Effects of the Jet Stream & El Nino
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The weather stands as one of the phenomena of the natural world that has a great effect on human activity but which human beings seem to be incapable of affecting, or even predicting with any accuracy. In this age of satellites, space travel, and computer simulations, though, we learn more and more about how the weather is formed and about different natural forces related to the weather either as cause or effect. Among the forces being studied today for the effect they have on weather conditions are the jet stream high above and the condition known as El Nino found in the Pacific ocean. The two in concert have a profound effect on the weather in California and throughout the Pacific region, with other effects extending far beyond that immediate area. El Nino has been blamed both for massive rains and drought conditions in California, and recent evidence suggests that the condition lasts much longer than was previously suspected and that this might provide a means for improved weather prediction in the Western United States in the future. El Nino was named by the people of Peru, where every few years the people must endure changing weather conditions. Under normal circumstances, the trade winds blow west across the Pacific and push warm surface water toward the Philippines, which allows cool water to well up from the depths of the ocean off the coast of South America. This brings needed nutrients to the surface, supporting the Peruvian fishing ind
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the effect extended beyond California to produce what scientists have described as the worst natural catastrophe of the century. The condition disrupted normal weather patterns across three-quarters of the globe and brought record rainfall to normally arid regions even as it left parched lands where there is normally several feet of rain. This phenomenon damaged fish and bird populations on both sides of the Pacific and also caused some 1,500 deaths and between $2 billion and $8 billion in damage (p. A26).
By 1991, California had experienced five consecutive years of drought and was facing a sixth, and scientists were trying to explain it with reference to ocean currents, wind patterns, and even volcanic eruptions, but they were finding that theories that explained the problem in one year did nothing to explain it the next. An analysis of tree ring records suggested that drought is simply a part of California's normal climate. While prolonged droughts were relatively rare in past centuries, shorter and more severe dry spells of one to two years were common. The most easily identifiable culprit in the process is the jet stream, and in some years there was a strong ridge of high pressure over the West Coast that deflected the
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2650
Approximate Pages = 11 (250 words per page)
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