New Scientist: Altered weather patterns may have made the disruption caused by volcanic ash from Iceland worse “” and climate change could be partly to blame. Ash-laden Arctic air is blowing over Europe because the usual westerly winds are being “blocked” by a high-pressure weather system, and such blockages may be more common now than they used to be. “We predict that the frequency and length of blocking events will increase in a warmer climate,” says Christophe Cassou of the European Centre for …