The Northern Hemisphere is experiencing record heat, a pattern that is cause for concern because July and August are set to have the warmest temperatures.
In the latest early-season heat wave to hit the Northern Hemisphere this month, millions of people are sweating under Japan’s worst heatwave in almost 150 years.
June was the hottest month on every continent north of the equator, increasing concerns about July and August, which are normally the hottest months of the year for Europe, North America, and Asia.
Scientists agree that human-caused climate change is already increasing the frequency and severity of heat waves.
Additionally, they are beginning earlier in the year.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has urged for an increase in nuclear power in response to rising concerns over air conditioner-related power shortages in Japan.
After the March 2011 tsunami that caused the Fukushima nuclear tragedy, the majority of the nation’s nuclear power reactors were shut down.
In the remaining three days of this week, the electrical demand and supply situation is projected to be the most challenging, a ministry of industry official told reporters.
On Wednesday, Tokyo reached temperatures above 35C for the fifth consecutive day, totaling the country’s hottest June since records began in 1875.
The temperature is not anticipated to drop below 30 degrees Celsius until early next week.
Throughout the globe, record temperatures
In just 20 years, the probability of record-breaking June temperatures in Western Europe has increased tenfold due to climate change, according to the Met Office of the United Kingdom.
Before the summer solstice, an unusually early and powerful heatwave moved from North Africa over Europe, bringing temperatures more characteristic of later in the summer.
In certain regions of Spain and France, temperatures have surpassed 10 degrees Celsius above the seasonal norm. For several consecutive days, nearly the entire nation of Spain was threatened by significant fire danger.
Many regions of Europe are also experiencing drought. In Italy, the worst drought in seven decades has caused saline water from the Adriatic Sea to pour back into the sluggish river Po, causing additional damage to crops already harmed by an early June heatwave.
“If there is no rain in the next ten to fifteen days, the crops that have not yet been destroyed will be lost,” said Giancarlo Mantovani, director of the organization Reclaiming the Po, which works to conserve the river.
“We are gradually losing our harvest,” he cautioned.
On the 15th of June, nearly one-third of the North American population was under some type of heat advisory.
This followed a prolonged heatwave in India and Pakistan in March and April, which was approximately 30 times more likely due to human-caused climate change.
The ‘heat island effect makes individuals susceptible
Extreme heat is fatal, particularly for the weak. As a result of the urban “heat island” effect, city dwellers are vulnerable because building materials absorb more heat.
Additionally, the heat can exacerbate air pollution and endanger food security.
However, there are effective strategies to cope and adapt, including the development of heat-health early warning systems and action plans.
Increases in the intensity of heat extremes have caused hundreds of local extinctions, as well as mass extinctions on land and in the water.
Recent research published in the journal Reviews of Geophysics warns that as a result of climate change, the hot and dry conditions conducive to wildfires are growing, rendering landscapes more susceptible to burning more frequently and severely.
