Record heat in 2023 worsened global droughts, floods and wildfires: Study

Record heat internationally profoundly impacted the global water cycle in 2023, contributing to extreme storms, floods, megadroughts and bushfires, new analysis from The Australian National University (ANU) exhibits.

The findings are outlined in a brand new report launched as we speak by the Global Water Monitor Consortium and led by ANU researchers.

Lead writer Professor Albert Van Dijk, from ANU, mentioned the report underscores the implications of persistent fossil gasoline burning on pure disasters, water assets, biodiversity and meals safety.

“Record-breaking heat waves swept throughout the globe in 2023, shattering earlier data, from Canada to Brazil and from Spain to Thailand,” Professor Van Dijk mentioned.

“The lack of rainfall and excessive temperatures exacerbated multi-year droughts in South America, the Horn of Africa and across the Mediterranean.

“Extremely scorching and dry situations inflicted intensive ecological injury on the world’s largest forests. Massive wildfires ravaged Canada in the course of the northern summer time, whereas the Amazon rainforest and rivers quickly descended into extreme drought in late 2023.”

Some of the worst disasters of 2023 had been linked to unusually robust cyclones bringing excessive rainfall to New Zealand, Mozambique, Malawi, Myanmar, Greece, Libya and Australia.

According to Professor Van Dijk, who can also be Chair of the Global Water Monitor Consortium, rising sea floor and air temperatures attributable to fossil gasoline burning have been intensifying the power and rainfall depth of monsoons, cyclones and different storm methods.

This was additionally evident nearer to dwelling, the place Cyclone Jasper battered northern Queensland and extreme storms hit southeast Queensland.

“Some areas round Cairns recorded greater than 800 millimetres of rain. The torrential rains induced widespread flooding. That was as a result of the cyclone moved a lot slower than anticipated,” he mentioned.

“The current cyclones and intensive storms in Queensland and elsewhere in Australia shouldn’t be seen as remoted freak occasions however a part of a global sample that was fairly clear in 2023.

“In 2023, we noticed cyclones behave in surprising and lethal methods. The longest-lived cyclone ever recorded battered southeastern Africa for weeks.

“Warmer sea temperatures fuelled these freak behaviours, and we will anticipate to see extra of those excessive occasions going ahead.”

Professor Van Dijk mentioned the final twenty years have seen elevated air temperatures and declining air humidity, inflicting elevated heat stress and water necessities for folks, crops and ecosystems, whereas intensifying droughts.

Relative air humidity over the global land floor in 2023 was the second driest on file after 2021, persevering with a pattern in direction of drier and extra excessive situations. 2023 was Earth’s hottest yr on file, exhibiting what a typical future yr with 1.5 levels Celsius warming could seem like.

“A complete of 77 nations skilled the best common annual temperature in at the least 45 years,” Professor Van Dijk mentioned.

Professor Van Dijk mentioned 2023 was a yr of extremes, with growing excessive dry and moist situations and extra unprecedented climate occasions. This is in line with ongoing adjustments in the water cycle during the last twenty years.

“The occasions of 2023 present how ongoing local weather change is threatening our planet and lives extra with each passing yr,” he mentioned.

“Globally, we’re seeing a rise in the frequency and depth of rainfall occasions and river flooding. But on the similar time, there are additionally extra frequent and sooner growing droughts, or ‘flash droughts’.

“That may cause crop failure and harmful wildfires in a matter of weeks or months. With the global meals problem, biodiversity disaster and an especially pressing want to scale back carbon emissions, these droughts and wildfires are amongst our best global threats.”

The analysis staff used knowledge from 1000’s of floor stations and satellites orbiting the Earth to supply real-time info on rainfall, air temperature, air humidity, soil and groundwater situations, vegetation, river flows, flooding, and lake volumes.

The Global Water Monitor is a collaboration between establishments internationally and includes varied public and non-public organisations.