Abnormal weather has become a “killer” due to the climate crisis.
Climate change can make abnormal heat a habit. News of the “heat records” should not come as a shock, because humanity has long known that the planet is warming up, the Financial Times writes.
What is striking about the news coverage of the recent heat wave that has hit parts of North America is its doubts about its connection to climate change. This is especially surprising when science has already shown that the heat is exacerbated by global warming caused by human activities.
The most drastic changes in extreme weather events are the speed and intensity of alternating heat and cold. Heat waves displace cold weather in frequency.
It would be impossible for some of the last devastating heat waves to occur without a direct link to the climate crisis. For example, you can look at the heatwave in Japan in 2018, which hospitalized tens of thousands of people, or the heatwave in Siberia in 2020, which caused fires and melting permafrost.
Studies have shown that such situations are 600 times more likely to occur due to human activities. Scientists are still working to quantify the impact of climate change.
Climate change has also led to increased rainfall in many parts of the world. For example, the downpour of Hurricane Harvey in 2017 was partly due to global warming. Similarly, droughts in some parts of the world, such as Cape Town, are becoming more likely due to the climate crisis.
These changes are dramatic as people have adapted to a very stable climate over the centuries. But what the world sees in the future will be even more powerful.
Now, floods that occur every 100 years occur every 50 years, and this is a big problem. And powerful heatwaves threaten decades of development and pose a clear threat to the social and economic well-being of all countries.
While some people ignore or actively deny climate change, the problem is exacerbated. These devastating events confirm the findings of scientists. The price is paid by people who have less access to information, who have to work outdoors, who live in poor quality housing and cannot afford normal access to medicine.
Today, when temperatures in North America are rising to record highs, abnormal heat has become one of the most popular news items.
But this is not just a serious problem, the heat wave has become a silent killer. The growing number of avoidable deaths due to abnormal heat is becoming a visible statistical consequence of the climate crisis. However, in many parts of the world such statistics do not even exist, which makes heat waves, their intensity and victims completely invisible.
But despite the statistics, some people still do not talk about the role that human activities play in climate change. The risks of floods and storms are high economic costs that can be included in insurance premiums. Thus, climate risks are becoming a “popular topic” in the financial sector. However, heat waves are rarely mentioned in finance or insurance, as the economic costs in this case are more difficult to estimate.
It is known that heat waves kill people, and climate change increases the chances of warming up. New research shows how emissions from fossil fuels have led to increased mortality. This powerful evidence fills a crucial gap in attempts to force countries and companies that pollute to pay for emissions. This was also discussed at the UN climate talks in Glasgow this year. Direct scientific evidence can be a force for counteracting environmental pollution.
But whether clear figures will help politicians and industry take the most important step toward real action remains an open question. Scientists can provide reliable data that can link extreme weather events directly to climate change. But only facts without real action will not lead to positive changes, the publication summarizes.
Severe storms and floods due to the exacerbation of the climate crisis have intensified the resettlement of people. In particular, climate change has increased internal migration to record levels worldwide. Recently, people have been leaving their homes more often due to the climate crisis than due to the escalation of military conflicts.
The problem of climate change is becoming more serious. The series of severe droughts in Europe since 2014 is the most critical in more than two thousand years.
The study analyzed tree rings from the time of the Roman Empire. Scientists say global warming is the most likely cause of the recent rise in extreme heat.
