An american lesson

An american lesson

It is not where you live warming, it is global warming
As the American midwest freezes due to a polar vortex – a stream of very cold air that normally spins around the stratosphere over the North Pole – that is pushing south, President Donald Trump has once again taken to social media to mock global warming. Pointing to the fact that temperatures are registering record lows, he has cheekily called for global warming to return. Actually it remains common for people to see cold weather as evidence that global warming is a hoax. This points to continued confusion about the difference between climate and weather.

When Americans were experiencing bone-chilling temperatures on January 29, the world was actually 0.3°C warmer on average compared to a baseline from 1979 to 2000. Consider also that while many Americans are fearing getting frostbite in a matter of minutes, Australia is in the midst of a massive heat wave. Climate change sceptics slyly ignore global trends and point to local weather phenomena to buttress their view point. Not only is this disingenuous, it also detracts attention and resources from much needed climate change mitigation efforts.

Scientific data is unequivocal that global average temperatures continue to increase and in turn raise the frequency of freak weather phenomena. 2018 was the fourth hottest year on record and this year could beat that. Arctic sea ice continues to disappear at an alarming rate and sea-level rises are threatening island nations and low-lying areas. In India, 2018 was the sixth warmest year on record and all the six warmest years have come in the last decade. True, our understanding of climate change is still evolving. But that’s how all science works. We need to win over the sceptics and raise the public pressure for more effective mitigation policies.