# Why it's so cold this winter **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 11, 2010, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514 "2010-01-11T15:40:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2010, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/1 "2010-01-11T15:40:12Z")
[This New York Times article](http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/weekinreview/10chang.html?hpw) blames Greenland. A high pressure system over Greenland is pushing cold Arctic air further south. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2010, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/2 "2010-01-11T16:01:08Z")
Meanwhile, it’s a balmy 54ºF here in the PNW. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2010, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/3 "2010-01-11T16:51:33Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Meanwhile, it’s a balmy 54ºF here in the PNW. 😃 And [Darlingtonia californica](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darlingtonia_californica) to boot. I hate you. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2010, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/4 "2010-01-11T17:00:18Z")
Our temperature has only gone down to -2 F in central Wisconsin. That’s at least 20 degrees warmer than our really cold weather and is in fact normal weather for here. We’ve also been cold for less than 2 months now, with normal cold weather being delayed for a couple months. What do you mean this winter is so cold? It’s been normal winter weather when it finally started. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2010, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/5 "2010-01-11T17:13:28Z")
So it’s Greenland’s fault? It’s going to go from 70 and sunny today to 61 and rainy on Wednesday, then it’s only going to go back up to 67 on Thursday. Stupid Greenland. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/6 "2010-01-12T00:57:47Z")
Nature abhors a vacuum. That’s why there’s a heatwave in southern Australia . . . they sucked all the heat from their antipode. ---
**Author:** ![Mandiola9](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b77776/32.png) [@Mandiola9](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mandiola9)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/7 "2010-01-12T01:09:39Z")
I think blaming Greenland is a better idea, I have been blaming Canada previously. I am in Central Florida and we had “SNOW” last weekend, my pipes froze over twice already and it was 25 f’n degrees this morning when I woke up. We are just not equipped for this crap! ☹ ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/8 "2010-01-12T01:49:05Z")
> [@Mandiola9](#): > > I think blaming Greenland is a better idea, I have been blaming Canada previously. So, what are we going to do to them? We’ve been regularly beating up Canada and stealing their lunch money left and right. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Mindfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mindfield/32/19759_2.png) [@Mindfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mindfield)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/9 "2010-01-12T02:24:41Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > So, what are we going to do to them? > We’ve been regularly beating up Canada and stealing their lunch money left and right. > 🙂 Perhaps, but we’ve secretly been pissing in your beer. Not that you’ve been able to tell the difference with some of your brands. 😃 Here in southern Ontario, we haven’t been getting it that bad – pretty moderate temperatures actually, and not much in the way of snow so far, and next week looks like it’ll be milder still, with temps sneaking just above freezing for a day or two. Kind of surprising, really, given the nasty weather that’s hit everywhere else on this side of the globe. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/10 "2010-01-12T02:37:19Z")
Its Global Warming. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Shroud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/439d5e/32.png) [@The\_Shroud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Shroud)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/11 "2010-01-12T03:28:10Z")
For some reason, I remember it being colder in New York last Winter; when I did the New Year’s Eve run it was under 10 degrees. This year I don’t think it’s gone below 16. And it’s mostly been in the 20s. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/12 "2010-01-12T03:35:38Z")
> [@Mindfield](#): > > Perhaps, but we’ve secretly been pissing in your beer. Not that you’ve been able to tell the difference with some of your brands. 😃 Dear God, no wonder I started drinking wine. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/13 "2010-01-12T04:06:39Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Its Global Warming. Actually, it’s more accurately termed “weather”. Unless you’re my Mom’s neighbor, who apparently cannot tell the difference between the global climate, and the temperature in his back yard yesterday. (and writes inane letters to the editor based on this) In other news, I’m in Canada, and it’s currently gone up to 13 degrees C (55 F) at 8:00 pm ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/14 "2010-01-12T04:12:24Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > Actually, it’s more accurately termed “weather”. I believe the deal with global warming is that warming in one area causes changes in other areas. I’ve had the water garden since the 1980’s and have never seen an inch of ice on them in Arkansas. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/15 "2010-01-12T06:17:34Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > I believe the deal with global warming is that warming in one area causes changes in other areas. > I’ve had the water garden since the 1980’s and have never seen an inch of ice on them in Arkansas. Indeed, that’s why the term “global warming” is not used as much - it was confusing. “global climate change” is more accurate. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/16 "2010-01-12T08:24:55Z")
It’s been damn hot here in Southern California. Have had temps in the upper 70s and even into the 80s since winter started. Couple that with direct sunlight and the greenhouse effect (on my car and apartment, not globally) and I’ve been running the A/C regularly. Hell, I’ve got my desktop fan on right now and it’s the middle of the night, but still a little warm in my apartment. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/17 "2010-01-12T14:30:56Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Its Global Warming. The article addresses that, actually: > [@](#): > > What does seem clear is that these oscillations have nothing to do with global warming, or, for that matter, global cooling. For one, they’re not new. And this winter’s cold has not been global. Santa, by North Pole standards, has been experiencing a balmy winter. > > “Pretty much all of the Arctic is above normal,” said Dr. Walter Meier of the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, Colo. In some areas, the temperatures are as much as 15 degrees Fahrenheit above normal. > > In terms of global average temperature, this winter’s arctic oscillation “probably roughly cancels out,” Dr. Meier said. (In fact, last year ranked as the fifth-warmest year on record since 1850, the United Kingdom’s Met Office says.) ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/18 "2010-01-12T16:18:59Z")
[Another article on the Greenland Block, with illustrations.](http://www.weather.com/outlook/weather-news/news/articles/why-so-cold-greenland-block_2010-01-11) ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2010, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-its-so-cold-this-winter/524514/19 "2010-01-12T17:05:53Z")
AKA a classic [Omega block](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omega_block#Omega_blocks).