Studying the strong links between our warming planet and extreme weather Cloudy sky Date: Author: Gabriela Bitar Climate change impacts both people and our planet. From record-breaking heat waves to even drier droughts and overwhelming storm surges, the consequences of the climate crisis have increased in frequency and intensity across the globe. But how do we know that extreme weather events are influenced by climate change? With advances in climate science, scientists have identified strong links between our planet’s warming and changing weather patterns. This is known as attribution science: the study of to what degree human influence may have contributed to the frequency, intensity, and likelihood of extreme climate or weather events. By using advanced climate models and statistical analyses, researchers compare observed weather patterns with those generated by models that simulate a world without human-induced climate change. This comparison allows scientists to assess the extent to which climate change has altered the frequency or intensity of extreme climate and weather events. Weather vs. Climate Two-thirds of Americans (66%) believe that global warming is affecting weather in the United States . Weather is changing due to climate change, so this observation that many are recalling from their personal experience does align with the science . But let us step back for a minute to consider the relationship between weather and climate change. This will help us better understand the relationship between extreme weather events and our rapidly warming planet. Although the two are connected and influence similar factors, such as wind, temperature, humidity, and precipitation, there are important differences. One way to think about it is that weather tells you what clothes to wear day to day while climate (the average of weather over time) tells you what types of clothes to keep in your closet. The weather […]
Click here to view original web page at www.worldwildlife.org