Risks Become Reality: 2024 Altered Extreme Weather

This briefing summarizes the key findings of the World Weather Attribution (WWA) report "When Risks Become Reality: Extreme Weather in 2024," analyzing the year's extreme weather events and their connection to climate change.

Key Themes:

1. Escalating Extreme Weather Events: The report emphasizes the unprecedented levels of extreme weather experienced in 2024, including heatwaves, droughts, wildfires, storms, and floods. These events resulted in thousands of deaths and the displacement of millions. The report states that "Extreme weather reached dangerous new heights in 2024," demonstrating the increasing threat of a 1.3°C warmer world.
2. Climate Change as a Key Driver: WWA studies directly link climate change to the increased intensity and likelihood of many of these extreme weather events. They analyzed 26 events and found climate change was a significant contributing factor in each, leading to the deaths of at least 3,700 people.
3. Dangerous Heat Days on the Rise: New analysis by Climate Central, included in the report, shows a global average increase of 41 dangerous heat days in 2024 due to climate change. This poses a severe threat to human health, particularly impacting vulnerable small island and developing states.
4. Impacts Beyond El Niño: While the El Niño weather pattern influenced early 2024 events, WWA studies consistently found climate change played a more significant role than El Niño in driving events like the historic Amazon drought. This highlights the growing dominance of climate change's influence over natural climate variations.
5. Record Rainfall and Flooding: 2024 saw record-breaking global temperatures that led to record-breaking rainfall and devastating floods worldwide. Of the 16 flood events studied, 15 were linked to climate change-amplified rainfall. This aligns with the understanding that a warmer atmosphere holds more moisture, resulting in heavier downpours.
6. Amazon Under Threat: The Amazon rainforest and Pantanal Wetland suffered severe droughts and wildfires in 2024, causing significant biodiversity loss. The report underscores the critical role of the Amazon as a global carbon sink and emphasizes the need to halt deforestation to protect these vital ecosystems.
7. Intensified Storms: Hotter seas and warmer air contributed to more destructive storms like Hurricane Helene and Typhoon Gaemi. Research points to climate change increasing wind speeds and rainfall in these storms. WWA analysis shows an increasing risk of multiple high-intensity typhoons hitting the Philippines due to climate change.

Conclusion:

The WWA report underscores the undeniable link between human-induced climate change and the intensifying extreme weather events witnessed in 2024. It serves as a stark reminder of the urgency to accelerate global action on climate change mitigation and adaptation to protect lives, ecosystems, and the future of our planet.