Bad weather called “Hans” has recently ravaged southern Norway. When “Hans” arrived in Norway on Monday, Hans Olav Hygen, a climate researcher at the Meteorological Research Institute, called the storm particularly extreme weather.
He also said that it was special that so much rain fell from the east. But how did “Hans” actually come about?
– It has a history of beginning in the Mediterranean and moving simultaneously to the Atlantic. Then there were powerful systems that moved through Europe and towards us, coalesced, and then pulled large amounts of moist air around Sweden into Norway, Hygen explains.
That is what has produced the shocking results we have seen in recent days.
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Many are wondering why the red alert sent out on Sunday was not issued earlier. Extreme weather was actually somewhat predictable before Sunday, climate scientist says.
– At the same time, we issued another warning, and to avoid people mixing these two – because it would have been very difficult to deal with if people had misunderstood and mixed the two extreme situations – we had to wait until the previous chapter. It’s starting to slow down a bit, Hygen explains.
According to him, the weather forecasters have issued a warning as soon as possible.
– The million dollar question
A climate scientist cannot give a good answer as to whether such extreme weather occurs more often now.
– This is really the million dollar question, he says and explains:
– We know that warmer climates produce more water vapor in the atmosphere, and water vapor is the big engine here. If you get enough steam, you can turn on big clouds, heavy rain, strong winds and all the things that are plaguing us now. More water vapor leads to more powerful systems, more precipitation, and more intense winds.
According to Hygen, there is no doubt that Norway will have to prepare for more intense rain in the future.
– continues to rise
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The climate scientist describes it as a deep sadness for all those who have been badly affected by extreme weather, and he hopes that we can avoid such tragedy in the future.
But if this is to bring about something good, he highlights two more things.
– One is that we need to prepare better for extreme weather. Hygen says it needs to be made to be more durable.
– At the same time, we need to reduce emissions and reduce them.
The climate scientist encourages everyone to think about how they use their energy.
– Be aware of what you use in everyday life and see if there are things you can do to reduce it. All the simple things like going to the store instead of driving. Think about your day-to-day life and see how you can use resources a little less and still be better off, Hygen insists.
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