It does seem that every time some earnest group puts out a report on the dangers of global warming, there’s a big snowfall somewhere the next day.
Turns out, there’s an explanation for the seemingly regular appearance of once-in-50-year storms, one that, like most things having to do with climate change, is slightly ominous.
Experts say that long-term we are likely to see more giant blizzards but less snow overall, and the reason is that a warmer atmosphere can hold more water, meaning more monsoon-like rains in the summer and more blizzards in the winter.
The Associated Press says a forthcoming study documents that there were twice as many extreme snowstorms in the past 50 years than in the 60 years before that.
Americans now on Social Security have to be somewhat disillusioned. Their parents’ stories of enduring worse winters and regularly trudging to school through 18 inches of snow are statistically bunk.
People in snowy climes used to debate whether they would like the snow evenly distributed over the three months of winter or get it over with all at once, even if it meant school closings, treacherous commutes and endless shoveling.
Mother Nature has apparently made that choice for us.