DM Bergstrom
A heatwave in 2022 redefined scientific expectations of the Antarctic climate. Now the global community must prepare for what a warmer world may bring.
Satellite data illustrates the heat signature of Hurricane Maria above warm surface water in 2017.
NASA
Currents can carry that deep ocean heat hundreds of miles to surface again at distant shores.
An anemometer.
Wattanasit Chunopas/Shutterstock
Do record-breaking wind speeds mean a particularly catastrophic storm? Not always – and it can be tricky to get precise measurements.
NOAA / AP
The record-breaking Cyclone Freddy was a wake-up call to prepare for the storms of the future.
The fishing village of Mahebourg, Mauritius, is among the places in the path of cyclone Freddy.
Laura Morosoli/AFP via Getty Images
Tropical cyclones are becoming more frequent in the Indian Ocean. Here’s why and what that means.
Seabirds forage on an oyster shell island on the Texas Gulf Coast.
Jon G. Fuller/VW Pics/ Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Climate change is making oceans more acidic globally. Now, scientists are finding that large storms can send pulses of acidic water into bays and estuaries, further stressing fish and shellfish.
Hurricane Nicole was a Category 1 storm, but it caused extensive damage to Florida in 2022.
Lauren Dauphin/NASA Earth Observatory
Research shows storms that might have caused minimal damage a few decades ago are becoming stronger and more destructive as the planet warms.
Ocean waters are now warmer, more acidic and hold less oxygen. They’re also stressed from overfishing and pollution.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan
As the climate changes, the ocean is also changing. And that’s putting our health at risk.
Bureau of Meteorology
Climate change is likely to mean disasters such as Cyclone Seroja will become more intense, and be seen further south in Australia more often.
Shutterstock
Wetlands bear the brunt of much storm damage to the coast. But over the past 300 years, 85% of the world’s wetland area has been destroyed.
When Hurricane Dorian, seen here from the International Space Station, stalled over the Bahamas in September 2019, its winds, rain and storm surge devastated the islands.
NASA
Hurricane stalling has become common over the past half-century, and their average forward speed has also slowed.
Hurricanes Marco and Laura swept through the Gulf of Mexico just two days apart in August 2020.
Joshua Stevens/NASA Earth Observatory
It’s only happened twice since naming started in 1950, and there’s an unusual twist to where many of the storms formed this year.
Photobank.kiev.ua/Shutterstock
Tropical cyclones account for almost four in five natural disasters across Pacific Island nations. But a new forecasting tool now gives up to four months warning for the upcoming cyclone season.
Charipara village is flooded by the sea as Cyclone Amphan destroyed embankments in Kalapara Upazila in Patuakhali District, Bangladesh. Date: 3 June 2020.
Md. Johirul Islam
Cyclone Amphan was one of the worst cyclones to hit Bangladesh in modern times. But thanks to local action, many lives were saved.
Awaiting Amphan, May 2020.
EPA
Massive cyclone that hit India and Bangladesh could have been so much worse.
Many houses still do not have cyclone-ready roofs, so are liable to lose them if hit by the full force of the storm.
Dan Peled/AAP
Most homes are not as cyclone-ready as they could be. It seems lower insurance premiums aren’t enough of an incentive for owners to upgrade their homes, but a new study points to some solutions.
Australia will probably see fewer tropical cyclones reaching land this season.
AAP Image/Bureau of Meteorology
Southern and eastern Australia need to prepare for heatwaves and increased fire risk this summer, as forecasts predict hot, dry weather.
Flooded houses in Buzi, Mozambique after tropical cyclone Idai struck.
INGC (Mozambique) & FATHUM
Tropical cyclones Idai and Kenneth have shown how important it is to integrate local information and resources with global scale forecasts and support.
Average global temperature from 2013 to 2017, as compared to 1951–1980 baseline.
NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio
Already heat-stressed countries will see the largest absolute increases in humid-heat and have the least ability to adapt.
shutterstock.
Warmer oceans are contributing to more frequent tropical cyclones.