Why Are Natural Disasters Becoming More Common?

00:00:00 - Cyclones Cyclones are the most powerful natural disasters on Earth. Many coastal regions live under the constant threat of these incredibly powerful surges of energy. Why are they becoming more common, widespread and powerful than ever before? This series focuses on the science behind natural catastrophes and helps audiences to understand these spectacular moments of Earth's anger. 00:50:56 - Floods Over the past 20 years, floods have caused more than 150,000 deaths globally. But how do these destructive floods come about? And how can they be predicted and managed? 01:43:01 - Blizzards Blizzards affect mankind every winter, across every continent. Combining ice cold temperatures, snow and extreme wind, this mother of all storms is a living hell that has the power to paralyse entire countries. From the prairies of Canada to Northern China, this episode explores the destructive and unpredictable nature of blizzards. 02:34:32 - Tornadoes They're huge funnels of wind fallen from the sky, travelling at great speeds, sweeping up everything in their path. One of the most affected countries is the USA, which experiences approximately 1,200 tornadoes every year. With wind speeds inside their vortex reaching up to 500 km per hour and travelling at the speed of a high-speed train, tornadoes are capable of destroying everything in their path. But how do they start? How can we predict them and minimise their destruction? 03:26:47 - Earthquakes More than a hundred earthquakes occur each year. They can annihilate a city in just a few seconds. Tokyo, Istanbul, Los Angeles... Some of the biggest cities in the world are under threat. Fortunately, our understanding of earthquakes is becoming more and more accurate. Almost everywhere on the surface of the globe, a vast network of GPS trackers have been installed on mountains as on great plains. Researchers from all over the world are now focusing on one single objective: Anticipating the exact moment when the Earth will move. 04:18:27 - Volcanoes Volcanoes have shaped the surface of the planet. They have marked out continents, made islands emerge, but also ravaged millions of square kilometres of land. Each year, almost 50 volcanic eruptions shake the surface of the earth. But the last super-eruption dates back more than 70,000 years. These unparalleled force of nature would lead to the extinction of many species and could bring us back to the ice age. Subscribe to Spark for more amazing science, tech & engineering videos: https://goo.gl/LIrlur 🚀 Join the Spark Channel Membership to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMV3aTOwUtG5vwfH9_rzb2w/join Sign up to History Hit to start watching now https://bit.ly/45CPh5u Find us on: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SparkDocs/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spark_channel/ Any queries, please contact us at: owned-enquiries@littledotstudios.com #Hurricane #Storm #Earthquake