Slashdot Mirror
Polar Vortex Sends Life-Threatening Freeze To US
Hugh Pickens DOT Com writes "Reuters reports that the Midwestern United States is shivering through the region's lowest temperatures in twenty years as forecasters warn that life-threatening cold is heading eastward as a polar vortex of freezing Arctic weather sweeps across the United States. 'The coldest temperatures in almost two decades will spread into the northern and central U.S. today behind an arctic cold front,' says the National Weather Service. 'Combined with gusty winds, these temperatures will result in life-threatening wind chill values as low as 60 degrees below zero (Fahrenheit/minus 51 degrees Celsius).' The coldest temperature reported in the lower 48 states on Sunday was minus 40 F (-40 C) in the towns of Babbitt and Embarrass, Minnesota. Meteorologists warn that the wind-chill factor could make it feel twice as cold, causing frostbite to exposed parts of the body within minutes. Eleven people have already died in weather-related incidents in the past week, including a 71-year-old woman with Alzheimer's who wandered from her home in upstate New York and was found frozen to death only 100m away. Polar vortexes occur seasonally at the North Pole, and their formation resembles that of hurricanes in more tropical regions: fast-moving winds build up around a calm center. Unlike a hurricane, these are frigid polar winds, circling the Arctic at more than 100 miles per hour. The spinning winds typically trap this cold air in the Arctic. But the problem comes when the polar vortex weakens or splits apart, essentially flinging these cold wind patterns out of the Arctic and into our backyards. 'All the ingredients are there for a near-record or historic cold outbreak,' says meteorologist Ryan Maue. 'If you're under 40, you've not seen this stuff before.'"
OMG! We're all going to die!
Crap... It was that stupid "The Day After Tomorrow" movie.
These comments are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of my employer or colleagues...
But how will our metric friends know what the temperature is if we report -40F? How will they ever tell?!
Someone, please, think of the pedants!
"Our goal each year should be to increase the number of goals we set for ourselves!"
People who aren't into sensationalism call this an Alberta clipper. It happens every year.
And people in Alberta call it "Late Autumn", and just wait for the next Chinook.
Get your SuperSoaker ready and snow your friends!
I am not interested in articles about life extension advancements.
LOL, why when we were kids we had it tough ... "House! You were lucky to live in a house! We used to live in one room, all twenty-six of us, no furniture, 'alf the floor was missing, and we were all 'uddled together in one corner for fear of falling."
And you try and tell the young people of today that ..... they won't believe you.
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
Years from now someone will look at this event from lightyears away, and from their telescopes on their planet with a planet wide climate control system, they will see this system and observe a small planet orbiting a star much like their own, with a lot of activity in the radio spectrum being emitted. However, they will dismiss this planet as having intelligent life as the weather patterns are too sporadic to be those from a planet which harbors a civilization; for those who have not yet controlled their planet are simply animals and nothing more.
Sig: I stole this sig.
40 below, yeah. But is that Celsius or Fahrenheit?
In Edmonton, where I come from, we would get one chinook a year.
Although most people just called it summer.
File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
Rubbish.
The Day after Tomorrow was released in 2004.
Please read my Canon EOS tech blog at http://www.everyothershot.com
Kelvin.
So we're all well and truly fucked.
There are two types of people in the world: Those who crave closure
Actually, C and F converge right at -40. That convergence is the cause of the whooshing sound you heard when replying to the previous poster.
All I can say is : Cool!
Damn! That's just cold, man...
Don't get all hot under the collar. You'll melt the ice caps faster.
"Breakin' rocks in the hot sun,
I fought the warm and warm won...
"Flyin' in just a sweet place,
Never been known to fail..."
Does that mean we're not safe from the White Walkers?
As an American I say: this is why I live farther south :)
We're not dead yet! I don't want to go on the cart!
John
What about the Rusty Trombone, or the Dirty Sanchez?
I cracked up at the "If you're under 40, you've not seen this stuff before" comment. I have a 4 year old nephew that plays outside in this weather. On the bright side, all those yuppies in the US who bought Canada Goose coats can finally justify their purchase.