Seven and the Climate

There are seven storms in the Atlantic which are or could become hurricanes. That is a huge number of storms at any one time. The amount of energy that these storms represent is astounding. 

Here is a graphic from the National Hurricane Center:

National Hurricane Center
As of September 16, 2020 at 0530 EDT

The link references the current display of the storms, so it will likely be different from the one displayed. 

Of course Sally is in the news because of the devastation expected along the Gulf Coast--but there are other storms lurking out in the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico which also could become problems. 

Do the high number of storms represent yet more evidence to support climate change? 

That is an election issue.

CBS News reported:

President Trump's repeated refusal to accept climate science could not be farther from the view held by opponent Joe Biden, who believes climate change "poses an existential threat." The difference in opinion became clear again on Monday when Mr. Trump dismissed the scientific consensus on climate change at a briefing on California's record-breaking wildfires Monday.

The article later highlights:

Mr. Trump has called climate change a "hoax," and rolled back numerous policies put in place to protect the natural environment. Despite his record, the president recently declared himself the greatest environmentalist since President Theodore Roosevelt, who helped protect 230 million acres of public land.

In contrast, Biden's campaign website features the candidate's climate change plan, which stresses that it threatens not just the environment, but also "our health, our communities, our national security, and our economic well-being."

Biden has endorsed the Green New Deal, noting that it "captures two basic truths"  at the core of his climate change plan: "(1) the United States urgently needs to embrace greater ambition on an epic scale to meet the scope of this challenge, and (2) our environment and our economy are completely and totally connected." His plan sets a goal for a 100% clean energy economy and net-zero emissions by 2050.

Whether seven storms in the Atlantic at one time is more evidence for climate change is really a moot point, there is overwhelming evidence to suggest that we must do something to reduce our impact on the climate. 

Science or no science. You make the call.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD