NASA suggests that natural disasters will continue to be strengthened by climate change | Credit: ShutterStock
NASA’s latest data definitely leaves us behind. The climate is growing wilder and more dramatically – a new era of chaos is above us – and we see it in real time. A report released Tuesday by the Guardian, around the world, floods, wildfires, hurricane winds and record temperatures are occurring at greater frequencies and at greater intensity.
A US Space Agency investigation shows that such extreme events are more frequent, longer lasting and more serious, with last year’s figures doubled in 2003-2020.
“Experts at the UK MET office said that extreme increases have long been predicted, but are now seen in reality. He warned that people are not prepared for such weather events that are outside of previous experience,” the Guardian wrote.
Climate-related disasters have jumped nearly 50% over the past 20 years, according to the Space Agency. The number of catastrophic events that cause death, destroy homes, weaken food chains and replace the entire community is growing.
Sounds a climate chaos alarm
Scientists are sounding the alarm. Natural disasters are expected to worsen. This is not just climate change. It’s about climate confusion. Data shows that the most serious events (formerly known as the “first century” has become the norm.
The heat waves last much longer, floods arrive faster, causing more damage, wildfires consume more land, and hurricane winds become more severe. All of this shows a dramatic escalation – transforming our climate into something increasingly unstable and manageable.
Some may say we are used to devastating headlines by now. Greece has seen wildfires, Belgium floods and hurricane destruction in Florida.
We display them through social media, a phone screen like a paralyzed feed. But this new data shows something else. We don’t just experience the worst events more frequently. We see them become much more serious. The impact today will be huge. Humans and economic costs become a surprising new reality.
Direct consequences of human activity
Scientists say this is a direct result of human activity – from the way we produce energy, grow food, destruction of forests and consume resources.
“This is certainly surprising, as we see increasingly extreme events around the world,” Dr. Bailing Li, PhD, of the Institute of Hydrologies at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, told the Guardian that it is partnering with the University of Maryland’s Interdisciplinary Center for Earth Systems Science.
Dr. Lee said there is a need for more data. “It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly what’s going on here, but other events suggest that (global) warming is the driving factor.”
The atmospheric warming we experience has driven more water into clouds, strengthened the formation of hurricanes, and contributed to a catastrophic downpour. With rising temperatures, wildfires grow faster and more confusing. This is not a far-fetched threat. It’s something we’re already working on today.
Vulnerable people suffer from the worst
The climate isn’t waiting while policymakers talk. Cities are forced to evacuate, farmers lose their harvest, tourists get stuck, insurance companies pay record settlements, small islands have washed away coasts, vulnerable communities are suffering from the worst.
The rich may find shelter, a fortified basement, a new city, but the poor pay the price. Vulnerable payments with their homes, their health, and their lives.
Some say we are destined to chaos. This means there is little you can do to soften your trajectory. But many climate experts argue that we still have options. It can reduce emissions, protect forests, generate clean energy, and rethink consumption habits.
“That’s certainly scary.”
Goddard’s head of hydrological sciences, Dr. Matthew Rodell, says the problem now is that “the world is not prepared for the changes in the heavy rainfall and drought that are currently occurring.”
“Around the world, people have been building ways of living around the weather that they and their ancestors were used to.
“It’s certainly scary,” concluded Dr. Matthew Rodell, Goddard’s chief of hydrological sciences.
