It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, alright. Even in Hawaii, which just received warning of a blizzard. But no, climate-change deniers; this doesn’t disprove global warming. Instead, it only proves it.
Heavy snow and high winds are expected to strike the summits of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa through the nighttime hours of Christmas Eve, the National Weather Service says. At 8:55 p.m. EST (and 3:55 p.m. Hawaiian time), NWS announced:
?Developing low pressure aloft to the west of the big island will continue to draw deep? moisture over the summits tonight, leading to periods of heavy snow and low visibility on the high summits. Winds have been slow to increase but will straighten rapidly overnight. While snow chances will diminish on Wednesday, very strong winds will continue, possibly through Wednesday night. [?] Impacts?extremely hazardous and potentially life-threatening conditions for anyone attempting to drive or hike the summits.?
In the summit areas, temperatures will drop to the upper 20s and lower 30s Fahrenheit, and southbound winds from 45 to 65 mph will occasionally gust to 90 mph. The warning remains in effect until 6 p.m. Hawaii time on Wednesday, NWS says. While the snow and winds will affect the areas of higher elevation most, a temporary flood advisory was issued for lower-altitude Maui, as well.
Despite its tropical environs, snow is common at the top of Hawaii’s mountain peaks simply due to their elevation. Blizzards in those mountains are rare ? but have increased in frequency in recent years. In Jan. 2014, for example, a New York tourist had to be rescued from a blizzard while hiking.
And why does this blizzard confirm global warming instead of disprove it? Because the current cycle of climate change is what actually caused the heavy snow and wind about to strike Hawaii, that’s why.
According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, increased carbon dioxide emissions trap heat in the immediately surrounding atmosphere. The resultant warmer temperatures then affect the snow and icebergs in the Arctic; when they melt, that trapped heat also traps the moisture released from the melted snow and ice. When that cold air circulates over the now-warmer ocean water of the Pacific, it creates even more moisture from that temperature contrast. That then creates storms that have above-average energy and moisture, which then produces above-average snow distributed at above-average wind speeds.
But will a White Christmas in Hawaii convince enough global-warming and climate-change deniers? Don’t bank on it.
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