Global Warming

Are you worried about global warming? I am, but not in a panicky sort of way. Global warming isn't something that you will wake up in the morning and say "Hey, it sure is hot." It's a slow, creeping problem. That's why it's so easy to just ignore. Most people think global warming just means it's going to get a little hotter. Big deal. People live in hot climates all over the world. Besides, scientists can't even agree if it is really happening or not, so why worry? There are a few signs that the world is heating up.

For starters, polar icecaps are melting, sending huge icebergs out into the oceans. No big deal, unless you are a sailor and might run into one of the icebergs, right? Well, the amount of ice cold fresh water pouring into the Atlantic sinks under the warmer salt water. This could affect the path of the warm ocean current that right now flows up the Atlantic coast, crosses the ocean, and then swings by Europe. Without the warmth from the ocean, the coasts of America and Europe would get colder. An ironic twist to global warming. Changing the salinity, temperature, and direction of the water's flow could interfere with the basic biology of the ocean. Fertile fishing grounds might turn into ghost towns. Migrating animals could get lost and end up dying out. Another problem that everybody talks about with global warming is the rise in the sea level. Cities that are close to sea level, like New Orleans and Venice, might have a lot of problems.

Then there are more subtle effects. In the arctic they depend on the layer of permafrost in construction projects, from roads to supermarkets. Usually, the permafrost layer is, well, permanent. That's how it got it's name after all. Now, the permafrost layer is starting to melt. No big problem, unless your house is sinking into the ground, or enormous chunks of the highway near you are shifting like they were built on quicksand. Just fixing the roads in Alaska and Canada will cost tons. Plus, without the permafrost layer, what is there to use for stability if you want to build anything up there? The ground is a soggy, boggy mess.

Also, the change in the temperature is letting animals and plants expand their territory. Not bad, if that means you can suddenly see hummingbirds or some exotic orchid in your back yard. Bad, if that means all of a sudden you get attacked by mosquitos that weren't able to live in your area just a few years ago. There are diseases that are being spread to areas that had never had problems because the animal that transmits the disease is suddenly able to expand it's territory farther north, or higher up the sides of mountain ranges. I remember reading that armadillos are being spotted in Missouri, where before the cold winters would have killed them off. Some mountain peaks that are usually covered in snow are loosing their pretty white cap, which is bad if only because they look so pretty with all that fluffy white snow on top.

There is another subtle sign that global warming has started. The average daily temperature swings up and down, heating up when the sun shines and cooling off at night. A scientist looked at the average temperatures, and noticed that even though the day time high temperatures weren't raising all that much, the night time low temperatures were rising. So it isn't getting much hotter in the day time, but it isn't cooling off as much at night. I don't remember exactly how that is a problem, I just remember hearing it on NPR. People always pay too much attention to the high temperature. "How hot will it get today? It's hotter today than it was yesterday." Nobody ever says "Boy, it sure stayed warm last night, didn't it?"

Now after writing all that, you might notice that I didn't scream the sky is falling or anything. I used a lot of mights and maybes. I don't know what the final effect will be. Maybe it will be gradual enough for the ecosystems to adapt, and the whole thing will turn out to be a big yawn. I just don't understand why people say it can't happen, when there are all these signs that it has actually already started. Maybe it won't be a total catastrophe, but it is happening. The real question should be can we do anything about it, or how can we adjust, not is it real or make believe.