Yeeeeesh, I am going to do something with climate change. Which involves more research. Last one with no sketches, promise!
Climate change is an extremely complex topic, as there are so many factors related to each other, and we still do not know exactly how it all comes together.
An illustration of the complexity:
It is generally known that greenhouse gases as methane and carbon dioxide are responsible for a rise in temperature across earth. This basically results in the ice in Artica and Antartica to melt. On one hand does this mean there is less white snow and ice to reflect the sun’s light, which will only result in even higher temperatures, like a snowball effect. On the other hand, increase of melting water in the sea dilutes the salt percentage around the poles. This influences the course of ocean current such as the Gulf Stream (which is responsible for Norway having ice-free ports during winter, up to Murmansk in Russia) When the Gulf stream will change it’s course or stop completely (it has in the past), Western Europe might get a much colder climate instead (I mean, we’re on the same latitude as Canada) (1). And then there are other factors I haven’t mentioned yet, such as the jet stream air currents (yes) and the fact that current climate models aren’t able to calculate the effect of clouds yet (2).
The most ‘likely’ scenarios of climate change leave us with these consequences (3):
- sealevel will rise (more floods)
- droughts and wildfires will become more common in most warm places
- other areas will get more rainfall (including Northern Europe)
- more extreme weather overall
More water, more droughts, more extreme weather. Do you think what I think?
And similarities rise even more when you know that the lines on these guys are inspired by the Nazca lines (mythology)!
(this is actually not how the story works, Rayquaza stops Groudon and Kyogre fighting each other and represents clear skies rather than extreme weather (it’s Ability nullifies weather effects after all). Groudon and Kyogre created land and sea on the earth, respectively, although they are capable of creating droughts as well as floods. They are not associated with climate change, but I couldn’t help but make the connection! Know what’s out there already, so to say!)
Floods as well as heat or fires appear in several doomsday myths, so it’s only natural to create a creature representing floods and/or rainfall and a creature representing droughts and/or heat. Originally I also wanted to design a extreme weather creature too but I think that’s too much in the given time. I rather present two well-made creatures than three a-OK for the sake of having three.
Now let’s start designing! My wrist is already feeling much better, so I should be able to throw out some sketches this week.
Sources.
(1) Rahmstorf, Stefan et al. (2005), Exceptional twentieth-century slowdown in Atlantic Ocean over turning circulation, online published in Nature.
(2) Stocker et al., Chapter 7: Physical Climate Processes and Feedbacks, Section 7.2.2: Cloud Processes and Feedbacks, in IPCC TAR WG1 2001.
(3) Global Warming Effects Map, National Geographic