Community Corner
Polar Vortex Brings Wild Temperature Swing
According to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, melting sea ice in the Arctic Ocean is contributing to the frigid temperatures that struck us this week. Do you have a Falmouth-area photo to share? Post it on Patch!
How low did the temperature get at your place Tuesday? in Woods Hole, Beth Colt snapped this photo and posted it on Patch, noting "Polar Vortex brings 40 degree temperature swing."
On Facebook, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) had this to say about the phenomenon:
"Sea ice is vanishing from the Arctic Ocean, leaving behind dark open ocean water, which absorbs more of the heat from the sun than reflective ice. That in turn is helping warm the Arctic faster than the rest of the planet and possibly causing the jet stream—the belt of fast-flowing, westerly winds that serves as the boundary between cold northern air and warmer southern air—to weaken, which makes it more likely that cold Arctic air will flow southward."
More Falmouth photos and a video:
- Snow Boats
- Woods Hole Sunshine
- After the Storm
- Social Media During the Snow Storm
- Watch The Snow Fall in Woods Hole
