Melting Arctic ice is making UK winters snowier

The cold, snowy winters we've had over the last few years could be caused by shrinking Arctic ice, accordingly to a study by American and Chinese Scientists.

As global temperatures have risen, ice in the Arctic Ocean that normally stays frozen has been melting.

The scientists have worked out that if less of the ocean is covered in ice in autumn, more heat escapes and warms up the atmosphere.

This reduces the difference in air temperature between the Arctic and places further south, over the Atlantic Ocean.

And this weakens the northern jet stream, the air current that brings us our warmer weather from the west.

Because the jet stream is blocked, the UK is more affected by the cold air coming from the east and gets lower temperatures and snow.