Intro:
Recently, climate change has become a huge talking point around the world. In the past decades, weather has become more extreme, especially through heat waves and droughts. Yet, how is the changing climate affecting hurricane activity? How will it affect it in the future? Scientists aren’t certain if climate change will increase the number of hurricanes. However, their intensity is expected to increase.
Higher Sea Surface Temperatures:
Research shows that the North Atlantic and other regions had received an increase in intensity over the past two to three decades. A forty-five to eighty-seven percent increase in the frequency of category four and five hurricanes have been projected for the continental United States, despite a decrease in the frequency of storms. The increase in activity can be linked to higher sea surface temperatures in The Atlantic. Factors that have been shown to effect the local sea surface temperatures are natural variability, human-induced emissions of heat-trapping gases, and particulate pollution. Warmer sea temperatures also brings the potential of a higher intensity of tropical storm wind speeds. This would cause more damage if it made landfall. Through scientific computer modeling, scientists are able to predict a two to eleven percent increase in average maximum wind speed. Along with this, more rainfall is expected. There is a projected twenty percent increase.
Rise In Sea Level:
As warmer ocean water expands and land ice melts, water levels begin to rise. Sea level is expected to rise one to four feet in the next century. This can cause storm surges, which occurs when waters rise above their normal levels and are pushed inland by wind. These bring a lot of damage. For example, during hurricane Sandy, the storm surge that hit caused an extra two billion dollars in damages to New York City.
Rising Ocean Temperatures:
This video goes more into depth about how climate change affects the formation of hurricanes and how rising ocean temperatures have fueled some of the most devastating storms in recent years.
My Opinion:
In my opinion, I think that this is a huge problem, especially for those living on The Atlantic coast or in other coastal areas. After doing my research, I learned that we are already seeing some effects of climate change and that there is more to come. Although this problem cannot be solved overnight, it is important to know what is happening and how the earth is changing.
References:
“How Climate Change Makes Hurricanes More Destructive.” Environmental Defense Fund, www.edf.org/climate/how-climate-change-makes-hurricanes-more-destructive.
“Hurricanes and Climate Change.” Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, 1 Oct. 2019, www.c2es.org/content/hurricanes-and-climate-change/.
“Menu.” National Climate Assessment, nca2014.globalchange.gov/highlights/report-findings/extreme-weather#intro-section-2.
“Warmer Air Means More Evaporation and Precipitation.” Climate Central, 6 Sept. 2017, www.climatecentral.org/gallery/graphics/warmer-air-means-more-evaporation-and-precipitation.
“YouTube.” YouTube, 14 Sept. 2018, youtu.be/RZ-DCyP1RBc.
I love the outlook you took, and enjoyed the video!! As a meteo major, I felt very interested in the topic you chose for this post!
Great post. I liked the video you guys attached to it. Also worth noting with climate change warming the oceans an increase in water temperatures means a more likely Bermuda high in the center of the Atlantic which tends to be the main driver of the track of hurricanes.
First of all, I find this to be such a huge topic that is typically projected on the news at least once a week. I find your article to be both enticing and informational. During Hurricane Sandy, my neighbors beach house was damaged due to high winds and the storm surge. I remember seeing pictures of the sand that was in there house because the sea levels was much higher than normal. The Atlantic Ocean is going to rise and rise as temperatures do, and as you said, the damage from the storms will be devastating.