Extreme High Temperatures and Climate Disasters Hit Globally in July 2024

TapTechNews August 15th news, in July 2024, many places around the world suffered from extreme high temperatures and a series of climate disasters, breaking many historical records.

According to the data of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the global average temperature in July this year set a new high in 175 years, which is 1.21 degrees Fahrenheit higher than the 20th-century average temperature (59.64 degrees Fahrenheit). In the United States, the average temperature in July also ranked 11th in the past 130 years. Among them, 19 states experienced the hottest July on record, with California and New Hampshire being the hottest, and Las Vegas and Washington D.C. even set local record high temperatures. Las Vegas set a historical high temperature of 120.2 degrees Fahrenheit on July 7, while Washington D.C. exceeded 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit for four consecutive days, tying the record for consecutive high-temperature days.

A global extreme high temperature analysis by the Climate Center shows that climate change caused by human activities is the main reason for these powerful heat waves. From June 16th to 24th, more than 60% of the global population was affected by extreme high temperatures.

The hot weather also aggravated other extreme climate events. The increase of warm and humid air created conditions for the formation and strengthening of tropical storms, and Hurricane Beryl became the earliest hurricane to reach Category 5 intensity on record on July 1. In addition, the high temperature led to aggravated drought and triggered large-scale wildfires. More than 13,000 people were forced to evacuate near Oroville, California due to the Thompson Fire from July 2nd to 3rd, and the Parker Fire that broke out on July 24th became the fourth-largest fire in the state's history, burning an area of more than 400,000 acres.

According to statistics, by the end of July, 19 weather and climate disasters that caused losses of more than 1 billion US dollars had occurred in the United States this year, second only to the same period in 2023. These disasters have caused at least 149 deaths and economic losses of more than 49.6 billion US dollars. Since the NOAA began to record in 1980, a total of 395 climate and weather disasters have occurred in the United States, with a total loss of up to 2.77 trillion US dollars (TapTechNews note: currently about 19.79 trillion RMB).