Scientists are increasingly convinced that climate change is making extreme weather events more frequent and severe.
When encountering a strong storm, such as Hurricane IanInfluence occurs in many different ways.
Perhaps most importantly, rising sea levels mean things will be worse when storm surges occur.
Storm surge is the rise in sea levels caused by changes in wind and atmospheric pressure, and can especially affect the land that lies and the communities that live there.
Hurricane Ian causes ‘historic’ damage
In fact, storm surge is often the cause of the most damage during storms, such as Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and Superstorm Sandy in 2012.
As Hurricane Ian continues to sweep through Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis has already called the damage to the state caused by Hurricane Ian More than 2 million people were left without power, causing “historic” damage, and the true extent of the damage is still unclear.
A warming planet also means that the water cycle is strengthening.
Simply put, more heat means more evaporation, which means more moisture in the cloud and therefore more rainfall.
We also know that ocean temperatures are rising.
This can make hurricanes more powerful because heat from the water’s surface transfers energy to the storm as it moves towards land.
Island blocked by causeway, destroyed by Ian
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Another theory is that climate change May interfere with atmospheric currents that keep storm systems moving.
While there’s no real consensus on this, it could mean the storm lingers in the affected area longer, causing more damage in the process.
Hurricane Ian made landfall near Cayo Costa in southwest Florida.Image: AP/NOAA
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