 Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| Layne wrote: |
| neilkav wrote: |
| 100% this, why do we spend so much time talking about it when the above countries to name a few will only carry on emitting more and more for reasons already discussed...... China alone is responsible for 27% global emissions, India will be pretty close in due course.....pointless absolutely pointless any if us even trying to do anything personally. |
You need to educate yourself about what others are doing. I put in a link in about China on this or another thread in the last couple of days.
Also as above there are immediate and local benefits to us doing things differently. Think about air quality in urban areas by not using ICE vehicles for example.
| neilkav wrote: |
| And the argument of 'western society' being historically responsible, what are we supposed to do, turn back the clock?? |
Of course not. But we can take some responsibility for what we created and help fix/mitigate.
| neilkav wrote: |
| It's doomed (the world and way before that the ski holiday industry) - so we can only hope to enjoy the few years we have left. |
Well a) it's not doomed in it's entirety and b) we can "enjoy" more if we try to limit/repair the damage. |
Well done I gave up reading the report after about 20 pages - i hope to read a good bit more later - I will concede I am not as educated on the subject as I should be - but can’t get away from the what seem like obvious assumptions - there’s no going back or halting it enough to solve the issues?
Just for my simple mind and for clarity then, do you believe that with the plans that China have and possibly the other bric countries, whilst the ‘west’ continue with their own pledges - that all those efforts can stop the inevitable trend to further and finally catastrophic warming? Is there data to show that?
As I say trying really hard not to be doomsday about it - but can’t see past the inevitable…go ahead educate me!!
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| neilkav wrote: |
| there’s no going back or halting it enough to solve the issues? |
It's a bit like giving up smoking - see section "What happens when you quit?" in the link. The world will never be the same again but it many effects can be reduced, turned around and ultimately lead to a longer, healthier life. And then there is [url=If current policies remain in place, the ozone layer is expected to recover to 1980 values (before the appearance of the ozone hole) by around 2066 over the Antarctic, by 2045 over the Arctic and by 2040 for the rest of the world.]mitigation[/url].
| neilkav wrote: |
| Just for my simple mind and for clarity then, do you believe that with the plans that China have and possibly the other bric countries, whilst the ‘west’ continue with their own pledges - that all those efforts can stop the inevitable trend to further and finally catastrophic warming? Is there data to show that? |
There is plenty of data to show that actions are having an effect and data/projections to show show the difference it makes if we limit it to say 2 degrees rather 4.
| neilkav wrote: |
| As I say trying really hard not to be doomsday about it - but can’t see past the inevitable…go ahead educate me!! |
Do you remember we fckd the ozone layer. Well to quote the UN Environment Programme "If current policies remain in place, the ozone layer is expected to recover to 1980 values (before the appearance of the ozone hole) by around 2066 over the Antarctic, by 2045 over the Arctic and by 2040 for the rest of the world."
It's natural to be down about sometimes or feel helpless or fatigued. I'm certainly not wanting to create an overly rosey picture. But I also try not get to get sucked into a vortex of despair or finger pointing.
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The actual truth is that no one knows. We are not as clever as we like to think we are. The scientists keep getting it wrong, and the doom-mongers don't even have any science to get wrong. Facts tell us that we are not going in the right direction no matter what anyone thinks the reason is for that.
What is plain common sense is that we should all act in a responsible way towards our planet, and not use flimsy excuses or proclaimed naivety to do nothing. If anyone thinks that 7 billion (or is it 8 now) people on a planet doing what they are doing is not in some way to blame is delusional to say the least. If you think things like driving a petrol car around make no difference then you probably want to wonder why people shut themselves in a garage with the engine running to kill themselves.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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As Layne says, it's not too late. Other countries will have to change, there's no real option. India and China for example simply can't afford the climate problems much more than 2 degrees will bring them. Burning more and more fossil fuels won't bring anyone prosperity, a selfish few in the short term, but long term it's disaster for everyone.
The Swiss literature posted earlier has comparisons with and without mitigation in relation to temps, snow and etc. We can still stop things going catastrophically wrong!
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Every century has its doomsday deathcult hysteria.
From witches in the 1600s, to food runout in the 1800s, and oil expiry in the 1900s, it's always the same playbook.
