By: Brittany Lauro
Could 2012 be the year without a summer?
Imagine a life without bare feet on the blacktop; a life where skin is rarely sun-kissed and sand in your beach bottoms is nonexistent. Kiss the bells and chimes of the ice cream man goodbye and forget the familiar songs of nighttime crickets. Eliminate these delightful and steadfast summer experiences and what is left but a heart-wrenching year without summer. Kathryn Agati, sophomore psychology, states, “The thought of a year without summer is stressful and sad.” However, for those alive during 1816, these seemingly unbearable imaginings became a rather grim reality.
Media Credit: Brittany Lauro - Kathryn Agati (left) and Jeanette Scinto (right) show their love for flip-flops and sunshine.
1816, also well known as “the year without summer,” left those in the northern hemisphere in a state void of sunshine and rich in misery. Frost covered crops and fog suppressed sunlight as temperatures dropped well below freezing. The months of June, July, and August, usually marked by excessively high temperatures, were burdened with winter attributes of ice, snow, and the occasional pair of mittens. Plunging temperatures dampened the effervescent summer spirit of northerners and brought the worst famine of the 19th century. Crop growth became nearly impossible and starvation widespread. Furthermore, reported riots were prevalent as well as extensive migration in search of food. Overall, day-to-day living became unbearably challenging, leaving hundreds of thousands dead. Multiple reports of citizens consuming pigeons and raccoons surfaced the region. So what generated this hemispheric catastrophe? Nothing other than a volcanic explosion.
Many remarkable incidents were held in the days of 1815. Of these occurrences, most noted is the world’s deadliest natural disaster in recorded history. Spewing out 16 thousand megatons of ash, the explosion of Mount Tambora is known by many as the most horrific volcanic explosion in times past. With roars and rumbles heard as far as 1,600 miles away, the explosion ultimately took 71 thousand lives in its path. The emission of ash and dust blackened skies across the world and was accountable for global temperature changes. Mount Tambora left a monumental impact on the past but the story does not end there. The volcano, located on the island of Sumbawa, Indonesia, has recently been noted with increased rumblings. Experts claim that Tambora is geared to erupt once more as multiple earthquakes have been shaking the island since April. This news brings heightened fear that history will repeat itself with a second deadly explosion. Will 2012 become the subsequent year without a summer?
This unsettling issue was brought to the attention of numerous Salve Regina students. Many reacted with horror and dismay at the mere thought of life lacking a summer. Upon inquiry concerning her feelings pertaining to the summer season, Jeanette Scinto, a sophomore nursing major, claims, “the best part of life is the sand between your toes and basking in the sun, I couldn’t give that up.” How would you react to a year without summer?
