SINGAPORE — We have become acutely aware of the financial storm threatening to sweep the world. But what about nature's most powerful storms? Will global warming cause more frequent and intense tropical cyclones, increasing the already heavy annual toll of death, damage and injury in densely populated coastal Asia?
A panel of scientists advising member states of the United Nations on climate change told policymakers late last year that it was likely future tropical cyclones "will become more intense, with larger peak wind speeds and more heavy precipitation associated with ongoing increases of tropical sea-surface temperatures."
The latest scientific research on cyclones, published last month, suggested that global warming has already made storms more destructive. However, the study by three U.S. weather researchers made no reference human causes for rising sea temperatures, such as the release of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere — mainly from burning coal, oil and natural gas, and clearing tropical forests. Much of this activity is happening in Asia.