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"With the English countryside underwater from some of the worst flooding on record, the British government found that \"an increasing body of evidence\" ties this type of event to manmade global warming.\nRainfall amounts, storm intensities, wave heights and other extreme weather-related characteristics have been at or near record levels, according to a UK Met Office report released on Sunday. December and January were among the most \u201Cexceptionally wet\u201D two-month periods on record in England and Wales, dating back at least 248 years.\nSee also: Parts of England Underwater After Thames Burst Banks\nThe high flow rates of the Thames River, which courses through downtown London, have lasted longer than any previous flood since 1883. In fact, the massive Thames flood barrier has been raised 13 times since December in order to prevent widespread flooding in London and other areas, although it's not saving many downstream communities from flood damage.\nAccording to BBC News, the UK Environment Agency issued a record number of severe flood warnings, indicating a life-threatening situation. The agency also said many areas received more than double their average rainfall.\nThe relentless storms that have soaked the UK since December fit with recent research showing that storms in this area have grown stronger in recent years. Extreme rainfall events have become more common, due at least in part to manmade global warming.\n\u201CRecent studies suggest an increase in the intensity of Atlantic storms that take a more southerly track, typical of this winter\u2019s extreme weather,\u201D the report said. \u201CThere is no evidence to counter the basic premise that a warmer world will lead to more intense daily and hourly heavy rainfall events.\u201D\nPerhaps the most interesting piece of the report \u2014 for weather geeks, that is \u2014 explains why the UK has faced one storm after another for the past two months. It all comes back to events that occurred more than 7,000 miles away. The storms originated in the Pacific Ocean and spun their way eastward on the back of the jet stream, which is a high altitude corridor of strong winds that steers weather systems and helps energize them.\nIn the tropical Western Pacific, near Indonesia, unusually warm sea surface temperatures have led to above-average rainfall for much of the winter. This added heat to the atmosphere and altered the shape of the jet stream as it moved from west to east across the Northern Hemisphere. A huge northward shift in the jet stream, also known as a \u201Cridge,\" resulted in the ongoing California drought, while also routing storms eastward.\nThe near-term forecast for both the U.S. and the UK doesn't offer much hope of clearer skies, with the possibility of two major winter storms in the eastern U.S., and the Met Office predicted more rain during the rest of the week.\nThe Met Office said more comprehensive studies using sophisticated computer models need to be undertaken before it could say anything more definitive about the link between global warming and the recent storms. Such models have only recently become advanced enough to capture events taking place on the local level, such as on the scale of a city. Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.\n\n\nExtreme Weather Conditions Around the World\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n1. Drought in the U.S.\n\n2012 was the hottest year, ever, in the United States. More than half of the continental U.S. experienced drought, which dehydrated crops and sparked wildfires across the country. \nPhoto via Mark Wilson/Getty Images News/Getty Images\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n2. Floods throughout the U.K. \n\nStorms and floods swept the UK, and Britain\u2019s weather service rightfully declared 2012 the wettest year in England. \nPhoto via Leon Neal/AFP/Getty Images\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n3. Record cold in China \n\nChina experiences its coldest winter in decades, with temperatures hitting the lowest in 28 years. But a little cold doesn't stop this guy. \nPhoto via Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n4. Typhoons in the Philippines\n\nA series of typhoons, including Typhoon Bopha, pictured above, killed hundreds and left thousands homeless. \nPhoto via STR/AFP/Getty Images\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n5. Subzero in Russia \n\nTemperatures in Eastern Russia reached negative 50 degrees Fahrenheit, freezing this woman's eyebrows. Also, see this video of boiling water freezing instantly in Siberian air. \nPhoto via AFP/AFP/Getty Images\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n6. Hurricane Sandy\n\nHurricane Sandy wreaked havoc on the U.S.'s east coast and the Caribbean, leaving millions without power, thousands flooded and devastating neighborhoods. \nPhoto via Andrew Burton/Getty Images News/Getty Images\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n7. Heat wave in Brazil \n\nA heat wave claimed the lives of 32 people in two days. Temperatures hit 109.7 degrees Fahrenheit, the highest national temperature since 1915. \nPhoto via Vanderlei Almeida/AFP/Getty Images\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n8. Earthquakes all over\n\nA powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck southwest Mexico in March. Another rocked Guatemala in November, and Indonesia was hit in December. \nPhoto via AFP/AFP/Getty Images\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n9. Snow storm in Italy\n\nIn February, Sicily and southern Italy were slammed with snow storms for the first time since World War II. Then in December, tornadoes had their way with the Italian coast. \nPhoto via Mario Laporta/AFP/Getty Images\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n10. Flooding in Pakistan\n\nPeople carried their belongings through the flash floods and torrential rains, and more than 400 lives were lost.\nPhoto via Banaras Khan/AFP/Getty Images\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n11. Palm trees and snow \n\nTo kick off 2013, Mother Nature hit Jerusalem with a snow storm, the first in 21 years. \nPhoto via Menahem Kahana/AFP/Getty Images\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n12. Australian bush fires\n\nBurnt sheep lie in a field ravaged by Australian bush fires this week. Meteorologists reported the country\u2019s hottest spring and summer on record in 2012. \nPhoto via Greg Wood/AFP/Getty Images\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2014/02/10/britain-floods-global-warming/>