Remember how it got
extremely cold in the Midwest and East Coast at the end of last year? Well, that polar vortex is about to happen again. The difference between now and then? Tide Pods. Since late December, teens have made eating Tide Pods a delightful, albeit dangerous, meme. And living our lives on the internet makes
not seeing them everywhere impossible. Sorry, polar vortex. We now think you look extremely delicious. Of course, the suspiciously blue, orange red, and white chart is actually fascinating from a scientific standpoint. It shows how the height of pressure surfaces in the middle atmosphere (or about 18,000 feet) differ from normal, which is related to the temperature of the air masses below them. The dark blues correspond to below average heights, showing a deep trough of low pressure and colder air, whereas the red areas delineate higher than average pressure surfaces, corresponding to milder than average air masses and areas of high pressure. The chart also helps delineate the tropospheric polar vortex. Sure the colors may refer to the elevation of pressure surfaces, but it's tough not to see Tide Pods. And oh my, look at all those Tide Pods. Return of the #PolarVortex Image courtesy @StormVista pic.twitter.com/EzuWSnXHHU — Corey Lefkof (@CALefkof) January 22, 2018 The vortex is a circulation of air enveloping a near-permanent area of low pressure that exists at high altitudes over the Arctic. When these winds weaken, filaments of the vortex can break off, and meander south into the U.S., Europe, and parts of Asia. What is forecast to happen, though, is that the polar vortex in both the stratosphere and troposphere will be displaced without weakening much, and set up camp above Hudson Bay, Canada during much of February. Which means those parts of the world are in for some cold times. Also, it looks like a Tide Pod. I would rather be tweeting about #PolarVortex splits but in the meantime still fascinated by GFS forecast of polar vortex displacement into North America (not including Greenland), which is highly unusual! pic.twitter.com/8vApIdG68D — Judah Cohen (@judah47) January 25, 2018 Nice gif, but we prefer this one: Image: mashable WATCH: The coldest village on Earth can make your face look like a popsicle
