Thread: Why is it so Hot Everywhere?

Italy and France continue to grapple with extreme heat

Italy and France continue to experience high temperatures.

Europe is currently struggling with extreme heat, with some regions experiencing unprecedented temperatures. Italy is expected to face its hottest weekend of the year, while France has issued warnings as a heatwave sweeps through its southern regions.

Meteorologists are pointing to human-induced climate change as the primary driver behind these extreme temperatures.

Lorenzo Tedici, a meteorologist at the weather forecast site ‘Il Meteo,’ highlighted the role of fossil fuel consumption in warming the planet since 1850. He also emphasised the impact of the African anticyclone, a weather pattern that has been increasingly associated with climate change.

In France, healthcare workers have been mobilised to carry out check ups on the most vulnerable. Nurses have been deployed across 28 affected regions to monitor and assist those at risk of heat-related illnesses.

Ocean temperatures in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef now hottest in 400 years: What a new study says

Water temperatures in and around Australia’s Great Barrier Reef have risen to their warmest in 400 years over the past decade, placing the world’s largest coral reef under threat, according to a new study.

This research is unique, in that it puts the effects of man-made climate change in historical context. Other studies have looked at the damage to the reef over a shorter time frame. The reef stretches for some 2,400 km off the coast of the northern state of Queensland.

Originally Posted by david44

I slept with a cover last nights its around 27 max 18 min due to cloud cover...

It called a season. The Southern Hemisphere is in its Winter season.

Australia is getting warmer as is the rest of the world. Your Winters, Springs, Summers and Autumns are all getting warmer.

By the way, it is chilly in our bedroom every evening. It’s called A/C

_________

Unprecedented number of heat records broken around world this year

A record 15 national heat records have been broken since the start of this year, an influential climate historian has told the Guardian, as weather extremes grow more frequent and climate breakdown intensifies.

An additional 130 monthly national temperature records have also been broken, along with tens of thousands of local highs registered at monitoring stations from the Arctic to the South Pacific, according to Maximiliano Herrera, who keeps an archive of extreme events.

He said the unprecedented number of records in the first six months was astonishing. “This amount of extreme heat events is beyond anything ever seen or even thought possible before,” he said. “The months from February 2024 to July 2024 have been the most record-breaking for every statistic.”

This is alarming because last year’s extreme heat could be largely attributed to a combination of man-made global heating – caused by burning gas, oil, coal and trees – and a natural El Niño phenomenon, a warming of the tropical Pacific Ocean surface that is associated with higher temperatures in many parts of the world. The El Niño has been fading since February of this year, but this has brought little relief.

“Far from dwindling with the end of El Niño, records are falling at even much faster pace now compared to late 2023,” said Herrera.

Intense heat continues across wide areas of Japan

Many parts of Japan experienced extremely high temperatures again on Wednesday. Weather officials are warning of another scorching day on Thursday.

The Meteorological Agency says a high pressure system covered wide areas mainly in eastern and western Japan on Wednesday, pushing up temperatures.

The mercury in the city of Nishiwaki in the western prefecture of Hyogo hit 39.5 degrees Celsius. Daytime highs also went up to 39.3 degrees in Katsuragi Town, Wakayama Prefecture, 39.1 degrees in Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture, 39 degrees in Gifu City, and 38.2 degrees in Nagoya City.

Temperatures reached 37.9 degrees in the cities of Kyoto and Saga, and 37.6 degrees in the cities of Nara, Hiroshima and Yamaguchi.

Another extremely hot day is expected on Thursday, with temperatures forecast to reach 38 degrees in the cities of Osaka, Nagoya and Saga.

The agency and the Environment Ministry have issued heatstroke alerts for 29 of the country's 47 prefectures.

Weather officials are warning that daytime highs are expected to reach at least 35 degrees in parts of eastern and western Japan through around Tuesday next week.

Many people have been taken to hospital this summer with suspected symptoms of heatstroke, with fatalities.

