Are hurricanes getting worse because of global warming?

“Never did the sky look more terrible; for one whole day and night it blazed like a furnace. The flashes came with such fury and frightfulness that we all thought the ships would be blasted. All this time, the water never ceased to fall from the sky.” Christopher Columbus wrote to Queen Isabella in 1494, of his first encounter with a hurricane off the coast of the island Hispaniola.

Cyclones, typhoons and hurricanes have always been among the most murderous on natural disasters but with global warming, they may cause even greater damages in the future. Changes in sea temperatures, sea levels and the melting of glaciers should serve as warnings of a proliferation of storms of all kinds. Higher storm surges increase coastal flooding and subsequent storm damage along coasts, and can extend hundreds of kilometers inland.

Recent years have seen several highly mediated cyclones hit different locations around the world. The life cost as well as the economic damages caused by these storms have raised a lot of attention from governments, organizations, institutions and scientists alike. Hurricane prevention has become a priority in some areas and the possible link between an increase in hurricane intensity and frequency and global warming has caused a lot of concern. Scientists are now attempting to find out if there is a linking between rising temperatures and the possibility of deadlier hurricanes. For populations living on coasts, governments, insurance companies as well as people everywhere, the implications of stronger and more frequent hurricanes is troubling.

The aim of this website is to map out the controversy surrounding hurricanes and global warming in an attempt to facilitate public understanding of this issue we consider very important. If you’d like to find out more about our project, please click here.