The Effects of Global "Weirding" on Winter Weather

Central Vermont. Credit: Alyssa Julia Photo

Welcome back to Climatific, a free, weekly read that breaks down climate science so it makes sense- not for scientists or researchers, but for everyday people trying to understand the planet we live on, what’s happening to it, and why it matters.

A few weeks ago, slippery driving conditions paired with my mediocre winter weather driving skills spun me and my 2005 sedan sideways off a highway exit.

I was lucky enough to have help from a stranger (shoutout Jim!) who pulled over and helped me reorient my car while I directed traffic off the exit. He happened to own a sandwich shop nearby, so I followed him to the shop and helped Jim and the line cook, Henry, finish up their morning prep as I waited for my ride.

Over sandwich rolls and sizzling steak, they asked me about my education and my career, and I got a solid belly laugh from both of them when I told them: climate policy.

“You do climate policy and you just got stuck in the snow!”

While I decided it wasn’t the time to pull out the soapbox then, it was the brainchild for this week’s issue. So, here goes: why cold weather does not disprove climate change, and actually, in some cases, is further evidence for it. (Thanks, Jim and Henry. 🙂)

If you’re new around here, catch up on past issues of Climatific and learn more about who we are here:

Take me to Climatific’s website!

🌎Out With Global Warming, in With Climate Change

You’ll be hard-pressed to hear a climate scientist tie a particular weather event to climate change. This is because there are so many pieces to the climate puzzle (e.g., temperature, precipitation, atmospheric pressure, wind, humidity- you get the idea) and isolating enough of them to conclude ‘This storm was caused completely by climate change’ is very, very difficult.

What climate scientists can say much more confidently, though, is that climate change is having a real, measurable influence on weather patterns across the board and even particular events (like Hurricane Helene!). And, by ‘influence,’ we mean a variety of things- more flooding, more drought, windier, hotter, more frequent, and/or more severe. Or, yes, even colder.

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Having a Britney Spears moment?

We get it. Your whole life, you’ve been told that global warming means the Earth is getting warmer, right? We’ve preached it here on Climatific, too!

Gif by redtabletalk on Giphy

Your life—well, your climate knowledge, at least—is not a lie!

Our issue on the impacts of climate change on wind provides a really good basis for the impacts of rising temperatures on the volatility of the atmosphere. If you’ve read that, this will be a breeze for you (the puns live on).

If you haven’t, no sweat (or chill?)! Here’s the main idea:

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Global warming means that we are experiencing a net increase in average global temperature. Its impacts, however, present themselves in terms of temperature extremes on both ends of the spectrum- extremely hot AND extremely cold.

Climate change is causing warmer winter temperatures overall, but more severe winter weather events when they do occur.

This is why, today, we largely refer to global warming as ‘climate change.’ It’s more scientifically representative of what we’re experiencing.

Or, as Canadian-born climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe calls it: ‘global weirding.’

So, let’s get weird.

At the same time those in the Northeast and across the Midwest are being slammed by January’s back-to-back Snowmageddon weekends, a choir of ski resorts out West are going through their own “Dry January.” But not the kind that involves wine. States like Colorado and Utah have reported their lowest snowpacks in recorded history and, across the Western states, record-high temperatures have resulted in “snow droughts.”
In 2023, Mount Washington in New Hampshire broke the national wind chill record. After the warmest years on record, Mount Washington experienced a record wind chill of -108 degrees Fahrenheit, with an actual temperature of -47 degrees Fahrenheit and a wind speed of 89 mph.
In 2021, Winter Storm Uri dumped prolonged subfreezing temperatures and snow on Texas and much of the South, overwhelming the states’ energy infrastructure and causing more than a billion dollars’ worth of damage.

All of this is why scientists have switched to using “climate change” over “global warming.” Global warming is a piece of the larger puzzle of how our planet’s climate is changing. Yes, the glaciers are melting and temperatures are getting warmer overall; but climate change also includes disruptions to the polar vortex (basically a powerful river of air around the North Pole) that causes cold outbreaks in parts of the world that don’t typically experience them.

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Hence why we can have Dry January (warmer winter temperatures) and Snowmageddon (more severe winter weather events) at same time and for the same reason.

🌎 Double it and Give it to the Next Person

We’re reaching that point in the winter… If you haven’t already, you’re bound to hear some rendition of “What you do mean ‘climate change’? Did you see all that snow?” soon.

Share your newfound knowledge! Tell them:

Climate change means that the Earth’s average global temperature is warming.
Excess greenhouse gas emissions add energy to the Earth’s atmosphere, which can increase the severity of winter weather events.
Extreme winter weather events often actually provide further evidence of climate change, not contradict it.

More moved by numbers? Try these:

3.9 degrees Fahrenheit. The average increase in winter temperatures between 1970 and 2025 in 98% of the 244 cities studied.
4% more per 1 degree Fahrenheit. A warmer atmosphere holds more moisture—about 4% more per 1 degree Fahrenheit increase—which causes heavier and higher-volume snowfall.
$120 billion. The total damage caused by the 30 billion-dollar disasters from major cold spells and winter storms over the past forty years.

🌎 In the Forecast

Did you know the Winter Olympics start in three days?!

Did you also know that, by 2050, only about half of the 93 previously considered suitable host locations are anticipated to remain viable?

Next week, we’ll explain why this is and dive into the details of what this has meant for the Olympic planning committee so far, and what it will mean as we look forward to future Olympic Games.