Authorities are advising people to refrain from outings and exercise, use air conditioners and consume water and salt.

They also urge people to pay close attention to senior citizens, babies and younger children, as they are especially vulnerable to extreme heat.

People planning outdoor leisure activities during the Bon holidays are advised to carry ice in water bottles and ice packs.

Weather officials also say atmospheric conditions have become extremely unstable mainly in eastern and western Japan due to soaring temperatures and warm, damp air. This may cause localized heavy rain of 50 millimeters per hour accompanied by lightning.

Rainfall in the 24 hours through 6 p.m. on Thursday could reach 100 millimeters in northern Kanto.

Weather officials are warning of flooding in low-lying areas, swollen rivers and mudslides. They are also urging caution against lightning strikes and violent gusts, including tornadoes.

July 2024 sets new records for global heat and climate disasters

Mother Nature's record hits continue to play across the United States and even globally with July 2024 setting new extremes for warmth and climate disasters.

It's no surprise as we've just seen back-to-back record-high temperatures across Earth, stretching back to June 2023 and coinciding with consecutive global sea-surface temperature highs.

According to a global extreme heat analysis from Climate Central, human-driven climate change continues to be the culprit for the powerful heat waves thanks to activities like burning coal and deforestation. Across the world, between June 16 and June 24, more than 60% of the population was impacted by the resulting extreme heat.

Earth's average temperature for the month of July was the highest in National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)'s 175-year book, inching up 2.18 degrees Fahrenheit (1.21 degrees Celsius) from the 20th-century average of 60.4 degrees Fahrenheit (15.8 degrees Celsius). In the U.S., July's average temperature came in at the 11th warmest in 130 years at 75.7 degrees Fahrenheit (24.3 degrees Celsius). Nineteen states experienced their top 10 warmest month on record in July as well, with California and New Hampshire at the hottest.

Two U.S. cities also set heat records in July. Las Vegas, Nevada, hit its hottest temperature of all time at 120 degrees Fahrenheit (49 degrees Celsius) on July 7 and in Washington, D.C., July 17 marked the fourth straight day of temperatures greater than 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius), tying the record for most consecutive days with such immense heat.

As temperatures continue to increase this way, it also sets the stage for storm systems to become much stronger and more likely. In fact, the warmer it is, the more frequently water evaporation takes place which fuels tropical systems that are already forming and intensifying in oceans with above average sea-surface temperatures. In addition, more heat leads to better drought conditions, which can create wildfires.

Highest temps of the year are still ahead

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Temperatures Friday reached 100º+ for the 23rd time this year in Austin. Our stretch of triple digit heat is now at 5 days and counting.

Temperatures this weekend will be as hot and then hotter with highs pushing up to 103º by Sunday. Both days will be mostly sunny and otherwise uneventful.

Exceptionally rare Arctic heat wave shatters all-time records

It’s not every day that the Arctic Circle runs hotter than Miami, Florida.

We’re in the midst of a historic heat wave across Canada’s Far North as the region roasts beneath some of North America’s hottest temperatures.

Several communities in the Northwest Territories recorded their all-time highest readings this week. This is only the second true heat wave observed in Inuvik, where temperatures are nearly double where they should be for this point in August.

A weather station in Little Chicago, located within the Arctic Circle along the Mackenzie River in the Northwest Territories, recorded a historic high temperature of 35.9°C on Wednesday.

Not only is this the hottest temperature ever observed at Little Chicago, but it was even hotter than Wednesday’s high temperature of 35°C all the way down in Miami, Florida.

Originally Posted by S Landreth

It called a season. The Southern Hemisphere is in its Winter season.

I am in LOS and using a blanket at night due to passive cooling design, light boxes decks no S facing windows, huge eaves over all round Queenslander style decks triple thick Hebel block etc.

