Reply #34: 63° North longitude... sounds cold, but Gulf Stream keeps you warm.

[Crayson]

Just before everybody else panics !!
Think! And read up!

It's common knowledge that similar longitudes in the American continent are MUCH MUCH colder than in Europe.
Yes this HAS to do with climate but not with climate CHANGE.

It's because Alaska has a continental climate (hot in summer, freezing in winter) and Sweden/Norway have a moderate climate made by the Gulf Stream. The Gulf Stream which heats up norther Europe since millenia (thank you gulfstream, else that would all be covered by perma ice!)

Now, let me say that climate change concerns me too, but don't let just any message give you a heart attack.


Wikipedia:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_Stream>

The Gulf Stream, also known as the North Atlantic Drift, is a powerful, warm, and swift Atlantic ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico, exits through the Strait of Florida, and follows the eastern coastlines of the United States and Newfoundland. The Gulf Stream was the first element to be identified of the global oceanic thermohaline circulation. The Gulf Stream has a modifying influence on the climate of the east coast of North America from Florida to Newfoundland It is influential on the climate of the east coast of Florida, especially southeast Florida helping to keep temperatures warmer than in the rest of the southeastern United States in the winter. In summer the effect is opposite but small. The Gulf Stream makes the climate of offshore islands of Massachusetts, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, milder than than that of Massachusetts Bay, which is isolated from its effects by Cape Cod.

Its extension toward Europe, called the North Atlantic drift, makes Western Europe (and especially Northern European winters) considerably warmer than they otherwise would be. For example, in January, the temperature difference between coastal Norway and northern parts of continental Canada is approximately 30 °C on average, even if they are the same latitude.