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It's not just heat waves. This year, during February in Indiana (and across the Midwest US) we had severe long term polar winds. Absolute temps were around -5F

It's not just heat waves. This year, during February in Indiana (and across the Midwest US) we had severe long term polar winds. Absolute temps were around -5F (-20.5c) with dips down to -10f(-23c). And we're talking south-central Indiana here. And now, we're talking about the hottest June in history. Anchorage Alaska hit 90f(32c). And now, we have deadly heat waves across the Midwest and up the eastern seabed. We're losing the buffer of milder summers and milder winters, and gaining worsening extremes each year. The weather and climate is going to be the thing that kills people, more than wars, disease, and other selectors. And those with money can buy protection from it. The rest of us... well...

futureastronaut 7y ago
What we have is a normal summer heat wave being pumped up as a natural disaster. It's completely normal for all of the affected areas to experience humid, low-90-degree days in the summer. Pull up a weather map right now: The only 100-degree readings are in the lower plains, where they're expected in the summer. It's not even a remarkable heat wave, let alone an indicator of a spiraling climate. The climate is spiraling, but it's not helpful to conflate seasonal weather with climate. The troubling thing is that when the media and weather service cry wolf, the public is conditioned to not take their warnings seriously. In years past, the weather service would issue a Heat Advisory for a heat wave like this, not an Excessive Heat Warning, which is reserved for the most dangerous conditions. The warning was issued too early, with insufficient forecast confidence; temperatures have underperformed in the midwest. A warning for a truly dangerous heat wave will eventually go unheeded.
- sedgjh23 7y ago
  > Criteria for an Excessive Heat Warning is a heat index of 105 °F or greater that will last for 2 hours or more. Seems fine to me.
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]

futureastronaut 7y ago

What we have is a normal summer heat wave being pumped up as a natural disaster. It's completely normal for all of the affected areas to experience humid, low-90-degree days in the summer. Pull up a weather map right now: The only 100-degree readings are in the lower plains, where they're expected in the summer. It's not even a remarkable heat wave, let alone an indicator of a spiraling climate. The climate is spiraling, but it's not helpful to conflate seasonal weather with climate. The troubling thing is that when the media and weather service cry wolf, the public is conditioned to not take their warnings seriously. In years past, the weather service would issue a Heat Advisory for a heat wave like this, not an Excessive Heat Warning, which is reserved for the most dangerous conditions. The warning was issued too early, with insufficient forecast confidence; temperatures have underperformed in the midwest. A warning for a truly dangerous heat wave will eventually go unheeded.

sedgjh23 7y ago
> Criteria for an Excessive Heat Warning is a heat index of 105 °F or greater that will last for 2 hours or more. Seems fine to me.
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]