City hot? You ain’t felt anything yet

New Delhi: Around 44 cities worldwide, are likely to face the worst levels of dangerous heat stress under global warming and could experience in future twice the average number of extreme hot days a year, new research has suggested.

The study has predicted increases in the frequency of deadly heat waves worldwide with six South Asian cities among the top ten facing the highest heat stress burden, a measure that combines the temperature, humidity and the population exposed to the heat.

The findings suggest that Calcutta, which experienced on average 16 days of extreme heat per year between 1979 and 2005, is likely to face 44 days of similar heat in the coming years or decades.

This doubling is projected to occur, when the average global temperature rises to 1.5°C above what it was in the late 19th century, or the pre-industrial era. Climate studies show that the average global temperature between 1986 and 2005 had already reached about 0.8°C above the pre-industrial level.Read more…