Extreme Weather Event (EWE)
A subset of "Hazard" and "Threat" to CI comprise Extreme Weather Events (EWE) which causes a CI disruption or, even more often, a Common Cause Failure of multiple CI.
EWE comprise:
- long duration drought
- extreme precipitation in a short period of time (e.g., flash floods, water bombs)
- (extreme) cold wave / cold snaps / ice & snow storms
- (extreme) heat wave
- extreme wind (hurricanes, tornadoes, Derecho, etc.)
Contents
Definitions
EU definitions
CLIMATE-ADAPT
Definitions of rare vary, but an extreme weather event would normally be as rare as or rarer than the 10th or 90th percentile of the observed probability density function. By definition, the characteristics of what is called extreme weather may vary from place to place in an absolute sense. Single extreme events cannot be simply and directly attributed to anthropogenic climate change, as there is always a finite chance the event in question might have occurred naturally. When a pattern of extreme weather persists for some time, such as a season, it may be classed as an extreme climate event, especially if it yields an average or total that is itself extreme (e.g. drought or heavy rainfall over a season).
International Definitions
IPCC
Definitions of rare vary, but an extreme weather event would normally be as rare as or rarer than the 10th or 90th percentile
of a probability density function estimated from observations.
Definitions of "rare" vary, but an extreme weather event would normally be as rare as or rarer than the 10th or 90th percentile. By definition, the characteristics of what is called "extreme weather" may vary from place to place. An "extreme climate event" is an average of a number of weather events over a certain period of time, an average which is itself extreme.
National Definitions
Australia
Definitions of rare vary, but an extreme weather event would normally be as rare as or rarer than the 10th or 90th percentile of a probability density function estimated from observations.
Moreover, Australia has defined severe weather:
Severe weather is often associated with extreme convective weather (tropical cyclones, tornadoes, severe
thunderstorms, squalls, etc.) and with storms of freezing precipitation or blizzard conditions.
An extreme climate event is an unusual average over time of a number of weather events, for example heavy rainfall over a season.
Denmark
Ekstremvejr vil normalt forekomme sjældent, og definitionen af ekstremvejr vil variere fra sted til sted. Enkeltforekommende hændelser af ekstremvejr kan ikke tilskrives menneskeskabt klimaforandring, da den enkelte, konkrete hændelse også kan være udtryk for naturlig variation i vejret. Når der i et længere tidsinterval som for eksempel en sæson har forekommet et nyt mønster af ekstremvejr, kan det klassificeres som et ekstremt klimafænomen, især hvis det giver en middelværdi eller total, der i sig selv er ekstrem for eksempel tørke eller kraftig regn i en hel sæson.
Germany
If extreme weather persists for a long period of time, it may be classified as an “extreme climate event”.
Die Definitionen für “selten” variieren, aber ein extremes Wetterereignis wäre normalerweise so selten wie oder seltener als das 10- oder 90%-Perzentil der beobachteten Wahrscheinlichkeitsverteilung. Per Definition kann die Charakteristik von so genanntem “Extremwetter” absolut gesehen von Ort zu Ort unterschiedlich sein. Einzelne Extremereignisse können nicht einfach und direkt der anthropogenen Klimaänderung zugeordnet werden, da immer eine begrenzte Chance besteht, dass das betreffende Ereignis natürlicherweise hätte auftreten können. Wenn ein Muster von extremem Wetter über eine bestimmte Zeitspanne, z. B. eine Saison, bestehen bleibt, kann es als “extremes Klimaereignis” klassiert werden, vor allem wenn es ein Mittel bzw. eine Summe aufweist, die seinerseits bzw. ihrerseits extrem ist (z. B. eine Dürre oder Starkniederschlag während einer ganzen Saison).
India
(States of) Jersey
By definition, the characteristics of what is called extreme weather may vary from place to place. When a pattern of extreme weather persists for some time, such as a season, it may be classed as an extreme climate event, especially if it yields an average or total that is itself extreme (e.g. drought or heavy rainfall over a season).
Kiribati
Extreme (weather) event: Weather conditions that are rare for a particular place and/or time of year eg an intense storm, drought, heat wave, severe storms.
Netherlands
Peru
Los extremos varían de un lugar a otro: un extremo en un área específica puede ser común en otra (IPCC 2007). Los eventos extremos no pueden ser atribuidos sólo al cambio climático, ya que éstos pueden darse de manera natural; sin embargo, se espera que el cambio climático pueda incrementar la frecuencia, intensidad y duración de eventos extremos. Entre los ejemplos se incluyen las inundaciones, sequías, tormentas tropicales y olas de calor.
Spain
United Kingdom (UK)
United States
NOAA
The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) uses a definition of extreme weather based on an event's climatologically-expected distribution. An event is called extreme if occurs, for example, only five per cent or less of the time. NOAA notes, however, that the exact choice of cut-off of the climatologically probability value used in the definition is somewhat arbitrary. A simple example of extreme weather is therefore when the temperature drops to a level which occurs less than five per cent of the time, say below -20 C. Extreme events, by definition, are rare.
Standard Definition
Discussion
See also
Notes
References
- ↑ European Climate Adaptation Platform (CLIMATE-ADAPT) Glossary
- ↑ Mach, K.J., S. Planton and C. von Stechow (eds.). Climate Change 2014: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Annex II: Glossary. [Core Writing Team, R.K. Pachauri and L.A. Meyer (eds.)]. IPCC, Geneva, Switzerland, pp. 117-130.
- ↑ ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE: KEY TERMS, E. Levina and D. Terpak, OECD (2006) - from (IPCC, 2001)
- ↑ Australian climate change glossary
- ↑ Australian Emergency Management Glossary, Emergency Management Australia (1998)
- ↑ ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE: KEY TERMS, E. Levina and D. Terpak, OECD (2006) - from (Australian Greenhouse Office. 2003)
- ↑ Klimatilpasning Ordliste)
- ↑ Combating Climate Change: The German Adaptation Strategy
- ↑ Deutsche Anpassungsstrategie an den Klimawandel, Bundeskabinett, 17. Dezember 2008
- ↑ Glossary of Meteorological Terms in Tamil
- ↑ States of Jersey Future-proofing Jersey: Building Resilience for the 21st Century (2015)
- ↑ Kiribati BI-LINGUAL GLOSSARY OF CLIMATE CHANGE TERMS, Original translations by Dr Temakei Tebano & Etita Teiabauri, 2008
- ↑ weer website: extreme weer Nederland
- ↑ Portal de Cambio Climático
- ↑ Glosario Mapama, government Spain
- ↑ The National Adaptation Programme: Making the country resilient to a changing climate, UK Government (2013)