6. What is the polar vortex, and what happened in late 2024 and early 2025?

The polar vortex is a phenomenon that normally occurs in the upper atmosphere above the Arctic. It manifests as a mass of cold air that rotates counterclockwise, growing and shrinking with the changing seasons.

Between late 2024 and early 2025, the polar vortex moved away from the pole and collapsed due to an unexpected warming event, diagnosed as a “sudden stratospheric warming,” which caused the vortex to disperse and reverse its circulation. In warm months like March and part of April 2025, temperatures dropped precipitously to levels never seen before, both in North America and in regions of Central and South America.

Even the sudden cold snap in certain areas is due to global warming.

Scientific studies indicate that the increasingly frequent disruptions in the polar vortices are caused by the warming of the Arctic, which is increasing the energy of atmospheric waves, which is likely causing the polar vortex to shift again. This circumstance causes cold air to escape southward, generating unusually cold temperatures in certain areas of North America and also parts of Central and South America.