Über Extremwetter und den Klimawandel berichten

The document explains how 'Extreme Event Attribution' research determines the extent to which climate change makes specific weather events more likely or intense. It warns journalists against three common errors: ignoring climate change, attributing events without evidence, or naming it as the sole cause. The guide provides detailed scientific contexts for heatwaves, floods, tropical cyclones, heavy snowfall, droughts, and wildfires, noting that while some links (like heatwaves) are globally certain, others (like droughts or snowfall) are more complex and region-specific.

• Extreme event attribution research uses climate models to compare the current, human-warmed climate with a simulated 'natural world' without anthropogenic emissions to calculate how much more likely or intense an event has become.
• Heatwaves are the most straightforward case for attribution; every heatwave globally is now more likely and intense due to human-induced climate change. For example, a heatwave that occurred once every ten years in the pre-industrial climate now occurs approximately 2.8 times in ten years and is 1.2 °C hotter.
• Heavy precipitation is becoming more frequent and intense in most parts of the world, driven primarily by the Clausius-Clapeyron relationship where a 1 °C increase in temperature leads to a 7% increase in the air's water-holding capacity.
• While the total number of tropical cyclones per year has not changed globally, climate change has increased the frequency of the most intense and destructive storms (Categories 3 to 5) and increased their associated rainfall and storm surges.
• The link between climate change and droughts is complex and varies by region. Increased probability and severity are established with high certainty in the Mediterranean, southern Africa, Central and East Asia, southern Australia, and western North America.
• The risk of 'fire weather'—a combination of heat, drought, and strong wind—is increasing on every continent. This is clearly attributable to climate change in Southern Europe, northern Eurasia, the USA, and Australia.
• Regarding heavy snowfall, the probability and intensity of extreme cold have decreased globally, but in parts of East and North Asia, North America, and Greenland, the intensity of heavy snowfall may have increased.

APA

Clarke, B., & Otto, F. (n.d.). Über Extremwetter und den Klimawandel berichten. World Weather Attribution. https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/wp-content/uploads/DE_WWA-Uber-xtremwetter-und-den-Klimawandel-berichten.pdf

Chicago

Clarke, Ben, and Friederike Otto. Über Extremwetter und den Klimawandel berichten. World Weather Attribution, n.d. https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/wp-content/uploads/DE_WWA-Uber-xtremwetter-und-den-Klimawandel-berichten.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Clarke |first1=Ben |last2=Otto |first2=Friederike |title=Über Extremwetter und den Klimawandel berichten |publisher=World Weather Attribution |url=https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/wp-content/uploads/DE_WWA-Uber-xtremwetter-und-den-Klimawandel-berichten.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{clarkendber, author = {Clarke, Ben and Otto, Friederike}, title = {{Über Extremwetter und den Klimawandel berichten}}, institution = {World Weather Attribution}, url = {https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/wp-content/uploads/DE_WWA-Uber-xtremwetter-und-den-Klimawandel-berichten.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }