Much of India experiences both extreme heat and extreme air pollution, as seen in this photo of the Akshardham Hindu temple. Days with both are going to increase.
Sajjad Hussain/AFP via Getty Images
In South Asia, days with both extreme heat and extreme pollution are expected to increase 175% by 2050. Separately, the health effects are bad; together they will likely be worse.
Plenty of warm and humid places – including Miami – are seeing the spread of SARS-CoV-2.
Jeff Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Winter is flu season – could it be coronavirus season as well? The research is mixed, but other factors besides temperature and humidity have more to do with the spread of SARS-CoV-2.
Heat increases the risk of death, but the question of how much has been a topic of debate.
From shutterstock.com
A warming climate leads to more heat-related deaths. The fact some research is showing the opposite indicates we need to refine the way we measure heat-related mortality.
Even without air conditioning, there are still many things you can do to prepare for extreme heat and stay comfortable on hot days.
fizkes/Shutterstock
Air conditioning isn’t the answer for everyone, especially for residents of the less affluent – and often hotter – suburbs of our big cities. But there are other ways to make hot days more bearable.
New research shows people will be more likely to die from accidents and injuries as the climate gets warmer.
From shutterstock.com
A new US study has found warmer temperatures will lead to more deaths from injury, for example in transport accidents, drownings, assaults and suicides. But what does this mean for Australia?
Older people’s bodies can’t regulate their temperature as well as younger people’s.
From shutterstock.com
Hot weather can make chronic health conditions, most commonly experienced by older people, more difficult to manage. So it’s a good idea to look out for older friends and relatives this summer.
Recent marathons in Qatar were run during the night to avoid the hottest temperatures.
AAP/Noushad Thekkayil
The marathons in next year’s Tokyo Olympics have been moved to Sapporo, because of concerns around Tokyo’s extreme heat. The move, though controversial, will reduce risks to the athletes’ health.
The first half of 2019 is the equal hottest on record and summer is set to be a scorcher.
Chayathorn Lertpanyaroj/Shutterstock
Average temperatures in Australia are already high by international standards, but what happens when they continue to rise? How much heat can our bodies withstand?
During a heatwave in late 2018, Cairns temperatures topped 35°C nine days in a row and sensors at some points in the CBD recorded 45°C.
The world’s fastest-growing cities are in the tropics. They are highly exposed to climate change, especially as urban heat island effects and humidity magnify the impacts of increasing heatwaves.
Green roofs, like this one in Sao Paulo, Brazil, have many benefits.
Leonardo Ikeda/Shutterstock
South Africa needs to develop low-cost housing solutions that are inherently comfortable and environmentally sustainable. Green roofs could be part of these solutions.
Climate change, together with other ecological pressures, may well undo the gains we have made in health.
from www.shutterstock.com
Do you have a question about climate change? This collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre gives you the chance to ask – and we’ll provide expert answers.
Experimentally heated quartzite at different stages of heating.
Bentsen and Wurz, 2019, Journal of Field Archaeology
Air conditioning changed both building design and people’s active management of home temperatures. A return to houses designed for our climate can keep us comfortable and cut energy use and emissions.
Parts of Australia have broken multiple heat records over the past week.
Vicki/Flickr
We take salt water for granted, and often overlook how important it is for our own lives and in sustaining a healthy planet.
Thomas Johnson drinks Gatorade at a ‘Beat the Heat’ event the company sponsored in Fort Worth, Texas, June 10, 2013.
Brandon Wade/Invision for Gatorade/AP Photo
Yes, it’s hot outside. And football practice is starting for thousands of kids. But coaches and parents should be careful about tellings kids to drink more water. That has been deadly.