Warmer temperatures could increase storm severity, expert says

Hurricane season 2005 saw the greatest number of storms in recorded human history - most notably Hurricane Katrina, which started out as a category five and had calmed to a still impressive category three by the time it hit New Orleans. That summer had seen a spike in global temperatures - with an even bigger jump in the tropical Atlantic.

In modern times, there have only been two hurricanes to strike outside of their usual spots in the Caribbean or the Pacific Ocean, where they are known as typhoons. The first was in Brazil in 2004 and the second made landfall in Spain one year later. Could Europe be in for more hurricanes as the planet warms up?

Deutsche Welle spoke with Dr. Mojib Latif, professor of ocean dynamics at the Leibniz Institute for Ocean Studies at the University of Kiel. Click on the link below to listen to the interview.