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The snow that falls in the Rocky Mountains provides the majority of the water for the Colorado River. But with warming temperatures, drought and increased dust settling on the snowpack, that water source is diminishing. (David Wallace/The Republic)
Just this month alone, climate change has been blamed for sleepless nights, trees moving West, and now it’s causing a new problem: Weird rainfall.
The new study, which appeared in the journal Science Advances, suggests climate change will alter where rain falls around the world, making wet areas wetter and dry areas drier, especially in the summer.
The world’s rainiest areas may also push north during the winter, said study lead author Aaron Putnam, a glacial geologist at the University of Maine. The redistribution of rainfall is worrisome, he said, as it would affect water availability for people around the world.
The shift isn’t unprecedented, either: It’s happened before, but in the past it was due to natural climate change.
Researchers studied ancient climate history to see how a warming climate changed rainfall patterns. About 14,600 years ago, a shift in temperature changed where precipitation fell over the entire planet, much like the predicted effect of man-made global warming over the next few decades.
INTERACTIVE MAP: Tracing the path of the Colorado River
Global warming occurs when heat-trapping carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are emitted into the air by burning coal, oil and other fossil fuels, which boosts world temperatures to levels that scientists say cannot be explained by natural factors.
The study “adds to the large body of evidence that climate change is going to mess with the large-scale motions of air and water in the atmosphere,” NASA climate scientist Kate Marvel, who wasn’t involved with the study, told Wisconsin’s Beloit Daily News. “And this matters, because those patterns largely determine where it’s rainy or arid, broadly speaking,”
According to NASA, rising temperatures will intensify the Earth’s water cycle, increasing evaporation. This increased evaporation will result in more storms, but also contribute to drying over some land areas.
As a result, storm-affected areas are likely to experience increases in precipitation and increased risk of flooding, while areas located far away from storm tracks are likely to experience less precipitation and an increased risk of drought.
In the U.S., the study found the dry areas of the western U.S. are expected to become even drier.
READ MORE:
Colorado River: America’s most endangered?
Here’s how climate change reduced Colorado River
Restoring a river a few drops at a time
As the River Runs Dry: The Southwest’s water crisis
At Lake Mead, America’s most voluminous water impoundment when it was full and a lifeline to everyone from Phoenix to San Diego, a crisis has arrived.
Mark Henle/The Republic
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As glaciers diminish in Bolivia, the poorest nation in South America, water scarcity falls hardest on the poor. Meanwhile, at nearby Lake Titicaca, climate change also affects those who live on the lake’s floating islands.
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The Cordillera Blanca mountains in Peru, which have the largest concentration of tropical glaciers in the world, have diminished by 30 percent since the late 1970s, creating concerns for the future of Peru’s water supply. (David Wallace/The Republic)
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Navajo Land and People Affected by Drought
David Wallace/The Republic
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The snow that falls in the Rocky Mountains provides the majority of the water for the Colorado River. But with warming temperatures, drought and increased dust settling on the snowpack, that water source is diminishing. (David Wallace/The Republic)
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Santa Barbara had shut down its old desalination plants. Now that California has been hit with its worst drought in more than 100 years, the city has reactivated the plants.
David Wallace/The Republic
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Republic reporter Brandon Loomis visits the Golden State to learn how California is adjusting to the drought and what it means for Arizona.
Mark Henle/The Republic
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Non-profit groups from both sides of the border are working to restore the wetlands of the Colorado River Delta.
Mark Henle/The Republic
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Lake Mead facing water crisis
Bolivia’s water scarcity hits poor the hardest
Peru’s growing water crisis
Navajo Land and People Affected by Drought
Colorado River’s retreat begins in the Rocky Mountains
Santa Barbara reactivates old water treatment plants
California experiencing worst drought in 100-plus years
The effort to renew Colorado River Delta
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