Antarctica is experiencing some unseasonably warm weather during the winter, which may have nothing to do with climate change.
While overall temperatures remain below freezing, July temperatures in the eastern part of the continent were 50 degrees Fahrenheit (28 degrees Celsius) above average. Antarctic climate analyst Stefano Di Battista said on degree (6 degrees Celsius) or above.
Italian meteorologist Giulio Betti explained that the mild temperatures in the center of the continent contrasted with the unusually cold conditions along the coast. This strange situation is caused by unusual atmospheric phenomena in the area.
“Antarctica has been well above average for several days, but this time it has nothing to do with climate change,” he wrote on .
Temperatures in Antarctica have been well above average for days, but this time it has nothing to do with climate change. The reason is that rare stratospheric warming (SSW) weakens the Antarctic circulation, favoring strong downward compression. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/gBZwR6Y6PF
— Giulio Betti (@Giulio_Firenze) August 1, 2024
Betty added that while this type of stratospheric warming is common over the Arctic, it rarely occurs over the Antarctic.
The average temperature at one Antarctic research station between July 20 and 30 was -54 degrees Fahrenheit (-47.6 degrees Celsius), which would be normal weather for the region in late summer.
“What makes this heat wave on the Antarctic plateau unusual is its duration is more important than its intensity, although there are some values that are worth noting,” DiBattista told reporters. Washington post.
The unseasonably warm weather comes two years after a record-breaking Antarctic heatwave that saw an ice shelf the size of Hong Kong “completely collapse”. It also hit in a global heat wave, with the record for the hottest day broken twice.
Zeke Hausfather, a research scientist at Berkeley Earth, tells us protector Antarctica’s warm temperatures are a major contributor to global temperatures.
“Antarctica as a whole has been warming along with the world over the past 50, maybe even 150 years, so any heat wave starts from an elevated baseline,” he said. “But it’s safe to say that most of last month’s spike was Driven by heat waves.”
