Tornadoes It's the first thing that comes to mind Meteorologists. Since hurricane “fuel” is rising water temperatures, the warmer spring — just as hurricane season begins, from June to November — can be a breeding ground for these tropical storms. Especially when we look at the map: in the week from May 14 to 20, the entire area from the coast of Africa to the West Indies Sea Which broke temperature records for the month of May. The previous record was in 2005, which was one of the most active years in terms of hurricanes.
Floods: Even in the absence of hurricanes, water temperatures exceeding 26 to 29 degrees Celsius for several days mean disaster. Multiply by five Risks of heavy rainfall. Which leads to floods, especially in the Antilles.
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More violent storms? It's not that there are more hurricanes, could they be more intense and cause more damage? 2005 was also an extraordinarily destructive year, but one of the lingering debates in climate science is precisely this: Will global warming lead to more violent hurricanes? Studies suggest that we can start to see such an upward trend when we look at the numbers from the past 50 years. Other experts are keeping an eye on the full hurricane season: If temperatures reach the danger threshold early in May and remain higher into the fall, does that mean future storm seasons will last longer? May 23NOAA has predicted that there is now an 85% chance that the hurricane season will be “above normal.”
Coral. Higher than normal temperatures for an extended period of time certainly hurt coral reefs. 2023 was the year that saw one of the worst episodes of coral bleaching across the Gulf of Mexico and the Antilles. This year, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued an alert on the subject From April.
Marine life. We're talking here about impacts that extend beyond the tropics, To reach the entire North AtlanticBecause it is not necessary to wait for the 30 degree mark for marine species to suffer. Often, a degree or two warmer than normal is enough to disrupt an ecosystem, and with March temperatures rising to 5 degrees above normal, in 2024 Maybe A disastrous year for fish stocks, warned earlier this month the Marine Stewardship Council, a British non-profit organization that works to ensure compliance with sustainable development standards in fishing.
More generally, in recent years, populations of phytoplankton, the base of the food chain, have declined throughout the eastern North Atlantic due to temperatures. Conversely, the fact that fish species move north in search of cooler waters pleases some fishermen. For example in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
