As the climate warms, frequent encounters of greater winds, higher storm surges, and record rainfall throughout hurricane season make these storms more dangerous and costly, according to the Environmental Defense Fund.
Florida and Cuba are both bracing for Hurricane Ian, which is expected to deliver damaging winds and storm surges to both beaches this week.
Based on US weather forecasts, the hurricane is predicted to make landfall in Cuba on Monday before wreaking havoc on Florida with storm surges and heavy rains.
Hurricane Ian follows Hurricane Fiona, a catastrophic Category 4 storm ripped across Puerto Rico last week. It knocked out power and water supply to most of the US island. Fiona then crashed into Canada's Atlantic coast, where crucial infrastructure might take months to rebuild.
Though scientists have yet to identify whether Fiona or Ian was affected by climate change, there is a significant indication that these severe storms are becoming more frequent. But how do raging hurricanes and storms affect climate change?
Climate Change Affecting The Forming Hurricanes
Due to climate change, hurricanes are becoming wetter, windier, and more intense. Evidence also shows that it slows storms, allowing them to dump more water in one location. Climate change could also increase the volume of rain that a storm drops. Whereas a warmer atmosphere can contain more moisture, water vapor accumulates until clouds break, causing heavy rain to fall.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicts that the proportion of hurricanes that reach Category 4 or 5 intensity levels will increase by around 10% this century. Since 1851, only about a sixth of storms have achieved this strength. The global temperature has risen by 1.1 degrees Celsius over the pre-industrial average. Weather scientists from NOAA also predict that at 2 degrees Celsius global warming, hurricane wind speeds could increase by up to 10%.
Other Effects of Climate Change on Storms
The usual "season" for hurricanes is changing as climate change promotes storm-friendly conditions throughout the year. In addition, hurricanes are making landfall in areas far from normal. NOAA data states that Florida has seen most hurricanes make landfall in the United States, with more than 120 direct impacts since 1851. However, in past years, some storms have hit maximum intensity and made landfall further north than in the past - a poleward shift that scientists believe is tied to rising global air and ocean temperatures.
According to Florida State University atmospheric scientist Allison Wing, this tendency is concerning for mid-latitude cities such as New York, Boston, Beijing, and Tokyo, where "infrastructure is not prepared" for such storms.
While merely a Category 1 storm, Hurricane Sandy was the fourth most destructive hurricane in US history, costing $81 billion in damage when it hit the Northeastern Seaboard in 2012.
However, it is uncertain if climate change influences the percentage of storms that emerge each year. According to a study published in December in Nature Communications, one group of scientists recently started detecting an increase in the frequency of North Atlantic storms during the last 150 years. Nevertheless, the study is still ongoing.
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