On Tuesday, February 13th, students slept in, went sledding, and didn’t feel any particular need to do anything resembling homework. But for most of them, this was the first snow day in four years. This past winter in particular has brought very little snow. But why- and can we expect this trend to continue?
There are a few reasons for the snow deficiency. First, the winter of 2023-24 is what’s known as an “El Niño” winter. There are two jet streams that bring air temperature across the U.S, and when the polar jet stream reaches farther east than usual, tropical temperatures make it closer to the east coast, resulting in an El Niño. Accordingly, what would be coming down from the clouds in the form of snow mostly ends up as rain. Additionally, lack of snow compounds on itself with a phenomenon known as snowpack; the presence of snow makes the ground colder, meaning that future snow won’t melt as soon as it lands. A lack of snow makes it less likely that new snow sticks instead of melting.
Although the city wasn’t entirely devoid of snow before Feb. 13th, January 16th marked the first time the city received over an inch of snow in 701 days, the longest snow drought in city records. Heschel science teacher Suzy Vogel explained that although this current snow drought may not be caused exclusively by climate change, there seems to be a consensus among scientists that the gradual increase in global temperatures will eventually lead to less and less snowfall on the planet. What can we do to help? Suzy had a few suggestions, saying, “Small changes you make in your own lifestyle can’t hurt. If we all made these changes, things would get better – changes such as driving hybrid or electric cars to limit exhaust emissions and buying power from renewable sources if given the option. But just be out there contributing to the community of science-minded people who accept that climate change is real and vote for representatives who say they will do something about it. US Carbon dioxide emissions actually have decreased over the last 15 years or so. But not by enough.” The age of snow days, at least in NYC, could very well be coming to a close.
