Climate Experts Point To Global Warming As Reason Behind Stronger Storms

September 4, 2008 8:07 a.m. EST

Tallahassee, FL (AHN) - A study by the Florida State University points to global warming as the main reason behind the stronger storms being experienced worldwide, particularly in the North Atlantic.

The basis of the finding was a 25-year analysis of satellite data from the North Atlantic and five other ocean basins where tropical cyclones originate. According to the analysis, the top 30 of each year's storms from 1981 to 2006 intensified by about 5 mph.

James Elsner, hurricane scientist at the Florida State University and lead author of the study, said, "I think this makes the argument much more compelling that climate change is really affecting the most rare, powerful storms by making them even stronger."

Other researchers from the National Hurricane Center dispute the report's findings. they said records of previous hurricanes should not be compared to present-day storms which are measured and studied in minute detail from space, air and sea.

Chris Landsea of the center said the noticeable increase in Atlantic intensity is part of a decades-long, natural cycle.

The release of the report, published Thursday in Nature journal, came after Hurricane Gustav hit the U.S., although weaker than anticipated, while storms Hanna and Ike are lined up and expected to batter the country in the coming days.

In an email to the San Francisco Chronicle, Elsner said, "The fact that Gustav reached Category 4 in the increasingly warm Caribbean is consistent with what we've noted as a trend over the past 30 years."