University of Tokyo professor warns of increasing extreme rainfall in Japan

Masahiro Watanabe, a professor at the University of Tokyo's Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, reports that the frequency of extremely heavy rainfall in Japan is increasing. He notes that while extreme weather events like heatwaves and heavy rain occur naturally due to atmospheric and oceanic fluctuations, observational data shows a recent rise in these occurrences.

Watanabe explains that global warming does not necessarily create extreme weather from nothing, but rather shifts the probability distribution of weather events. Even a slight increase in average temperatures can significantly increase the frequency and intensity of extreme phenomena, such as heatwaves and torrential downpours, by shifting the entire distribution toward more extreme values.