36 photos show how extreme weather and natural disasters have gotten more intense over the years
Joey HaddenAug 6, 2019, 02:55 IST
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- Extreme weather and natural phenomena have always been on the radar, but in recent years the intensity and frequency of storms and natural disasters have increased.
- Scientists have linked this increase to climate change.
- Under these new norms, extreme weather is causing more damage than it used to.
- Here is an inside look at how extreme weather and natural disasters are getting more intense.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
Extreme weather patterns, both wet and dry, have been linked to climate change. This includes temperature, precipitation and lack thereof, and natural disasters.
Source: Public Health
But exposed mountain and coastal regions have proven more vulnerable to the increase in severe weather over time. In 1980, there were 291 catastrophic events related to weather and climate. In 2014, there were 904.
Source: National Geographic
That said, experts can't usually attribute climate change as the underlying cause of individual storms and disasters.
Source: Smithsonian Magazine
Rather, climate change can be linked to the overall increase in frequency and impact of these natural disasters.
Source: Smithsonian Magazine
One example of this is rising sea levels. Climate change is linked to glaciers melting, which results an increase in sea levels. While rising sea levels are not a natural disaster on their own, they can lead to natural disasters, such as flooding.
Source: National Geographic
About 160 billion tons of surface ice from the Greenland Ice Sheet, which covers 80% of Greenland, melted in July 2019 because of warmer temperatures, according to Reuters.
Source: Reuters
The melted ice ends up in our oceans, causing sea levels to rise. Rising sea levels causes flooding in coastal cities and towns, like this residential area in Greenland.
Source: Reuters
Experts predict that in the coming years, continuous climate change will lead to sea levels rising 10 to 32 inches by the end of the century, and storms (including hurricanes) will become stronger.
Source: National Geographic
Stronger storms like hurricanes and typhoons will likely do more damage to civilizations.
Source: National Geographic
One recent example of this is this severe damage caused by a super typhoon in China in 2018. According to National Geographic, the storm packed winds of up to 165 mph, and it may have been the strongest typhoon to his Hong King in 60 years.
Source: Reuters, National Geographic
Tornados are rarely seen in this area, according to China's Global Times newspaper, and government forecasters linked this incident, along with other cases of "extreme weather," to climate change.
Source: Reuters
According to National Geographic, the global precipitation average is rising as well, and the trend is linked to climate change.
Source: National Geographic
Guerrilla rain, a term coined in the last decade, describes a storm in which clouds form at the same time that moist air from the ocean comes up against the warm air trapped among tall, packed buildings to create quick and heavy downpours. They are on the rise in Tokyo, according to the Guardian. The storms form when moist ocean air meets the warm air that is trapped in between Tokyo's tall, tightly packed buildings.
Source: The Guardian
Experts say both floods and droughts are occurring more frequently and are likely to become stronger and more damaging, National Geographic reports.
Source: National Geographic
Warmer oceans cause wind speeds to increase, according to Yale Climate Connections.
Source: Yale Climate Connections, Business Insider
According to Reuters, this flood in North Carolina last year was one of the ten worst climate-linked disasters of 2018.
Source: Reuters
In mid-2019, the Hunan Province of China experienced severe flooding after heavy rain.
Source: China Daily
Up to 11 US states could see a 500% increase in the amount of annually burned land by 2039, according to a study funded by the US Forest Service Global Change Program.
Source: The US Forest Service Global Change Program, Business Insider
Although wildfires have always been a part of the American western ecosystem, fire season has increased by three months in the past few decades.
Source: NPR
In mid-2019, Hawaii's governor declared an emergency on the island of Maui due to a large wildfire.
Source: Reuters
Climate change does not cause wildfires, but it does contribute to the increase in risk and damage done.
Source: Business Insider
Wildfires destroy 4-to-5 million acres of land in the United States each year, according to National Geographic.
Source: National Geographic
Heat waves may not look extreme, but they can be deadly. In mid-July 2019, a four-day heat wave in western Europe killed seven people.
Source: Reuters
Greenhouse gas emissions likely contributed to the extreme temperatures, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
Source: Reuters
The polar vortex is a band of strong winds high in the atmosphere that locks cold air around the Arctic region.
Source: The Guardian
But in early 2019, the vortex ventured south to the Midwestern states of the US, causing temperatures to drop to -20 degrees, and wind chills nearing -50 degrees.
Source: Weather
According to Business Insider, the polar vortex dipping south of the North Pole can be linked to climate change.
Source: Business Insider
When warm air trapped in the atmosphere from greenhouse gases intrudes on the polar vortex, the disturbance in the vortex may cause the winds to be slower and wavier.
Source: Business Insider
While skeptics may dismiss climate change when extreme cold weather strikes, experts say that this theory comes from confusing weather with climate, according to Business Insider. Climate is the average of weather over time.
Source: Business Insider
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