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A study by researchers at the London School of Economics and the University of York has found that new seasons are forming on Earth. The researchers investigated seasonal changes in different parts of the world.

According to the study, published in The Conversation, these new seasons are linked to humanity's destructive impact on the climate and natural environment. As reported by Live Science, our planet is experiencing the emergence of new, previously nonexistent "human-made seasons." They are called "human-made" because they were born from human activity, which has drastically disrupted Earth's natural rhythms.

"Seasons are more than just a way to divide the year. They are a way we interact with nature," warns Felicia Low, an associate professor of sustainability at the University of York. "Historically, people have perceived seasons as stable and predictable phases that coincide with agricultural cycles, cultural traditions, and the rhythms of nature. But the familiar seasons are changing. Human activity is rapidly transforming the Earth, and once-stable seasonal patterns and climate cycles are becoming unfamiliar and less recognizable."

In their new research, the authors argue that entirely new, anthropogenic (human-created) seasons are emerging.

Examples of New Seasons

The first is the "smog season."

This season appears in Southeast Asia, the Americas, and other parts of the world, typically in spring or autumn, when agricultural producers burn fields and surrounding forests to clear land for planting crops.

During this time, peatlands are burned in Indonesia and Malaysia, while crop residue is burned in India. This leads to large-scale forest fires, and for several weeks, the sky is covered in thick, persistent black smoke.

The second is the "garbage season." This season is prevalent in countries with coastlines. For example, in Bali, from November to March, monsoon winds and ocean currents wash tons of plastic waste onto the shores. In other words, the sea is returning the trash that people have discarded. During this season, many countries must focus on cleaning their coastlines.

Researchers are raising the alarm that traditional seasons are disappearing in parallel. It is becoming difficult to distinguish autumn from winter, or winter from spring, leading to devastating consequences for ecosystems and cultures. Less and less snow is falling in the mountains.

The researchers also introduced another term: "arrhythmic seasons," analogous to cardiac arrhythmia. This term denotes the disruption of normal seasonal cycles, such as an early spring, an early breeding season, a longer summer, or a shortened winter or hibernation period.

These "glitches" in nature's rhythm have serious consequences for ecosystems. Animals and plants whose lives are built around predictable cycles cannot adapt to such sharp shifts. Just as arrhythmia places a strain on the human heart, "arrhythmic seasons" place a critical strain on our planet, jeopardizing the stability of all life on it.

Currently, the timing of events typical for a certain season is shifting, including bird migration, the start of blooming, and leaf fall. These shifts are destroying the synchronicity in nature, causing plants, animals, and people to fall out of their usual rhythm. For example, people may experience daytime sleepiness and nighttime insomnia, leading to stress. Similar changes also disrupt ecosystems, threaten the health of millions, and cause economic damage.

Consequently, the scientists have urged governments to honestly acknowledge these processes and work with society and the scientific community to find effective solutions to this ecological crisis.

The change in seasons requires us to rethink our relationship with time and the environment. Today, most of us perceive time through the lens of days, hours, and minutes—a global standard used everywhere from smartphones to train schedules. However, as the researchers note, this technical way of measuring time ignores older, more natural ways of understanding time, which are shaped by natural rhythms such as the onset of the rainy season or solar and lunar cycles.

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