Posted by caraher on March 25, 2008, at 17:56:20
In reply to Re: So Many Weather Symtoms Hot and Cold in USA » Phillipa, posted by Larry Hoover on March 24, 2008, at 16:48:05
And to add to the complications, there can be local changes to a cooler climate as a result of overall warming. Part of what keeps western Europe reasonably warm is the "Gulf Stream" ocean current. Warm water crosses the Atlantic from west to east, where it cools, sinks deep and returns. The salinity of salt water apparently helps keep this "conveyor belt" running.
One result of the melting of Arctic ice might be to interrupt this process. Europe could then cool considerably. (A simple and instructive exercise is to compare the latitudes of North American cities you would consider "cold" and find European cities at similar latitudes. I was startled when I first noticed that Detroit is at roughly the same latitude as Rome!)
poster:caraher
thread:819682
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20080303/msgs/819867.html