The memorable weather events the year you were born

Devastating hurricanes, destructive wildfires, deadly heat, and widespread droughts: If it feels like extreme weather events are happening more and more these days, it's because they are.

Almost 100% of scientists agree the cause of the growing barrage of natural disasters is human-made climate change. The last seven years are the hottest on record; hurricanes are now more powerful and last longer; wildfires are more common, hotter, and more destructive; and the planet is less hospitable than it was even a century ago.

Of course, each decade and each year within them bear out their own unique weather events. Stacker consulted historical, climatologic, and other news sources to find the most notable weather events each year since the Great Depression. Unfortunately, some of the most memorable weather is almost always extreme and occasionally disastrous—the freakish cold, the violent wind, and the devastatingly dry. Causes have included differences in barometric pressure to chunks of volcano falling into the ocean, among others.

The effects of some of these weather events have lingered for decades, as rebuilding can be costly, inefficient, and time-consuming. As exemplified by the case of dust storms in the U.S. in the 1930s, weather can cause economic repercussions that go on for years.

This list overflows with tropical storms, hurricanes, and typhoons. It also contains blizzards, floods, tornadoes, and drought. It's got snow in Florida and a tornado in Los Angeles. There's even a church struck by lightning and hail the size of grapefruits. Read on for a look at some of the most impactful weather events of the last century.

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