Winnipeg Free Press

June 21, 2009

Big chill in Churchill

Winter grips 90 per cent of north, migratory birds can’t breed

By: Robert Alison

([1] Full Story)

It has been a long and cold spring in Alberta, but, as the indicated article shows, Alberta is not the only area of Canada that suffers from unusually cold weather.

The article by Robert Alison mentions: “Recent late springs in the Hudson Bay area have been more frequent than normal: 2004, 2002, 2000 and 1997,” and that the year 1983 provided another late spring.  However, the article asserts that, “Such major oscillations are part of a bumpy ride toward global warming,” and that, “People often confuse climate with weather, and this spring is a weather phenomenon,”…

Nevertheless, those assertions are illogical in view of the fact that the article identifies an increase in the frequency of late springs, with late springs having occurred in 1997, 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2009.  A late spring in 2009 is a weather phenomenon, but having late springs occur more often in the last decade is most definitely a climate phenomenon.  The climate is cooling.

Accurate temperature records have been taken through satellite observations since 1979.  Those records show a cooling trend in the Arctic.  As can be seen in [2] data from Environment Canada (See appended graphs), the cooling trend has been quite pronounced in the 2006 - 2009 interval.

Data source for graphs: [3] Environment Canada