Chris Van Note wrote to The Citizen on Feb. 19 with concerns that regional cooling might contradict global warming.

In response: Scattered areas of regional surface cooling do not disprove the three-decade long accelerating rise in global average surface temperature.

As an example, in the southern hemisphere the circumpolar belt around Antarctica is cooler than might be expected with a global warming trend.

This apparent contradiction

is resolved by considering that

with increased absorption of

solar radiation in the equatorial region.

There is increased heat transport from the equator to poles, with increased wind speeds in general and increased circumpolar wind speeds in particular.

The increased circumpolar wind causes increased “Ekman” pumping of cooler water from the deep ocean, a well-accepted physical phenomenon stemming from the Coriolis force.

The cooler water from the deep cools the surface, bringing down the temperature readings for the circumpolar belt around Antarctica.

While the surface gets cooler, the deep ocean gets warmer.

The apparent contradiction with the global warming trend arose because the summary global measurements and average are for the surface.

Areas of regional surface cooling elsewhere in the world are similarly caused by circulatory phenomena in the air or water, and compensated by increased warming away from the surface or in other regions.

The overall effect at the surface of the Earth is summarized in the accelerating rise in global average surface temperature.

Sylvester Johnson

Brooktondale

Johnson, Ph.D. Applied Physics, can be

contacted through his non-profit Web site www.climatehealth.net