Extreme weather fluctuations: the worst is yet to come

Extreme weather events are by definition rare on our planet. Violent storms, heatwaves and even severe frosts illustrate what the climate is capable of at its worst. But what can be considered normal or not is changing. As the Earth's climate warms rapidly, mainly due to the burning of fossil fuels, the range of possible weather conditions, including extreme conditions, is changing.

Scientists define "climate" as the distribution of weather events that can be observed in a given period, such as minimum and maximum temperatures, total precipitation, or the number of hours of sunshine. They derive statistical measurements such as average (or normal) temperature. (Simon H. Lee, University of St Andrews - Hayley J. Fowler, Newcastle University - Paul Davies University, Newcastle University, more at techno-science.net)