Earth has two new seasons, scientists claim

Spring, summer, autumn and winter – these are the seasons we acknowledge and have been taught from a young age. However, new research has suggested there are two more seasons we should add to the mix, and these are ‘haze season’ and ‘trash season’. These two new seasons are now part of the Earth’s annual climate rhythm. But what exactly are they? (Picture: Getty)

Climate change has shaken the world, and this time the change in the Earth’s atmosphere is largely driven by human activity, which is posing a problem to public health, marine life, and global ecosystems. During the study, the researchers also discovered there are some 'seasons' that are completely disappearing as climate change messes with the Earth’s way of being (Picture: Getty)

What is Haze season?

Haze season occurs annually, usually during the months of August to October. It usually occurs in Southeast Asia, and is characterised when thick smoke blankets the region. This causes dangerous air quality and widespread health concerns. The haze comes from intentionally set fires such as massive burn offs used to clear land for agriculture in countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia (Picture: Getty)

What is Trash season?

Trash season largely happens in Bali, during December to March. During this time, as monsoon winds shift, ocean currents carry large volumes of plastic trash ashore, burying beaches under piles of garbage. This pattern has become so consistent that locals can  predict it down to the month. Similar events have also occurred in the Philippines, Thailand, and even along the US East Coast. The Gulf Stream and other currents push floating debris toward Florida and the Carolinas, especially during summer (Picture: Getty)

What did the researchers find?

The researchers analysed decades of satellite imagery, weather data, and local reports, and created terms to help define the evolving patterns such as extinct seasons, arrhythmic seasons, and syncopated seasons. But they have also realised these seasons are spreading around the world. For example, hazy skies seem to have become the norm in northern India every winter,  as the monsoon season ends and crop burning begins. And in the US, parts of the northern east are blanketed with smoke. But as climate change worsens, events like this will become more frequent (Picture: Getty)

Extinct seasons

But it is also changing other seasons – in a bad way. In alpine regions such as the Andes and the Rocky Mountains, the winter sports season is dying due to a severe lack of snow. In the northeast of England, seabirds like kittiwakes have stopped returning to breed at their usual time, breaking a natural cycle (Picture: Getty)

Arrhythmic and syncopated seasons

Known as arrhythmic seasons, springs and summers have also shifted out of sync. The researchers note that breeding and hibernation cycles across Europe are now starting weeks earlier than they used to. And 'syncopated' seasons, are those which have not vanished nor moved, but have intensified. This is evident in Europe, where summers are becoming more intense (Picture: Getty)