The polar vortex is spinning backwards: Yes, it can, has, and is happening

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As Canadians, we are very familiar with the term ‘polar vortex.’ We are also familiar with its effects on Canadian weather when it ‘acts up.’

While the polar vortex is a year-round phenomenon, we tend to only feel its freezing influence in the winter, when it is strongest.

Because the polar vortex is an area of low pressure in the atmosphere, the winds surrounding it tend to circulate cyclonically, or counterclockwise. However, like many other atmospheric phenomena, such as jet streams, the vortex can act up in ways we don’t always expect.

Most of the time, when the polar vortex becomes weak and unstable, we’ll see a portion of the vortex dip down over the country and bring about dangerously freezing temperatures. These cold snaps can last anywhere from days to bleak, frigid weeks.

Earlier this year, in January, a polar vortex sank over Western Canada and plunged the region into near-record-breaking temperatures. Edmonton, Alta., saw temperatures go as far down as -46°C and an added bitter wind chill of -58.

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Now, the polar vortex has been acting up again—it’s spinning in reverse.

That’s right, the winds surrounding this vortex of Arctic air have been circulating anti-cyclonically, or clockwise, due to a phenomenon known as 'sudden stratospheric warming.' Basically, temperatures in the stratosphere warmed up suddenly and quickly at the beginning of March, which disrupted the regular, but coincidentally weakened, flow of the vortex and caused it to reverse.

Location of the polar vortex in March, 2024.

So what does this mean for our weather in Canada?

Well, to put it simply, nothing. At least not this time around.

The reversal happened to not change the shape or path of the jet stream—the major influencer for our weather patterns. So, there really haven’t been any noticeable effects on our weather in Canada from this phenomenon.

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And this is by far not the first time we’ve seen this happen. In fact, a polar vortex reversal had already happened earlier this year, and this one did affect our weather. On the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s polar vortex blog, climate scientists Amy Butler and Laura Ciasto claim that a weaker polar vortex reversal occurred in mid-January and that it is what gave way to the cold snaps that froze over Western Canada and parts of the United States.

And as is the atmosphere’s dynamic nature, the vortex will soon correct itself and resume its usual circulation… until its next disturbance.

With files from livescience.com and NOAA.