Table of Contents
Extreme Weather Events in a nutshell
An extreme weather event is a meteorological phenomenon that is characterized by its rarity and deviation from measured values in regional weather history. These severe meteorological phenomena deviate significantly from the climatic average for an observed region. This is based on long-term measurement series covering at least 30 years.
The attribution of climate events, or the science of climate attribution, is crucial because it translates abstract climate trends into concrete, measurable outcomes. Climate Event Attribution does not answer whether climate change “caused” an event, but rather how much it changed the probability of such an event occurring.
Types of extreme weather events
- Heat waves – prolonged periods of unusually high temperatures.
- Cold spells/cold waves – periods of anomalously low temperatures.
- Droughts – above-average periods of low precipitation.
- Heavy rain – short but very intense rain events.
- Floods – consequences of heavy rain, snowmelt, or storm surges.
- Tropical cyclones (hurricanes, typhoons) – large-scale, extremely strong wind and rainfall events.
- Tornadoes – small-scale but highly intense rotating wind systems.
- Hailstorms – precipitation in the form of large ice pellets that can cause massive damage.
- Snowstorms/blizzards – extreme snowfall with strong winds and low temperatures.
- Storm surges – rise in sea level as a result of strong winds and air pressure differences.
- Forest fires – indirect consequence of heat and drought, often classified as a climate-related extreme event.
Podcast Episodes Mentioning “Extreme Weather Events”
The following table provides verified podcast references where the term extreme weather events or very similar terms mentioned in the audio. The “Time” column indicates the approximate section where the term appears. For some sections, an exact start and end time could be determined. The “Mentions” column shows how often the term appears in the podcast episode. If you click on the title in the “Episode Title” column, the link will take you to the original podcast episode page. There you can listen to the section containing the term and, of course, the entire episode.
The “Excerpt with term…” column shows you an exact short excerpt from the podcast episode in which the term was used. This also makes it easier for you to find the passage in the audio.
| Episode Title | Excerpts with term | Podcast | Season - Episode | Mentions | Published | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Climate Shocks Are Redefining Energy Security |
| Columbia Energy Exchange | 2 | 2025-07-15 | |||||||||||
| AI, Extreme Weather, and the LA Wildfires |
| Columbia Energy Exchange | 3 | 2025-01-14 | |||||||||||
| Climate as a Catalyst for Global Conflicts |
| Columbia Energy Exchange | 2 | 2025-01-07 | |||||||||||
| Summer Outlook: What to Make of Extreme Weather Predictions |
| Columbia Energy Exchange | 2 | 2024-06-11 | |||||||||||
| Why Climate Change is Bad for Our Health |
| Columbia Energy Exchange | 3 | 2023-12-19 | |||||||||||
| Hawaii Model: Locals Can Drive Climate Solutions | "... And around the state, residents are working to prepare for more extreme weather events. ..." Time: 00:30 – 00:36 (mm:ss) | Columbia Energy Exchange | 1 | 2023-11-14 | |||||||||||
| “The Heat Will Kill You First” | "... How are scientists researching these extreme weather events and what can policymakers do ..." Time: 00:55 – 01:01 (mm:ss) | Columbia Energy Exchange | 1 | 2023-09-05 | |||||||||||
| How Climate Change Fuels Extreme Weather |
| Columbia Energy Exchange | 4 | 2021-07-20 | |||||||||||
| A Climate Lens for Healthcare | "... And then we also think about extreme weather events, not only the direct trauma but the disruption to ..." Time: 10:30 – 10:50 (mm:ss) | Columbia Energy Exchange | 1 | 2021-04-05 | |||||||||||
| The Growing Cost of Climate Change and Extreme Weather | "... government from extreme weather and fire events over the last decade, potentially increasing ..." Time: 04:35 – 04:42 (mm:ss) | Columbia Energy Exchange | 1 | 2017-11-06 | |||||||||||
| Community Resilience: Knowing Your Neighbor Could Save Your Life |
| Climate One | 3 | 2023-10-20 | |||||||||||
| 6.7 BREAKING: Broadcast News Is Falling Short on Climate Change Coverage |
| The Climate Conversation | S6 E7 | 4 | 2023-11-28 | ||||||||||
| 166: No Mud, No Lotuses: The Last Episode of Season 5 | "... learning about the scale of suffering caused by the extreme weather events across the globe was horribly painful, ..." Time: 01:05:21 - 01:05:45 (hh:mm:ss) | Outrage + Optimism | S5 E31 | 1 | 2022-07-29 | ||||||||||
| 112: The Nature of Nature: Why We Need The Wild with Enric Sala | "... the extreme weather events and what's been happening around the world over the last few ..." Time: 00:36 - 00:40 (hh:mm:ss) | Outrage + Optimism | S3 E27 | 1 | 2021-07-31 | ||||||||||
| E3: Did climate change do that? |
| TILclimate | S7 E03 | 2 | 2025-03-20 |
All excerpts are short, attributed quotes from publicly available podcast episodes, linking directly to the original sources.