Cyclone Amphan
Cyclone Amphan, a Category 5 Cyclone.
A few days ago, Cyclone Amphan, a Category 5 cyclone ravished India, Bangladesh, Odisha, Sri Lanka, and Bhutan. These areas were already dealing with the widespread COVID-19 pandemic, with over 100,000 cases and thousands of deaths. The cyclone illustrates the broader picture of worsening natural disasters resulting from increasing global temperatures.
Whether the disaster is a hurricane, cyclone, or typhoon, these storms wreak havoc. But what are they, and how do they form? The only difference between a hurricane, a cyclone, and a typhoon is where the storm occurs. Hurricanes are storms occurring in the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific Ocean. In the Northwest Pacific Ocean, it is called a typhoon. Cyclones arise in the South Pacific and the Indian Ocean. They are all the same weather phenomenon. Storms form over warm ocean water (usually in the tropics, but now everywhere). Cooler air replaces warm and humid air over the water. The cooler air will then warm and start to rise again. This cycle causes huge storm clouds to form, and spirals of mass-destruction. These storms used to be rare, but now with increasing temperatures across all parts of the ocean, storms are increasing in severity and duration.
Red = US Temperature Rise | Blue = Storm Frequency
Source: Our World In Data
As you can see above, increased carbon emissions have resulted in increased temperatures. While variation in the atmosphere is hardly noticeable, the oceans are trapping much of this excess heat. They are absorbing over 90% of warming resulting from human activity. Over the past hundred years, ocean temperatures have increased over 13 degrees Celsius, according to IUCN’s briefing! That’s 55.4 degrees Fahrenheit! Unsurprisingly, we have seen significant increases in storm frequency. What does this mean to the people of India, Bangladesh, Odisha, Sri Lanka, and Bhutan?
They’re going to see a lot more storms. As global temperatures continue to hike, so will our oceans, and thus storms. Cyclone Amphan killed 80 people and destroyed thousands of homes. Yet it is only one of the dozens of hurricanes, cyclones, and typhoons we see regularly. And these storms are only one part of a much larger picture.
All in all, if Cyclone Amphan can teach us something, it’s that climate change does not only mean rising temperatures. It involves melting glaciers, rising sea levels, increased natural disasters, and, perhaps worst of all, increased inequalities. It’s these poorer countries that have and will continue to be affected by climate change the most drastically - despite their minute emissions. We must work together to change our treatment of nature, and perhaps change our treatment of people.
