisingly early cold weather.

How Does Colder Weather Happen Because of Climate Change?

According to information posted at bbc.com, colder weather is a common result of global warming. According to scientists, global warming can accelerate warming of Arctic regions, which disturbs the polar vortex, which is a circular wind pattern over the Arctic. As the winds stray from their usual pattern, they can bring extreme freezing weather farther south earlier in the season. Colder weather than normal can threaten any area of the United States — like the Texas cold wave that hit the state in February of 2022.

Some of the consequences of disturbances of the polar vortex include the following weather situations in the United States:

  • Increased cold and hot weather disasters that increase by up to 500%.
  • One out of every three wild tree species might face extinction.
  • Increased global temperatures generate life-changing effects across the Arctic.
  • Climate changes might ultimately cause extinction of many animal and plant species.
  • Shrinking summer Arctic ice over the last four decades has resulted in extreme effects that include rising ocean levels.

The studies have determined that climate change affects winter weather profoundly in both North America and Asia. The changes include melting of the ice in the Kara and Barents seas, increased snowfall in Siberia and swirling winds in the stratosphere.

Freezing Weather Ends the Growing Season

Early freezing weather typically ends the growing season of many farms as far south as the Florida Panhandle and parts of the Gulf Coast. The Canadian high-pressure system will dominate the weather in the area through the middle and end of the week. The temperatures will fall to the lowest temperatures since April of 2022, which is 20 to 30 degrees lower than the normal average.

Cold Weather Caused by Third Year of La Niña Winter

Despite the early cold weather, most experts aren’t predicting a severe winter, but that can vary intensely among areas. Part of the reason for the early chill is a dip south in the direction of the jet stream. La Niña Winter weather typically includes weather in some areas that feels like the Arctic, but it doesn’t usually mean extreme levels of snow.

Some areas almost always receive heavy snowfalls because of lake-effects in the Great Lake areas like Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois and others. It’s early in the season to make long-term predictions, but the Farmer’s Almanac predicts an unseasonably cold winter in Virginia and likewise in Texas, but Texas expects a normal level of precipitation. The almanac predicts warmer-than-normal weather for Florida and other southern states.

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