Mass-panic... followed by a creeping realization that they got it wrong 
The facts today are crystal clear.
Human population is up.
Human life expectancy is up.
Food production is up.
Trees are up.
Global GDP is up.
CO2 per-head is down.
Greenhouse gases per-head are down.
Poverty is down.
Famine is down.
War deaths are down.
Weather deaths are down.
The worldwide human population is in its best ever shape.
We've never had it so good.
And it's set to get even better.
The United Nations (UN) -- the world's foremost climate authority -- is predicting the worldwide human population to reach a healthy 10b by 2100, and global life expectancy to reach an incredible 85yo.
Those UN stats -- sourced from the world's foremost climate authority -- suggest a great century ahead for the human race.
No dieoff. No collapse in the human race.
More people. Longer lives.
The future is looking good.
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@Whitegold, Less skiing
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Every forum has a ...
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Unfortunately though this human race who apparently has never had it so good requires a viable planet to live on.
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| Gored wrote: |
| simply not enough accurate data. Remember seeing cars with 2m of snow on the roofs during one of the years either side of covid. You simply cant go by the last few years & predict from that. |
Yes, you obviously can. There’s at least 50 years of data. Since 1970 the number of winter days with snowfall in the Alps has halved. There is no sign of this changing. So it’s reasonable to say, on 50 years of data, that this is some sort of trend. And to ask what this would mean if it continues. Which is that within another few decades, there will be no snowfall at all below 1,000m and significantly less below 2,000m Which obviously has serious implications for ski resorts and those who want to ski in the Alps in the future. Looking at this sort of data, analysing it and trying to explain it isn’t ‘hysterical’, but a sensible alternative to just pretending it doesn’t exist or that it’s irrelevant.
Last edited by Ski the Net with snowHeads  on Thu 8-02-24 23:01; edited 3 times in total
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Don't engage with it (is my advice)
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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As davejsy points out, no one actually knows. Climate scientists have a good idea where temperatures will go and what some of those effects will be. They've got most of it right so far, though as many of them are pointing out - with increasing alarm, it has to be said - they have generally underestimated the speed at which the change would happen. But really, no one can know how the changes will take effect. No one expected temperatures close to 50 degrees in Canada for one, and as far as I'm aware the temperature anomaly in the atlantic has taken people by surprise. No one really knows what effect that is going to have. Warming oceans seem to be the biggest unknown. The systems are complex. Earth has been a planet that wouldn't support life in the past. We don't know what will happen to make it so again. It might be the things we do. The climate has been stable throughout the Holocene, but now we are entering a new era with an unstable climate and literally no one knows where that will lead us. We do know it's happening and we do know why though. The human race has two choices, as far as I can tell, do nothing and allow our fate to overtake us, or take action and for once take charge of where we are heading.
I find myself in a state of cognitive dissonance over it all much of the time. I stopped skiing in the Alps in the early 90s because I couldn't bear being part of the environmental disaster flying to take part in lift assisted piste skiing clearly represents (flying to walk up is hardly much better), but eventually returned to it (though I don't fly, but still, that's no fig leaf). Similar to Gored, I find myself thinking why shouldn't I, if I stop doing it there's no change, everyone else carries on anyway. Being addicted to something you know is actually really quite damaging isn't at all easy to deal with. Like a true addict I actively conceal from some friends that I'm going to the Alps! I can endure the horror from some of them, but with others it's too much - especially because I know I don't really have a leg to stand on. Ironically, for years I'd go to Scotland and that was good enough for me. But lately thanks to CC that's become less and less viable, so now I drive to the Alps. I'm sure there are a lot of people like me. Struggling to work out how to do what is right whilst not costing themselves too much enjoyment. It's a really nasty trap we've got ourselves into. Sorry, perhaps a bit personal, but it is quite a personal situation in many respects.
