It’s almost November and people everywhere are wondering one thing -- why is it still warm this far into fall?
Here’s the science behind this never-ending summer.
The Jetstream is a good place to start. The Jetstream is a section of wind up in the atmosphere that separates Canada’s cool air from ours down here in the south. When it drops down here to the south (like below Massachusetts), we experience colder temperatures. Right now, however, it is staying well to the north, leaving us unseasonably toasty.
A bigger, more pressing factor is climate change. In brief, El Niño is a phenomenon that causes some parts of the world to be unusually warm and sometimes causes storming in others. This heating is due to trade winds over the Pacific Ocean (which are supposed to cool everything down) suddenly stop. While we can’t stop El Niño, we can affect the climate change that is making El Niño’s effects so much more intense. Some ways to help climate change from home are:
- Flying less (to reduce your carbon footprint)
- Using renewable power
- Being energy efficient (such as turning off lights when you’re not using them and choosing LED lights when possible)
