A warmer world is expected to bring more thunderstorms, especially at higher latitudes.
A warmer world is expected to bring more thunderstorms, especially at higher latitudes. Scientists are now reporting a dramatic surge in lightning in the Far North and are scrambling to parse how this could affect wildfires, the chemistry of the atmosphere, and Arctic ecosystems.
In August 2019, something bizarre happened in the Far North: A massive thunderstorm produced more than a thousand flashes of lightning, including a record-breaking bolt that hit just 32 miles from the North Pole, the closest strike ever recorded. “It was a crazy summer,” says Rick Thoman, a climatologist with the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
It’s common knowledge that thunderstorms and lightning are more likely when it’s hot than when it’s cold; they are more prevalent in the tropics than in the Arctic. So, scientists wondered: Was the Arctic becoming more electric in our warming world, and if so, what impacts would that have?
In general, a warmer world is expected to be a stormier world. But the precise impacts that climate change will have on thunderstorms and lightning remain a matter of scientific debate. Getting a handle on this is important for a host of reasons. Globally, tens of thousands of people die each year from lightning strikes. Lightning sparks chemical reactions in the atmosphere that can either exacerbate or counteract air pollution and climate change, with surprisingly powerful impacts on planet-warming methane. And, of course, lightning strikes are a significant cause of wildfires, which can devastate landscapes and release planet-warming carbon into the air.
Read more at Yale Environment 360
Photo Credit: Umkreisel-App via Pixabay