If you are using lots of AC and therefore electric you are part of the problem not the solution.Yes I do realize it is hard to retrofit older homes designed for earlier climes.
Some take action , most cannot even afford 23/7 air con in LOS , use is sure to increase as temps rise and esp wealthier BKK where more concrete and poor design increases discomfort

Originally Posted by david44

If you are using lots of AC and therefore electric you are part of the problem not the solution.

The girlfriend owns 5 pieces of property here in Thailand. She owned 3 of those pieces before I met her 20 years ago. She is not about to make any major changes to these 3 pieces and we will continue to sleep comfortable during the evenings.

Now, she did receive 2 adjoining pieces of property (empty lots) last Valentines and intends to install solar panels to cover some costs on the one home she intends to have built. But first a 3-bay carport with at least 12 solar panels and a powerwall that will charge the EV MG (I think) will be built.

Now, back in the states I stay in a home that has 17 solar panels (I had installed over 10 years ago) which cover the cost of electricity during the year, if it is not a Covid year where I stayed the entire year.

Question.

When you go back home do you have solar panels installed on your home that cover all your electricity needs or are you going to continue to be the problem?

^When I lived in Miami, I would cool myself off with a dip in the pool before going to bed. We didn’t start using the A/C until we took our newborn baby to the doctor because of the rash on her ass.

Doctor told us it was a heat rash so we started using the A/C after it was repaired.

During some parts of the year in Miami it becomes unbearable without the A/C at night.



Extra: From NOAA - Asia had its warmest July, exceeding the previous record warm July of 2023 by 0.23°C (0.41°F).

Phoenix wildlife center adjusts to extreme heat after treating around 400 animals

A wildlife rescue in Phoenix is adjusting to our record-breaking summers.

Staff at Liberty Wildlife said the heat is causing a huge increase in animal drop-offs year after year.

So far this year, the nonprofit has treated around 400 animals, more than last year.

Laura Hackett, a wildlife biologist, has worked at Liberty Wildlife for 20 years.

She says the frequent and intense heat is affecting the center’s operations.

“It’s just something we’re going to have to figure out every single year, but we’re going to continue seeing more and more patients each and each year,” said Hackett.

She said more patients means more resources.

“Our food budget is larger, but then we also have electricity and water bills that are higher because we have to be changing waters,” she said. “We also have to be giving showers to the animals in the afternoon to keep them cooler and we have swamp coolers that are running consistently now.”

The animal facility works like a hospital for people with a triage room, intensive care units and orphan care.

“We depend on the general public to be our ambulance,” said Hackett. “They’re the ones who are finding the animals out in the wild and bringing them to us.”

At the end of August, the nonprofit pointed out that their facility looks much different than it did a few weeks ago. “We definitely saw one of our busiest days in June this year because temperatures jumped so high so quickly and stayed high for so many days in a row.”

This year, they’ve seen an increase in one animal in particular.

“Coppers Hawks were nesting at that time and they’re known for when it gets hot, jumping out of the nest and land on the ground. We were seeing more and more of them doing that because it was so uncomfortable in the nest,” said Hackett.

Last July was the busiest month at Liberty Wildlife.

In one day, they received nearly 100 animals in need of treatment. One year later, almost to the day, they had 150 animals needing care.

“These animals live here so you’d think they’d be used to the heat, but just like we’re trying to get used to this non-stop heat, they aren’t ready for it either, so their bodies are still having to adapt and trying to find a way to survive it,” said Hackett.

Millions of Americans face blistering temperatures as heat dome blankets Gulf Coast states

A heat dome blanketing the southwest and Texas has caused widespread hazardous conditions for tens of millions of Americans as forecasters predicted record highs in the regions.

More than 23 million Americans were under some level of heat advisory or warning early Wednesday, according to Heat.gov. The National Weather Service is warning of "major" and "extreme" levels of heat risk in large swaths of the southwest and Texas as well as parts of the Gulf Coast.

"Hazardous heat continues across Texas and the Gulf Coast with temperatures in the triple digits," the weather service said Tuesday.