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| Layne wrote: |
| neilkav wrote: |
| there’s no going back or halting it enough to solve the issues? |
It's a bit like giving up smoking - see section "What happens when you quit?" in the link. The world will never be the same again but it many effects can be reduced, turned around and ultimately lead to a longer, healthier life. And then there is [url=If current policies remain in place, the ozone layer is expected to recover to 1980 values (before the appearance of the ozone hole) by around 2066 over the Antarctic, by 2045 over the Arctic and by 2040 for the rest of the world.]mitigation[/url].
| neilkav wrote: |
| Just for my simple mind and for clarity then, do you believe that with the plans that China have and possibly the other bric countries, whilst the ‘west’ continue with their own pledges - that all those efforts can stop the inevitable trend to further and finally catastrophic warming? Is there data to show that? |
There is plenty of data to show that actions are having an effect and data/projections to show show the difference it makes if we limit it to say 2 degrees rather 4.
| neilkav wrote: |
| As I say trying really hard not to be doomsday about it - but can’t see past the inevitable…go ahead educate me!! |
Do you remember we fckd the ozone layer. Well to quote the UN Environment Programme "If current policies remain in place, the ozone layer is expected to recover to 1980 values (before the appearance of the ozone hole) by around 2066 over the Antarctic, by 2045 over the Arctic and by 2040 for the rest of the world."
It's natural to be down about sometimes or feel helpless or fatigued. I'm certainly not wanting to create an overly rosey picture. But I also try not get to get sucked into a vortex of despair or finger pointing. |
Thank you for that
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You know it makes sense.
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| LaForet wrote: |
| And to ask what this would mean if it continues. Which is that within another few decades, there will be no snowfall at all below 1,000m and significantly less below 2,000m |
I think we are pretty much there tbh.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| davidof wrote: |
| LaForet wrote: |
| And to ask what this would mean if it continues. Which is that within another few decades, there will be no snowfall at all below 1,000m and significantly less below 2,000m |
I think we are pretty much there tbh. |
Almost certainly in the French Alps, although there will be anomalies here and there.
But, people carry on building, developing, marketing and selling ski properties as if every winter we'll only get 300 cm of light, fluffy powder, rather than on what they can see with their own eyes. At some point in the near future, I expect a mid-size station to just close because it won't be cold enough to make snow, let alone a lack of natural snow.
As pointed out upthread, we all have to make individual choices. I am as uncomfortable as anyone with lift-assisted skiing, yet I continue to do it 2 weeks or more a year. I justify this by saying, well, I'm being responsible the other 50 weeks a year by religiously recycling, minimize home energy use, taking mass transit or cycling whenever possible, don't have a big stonking diesel SUV etc. But the reality is that we wealthy western Europeans are a huge part of the problem, much more so than any individuals in poorer or warmer countries.
I won't be particularly sad if I have to give up alpine skiing for whatever reason. I've had my fun, but my kids and their kids may not be able to. My son is more into rock climbing and my daughter likes putting on makeup and partying...
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Thank you. The three main takeaways for me are:
- I wish I’d taken French seriously at school!
- Skiing in the French Pyrenees will pretty soon be unviable.
- The graphic on page 37 is astonishing. I’d anecdotally heard stuff for some time, for example from Swiss scientists, that temperature increases in The Alps were significantly greater than the global mean of circa 1.4c.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Another interesting piece on the warm temps, on last week’s avi report blog: https://avalanche.report/blog/at-07-en/9468
If you scroll down a bit, there are some charts.
It is currently 14C at 600m, three hours after the sun went down. The snow line is getting close to 2000m.
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| Scarlet wrote: |
Another interesting piece on the warm temps, on last week’s avi report blog: https://avalanche.report/blog/at-07-en/9468
If you scroll down a bit, there are some charts.
It is currently 14C at 600m, three hours after the sun went down. The snow line is getting close to 2000m. |
Thank you, a mine of information.
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| neilkav wrote: |
| Gored wrote: |
Mass society is only going to increase when Brazil (Pop. 200m), India (pop 1.4bn), Nigeria (pop. 200m), China (pop 1.4bn) population become richer and want the same things that we currently enjoy in the west. Hated/cooled homes, lighting, technology & white appliances to make our day easier, personal transport, etc.
Western/developed world could produce 0 co2 (not carbon neutral, but produce 0) & it still wont make any difference.
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100% this, why do we spend so much time talking about it when the above countries to name a few will only carry on emitting more and more for reasons already discussed...... China alone is responsible for 27% global emissions, India will be pretty close in due course.....pointless absolutely pointless any if us even trying to do anything personally.
