Opinion Sur Joven

It’s burning hot. The sun blazes down on our faces and we can’t stand humidity. On April 19th, the thermometer indicates 96 degrees in Buenos Aires, and wind chill factor reaches 37. In Rosario, 95 degrees. In La Plata, 93. And we’re in the fall.

The National Weather Service justified the summer temperatures in the wrong month by the presence of a warm and humid subtropical air mass from the North, and they warned that we’ve already been through this type of heat in the fall. The weather is also acting weird when it comes to rain, given that total rainfall set a new record (for example, it rained on 18 days out of the 31 days of March.) See editorial of Opinión Sur Joven No. 13

Although in the past there have been heat waves on April, summer-like days, maximum temperatures and the global warming context make this year a special one. Deeper awareness of global warming and fear for these exceptional temperatures becoming a regular phenomenon have brought worries and complaints in many of those who live in this region.

20 years later

Eduardo Piacentini is a college professor and the Global Change Department director in the National Weather Service. Opinión Sur Joven asked him about the phenomenon. "It was the second historical temperature peak over a century. The previous mark was set in 1988 with 97.7 degrees", he says, and he points out that "it’s an exceptional case standing out from the 22 degrees average temperature of April".

Piacentini explains that breaking the 1988 record took more than 80 years (96.8 degrees on April 5, 1906), and now less than 20 were enough to set an exceptional record once again. “If these temperatures are present again next year, it’ll be serious”, he worries. Although “April summer” still can’t be scientifically attributed to global warming, it seems that more is ahead. “The weather is heading that way”, the meteorologist thinks.

However, it’s important to say that the winter isn’t at risk of extinction. “The fact that cold seasons are shorter every time does not imply that we won’t have 26 degrees one day, but maybe that’ll happen only for one day”.

That’s really bad news for Charly Baigorri, a 44-year-old graphic designer. When asked about his feelings towards the “fall warming” we had to deal with, he’s categorical: “It really bothers me. If it happened somewhere else or in other circumstances, it’d be different, but the heat in Buenos Aires is hideous. Living here with 96 degrees on April is pretty uncomfortable".

Besides, he tells us that he doesn’t feel like going out with temperatures such as April 19’s, so he turns on the air conditioner and doesn’t move. “I just don’t wanna stand the heat in the subway, on the bus, etc.”. It seems that, if the weather keeps this hot, he’ll have to be locked in for several more weeks.

Natalia Concina, a 27-year-old journalist, had a whole different opinion about it. “The truth is that I really enjoyed those days; having a break from the cold before the winter was a good thing. I like heat better than cold, or at least I suffer less”.

Clothing is another factor involved in these heat waves occurring in the wrong months. Not having to use warm clothes was good news for Natalia: “I was able to wear skirts and leggings instead of jeans”.

Natalia’s opinion is not an isolated fact. A basic issue such as clothing has unexpected global, economical and political consequences upon climate change. For instance, high temperatures in Europe last winter boosted textiles export in China, because producers were able to sell their summer products earlier. Consequently, the commercial surplus of the Asian power reached the unusual amount of 39.6 billion dollars in January and February, 36.1% more than the previous year.

Those were the (cold) days

In times of change, we can’t help comparing the present with the past. The weather issue isn’t the exception. Hasn’t anybody heard their parents, their grandparents or even themselves comparing today’s weather with the past’s?

For Lior Marantemboim, a 25-year-old system administrator who admits he hates “fall warming”, seasons “are less noticeable every time, especially the fall and the spring. Summer heat stays until May and winter cold starts just then. The fall and the spring aren’t defined seasons".

Charly agrees. ”There’s definitely a difference with the weather of the past. The cold used to start in March, and I remember there were very cold days even in October. We used to have six months of cool weather. Now the winter lasts one month and a half”, he tells us, and he assures that he only used 40% of his warm clothes last year.

Meteorologist Piacentini agrees, and he reminds us that “50 years ago, seeing frost on the streets was very common. Now it’s not, so it reflects the changes in the weather.” However, he asserts that many times people’s sensations may be influenced by the media and the news. “The human being can’t notice how much the weather has changed. The average temperature of the planet is 59 degrees, and only half a degree has changed over the last century.” Half a degree over the last century doesn’t seem much of a change; nevertheless, it had only varied a few tenths over the previous one thousand years.

In the developed world too

Although some “porteños” may believe so, Buenos Aires isn’t the center of the world. Winter months with summer temperatures aren’t restricted to this region. In fact, the northern hemisphere has recently been through the warmest winter since the 17th century, that is, since they started to be recorded.

The report on global temperature by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration revealed that the planet’s global temperature reached its record mark during the northern winter (from December to February), with a registered value of 33.3 degrees over the average of the past century. However, and leading to ice melting, statistics showed 39 degrees above normal in the Arctic, whereas in Mediterranean regions said increase didn’t even reach 33 degrees.

The most unusual winter took place last year in Europe, Asia and North America. Ski resorts were almost empty and there were just as many people on beach resorts as in the summer. New York waited long for the snow, and when it arrived, it only snowed for 15 minutes. Official records state that no such thing had happened for 129 years. The largest emitter of greenhouse gas couldn’t escape this problem: 2006 was the warmest year in USA’s history (54.8 degrees in average, one degree above the average of the 20th century and beating the 1998 record).

“Winter warming” has also led to unexpected positive consequences. Poor families of the northern hemisphere were benefited by saving gas oil for heating. But, on the other hand, tour organizers who sell package tours to Florida or the Caribbean have been economically harmed (estimations say they’ve lost a third of their sales). This time, people weren’t desperate to run away from the cold. Things weren’t so different in Europe. Germany, Belgium, France, Italy, England... Temperature records were beaten everywhere during the winter. In fact, in the UK the thermometer indicated the highest temperatures since 1659. Even in Russia, a symbol of dreadful winters, snowfalls were irregular and morning temperatures in January were unusually around 19 or 17 degrees, a maximum level never registered before. It seems that nowadays the old Red Army would never have been able to rely on the harsh Russian cold, which forced the Nazi troops to surrender and helped Moscow in the fight against Hitler. “Global winter” may also lead to unexpected consequences for the Old World.

A creature of habit

The latitudes are very different and, although it may appear in different ways, the problem is the same. Its solution must be found globally as well.

In order to do that, we must at least acknowledge it. Like Natalia, who thinks the subject "affects the entire humanity, it implies many things and it’s a direct consequence of man’s bad actions upon nature”. Lior also says he’s worried about the fact that humans “keep killing the planet, because next generations won’t be able to live here anymore and, meanwhile, we’re suffering about how nature is showing us its changes".

Nevertheless, they also recognize they don’t really know what to do in order to improve the situation. Natalia admits that "I don’t know if there’s anything we can do individually to stop contamination". Lior is even more emphatic. “I really have no idea of what to do about it". Of course, no one can understand, know or learn anything unless someone teaches them.

Maybe the greatest challenge in the struggle against global warming is right there: in the governments taking charge of the subject with long-term campaigns to deeply promote common awareness. And not just when the temperature in the fall reminds the media about “winter warming”.

Man tends to get used to changes, if he survives them. Will that happen in this case too? Both Charly and Lior, fierce opponents to experiencing 96 degrees on April, do complain but definitely refuse the idea of moving to another city to avoid the harassment of the heat. Luckily for them, because Piacentini, who really knows about this, concludes in a statement aiming at resignation: “We’ll have to start getting used to this.”