Early last week, a massive winter storm swept across southern and central parts of the United States, leaving millions of people struggling to find power or water amid sub-zero temperatures. Temperatures in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast plummeted, before snow blanketed these areas too Feb. 18. The cause behind these temperature dips is the sliding of the polar vortex from the North Pole into the US.
A polar vortex is an enormous circular upper-air weather pattern in the Arctic that encompasses the North Pole. A jet stream borders the polar vortex and keeps it in place. However, sometimes, part of the vortex can break off and move south, bringing unusually cold temperatures in the U.S., Europe and Asia.
The National Weather Service said that at least 150 million Americans are under ice or winter weather advisories. States that are not used to low temperatures were largely unprepared for this polar vortex. Texas has had power and water cut off its residents all last week due to the pipes freezing over. Texans have had to go to stores and warming centers to avoid freezing in their dark houses.
Meteorologist with the National Weather Service in State College, Pa. Charles Ross expressed his shock, saying, “It’s snowing in Houston and it’s going to be raining in Pennsylvania. When does that ever happen?”
The night of Feb. 17, the snowstorm reached Elizabethtown College, leading to the closing of campus for non-essential services Thursday and Friday morning. This led to a disruption for many classes, some of which were preparing to have their first in-person sessions.
Secretary for the class of 2024 Gabryel Sewell said, “It has been a struggle. The snowstorm came just when the snow had started to melt, and we all thought spring was right around the corner. This also makes navigating classes more difficult. A lot of my friends had their first in-person lab classes for the semester prepared, but their professors were forced to cancel.”
As of Feb. 20, the polar vortex storm has come to a gradual end. However, an active winter weather pattern is expected to continue into the week after. The good news is that this is not expected to be a major winter storm.
This upcoming storm will push into central U.S. early next week before tracking eastward into the Midwest and into the Northeast. Between 1-5 inches of snow is expected with temperatures remaining between 30 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
With that being said, we should not sweep this event under the rug now that we are being told that the worst is behind, for the worst might soon become the norm if we do not act soon.
A NY Times article warned that, “as climate change accelerates, many electric grids will face extreme weather events that go far beyond the historical conditions those systems were designed for, putting them at risk of catastrophic failure.”
Director of seasonal forecasting at Atmospheric and Environmental Research Judah Cohen said in the Washington Post that, “Climate change has increased the frequency with which the polar vortex weakens and allows the cold air to run amok.”
When the polar vortex jet stream weakens, it can no longer push massive weather patterns out of the way, so the cold air travels south and causes snowstorms similar to the ones we have seen. The key point here is that not only will it increase in frequency but also intensity.
Senior communications major Emma Pile said that this was, “A wake-up call because we have been warned and told many times that climate change is real, and we continue to not listen and do nothing as a society. We have had multiple warnings, such as the fires in Australia, and we chose to turn a blind eye.”
U.S. President Joe Biden rejoined the Paris Climate Agreement Feb. 19, but this is far from enough. If we continue to do nothing, snowstorms are going to ravage the country, and we will not be able to handle it. We are unprepared, and we will never be prepared. The only way to stop this is to prevent it from happening.
