Climate change has added more than 40 days of extreme heat this year, study finds

A new report released by Climate Central and World Weather Attribution looked at last year’s weather patterns, which included everything from droughts and wildfires to storms and extreme heat.

The report finds that climate change is linked to the addition of 41 more days of extreme heat around the world in 2024. Not only have these extreme temperatures led to an increase in other intense weather events, but the most vulnerable regions of the world in the extreme heat received the brunt of it.

A look back at extreme weather conditions

Throughout 2024, temperatures have been higher than ever. These high temperatures also set the stage for a number of other severe weather events.

The report found that El Niño was responsible for many of the severe weather events occurring in early 2024. However, taking a closer look at the year as a whole, experts found that climate change had more influence on severe weather phenomena such as the El Niño phenomenon. climate model.

Researchers closely analyzed 26 weather events occurring in 2024, and among them, climate change was responsible for more than 3,700 deaths and the displacement of millions of people around the world. It’s also important to note that more than 200 weather events met the researchers’ severity criteria this year, and they expect the total number of climate change-related deaths to be even higher than they have reported.

Due to higher temperatures, droughts and wildfires in the Amazon rainforest and Pantanal wetlands, as well as heavy rains and flooding in Kathmandu, Dubai, Rio Grande and the southern Appalachians, have been among the world’s greatest concerns.

The more global temperatures rise, the more researchers expect these severe weather events to negatively impact consumers’ daily lives.

Looking towards 2025

In addition to looking back at last year’s weather conditions and the impact of climate change, the researchers also set goals for the new year to help improve conditions.

Here is their list:

• A faster shift away from fossil fuels: As the leading cause of global warming and extreme weather worldwide, the shift to renewable energy will bring benefits and improvements to all consumers.

• Early Warning Improvements: Warning people in advance when they need to evacuate in anticipation of severe weather is essential to ensure as many people as possible are safe. Researchers hope that all regions of the world will continue to update their warning systems so that all consumers know what is happening and what they should do in plenty of time before severe weather occurs.

• Real-time reporting of heat-related deaths: When local and national media are vigilant in reporting heat-related deaths, they communicate the severity of heat to all consumers in that area. The more the media do this in real time, the more consumers will be informed of the risks of extreme heat.

• Funding for developing countries: Many of the world’s most vulnerable communities are hardest hit by climate change and extreme weather. It is important that these areas are well equipped to deal with the consequences of bad weather.