turbulent times, page-152

for interest

There is evidence that climate change is causing an increase in air turbulence, particularly clear air turbulence. The key points are:

- A study analyzing data from 1979 to 2020 found a 55% increase in severe clear air turbulence on a typical flight route over the Atlantic Ocean.[1][3] Other routes over Europe, the Middle East, South Atlantic, and Eastern Pacific also saw more turbulence.[1]

- The increase in turbulence is attributed to climate change altering wind patterns and wind shear in the jet stream as the planet warms.[1][2][3] Warmer temperatures reduce the temperature difference between the poles and equator, causing the jet stream to become more erratic and turbulent.[1]

- Wind shear, a major cause of clear air turbulence, is now around 15% stronger than in the 1970s and expected to increase further in coming decades due to climate change.[1]

- While turbulence from storms is also projected to increase as the atmosphere holds more moisture and thunderstorms become more intense with warming, clear air turbulence is more difficult to predict and avoid.[2][4]

- One study predicted severe turbulence could triple over the next 3-6 decades unless greenhouse gas emissions are limited.[1] Another estimated clear air turbulence could be 4 times as common by 2050 under certain climate scenarios.[4]

So multiple studies provide evidence that climate change has already begun increasing turbulence encountered by aircraft, with further increases expected in the future if global warming continues unabated.[1][2][3][4]

Sources
[1] Why Climate Change is Causing Turbulence on Flights - Greenly https://greenly.earth/en-gb/blog/ecology-news/why-climate-change-is-causing-turbulence-on-flights
[2] Climate change is fuelling turbulence on some of our most common ... https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-05-22/the-link-between-climate-change-and-turbulence/103877522
[3] Flight turbulence increasing as planet heats up - study - BBC
[4] Are some routes more prone to air turbulence? Will climate change ... https://theconversation.com/are-som...-make-it-worse-your-questions-answered-230666
[5] Is climate change making turbulence worse? - BBC