philippines 2013
Typhoon Haiyan
Deaths: More than 6,300
Max wind speed: 315km/h
Damages
USD10 billiontaiwan
japanindonesiaphilippines 1991
Tropical Storm
Thelma
Deaths: More than 5,000
Max wind speed: 85km/h
Damages
USD27 millionvietnam, Cambodia 1997
Typhoon Linda
Deaths: More than 3,700
Max wind speed: 120km/h
Damages
USD385 millionChina 1975
Typhoon Nina
Deaths: More than 100,000
Max wind speed: 250km/h
Damages
USD1.2 billionjapan 1961
Typhoon Nancy
Deaths: More than 175
Max wind speed: 306–343km/h
Damages
USD500 millionphilippinesIN THE NEWS
There is a growing body of research
indicating that warming temperatures
are increasing the force of cyclones and
typhoons. New research, published in
Nature Geoscience in 2016, showed
that typhoons in the Pacific had
intensified by up to 15 percent on
average since 1977, intensifying by
50 percent in the past 40 years due
to warming seas.
In a nutshell, the research indicates
that the warmer water provides more
energy to storms, creating optimal
conditions for increases in wind speed.
The intensity of a typhoon or cyclone is
measured by the maximum sustained
wind speed, but the destruction
caused by intense winds, storm
surges, rains and floods increases
disproportionately: A 15 percent
increase in intensity translates to a
50 percent rise in the destructive power
of the storm.
There is still debate whether this
growth in typhoon intensity is due
to manmade climate change, or
natural climate change cycles, given
the short time frame of measuring
the destruction of super storms,
but the researchers of the study are
adamant that future global warming
projections – as indicated by the
UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change – will correlate with
intensifying typhoons and cyclones
Understanding the changes in
super storm patterns can help affected
areas prepare more effectively, given
the storms’ devastating effects in terms
of loss of life, human displacement and
economic damages. ag