Climate Change And Hurricanes

Climate change — we know it’s real, but did it cause the 2017 Hurricanes to form, grow in strength, and kill hundreds of people? Hurricanes occur every year during the summer months from June-September, but this hurricane season has been extraordinary. Researchers are even jumping the gun to claim that the hurricanes of this season occurred due to climate change — a claim followed by no critical evidence. This past hurricane season has been one of the strongest in recent decades. The wrath of Hurricane Harvey, Irma, and Maria were devastating for the economy, environment, and most importantly, the people inhabiting the hurricane battle zones. The last year that comes close to such an aggressive storm season dates back to 2005, when the infamous
You know them, I know them, and maybe even your grandma knows them — “Climate Change.” Whenever these words are said, the air stands still, but it should not be that way. Climate change is real and everyone must agree on that factor being true. Rising sea levels and warmer temperatures are the definitive fuel for hurricanes. Hurricanes become exponentially stronger in warmer waters and with rising sea levels, storm surge can flood city streets to new extents. So in short, yes, climate change can and most likely will affect hurricanes in the long run, but not at the moment. The effects of climate change most likely did make the 2017 hurricanes stronger than if they were created a decade ago, but no atmospheric pattern change explicitly contrived
There were other factors in play during the formation of Hurricane Irma, the strongest and longest lasting category five hurricane in decades. The vertical wind shear or the amount of wind blowing against the hurricane in the Atlantic has been on track to be a record low. Just imagine a highway route along the Atlantic Ocean and no traffic in its way to stop it. Likewise, Hurricane Harvey experienced what was known as a “block.” A block or blocking pattern is when a storm has no way of moving due to the jet stream swooping down too low. This causes the hurricane to move at an extremely slow pace and stall in ocean waters for days, as Harvey did. This is not to say that climate change did not cause or help form these hurricanes, but that there are better definitions to explicitly describe these phenomenons. Whenever a disaster ensues, the public demands for answers and explanations to please their curiosity. If these answers aren’t met, people become wary of opinions. Scientists are always frugal with throwing around the words, “Climate Change,” to not scare or overdramatize the problem at hand. To not always throw the blame onto one area of climate change, maybe we should be asking, “What combination of climate change and weather patterns caused the