Spain’s Valencia region faced catastrophic flooding due to record-setting torrential rains, resulting in at least 95 deaths and massive damage to infrastructure and homes. Rainfall totals reached a staggering 20 inches (500 mm) in some areas equivalent to the region’s usual annual total.
This devastating event was fueled by a low-pressure system that drew on an atmospheric river carrying high moisture levels from the unseasonably warm Tropical Atlantic. According to the Climate Shift Index: Ocean (CSI: Ocean), the unusually high sea surface temperatures were made up to 300 times more likely due to human-caused climate change.
How Climate Change is Amplifying Ocean Heat
The Climate Shift Index: Ocean, a tool grounded in peer-reviewed science and reliable data, evaluates the extent to which climate change has increased the likelihood of daily sea surface temperatures. CSI: Ocean considers data across global oceans, linking elevated temperatures to human activity by examining shifts over time. This allows scientists to quantify the influence of climate change on extreme events, such as the Atlantic’s warmer-than-normal conditions that contributed to the flood-driving atmospheric river.
Rising Ocean Temperatures and Extreme Weather Patterns
Higher sea surface temperatures provide more moisture for weather systems, fueling storms and increasing the risk of extreme rainfall. In the Valencia case, the low-pressure system was able to draw from an ocean rich in climate-driven heat, which significantly increased the severity of rainfall, leading to destructive flooding. CSI: Ocean assessments reinforce that, while natural weather patterns influence regional storms, the current climate crisis amplifies their intensity and frequency.
This flood in Spain underscores the broader impact of climate change on ocean temperatures and extreme weather, highlighting an urgent need for resilience measures to protect vulnerable regions worldwide from future climate-driven disasters.