Visualizing the multibillion dollar cost of US weather disasters

The total cost of weather and climate disasters from 1980 to 2024 is almost $3T

The NOAA’s Office of Coastal Management tracks the cost of damage, deaths, and other key statistics related to hurricanes and weather disasters. In 2024, there were 27 billion-dollar disasters, each averaging $1.2B more in damage than the prior five-year average.

Visualizing the year in US tornadoes, 2024

Between January and November 2024, over 1,700 tornadoes were documented to have touched down in the US, a relatively high number (and similar to the numbers in 2004, 2008, and 2011). This map shows their location across the country to help capture the number.

See the lists of the worst hurricanes in the US through 2024

Several metrics, including wind speed, pressure, damage costs, and casualties, may be used to define the most devastating hurricanes. This page provides the top 10 hurricanes across each of these sorting methods.

The factors stirring up a home insurance storm

The cost of the average home insurance premium shot up 33% between 2020 and 2023 in the US, a trend mimicking heightened inflation. But beyond the cost, insurers are also pulling out of major markets like Florida and California, and millions of policies aren't being renewed as the number of $1B weather disasters continues to increase each year. Read up on the difficulties the home insurance market faces here.

From 1970 to 2017, invasive species have caused $1.28T in damage globally

The costliest species were the Asian tiger and yellow fever mosquitoes ($149B), which arrived in the US from Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, respectively. The bulk of their damage came from their transmission of diseases such as Zika, chikungunya, and dengue. (Some readers may experience a paywall.)

The Federal Emergency Management Agency leads the US response to disasters

Established in 1979, FEMA coordinates the government's response to hurricanes, wildfires, floods, and other disasters, providing funding, logistical support, and recovery assistance. In FY 2024, the agency spent $35.1B, nearly 40% of the Department of Homeland Security's total budget.

A map of extreme weather events and their links to climate change

To track how the evidence on this fast-moving topic is stacking up, Carbon Brief has mapped every extreme-weather attribution study published to date. Read more about the findings from the comprehensive analysis.

Mental illness in the US costs roughly $282B annually nationwide

That figure, estimated as part of a 2024 Yale analysis that aimed to better understand the macroeconomic implications of mental illness, included the costs of mental health treatment, income loss, and overarching economic setbacks associated with mental illness.

Visualizing cyberattacks by country

Cyber crime is expected to cost the global economy trillions per year by 2025. This data illustration showcases the countries with the most severe cyber attacks from 2006-2020.

View the ten deadliest tornadoes in US history.

From 2014-25, US private sector data center investments have increased more than 25-fold

The annualized rate of US data center construction has ballooned from $1.6B to $41.1B, creating a market for data centers whose infrastructure costs and land, power, and transmission capacity demands rival those of offices and industrial facilities.

Hurricane Helene dumped enough water to fill Lake Tahoe

Alongside a rainstorm that moved into the region ahead of it, the hurricane released an unprecedented 40 trillion gallons of rain on the southeastern US, causing catastrophic flooding and at least 100 deaths. Meteorologists suggest climate change is exacerbating the severity of such events.

Heat-related deaths may have climbed by more than 50% over 20 years

Between 2000 and 2009 one study suggests annual heat deaths averaged around 2,670, but between 2010 and 2020 that figure was likely more than 4,000. Researchers studied 54 million death records from the contiguous US and created mathematical models to arrive at these figures, noting that a combination of aging populations and climate change drove that increase.

Discover the economic value of coral reefs, which benefit one billion people worldwide

The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration estimates that US commercial and recreational fisheries valued at $200M depend on coral reefs, which provide up to $1.8B in flood protection by absorbing 97% of wave energy. Combined with the benefits from tourism, US coral reefs provide $3.4B in value annually.

Visualize government spending with USAFacts

This resource turns complex federal budget data into clear charts and summaries, letting users explore how much the government spends; where the money goes; and how revenue, deficits, and debt change over time.

The US government has shut down 22 times since 1976

This resource breaks down every federal shutdown since 1976, showing how long each lasted and the budget disputes that caused them—revealing how routine funding failures have become in modern US politics.

Wedding costs have gone up significantly since the 2020 pandemic lockdowns

In 2020, the average cost of a wedding in the US was $19K—but by 2024, it had surged to more than $33K.

A dashboard showing real-time electricity usage in the US

The United States demands for electricity are enormous, with hundreds of thousands of megawatt hours required to run households and businesses every hour. You can track the fluctuations of US electric use with this dashboard.

Lightning may kill as many as 320 million trees each year

Ignoring the effects of tree loss resulting from lightning-induced wildfires, researchers at the Technical University of Munich developed a quantitative model to estimate the loss of these organisms due to cloud-to-ground strikes, based on global lightning data and forest structure. They expect the estimate to rise due to increased strikes resulting from climate change.

