2023 U.S. heat wave

Wild weather has been roiling North America for the past few months, thanks in part to a strong El Niño that sent temperatures surging in 2023. The climate phenomenon fed atmospheric rivers drenching the West Coast and contributed to summer’s extreme heat in the South and Midwest and fall’s wet storms across the East. That strong El Niño is now starting to weaken and will likely be gone by late spring 2024. So, what does that mean for the months ahead – and for the 2024 hurricane season? What is El Niño? Let’s start with a quick look at what an El Niño is. El Niño and its opposite, La Niña, are climate patterns that influence weather around the world. El Niño tends to raise global temperatures, as we saw in 2023, while La Niña events tend to be slightly cooler. The two result in global temperatures fluctuating above and below the warming trend set by climate change. El Niño starts as warm water builds up a...

Picture two homes on the same street: one constructed in the 1950s and the other in the 1990s. There are no trees or other shade. The air conditioning units are identical, recently replaced, and operating perfectly. Identical thermostats are set at 82 degrees Fahrenheit (27.8 Celsius). When it’s 110 F (43.3 C) outside, the 1950s house will likely feel at least 10 F (5.6 C) warmer inside, even with the same air temperature. Why? The answer has to do with radiant heat. Radiant heat is what keeps you toasty warm at a campfire on a cold winter night. The fire doesn’t warm the air much; rather, like the Sun, most of the fire’s heat moves through invisible waves directly from the campfire to your body. In the radiant heat of the Arizona sun, the surface temperature of the uninsulated post-and-beam ceilings in my house, one of 41,000 built in Tucson during the post-World War II era, can reach over 100 F (37.8 C). The single-glazed steel windows register 122 F (50 C...

Scorching temperatures have put millions of Americans in danger during recent heat waves, with heat extremes hitting states from coast to coast. Phoenix hit 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 Celsius) or higher every day for over three weeks in July 2023. Other major cities, from Las Vegas to Miami, experienced relentless high temperatures, which residents described as “hell on earth.” While the evening news runs footage of miserable sunbathers and joggers dousing themselves with water, these images conceal a growing hidden crisis: the millions of older adults who are suffering behind closed doors. As researchers who study older adults’ health and climate change, we have found that two societal trends point to a potentially dire future: The population is getting older, and temperatures are rising. During the July 2023 heat wave, people gathered at the Justa Center, a day cooling center in downtown Phoenix for people age 55...