By the next century, summers could last half a year

Hello friends, I have come across this interesting study that informs us of an alarming panorama, as we already know, climate change is already causing irregularities in the beginning of the seasons and in their duration, and if this reality is not reversed, the projections of a group of scientists point out that by 2100 summers will last six months while winters will only last two in the northern hemisphere, something that would wreak havoc on nature.

We may soon have longer and hotter summers. Inage credit: pixabay.com.

There is a growing body of data that accounts for how climate change is affecting the seasons regionally, but until now there has been no hemispheric-scale view of how global warming has affected the four seasons in the past and in the future. But according to a new study, recently published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, it has been shown that if the effects of global warming are not reversed, we will have longer summers and shorter winters in the northern hemisphere, accompanied by shorter springs and autumns.

The research used data on average daily temperatures between 1952 and 2011, provided by the Hadley Centre of the UK Met Office, to measure the changes and extent of the four seasons in the northern hemisphere during this time interval. For the study, the beginning of summer was defined as when the average temperature begins to fall between the hottest 25% of days, and the beginning of winter was defined as when the average temperature begins to fall between the coldest 25% of days. And the end of each season when that same threshold is exceeded. Mathematical climate models were then used to predict how the seasons would change in the future.

Projections

According to the data, in 1952 the summer lasted 78 days, and gradually increased to 95 days in 2011. On the other hand, winters lasted 76 days between 1952 and 1953, and shortened to 73 days in the 2011-2012 season. The researchers' hypothesis is that, if the current rate continues and climate change is not reversed, summer could last 4 months in 2050 and six months by 2100; and winters would take less than two months.

Summers will become longer and winters shorter. Image by @emiliomoron with research data and a public domain image.

These changes bring with them profound alterations, while spring and summer will begin earlier, autumn and winter will begin much later, with the most significant changes occurring in the Mediterranean region.

The consequences

These drastic changes can trigger serious environmental consequences, birds would change their migration pattern and plants would bloom at different times, which can create serious mismatches between animals and their food sources, which would undoubtedly affect various ecosystems.

And not only in animals, we must consider the effects that these alterations would have on agriculture, planting and harvesting patterns would be modified each time, if not false springs or late snowfalls damage crops. It would even have direct effects on people's health, with longer and hotter summers, mosquitoes and other disease-carrying vectors can expand their range; longer flowering periods would also prolong the allergy season in many people, due to the pollen they breathe.

As we see friends, the effects of climate change are gradually being felt today, perhaps that is why they may go unnoticed by the vast majority, adjusting us to a strange climatic normality, but if immediate actions are not taken to slow down and reverse climate change, in 100 years we will not be able to recognize this planet, and these data and predictions should set off all the alarms and accelerate initiatives that allow us to limit and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

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Thanks for coming by to read friends, I hope you liked the information. See you next time.

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