US consumers collectively owe more than $1T to credit card companies—almost as much as they owe in auto loans.

The US has carried debt since 1791

After the Revolutionary War, the US owed $75M to nations like France. Debt builds when spending exceeds revenue, funding programs, wars, and economic recovery efforts. Most debt is domestic, like Social Security bonds, with foreign nations also holding a share.

The world spent up to $600B to avert the Y2K computer glitch

Early computer programmers used a two-digit code to record years rather than four. With the switch in the year 2000 from '99 to '00, analysts feared databases might fail and prompt outages and financial catastrophe. To prepare, governments and businesses spent an estimated $300B to $600B to mitigate the glitch.

How much did WWII cost?

Though it lasted fewer than four years, World War II was the most expensive war in United States history, according to this infographic. Read through it to see how much WWII cost and learn about the consequences of financing such an expensive conflict.

Iran-Iraq war drained over $1T from the combined economies of Iran and Iraq

Across eight years (1980-88), Iran and Iraq each lost about $500 B in GDP, infrastructure destruction, military expenses, disrupted oil exports, and mounting debt—totaling over $1 T in economic damage.

A graphic illustration of death tolls in historical events and wars

Which killed more, the American Civil War or the Korean War? Hurricane Katrina or the Titanic sinking? You’ll be surprised how wrong you are about death tolls.

American billionaires' wealth, visualized

America's top 20 billionaires have a combined wealth of $2.7T as of 2024. That's more than Russia's annual GDP. But some billionaires, like Elon Musk, hold a greater share of that $2.7T number than others. To see just how much money each of these 20 billionaires have in comparison to the others in the group, check out this data visualization.

Discover the catastrophic consequences of a failure of the US electrical grid—something that is more likely than many Americans think.

The atomic bombs dropped on Japan had massive human costs

The US atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 killed around 210,000 people—more than 38,000 of them estimated to be children—with tens of thousands more later dying from radiation-linked illnesses, leaving lifelong trauma and increased cancer risks.

Calculate how much of your tax dollars go to each federal program based on your income, filing status, and number of children

Before the current East Wing ballroom project, only two White House renovations in the past 100 years cost more than $10M.

Fireworks-related ER visits are on the rise—in 2024, they increased by 52% as compared to the prior year.

The American Society of Civil Engineers' infrastructure report card gave the US a C in 2025, its highest grade since the project launched in 1998.

Chaos theory—informally known as the butterfly effect—is the reason why weather forecasts are presented with probabilities rather than certainties.

The US dollar is the most widely circulated currency in the world, and is involved in nearly 90% of global transactions

US housing costs have risen by roughly 175% between 1991 and 2026—but a growing number of Gen Zers are becoming homeowners anyway. In 2025, 4% of homebuyers were Gen Z, up from 3% the year before.

Dirty lightning is a thunderstorm created from friction between rising and falling flows of ash and smoke during volcanic eruptions.

While El Niño moves warm Pacific Ocean waters east along the equator, La Niña moves them west, shifting where rainfall will become more common for months.

While the first exchange-traded fund (a 'basket' of different assets that can be bought and sold on a stock exchange) in the US only launched in 1993, the global ETF market has grown to more than $10T in the short time since.

About 2,000 US babies are born annually without some portion of their limbs, potentially leading to a lifetime of pricey prosthetics.

The United States has had a tumultuous relationship with Cuba since its 1959 revolution, highlighted by a nuclear crisis and a decades-long trade embargo.

The US first hosted the World Cup in 1994, a tournament that lives in soccer infamy for its poor planning and the murder of Colombian player Andres Escobar, who'd accidentally scored on his own net.

In 2019, a laptop loaded with six of the worst malware in history and described as 'an exhibit of historical weaponry' sold for $1.3M.

Visualize the path of every solar eclipse from 1900 to 2099 and see what each looks like when observed from different locations on Earth.

Scientists testing how climate change affects plants found, in a years-long simulation study, that poison ivy grew 70% faster with the resulting extra carbon dioxide.

The Russia-Ukraine conflict is the largest ground war in Europe since World War II in casualties, forces mobilized, and displacement of civilians.

For centuries, Niagara Falls has been a magnet for daredevils seeking to conquer one of nature's most powerful wonders, with its 200-foot drop and water rushing at 32 feet per second with 280 tons of force.

Louisiana's 'Cancer Alley' is infamous for having some of the highest industrial pollution, toxic air emissions, and cancer risks in the US.

Explore fun facts from the USPS, including unique post office buildings, a stamp that traveled past Pluto, and more.

Experimental hantavirus vaccines and therapies, still under development, have long been funded by the US military.

The most expensive ad of all time was for Chanel No. 5 perfume and cost roughly $33M to produce in 2004—about $57M in today's dollars.