Express News Service
DUBAI: The devastation wrought by severe cyclonic storm Michaung is a grim reminder for the world to limit global warming and cut emissions rapidly. Michaung is the sixth storm this year in the Indian seas. While the formation of a tropical storm in the Bay of Bengal in December is typical, the intensity of rains associated with the cyclone is not normal.
A family rescued from floodwaterson a boat at Velachery in Chennaiafter Cyclone Michuang | Shiba Prasad SahuClimate experts say the frequency and intensity of cyclones have increased manifolds, courtesy of global warming. As much as 93% of heat is being absorbed by the oceans, and warm waters act as an energy source for cyclones. Scientists note that the intensity of the cyclone depends not only on sea surface temperature but, more importantly, on the volume of warm water in the ocean.
As the COP28 in Dubai is battling to reach a consensus on emission cuts to limit the global warming in the reach of 1.5’C, a slew of reports, released on Tuesday by various organisations, suggest that global carbon emissions from fossil fuels have risen this year and are reaching record levels. The annual Global Carbon Budget projects fossil carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of 36.8 billion tonnes in 2023, up 1.1% from 2022. The report projects that total global CO2 emissions will be 40.9 billion tonnes in 2023. India tops the countries where emissions are on rise by 8.2% and in China by 4%.
“The impacts of climate change are evident all around us, but action to reduce carbon emissions from fossil fuels remains painfully slow,” said Prof Pierre Friedlingstein of Exeter’s Global Systems Institute, who led the study. “It now looks inevitable we will overshoot the 1.5°C target of the Paris Agreement, and leaders meeting at COP28 will have to agree to rapid cuts in fossil fuel emissions even to keep the 2°C target alive.”
Trio of El Nino IOD & MJOEl Nino, an oceanic condition usually associated with surplus north-east monsoon, was blamed for the extreme weather event. The El Nino indices crossed 2’C for the first time since 2016, after the super El Nino of 2015. Chennai recorded close to 30 cm of rain on December 2, 2015.
“El Niños usually peak around Christmas in December. Changes in ocean-cyclone interactions have emerged in recent decades and are to be closely monitored since future climate projections demonstrate continued warming of the Indian Ocean at a rapid pace along with an increase in the intensity of cyclones in this basin,” said Roxy Mathew Koll, climate scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology. Follow channel on WhatsApp
DUBAI: The devastation wrought by severe cyclonic storm Michaung is a grim reminder for the world to limit global warming and cut emissions rapidly. Michaung is the sixth storm this year in the Indian seas. While the formation of a tropical storm in the Bay of Bengal in December is typical, the intensity of rains associated with the cyclone is not normal.
A family rescued from floodwaters
on a boat at Velachery in Chennai
after Cyclone Michuang | Shiba Prasad SahuClimate experts say the frequency and intensity of cyclones have increased manifolds, courtesy of global warming. As much as 93% of heat is being absorbed by the oceans, and warm waters act as an energy source for cyclones. Scientists note that the intensity of the cyclone depends not only on sea surface temperature but, more importantly, on the volume of warm water in the ocean.
As the COP28 in Dubai is battling to reach a consensus on emission cuts to limit the global warming in the reach of 1.5’C, a slew of reports, released on Tuesday by various organisations, suggest that global carbon emissions from fossil fuels have risen this year and are reaching record levels. The annual Global Carbon Budget projects fossil carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of 36.8 billion tonnes in 2023, up 1.1% from 2022. The report projects that total global CO2 emissions will be 40.9 billion tonnes in 2023. India tops the countries where emissions are on rise by 8.2% and in China by 4%. googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });
“The impacts of climate change are evident all around us, but action to reduce carbon emissions from fossil fuels remains painfully slow,” said Prof Pierre Friedlingstein of Exeter’s Global Systems Institute, who led the study. “It now looks inevitable we will overshoot the 1.5°C target of the Paris Agreement, and leaders meeting at COP28 will have to agree to rapid cuts in fossil fuel emissions even to keep the 2°C target alive.”
Trio of El Nino IOD & MJO
El Nino, an oceanic condition usually associated with surplus north-east monsoon, was blamed for the extreme weather event. The El Nino indices crossed 2’C for the first time since 2016, after the super El Nino of 2015. Chennai recorded close to 30 cm of rain on December 2, 2015.
“El Niños usually peak around Christmas in December. Changes in ocean-cyclone interactions have emerged in recent decades and are to be closely monitored since future climate projections demonstrate continued warming of the Indian Ocean at a rapid pace along with an increase in the intensity of cyclones in this basin,” said Roxy Mathew Koll, climate scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology. Follow channel on WhatsApp
