Researchers say forces other than wind speed help cause extensive destruction. And the lower the air pressure, the stronger the storm. Water caused Hurricane Sandy’s worst damage. Flooding drowned many human victims. Farm animals and pets also suffered.

Some scientists believe climate change affects major storms. They say the warming of Earth’s atmosphere is already making the storms worse. Other scientists have published studies that dispute this.

In 2010, a special committee of the World Meteorological Organization reported on severe storms. The committee’s work appeared in the journal “Nature Geoscience.” Ten scientists wrote the report. They represented both sides of the debate about climate change. The scientists reached no clear answer about whether rising temperatures on Earth had already intensified storms. Still, they made some predictions.

The committee said the changing climate might cause more powerful ocean storms in the future. It said the overall strength of storms measured by wind speed might increase two to 11 percent by the year 2100. And there might be an increase in the number of the most severe storms. But there might be fewer weak and moderate storms.

This Science in the News was written by Jerilyn Watson. Our producer was June Simms. I’m Mario Ritter.

And I’m Caty Weaver. Listen again next week for more news about science on the Voice of America.