{"id":41239,"date":"2023-07-27T14:06:27","date_gmt":"2023-07-27T18:06:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ifintechworld.com\/news\/july-2023-is-the-hottest-month-ever-recorded-blame-global-warming-and-el-nino\/"},"modified":"2023-07-27T14:06:30","modified_gmt":"2023-07-27T18:06:30","slug":"july-2023-is-the-hottest-month-ever-recorded-blame-global-warming-and-el-nino","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ifintechworld.com\/?p=41239","title":{"rendered":"July 2023 is the hottest month ever recorded. Blame global warming and El Ni\u00f1o."},"content":{"rendered":"
July isn\u2019t over yet and already it\u2019s set to be the hottest month ever recorded on Earth.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s according to at least three different organizations that made announcements Thursday: the World Meteorological Organization, the European Union\u2013funded Copernicus Climate Change Service and Leipzig University in Germany.<\/p>\n
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All three say the combined temperature data for July so far and projections for continued extreme heat in the final days of the month position this July as the hottest month ever \u2014 and by a wide margin. <\/p>\n
Related:<\/strong> \u2018The hottest I ever remember\u2019: Phoenix scorches above 110 for a record 19th straight day<\/p>\n
A release from Leipzig University and another from the WMO and the Copernicus Climate Change Service, known as C3S, said July temperatures were about 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.2 degrees Fahrenheit) above preindustrial levels. That rise is tied to human-caused global warming and includes a boost to temperatures from El Ni\u00f1o, the recurring weather phenomenon whose latest impact, scientists say, is only beginning. <\/p>\n
Related<\/strong>: Here comes El Nino: It\u2019s early, likely to be sloppy and add even more heat to a warming world<\/p>\n
Read:<\/strong> Already roasting in extreme heat? 2024 could be even hotter, NASA scientists warn.<\/p>\n
More than\u00a0100 million Americans\u00a0have\u00a0routinely been under\u00a0heat warnings over the past few weeks.\u00a0Globally, July is the hottest month on average in any given year, but even regular hot spots like Phoenix, Ariz., and parts of Texas have suffered under unrelenting strings of days when the mercury has been well above 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and \u201creal-feel\u201d factors including humidity make conditions even more brutal.<\/p>\n
Phoenix, where residents have\u00a0received third-degree burns\u00a0from sidewalks and pavement, will be the\u00a0first major city in the U.S. to average 100 degrees\u00a0for an entire month. It has seen a record 26 days \u2014 and counting \u2014 with highs above 115 degrees.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Notably, July\u2019s global temperature gain matches the overall atmospheric warming limit that most countries have pledged to maintain under the voluntary Paris climate accord, a 2015 pact that takes aim at climate change caused by the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil \n CL00, \n +1.10%<\/bg-quote> \n and gas \n NG00, \n -4.90%<\/bg-quote>.<\/span>\n <\/p>\n
July\u2019s temperatures do not mean the world has passed that point permanently \u2014 overall, the planet has warmed by about 1.2 degrees Celsius, or 2.2 degrees Fahrenheit, since preindustrial times \u2014 but extremes like this month, which followed a sizzling June, tell scientists that Earth is likely to reach that alarming number without immediate and significant reductions in emissions of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane.<\/p>\n
Related: <\/strong>What if heat waves were named like hurricanes? New push draws mega insurers, Athens and Miami mayors, Red Cross and dozens more stakeholders<\/p>\n
\u201cThe extreme weather which has affected many millions of people in July is unfortunately the harsh reality of climate change and a foretaste of the future,\u201d said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas in a press release. \u201cThe need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is more urgent than ever before. Climate action is not a luxury but a must.\u201d<\/p>\n
July also follows the planet\u2019s hottest June on record, making for dangerous conditions for many parts of the world this summer.<\/p>\n
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\n \u201c<\/span>\u2018Climate action is not a luxury, but a must.\u2019\u201d<\/span>\n <\/p>\n
There is no doubt that extreme heat is already harming people around the world. So far in 2023, heat waves across three continents in the Northern Hemisphere\u00a0have broken\u00a0records, made\u00a0many people sick\u00a0and caused\u00a0deaths\u00a0from heat stroke, heat exhaustion, dehydration and related illnesses \u2014 and this\u00a0extreme heat is likely to continue\u00a0through August. <\/p>\n
Heat waves, sometimes called silent killers, are already the\u00a0leading cause\u00a0of weather-related deaths in the U.S. and will intensify in frequency and severity as human-caused climate change increases global temperatures. Leading public-health journals and medical organizations have said climate change poses the biggest threat to public health in the coming years.<\/p>\n
And because\u00a0high healthcare costs already burden some U.S. families more than others, recent climate-change research has focused on heat and health.<\/p>\n
A report from the public-policy research group Center for American Progress\u00a0estimates that extreme heat will result in $1 billion in additional healthcare-related costs in the U.S. this summer alone.<\/p>\n
That group projects that excessive heat will prompt roughly 235,000 emergency-department visits and more than 56,000 hospital admissions for conditions related to increased body temperature this summer.<\/p>\n
Read:<\/strong> The cost of extreme heat in the U.S.? 235,000 ER visits and $1 billion in healthcare bills this summer alone.<\/p>\n
Last year in Europe \u2014 during the continent\u2019s hottest summer on record \u2014 an estimated\u00a061,600 people died from heat-related causes, another indication that heat-preparedness strategies are falling short.\u00a0Last year\u2019s extremes in parts of Europe are being followed by another round of high temperatures this year.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the specifics of this run of extreme temperatures that have observers on alert. High nighttime temperatures \u2014 a hallmark of\u00a0human-caused\u00a0climate\u00a0change, according to some scientists \u2014 makes the heat even\u00a0more dangerous,\u00a0because it deprives our bodies of the chance to cool down if air conditioning is not available.<\/p>\n
A global-warming wake-up call<\/h2>\n
Whether it\u2019s because they\u2019re experiencing the brutality of so many extremely hot days or paying greater attention to how it affects people who work outside or who can\u2019t afford air conditioning, Americans have stepped up their level of concern about the heat.<\/p>\n
A survey in\u00a0the spring of 2023 by Yale University\u2019s Program on Climate Change Communication found that 72% of Americans are at least \u201ca little\u201d worried about the effects of extreme heat in their local area. And extreme heat tops the list of worries about climate impacts such as drought, flooding and water shortages. <\/p>\n
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Additionally, 75% of Americans think that global warming is affecting extreme heat at least \u201ca little,\u201d including 42% who say global warming is affecting it \u201ca lot.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
According to the Yale researchers, \u201cit\u2019s important for communicators to emphasize the connection between\u00a0climate\u00a0change and extreme weather events (e.g., heat waves, wildfires) and how these events directly impact people\u2019s health, the economy and public infrastructure. Experience with\u00a0climate\u00a0impacts can be a powerful teacher.\u201d<\/p>\n
Research indicates that\u00a0hot, dry days\u00a0have been more likely than other extreme weather events to cause people to say they have experienced global warming.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t miss<\/strong>: Why you, and your wallet, must get used to heat waves<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n