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Though the weather is naturally extreme, over-the-top patterns like we observed this week (called “global weirding” by climate scientists) have become more common in recent decades, and have been linked to human-caused climate change. In particular, the loss of Arctic sea ice is thought to be significantly affecting the global atmospheric circulation. The Arctic Ocean is mostly covered in sea ice, but the increase in global temperatures since 1979 has led to an approximately one-third drop in summer sea ice coverage — and likely a 50% drop over the past century – because of a vicious cycle called Arctic amplification. A key part of this vicious cycle is that melting of ice reveals dark seawater underneath, which absorbs more sunlight and causes more warming.
As of Thursday, Feb. 23, Arctic sea ice was roughly tied at third-lowest for the date across the 43-year period of satellite observations.
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原文来源：https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2023/02/a-rare-blizzard-hits-california-as-summerlike-heat-roasts-the-eastern-u-s/
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