Temperatures in Spain in May 2022 – before the arrival of Zoe (European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts/CC BY 4.0)
For the first time, scientists have named a heat wave. They called it Zoe.
According to USA Today, Spanish scientists gave the nickname to a heat wave that raised temperatures to 112 degrees Fahrenheit (44.4 degrees Celsius) in Seville between July 24 and 27.
It is a new effort to alert the public to extreme temperatures and warn them of the dangers, José María Martín Olalla, an associate professor in the department of condensed matter physics at the University of Seville, told the newspaper.
Hurricanes have long been given human names, and in 2012 an unofficial practice of giving winter storms nicknames emerged in the United States. But Zoe is the first heat wave to get a name.
The name is an effort of the proMETEO Seville Project, an initiative of the Atlantic Council’s Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center, a Washington-based research center and non-profit organization.
Seville is the pilot location for the project, which aims to raise public awareness of extreme heat and advocate for efforts to reduce the dangers of heat waves.
Related: How Heat Waves Kill So Fast
Heat waves are not just hot days. They are defined by the Spanish State Meteorological Agency (AEMET) as episodes of at least three consecutive days during which a minimum of 10 percent of meteorological stations record maximum temperatures above the 95th percentile from July to August between 1971 and 2000. .
There is no single definition of a heat wave in the United States, but the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) uses a benchmark of at least two days when the daily minimum temperature, adjusted for humidity, it is above the 85th percentile for July and August. between 1981 and 2010.
Heat waves can be dangerous, especially for vulnerable populations such as the elderly and people who do manual labor outdoors. The World Health Organization (WHO) calculated in 2018 that between 2000 and 2016, the number of people exposed to extreme heat each year increased by 125 million.
In July, temperatures in England topped 104 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius) for the first time on record. This level of heat can be deadly, especially in regions that lack air conditioning or buildings built to withstand high temperatures.
The United States is also experiencing periods of extreme heat as the climate changes. On August 15, the nonprofit First Street Foundation released a report highlighting where extreme heat is likely to become more common in the coming decades.
Their model suggests that the Deep South, southern Arizona, and as far south as central California will experience some of the most extreme changes. For example, Miami-Dade County in Florida will likely experience 34 days above 103 degrees Fahrenheit (39.4 degrees Celsius) by 2053, compared to 7 days today.
Related: What are the effects of global warming?
While 8 million people in the United States this year will experience a heat index above 125 degrees Fahrenheit (51.6 degrees Celsius), a staggering 107 million are expected to experience those temperatures by 2053, the nonprofit found. profit.
(The heat index takes humidity into account to adjust how a given air temperature feels to the human body. The higher the humidity, the warmer a given air temperature will feel.)
Zoe may be the first named heat wave, but it won’t be the last. Authorities in Spain plan to alternate female and male names in reverse alphabetical order for future heat events.
By naming heat waves, proMETEO Sevilla hopes the public knows they should be more careful, reported USA Today.
In a heat wave, the WHO recommends staying cool by opening windows at night to let in cooler air and keep light out during the day.
Special care must be taken to ensure that infants, people over the age of 60, or people with chronic illnesses are kept cool.
This article was originally published by Live Science. Read the original article here.
Why was heat waves created?
A heat wave occurs when a system of high atmospheric pressure moves into an area and lasts for two or more days. This may interest you : Gotion High Tech will make battery cells in Germany in 2023 – electrive.com. In such a high-pressure system, air from the upper levels of our atmosphere is drawn down to the ground, where it is compressed and becomes hotter.
How are heat waves created? How are heat waves formed? Heat waves form when high-pressure air sits high in the air and causes warm air to sink. The sinking hot air creates a bubble that acts like a seal and traps heat close to the ground.
Why was heat waves made?
Heat waves are generally the result of trapped air. During the 2012 heat wave, air was trapped over much of North America for a long period of time. Unlike cycling around the world, he just stood still and heated up like air inside an oven.
What temperature is too hot for humans?
People often point to a study published in 2010 that estimated that a wet bulb temperature of 35 C, equivalent to 95 F at 100 percent humidity, or 115 F at 50 percent humidity, would be the safe upper limit, beyond which the human body can no longer cool itself by evaporating sweat from the body surface to. See the article : We are not particularly concerned about SHT Smart High-Tech’s (NGM:SHT B) Cash Burn Rate…
What is considered a dangerously hot temperature? High fevers are 103 degrees or higher. A potentially dangerous fever begins when your temperature is at least 104 degrees. If you have a fever of 105 degrees or higher, you need immediate medical attention.
Can humans survive 150 degrees?
Any human activity would stop. Even at temperatures 40 to 50 degrees below that, humans would be at high risk of heat stroke, which occurs when body temperature reaches 104 degrees. Read also : Exclusive: Watch the trailer for Amazon Prime Video’s ‘Untrapped: The Story of Lil Baby’. Communications are likely to be interrupted. The water would evaporate at a rapid rate.
What temperature is unbearable for humans?
It was widely believed that a wet bulb temperature of 35°C (equivalent to 95°F at 100% humidity or 115°F at 50% humidity) was the most a human could endure before they could no longer regulate your body temperature properly. , which could cause heat stroke or death from prolonged exposure.
What temperature is a heat wave?
Heat storms occur when the temperature reaches 100°F (37.8°C) for three or more consecutive days over a wide area (tens of thousands of square miles).
What does a heat wave do? Heat waves start when high pressure in the atmosphere moves and pushes hot air toward the ground. That air gets hotter as it gets compressed and we start to feel a lot hotter. The high pressure system pressing down on the ground expands vertically, forcing other weather systems to change course.
What is the minimum temperature for a heat wave?
There is no standard definition. In 1901, A. T. Burrows defined a heat wave (or as he called it, a heat wave) as 3 or more days in which the maximum temperature in the shade reached or exceeded 90 °F. Robinson et al.
