Over the last few months, the world has witnessed a series of record-setting weather disasters: devastating flooding in India and Bangladesh, mudslides in Sierra Leone, overflow of the Yangtze tributary in China and historic rainfall from Hurricane Harvey in East Texas. What is the climate connection among all these events?

As Jonathan Watts of the Guardian explains, each of these extreme events is seasonal and depends on local factors, but they are all likely worsened by climate change. Scientists project that extremes will become more common and more devastating as a result of rising global temperatures from man-made emissions. In essence, warmer seas evaporate more easily and warmer air holds more water vapor – and these are the ingredients for stronger storms.