"New Study Links Weather Extremes to Global Warming"

"The moderate global warming that has already occurred as a result of human emissions has quadrupled the frequency of certain heat extremes since the Industrial Revolution, scientists reported Monday, and they warned that a failure to bring greenhouse gases under control could eventually lead to a 62-fold increase in such heat blasts.

The planetary warming has had a more moderate effect on intense rainstorms, the scientists said, driving up their frequency by 22 percent since the 19th century. Yet such heavy rains could more than double later this century if emissions continue at a high level, they said.

'People can argue that we had these kinds of extremes well before human influence on the climate — we had them centuries ago,' said Erich M. Fischer, lead author of a study published Monday by the journal Nature Climate Change. 'And that’s correct. But the odds have changed, and we get more of them.'"

Justin Gillis reports for the New York Times April 27, 2015.

SEE ALSO:

"Study: Global Warming Has Dramatically Upped the Odds of Extreme Heat Events" (Washington Post)

"75% of Heat Waves Are Attributable to Climate Change" (Bloomberg)