美国国家公共电台 NPR New Report Shows Weather Disasters In 2017 Cost More Than $300 Billion

 

KELLY MCEVERS, HOST:

Before it got cold this winter, it was warm - very warm. In fact, new data out today shows 2017 was the third-warmest year recorded in the lower 48 states. And it was also a record-breaking year for the cost of weather disasters. Sixteen weather events each broke the billion-dollar barrier. NPR's Christopher Joyce reports on the weather that was.

CHRISTOPHER JOYCE, BYLINE¹: Last year was 2.6 degrees Fahrenheit² warmer than the average year during the 20th century. That may be hard to remember in the thick of winter, but climate scientist Deke Arndt points out that even in a warm year, we still have frigid³ weather that invades from the north.

DEKE ARNDT: We still have very cold poles, and we still have the same weather systems that pull cold air away from those poles into places where we live.

JOYCE: Arndt is part of a team at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric⁴ Administration that assesses each year's weather and climate. They also tally⁵ the cost of bad weather. And last year was pricey. NOAA researcher Adam Smith says the cost of these events was unprecedented⁶.

ADAM SMITH: The cumulative⁷ impact of the 16 events exceed $300 billion in damage, which is a new U.S. annual record.

JOYCE: There was of course the trinity of horrible hurricanes - Harvey, Irma and Maria. But there was also flooding in California last February followed by ferocious⁸ late-year fires. There were hailstorms in Colorado and Minnesota and three tornado⁹ outbreaks. There was drought and fire in the Plains states.

NOAA's assessment¹⁰ acknowledges that part of the rising disaster toll¹¹ is due to people building more homes and businesses in vulnerable places. That's especially true with recent losses from wildfires and hurricanes. But NOAA's Deke Arndt notes that a warmer world clearly makes some weather worse.

ARNDT: Heat waves - there's their duration, their intensity¹². Their frequency is going up.

JOYCE: As is the frequency of very heavy rainfalls. Oceanographer Antonio Busalacchi says climate models predict more of the same.

ANTONIO BUSALACCHI: The trend is there. It's clearly evident. We are on an upward and warming slope.

JOYCE: One that increasingly worries not only scientists but insurance companies.

BUSALACCHI: Where is the risk in the future going to be from regional sea level rise and rainfall flooding, et cetera?

JOYCE: Busalacchi runs the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research. He says many scientists who work for him are taking on a new task - advising insurance companies on how to lower those risks as the climate keeps warming. Christopher Joyce, NPR News.

1 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

2 Fahrenheit   

n./adj.华氏温度；华氏温度计(的)

参考例句：

• He was asked for the boiling point of water in Fahrenheit.他被问到水的沸点是华氏多少度。
• The thermometer reads 80 degrees Fahrenheit.寒暑表指出华氏80度。

3 frigid   

adj.寒冷的，凛冽的；冷淡的；拘禁的

参考例句：

• The water was too frigid to allow him to remain submerged for long.水冰冷彻骨，他在下面呆不了太长时间。
• She returned his smile with a frigid glance.对他的微笑她报以冷冷的一瞥。

4 atmospheric   

adj.大气的，空气的；大气层的；大气所引起的

参考例句：

• Sea surface temperatures and atmospheric circulation are strongly coupled.海洋表面温度与大气环流是密切相关的。
• Clouds return radiant energy to the surface primarily via the atmospheric window.云主要通过大气窗区向地表辐射能量。

5 tally   

n.计数器，记分，一致，测量；vt.计算，记录，使一致；vi.计算，记分，一致

参考例句：

• Don't forget to keep a careful tally of what you spend.别忘了仔细记下你的开支账目。
• The facts mentioned in the report tally to every detail.报告中所提到的事实都丝毫不差。

6 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

7 cumulative   

adj.累积的，渐增的

参考例句：

• This drug has a cumulative effect.这种药有渐增的效力。
• The benefits from eating fish are cumulative.吃鱼的好处要长期才能显现。

8 ferocious   

adj.凶猛的，残暴的，极度的，十分强烈的

参考例句：

• The ferocious winds seemed about to tear the ship to pieces.狂风仿佛要把船撕成碎片似的。
• The ferocious panther is chasing a rabbit.那只凶猛的豹子正追赶一只兔子。

9 tornado   

n.飓风，龙卷风

参考例句：

• A tornado whirled into the town last week.龙卷风上周袭击了这座城市。
• The approaching tornado struck awe in our hearts.正在逼近的龙卷风使我们惊恐万分。

10 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

11 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

12 intensity   

n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度

参考例句：

• I didn't realize the intensity of people's feelings on this issue.我没有意识到这一问题能引起群情激奋。
• The strike is growing in intensity.罢工日益加剧。