Sweltering conditions were expected to continue through the week with near record to record temperatures forecast for portions of Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas, according to the weather service.

The weather service office in Phoenix said temperatures in the city reached 112 degrees Tuesday afternoon — just one degree "shy of the record set in 2019." Meanwhile, forecasters in Houston estimated that the "hottest days of the year" will likely be on Tuesday and Wednesday with temperatures between 100 and 105 degrees and heat indices between 111 and 116 degrees, according to the weather service.

Extreme heat takes a toll at Colorado airshow: Over 100 people fall ill

Extreme heat at a Colorado airshow led to at least 10 people being hospitalized and about 100 needing medical treatment on Saturday afternoon, officials said.

People visiting the Pikes Peak Airshow in Colorado Springs faced intense heat and needed medical attention during the event, Ashley Franco, a spokesperson for the Colorado Springs Fire Department, told USA TODAY. The majority of the people were taken to the hospital because of heat-related illnesses, and a few were hospitalized because of other medical emergencies, such as seizures.

“The Colorado Springs Fire Department works and prepares very closely with the airport and event organizers when large events are held. Today, like every day, we had a plan in place in the event we needed to activate it,” said Colorado Springs Fire Chief Randy Royal in a statement. “All partners and resources at the airshow handled this incident swiftly and professionally. Their quick actions ensured people were taken care of and serious injuries were avoided."

‘Heat engine’ fuelled by climate crisis bringing blast of summer weather to Australian winter

Australia is on track to face its hottest August on record as a global heating-fuelled “heat engine” brings spring and summer warmth to Australia’s winter, experts forecast.

A Weatherzone meteorologist, Ben Domensino, said the unseasonably warm weather was coming from a “heat engine” in Australia’s red centre, where clear skies in the coming week would drive maximum temperatures towards 40C, more than 10C above average, in northern South Australia, the southern Northern Territory and western New South Wales.

The Bureau of Meteorology is also forecasting 2024’s winter to be the nation’s fifth-warmest yet, with multiple locations threatening to break temperature records for August before the month is over.

Temperatures across the country are rising higher and earlier than usual, putting August averages comfortably above the long-term mean.

SA could record its highest ever winter temperature, with Oodnadatta in the state’s north forecast to crack 38C on Friday and Saturday as maximums rise 15C above average in the surrounding region.

South Australia has notched up its hottest winter day on record.

Oodnadatta in the state’s north hit 37.7C at 2pm ACST. The state’s previous top August maximum temperature of 36.5C was set in the same town on 12 August 1946.

Adelaide raced up to 24.4C just after 2pm, more than 8C above average.

Wineries in Italy, Greece, Spain battle extreme heat, lower production

This year’s wine harvest is in full swing on the perennially popular Greek island of Santorini, but for local winemaker Yiannis Paraskevopoulos, the prospects do not look good.

Extreme temperatures are threatening production of the indigenous Assyrtiko grape, critical to the island’s internationally recognized fine white wines. Last year’s output at Paraskevopoulos’s Gaia Wines was around one-third of 2022 production. This year’s harvest is estimated to fall to one-sixth of 2022 levels.

“We thought we had seen the worst. But no, we hadn’t: 2024 has gone beyond all expectations,” Paraskevopoulos told CNBC over the phone.

According to Gaia Wine’s 2023 estimates, Assyrtiko could face extinction by 2040. Now, that timeline looks optimistic.

“It brings the trend line even closer to the present,” Paraskevopoulos said.

Falling wine production

The Assyrtiko grape is not alone. Global wine production fell 10% in 2023 to 237.3 million hectolitres, the lowest level in over 60 years, as “extreme climactic conditions” weighed on harvests, according to the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV).

“We are absolutely affected by climate change,” a guide at Castello di Volpaia told CNBC during a recent tour of the 12th century winery in Tuscany, Italy.

