Climate Change Drove Western Heat Wave’s Extreme Records: Analysis

"A rapid analysis of last week’s record-breaking heat found that it would have been virtually impossible without the influence of human-caused climate change."

"The extraordinary heat wave that scorched the Pacific Northwest last week would almost certainly not have occurred without global warming, an international team of climate researchers said Wednesday.

Temperatures were so extreme — including readings of 116 degrees Fahrenheit in Portland, Ore., and a Canadian record of 121 in British Columbia — that the researchers had difficulty saying just how rare the heat wave was. But they estimated that in any given year there was only a 0.1 percent chance of such an intense heat wave occurring.

“Although it was a rare event, it would have been virtually impossible without climate change,” said Geert Jan van Oldenborgh of the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, who conducted the study with 26 other scientists, part of a collaborative group called World Weather Attribution."

Henry Fountain reports for the New York Times July 7, 2021.

SEE ALSO:

"Study: Northwest Heat Wave Impossible Without Climate Change" (AP)

"A Week After the Pacific Northwest Heat Wave, Study Shows it Was ‘Almost Impossible’ Without Global Warming" (Inside Climate News)

"Pacific Northwest Heat Wave 'Virtually Impossible' Without Climate Change - Research" (Reuters)

"Pacific Northwest Heat Wave Was ‘Virtually Impossible’ Without Climate Change, Scientists Find" (Washington Post)