This week we are exploring extreme weather events. In the
figure from climate.gov
you can see the location that mostly impacted the country last year. All those
were billion-dollar disasters. So far, in
2017 (as of October 6th, as per this website), there have been 15 weather and climate disaster
events with losses exceeding $1 billion each across the United States
[wildfires, droughts, hurricanes..].
Knowing your weather patterns
matters. As the climate changes, so will the weather. Global patterns like more droughts, more heavy
downpours, heat waves, etc. can be linked to extreme weather events.
NOAA staff says: “The point here is that these events are causing up to
billions of dollars of damage. As we see the increasing trends in these
metrological and hydrological extremes, as a society we really need to think
about how we are going to manage the risk, how we’re going to adapt to these
changes in extremes.”
NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center provides a variety of information detailing all these extreme weather events. Their yearly maps of U.S.
Billion-dollar weather and climate disasters are very informative and should open
our eyes about what is happening around us. Interesting
times…
I was looking at your map of extreme weather through the country and it is very disappointing that California is the only state in a drought.
ReplyDeleteI did not even imagine that is how much we spend on rebuilding or preventing hazards, like wildfires. California alone has many wildfires yearly, that adds up and considering it cost a billion dollars to putout. There is not many things that we can do to prevent it besides not lighting fires for camps when it is not allowed, put out any fires before sleeping while camping. Great post.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting and informative map. It's interesting that even with all of that going on, there are some states that are practically untouched by extreme weather. Like Arizona, Montana, and the Dakotas. I find that fascinating.
ReplyDeleteI believe that 2017 so far broke the record for number of extreme weather in the USA; and it definitely a year to forget. From hurricanes one after another in the south east, the wildfire in the state of California, left behind a mess that will take years to build again. And as you state it already cost around 1 billion dollars in damages. Keep in mind that winter is not over yet and we might witness other extreme weather in states that are untouched so far by any major hazard.
ReplyDelete