And the argument of 'western society' being historically responsible, what are we supposed to do, turn back the clock?? |
We can develop and implement cleaner, more efficient and cheaper technologies that make our lives better so developing countries don't have to repeat all our dirty mistakes to reach our standards of living.
Ironically (or perhaps not?) capitalism will (probably) find the solution(s).
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| clarky999 wrote: |
| neilkav wrote: |
| Gored wrote: |
Mass society is only going to increase when Brazil (Pop. 200m), India (pop 1.4bn), Nigeria (pop. 200m), China (pop 1.4bn) population become richer and want the same things that we currently enjoy in the west. Hated/cooled homes, lighting, technology & white appliances to make our day easier, personal transport, etc.
Western/developed world could produce 0 co2 (not carbon neutral, but produce 0) & it still wont make any difference.
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100% this, why do we spend so much time talking about it when the above countries to name a few will only carry on emitting more and more for reasons already discussed...... China alone is responsible for 27% global emissions, India will be pretty close in due course.....pointless absolutely pointless any if us even trying to do anything personally.
And the argument of 'western society' being historically responsible, what are we supposed to do, turn back the clock?? |
We can develop and implement cleaner, more efficient and cheaper technologies that make our lives better so developing countries don't have to repeat all our dirty mistakes to reach our standards of living.
Ironically (or perhaps not?) capitalism will (probably) find the solution(s). |
India has an abundance of coal. Yeah, they get a lot of sun so could do a lot with solar. Such a large population though. The requirement for energy will probably far outweigh any green solutions for a poor country. Brazil are chopping down the rainforest - to grow means they will be chopping down more of Earth's lungs.
The long term strategy/solution will be a global conflict. Earth is struggling to support 8 billion people & no way can it support 10bn by 2050. Thin the flock.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Sadly, I don’t think that laissez-faire, free market capitalism has a solution in the time frame required. Because by the time the effects hit home and the market responds, it’ll be too late. The main culprit here is the fossil fuel industry, which has known about the consequences of burning FF since 1953, when experts first briefed Congressional Committees about them. To give them credit, politicians on all sides were genuinely concerned and convinced it was a major policy issue. And for the next 20 years, the FF industry did try to address the issues, funding various initiatives to further research the problem, solutions and viable options. Then in 1973, it gave up and decided to actively lobby against any remediation that would reduce its profits.
Every 20-30 year scientific prediction of the negative consequences of burning FF since 1953 has come true, or worse, proved not to be pessimistic enough.
When we approve nuclear power plants, the cost of cleaning-up and dealing with its waste is built into the £/kW calculation. This is partly why nuclear looks relatively expensive. But when FF companies extract petroleum and gas this is absent from their £/gallon and £/kW prices. The only way to address the problem that extracting, refining, distributing and burning petroleum products generates pollution that has to be remediated is to enforce and include the costs of cleaning-up in the same way.
No amount of individual action is going to solve the global heating problem, although it will help somewhat. What will address it to the degree required is to make the polluter price-in the cost of remediation, as we do with nuclear power.
This is the only realistic strategy open to us if we’re to avert the worst consequences of burning fossil fuels. It’s quite a stark and simple solution, with no viable alternative. That we don’t see and agree on this is not because of lack of data or evidence, it’s because over the last 50 years the FF companies have been hugely successful in persuading everyone that it’s not their problem, when it is. And politicians have been too timid or self-interested to tell tell us this, and do what needs to be done.
Last edited by You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net. on Mon 12-02-24 8:59; edited 3 times in total
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| Gored wrote: |
India has an abundance of coal. Yeah, they get a lot of sun so could do a lot with solar. Such a large population though. The requirement for energy will probably far outweigh any green solutions for a poor country. |
India especially have to balance their energy needs with other needs though. They have big water supply issues, with something like 60% of their water (I forget the exact number) coming from Himalayan glacial melt. Those glaciers are fragmenting and shrinking just like glaciers elsewhere - India can’t afford drastic climate change.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@clarky999, I think you can say 'India can't afford drastic climate change' until you're blue in the face and some people won't hear you - not least some people in India. The reality is no one can afford climate change. The climate isn't 'just the climate', it's part of a complex system and changing it has dramatic effects on all sorts of things, water, food, habitat, settlement, the list goes on. Not being able to ski to the hotel at 1500m is the least of our worries. Too many people have their heads in the sand about this.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| Quote: |
They've got most of it right so far, though as many of them are pointing out - with increasing alarm, it has to be said - they have generally underestimated the speed at which the change would happen.
