Climate change is causing hurricanes to get more powerful and dangerous. Scientists weigh in on what that means for forecasts, emergency officials and you.
Floods, wildfires, heat waves and hurricanes cause billions of dollars of property damage each year. Can federal climate scientists help the insurance industry keep up?
Climate change is making flooding and wind damage from hurricanes more common in the U.S. That means dangerous storms are getting more frequent, even though the total number of storms isn't changing.
The connection between weather and climate change has never been clearer. And simultaneous extremes, such as hot and dry weather together, are particularly dangerous.
This year's hurricane season got off to a very slow start. But it only takes one big storm to wreak havoc. And climate change makes such storms more likely.
Scientists and forecasters are trying to figure out how to talk about the connection between climate change and severe weather. It could have big impacts on how people think about global warming.
The storm was forecast "to bring damaging winds, a life-threatening storm surge and flooding rains to portions of west-central Mexico today," the U.S. National Hurricane Center said at 12 a.m. Sunday.
"The flooding has been catastrophic," the police department on Pawleys Island, S.C., said around midday. As the storm arrived, the state was under 85 weather alerts.
The storm has landed in South Carolina after devastating southwest and central Florida. Ian brought heavy rain, high winds and flooding along South Carolina coast, causing damage in some areas.
The hurricane, located miles southeast of Orlando, was losing strength as it made its way across Florida. It was carrying maximum sustained winds of 75 mph.
Such massive storms are fairly rare, and it's even more rare for them to make landfall. NOAA says that for such storms, "catastrophic damage will occur" with electricity outages "for weeks or months."
