Will ‘sudden stratospheric warming’ finally bring a taste of winter?

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) - High up in the atmosphere above the Arctic, something interesting is going on. The upper levels of the stratosphere, above 35,000′, are warming up rapidly. And this could finally bring a taste of winter to southern Colorado!

Normally, the Arctic Oscillation, more commonly known as the Polar Vortex, flows from west to east at above southern Canada. This is keeping colder air locked in up north, while milder air is located over the United States.

However, when the stratosphere above the Arctic is warming up in an event called a ‘Sudden Stratospheric Warming’, this could disrupt the Polar Vortex significantly.

In rare cases, the Polar Vortex could reverse. More commonly though, the vortex slows down. A slower Polar Vortex allows it to meander more. So rathe