The State of the Global Climate 2022 report highlighted that the global average sea level reached a record high this year, and the concentration of greenhouse gases increased.
The concentration of major greenhouse gases in the atmosphere has increased in the past 12 months. Floods in Europe and China attracted the world’s attention in summer. Greenland also experienced an “extraordinary melt event in mid-August”, with precipitation reported for the first time at the Ice Sheet Research Station.
Climate scientist Professor Hannah Cloke, University of Reading, said this year’s extreme weather events “should act as a canary in the coal mine to spur faster action to adapt society to the changing climate realities.”
Here are some of the worst weather events recorded this year:
1- An unprecedented snow storm in Madrid
In the first weeks of 2021, an unprecedented snowstorm occurred in the Spanish capital, Madrid, causing record levels of snow and elderly Spanish citizens were stressed to stay indoors as temperatures plummeted.
Euronews reported heavy snowfall not seen in 50 years, halting transport in and out of the city, and The New York Times said the blizzard caused €1.4 billion (£1.2 billion) in damage.
2- Storm “Christophe” in Britain
During the month of January, the storm Christophe posed a great threat to large parts of Britain, and this storm is a slow depression originating in the Atlantic Ocean, which led to heavy rains that reached the point of flooding and snow storms in large parts of the country, and homes were flooded in Cheshire, northwest England, Residents have been evacuated from their homes in Manchester and Merseyside.
3- Hurricane “Anna” in Fiji
Hurricane “Anna” hit Fiji at the end of January, just one month after Hurricane “Yasa” of the fifth category, which passed the northern islands of the country, and Satyendra Prasad, Fiji’s ambassador to the United Nations, said that the hurricane, which caused more than 10,000 people to 318 evacuation centers across the country – leaving behind a “difficult recovery”.
Winter ice storm Uri A powerful winter storm, informally referred to as Winter Ice Storm Uri, hit large parts of America, northern Mexico and parts of Canada, from February 13 to 17, and this storm, which was unprecedentedly powerful, caused widespread effects. In the US state of Texas, for example, media reported that 3.5 million businesses and homes were left without electricity in February in extremely poor conditions, with temperatures dropping to -13 degrees Celsius in some areas of Texas.
4- A dust storm in China
China’s worst dust storm in a decade grounded flights, closed schools, and skies turned orange as dust and pollution affected dangerous air quality. Dust particles that can travel long distances pose major health risks.
5- Floods in New South Wales
In March, residents of Sydney and New South Wales felt the severe effects of flooding, and the New South Wales emergency service urged residents to take care of both their physical and mental health, as heavy rains caused rivers and dams to overflow, with thousands evacuated from their homes.
6- Typhoon Seruga in Indonesia
Climate Home News reported in April that 160 people had died in Indonesia after “tropical cyclone Seruga hit a remote island group.” The news site added that landslides and floods displaced at least 22,000 people. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) reported that the cyclone had reached Western Australia, and Western Australian Premier Mark McGowan said Cyclone Seruga was “like nothing we’ve seen in decades.”
7- Record temperatures in Russia
The Moscow Times reported that with temperatures reaching 34.8°C in Moscow, “an absolute record was set for any day in June”, and the “abnormal temperatures” of the “record-breaking heat wave” were not only recorded in the capital, but It also reached records in Penza, Vologda and Petrozavodsk.
8- The Northwest Pacific Heat Dome
National Geographic reports that high temperatures across the US Northwest have “rewritten the record books” this year. Jonathan Watts, global environment editor for The Guardian, said the heat dome was the “most dramatic example” of a severe weather event, and the meteorological phenomenon prompted evacuations across states that were “remotely unprepared for the heat”. National Geographic said Leighton, a village in British Columbia, Canada, was “overwhelmed by wildfires and largely destroyed” as a result of the heat.
9- Wildfires in America
The BBC reported in July that “a heavier-than-usual start to the wildfire season in the US” saw “one of the largest fires in Oregon’s history, affecting more than 364,000 lands and treating more than 2,000 men.” Firefighting With the fires taking more than a month to contain, thousands of homes were threatened by the blaze, which led to residents being temporarily sheltered in evacuation centers in the state.
10- Monsoon floods in India and Nepal
Reuters reported that several Nepalese districts and two Indian states were hit by “heavy late monsoon rains” in October, and the BBC said “deadly torrents” claimed more than 180 lives, with “houses submerged or destroyed by rocks”. . The Nepalese government has committed to giving the families of the victims $1,700 (£1,220) in response.
Unseasonal rainfall has been attributed to the climate crisis, but some experts have suggested that hydropower projects in the Himalayas, and “excessive and often uncontrolled construction on steep slopes”, have contributed to the damage to the “fragile environment”. in the area.