By Dylan Cernoia | Observer Contributor
Image from Wikimedia
In the wake of the two hurricanes, Michael and Florence, that hit the East Coast in 2018, one professor said that these storms might be proof of a much larger problem.
Tom Montagno, Biology professor, said global warming is contributing to the severity of the two hurricanes that hit Florida. Global warming has many negative effects including melting polar ice caps, causing water levels to rise, and flooding. However, it also creates warmer oceans, which Montagno said, “fuels a hurricane.” “That’s why that last hurricane became a tropical storm to almost a category 5 hurricane in two days,” said Montagno.
The reason warm water feeds hurricanes is because warm water is lighter than cold water and it is sucked into the vortex easier.
Image from Wikimedia
However, Montagno also said, “I don’t know that global warming is giving us more hurricanes, but I think the consensus is that they are more intense because the oceans are warmer.” He also pointed out that this is a global issue affecting not only the severity of hurricanes but also typhoons.
While severe hurricanes are symptoms of global warming, the cause is humanity. The most important thing for students to know, Montagno said, is “To understand that it’s real, that it’s human caused, and that it will affect in some ways your life as you grow older.”
Montagno explained if, for instance, you travel a lot by car or plane, your carbon footprint will be bigger than someone who has a shorter commute.
However, the biggest contributor to global warming comes from companies specializing in fossil fuels. “Most of the Co2 comes from fossil fuels,” Montagno said.
Even if a company does not explicitly work with fossil fuels, often times they purchase products which contribute to global warming.
Even if the entire world stopped contributing to global warming by switching to renewable energy and more environmentally friendly products and practices, the situation would take some time to improve. Montagno said, “If we were to stop putting carbon into the atmosphere tomorrow, the Co2 level would still rise… it’s a kind of delayed process. It’s still going to increase and then it will start to decrease. How long will that take? That’s speculation.”
Even though some argue the cause and claim that other factors contribute to global warming, it’s undeniable that it’s occurring.
“We have to adapt,” said Montagno.
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