Is there a relationship between the frequency of natural hazards and climate change?

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Is the frequency of hurricanes and related storm types increasing?

Globally, there is an average of about 90 tropical storms every year. According to the 2007 Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate "there is no clear trend in the annual numbers [i.e. frequency] of tropical cyclones." However, in the North Atlantic there has been a clear increase in the frequency of tropical storms and major hurricanes. From 1850-1990, the long-term average number of tropical storms was about 10, including about 5 hurricanes. For the period of 1998-2007, the average is about 15 tropical storms per year, including about 8 hurricanes. This increase in frequency correlates strongly with the rise in North Atlantic sea surface temperature, and recent scientific studies link this temperature increase to global warming. There is an ongoing scientific debate about the link between increased hurricane activity(and related storm types) and global warming. The 2007 report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change rates the probability of such a link as “more likely than not". Most agencies around the world today tend to agree that there is a increase in storms that cause hurricanes and other such disasters, looking at this graph I borrowed from the geography review website shows that over time there has been a marked increase in hurricane activity, adding a trend line and calculating the average seems to give a result of about 3 extra hurricanes and other related hazards every 10 years.

Is the intensity of hurricanes increasing?

Several studies show a clear global trend toward increased intensity of the strongest hurricanes over the past two or three decades. The strongest trends are in the North Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean. According to the 2007 Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, it is “more likely than not” (better than even odds) that there is a human contribution to the observed trend of hurricane intensification since the 1970s, it is likely that future tropical cyclones (typhoons and hurricanes) will become more intense, with larger peak wind speeds and more heavy precipitation associated with ongoing increases of tropical sea surface temperatures(linked to global warming). Certainly in 2008 there were more named storms than ever before! This shows an increase in the intensity of hurricanes as only larger storms are named. Below is a list of named storms in that year

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Land falling tropical storms of 2008:
* = U.S. landfall

Tropical Storm Arthur struck Belize on May 31, where it caused severe flooding, killed five people, and caused $78 million of damage.

* Hurricane Dolly struck the Yucatan Peninsula on July 21 and then struck South Padre Island, Texas, on July 31. It caused several deaths in Guatemala and more than $1 billion of damage in Texas. 

* Tropical Storm Edouard made landfall near Port Arthur, Texas, on August 3. It dropped heavy rain of up to 6.5 inches in areas near Houston.  

* Tropical Storm Fay formed in ...

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