Climate Options

[ElizabethCortez, Emma Ruiz, Arel]

Dear Dr. Coakley

Brownsville's climate is very different than the climate in the artic! Is there a relationship in the melting of the artic ice and the changes in our climate?

[Bernie_Coakley]

Dear Dr. Coakley

Brownsville's climate is very different than the climate in the artic! Is there a relationship in the melting of the artic ice and the changes in our climate?

Maybe. No one knows for sure. The changes here are quite dramatic and are affecting how
everyone lives. Ground that has been frozen for thousands of years is melting. This affects
roads, which are like roller coasters over thawing permafrost, and buildings, which can
bend a break as the ice melts beneath them.

[Ute_Kaden]

During my stay in Fairbanks in April I got some first hand experience on the effect of "Roller coaster Roads" on a fast driving car. I was on the road to Denali National Park and I read the warning sign "Dip”. I decided not to slow down my car a lot. The car flew over the dip and came crashing down in the next one. I slowed down instantly, checked all my gauges, listened for strange noises from the car that could indicate that something was broken. I counted my blessings and from now on I a pay attention to the sign "Dip" on Alaska roads.
PS- It was a rental car!
Ute

[Bernie_Coakley]

There is a relationship, but the changes are probably more dramatic in the Arctic. There the ground
is melting! Brownsville will probably get warmer as the climate warms, but nothing much will melt.