In the past decade, scientists have published hundreds of studies looking at causes of extreme weather around the world.
From heatwaves in the Mediterranean to floods in Europe, and wildfires in Australia to hurricanes in the US, there is mounting evidence that human activity is compounding the risk, especially when it comes to heat.
Climate change is already having visible effects on the world. The Earth is warming, rainfall patterns are changing, and sea levels are rising.
And these changes can increase the risk of heatwaves, floods, droughts, and fires.
A recent analysis by the Met Office, the UK’s national weather agency, found a warming planet leads to other extreme changes.
Over the past few years, heatwaves have been the “deadliest global weather hazard”, it said.
Oceans absorb 90 per cent of the extra heat generated by human influence and, when the water heats up, it expands to take up more space, in turn leading to a rise in sea levels.
In future, the Met Office projects that the world will see “warmer and wetter winters, hotter and drier summers and more frequent and intense weather extremes”.
Here, The National looks at how climate change is linked to some of the world’s most extreme weather.
The weather is getting hotter
Around the globe, hot days are getting hotter and more frequent.
As cities develop and expand, vegetation is often lost to more roads and buildings.
This rapid development and loss of green spaces can lead to higher temperatures by creating 'urban heat islands'.
An urban heat island occurs when a city or metropolitan area experiences temperatures that are significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas, usually due to human activities.
Green spaces are considered an appropriate way to reduce the urban heat island effect and provide comfort to residents.
In July 2019, western Europe experienced record temperatures.
In the UK the mercury rose to 38.7°C — the highest daily maximum temperature on record for the country.
A study published in the IOPscience journal looked at whether human activity was to blame for the heat in Europe.
“The heatwaves that struck western Europe were rather short-lived, [three to four days], yet very extreme as far as the highest temperatures are concerned,” it said.
“Many all-time records were broken in most countries of western Europe, including historical records exceeded by one to two degrees.
“Using an unprecedented number of climate model ensembles and statistical extreme value modelling, we demonstrate that these short and intense events would have had extremely small odds in the absence of human-induced climate change, and equivalently frequent events would have been 1.5°C to 3°C colder.”
More floods and droughts
The UN has said water is the primary medium through which we will feel the effects of climate change.
As higher temperatures set in and become more extreme and less predictable, conditions are projected to affect “availability and distribution of rainfall, snowmelt, river flows and groundwater, and further deteriorate water quality”.
Low income communities will likely be the worst-affected and more floods and severe droughts are predicted.
Right now, Madagascar is experiencing one of the worst droughts in its history, with many calling it the climate change famine.
After four years without rain, the lack of harvest has devastated farmers and left families hungry.
On the other side of the world, in western Europe, 2021 brought some of the most devastating floods to hit the region in decades.
In July, heavy rainfall associated with low-pressure system “Bernd” led to severe flooding, particularly in Germany and Belgium.
A study published by World Weather Attribution said climate change worsened the floods.
“Climate change increased the intensity of the maximum one-day rainfall event in the summer season in this large region by about three to 19 per cent compared to a global climate 1.2°C cooler than today,” the authors of the study said.
“These numbers are based on an assessment including observations, regional climate models and very high resolution climate models that directly simulate convection.
“In summary, our results highlight that at local scale detection of extreme precipitation trends is hindered by variability, but when considering such events occurring over the larger western Europe region, significant trends attributable to human-induced climate change are evident.”
Wildfires sparked by climate change
Fires that devastated large parts of Greece this month highlight the need for radical shifts in behaviour to combat climate change.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said the blazes were fuelled by an intense heatwave that struck much of southern Europe and was blamed on global warming.
There are several ways climate change can increase the risk of wildfires, drought being one of them.
When temperatures increase, it speeds up the rate of evaporation causing plants and land to lose moisture quickly.
When vegetation dries out and is exposed to direct, extreme heat – or a small spark – fires can ignite and spread rapidly.
Climate change activists protest at City of London's Guildhall - in pictures
Western Region Asia Cup Qualifier
Results
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Oman beat Maldives by 10 wickets
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Semi-finals
UAE v Qatar
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Company%20profile
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What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
Safety 'top priority' for rival hyperloop company
The chief operating officer of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, Andres de Leon, said his company's hyperloop technology is “ready” and safe.
He said the company prioritised safety throughout its development and, last year, Munich Re, one of the world's largest reinsurance companies, announced it was ready to insure their technology.
“Our levitation, propulsion, and vacuum technology have all been developed [...] over several decades and have been deployed and tested at full scale,” he said in a statement to The National.
“Only once the system has been certified and approved will it move people,” he said.
HyperloopTT has begun designing and engineering processes for its Abu Dhabi projects and hopes to break ground soon.
With no delivery date yet announced, Mr de Leon said timelines had to be considered carefully, as government approval, permits, and regulations could create necessary delays.
Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
More from UAE Human Development Report:
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