Australia’s south-east to face strong winds, storms and hail after unseasonal heat across country

The Bureau of Meteorology has warned people to check their forecasts as “really intense warm conditions” expected to break temperature records in some places across central Australia give way to strong winds, storms and hail across the south-east of the country on Sunday.

“We are moving into a pretty active week, as we’d call it,” said Miriam Bradbury, senior meteorologist. “There are a number of weather systems moving through in southern Australia.”

The warnings come as Australia has experienced some of the warmest August temperatures on record, with much of central and eastern Australia recording temperatures 5-15C above average temperatures.

Temperatures at Oodnadatta, in the north of South Australia, reached 38.5C on Thursday, making it the hottest August day recorded at that location since 1946. Temperatures are forecast to reach 40C at Fitzroy Crossing in Western Australia, 35C in Alice Springs and 38C at Birdsville, Queensland over the weekend.

Romania faces extreme heat wave, severe weather alerts

Warnings were issued of a severe heat wave and atmospheric instability across Romania on Wednesday, with Bucharest facing temperatures up to 39 degrees Celsius over the next three days.

From Wednesday until Friday morning, the Romanian capital will experience high thermal discomfort, said the country's National Meteorological Administration (ANM). The temperature-humidity index is set to surpass 80 units.

The heat wave will shift southward on Thursday, with storms affecting the north and the west.

On Wednesday, Code Orange heat warnings were in effect for northern Crisana, Maramures, northwestern and central Transylvania, northeastern Moldova, and southern and central Muntenia.

Additionally, 11 counties in Banat, Crisana, Maramures and Transylvania are under a Code Yellow warning for atmospheric instability until Thursday night. Torrential rain, strong winds, thunderstorms and isolated hail are predicted, with water accumulation possibly exceeding 50 liters per square meter.

The ANM said that the heat wave will continue in southern and southeastern regions through the end of the week, spreading to much of the rest of the country.

Doctors have advised patients with chronic illnesses and the elderly to avoid prolonged sun exposure and limit caffeinated drinks during the heat wave.

South Australia smashes winter heat record again

For the second time in two days, South Australia has obliterated its highest temperature ever recorded in winter, with a maximum of 39.4°C recorded at Oodnadatta on Saturday afternoon.

• On Friday, South Australia recorded its hottest winter temperature on record, also at Oodnadatta, when the mercury hit 38.5°C. That beat the old record by a whopping two degrees.
• These sorts of records are usually exceeded in small increments, so a two-degree jump on the old mark was extraordinary.
• To exceed the new record by almost another full degree the next day is nothing short of remarkable.

India swelters in 50C heat as Delhi records hottest day

People across Northern India have been sweltering amid an unrelenting heatwave, as swathes of the region, including Delhi, have hit temperatures of up to 50C.

India’s weather department expects the high temperatures to persist across Northern India for the next few days as several states have been put on high alert.

The weather bureau noted on Tuesday that temperatures soared nine degrees above expected in many areas of capital Delhi, which reported temperatures of 49.9C.

Meanwhile, neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana also saw temperatures rise, with an area of Rajasthan topping the 50C mark on Tuesday.

Heatwaves are declared in India when temperatures climb 45 C.

Tens of millions of India’s 1.4 billion people are currently without running water.

Unlikely European country overrun with tourists escaping 43C heatwave

A Scandinavian country is seeing a “significant increase” in tourism as holiday makers escape the sweltering heatwave in southern Europe.

As temperatures in popular holiday destinations such as Italy, Spain and Greece soar to 43C more and more tourists are flocking to cooler destinations in the north.

Denmark, home to beautiful architecture, has become an increasingly popular choice for those looking to escape the scorching summer heat.

Hottest winter | Australia has recorded its hottest-ever winter temperature with Yampi Sound in the Kimberley region of Western Australia reaching 41.6C yesterday amid warm weather across the country. It also means there are alarmingly early signs of spring such as wattle buds in alpine Jindabyne and the smell of jasmine in suburban Melbourne.