The 112 km/hr winds of Storm Callum managed to reverse the flow of a waterfall in northern Scotland. The waterfall at Talisker beach on the Isle of Skye was blown away by strong gusts of wind generated by the storm. Storm Callum is the third named storm to hit the United Kingdom, sending 33 flood warnings across Wales.
The entire world is reeling under fierce winds and devastation as it faces an above-average hurricane season. The Category 5 Typhoon Mangkhut disrupted lives and inflicted extensive damage to property in The Philippines, Hong Kong and the rest of Southeast Asia. Cyclone Titli in India has claimed at least 36 lives across Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. The United States is being hit by one hurricane after another. Hurricane Michael was the latest Category 4 storm to hit the country, affecting 1.4 million homes and proving to be the worst hurricane to hit Florida in over 100 years.
According to Dan Kottlowski, the long-range tropical meteorologist at AccuWeather, the world is yet to see two to four tropical storms, some may become hurricanes. According to him,
“There are several things we look at that include the current conditions, the status of El Niño and another cycle that tracks rising air over the tropics.”
El Niño is the warm phase of tropical Pacific sea surface temperatures. The 2018 hurricane season has so far been above average, despite the predictions being otherwise. This is mostly attributed to climate change which warms the oceans, thus giving rise to stronger hurricanes.
