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The associated press
Seth Borenstein and Melina Walling
Published July 6, 2023 • read for 3 minutes
The San Antonio fire spreads uphill west of Petaluma, Ca., Friday, June 30, 2023. The entire planet was sweltering during the two unofficial hottest days in human records on Monday and Tuesday, according to University of Maine scientists of the Climate Reanalyzer project. The unofficial heat records come after months of unusually hot conditions due to climate change and a strong El Nino event. Photo by Kent Porter /THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
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The Earth’s average temperature remained at an all-time high on Wednesday, after two days in which the planet hit unofficial records. It is the latest marker in a series of climate change-driven extremes.
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The average global temperature was 17.18 degrees Celsius (62.9 degrees Fahrenheit), according to the University of Maine’s Climate Reanalyzer, a tool that uses satellite data and computer simulations to gauge the state of the world. That tied for Tuesday’s record of 17.18 degrees Celsius (62.9 Fahrenheit) and came after a previous record of 17.01 degrees Celsius (62.6 degrees Fahrenheit) was set on Monday.
Scientists have been warning for months that 2023 could see record heat as human-induced climate change, largely caused by the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas and oil, warmed the atmosphere. They also noted that La Nina, the natural cooling of the ocean that had counteracted that warming, gave way to El Nino, the reverse phenomenon characterized by warming oceans. The North Atlantic has seen record warmth this year.
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“A record like this is further evidence for the now massively supported thesis that global warming is pushing us into a hotter future,” said Stanford University climate scientist Chris Field, who was not part of the calculations.
University of Maine climate scientist Sean Birkle, creator of the Climate Reanalyzer, said the daily numbers are unofficial but a useful snapshot of what’s happening in a warming world.
While the numbers are not an official government report, “it gives us an indication of where we are now,” said Sarah Kapnick, chief scientist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. And NOAA indicated it will take the numbers into account for its official record calculations.
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While the data set used for the unofficial record only goes back to 1979, Kapnick said given other data, the world is likely experiencing its warmest day in “several hundred years that we’ve experienced.”
Scientists generally use much longer measurements — months, years, decades — to track global warming. But the daily highs are an indication that climate change is reaching uncharted territory.
As of Wednesday, 38 million Americans were under some kind of heat warning, Kapnick said.
That included communities not used to feeling such heat. In North Grenville, Ontario, the city turned ice hockey rinks into cooling centers as temperatures hit 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius) on Wednesday, with humidity making it feel like 100.4 degrees (38 degrees Celsius).
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“I feel like we’re living in a tropical country now,” said city spokeswoman Jill Sturdy. “It just hits you. The air is so thick.’
With many places seeing temperatures near 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8 degrees Celsius), the average temperature records may not seem very hot. But Tuesday’s global high was nearly 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit (one full degree Celsius) higher than the 1979-2000 average, which is already above 20th and 19th century averages.
High temperature records were surpassed this week in Quebec and Peru. Beijing reported nine consecutive days last week when temperatures exceeded 35 degrees Celsius. Cities across the U.S. from Medford, Oregon to Tampa, Florida, are hovering at all-time highs, said Zack Taylor, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
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Alan Harris, director of emergency management for Florida’s Seminole County, said last year the county already exceeded the number of days they activated if their extreme weather plan was activated — something that happens when the heat index reaches 108 Fahrenheit or taller.
“It’s been pretty scorching hot for the past week, and it now looks like it could go on for another two weeks,” Harris said.
According to the National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center, heat advisories in the U.S. include parts of western Oregon, inland northern California, central New Mexico, Texas, Florida and the coastal regions of Carolina. Excessive heat warnings continue in southern Arizona and California.
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The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage is supported by several private foundations. Read more about AP’s climate initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
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