Calgarians will find at least one part of his book interesting, but perhaps not for the reaon one might expect. Most Canadians may not know of the “Chinook Arch” weather event that occurs with some regularity in the Rocky Mountain foothills. Knowledgeable Calgarians are aware that “adiabatic heating” of the descending air is responsible for these pleasant reprieves from winter’s chill.

Early on, Dyer describes “Hadley Cells” – a major system component driving the Earth’s climate. Briefly, surface air at the equator rises and follows paths to higher latitude bands – both north and south of the Earth’s equator – where it descends (later completing the loop as “trade winds” back to the equator). The adiabatic heating effect (familiar to Calgarians) is what gives hot, dry air to the Earth’s desert regions at these latitudes.

The breadbasket regions of reliable rainfall are located just outside the desert regions, toward the poles. Global Warming affects the size and reach of these Hadley Cells, causing the hot, dry air to descend at progressively higher latitiudes (further from the equator). In turn, the regions of reliable rainfall creep to higher latitudes.

End game: Climate Wars – as the mass migration of starving and displaced people leads to geo-political instability on a scale never seen – all while rising sea levels and stronger weather events drive urban dwellers away from coastal cities.

This book is a must read.