Climate change in North Carolina

Between 1980 and 2025, North Carolina experienced 31 billion-dollar hurricanes.

• As the planet warms, extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and intense, resulting in devastating losses.

• Tropical cyclones (which include hurricanes and tropical storms) are the most costly extreme weather events in the U.S.

• This data shows the total number of hurricanes with at least one billion dollars in damages that occurred during 1980-2025.

• Data source: U.S. Billion Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters

Since 1970, average fall temperatures in North Carolina have gotten 1.7°F warmer, reflecting an overall warming trend.

• Fall warming means that risky heat, fire weather, and allergies linger later into the year.

• Data source: NCEI Climate at a Glance

The amount of rainfall during the heaviest rain events each year in the Southeast has increased by 37% since 1958.

• Climate change is supercharging the water cycle, bringing heavier precipitation extremes across the U.S.

• This chart shows how the amount of rainfall during the top 1% heaviest rain events each year in the Southeast increased between 1958 to 2021.

• Data source: Fifth National Climate Assessment

The sea level in North Carolina is projected to rise 1.1 feet by 2050 even if nations meet their pledged commitments to reduce heat-trapping pollution.

• Increasing flood risk is driven by our warming climate, which is causing sea levels around the world to rise. Rising sea levels push tides and storm surges higher and farther inland.

• Climate Central’s Coastal Risk Finder provides maps and analysis of the people, homes, and land in the U.S. projected to be at risk from worsening coastal flooding driven by rising seas.