Scott Sheridan, Ph.D., professor and chairperson of Kent State University’s Department of Geography, recently conducted a study on abnormal weather patterns published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, a publication of the American Geophysical Union.
“Typically for this kind of research we look at the highest temperatures in the summer and lowest temperatures in the winter,” Dr. Sheridan said in a story posted on Scienmag.com about the study. “But we’ve also seen that extreme temperatures that are really anomalous for the time of year can have a high impact. These relative extremes are important and underappreciated.”
Dr. Sheridan spoke on the harsh and crucial changes that may affect not only the environment, but human life as well, if the weather continues to show patterns of unusually high temperatures out-of-season.
“Relative temperature anomalies can trigger what are called phonological mismatches, where a mismatch in the temperature and the season can cause trees to bloom too early and birds and insects to migrate before there is appropriate food,” Dr. Sheridan said.
Cameron Lee, Ph.D., assistant professor in Kent State's Department of Geography, co-authored the study.
To learn more about this research, visit scienmag.com/extreme-heat-increasing-in-both-summer-and-winter.
For more information about Dr. Sheridan, visit www.kent.edu/geography/profile/scott-sheridan.