Oh, and New Orleans is under a blanket of snow — the first time in nearly fifteen years — and residents are told to shelter in place.
The climate crisis isn’t as simple as saying the weather will warm.
Objectively, that’s true; as global temperature averages continue rising, the planet will only continue recording the hottest years on record. But the heat, itself, can alter weather patterns and exacerbate human-caused climate change. It’s this reason alone — the production of excessive, unnatural heat by the climate crisis — why coral reefs are expected to become the first ecosystem entirely lost amid the climate crisis; by 2050, 80% of all the planet’s coral reefs will go; by 2100, any remaining coral reefs will be gone — existing only in marinescapes and aquariums, outside of the world’s overheated oceans.
As for us bipeds on land, terrestrial weather patterns will ultimately deliver strange and uncharacteristic phenomena. (The Los Angeles wildfires were exacerbated by the climate crisis.) One such wonder is taking place right now that’s allowed San Francisco to become the warmest place in the country.
“The Bay Area will be one of the warmest places in the country today,” reads a post on X from ABC7 meteorologist Drew Tuma. The screenshot shared by Tuma shows much of the continental United States engulfed in unusually cold weather. Nearly two-thirds of the country is experiencing freezing temperatures as a result of 2025’s first polar vortex.
New Orleans is experiencing its first snow day since 2009. Unlike its last winter wonderland, the cold spell carried by this polar vortex is producing record-breaking snow records that could prove dangerous; as much as 7” of snow are projected in parts of New Orleans that have little to no winter weather mitigation practices … so roads, sidewalks, and another concrete surface will be slicked with ice. Local officials have instructed residents to efficiently shelter in place until conditions better and the ice thaws come Thursday; only essential trips, i.e. jaunts for medication and food, are being recommended.
As for us in San Francisco, our array of microclimates and proximity to two large bodies of water have (again) insulated us from the greater weather patterns. Average highs across San Francisco will oscillate between the upper 50s and low 60s through the week — a stark contrast to most of the country that won’t escape freezing temperatures until Thursday or Friday.
San Francisco’s “climate island” is an unusual refuge amid the climate crisis. Extreme swings in temperature and precipitation are still mostly alien. Our historical weather patterns continue; this includes our unusually cold and chilly summers that sit outside the norm across the United States.
Though SF Bay Area’s maritime layers are expected to slim — scientists suggest as much as 30% over the next few decades — and both rain patterns and temperatures are likely to increase, San Francisco will remain largely the same, mostly intact. (Sea level rises are our biggest threat, but because of the region’s riparian systems and wetlands, San Francisco, itself, won’t see too much in the way of damaging sea level rises — through the Peninsula and South Bay will see significantly worse outcomes from sea level rise.)
What’s just as unpredictable is whether or not certain insurance agencies will drop San Francisco from specific coverage types.
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