I am trying to understand without bias why droughts and floods occur as they do...?

Question

I was discussing the drought that we have been having with some co-workers and one seems to think that there is a drought every 7 years and it is a completely natural occurance, while the other argued that the drought and climate conditions are caused by the way we are treating the atmosphere and environment. So what is it? Is it cause by both? Are the conditions we are experiencing a natural phenomenon or the result of human interference or a combination of the two making the result worse than it would be if there was no human interference? Thanks for the help.

Answer 1

The weather systems on earth are very complex, and there are some patterns. El Nino and El Nina years effect weather in the U.S. for example. They influence the jet stream which is one of the biggest factors here.

Weather is also affected by the sun. Currently the sun is in an active phase which may contribute a couple degrees of warming on Earth. Proof of this can be found from recent observations of Mars. That planet is currently experiencing some global warming too.

Ultimately, you have several somewhat predicable cycles interacting with one another. The hard part is determining the result. Right now in Oklahoma low pressure systems keep parking themselves nearby and dragging up moisture from the gulf. That makes rain.

So can you say that a given area will have a drought every seven years? Probably not, but you could probably pin it down to every 6 to 9 years.

Answer 2

I line in Texas ,where it has been a drought for several years . This year we are 100% above normal rain fall. The & years is a throw down from the Bible. The global warming does not fie either. The CO2 that is what they want u to believe is the problen is not there. God put plants here to recycle our atmosphere and so the CO2 is still very low. The envirementalist want u to believe that U are responsible. But I dont think that they know how to measuer any gass.

Answer 3

It's just random. For example, there might happen to be a blocking pattern such as an omega block that prevents you from getting any rainfall for an extended period of time. Or, the atmospheric conditions required for rainfall to occur just might not be present for an extended period of time. The natural occurrence guy was right.

Answer 4

(1) Nature is incredibly intellegent - and as if It "knows" what it is doing
(2) In ultimate terms, we, the humans, are also part of the Nature ( and not seperate or superior or above It )
(3) We like to believe that we can interfere with Nature, but that is just another one of our EGOS (like the one in which we believe God created us in His image, Yea, ask the horse, and it will tell you the same!)
(4) If left alone, everything works JUST FINE, EXACTLY AS IT OUGHT TO (as if )