Articles on Extreme weather

Displaying 181 - 200 of 716 articles

National Guard trucks carry rescued residents through floodwaters to the Superdome on Aug. 30, 2005, a day after Hurricane Katrina hit in New Orleans. AP Photo/Eric Gay

Hurricane Katrina: 3 painful lessons for emergency management are increasingly important 20 years later

The 2005 hurricane was a disaster made worse by a lack of coordination and communication among governments and emergency leadership on the ground.
Rescuers search for survivors on Aug. 18, 2025, after a flash flood submerged homes, killing at least 18 people in a village near Swabi, Pakistan. Hussain Ali/Anadolu via Getty Images

Monsoon flooding has killed hundreds in Pakistan – climate change is pushing the rainy season from blessing to looming catastrophe

More powerful storms and melting glaciers are flooding communities across the region again, with devastating effects, particularly in the mountains.
Residents try to put out flames as a wildfire threatens homes in Quito, Ecuador, in September 2024. AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa

Wildfire disasters are increasingly in the news, yet less land is burning globally – here’s why

Even though you may mostly hear about fires in the US, Canada, Europe and Australia, it’s Africa that has far and away the most acreage burned and people exposed to fire.
New Orleans residents wait to be rescued from a rooftop two days after Hurricane Katrina made landfall. AP Photo/David J. Phillipp

One of Hurricane Katrina’s most important lessons isn’t about storm preparations – it’s about injustice

Looking back on New Orleans 20 years after Hurricane Katrina is a reminder that while such hazards may be natural, the death and destruction is largely human-made.
U.S. Geological Survey staff check monitoring equipment in Suicide Basin in June 2025. By August, the basin had filled with meltwater. Jeff Conaway/U.S. Geological Survey

Glacial lake flood hits Juneau, Alaska, again, reflecting a growing global risk as mountain glaciers melt

Suicide Basin, an ice-dammed lake on an arm of Mendenhall Glacier, has filled up with meltwater and sent destructive surges of water into Juneau for 3 straight summers.
A worker moves irrigation tubes on a farm in Pinal County, Ariz. A two-decade drought has made water supplies harder to secure. Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Climate models reveal how human activity may be locking the Southwest into permanent drought

The drought has been linked to the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, a natural climate pattern. A new study finds global warming is now influencing that natural phenomenon.
A tree canopy can make a big difference in temperature for people on the street below. The challenge is getting trees where they’re needed most. Andrey Denisyuk/Moment via Getty Images

Inside an urban heat island, one street can be much hotter than its neighbor – new tech makes it easier to target cooling projects

New technologies are making it easier to find these urban heat islets, opening the door to new strategies for efficiently improving community health.
Cars are partially submerged in flood waters in the Don Valley following heavy rain in Toronto on July 16, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Arlyn McAdorey

It’s challenging to predict extreme thunderstorms — improving this will help reduce their deadly and costly impacts

Current models for weather forecasting tend to ignore outlier data; learning how to incorporate these can help reduce risk and increase community resiliency.
Ralph Regenvanu, climate change minister of Vanuatu, speaks outside the International Court of Justice in The Hague on July 23, 2025. John Thys/AFP via Getty Images

The World Court just ruled countries can be held liable for climate change damage – what does that mean for the US?

The ruling stems from the harm island nations are suffering as sea level rises, and it opens a door for future claims for reparations. But getting to that point isn’t so simple.

Top contributors

More