By 2030, the combination of extreme heat and atmospheric dryness that made the ongoing drought so extreme is likely to return more than once a decade. Such record-low precipitation, however, is likely to remain rare.
A heatwave of the intensity of the June event in the Pacific Northwest would have been virtually impossible without global warming. But that doesn't mean such events will become common any time soon.
An early summer heatwave across the drought-stricken West smashed records in seven states as temperatures cleared 100 degrees Fahrenheit for days on end.
During late March 2021, a powerful storm system brought drenching rains and widespread flash flooding across Tennessee. It was the wettest March day in Nashville's history.
Hundreds of wildfires burned through over one million acres of land in California in less than two weeks in August. The resulting smoke has not only worsened air quality across the state but spread across the country.
Wildfires across Colorado during summer 2020 has led to the shutdown of the major thoroughfare across the state and billowed smoke for hundreds of miles.
