Thirty years of shrinking Arctic sea ice has boosted extreme summer weather, including heat waves and drought, in the United States and elsewhere, according to a study published on December 8thThe new study — based on satellite tracking of sea ice, snow cover and weather trends since 1979 links the Arctic's warming climate to shifting weather patterns in the Northern Hemisp"The results of our new study provide further support and evidence for rapid Arctic warming contributing to the observed increased frequency and intensity of heat waves," said study co-author Jennifer Francis, an atmospheric scientist at Rutgers University.Scientific opinion is still divided on whether the rollicking jet stream is truly linked to climate change or may simply be the result of natural variability, according to a commentary also published today in Nature Climate Change by James Overland, a climate scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Seattle. Part of the problem comes from the paucity of data, because scientists have only 30 years of Arctic observations to use in their analysis.
"Skeptics remain unconvinced that Arctic/midlatitude linkages are proven, and this work will do little to change their viewpoint," Overland wrote. "There is insufficient data to formally resolve the debate on whether these events are purely random or if their occurrence is enhanced by Arctic changes."
However, "the potential for an Arctic influence remains high, given the outlook for further declines in summer sea ice and snow cover over the next few decades, and Arctic amplification of global temperatures," Overland added. "Expected responses from Arctic impacts may be emerging."
