heat waves

In June of 2021, a record-breaking heat wave scorched western North America, killing more than 500 people in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Canada. Now, Oregon lawmakers are taking steps to lower the death toll next time around. The state Senate passed a bill Tuesday that would help provide air conditioners on an emergency basis for […]

Extreme weather events like storms, heat waves and floods are expected to increase as the climate crisis intensifies, but they have already cost Europe a significant amount in both lives and money.  A new analysis from the European Environment Agency (EEA) found that extreme weather events over the last 40 years had claimed 85,000 to […]

Temperatures have been rising in the Arctic and Antarctic twice as fast as the rest of the globe, and it is changing the dynamics of the region. Beavers, whose damming activity increases the melting of permafrost, have been seen making the Arctic their new home, the ice shelf holding the enormous Thwaites Glacier in place […]

The climate crisis has been called the “biggest global health threat of the 21st century,” and there is a growing awareness that it puts mental as well as physical health in jeopardy. Now, a first-of-its-kind study published in Scientific Reports Monday finds an association between the increased humidity caused by global heating and suicide. “It’s […]

By Cascade Tuholske, Chris Funk, and Kathryn Grace Extreme urban heat exposure has dramatically increased since the early 1980s, with the total exposure tripling over the past 35 years. Today, about 1.7 billion people, nearly one-quarter of the global population, live in urban areas where extreme heat exposure has risen, as we show in a […]

By Lorena Gonzalez and Nate Shelter World leaders are gathering in New York this week and next for the UN General Assembly meeting (UNGA76) and Climate Week. The two major events come at a critical moment for climate action. The world is facing an emergency. Nearly every person on the planet felt the impacts of […]

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in the US said on Friday that July 2021 was the hottest month ever recorded globally. “July is typically the world’s warmest month of the year, but July 2021 outdid itself as the hottest July and month ever recorded. This new record adds to the disturbing and disruptive […]

The Texas power grid is expected to see its highest power demand of 2021 this week with extreme heat expected there and across the country. The intense power demands raise concerns over the grid’s ability to keep the lights on after thousands were plunged into deadly blackouts in February following the failure of the gas […]