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I mean you could say they've got most things right, or that they've got it totally wrong. The problem is that the forces at work are far more complex than we are at our particular point of evolution where we are technically more stupid than the animals that we are lucky to live beside and who are not destroying the very environment they depend on for survival.
Our main hope is that the ridiculous statistics of last year and probably this year are a magnification of the El Nino effect in this obvious warming cycle we've caused, and later this year and after may normalise a bit - temporarily.
For me the quickest and best way out of this is nature based, thats where the real power lies, but sadly governments are already reeling back on their commitments towards this because implementing these measures is more inconvenient than us all actually dying.
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| clarky999 wrote: |
| Gored wrote: |
India has an abundance of coal. Yeah, they get a lot of sun so could do a lot with solar. Such a large population though. The requirement for energy will probably far outweigh any green solutions for a poor country. |
India especially have to balance their energy needs with other needs though. They have big water supply issues, with something like 60% of their water (I forget the exact number) coming from Himalayan glacial melt. Those glaciers are fragmenting and shrinking just like glaciers elsewhere - India can’t afford drastic climate change. |
cant afford how?
India is overpopulated like many other areas & islands (inc the UK). at somepoint people will realise the only solution is less people.
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You know it makes sense.
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| shredder wrote: |
| Quote: |
TL;DR: We're at the end of the road. Skiing in France will be done by 2050 except for a few resorts that will continue some activity into the second half of the century.
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Thanks for sharing, translated doc here: https://file.io/TZYXPgnBJCpH |
Translation appears to have been removed - while I see what I can do with my limited Francais, here’s a current view on Swiss ski resort Dent-de-Vaulion from @TJToms fave Snow Forecast:
https://www.snow-forecast.com/whiteroom/unseasonable-warmth-strips-swiss-slopes-of-snow-leaving-ski-resorts-empty/ [sans extraneous bracket]
Rob McDonald, Director of Snow-Forecast.com, commented, “The persistent warmth at Dent-de-Vaulion this season is beyond unusual. It’s a stark reminder of the rapid changes our climate is undergoing. The consistent above-freezing temperatures, especially at the mountain’s peak, spell trouble for this season and the future of winter sports in the region.”
Last edited by You know it makes sense. on Tue 13-02-24 16:38; edited 1 time in total
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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While I'm here, on the India topic I thought this was an interesting article. The global map of methane releases, however, shows that whilst things are bad in India, things aren't exactly squeaky clean in Europe. I liked this line: 'Prof Euan Nisbet, a methane expert at Royal Holloway University of London, said: “Big landfills make a great deal of methane but it doesn’t cost much to bulldoze soil over a stinking, burning landfill. It’s not rocket science.”'
It's not rocket science, the answers are all around us. It doesn't have to be this way.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/feb/12/revealed-the-1200-big-methane-leaks-from-waste-dumps-trashing-the-planet
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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After this week is over will it be fair to say that the winter in the alps is now characterised by warmth punctuated by brief cold spells rather than cold punctuated by brief warm spells? It certainly seems so. With all the warm air sloshing around to the south of Europe it looks increasingly difficult for cold air to become entrenched - I know last year looked quite bad for a while, but the warmth to the south this year seems much more extreme. Records are tumbling on a daily basis, not just day-time maxes, but t-mins too. I struggle to see how all that warmth is going to dissipate. There's nothing around to cool it down. It's only going to get warmer isn't it.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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February is on course to be the warmest feb on record too.
If (realistically it's probably 'when') the AMOC stops circulating it would improve skiing conditions, but the conditions for life would be drastically degraded! Before we get there though I expect the higher alpine resorts are going to become oversubscribed in the next few years. There are probably all sorts of consequences relating to tourist behaviour following on from the last two winters, but this will probably be one of the first and most noticeable effects. I wouldn't be booking a holiday anywhere lower than 1800m for example. That kind of thinking, because I won't be alone thinking this, is going to prompt a spike in demand. So prices are going to rise dramatically with altitude. Perversely there might also be an increase in traffic driving up and down the valleys as accommodation becomes ever more scarce and unaffordable higher up meaning people have to travel from lower down? Perhaps some joined up thinking will see public transport link with ski resorts so that lift passes cover busses from neighbouring lower villages and the valley floor? Maybe some places already do that?
