You can observe the effects of climate change in many different regions throughout the world. One apparent effect is the boundary that divides the humid eastern U.S. and the dry western Plains. Shifting nearly 140 miles to the east, it is having an impact on farming in the area. The fact that the population and development west of the line is very spread out, the people there rely more on their farms. With less humidity, the farmers have to adapt to using irrigation to continue growing wheat and other crops.
In the Journal of Earth Interactions, a pair of studies found the divide was created by the following factors:
- The Rocky Mountains stop moisture from the Pacific Ocean from reaching farther inland
- The Atlantic winter storms that bring moisture to the eastern half of the U.S.
- 3) The moisture coming from the Gulf of Mexico and moving upward toward the north and east
The only other clear divide between dry and humid areas other than the U.S. is the Sahara Desert from in Africa.
