In the Northern Hemisphere in 2017 and 2018 brought several destructive hurricanes to the shores of North America, the Caribbean, and throughout the Pacific rim. Such extreme weather events are predicted to get more common and more severe with increasing climate change.
Several participating classes in the ISCFC were or are in the path of these storms and we hope for the best for them, their families and communities.
We would love to hear from students affected directly and indirectly by extreme weather events, and also any students who have been following the news this summer.
What are your thoughts about the connection between climate change and extreme weather events? Has this hurricane season increased your concern about climate change or not? Do you think that US citizens and residents (and others in the region) will take climate change more seriously now?
Extreme Weather >
Hurricanes (extreme Weather)
The burning of fossil fuels and car emissions returns carbon back into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide according to the understanding Global Change from ugc Berkeley. This is significant because the carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere results in climate change issues which can lead to extreme weather conditions.On the account of Earthjustice.org, “Hurricanes are growing more powerful as global temperatures rise because these storm systems draw their energy from warm ocean water.” If there is no change made to stop the carbon dioxide output into the atmosphere from around the world, the ocean waters will continue to become warmer. This is a big concern, weather wise, for coastal regions all over the globe. Stronger hurricanes can destroy cities and lives, setting people so far back that some may never recover fully. This is not only a research matter but it also affects me personally for I am from Puerto Rico, which is essentially an island surrounded by ocean water; heavily affected by hurricanes and other water related catastrophes. Hurricanes getting stronger due to climate change strike fear into my heart, because once hurricanes happen, especially strong ones, food sources are limited, chances of reaching safety in time are low, and the damages to structures are devastating. With that being said, we can look at helping nations such as Puerto Rico in other ways than we have before. Currently I feel like the main focus for preventing hurricane damages is by putting up guards to protect windows and beams. I am not saying that those strategies are bad in any way. But what about preventing strong hurricanes in the first place? If people around the world individually would pay more attention to their carbon footprint and do little things to reduce it, combined with more laws and innovations to help industrial plants still people able to produce goods. The earth will be less contaminated with carbon dioxide, causing global warming to decrease. Over time this will call for smaller storms and less significant damage.https://ugc.berkeley.edu/ https://earthjustice.org/