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Why the link between tornadoes and climate change is hard to draw : NPR

Scientists know that warm weather is a key ingredient in tornadoes and that climate change is altering the environment in which these kinds of storms form. But they can't directly connect those dots, as the research into the link between climate and tornadoes still lags behind that of other extreme weather events such as hurricanes and wildfire.

That's at least in part due to a lack of data — even though the U.S. leads the world in tornadoes, averaging about 1,200 a year.

Warming planet slows jet stream causing downpours

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Climate change: Warming planet slows jet stream causing downpours

Specifically, our reporting finds:

At some point over the past three years, 27 states – all east of the Rocky Mountains – hit their highest 30-year precipitation average since record keeping began in 1895. A dozen states, including Iowa, Ohio and Rhode Island, saw five of their 10 wettest years in history over the past two decades. Michigan saw six of its wettest 10 years on record over the past 13 years. In June, at least 136 daily rainfall records were set during storms across five states along the Mississippi River. At the opposite extreme, eight states – including five in the West – had at least three record-dry years in the same time period. That’s double what would be expected based on historical patterns.