At a recent Mainland family gathering, I was enthusiastically describing the incredible aurora display we witnessed a few months ago, in Tasmania. Whereupon a solidly Climate Cultist Boomer older sibling solemnly informed that “It’s because of climate change”.
Good Oil readers will congratulate me for keeping a straight face.
Still, even the most bizarre claims shouldn’t necessarily be dismissed out of hand. Is there a link between climate change and auroras? As it happens, there is – but it’s completely the reverse of what my Cultist sibling believes.
Northern [or Southern] lights, also known as auroras, are a natural phenomenon caused by solar winds. These winds push electrically charged particles, such as electrons, into atoms and molecules in Earth’s upper atmosphere, producing the vibrant light displays we see.
Contrary to the assumptions baked into climate models, the Sun’s activity, which produces solar winds, is not constant. The Sun is subject to a number of cycles, ranging from 11 years to millennia. Those cycles affect the frequency and intensity of everything from the number of sunspots, the solar flares which can wreak havoc with electrical equipment, and the solar winds which lead to auroras.
The intensity of solar output also affects the Earth’s climate (and that of other solar planets).
But it’s an indication of just how firmly the Climate Cult mentality grips even supposedly sober scientific minds, that Iceland’s nature museum, Perlan, strives so hard to give the impression that climate change affects auroras, even while admitting that it doesn’t affect them at all. Note the headlines: Does Climate Change Affect Auroras?, Ways in Which the Climate Affects Northern Lights, etc. And the opening statement:
Climate change does not directly affect the Northern Lights or Aurora Borealis.
In fact, it doesn’t affect them at all.
Auroras occur in the Earth’s upper atmosphere, far beyond the layers impacted by climate change. As long as the Sun continues to emit solar winds and the Earth maintains its atmosphere and magnetic field, auroras will persist […]
While the northern lights are caused by charged particles from the Sun interacting with Earth’s magnetic field, climate change has no impact on the Earth’s magnetic field. The magnetic field is generated deep within the Earth’s outer core, far beyond the influence of human activity or climate change. Therefore, the patterns and intensity of auroras are not altered by shifts in climate.
But no scientific body these days can possibly allow itself to be seen as a ‘climate denier’. So, Perlan pays lip-service to the Cult with this:
While climate change cannot affect the behaviour of the Aurora Borealis, it can influence the visibility of the phenomenon. Increased moisture in the atmosphere may lead to more cloud cover, which could obstruct the view of the northern lights from the Earth’s surface. Clear skies are essential for observing auroras, so climate-related changes that result in more cloudy evenings may reduce the chances of seeing them.
Short pause for readers to collectively roll their eyes.
Then there’s this rather startling claim:
Solar activity is not directly related to climate change.
In fact, solar activity is a driver of climate change. Prior to the industrial age and human release of the much-demonised carbon-dioxide, at least two noted solar minima, the Maunder and Spörer minima, were directly correlated with significant cooling periods, including the “Little Ice Age” from which the Earth is still emerging.
