Extreme weather or climate events are phenomena that can have catastrophic effects on human communities, agricultural systems, and natural ecosystems. The Earth's climate has changed significantly as a result of the global warming. The main way most people experience climate change is through changes in extreme weather and climatic events, like heat waves and droughts. Some of these severe occurrences have already become more frequent and more intense due to human-caused climate change.

Below are extreme weather examples:

Heat waves

Heat waves are extended stretches of unusually hot weather that might last days or weeks. In recent years, there have been more heat waves. The number of severe heat waves has increased by roughly three times the long-term average as a result of this trend. Studies reveal that the likelihood of heat waves has typically increased due to human-induced climate change. And prolonged (multi-month) extreme heat has been unprecedented since the start of reliable instrumental records in 1895.

Drought

Higher temperatures cause evaporation rates to increase, which includes more moisture loss through plant leaves. If the impacts of increasing temperatures are not countered by other changes, even in locations where precipitation does not decrease, these increases in surface evaporation and loss of water from plants lead to more rapid drying of soils (such as reduced wind speed or increased humidity). As soil dries out, a greater percentage of the sun's energy is diverted into heating the soil and surrounding air rather than evaporating its moisture, which leads to hotter summers in drier climates.

Heavy Downpours

Nationally, particularly over the past three to five decades, there has been an increase in heavy downpours. The amount of rain falling on the wettest days has also grown, along with the intensity and frequency of the strongest rainfall events. Since 1991, particularly strong precipitation events have produced much more rain than usual. It is generally known what is causing these alterations. More water vapor can be found in warmer air than in colder air. Global investigations reveal that warming brought on by humans has increased the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere. Storm systems can access this additional moisture, resulting in higher rainfall. The properties of the atmosphere that influence weather patterns and storms are also changed by climate change.

Flooding

Even in areas where the total amount of precipitation is expected to fall, flooding may get worse in some areas. Any high flow, overflow, or inundation of water that results in harm or has a threat of harm is referred to as a flood. Both weather-related and human-related variables contribute to or exacerbate floods. Heavy or persistent precipitation, snowmelt, thunderstorms, storm surges from hurricanes, and ice or debris jams are examples of major weather factors. Dam and levee structural failures, altered drainage patterns, and changes to the land's cover are all caused by human activity (such as pavement).

Hurricanes

Since the early 1980s, when high quality satellite data have been available, most measures of Atlantic hurricane activity have increased significantly. These contain counts of the storms that are the fiercest as well as measurements of intensity, frequency, and duration. Sea surface temperatures in the area where Atlantic storms originate and travel through are linked, in part, to the recent increases in activity. These local sea surface temperatures have been proven to be influenced by a wide range of variables, including the environment's natural fluctuation, human-caused emissions of heat-trapping gases, and particulate pollution. Research is actively focusing on quantifying the proportional contributions of natural and human-caused variables.

Storms

Since the 1950s, both the frequency and the severity of winter storms have grown. Other trends in severe storms, such as the frequency and strength of tornadoes, hail, and violent thunderstorm winds, are unclear and the subject of extensive research. There has been a noticeable increase in storms that result in significant monetary and other damages. However, sociological factors like rising affluence and population have contributed to this trend.

The effects of extreme weather

The effects of extreme weather ranges from damaging property and critical infrastructure, impacting human health and productivity, and negatively affecting sectors such as agriculture, forestry, fisheries and tourism.

Preparing and mitigating the impacts of extreme weather

Governments and businesses must be ready for a severe weather event before it occurs. When it comes to severe weather disasters, both governments and businesses have comparable worries, such as employee safety, transportation issues, office closures, and disruption of crucial business processes. The preparation for severe weather and climate-related disasters should be slightly different for government agencies and private businesses.

Regards from Ghana,

Joe

References

Ashley, S. T., and W. S. Ashley, 2008: Flood fatalities in the United States. Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology, 47, 805-818, doi:10.1175/2007JAMX1611.1.

Bell, G. D., E. S. Blake, C. W. Landsea, T. B. Kimberlain, S. B. Goldenberg, J. Schemm, and R. J. Pasch, 2012: [Tropical cyclones] Atlantic basin [in "State of the Climate in 2011"]. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 93, S99-S105, doi:10.1175/2012BAMSStateoftheClimate.