NEW YORK – At first, it looked as if New York would simply be grazed by light rain on Friday.
That just happened to be right over New York City. And “that is the nature of science sometimes,” he added.Climate change is very likely stoking more ominous and lengthy downpours because as the atmosphere heats up, it can hold more moisture, said senior researcher Andrew Kruczkiewicz, who specialises in flash floods at Columbia Climate School at Columbia University.
But Friday’s weather was not your typically fierce coastal nor’easter or tropical storm, Mr Carbin said. It was a result of “smaller-scale features, like bands of heavy rainfall and scattered thunderstorms.”By Thursday, however, these smaller pieces had persuaded the National Weather Service to issue a flood watch, and, by early Friday morning, stronger warnings.
“If we just had a cloudburst during the summer, nothing much happens, because it’s possible to drain out,” he said.