100 Degree Days Are New York’s Future
It was 100°F yesterday in NYC and will be today as well. The heat wave is unprecedented, although there have been similar ones over the last decade. Those have come and gone. Climatologists say that the 100-degree summer is New York’s future.
Over time, although New York will look nothing like Phoenix, hot air will race across the country from the West. It will reach the East Coast, where Atlantic temperatures rise almost every year.
New York is not the only place in the US where heat domes have become more common. The number of days when the areas boil has increased in the Northwest.
“Heat dome” is not a scientific term. However, it describes a high-pressure system that stays in one place for days. Heat and humidity build. “Heat waves like this are so directly connected to the climate crisis and climate change, and it’s because of how we’ve been burning fossil fuels and cutting down forests for so long and increasing the concentration of heat-trapping gasses in the atmosphere,” Jennifer Francis, a climate scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Center, recently commented to the AP.
Fossil fuel use around the world continues to grow so much that international agreements to stop the increase have failed. Another byproduct is the global temperature, which has set records in four of the last five years. Many scientists expect this year to set another record.
The effects of fossil fuel use have spread much beyond New York City. Over the course of last March, heat records fell across much of the West. This was followed last month by a record heat wave in Europe and the UK. This is the second year of blazing temperatures in that region.
These regions are unprepared. The problem may be the worst in Europe. Very few homes and businesses have air conditioning. The problem in the New York area is that electricity use strains the grid. There have been deep concerns over the last week that blackouts could occur in the city and the surrounding region.
The high-pressure phenomenon and the factors that cause it continue to worsen. That means more 100-degree days in New York City.
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