From Drought to Flood: A Game of Thrones in Climate Change

"Winter is coming!" warned the Stark family in Game of Thrones, and with it came a time of famine and despair. While the realm of Westeros may be a fantasy, the threat of drought and its devastating effects are all too real in many parts of the world. Changing climate patterns around the world are leaving many communities desiccated and struggling for survival. But it's not just drought we have to worry about, as some areas experience heavier rainfall and increased flooding, climate change threatens our understanding of water and security. Natural disasters follow each other. As the planet's temperature rises, more water from the oceans evaporates into the atmosphere, leading to more precipitation for most of the world. However, as the atmosphere warms, so does its ability to hold moisture for longer, leading to longer dry spells and more intense rain. Such intense rainfall poses a great risk to our current infrastructure, which has been designed to handle certain volumes of rainfall without causing major flooding or landslides. However, a prolonged drought caused by a prolonged period of low rainfall is a risk to life itself. The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has predicted that heat waves and droughts will become more frequent and severe in many regions in the coming decades, with devastating effects on agriculture, ecosystems and human populations. In fact, climate change is already having a significant impact on droughts around the world. Rising temperatures led to increased evaporation, which in turn reduced soil moisture levels, making it more difficult to grow crops. (YeniSafak)