Heat alert for 80 million people in the US 0:46
(CNN) --
The third heat wave of the still young summer is scorching the southern United States, and "it will get worse ... before it gets better," warns the National Weather Service (NWS).
More than 65 million people in 16 states were under a heat watch, with heat indexes exceeding 100 degrees Fahrenheit expected in cities like Dallas;
St.Louis;
Memphis, Tennessee;
Little Rock, Arkansas;
Birmingham, Ala.;
Atlanta;
and Raleigh, North Carolina.
The most recent heat wave continues a trend that has occurred in recent weeks in all the continents of the northern hemisphere, and that will become more frequent with climate change induced by man, experts from the Climate Change Service said Thursday. of Copernicus.
Heatwaves, wildfires and more: what our world could look like with 1.5 degrees warmer
Above-normal temperatures were forecast to soar into the 90s and 100s on Thursday from the central and southern Plains to the southeast.
Coupled with the uncomfortably high humidity, it felt like 43-46 degrees in places.
And above-normal temperatures are forecast well into next week across the South, well above the four-day average.
Dallas has already seen several days above 38 degrees and the trend is expected to continue through at least the middle of the week, putting this period in the running for the city's longest consecutive streak of 38 degrees since 2011.
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The question on everyone's mind is when will this heat go away?
The short answer is...not any time soon.
In fact, it is going to get worse this weekend before it gets better.
#txwx pic.twitter.com/zxoU4YgceP
— NWS Fort Worth (@NWSFortWorth) July 7, 2022
"Just as worrying is that low temperatures will remain very warm overnight, providing little relief from sweltering daytime conditions," the Weather Prediction Center said.
More than 100 records for low and hot temperatures could be tied or broken over the next three mornings, with lows between 21 and 27 degrees.
Memphis and Tulsa, Oklahoma, are some of the places where overnight lows are expected to stay above 27 degrees.
"Excessive heat is especially dangerous for vulnerable populations," warns the prediction center.
Heat is the number one cause of weather-related deaths in the United States, and people in places where temperatures are set to rise should be on the lookout for heat-related ailments such as heat cramps, exhaustion and heat stroke .
The heat can even kill.
Excessive heat can also damage crops, injure or kill livestock, and increase the risk of wildfires.
Plus, it can lead to power outages, as increased demand for air conditioning strains the power grid, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Global heat waves are a consequence of climate warming
The latest US heat wave joins a series of global heat waves linked to climate warming, according to the Climate Change Service's monthly Copernicus report.
This year, the planet has experienced the third-hottest June on record, as early-summer heat waves affected parts of Europe, Asia and North America, according to the report.
🌡️ June 2022 was the second warmest June in Europe at about 1.6ºC above average and the third warmest June on record globally at around 0.31ºC above the 1991-2020 average.
Read more about the strong June #heatwaves here: https://t.co/Vt9lGccqT8 pic.twitter.com/z5TAMDvz9B
— Copernicus ECMWF (@CopernicusECMWF) July 7, 2022
In the regions where these heat waves occurred — non-tropical land areas of the Northern Hemisphere — June temperatures warmed about twice as fast as they have globally since the 1970s, the report says.
Dozens of heat records were broken in the past month in the United States, Western Europe, Japan and northern China.
The eastern and central US heated up for much of June amid back-to-back heat waves.
The persistent heat dome set hundreds of records from the Plains to the south.
A town in southern France surpassed 40 degrees Celsius on June 16, the first time mainland France has reached that mark.
Days later, several locations across the country broke temperature records in June, with some even setting all-time records.
Japan ended the month with a record-breaking heat wave that also included the country's earliest 40-degree temperature, a record that had been set in 1875.
Heat waves in Europe and Asia are exceptional but not unexpected, according to the Copernicus report.
"Consistent with the evidence presented in the latest assessment report (by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, or IPCC), there is an increase in the frequency and intensity of heat waves and that this The increase, according to the IPCC, can be attributed to human-induced climate change and is projected to continue into the future as the climate continues to warm globally," the Copernicus report states.
"Heat waves similar to those seen this year are expected to become more frequent and severe in the coming years, both in Europe and elsewhere," said Carlo Buontempo, director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service.
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