WHY IS THE WEATHER SO EXTREME?
WHY IS THE WEATHER SO EXTREME?
You have noticed it.
The summers that don’t quit. The winters that arrive without warning. The floods that last for days. The heat domes. The ice storms. The weather headlines that seem to appear every week.
Most coverage gives you one of two explanations: climate change or natural variability. But neither explanation tells you what is mechanically happening in the atmosphere above your head.
In this Schultz Report episode, I break down the actual physics behind the jet stream, the two major patterns it operates in, and why extreme weather events may be lasting longer and impacting larger areas than many people realize.
Topics Covered:
• What the polar jet stream actually is
• Zonal flow vs. meridional flow
• Why large north-south waves create extreme weather
• How blocking patterns turn ordinary storms into disasters
• The Texas freeze of 2021
• The Pacific Northwest heat dome
• Arctic amplification theory
• Natural variability arguments
• New atmospheric research published in 2024
• The potential connection to the slowing AMOC ocean circulation system
• What scientists agree on — and where they disagree
The scientific community broadly agrees that weather patterns are changing. The debate is over why, how much is caused by natural variability, how much is influenced by Arctic warming, and how much may be connected to larger atmospheric and oceanic systems.
Rather than focusing on politics, this report focuses on the data.
Whether these changes are natural, manmade, or some combination of both, the effects are already observable. More persistent weather patterns can mean longer heat waves, longer droughts, more flooding, stronger cold-air outbreaks, and greater stress on infrastructure.
Understanding the system is the first step toward understanding the risk.
If you enjoyed this report, consider subscribing and sharing it with someone who appreciates systems thinking, evidence-based analysis, and long-form discussions that go beyond headlines.
Follow the signal. Stay informed.
— Adam Schultz
Schultz Report
Signal Over Noise. Context Over Chaos.
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Sources:
• USGS / AGU Advances (Chalif et al., 2025)
• Nature Communications Earth & Environment (2024)
• NOAA Jet Stream Documentation
• National Snow and Ice Data Center
• Arctic Amplification Research Literature
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