I wonder what other effects all this warming will have? I know artificial snow isn't a boon for the environment for one thing. Perhaps increased wax usage as a consequence of all the sticky snow will cause even more havoc with its forever chemical composition (this is only half tongue in cheek)?
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/jan/25/skiers-leaving-forever-chemicals-on-pistes-study-finds
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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| Gored wrote: |
| clarky999 wrote: |
| Gored wrote: |
India has an abundance of coal. Yeah, they get a lot of sun so could do a lot with solar. Such a large population though. The requirement for energy will probably far outweigh any green solutions for a poor country. |
India especially have to balance their energy needs with other needs though. They have big water supply issues, with something like 60% of their water (I forget the exact number) coming from Himalayan glacial melt. Those glaciers are fragmenting and shrinking just like glaciers elsewhere - India can’t afford drastic climate change. |
cant afford how? |
Can't afford as in they won't have enough water to drink/grow rice/etc
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This winter has been predictably mild given the excessive heat in the oceans and the atmosphere after 18 months of record breaking temperatures across the northern hemisphere.
I have read that even if the Gulf Stream shuts down it won’t have that big an impact on the UK climate because we will still be an island on the edge of a large and still relatively mild ocean, perhaps more like the winter climate of Oregon or Washington state on the west coast of the US?
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The Vorarlberg has been VERY warm for the last 10 days, which had coincided with one of my periods instructing. The weather made teaching relatively pleasant..but was no fun for off piste skiing in my spare time. In fact, I‘m going walking today. (On my Hausberg - the Hoher Frassen from the Muttersberg lift and that is almost snow free, whereas, up until around 10 years ago it was covered in snow from November to late April.) If the weather continues to get warmer at the same rate for the next 10 years, skiing in the Vorarlberg at least will be confined to 3 months a year max. (Bytw Excuse my use of tenses - I‘ve been speaking German non stop for the last couple of months & it seems to have infected my English.) 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Just to mention, not that Cross Country Skiing is on most SH's radar, that current conditions are dire for XC practitioners as most of the decent long flat pistes are on a valley floor, even at altitude, with the highest circa 1850m.
Few days ago I was driving along one of the most popular valleys for XC in France which comprises three separate sectors (no ski lifts) and at a time of the season which should be the busiest and circa 60% of the pistes were closed.
The greens & blues which tend obviously to be the most popular are also the pistes that are out in the open and have taken the biggest hit when it comes to the sunshine & rain, whilst the more gnarly reds & blacks are often on the North facing undulating trails in the forest.
I'd be surprised now whether we'll see any snow in the valley now for the rest of the season as it's just too warm for it to stay even if we do get a dump, akin to April when we can have an overnight 25cm on our terrace and by Noon it's gone!
I've been saying who would ever have imagined Covid and the impact it would have Globally, and what if the most pessimistic of Scientists have it wrong, and we see temps rising by 2.5 each year, stuff of Hollywood in much the same way as pandemic movies were?
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@Bergsteiger278, didn't notice any tense issues, your English is holding up fine! It's a weird feeling when you realise you're starting to forget your first language.
@Weathercam, I hadn't really considered XC, but of course, now you mention it the impact on that sport is obvious. You're probably right about the rest of the season, though who knows what will happen. It's all going to have a terrible effect on people's livelihoods that's for sure (although anyone with property, a business or better a ski resort at altitude will be laughing all the way to the bank).
The general sense among the climate scientists I read about is that they've underestimated the speed at which all this is happening. I've also detected some traces of panic regards the SSTs, I'm not sure anyone thought the Atlantic would move into such a big anomaly so quickly. The temperature of the subtropical Atlantic is currently way out ahead of any temperatures in previous years, it's almost at record summer temperatures, and it's still winter.
Global sea temps are similarly 'out there'
https://arctic-news.blogspot.com/2024/01/2024-looks-to-be-worse-than-2023.html
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