when there are lots of jellyfish, it will be a snowy winter.

Evidentally that's a little proverb they have around these parts. And evidentally, it's true.

Lots of jellyfish is a folksy indicator of warm seas. Warm seas mean more water vapor in the air, which means more snow. It was a big summer for jellyfish, and it's a been a ridiculously snowy winter all along the Japan Sea.


(This is also yomiuri newspaper stuff. Being able to read the newspaper has really opened up a different world to me. Maybe it's not that interesting really, but I really like having the option to get the same news and opinion as everyone else around me.)

But back to the jellyfish... The short article I read (once again) ignores the elephant in the room. Why are the seas warm? The extreme rains in Northern California, and this year's record setting hurricane season are also closely connected to ocean temperatures. What could be making the world's seas so warm so suddenly? It's a real mystery.