UK households stock up food ahead of possible polar vortex snow, Digi Mart USA News (United Kingdom): Households are being advised to stock up on six essential food items this winter, should fears of a bitterly cold, snow-laden season caused by the El Niño weather phenomenon prove well founded. A polar vortex could bring colder conditions and even snowfall across the UK this winter, as El Niño drives a harsher than usual season, according to climate experts.
This week, the Met Office said a weakening polar vortex could channel a freezing blast of Arctic air toward the UK and Europe, with snowfall appearing increasingly probable, though not yet confirmed. El Niño has been a primary driver of scorching temperatures this year, as warming ocean surface waters have had a significant knock-on effect on global weather patterns.
It is believed to have been one of the contributing factors behind the UK’s five record-breaking heatwaves this summer.
While nothing is certain at this stage, the El Niño weather pattern triggers shifts in high and low pressure systems. The intensity of a polar vortex, the mass of cold air that ordinarily circulates over the North and South poles, is susceptible to disruption from jet streams.
When disturbed, it can push freezing air southward, triggering cold snaps and snowfall across the US and Europe, according to a report cited by the Express.
USA Today reported that El Niño can interact with the polar vortex. Darryn Waugh, a professor in Earth and Planetary Sciences at Johns Hopkins University, said the polar vortex above the Arctic is linked to the jet stream and that both can be affected by El Niño.
Amy Butler, a physicist at NOAA’s Chemical Sciences Laboratory, said El Niño drives changes in high and low pressure patterns in the troposphere, the lowest layer of Earth’s atmosphere where weather occurs.
The Met Office has stated that a hot summer does not guarantee a cold winter, dismissing the idea of a direct and consistent causal link as a myth. Nevertheless, El Niño could this year contribute to a cold snap in the UK this winter, though this remains far from certain.
In its most recent weather blog, the forecaster said the stratospheric polar vortex is already unusually stretched, with “wave two” activity, in which two large atmospheric waves push into it from opposite directions, considerably stronger than average for this time of year. Forecasts suggest the vortex will subsequently become increasingly displaced from the North Pole.
Direct Energy advises that, when facing the prospect of snow, households should stock up on non-perishable food and supplies in case they cannot reach their local supermarket or are hit by a power outage. According to the energy company, households should have these six essential items ahead of a snowstorm:
Bottled water, bread, milk, tinned goods (especially warming foods such as soups and stews), snack foods such as crisps, crackers and cookies in sealed packages, cereal and granola, and dried pasta with jars of sauce.
In its online guidance on preparing for a snowstorm, the firm said that after heavy snowfall or blizzard conditions, people could be snowed in for days. A prolonged power outage could leave households with only a few hours to safely enjoy the remaining contents of their fridge, but a well-stocked pantry of filling shelf-stable foods means no one has to go hungry while waiting for snow to be cleared.
