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Jet Stream’s Recent Behavior Linked to Natural Cycles, Not Climate

Climate and Weather

Jet Stream Behavior Tied to Natural Cycles, Not Climate Change

Business Honor
27 June, 2025

The research team finds the polar jet stream’s waviness is part of a natural cycle and not due to climate change, global warming.

The polar jet stream, a powerful current of cold Arctic air impacting weather throughout a significant part of the Northern Hemisphere, has been showing unexpected behavior. Recent research from Dartmouth raises doubts about the idea that climate change is responsible for this.

Many scientists believed that the jet stream was becoming more unstable because of global warming, the cause of these changes. Even before climate change became a major factor, the jet stream had gone through multiple periods of similar "waviness," according to the Dartmouth research team, led by Erich Osterberg and Jacob Chalif. They analyzed 125 years of climate data using machine learning, longer than other previous research that focused on satellite data starting in 1979.

The findings suggest that the current behavior of the jet stream is not because of global warming but an aspect of natural climatic cycles. While climate change increases moisture in the atmosphere, which strengthens storms, it is not the cause for the jet stream to become as strong as many believed. According to Osterberg, the new information may alter how researchers examine the connection between climate change and extreme weather. Focusing on the ways that will worsen storms rather than just analyzing the structure of the jet stream.

This research highlights the importance of innovative techniques and analyzing long-term data to develop a better understanding of the relationships between natural patterns and climate change. Helping the researchers predict the weather more accurately and prepare for the future extreme weather conditions.