The pace of climate change is hotting up…

…and it’s time to get worried

Arctic ice is melting faster than ever before: Photo by Roxanne Desgagnés on Unsplash

Cold springs are nothing new. This year, though, bad weather in the UK has been balanced by exceptionally hot weather in the Arctic. It may be an anomaly: but it’s the sort of anomaly our planet could do without.

Now I don’t want to worry you. Honest! But if you are at all concerned by climate and climate change, this Spring is a time to get worried. Very worried indeed. Scared, even.

I know: Spring has been a bit of a damp squib, UK-wise. A prolonged cold spell. Frost, still, in May. Plus, loads of wet and windy days that make getting out and about in the garden an absolute no-no for gardening-phobes like me. But scared?

Pull the other one, jane! It’s not been a great month so far. Nor is it expected to get better any time soon. Still, UK temperatures have not been that far off historic seasonal averages. We’ve just got used to the exceptionally warm weather that has characterised May in recent years. If it’s not been a great month for ending lockdown, that’s hardly the end of the world. Is it?

Where has all the warming gone?

Except, wet and windy in the UK is just half the picture. And here’s the worrying bit. Do you know where the warm weather…