Extreme Weather And Heat Waves

Heat waves are defined as prolonged periods of extreme heat (Clements & Casani, 2014). According to Disasters in Public Health, heat waves are natural disasters

Drought can occur for many different reasons. Drought mostly occurs by not receiving rain or snow for a prolonged period of time. This can occur if wind patterns change. Humans can also cause drought by cutting down broad areas of trees resulting in the soil in the ground being unable to hold water, a great example of this is the dust bowl of the

Most of us consider drought as a period of dry and hot weather with too little or no rain, and while any or all of these conditions might be existent during drought, the definition of drought is more complex and subtle. According to the United States Geological Survey, California Water Science Center (as cited in Congressional Digest, 2015, p. 2):

Over the past few years record-breaking and extreme weather events including sweltering summers, super-storms, wildfires and shrinking icecaps, alongside the acidifying of the oceans has been the topic of discussion. In Missouri this winter we have seen more snow, extreme freezing temperatures, and then day’s later 60 degree weather just to start over again. Who or what is responsible for these record breaking events and climate changes?

The intensity, frequency, and duration of North Atlantic hurricanes, as well as the frequency of category 4 and 5 hurricanes, have all increased since the early 1980s (Bell 2012). The increase in hurricanes can be linked to higher sea surface temperatures caused by multiple outside sources. Human induced emissions of heat-trapping gases and particulate pollution are two of the possible sources that are affecting the sea surface temperature. Humans are the main contributor contributing to climate change and global warming, but most seem not to care. Not only is the amount of hurricanes increasing, but heat waves are increasing and intensifying in some western parts of the country. Heat waves have become more frequent across The United States in recent decades. Western regions are setting records for numbers of heat waves and droughts in the 2000s. Data collected suggests that the droughts over the last decade in the West represent the driest conditions in the last 800 years (Vose 2005). With varying weather all over the country, the real estate market is beginning to be affected as well. Popular ski capitals will no longer have their icy slopes and eventually the popular beaches will be too hot to visit or will not have any beach left, causing drops in vacation rentals and permanent housing

Over the years the droughts in North America have become worse. In 2012 80% of America was affected by very dry months and this is only by mid July. Climate change also has an effect on our health as humans. In 2012, at least 74 Americans were killed from extreme heat. This is nothing compared to 2011. During 2011 there were at least 206 people died from extreme heat.

In the article, “What We Can Say About The Louisiana Floods and Climate Change”, Chris Mooney states that due to climate change our planet is warming, causing the increase the of rainfall throughout the world. He claims that a warming planet overall breaks warm temperature records more frequently than cold temperature records. Due to the atmosphere warming its ability to retain water increase as the water vapor increased this past year, and dumping more than two feet of rainfall. He points out that heat and moisture helps caused heavy rainfall due to the amount of moisture in the atmosphere. The purpose of this article is to help us explore and understand that climate change could be a possible reason why extreme weather is occurring more

In present day, the ocean is warmer now than it has been in the past 50 years. In the article, " Signs of Climate Change", it says that in 1960 the average ocean tempature change was -.3 degrees but in 2010 the average tempature change in the ocean was .6 degrees. Where I live the tempature is still continuing to rise more and more each year. With warmer ocean tempature comes rising sea level. In present day the sea level has rose by 7 inches in the past 100 years. In 2100 th tempature is around 15 inches higher than it is in present day. Both of these things are causing more tropical storms to happen and is also making the beach less and less

In the article, “ Climate Change is Here - And Worse Than We Thought” Hansen tells us about multiple effects of climate change. “The deadly european heatwave of 2003, the fiery Russian heatwave of 2010 and catastrophic droughts in Texas and Oklahoma last year can each be attributed to climate change.” He also mentions, “ The world that caused the 2003 heatwave in Europe that killed more than 50,000 people and the 2011 drought in Texas that caused more than $5 billion in damage.” Is also the result of climate change. In the same article Hansen says, “ The National Academy of Sciences, makes it clear that while average global temperature has been steadily rising due to a warming climate ( up to about 1.5 degrees fahrenheit in the past century), the extremes are actually becoming much more frequent and more intense worldwide.” It is important to know because our climate temperature is rising. If it keeps rising our land will dry up and we will be in drought, or cause wildfires, and animals that survive in the cold weather will be affected as

An increase in average global temperature/an increase in extreme weather conditions, such as hurricanes and tornadoes

Drought, like a destructing earthquake or flood, is a natural disaster. Drought is an insidious hazard to nature. It results from a deficiency of precipitation over a long period of time over an area. Precipitation is any kind of moisture like rain, snow, and sleet. One can determine how malicious a drought can be by the amount of precipitation, and how long it is (Gleick, 2006).

I. (Attention Getter) 2016 was a record setting year for climate change. The first six months were the warmest that have

For over a hundred years, scientists have been carefully gathering and verifying data on the earth's temperature. The latest data reveals some striking trends:All 10 of the warmest years on record have occurred in the last 15 years The 1990's have already been warmer than the 1980's- the warmest decade on record The global average surface temperature has risen 0.5 degrees (site source)For the first time ever, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the authoritative international body charged with studying this issue, concluded that the observed increase in global average temperature over the last century "is

In the last 100 years, Earth’s average temperature has risen by 1.4°F. The rising global temperatures have caused changes in weather and climate. Global warming refers to the ongoing rise in the average temperature near Earth’s surface. This is causing a climate change, which refers to any significant change (major change in temperature, precipitation, or wind patterns) in the measures of climate lasting for an extended period of time (several decades or longer). Due to this, it is projected that the temperature will rise from 2 to 11.5°F in the next hundred years (US EPA, 2014). The “drivers,” which are the principal causes making this occur, are very controversial. It is debated whether a change in temperature is due to the work of

“Natural disasters have killed more than 600,000 people and left behind trillions of dollars in damages in the last two decades, the United Nations said Monday.” (Chan) Extreme weather has caused millions of casualties and extreme damages over the years, but lately there has been an increase in severe weather events. This is causing problems in the US, with the amount of tornadoes rising in tornado alley “Tennessee experienced a 67 percent increase in tornado activity in 1983-2013 compared to the 1954-1983 time period. Oklahoma experienced a nearly 35 percent decrease in tornadoes in 1983-2013 compared to 1954-1983.”