Did the Polar Vortex Cause the Recent Snow in Florida? We Ask the Experts
“Polar vortex” sounds cool. Like a “bomb tornado” or a “firenado”. It appears this phenomenon will result in a record-breaking blast of cold, snow, and frigid conditions reaching the Gulf Coast this week. The polar vortex is a real thing, but it’s probably not to blame for the extreme cold that typically rocks warmer parts of the country.
Unusual winter storms and frigid temperatures hit much of the United States from Texas to Florida. Snow and cold triggered flight cancellations as well as school, business and road closures. The National Weather Service issues its first-ever blizzard warning January 21, in some areas around Lake Charles, Louisiana. Snow reportedly falling in Houston Up to 6 inches.
NOAA’s Rave Satellite captured this view of the historic winter storm in the southern United States on January 21.
Alabama’s NWS Mobile Office releases Official snowfall measurements Tuesday afternoon’s 5.4 inches broke the one-day record of 5 inches set in 1881. Snow was still falling, reaching 7.5 inches that day. this NWS Social Media Team Description That’s “crazy.” Similar snowfall amounts were reported in nearby Pensacola, Florida. It’s only natural to look north to the cold Arctic for answers as to why the Gulf Coast plunges polar bears into such icy weather.
What is the polar vortex?
The polar vortex can ride on the jet stream and push cold air into the United States under certain conditions.
As the name suggests, the polar vortex is associated with our planet’s north and south poles. This is the area of lower pressure and cooler air on each rod.
“Forecasters check for the polar vortex by looking at conditions tens of thousands of feet high in the atmosphere; however, when we feel extremely cold air from the Arctic regions of the Earth’s surface, it is sometimes associated with the polar vortex,” NWS says in the interpreter.
The polar vortex can be connected to a bout of extreme cold in the United States, but the conditions have to be right. The polar vortex can expand and push southward along with the jet stream – a narrow stream of air that moves from west to east in the atmosphere. It is worth noting that Polar Vortex hit the US in 2019launching a batch of Star Wars Hoth to mock the cold.
Do polar vortices cause colds?
The Arctic explosion that caused Gulf Coast residents to shiver this week isn’t necessarily an example of an approaching polar vortex.
Amy Butler and Laura Ciasto run a polar vortex blog with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (noaacalimate.gov) website. the scientist Checked out the polar vortex last week Before the Arctic explosion. At that time, Butler and Ciasto discovered some potential stretching of the polar vortex. But there’s another factor.
“In addition, a strong ridge of high pressure building simultaneously near Alaska could also force the jet stream to dive south along the continental United States, bringing with it cold Arctic air that is not associated with the polar vortex,” Butler and Ciasto wrote.
one noooooooana video Shows what the ridge looks like:
Dive south in the cold Arctic air hanging out in Alaska.
“I think the excitement over Alaska is playing a bigger role in the cold air,” Ciasto told CNET. “The stratospheric polar vortex isn’t as stretched as it was last week, so the connections we pointed out in our last article are less important now. ”
NWS public affairs specialist and meteorologist Erica Grow Cei said that while the Gulf Coast felt the cold, Alaska experienced areas of high pressure and mild temperatures.
“This in turn displaces the Arctic air that normally sits in our northernmost states, and the Arctic air moves downward – southeastward toward the continental United States,” Grow Cei told CNET.
The polar vortex can be a powerful source of winter weather, but it’s not the only cause of severe cold and snow in a region known for warmth and sunshine. Gulf Coast states are still hauling away from the snow, but at least temperatures are getting warmer heading into the weekend.
