SOTT Earth Changes Summary - December 2023: Extreme Weather, Planetary Upheaval, Meteor Fireballs
- 4 months ago
As Solar Cycle 25 is about to reach an unexpected peak, we observe an increase in electrical phenomena such as air-spirals, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions.
A massive solar storm that nearly reached "X-class" status hit Earth on the first day of the month, causing some minor radio and internet disruptions worldwide. This was followed by one of the largest solar flares since 2017 on December 15, which temporarily knocked out radio communications on Earth, affecting even the higher frequencies.
"These impacts were felt from one end of the Nation to the other," said the NOAA.
The strong and persistent magnetic storms have also affected the ozone hole in the southern hemisphere, which remains unusually large for this time of year when it normally shrinks. It has remained at a size of about 15 km2 to become the third largest after November 30.
At the same time, record cold weather in the stratosphere produced polar clouds earlier and farther south than usual, with people from all over the Northern Hemisphere reporting or recording sightings. These are extraordinary excursions from the normal polar cloud habitat.
The season for polar clouds usually starts in January. The current cold wave has given the season an early start and could herald many more PSCs in the weeks ahead.
Furthermore, on December 25, BAM Weather reported that "A textbook sudden stratospheric warming event looks to be unfolding,"
"Sudden stratospheric warmings involve a rapid and dramatic rise in temperature — as much as 80 degrees Fahrenheit — within the polar stratosphere, together with a disruption in the stratospheric polar vortex. That disruption typically either splits the vortex or pushes it southward, along with associated Arctic air masses". And it's the splitting of the polar vortex that delivers the blast of Arctic air to the Lower 48 region.
[...]"It appears as if there could be a legitimate risk developing for a mid to late Jan major blast of Arctic air and stormy weather," BAMWX noted."
So get your big jacket ready.
In this regard, the Russian Academy of Sciences interviewed Andrey Fedotov, a top polar scientist whose studies predict a serious global cooling beginning in 2030-2035. According to Fedotov, "the warming is about to end" and "the Earth is about to enter an 'ice age.'
RAS: So the Ice Age has already arrived, but we haven't felt it yet?
Fedotov: No. When it comes, you will feel it immediately.
[...] RAS: And what should be done now? Prepare felt boots, warm clothes, heaters?
Fedotov: "I would start with food. Hungry-in felt boots won't last long.
A massive solar storm that nearly reached "X-class" status hit Earth on the first day of the month, causing some minor radio and internet disruptions worldwide. This was followed by one of the largest solar flares since 2017 on December 15, which temporarily knocked out radio communications on Earth, affecting even the higher frequencies.
"These impacts were felt from one end of the Nation to the other," said the NOAA.
The strong and persistent magnetic storms have also affected the ozone hole in the southern hemisphere, which remains unusually large for this time of year when it normally shrinks. It has remained at a size of about 15 km2 to become the third largest after November 30.
At the same time, record cold weather in the stratosphere produced polar clouds earlier and farther south than usual, with people from all over the Northern Hemisphere reporting or recording sightings. These are extraordinary excursions from the normal polar cloud habitat.
The season for polar clouds usually starts in January. The current cold wave has given the season an early start and could herald many more PSCs in the weeks ahead.
Furthermore, on December 25, BAM Weather reported that "A textbook sudden stratospheric warming event looks to be unfolding,"
"Sudden stratospheric warmings involve a rapid and dramatic rise in temperature — as much as 80 degrees Fahrenheit — within the polar stratosphere, together with a disruption in the stratospheric polar vortex. That disruption typically either splits the vortex or pushes it southward, along with associated Arctic air masses". And it's the splitting of the polar vortex that delivers the blast of Arctic air to the Lower 48 region.
[...]"It appears as if there could be a legitimate risk developing for a mid to late Jan major blast of Arctic air and stormy weather," BAMWX noted."
So get your big jacket ready.
In this regard, the Russian Academy of Sciences interviewed Andrey Fedotov, a top polar scientist whose studies predict a serious global cooling beginning in 2030-2035. According to Fedotov, "the warming is about to end" and "the Earth is about to enter an 'ice age.'
RAS: So the Ice Age has already arrived, but we haven't felt it yet?
Fedotov: No. When it comes, you will feel it immediately.
[...] RAS: And what should be done now? Prepare felt boots, warm clothes, heaters?
Fedotov: "I would start with food. Hungry-in felt boots won't last long.