In 2021, a disastrous winter weather onslaught over the central U.S. brought heavy snow, freezing rain, and severe cold to Texas and surrounding states February 12-20, killing 246 people and causing $23 billion in damage. Dubbed the Texas “Snowpocalypse,” when all was said and done, the storm turned out to be the most expensive winter weather disaster in U.S. history (previous record: $10.1 billion in 2021 dollars from the 1993 “Storm of the Century” in the eastern U.S.). Globally, the only costlier winter weather disaster was a $26 billion event in 2008 in China.
Extreme cold has become less common as a result of global warming, so it’s reasonable to expect that disasters of this nature are growing less likely. As documented by meteorologist Guy Walton, record high maximum temperatures outpaced record low minimum temperatures by a ratio of nearly three to one in the U.S. in 2021.
Climate scientist Judah Cohen led a 2021 study demonstrating that the 2021 Texas freeze was a result of a stratospheric polar vortex disruption where it stretched like a rubber band or taffy. For the months of October through February, these stretched polar vortex events have roughly doubled since 1980. The increase has been attributed to reduced Arctic sea ice and increased snowfall across Siberia during the fall months – largely from human-caused climate change.
—
Photo Credit: Marouanesitti / Shutterstock.com